State senator takes job at startup program

Sanders will stay on in Legislature

Sen. David Sanders, R-Little Rock, is the new director of Innovate Arkansas
Sen. David Sanders, R-Little Rock, is the new director of Innovate Arkansas

Sen. David Sanders, R-Little Rock, is the new director of Innovate Arkansas, a program funded through a state grant to help fledgling technology investors and entrepreneurs, Winrock International announced Thursday.

Inspired by the late Arkansas Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller, Winrock International's mission is to empower the disadvantaged, increase economic opportunity and sustain natural resources across the globe, according to its website.

The Arkansas Economic Development Commission has provided about $1.4 million a year to Innovate Arkansas since the initiative began in 2008, said Jeff Moore, a spokesman for the commission.

Moore said that Winrock International has been the sole administrator for Innovate Arkansas since 2008, adding that Winrock was the only responder to the initial request for proposal for the program, as well the only responder to the subsequent request for proposal in 2016.

Sanders could not be reached for comment by telephone, email or text Thursday afternoon.

Asked whether Sanders will resign as a state senator to take the state-funded job, Winrock International spokesman David Anderson said late Thursday afternoon in a written statement that "after a due diligence process that included inquiries with the state Ethics Commission and relevant state agencies, it was determined that he can continue his service as a state senator."

Anderson declined to disclose Sanders' salary, saying that "Winrock International does not comment on employee salaries."

Sanders' salary as a senator is $40,188 a year, in addition to per diem and mileage expenses that he's eligible to collect for attending legislative committee meetings.

Sanders, 42, has been director of institutional advancement for Baptist Preparatory School in Little Rock for more than 11 years.

He has served in the state Senate since 2013 and was in the state House of Representatives from 2011-13. Along with Senate President Pro Tempore Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, and former Rep. John Burris, R-Harrison, he was one of the leading legislative architects of the state's version of Medicaid expansion, enacted in 2013 and under which the state purchases private health insurance for low-income Arkansans.

Among other things, Sanders also worked in business development for an energy services provider and served on the boards of Economics Arkansas and the World Center of Arkansas, Winrock International said in its news release.

As director of Innovate Arkansas, Sanders will lead a team of business advisers who are available to assist technology companies. He'll focus on growing current initiatives and developing new initiatives to support entrepreneurship as a strategy for job creation, according to Winrock International.

"David Sanders was hired by Winrock through a publicly-advertised recruitment effort," Anderson said.

In the new release, Sanders said, "Winrock has recognized that entrepreneurs are a driving force for the Arkansas economy.

"The Innovate Arkansas team is dedicated to helping tech startup founders grow their businesses in Arkansas. I am excited to come on board and add my experience to this proven team," Sanders said.

Innovate Arkansas has helped more than 140 clients add more than 600 jobs to the state's economy, while raising $265 million in investments and generating $226 million in revenue, Winrock International said.

Winrock International Chief Executive Officer Rodney Ferguson said in the news release that "David's experience across both private and public sectors makes him an ideal partner for continued development of the entrepreneurial approach to economic development that Winrock brings to Arkansas."

Gov. Asa Hutchinson "supports the selection, but the decision was Winrock International's to make," Hutchinson spokesman J.R. Davis said Thursday afternoon when asked whether the governor recommended Sanders for the job.

Hutchinson said in the news release from Winrock International that "under David's leadership, Innovate Arkansas will continue to provide access to experienced growth advisers and expand the resources available to our state's tech-based entrepreneurs."

Metro on 09/29/2017

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