FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Michael E. Vayda, dean of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas, announced on Thursday the appointment of Doug Walsh as executive director for business and operations at the Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center, which is scheduled to open the first week in August.

Walsh of Fayetteville is currently chief executive officer at War Eagle Mill in Rogers. He will begin his duties at the child development center Feb. 15. The center will provide child care for up to 144 children and will serve as a learning laboratory for U of A students, Vayda said.

The School of Human Environmental Sciences in Bumpers College offers a child development concentration in its human development and family sciences major.

Construction of the 22,800-square-foot facility at the intersection of Douglas and Oakland on the north side of the campus was made possible by gifts from donors, including $2.5 million from the Tyson Family Foundation and the Tyson Foods Foundation.

Walsh oversees retail and food service operations at War Eagle Mill where he has been employed since January 2010. He previously held management and marketing positions with Ring Retail in Rogers, MARS Advertising in Bentonville, Fayetteville Downtown Partners and Horses for Healing in Bentonville. He was a Peace Corps volunteer from 2000 to 2002 in Mauritania, West Africa.

Walsh received a Master of Business Administration in 2005 from the University of Arkansas. He also has a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture with a concentration in environmental, soil and water science and a master's degree in agronomy, both from Bumpers College.

The new facility will incorporate the university's current Infant Development Center and Nursery School programs, which will continue to be administered by Vernoice Baldwin, academic director of the child development program. The Jean Tyson Child Development Study Center will also provide opportunities for other academic programs to participate and interact for developing best practices and teaching future child development professionals, Vayda said.

The new center will include custom-designed classrooms, indoor and outdoor play spaces and observation facilities to help students gain insight into the behavioral and developmental patterns in children. It will have state-of-the-art energy saving features, such as geothermal heating and cooling.

A Web camera provides real-time images of the building under construction at http://oxblue.com/pro/open/uark/JeanTysonCenter.

In addition to the direct benefits of child care and the academic program, the center will help the faculty members better serve the state's professional child care sector, Vayda said.