Daniela Alles and Jeffie Thomas recently joined the dean's office staff in U of A's Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.

Alles has been named chief of staff, and Thomas is the chief budget officer. Alles had previously served as departmental manager in the college's Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences while Thomas was the assistant vice president of finance and administration for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station in the U of A System Division of Agriculture.

Daniela Alles, chief of staff

Alles has been with the U of A since 2011, working with the Arkansas Leadership Academy in a professional development role before moving to CSES in 2017.

From Brazil, she earned a bachelor's degree in human resources and workforce development in 2016 and a master's in education in 2019, both from the U of A's College of Education and Health Professions.

With CSES, Alles ensured the department met deadlines, complied with policies and operated efficiently.

She has been recognized for her contributions, including earning the Bumpers College Dean's Award of Excellence in 2023, Division of Agriculture Outstanding Personnel Award in 2022 and the Division of Agriculture Early Career Recognition of Professional Excellence Award in 2021.

As chief of staff, she serves as a strategic adviser and executive assistant to the dean. She assists in executing the dean's vision and advances Bumpers College's mission through effective leadership, planning and operational excellence.

The role includes managing faculty employment processes, facilitating promotion and tenure processes, coordinating faculty reviews and maintaining records for endowed positions. Responsibilities also involve organizing college events, facilitating awards and recognition programs, supervising staff and managing the dean's office operations. Additionally, the position supports stakeholder engagement, assists with correspondence and scheduling, and helps coordinate travel and special arrangements for guests and supporters.

Jeffie Thomas, chief budget officer

Thomas previously worked as the fiscal manager in the U of A's Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, moved to the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Business Office in 2011 and had been in her most recent role since 2019.

A native of Bristow, Oklahoma, she earned both her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Master of Accountancy degrees from the U of A.

Thomas spent four years as an auditor with KPMG in Oklahoma City. Her clients included various governmental and entertainment entities. In 2008, she returned to Fayetteville, where she worked for a manufacturing company before joining the Division of Agriculture in 2009.

She is also a licensed Certified Public Accountant in Oklahoma.

In her role with Bumpers College, she provides financial oversight for all resources available to Bumpers College, including campus base-budget allocations, student enhancement funds, income/expense accounts and development funds. Thomas analyzes and makes recommendations on budget requests and plans with respect to state and university policy, provides an accurate accounting and reporting of the deployment and maintenance of the college's financial resources, and supports the data analytics efforts of the college for accreditation, program and operations, and business optimization measures.

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About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege. 

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $3 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.