Retail Research Center to Host Director of Kennedy Space Center

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Center for Retailing Excellence in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, is hosting William W. Parsons, director of NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center, on campus from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m. Monday, Oct. 15. In addition, Arkansas native Joe Dowdy, Kennedy Center space operations manager, will join him.

The NASA presentation on what is currently going on at the Kennedy Center will be held in Willard J. Walker Hall auditorium on the university campus. The talk is free and open to faculty, staff, students and the public.

“We are excited to bring the director of the Kennedy Space Center to campus,” said Claudia Mobley, director of the Center for Retailing Excellence. “NASA’s spirit of exploration and innovation has broadened our minds with each of its new discoveries.”

Parsons is the ninth director of NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, where he manages a team of approximately 2,100 civil service employees and 15,000 contractor employees. Prior to this appointment, he served as deputy director of the Kennedy Center and as director of NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. He has received NASA’s Exceptional Service Medal and Distinguished Service Medal and the Silver Snoopy, awarded by astronauts for outstanding performance in flight safety and mission success. Parsons holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the University of Mississippi and a master’s degree in engineering management from the University of Central Florida.

Dowdy will also speak to the Center for Management and Executive Education Emerging Leaders class on Thursday, Oct. 11. He is a native of Little Rock, Ark. He manages special projects and provides organization advice to the director and senior management team to improve processes and better accomplish the center’s missions. Dowdy holds a degree from the University of Mississippi, a Master of Arts from Webster University, and a Master of Arts from the U.S. Army War College.

NASA is launching a new endeavor, which calls for the return of human explorers to the moon. The Kennedy Center is playing a critical role in preparing the assembly, test and launch site for the next generation of crew and cargo vehicles.

The Center for Retailing Excellence was established in the Walton College in 1998 with a portion of the $50 million endowment from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation Inc. and created to bridge the gap between university faculty, students and the retail industry. The center is focused on research and the development of students as future leaders in the retailing and related industries.