Sarah Sanders taps DeSantis aide for top Arkansas education job

Arkansas Gov.-elect Sarah Sanders has nominated a Florida Department of Education official for secretary of education as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’s influence in conservative education policy grows.

Sanders, who served as White House press secretary for then-President Donald Trump and was elected governor of Arkansas in November, has tapped Florida Department of Education Chancellor Jacob Oliva as Arkansas’s next secretary of education.

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“I am proud to announce that Jacob Oliva will be my nominee for Secretary of Education,” Sanders, the daughter of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, wrote in a tweet Thursday. “He is a leader who has proven himself in the fight to empower parents and implement bold education reforms under Governor Ron DeSantis and we are ready to transform Arkansas education.”

Sanders’s nomination of Oliva is the latest example of DeSantis’s influence on education policy in Republican politics. Over the past year, the Florida governor has spearheaded a series of legislative and executive initiatives, including restricting critical race theory in public schools, prohibiting classroom discussion on sexual orientation and gender identity through third grade, and enacting a sweeping parental rights act.

Oliva’s resume includes stints as an elementary school teacher and later as superintendent in Flagler County, Florida. He had served as chancellor since 2017.

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In a statement reported by Politico, the Florida Department of Education praised Oliva, saying, “For the last five years, Senior Chancellor Oliva has been a dedicated member of the Florida Department of Education’s leadership team, including serving as interim education commissioner, and his work has helped launch Florida as the Education State.”