WASHINGTON, D.C. — Earlier this week President Donald Trump announced his intention to nominate Mitchell “Mitch” Zais as the deputy secretary of education.
Zais previously served as South Carolina’s superintendent of education, and served as Newberry College’s president for 10 years.
According to the press release from the Office of the Press Secretary, during Zais’s time as the secretary of education, the budget was reduced while on-time high school graduation rates increased every year to an all-time high. The number of public charter schools increased 78 percent, the number of public charter school students increased 155 percent, and the number of students taking online courses grew 130 percent.
During his time as president of Newberry College, the college was recognized for the first time by U.S. News as one of “America’s Best Colleges.”
Zais served for 31 years as an infantry soldier in the U.S. Army, retiring as a brigadier general. He holds a B.S. in engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, an M.A. degree in military history, plus M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in organizational behavior and social psychology from the University of Washington. He served as South Carolina Commissioner of Higher Education and is a recipient of the Order of the Palmetto, the states’ highest civilian award.