FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Boyce Woollard Billingsley of Bella Vista and her late husband, George Billingsley, have been named by the University of Arkansas as this year's recipients of the Chancellor's Medal. Jim Faulkner of Little Rock has been named the recipient of the Volunteer-of-the-Year Award.

UA Chancellor John A. White said: "We are pleased to recognize two outstanding alumni, friends, and benefactors of the University who have worked to make a difference not just in the University of Arkansas community, but in their local communities as well. This is a significant way to honor and thank valued friends for their service to the university, and the state of Arkansas and to share with others our appreciation for their outstanding contributions."

The Chancellor's Medal, first awarded in 1993, is presented to individuals whose service to higher education and society at large has been truly extraordinary. Previous Chancellor's Medal recipients include James B. Blair, Frank Broyles, Lawrence A. Davis, Jr., Dan Ferritor, Willard B. Gatewood, Lewis Epley, Pat and Willard Walker and Helen Robson Walton.

The late George Billingsley, who earned a bachelor's degree in history at the U of A in 1957, served as chair and chief executive officer of Pacific Resources Export Limited and as president of International Tours of Northwest Arkansas. While working for the late John A. Cooper in the 1960s, George Billingsley was instrumental in developing Cherokee, Bella Vista, and Hot Springs retirement villages. He died in 2002. He and Boyce, a 1955 graduate in finance and banking, were both charter members of the Chancellor's Society and the Towers of Old Main. They have contributed generously to the restoration of Old Main and have been active supporters of the Arkansas Alumni Association and intercollegiate athletics. George was a member of the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century Steering Committee, where he served as campaign vice chair. Boyce is currently an active member of the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century Steering Committee, and is a member of the Women's Giving Circle.

The Billingsleys have made gifts to the U of A to fund scholarships and endowed chair positions in four colleges and to support athletics. After providing funds to establish a program for international music preservation to support distinguished scholars in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, the UA music building was renamed in their honor.

They also have been generous benefactors to many organizations in Arkansas, including Bentonville schools, Arkansas Children's Hospital, and homes for battered women and abused children.

They have been honored time and again for volunteer leadership, serving the community and state. George and Boyce Billingsley were the 2002 recipients of the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor's Distinguished Service Award and honored as part of ceremonies at the 2002 UA Sports Hall of Honor banquet. The George Billingsley Bentonville-Bella Vista Razorback Club was renamed in George's honor.

Chancellor White said: "George and Boyce have loved the University of Arkansas in a very special way. Their philanthropy to the U of A, and to other causes in northwest Arkansas and across the state, has been nothing short of inspirational. We are so pleased to have this opportunity to recognize the Billingsleys for their leadership and service to their alma mater and the community at large."

The Volunteer-of-the-Year award recognizes extraordinary loyalty, service and leadership to the University of Arkansas and its programs.

Jim Faulkner, a member of the Campaign for the Twenty-First Century Steering Committee and the Campaign's Executive and Central Arkansas Regional Committees, is a 1954 University of Arkansas graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in journalism. As a student, Mr. Faulkner lettered on the tennis team, was a member of the Razorback Band and served as assistant sports publicity director. He also served as sports writer for the Traveler and was a member of Pi Kappa Alpha social fraternity.

Following his graduation, Mr. Faulkner spent two years in the Air Force. After the military, the Faulkners moved back to Arkansas where Mr. Faulkner began his career in advertising. He founded a one-man advertising agency, Faulkner and Associates, which grew into one of the leading advertising firms in the Southwest.

In the early 1980s Mr. Faulkner established Falcon Publications, which targeted the video movie industry. At the time he sold Falcon Publications in 1992, it was then the largest video publication in the world with a 1.5 million monthly circulation. In 2001, Mr. Faulkner was awarded with the Arkansas Advertising Federation's Silver medal, that organization's highest honor.

Jim and his wife Joyce have been active in many Little Rock civic and charitable organizations, playing key roles with the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, the Arkansas Easter Seals Society, and St. James United Methodist Church. They are long-time supporters of the University and are members of the Chancellor's Society. Examples of their previous generosity include gifts directed to the renovation of Old Main, University Annual Fund, Arkansas Alumni Association, Razorback band uniforms, Walter J. Lemke Scholarship Award Fund, and Walter J. Lemke Journalism Education Fund. In addition they have endowed the Faulkner Family Chancellor's Scholarships. Mr. Faulkner was instrumental in creating the University's only cumulative giving society, the Towers of Old Main, and he and Mrs. Faulkner were inducted as charter members in 2000.

Chancellor White said: "Jim has been an outstanding example of University of Arkansas volunteerism. As an alumnus and loyal supporter, his spirit and drive have been instrumental in the success of our student-recruitment efforts through scholarships. We are happy that Jim has accepted this honor and is allowing us to recognize him in this manner."

The first Outstanding Volunteers of the Year, E.J. Ball and Charles Scharlau, were recognized in 1989. Other previous recipients are Lee Bodenhamer, Sylvia H. Boyer, Tommy Boyer, Irma F. Giffels, Gerald Jordan, H. Lawson Hembree IV, Kaneaster Hodges Jr., Jack L. King, Charles M. Kittrell, Mary Trimble Maier, Vernon Peppard, Harriett Phillips, Reynie Rutledge, Curtis Shipley, Julian Stewart, Charles B. Whiteside III and Lee Williams Jr.

The recipients will be recognized at this year's Towers of Old Main dinner on April 15 in the Fayetteville Town Center. Membership in the Towers of Old Main is a singular honor bestowed upon individuals whose cumulative giving or irrevocable commitment to the University of Arkansas has reached or exceeded $100,000. Alumni and friends are invited annually to a dinner held to induct the new members into the group.

The Towers of Old Main was launched in the spring of 2000 and had 350 members as of Jan. 1, 2005.