LeadAR Announces Members of Class 21

by Lisa Davis - March 11, 2025

Fast Facts:

• 24 Arkansans were selected to participate in LeadAR.
• The 18-month program includes monthly seminars, a week in Washington, D.C., international study, and community leadership project.

LeadAR, the state’s premier leadership program, announces its next class of leaders. 

Operated by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service, LeadAR is an 18-month experiential learning program offering participants an in-depth and global view of issues facing their communities, state and country. It includes bi-monthly seminars, a week in Washington, D.C., to gain insight into the policy-making process and how it impacts Arkansas, and an international trip to compare communities and economies and find cultural sharing opportunities.

“We have selected people who want to make a difference and position themselves to have impact in their communities and state,” said Dr. Julie Robinson, LeadAR director. “Many of our alumni say LeadAR has been a life-changing program for them.”

LeadAR Class 21 participants and respective counties include:

• Ayanna Bledsoe, Benton
• Creenna Bocksnick, Perry
• Daisy Bonilla, Benton
• Vivian Brittenum, Pulaski
• Tabatha Duvall, Pope
• Austin DuVall, Faulkner
• Tonya Fletcher, Logan
• Megan Hobbs, Hot Spring
• Derek Ingram, Pulaski
• Dandre Jones, Washington
• Pam Keith, Pulaski
• Vernice Nazare King, Faulkner
• Rena' Lawson, Perry
• Ty Lewis, Pulaski
• Matthew Magdefrau, Pulaski
• Dwayne Mays, Crittenden
• Quinyatta Mumford, Pulaski
• Nicole Nichols, Pulaski
• Amber Overholser, Lafayette
• Dani Pugsley, Baxter
• Shawntill Puryear, Madison
• Emily Stone, Washington
• Adam Watson, Franklin
• Jacki Whisnant, Lawrence

LeadAR, founded in 1984, was originally modeled after the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s leadership training program. Now more than four decades later, LeadAR has more than 500 alumni serving as leaders in businesses and communities throughout Arkansas, especially in rural and agricultural areas. 

 “Our overall goal is to equip leaders with knowledge, skills, and network they need to make a difference in their communities or organization,” Robinson said. “They will learn about issues affecting rural and urban areas of Arkansans and how the state is interwoven.”

Over the course of 18 months, participants attend one three-day seminar, and six two-day seminars every other month in different communities and regions in Arkansas. They interact with the state’s top industry leaders, practice their policy-making skills, tour communities and visit congressional leaders in Washington, D.C. 

The program culminates with an international study tour, to learn how international issues compare and impact Arkansas. Past classes have visited Greece, Bolivia, Canada, Australia, Vietnam, Scotland, Panama, Portugal, Costa Rica, Brazil, and China. The most recent class toured Morocco in September.

These program components prepare class members to launch their own community leadership project that can improve the quality of life for their communities. Tamara Walkingstick, a member of Class 9, saw a basic need in Perry County. The city park in Perryville didn’t have a restroom, so she applied for funding and got one built.

A few years later, Sarah French, a member of LeadAR Class 17, started the Arkansas Goat Festival. She chose the Perryville city park as the place for the festival, partly because it had public restrooms, thanks to Walkingstick. That very first goat festival in 2016 attracted 1,200 visitors and has only continued to grow over the years.

To learn more about LeadAR program, visit www.uaex.uada.edu/leadar.