- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Shellam Shares Importance of Art and Business Philanthropy in Higher Education

John Hill — Tue, 04 Oct 2022 15:06:49 +0000

Philanthropist Leslye Shellam shared the importance of supporting college students in both the arts and business during a Sept. 27 panel discussion at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The first-of-its-kind panel brought together business school and art students in one scholarship presentation to show a greater benefit to the community. Shellam has a unique perspective with having created scholarships across disciplines at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. She is a major contributor to the L. Dickson Flake Scholarship in honor of her father, one of four original partners of the predecessor to , and created the Linda Blaine Flake Scholarship in honor of her mother, who was an artist. “Leslye has a creative spirit and powerful passion for education,” said Elizabeth Small, director of business networks and instructor of real estate development, who moderated the panel discussion. “Many of us knew Linda and Dickson Flake, and they would have enjoyed their daughter’s desire to help students.” The panelists also included Michael Johnson, director of development for the College of Business, Health, and Human Services, and Joseph Lampo, director of development for the College of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, and Education. “I do love art, and I love business,” Shellam said. “I love it more and more now that I see the creativity in business. Finding the synergies between disciplines, whether it’s nursing or education, that is something we can all offer. My husband Ray and I are grateful to have this opportunity to keep honoring my parents and what their legacy was, and we hope to do that as long as possible.” The panel also honored some of the 2022-2023 student scholarship recipients, including Flake Scholarship Recipients Ashley Lawrence and Lamar Townsend as well as Linda Blaine Blake Scholarship Recipient Annika Wade. Wade asked Shellam how her mother’s art inspired her to become a philanthropist, and why she feels so strongly about supporting students today. “My parents died recently, and this was honoring their legacy,” Shellam said. “My dad was very involved with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. My mom loved it when she got to expose her art to students. You have to do what you think they would have wanted you to do.”

Members of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Art and Design program pose with scholarship recipient Annika Wade, second from left, and scholarship donor Leslie Shellam, second from right. An original painting by Arkansas artist and philanthropist Linda Blaine Flake was donated to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock by Flake’s daughter, Leslye Shellam, during a panel discussion on how art and business are connected and the importance of philanthropy in supporting students in both fields. Photos by Ben Krain.

Shellam went on to describe how accessing both your creative and business sides will help people become more successful in life. “The best accountants get artistic, and the best lawyers come up with the most creative arguments,” Shellam said. “My father was credited with figuring solutions to development issues that were considered impossible, but he looked at it from a different way. I think it was his confidence. He was confident enough to let the creative part of his brain look at the problem from a different angle. He would often discuss a business problem with my mom, who was a fine artist. She would say, ‘Dickson, it’s as simple as this,’ and that was the solution. My mom would do the same thing. My father didn’t have any art background, but he would often have the answer.” Shellam concluded the panel by presenting all of the student scholarship recipients with cards featuring her mother’s artwork. She also announced the donation of one of her mother’s paintings, “Market Song,” to the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Permanent Art Collection. The painting depicts beautiful songbirds singing while perched in a colorful cage.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown Welcomes New Staff Members

John Hill — Mon, 08 Nov 2021 18:43:26 +0000

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown operations have expanded with the addition of two new staff members: Ashley Clayborn, director, and Maha Ramzan, office administrator. They are joined by Elizabeth Small, director of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Real Estate Program and newly appointed director of business networks, who will spend significant time at the Downtown facility. Ashley Clayborn is now heading ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown. As the director, she focuses on curating the downtown space for educational and professional programming. The director serves as a university liaison through public relations, community engagement, and relationship management with internal campus stakeholders and external partners. Clayborn earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Hendrix College and a master’s degree in communication from the University of Arkansas. She is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Education in Rural Education from the University of West Alabama. Before joining ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Clayborn worked as executive assistant to the president at National Park College. She said it was her interest in public engagement through community spaces that led her to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown. “When I completed my master’s degree, I wrote a thesis on the ways we use public space to affect identity, whether that is looking at public history or creating spaces for public engagement,” Clayborn said. “I found a passion for public space. Then the pandemic hit and public spaces were no longer safe for my research, so I made a transition from traditional academia to an administrative role at National Park College. I loved the people, and it got me thinking about more applied work engaging with the public and community. This position is the perfect marriage of my professional goals and research interests.” Clayborn also works with the Downtown Little Rock Partnership on the Second Friday Art Night Committee. She looks forward to restarting Friday Art Night celebrations at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown and plans to start with an exhibit of artwork from the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Permanent Art Collection for the November event. Maha Ramzan has joined ��Vlog��ý Little Rock in a dual role as the office administrator for ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown and the Sequoyah National Research Center. This position is responsible for the coordination of administrative activities in both centers including day-to-day scheduling, internal communications, and financial management.

