Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders appointed Gary Arnold, a former administrator at Little Rock Christian Academy, to the State Board of Education on November 1, 2024. Sanders praised Arnold for his passion for education, belief in student potential, and commitment to faith during a press conference announcing the appointment.
Arnold is known for advocating school choice and was part of the rules and regulations task force that implemented the LEARNS Act of 2023. The act established the Education Freedom Account EFA program, a taxpayer-funded school voucher system set to be available to all Arkansas students by the 2025-26 school year, with 14,297 students participating this year.
Arnold will represent EFA participants on the board, which has a term that expires in 2027, succeeding Steve Sutton, who resigned last year.
The governor’s communications director, Sam Dubke, explained that the delay in appointing Sutton’s successor was due to a careful search for the right candidate to enhance student success.
Arnold is Governor Sanders’ third appointee to the nine-member education board, following Ken Bragg and Leigh Keener. Both Bragg and Keener played significant roles in the LEARNS Act, which also raised the minimum annual teacher salary to $50,000 and mandated literacy screenings for K-12 students.
In his acceptance, Arnold highlighted the dynamic nature of education, drawing a parallel to Mark Twain’s experiences as a steamboat pilot, emphasizing the importance of adapting to changes in the educational landscape.
Sanders expressed confidence in Arnold and Education Secretary Jacob Oliva’s ability to address challenges within the school system.
Arnold previously served as the head of school at Little Rock Christian Academy from 2007 to 2023 and is currently the director of Head of School Certification at The Council on Educational Standards and Accountability, as well as the founder of NextEd, a consulting company for Christian schools.