Teamwork Makes the Dream work
• The Rotary Club of Little Rock teamed up with the Downtown Little Rock Partnership on a new mural in the River Market painted by local artist Jessica Jones.
• The Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts and Little Rock School District launched a collaborative initiative ensuring all LRSD fourth graders will receive a guided tour of the museum this school year.
• A joint effort between Arkansas Children’s, Baptist Health, UAMS and Proton International, the Proton Center of Arkansas recently opened on the UAMS campus to provide “a cutting-edge form of radiation,” the first such center in the state and 43rd in the nation.
Gifts & Grants
• The Willard & Pat Walker Charitable Foundation pledged $1 Million to the UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute that will support its new Radiation Oncology Center. UAMS also received a $9.5 million grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for a joint five-year mental health initiative with the Arkansas Department of Human Services.
• The Blue & You Foundation for a Healthier Arkansas awarded $5.9 million in grants to address mental health and substance use in children, teens and young adults. Funds will support the efforts of nonprofits such as Immerse Arkansas and the Wolfe Street Foundation.
• Arkansas Children’s received a $2 million grant from the J.E. and L.E. Mabee Foundation to support the Arkansas Children’s Heart Institute.
Honors & High Praise
• The Arkansas Peace & Justice Memorial Movement, Just Communities of Arkansas, Equal Justice Initiative, central Arkansas chapter of Coming to the Table and From Noose to Needle partnered to host a historical marker installation ceremony honoring Homer G. Blackwell who was killed in the Argenta Race Riot of 1906.
• Baptist Health has been recognized by Newsweek as one of “America’s Greatest Workplaces,” including mentions in the categories of best workplaces for diversity, job starters, women and parents and families.
• This month, the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub will host Make48’s national championship where competing teams will use innovation and creativity to address the issue of homelessness. The competition will later be televised on the Roku network.
• Little Rock’s Dr. Peter Jensen, founder of The REACH Institute, is a recipient of one of five 2024 AARP Purpose Prize Awards nationwide.
BIG MOVES
• The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra has appointed Valery Saul as its new associate conductor.
• AARP Arkansas has named Rev. Dr. Odessa Darrough as its new state president.
• Camille Richoux has been hired as the health policy director for Arkansas Advocates for Children & Families.
• Donna Csunyo is the new COO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkansas & North Louisiana.
• The Keep Arkansas Beautiful Foundation added multiple new board members: Tom Arens, McKenzie McMath Coronel, Ryan Di Salvo, Amy Finster, Daniel Fudge, Meagan Bowling Fudge, Brad Peterson, Billy Ray and Mandy Stanage Shoptaw.
• Dr. William G. Jones is now the president of CHI St. Vincent Infirmary.
• ARORA has announced several new hires and roles: Nelson Ballard as director of tissue recovery, Britt Davison as manager of information technology, Matt Ellison as manager of organ recovery, Jenny Janisko as director of organ recovery, Justin Laffoon as manager of family services, Amelia Nabholz as manager of donation development liaisons and Michael Scott as manager of communications.
• Katherine W. Stewart is the new membership and communications coordinator for Preserve Arkansas.