Photo of Maha Ramzan by Ben Krain.

Before joining ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Ramzan worked as a patient guest representative at Baptist Health. Ramzan is a 2021 graduate of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Management. She also earned an Associate of Liberal Arts and Science from ��Vlog��ý-Pulaski Technical College and is pursuing a Master of Business Administration from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. Small is now based at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown, where she teaches classes in the Real Estate program and works with central Arkansas businesses to explore ways to partner and engage with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. “Our recent reorganization under CAHC allows us to pivot ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown toward a new focus on education, business, culture and the arts, and civic reflection,” Clayborn said. “We offer classes and educational events at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown as well as work with the university community to connect the upcoming work force from the university with the local business industries.” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown is also the home of the Joe Jones mural, “The Struggle in the South,” since 2018. Completed in 1935 at Commonwealth College in Mena, the mural serves as an example of protest art made during the Great Depression. “We want to showcase art exhibits, student creations, and archival materials from the Center for Arkansas History and Cultural to create conversations around the Joe Jones Mural,” Clayborn said. “Dr. Deborah Baldwin views ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown as a space for the community to come together and host seminars, workshops, lectures, exhibits, and educational programming. We want to start conversations that are directed toward increasing civic engagement.” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown is open for classes and events under the fourth phase of Covid restrictions. The center can host up to 60 people for a standing reception and 45 people for a lecture or other seated event.

Small Selected for Leadership Arkansas Class XVI

John Hill — Tue, 12 Oct 2021 12:24:59 +0000

Elizabeth Small, director of business networks and instructor of real estate at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, has been selected for Leadership Arkansas Class XVI. Small is one of 48 people in the state who has been selected for the exclusive leadership program, which is operated by the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce/Associated Industries of Arkansas. All of the class members are leaders within their respective communities and professions and are interested in expanding that involvement. “I look forward to sharing the chamber’s year of economic and political exploration with a great group of participants with such diverse interests,” Small said. “It is a privilege to represent ��Vlog��ý Little Rock in the Leadership Class.” Over the course of nine months, the class members will work together to become better acquainted with the issues facing Arkansas, experience the best that the regions and communities offer, and hone their leadership capacities. “I believe the statewide innovation we will discover and create will bring strength to our own organizations and regions,” Small said. “Strong regions equal a strong state.” At ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Small identifies business partnership opportunities, designs continuing education business programs, and develops public presentations highlighting the work of university faculty, students, and graduates. As the head of the Real Estate Program, Small connects talented students to the real estate industry by relying on her own industry experience and the expertise provided by an advisory board whose members represent a variety of real estate related fields. She integrates real estate classroom experiences with experiential learning and includes research in real estate issues and policy that support the industry in Arkansas. Prior to joining ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Small was the president/CEO of PDC Companies and PDC Construction. She has 32 years of experience in the real estate development, management, and commercial construction industries. Her responsibilities centered on the origination and development of numerous properties in several states. A native of Jackson, Mississippi, Small is a graduate of Hendrix College and received her MBA at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. Small and her husband, Tom, live in Little Rock as well as their daughter, son-in-law, and two grandsons.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Names Elizabeth Small as New Business Industry Liaison

John Hill — Wed, 25 Aug 2021 13:30:56 +0000

Elizabeth Small, primary instructor for the Real Estate program in ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s School of Business, will take on an additional role with the university as director of business networks. will help drive industry engagement and will be based at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown beginning this fall. In this expanded role, she will work with central Arkansas businesses to explore ways to partner and engage with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. This comes as the university is expanding continuing education programs and doing more to promote the work of university faculty, students, and graduates. As Arkansas’s only metropolitan university, ��Vlog��ý Little Rock is committed to partnering with industry to better understand its needs and expand the workforce in central Arkansas. “Elizabeth’s reputation as an industry leader is well established,” according to Dr. Ann Bain, executive vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost. “Her ability to understand the needs of the workforce and help coordinate a university response will better support our outreach efforts.” Small earned a bachelor’s degree from Hendrix College and a Master of Business Administration from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. Prior to joining ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, she served as chair of PDC Construction and president and CEO of PDC Companies. In addition to being a college instructor, Small is also an Arkansas real estate licensee broker as well as a member of several boards, including the Affordable Housing Association of Arkansas, Rotary Club of Little Rock, Fifty for the Future, and Arvest Bank.

