LITTLE ROCK (Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026) — The Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas today approved UA System President Jay B. Silveria’s recommendation to name Alicia D. Corder as the new director of the Criminal Justice Institute (CJI).
Corder recently retired from nearly 23 years of service to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) where she was special agent in charge of the FBI Little Rock Field Office. She earned a law degree from Indiana University School of Law in Indianapolis and practiced law in that state prior to joining the FBI.
“Ms. Corder’s high-level experience within the FBI combined with her history of practicing law is the perfect fit to help lead the Criminal Justice Institute’s mission of making Arkansas communities safer by supporting the state’s law enforcement professionals through training, education, resources, and collaborative partnerships,” Silveria said. “We’re excited she’s willing to take on this role and look forward to having her leadership at what is an important component of the UA System’s public service mission.”
UA Trustees approved the recommendation at today’s regularly scheduled board meeting that was held virtually originating at the UA System – Cammack Campus in Little Rock.
Prior to Corder’s service at the Little Rock FBI Field Office, she served as the section chief for the internal affairs section at FBI headquarters in Washington, D.C., where she oversaw all allegations of misconduct concerning FBI employees. She began her FBI career in 2003 and worked in counterterrorism in the Sacramento (CA) and Los Angeles Field Offices through 2010, before moving to violent crime and white-collar crime in Modesto, CA until 2013. Previously, Corder was eventually selected as squad supervisor for the Washington Field Office, before being chosen as as assistant special agent in charge in the St. Louis, Mo. Field Office where she oversaw all criminal programs.
“I’m honored to have been chosen to lead the UA System Criminal Justice Institute and very excited to be given this opportunity to continue serving in this line of work that has been such a big part of my life,” Corder said. “It seems like a natural fit to be able to share the experiences I’ve had in such a meaningful way as educating and training current and future generations of law enforcement professionals.”
Corder will begin her role as director April 1. Kimberly Hendricks Jones has been serving as the interim director at CJI since September when former Director Cheryl May resigned her position.
About the University of Arkansas System (www.uasys.edu)
Since its inception, the University of Arkansas System has developed a tradition of excellence that includes the state’s 1871 flagship, land-grant research university; Arkansas’s premier institution for medical education, treatment and research; a major metropolitan university; an 1890 land-grant university; two regional universities serving southern and western Arkansas; eight community colleges; two schools of law; a presidential school; a residential math and science high school; and a 100 percent-online university and divisions of agriculture, archeology and criminal justice. As the premier higher education system in the state, it enrolls more than 70,000 students, employs more than 27,000 employees, and has a total budget of more than $4 billion. An intrinsic part of the texture and fabric of Arkansas, the UA System is a driving force in the state’s economic, educational and cultural advancement.