He has presented papers and lecture recitals for a variety of professional organizations, including the International Society for Music Education, the College Music Society, MENC, the Australian Society for Music Education, the Association of Teacher Educators, and the Music Teachers National Association. He has also served as a reviewer for the Music Education research Journal UPDATE, for the Southeastern Journal of Music Education, and for the second volume of the Handbook of Research on Music Teaching and Learning. He maintains a special interest in Ragtime and other forms of American popular music, and presents recitals and lectures on piano rags on a regular basis. His activities as a pianist and conductor also include several years as musical director and accompanist for singer Connie Francis.

Oliva has held a variety of leadership positions in professional organizations, and has recently completed a two-year term as President of the International Society for Music Education. His early music studies were as a piano student of Isabella Byman and as a scholarship student with Seymour Bernstein, Stefan Volpe, Jan Gorbaty and Augusta Scheiber at the Chatham Square Music School in New York City. He holds degrees from Montclair State University (BA, cum laude, MA) and from New York University (EdD), with additional advanced study in administration and curriculum at Seton Hall University.