Colliers Arkansas $25,000 Donation Points to Industry Support of Real Estate Program at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

John Hill — Mon, 01 Mar 2021 17:50:56 +0000

Colliers Arkansas has made a $25,000 donation for a University of Arkansas at Little Rock scholarship established in honor of Colliers Arkansas Co-Founder L. Dickson Flake. The gift from Colliers Arkansas brings the L. Dickson Flake Endowed Scholarship to more than $230,000, which allows for more scholarships to be awarded in the fall for ��Vlog��ý Little Rock students pursuing an education in finance and real estate. “Dickson Flake was truly a legend in the Arkansas business community. I was fortunate to be hired by him in 1993 as I was finishing graduate school at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock,” said Kevin Huchingson, CEO and chairman of Colliers Arkansas. “He was my mentor and close friend throughout the rest of his life. Dickson established our firm’s foundation and principles, the core values that have guided our firm for 50 years. He valued education and loved to hire students from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock and within the state. Dickson believed that knowledge and integrity were essential to advising our clients. This endowed scholarship will ensure that his teachings and values live on through even more generations of real estate professionals in our state.” Flake’s daughter Leslye Shellam created the scholarship last year with a donation of $100,000 after family friends said that her father would want his legacy to promote education. “My dad was known for education,” Shellam said. “Whenever you ask someone what they remember about dad, besides his interest and devotion and dedication to education, they all had their little nicknames for him. They had something to do with him being the wise one, the perceptive one, and the teacher. This scholarship is carrying on what’s important to my father. I think this scholarship is going to be around for a lot of years to come and help a lot of people.” Flake, who passed away last year at the age of 81, was well known in the Little Rock real estate community. In 1971, Dickson joined three partners to form Barnes, Quinn, Flake and Anderson, predecessor of the Little Rock – Bentonville commercial real estate firm of Colliers Arkansas, which is now the largest commercial real estate company in the state. “What a lot of people don’t know about Dickson is he basically created the commercial real estate industry in Little Rock,” said Isaac Smith, president of Colliers Arkansas. “Prior to Dickson, nobody was doing what we were doing today. There were appraisers and residential realtors, but he was the first to add a value service to people who were wanting to develop buildings and buy and sell buildings. He was an absolute pioneer in the Little Rock commercial real estate industry.” The endowment is expected to provide almost $10,000 per year for the scholarship. It will be used to provide assistance for education-related expenses, including tuition, books, fees, and room and board, for undergraduate students pursuing a finance degree with an emphasis in real estate in the School of Business. The first recipient of the scholarship is Stephen Malec, a senior finance major with concentrations in real estate as well as financial services and risk management. Shellam presented Malec with the scholarship Feb. 23 at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown. “As the first recipient of this generous award, I am excited to see this scholarship award continue for many years to come,” Malec said. “This generosity and support for the School of Business and the Real Estate Finance program is admirable and greatly appreciated. My family and I are extremely grateful for this generosity on behalf of the family of Dickson Flake, I am further inspired to achieve my goals and pursue my dreams. I greatly appreciate this tremendous support.” At ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Flake served as a member of the Board of Visitors for 12 years and served as chairman from 1995 to 1996. ��Vlog��ý Little Rock began the real estate program in the 1970s and began revising the program in 2016 with advice from the local real estate community. The rapid endowment of this scholarship shows the importance of real estate in Little Rock. “Dickson Flake’s legacy runs throughout our entire region and beyond the borders of Arkansas,” said Elizabeth Small, primary instructor for the real estate program. “He was always in ‘teaching mode,’ and he would be very happy to know students in the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Real Estate Program will benefit with this scholarship opportunity. Current and future students will want to know the many accomplishments of such an industry giant and this will not be hard to share. Dickson touched many lives through words of wisdom, and he took the time to show concern for our region’s future. Emulating the value system of such a pragmatist will be a great lesson for all real estate students.” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock and Colliers have a continuing effort to grow the L. Dickson Flake Endowed Scholarship to $300,000 by the end of the year. In the upper right photo, Leslye Shellam, left, daughter of L. Dickson Flake, talks with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock business student Stephen Malec, right, and Elizabeth Small, center, primary instructor for the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Real Estate program. Malec is the first student to receive the new L. Dickson Flake Endowed Scholarship. Photo by Ben Krain.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Shellam Shares Importance of Art and Business Philanthropy in Higher Education

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown Welcomes New Staff Members

Small Selected for Leadership Arkansas Class XVI

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Names Elizabeth Small as New Business Industry Liaison

Colliers Arkansas $25,000 Donation Points to Industry Support of Real Estate Program at ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Downtown Welcomes New Staff Members

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Names Elizabeth Small as New Business Industry Liaison

Colliers Arkansas $25,000 Donation Points to Industry Support of Real Estate Program at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock