Board of Trustees

Ron Rhodes of Cherokee Village was appointed by Governor Mike Beebe on January 16, 2008, to succeed Colonel Dallas Wood. Mr. Rhodes has been in the real estate business in the Cherokee Village, Arkansas, area for the past 38 years. Currently, he is a REALTOR® and broker/owner of King Rhodes & Associates, Inc.

Mr. Rhodes has been an active part of the Cherokee Village community by serving as a past Commissioner of the Cherokee Village Suburban Improvement District (SID). He also served as President of the Sharp County Board of REALTORS® and the Cherokee Village Lions Club. He is a Melvin Jones Fellow as well as a member of Quad Cities Rotary, the local Board of Visitors of the Arkansas Sheriff’s Ranch, and the Board of the Sharp County Community Foundation. In addition, he is a member of the ASU Letterman’s Club and a life member of the ASU Alumni Association.

Mr. Rhodes is a native of Corning, Arkansas. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Education from Arkansas State University. His term expires January 2013.

Mike Gibson, Vice Chair(Osceola, Arkansas)

Mr. Gibson is currently engaged in the general practice of law in Osceola, Arkansas, at the Gibson Law Firm and also serves as a part-time Osceola District Judge. In addition, he is Trustee for the Judd Hill Foundation, a charitable foundation which operates a 4,000 acre cotton farm in Poinsett County, Arkansas.

He has been actively involved in numerous professional and civic organizations having served as Chairman of the Arkansas State Board of Law Examiners; Special Justice on the Arkansas Supreme Court; Board of Directors of Baptist Health Care Corporation of Memphis; Chairman of the ASU Foundation; Indian Club Board; and President of the Osceola Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club and other such organizations.Mr. Gibson also presently serves on the Board of Directors of SMC Regional Hospital of Osceola.

Mr. Gibson holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Arkansas State University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas Law School at Fayetteville. His term expires in January 2014.

Mr. Pierce is the chief operations officer at NAI Halsey commercial real estate services, worldwide, headquartered in Jonesboro. He has over 40 years of experience in real estate, banking, property management and outdoor advertising.

He is past president of the ASU Alumni Association and served on the State Board of Higher Education for 11 years. An active member of the community, he is currently on the board for Doctors Health Group, Regional Health Care Holdings, and St. Bernards Medical Center Finance Committee.

Mr. Pierce is a native of Hornersville, Missouri, and received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Arkansas State University-Jonesboro in 1972. His term expires in January 2015.

Charles Luter, Member (Paragould, Arkansas)

Mr. Luter of Paragould, Arkansas is retired.  Currently, he serves as chairman of the board of First Delta Bank of Marked Tree and is a member of the board of directors of Liberty Bank of Arkansas.

Mr. Luter has been actively involved in numerous professional and civic organizations.  He has served as president of the Paragould and Tyronza Rotary clubs, the Paragould Chamber of Commerce, Community Bankers of Arkansas, and as the Arkansas delegate to the Board of the Independent Bankers Association of America.  He serves on the community board of the NEA Baptist Memorial Hospital.

Mr. Luter has been designated as a Distinguished Alumnus of Arkansas State University and is a lifetime member of the ASU Alumni Association.  He also has served as president of the ASU Foundation and the ASU Red Wolf Club and is a member of the ASU-Jonesboro Chancellor’s Cabinet.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Arkansas State University-Jonesboro and is a native of Biggers, Arkansas.  His term expires January 2016.

Mr. Slinkard is a senior member in the Slinkard Law Firm in Rogers, Arkansas, and has engaged in the private practice of law since his graduation from the University of Arkansas School of Law at Fayetteville, Arkansas, in 1972.

He formerly served two six-year terms as a member of the Board of Trustees of Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville, Arkansas, chairing the board for two years. He has been active in many civic and professional organizations, having served as president of several, including the Rogers Lions Club, Benton County Bar Association, Northwest Arkansas Indian Club and a board member and pro bono legal counsel for numerous charitable organizations in Northwest Arkansas. He also is an avid hunter and fisherman.

Mr. Slinkard is a native of Trumann, Arkansas, where he was a 1965 graduate of Trumann High School. He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Arkansas State University and a Juris Doctor from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. His term expires January 2017.