Arkansas Alumni Association Announces New Board Members

Amy May Hopper

Faheem Khan

Nate Looney

Oliver Sims

Kristine Stover

Cedric Williams

Chris Johnson

Bobby Jones

Connie Lewis Lensing

Courtney Norton

Don Walker

Kristin Collier Wright

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The Arkansas Alumni Association has named its newest members of the National Alumni Board of Directors Class of 2024. Each of these new board members began to serve a three-year term on Thursday, July 1.

NEW BOARD MEMBERS

Amy May Hopper B.S.A.’15 graduated with a degree in agricultural business. After graduation, Hopper moved to Kansas City to work for The Andersons, an agribusiness company, starting as a commodity merchandiser in training. Still with The Andersons, Hopper is now a profit center manager for a trade desk that focuses on trading cottonseed.

Hopper and her husband live in Belton, Missouri, but find themselves visiting Arkansas frequently where they both have family. In their free time, they enjoy spending time outdoors hiking, hunting, biking and running. Hopper also enjoys training for and participating in competitive field trials and obedience events with their family’s bird dog.

Hopper is a former Arkansas Alumni Association Razorback Classic and is a life member of the Association.

Faheem Khan B.S.B.A.’91 of Lewisville, Texas, is currently an executive director at JPMorgan Chase leading their lodging and hospitality vertical within merchant services. Khan is a proven leader with 29 years of recognized success in sales, business development and leadership. He currently serves on the board of directors for Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA), the largest hotel owners association in the world.

An avid traveler both in the U.S. and internationally, Khan and his wife, Cissy  M.B.A. ’91, have been married for more than 28 years and have two children, Noah and Nadia. Nadia, a second-generation Razorback, is a junior at the U of A majoring in marketing. Khan is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Nathan Looney B.A.’09 graduated Summa Cum Laude from the U of A. Looney also earned his M.P.S. and J.D.  from the Clinton School of Public Service and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, respectively. After graduation, Looney joined the U of A team as a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Political Science.

Looney returned to his hometown of Jonesboro in 2013 and practiced law at Waddell, Cole & Jones, PLLC. In 2018, Looney joined the Arkansas Children's Foundation where he now assists supporters advance the mission of the health system by leveraging tax and gift planning strategies.

Looney was a 2020 recipient of the Arkansas Bar Association’s Presidential Award of Excellence.

As a student, he was an Arkansas Alumni Association endowed scholar, a member of the Arkansas Alumni Association’s Student Alumni Board and Associated Student Government student body president. He is a life member of the Alumni Association.

Oliver Sims B.S.B.A.’85 of Carrollton, Texas, is the Americas leader of Global Technical Sales for CA Technologies, a division of Broadcom. He is co-founder of Henry Health, a company focused on improving access delivery and consumption of culturally competent mental health services and self-care support for Black men and their families. Sims is also managing partner for Oliver Sims Business Advisors, a business advisory and investment firm that focuses on assisting and investing in technology startups.

Sims serves on a number of boards, nonprofit and for-profit. In addition, Sims is an active member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and is an active member of St. John’s Baptist Church where he is a leader in the men’s ministry and a founder of an investment ministry, The Storehouse Ministry.

In 2018, Sims was awarded the Arkansas Alumni Association Morris Fair Heart Award, for exemplifying volunteer spirit, enthusiasm and commitment to alumni group involvement. He is an active member and current board member of the Black Alumni Society and is a life member of the association.

Kristine Stover B.S.B.A.’81 of Tulsa, Oklahoma, is president of Stover Company. She earned her management degree from the Sam M. Walton College of Business. Stover currently serves on the U of A Dean’s Advisory Council for libraries and was recently a member of the Capital Campaign Committee for the new Delta Gamma house on the U of A campus. Stover is passionate about helping her community and is a board member for Metro Tulsa YMCA, Tulsa Town Hall, and is active in Leadership Oklahoma.

Stover enjoys serving on the board for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oklahoma and becoming a big sister in the program herself. In 2018, Stover was awarded the Matt Burtelow Award from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oklahoma for the incredible impact she has made on both adults and children in the Tulsa area.

Her sons, Logan B.A.’13, B.S.’15 and Kohl B.S. ’15, followed in their mother’s footsteps and attended the U of A. Stover is a life member, A+ of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Cedric Williams B.S.B.A.’93 of Forrest City is originally from Stephens, Arkansas. He is the mayor of Forrest City in the third year of his first term and also a State Farm insurance agent with over 26 years of experience in central Arkansas.

Williams takes community involvement to heart as he serves on various boards, including the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, ARISA Health and East Arkansas Planning District. In his spare time, he enjoys spending quality time with his wife, Brandye,  and two daughters, Tyra and Sydni Williams.

He is an active member and former board member of the Black Alumni Society. Williams is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

RETURNING BOARD MEMBERS

Four board members were selected to serve a second three-year term as part of the Class of 2024. They are Chris Johnson B.S.B.A. ’93 of Little Rock; Bobby Jones B.S. ’84 of Savannah, Georgia; Connie Lewis Lensing B.A. ’74, J.D. ’77 of Memphis, Tennessee; and Courtney Norton B.A. ’07 of Fayetteville.

A change in officers for the 501(c)(3) corporation also took effect July 1.

Don Walker B.S.A. ’74 of Fayetteville will transition from treasurer to president-elect. He will serve as president-elect for one year. Walker recently retired from Arvest Bank after a 42-year career as EVP, Regional Executive. 

He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food, and Life Sciences. Walker was hired by Sam Walton in 1978 and served as president of three of Arvest’s markets – Siloam Springs, Bentonville and Tulsa, Oklahoma. Walker focused on economic development and support of many nonprofits in these markets, as well as growth of the bank’s market share.

Walker served as the Federal Government Relations Representative for Arvest and continues in that role in retirement. He has served on the National Alumni Board of Directors since July of 2017.

Kristen Collier Wright B.A. ’98, J.D. ’01 of Forrest City will assume the position of treasurer. Wright is senior vice president, general counsel and secretary for AutoZone in Memphis, Tennessee. 

She earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences with a minor in communication and followed by a Juris Doctor from the U of A School of Law. As a U of A student, Wright was a Fulbright scholar and staff editor for theArkansas Law Review. 

A successful attorney, she broke the glass ceiling in a very traditional automotive aftermarket industry and assumed the top legal role at AutoZone in 2014. 

Active in her community, Wright is a former chair of the Board of the Memphis in May International Festival, which expands cultural education programming to Shelby County schools. She has served on the National Alumni Board of Directors since July of 2019.

A complete list of the Board of Directors can be found at www.arkansasalumni.org/board.

About the Arkansas Alumni Association: The Arkansas Alumni Association Inc. is a not-for-profit organization that seeks to connect alumni, friends and students to the University of Arkansas. The association’s mission is to connect and serve the University of Arkansas family.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among fewer than 3 percent of colleges and universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.