The University of Arkansas Board of Trustees meets Friday in Monticello and lobbying was at work to get the Board to name a new system president at the meeting to succeed the retiring B. Alan Sugg.

Trustee John Ed Anthony has been single-handedly talking with potential candidates so that their names can be protected from Freedom of Information Act disclosure. But he has said he has talked with two Arkansas businessmen and two academics from out-of-state.

Advertisement

The Arkansas Times learned this week that the in-state contenders were Marianna farmer and lawyer Stanley Reed, briefly a Republican candidate for Senate in 2010, and Frank Oldham, a Jonesboro banker who holds a Ph.D. from the UA.

A board faction was said to support Reed, who enjoys strong backing from former trustee and real estate titan Jim Lindsey, a business partner with Reed. But there’s also strong opposition to his appointment, including some of the same board members who put the brakes on a secret plan some months ago to designate Reed as Sugg’s successor without any search.

Advertisement

Reed carries political baggage from his days at the Farm Bureau, when it fought animal cruelty legislation, supported ballot initiatives to discriminate against gay people in adoption and marriage (the university has a sexual orientation non-discrimination policy, and generally held a regressive view of public policy. He also was a supporter of a segregation academy in Lee County, not a stellar mark on a resume of a president of a system with a historically black university in Pine Bluff.

At press time, our sources say a 4-4 split on the Board exists over naming Reed, with Anthony and Jim von Gremp of Rogers viewed as swing votes. A promising candidate from out of state dropped out Monday because his wife, a Ph.D., didn’t want to make a move to Arkansas. Some trustees favor extending the search.

Advertisement

Invest in the future of great journalism in Arkansas

Join the ranks of the 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts who know that the Arkansas Times is the go-to source for tough, determined, and feisty journalism that holds the powerful accountable. For 50 years, our progressive, alternative newspaper in Little Rock has been on the front lines of the fight for truth, and with your support, we can do even more. By subscribing or donating to the Arkansas Times, you'll not only have access to all of our articles, but you'll also be helping us hire more writers and expand our coverage. Don't miss out on the opportunity to make a difference with your subscription or donation to the Arkansas Times today.

Previous article Little Rock Government Payroll Next article Lamoureux’s midnight judge bill