Arkansas Community Colleges December 2025 Updates

ACC UPDATES DECEMBER 2025

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT ACC

ACC LEADERSHIP CLASS OF 2026 CONVENES AT ASUN

The ACC Leadership Institute Class of 2026 convened for its first session at Arkansas State University - Newport. The session focused on finding your purpose as a leader, emotional intelligence, and hot topics in higher education. The following community college employees make up the class of 2026:

Dustin Kemper, Arkansas Northeastern College
Jernal Woods, Arkansas Northeastern College
Teri Roper, ASU-Beebe
Dr. Kayla Sapkota, ASU-Beebe
Alysha Bramblett, ASU-Mountain Home
Bridget Stewart, ASU Mid-South
Dr. Monica Mobley, ASU-Newport
Scott Sikora, ASU Three Rivers
Erin Kerley Mathews, Black River Technical College
Brittany Milligan, Black River Technical College
Paul Edmondson, North Arkansas College
Bob Coutch, NorthWest Arkansas Community College
Julie Doner, NorthWest Arkansas Community College
Jennifer Swartout, NorthWest Arkansas Community College
Tiffney Miller, Ozarka College
Kayla Holland, Phillips Community College of the UA
Dr. Rickey Rogers, Southern AR University Tech
Courtney Kline, Southeast Arkansas Community College
Mary Kate Sumner, South Arkansas College
Katy Garcia, UA Cossatot
Dennis Guzman, UA Cossatot
Jeannette Youngblood, UACC Batesville
Shelby Beck, UACC Morrilton
Tonja Fillippino, UACC Morrilton
Lisa Griffin, UA East AR Community College
Jerry Stegall, UA East AR Community College
Marla Bush, UA Hope-Texarkana
Dr. Jeremy Isome, UA Pulaski Technical College
Lindsey Drewry, UA Rich Mountain
Allyson Miller, UA Rich Mountain

DR. CALLAWAY VISITS BRTC, SOUTHARK, AND UARM

Executive Director Callaway continues to visit member campuses across the state. This month, she visited Black River Technical College, South Arkansas College, and the University of Arkansas Rich Mountain

ACC ATTENDS BROADBAND NATION EXPO

Kyla Waters, Director of Workforce Initiatives, participated in the Broadband Nation Expo in Florida this month. The event brought together technology leaders, policymakers, internet providers, engineers, technicians, investors, and others to drive innovation in closing the digital divide. Kyla served on a panel of workforce development leaders from around the nation, and discussed how the Arkansas Fiber Academy collaborates with employers to train the next generation of broadband professionals needed to build the state's fiber infrastructure.

The Arkansas Fiber Academy is a consortium of four community colleges - ASU Three Rivers, UA Cossatot, UA Community College at Morrilton, and UA Hope-Texarkana. Grant funding from the Office of Skills Development allows Arkansans to enroll in the academy at no cost to the student.

ACC PARTICIPATES IN ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION WITH FEDERAL RESERVE

Kristen Smith, Associate Director, represented ACC and Arkansas community colleges at a roundtable discussion with the Federal Reserve in St. Louis. The conversation centered around the current and future employment landscape, as well as opportunities and challenges faced by community colleges.

In addition to shaping economic policy, the Federal Reserve provides free teaching resources for economics and personal finance. They offer webinars, lesson plans, and classroom-ready materials at FRE.org. Their materials integrate seamlessly with Canvas and other popular LMS platforms. Additionally, Federal Reserve staff are available to provide direct consultation or support to economics faculty - whether they need help integrating economic data in the classroom, exploring new instructional approaches, or adopting materials. Contact Scott Wolla, Economic Education Officer, for more information.

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS AND MID-LEVEL MANAGER TRAINING RESOURCES AVAILABLE NOW

Last fall, ACC conducted a survey of Presidents/Chancellors, CAOs, CSAOs, CFOs, human resources officers, and other administrators seeking information about institutional professional development needs. Campuses consistently indicated the need for training in the areas of customer service and mid-level manager development.

Consequently, ACC partnered with experienced higher ed curriculum developers to create custom training that could be conveniently packaged and handed to member institutions for use on their campuses at their convenience.

After piloting the "Professional Skills Training" and "Mid-Level Manager Training" at the Annual ACC Conference this fall, ACC hosted facilitator training via Zoom so that members could learn to utilize the resources and lead the trainings themselves. You can access the facilitator materials and watch the facilitator sessions HERE. These resources are available for adaptation by ACC member institutions only.

CAO/CSAO AND WORKFORCE GROUPS CONVENE

ACC hosted its regular convening of CAOs/CSAOs, as well as its regular convening of workforce officers. In both meetings, Kyla Waters presented a thorough overview of Workforce Pell including details in legislation, details to be determined in rulemaking, and the timeline for rulemaking and enaction.

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT AR COMMUNITY COLLEGES

DR. EGGENSPERGER NAMED ARKANSAS EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR

Dr. Martin Eggensperger, President of Black River Technical College, was named 2025 Arkansas Executive of the Year in the non-profit category by Arkansas Business. Congratulations, Dr. E!

DR. DEPROW AND DR. TULLY-DARTEZ NAMED AMONG ARKANSAS 250

Dr. Summer Deprow (left), Chancellor of the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College, and Dr. Stephanie Tully-Dartez (right), President of South Arkansas College, were named among Arkansas' 250 most influential leaders of 2025 by the Arkansas Business Publishing Group. Congratulations, Dr Deprow and Dr. Tully-Dartez.

UPCOMING ACC EVENTS

December 2: ACC Leadership Institute, Zoom
December 2: Campus Visit, National Park College
December 10: Campus Visit, Ozarka College
December 22 - January 2: ACC Office Closed for the Holidays

Want to see past ACC Updates? Click HERE.

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