Arkansas Department of Education Commissioner Johnny Key has appointed two new assistant commissioners, the department announced Wednesday.
Eric Saunders, who currently serves as the assistant commissioner for fiscal and administrative services at the department, has been appointed as the assistant commissioner for research and technology, Department of Education spokesman Kimberly Friedman said in a statement. Saunders will transition to his new role July 1 and will replace Cody Decker, who has been hired as the director of the Office of Institutional Research at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, the department said.
Key also appointed Greg Rogers, who will retain his title as the chief fiscal officer, as the new assistant commissioner for fiscal and administrative services, Friedman said. Rogers also takes on his new role July 1.
In the research and technology department, Saunders will oversee the agency's data systems, the data quality unit, technology initiatives and the agency's technical support unit, Friedman said.
Prior to Saunders joining the department in July 2014, he served as the East End School District superintendent in Bigelow for three years. In that role, he led an approved increased millage campaign, wrote grants for the district and community, and supervised multiple building projects.
Saunders also served as principal at Lavaca High School from 2006 to 2011, and before that worked as a math teacher and coach at Gentry High School, according to the department. He earned a bachelor's degree in secondary education from Oklahoma State University, and a master of education and doctorate in education from Harding University in Searcy, Friedman said.
As the assistant commissioner for fiscal and administrative services, Rogers will be tasked with overseeing fund distribution to public schools, Child Nutrition Unit daily operations, school finance and student management software and the fiscal distress unit.
Rogers joined the agency in 2012, when he took on the role as chief fiscal officer to oversee the Department of Education's financial operations, Friedman said. He started in state government as an individual income tax auditor for the Department of Finance and Administration and was promoted over the years to other positions.
Before moving to the Department of Education, Rogers served as the Arkansas Department of Human Services budget manager in 2004 before moving back to the Department of Finance and Administration as a senior budget analyst later that year, Friedman said. Rogers provided budget assistance to several state agencies and named assistant administrator for the Office of Administrative Services in 2011.
Rogers earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia and a master's degree in international business from Salem International University in Salem, W.Va.
