Appointments & Awards Announced at Lexicon, SAU, Arkansas Farm Bureau & More (Movers & Shakers)

See more of this week’s Movers & Shakers, and submit your own announcement at ArkansasBusiness.com/Movers.

Construction

Randi Strode has been appointed director of financial planning and analysis at Lexicon Inc. of Little Rock. In this role, Strode will oversee Lexicon’s financial planning, including budgeting, forecasting and financial modeling, and providing strategic insights to support business objectives and ensure operational excellence.

Education

Connie Wilson has been appointed vice president for advancement at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia. Wilson most recently served as dean of graduate studies at SAU.

Jason Norsworthy has received the 2024 Rice Industry Award from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. Norsworthy, who holds the Elms Farming Chair of Weed Science, is a distinguished professor and weed scientist with the Division of Agriculture and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food & Life Sciences.

Marla Johnson has been hired as a technology entrepreneur-in-residence at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Johnson is a tech entrepreneur and business leader with more than three decades of experience in technology innovation, company building and digital transformation.

Government & Politics

Ed Salo, a professor of history at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro, has been selected as a civilian aide to the secretary of the Army for the state of Arkansas. Salo, who has worked at various military bases, also teaches military history classes to ROTC cadets at A-State.

Micah Wallace has been named chief of communications of the Democratic Party of Arkansas of Little Rock. Wallace is the president emeritus of the Young Democrats of Arkansas and is the 2024 DPA Fisher-Shackelford honoree.

Investments

Lanier Roton has been hired as a business development executive at Crews & Associates of Little Rock. Roton’s new role focuses on the state of Alabama’s municipalities, counties and utility providers. 

Nonprofits

Christine Felts has been elected the Region 4 director for the 2025 board of directors of the Arkansas Nurses Association of Little Rock. Felts is a professor and program coordinator for the Master of Science in Nursing program and clinical coordinator for the School of Nursing at the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

Additionally, Kaitlyn Wilson, a junior nursing student at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, has been awarded the DAISY Nursing Student Award from the Arkansas Nurses Association.

Chris Bacchus, an educator at Lamar High School, has been awarded the Outstanding Ag Educator award by the Arkansas Farm Bureau of Little Rock. And Kisia Holland, an educator at Alma High School, has been awarded the Outstanding New Ag Educator Award by the Arkansas Farm Bureau.

Dan Wright has been re-elected president of the Arkansas Farm Bureau. Wright has served 11 years on the organization’s state board, including four years as secretary/treasurer. In addition, Mike Freeze began his sixth term as vice president of the bureau. Freeze operates the Keo Fish Farm, the largest hybrid striped bass hatchery in the world, and is a past chairman of the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission.

Janet Liles has been appointed to the Advisory Group on Development of Student Education & Learning Experiences of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Section of Pharmacy Educators of Bethesda, Maryland. Liles is the director and advanced instructor of the Pharmacy Technician Science Program at Arkansas State University-Beebe.

Stefanie Pawluk has been named the executive director of the health care transformation division at the Northwest Arkansas Council of Springdale. Pawluk, previously policy director for the Heartland Whole Health Institute, will oversee efforts to advance regional health care and improve health outcomes for the region.

Technology

Rhonda Hayes has been hired as a benefits manager at Mainstream Technologies of Little Rock. Hayes previously served as a human resources specialist at iSquare Management LLC of Little Rock.