Gov. Ron DeSantis named former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner to the Florida Board of Governors, supervising the State University System, his office announced in a news release Wednesday evening.
Renner joins former Speaker Jose Oliva and former lawmaker Manny Diaz Jr. as former legislators on the board.
Renner served in the Legislature for nine years after winning a special election in 2015. The GOP lawmaker represented part of Northeast Florida.
Renner, who term limited out of the House in November, is an attorney for Nelson Mullins and a Navy veteran.
After graduating from the University of Florida law school in 1994 he served as a state prosecutor.
Other GOP figures have landed in higher education, including Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez as interim president at Florida International University, former House Majority Leader Adam Hasner as president at Florida Atlantic University, and former House Speaker Richard Corcoran as president at New College of Florida.
The appointment effective April 15 must be approved by the Senate.
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–Jay Waagmeester, Florida Phoenix
