LITTLE ROCK (Friday, March 3, 2023) — The Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas elected new officers at its Jan. 25-26 regularly scheduled meeting and Morril Harriman will serve as chairman of the 10-member board during the upcoming year.

Kevin Crass, a senior partner in the Litigation Practice Group at Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP in Little Rock, also has been appointed by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders to the Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas for a 10-year term ending in 2033.

Harriman, other officers, and the members of a new slate of Board committees appointed by the chairman started their roles March 1.

In addition to Harriman being elected as chairman, the trustees voted for Sheffield Nelson to serve as vice chairman; Kelly Eichler to serve as secretary; and Ted Dickey to serve as assistant secretary. The election was announced following an executive session at the Jan. 25-26 meetings at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

C.C. “Cliff” Gibson III previously served as chairman in the final year of his decade-long term as a trustee. Trustees are appointed to 10-year terms by the governor.

“While we’ll miss the outspoken insights of former Chairman Gibson and the thoughtful perspective he brought to the table, I’m looking forward to working with Trustee Crass and benefitting from his many years of in-depth experience in advancing higher education in Arkansas,” Harriman said. “We have a very solid group of trustees with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, and I’m optimistic about the year ahead and how we can continue providing educational and professional opportunities at a very high level.”

Crass is a 1981 graduate of Ouachita Baptist University and a 1984 graduate of the UA Little Rock School of Law. He previously served on the Board of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals Bar Association and the Federal Practice Committee for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, having been appointed by the judges in that district. He also currently serves on the Board of Visitors of UA Little Rock, is the Chair of the War Memorial Stadium Commission, and a past Chairman of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Under the umbrella of the UA Board are eight committees in which members are chosen under the discretion of the board chairman. Harriman and the office of UA System President Dr. Donald R. Bobbitt today finalized those committees, which are listed below:

UA Board Committees Effective March 1, 2023:
STANDING COMMITTEES
(meets every Board meeting)

ACADEMIC AND STUDENT AFFAIRS
Ed Fryar, Chair
Tommy Boyer
Kelly Eichler
Sheffield Nelson
Jeremy Wilson
UA System Liaison:  Ben Beaumont

AUDIT AND FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
Jeremy Wilson, Chair
Tommy Boyer
Steve Cox
Ted Dickey
Ed Fryar
Nate Todd
UA System Liaison:  Tara Smith

JOINT HOSPITAL
Sheffield Nelson, Chair
Tommy Boyer
Steve Cox
Kelly Eichler
Ed Fryar
UA System Liaison:  Melissa Rust

BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS
Ted Dickey, Chair
Tommy Boyer
Steve Cox
Sheffield Nelson
Nate Todd
UA System Liaison:  Don Bobbitt

SELECT COMMITTEES
(meets as needed)
AGRICULTURE
Steve Cox, Chair
Jeremy Wilson
Kevin Crass

DISTANCE EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Ed Fryar, Chair
Nate Todd
Jeremy Wilson
Kevin Crass

ATHLETICS
Steve Cox, Chair
Tommy Boyer
Kelly Eichler
Sheffield Nelson

TWO-YEAR COLLEGES AND TECHNICAL SCHOOLS
Nate Todd, Chair
Kelly Eichler
Ed Fryar
Kevin Crass