Mitchell Zais

Most recently, Mr. Zais served as South Carolina's elected State Superintendent of Education. During his term in office, the department's 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. Prior to that, he served 10 years as president of Newberry College in South Carolina. The College was recognized for the first time by U.S. News as one of "America's Best Colleges." He served 31 years as an infantry soldier in the U.S. Army. He retired as a Brigadier General. Mr. Zais 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.