The leadership and staff at SPAN Parent Advocacy Network would like to join a growing chorus of voices mourning the loss of New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver.
The Lieutenant Governor was a supportive friend of SPAN and a civil rights activist most of her life. In addition to her role as Lt. Governor, she served as Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs.
Across her career, Lt. Governor Oliver has worked in the public, non-profit, and private sectors. A trailblazer in every sense of the word, in 2010 she became the first African-American woman in state history to serve as Assembly Speaker, and just the second in the nation’s history to lead a state legislative house.
Throughout her career in public service, the Lt. Governor has been a fighter for the voiceless; advocating for social justice broadly, women’s equality and education, juvenile justice, affordable housing, the rights of the elderly and disabled, and more.
We will miss her voice in Trenton and will always be grateful for her partnership with SPAN and her fierce advocacy on behalf of those she represented. We send our deepest condolences to her family, and all that loved her, at this difficult time.
Carolyn Hayer
Executive Director
