See more of this week’s Movers & Shakers, and submit your own announcement at ArkansasBusiness.com/Movers-Shakers.
Accounting
Jessica Blake, CPA, has been selected as one of only 36 professionals honored by the American Institute of CPAs of Durham, North Carolina, for the Leadership Academy’s 17th graduating class. She is a senior manager at Landmark CPAs in Fort Smith.
Banking & Finance
Jason Thomas, CPA, has been appointed as managing director, chief tax and wealth planning strategist at Stephens Inc. of Little Rock. Thomas, who also has a law degree, will lead the wealth planning and strategy group within the private wealth management division.
Matt Bruton and Ruth Ann Miller have joined 1828 Capital & Partners of Fayetteville. Together, they bring more than $275 million in client assets under management.
Lacy McMillen has been named executive vice president of trust and wealth management at Community First Trust. She brings 28 years of experience in trust administration and generational wealth management.
Latricia Davis has been promoted to senior vice president, operations/branch manager at the Cabot branch of First Community Bank of Batesville. She has been with the bank for most of her 26-year banking career. Multiple promotions were announced at the bank across six branches, including Wendell Edwards to assistant vice president, loan systems analyst; Nyra Jenkins to vice president, trust and wealth management officer; Kayti Williams to vice president, dealer direct loan officer; and Cortney Ramos to vice president, customer care center manager.
Education
Justin Bates has joined the marketing and communications team at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock as a marketing writer. He attended Henderson State University in Arkadelphia.
Health Care
Colin Kay has been named director of the Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center of Little Rock, a partnership between Arkansas Children’s and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service. He previously served as director of precision health research at Arkansas Children’s Research Institute of Little Rock.
Don Case has been appointed as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner at Ouachita Behavioral Health & Wellness of Hot Springs. He will provide psychiatric evaluations and medication management for children, adolescents and adults.
Abby Deeds has joined Washington Regional General Surgery Clinic of Fayetteville, where she will provide robotic, laparoscopic and open general surgical services. She is an Arkansas native and graduate of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock.
Jake Brady, a fellowship-trained head and neck oncologic and reconstructive surgeon, has joined CARTI of Little Rock. He completed his residency in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the University of Washington in Seattle and a fellowship at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
Jean Amargos has joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences as a family medicine physician at the UAMS Family Medical Center in Fort Smith. He will also serve as assistant professor in the family medicine residency program.
Nick Khattar has joined St. Bernards Healthcare of Jonesboro as a cerebrovascular neurosurgeon. He completed a cerebrovascular fellowship at the Semmes-Murphey Clinic in Memphis and brings new surgical options to the hospital including the ability to remove blood clots in the brain.
Paige Johnson has joined Radiology Associates PA of Little Rock as an interventional and diagnostic radiologist. She completed her residency and fellowship training at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
Sloane Precure has joined Conway Orthopedic & Sports Medicine Center. She received her master of physician assistant studies from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, Texas.
Kyla Farler has been promoted to president of Alleviant Integrated Mental Health of Little Rock. She previously served as chief financial officer and is a licensed attorney, CPA and holds a Master of Business Administration.
Reham Sewilam, a doctoral student at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, has become the first graduate student in Arkansas to receive the National Cancer Institute Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition Award, worth $500,776.
Legal
Mackie Pierce, an attorney and former circuit judge, has joined Hilburn & Harper Ltd. of Little Rock. He served 26 years as a circuit judge and has been named Trial Judge of the Year eight times by the Pulaski County Bar Association of Little Rock.
Nonprofits
Devon Speights has been promoted to executive director for Arkansas and Oklahoma at the American Cancer Society of Atlanta. She previously served as associate development director in Arkansas.
Brenda Hatton-Ficklin who has served in sales roles since 2020, has been named director of community engagement at the Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau. She will work to build ties with residents and neighborhood partners.
Hammett Evans has been appointed director of pastoral care at Methodist Family Health of Little Rock. He has more than 30 years of ministry experience and most recently served as a chaplain resident at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. He is a graduate of Hendrix College in Conway and Emory University in Atlanta.
Melanie Browning has been promoted to director of people services at Southern Legacy of Life of Little Rock. She joined the organization in 2007, and in her new role will oversee all human resources functions. Kristy Ray has been promoted to manager of quality systems and will now oversee quality assurance programs and work to ensure compliance with industry standards.
Shelley Short, president and CEO of the Arkadelphia Regional Economic Development Alliance, has been elected as the Arkansas alternate director on the board of the Southern Economic Development Council of Atlanta. She will serve a one-year term beginning Jan. 1, 2026.
Real Estate
Dawson Wagner has joined Haag Brown Commercial of Jonesboro as the firm’s newest agent in northwest Arkansas. He recently graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a bachelor’s degree in supply chain management.
Nicholas Sammer has been named chief customer officer at Specialized Real Estate Group of Fayetteville. He brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in brand strategy, customer experience and operations.
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