It was a festive, almost post-covid-19 atmosphere in which Whitney Burgess and Henry C. "Hank" Kelley Jr. were honored March 12 at the Distinguished Alumni Luncheon hosted by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Business. The mask-wearing guests, and the fewer seats per table there in the ballroom of the Little Rock Marriott, were the only signs that the pandemic isn't over just yet.
Business school student ambassadors assisted the attendees, who caught up on socializing before sitting down to a meal whose highlight was a rich Cobb salad.
Lester Matlock, chief executive officer of Natural State Private Wealth Group, was master of ceremonies for an event that began and ended with remarks by Dr. Jane P. Wayland, dean of the UALR College of Business, Health & Human Services, and also included a few words by Dr. Christina Drale, UALR chancellor.
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UALR Distinguished Alumni Luncheon
Whitney Burgess and Henry C. “Hank” Kelley Jr. were honored March 12 at the Distinguished Alumni Luncheon hosted by the University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Business.
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Jessica Blackburn introduced Burgess, vice president of marketing and strategy for Mangan Holcomb Partners/Team SI and recipient of the Dean's Award for Excellence. Kelley -- introduced by Ashvin Vibhakar, the Joe T. Ford Chair in Finance for the School of Business -- was presented with the Distinguished Alumnus Award. The CEO of Kelley Commercial Partners gave an acceptance speech that contained all the meat, and potatoes, of a keynote address.
Stephen Malec, a senior finance major, shared about his experiences as a business student.
-- Story and photos by Helaine R. Williams