Walton College Assistant Dean Elected Chamber of Commerce Board Chairman

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Assistant Dean Karen Boston

Karen Boston, assistant dean for undergraduate programs for the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas, has been elected chairman of the board for the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce.

Boston has served on the chamber board of directors since 2008. She is originally from Spring, Texas, and in 1993 began working on the University of Arkansas campus, where she had earned her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees.

She has worked in the Walton College since 1996 and was named assistant dean in 2006. Of the 101 people who have chaired the chamber board since 1889, she is the fourth woman to serve in the position and the youngest.

In 2006, she was accepted in the chamber’s Leadership Fayetteville program, which trains people to become strong leaders and volunteers in the community. From there, her involvement kept building, including serving as chair of the Leadership Fayetteville committee in 2009, graduating from Class II of Leadership Arkansas in 2008 and serving as volunteer coordinator for Bikes, Blues and BBQ in 2008 and 2009.

These leadership roles culminated with her election to this year’s chair position — one that continuously reminds her of all the advantages of living in the area.

Boston stays busy tending to many things, whether it’s attending ribbon cuttings for new member investors, meeting with city and community leaders or discussing the ever-growing trail system that will someday connect several cities in Northwest Arkansas.

Fayetteville, with its low crime rate, has plenty that’s worth promoting, Boston says. “I think we have all the basic needs and quality of life you can want in Fayetteville,” she says.

Boston says she envisions the creation of leadership programs that involve other chambers of commerce throughout the region, including Benton County and Fort Smith. She also is helping implement a similar program in elementary schools called The Leader in Me, where students learn concepts created by Stephen Covey, author of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.”

As a representative of Walton College, she says she hopes to help the university bridge partnerships with businesses as well as enhance economic development.

In that effort, she has help from others at the university. Mark Zweig, an executive in residence for the department of management at Walton College, and Terry Martin, associate dean in the College of Engineering, serve on the chamber board. University of Arkansas Chancellor G. David Gearhart and Jayshica Amargos, an affiliate with the ALPFA Institute, are ex-officio members.