The School of Business Advisory Council was created to (1) advance the objectives of the School of Business by providing guidance to the Director and the faculty, (2) function as advocates for the University and School in business and government communities, (3) assist the School in the development and solicitation of philanthropic resources, (4) assist the School in the recruitment and placement of students, and (5) provide engaged support and stimulate continuing self-examination.
Council Members
Affiliation: They Haybar Group, LLC
Bryan Hosto is a founder of Hosto & Cardis, PLLC, a law firm which practices in several states. He is also Managing Director of The Haybar Group, an investment fund that focuses on the acquisition, management, and disposition of distressed financial instruments, special opportunity commercial real estate, and numerous startups and private equity investments. The Haybar Group seeks investments in which it can add expertise, experience, and resources in addition to the capital it invests. Bryan currently serves on the board of RxResults and SFC Fluidics, along with several other startup companies.
Bryan was honored as Distinguished Alumnus of the School of Business in 2022, and also received the President’s Award from UA Little Rock in 2001. Bryan has served in leadership positions for UA Little Rock including serving as President of the Alumni Association and on the Foundation Fund Board. He has also guest lectured at UA Little Rock on the subject of Entrepreneurship, and was a founder of the Arkansas Angel Alliance.
Bryan has served in leadership positions in several philanthropic organizations including serving on the Board of Trustees of Pulaski Academy; as President of the Arkansas Chapter of JDRF; and the State Chair of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation. He led the Arkansas chapter of Make-A-Wish, and has served on the Board of Directors for Make-A-Wish Mid-South which includes Arkansas, Tennessee and Mississippi.
Bryan is a member of the Greater Little Rock Chamber of Commerce “Fifty for the Future” and currently serves on its Board of Directors.
Bryan has been married for 30 years to his wife Sherrill Barrett Hosto, who is also a graduate of the UA Little Rock’s College of Business, and they have two children Hayden and Barrett.
Affiliation: Priority1
Dan Berardi oversees the growth, culture, and direction of Priority1 as Chief Executive Officer, establishing Priority1 as one of the fastest-growing 3PLs in the nation. Dan’s leadership has been invaluable in creating a distinct company culture and meaningful relationships with employees, carrier partners, and Agents during his tenure. He leads under a simple philosophy: combine incredibly talented, motivated, and diverse people with remarkable technology to disrupt the transportation space.
Before joining Priority1, Dan worked at a Fortune 500 Telecom with positions in Human Resources, executive retail and business sales, retail strategy, sales operations, and call centers. Dan is an advisory board member for Chaine and a member of the Young Presidents’ Organization.
Affiliation: Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Executive Vice President and Chief Health Management Officer.
Alicia Berkemeyer is responsible for all programs related to provider networks, medical management, provider compensation, quality and value-based programs, primary care and commercial pharmacy for Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield and its affiliates. Alicia joined Arkansas Blue Cross in 1989 and has held several positions in the areas of claims, customer service, sales and marketing and pharmacy. She has more than 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry with a focus on value based care, primary care and pharmacy.
Alicia played an instrumental role in Arkansas being chosen as one of only seven regions in the United States to participate in the federal Comprehensive Primary Care initiative and assisted our state in receiving significant funding from the Centers for Medicare Services Innovation Center in the form of a State Innovation Model grant. Alicia currently serves on the Cystic Fibrosis Board, University of Arkansas Little Rock Business Advisory Council, and the Divine Mercy Clinic Board.
Affiliation: Little Rock Water Reclamation Authority
Jean Block is a licensed attorney who has practiced law for twenty-two years.
Currently, Jean is the Chief Legal Officer at Little Rock Water Reclamation Authority (LRWRA). She assumed this position in April 2016. She is responsible for all legal issues involving the utility including those related to contracts, personnel matters, the Freedom of Information Act, and legislation. Jean also oversees LRWRA’s Human Resources Department and Environmental Affairs Department. And she is a member of LRWRA’s four-person senior management team. In this capacity, she participates in policy-making and strategic planning for the utility.
Jean holds an undergraduate degree in Sociology from the University of California at Berkeley and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law. Over the twenty years she has lived in Central Arkansas, she has served on numerous non-profit boards. Jean currently serves on the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund board and is an Advisory Council Member for the UA Little Rock College of Business. In her free time, Jean enjoys traveling, reading, and working out.
Affiliation: Frost
TJ Boyle is the Partner at Frost and Head of the Audit Department where he provides assurance and business advisory services primarily in the food and agriculture, manufacturing, and construction industries. He is a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants. Mr. Boyle graduated from Harding University with a B.B.A degree.
Affiliation: Platinum Drywall, Inc.
Anthony J. Brooks has been a mainstay in the construction industry for over 30 years. He has been involved in all aspects of commercial construction from the ground up, including: Drywall Installation, Safety, Estimating, Project Management, Accounting, and President/Owner. In 2001, Anthony started Platinum Drywall, Inc. with the vision of delivering platinum level services. Anthony is actively involved in the American Subcontractors Association (ASA) at both the local and national level, the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), and the Ceilings & Interior System Construction Association (CISCA).
His industry engagements have provided him the opportunity to travel across the United States attending several presentations and witnessing several keynote speakers on the dynamics of the construction industry. His position allows him to see the state of modern day construction and be able an advocate for the next generation of construction workers. In 2014, Anthony and Platinum Drywall, Inc. was recognized as the Arkansas Regional Minority Business of the year. Anthony believes in the importance of having a healthy work/life balance, so in addition to his work responsibilities and engagements, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Shelia and their two sons Asa and Alex. He is an active church member and is dedicated to advancing the mission of the church. He also enjoys hobbies such as cycling, boating, hunting, wine tasting, and networking.
Affiliation: Southwest Power Pool (SPP)
Kelly Carney, SPHR is the Vice President, Human Capital and Chief People Officer at Southwest Power Pool (SPP), a Regional Transmission Organization responsible for ensuring reliable electricity delivery and efficient wholesale power markets across a 14-state region in the central United States. In her role, Kelly leads SPP’s human resources and learning and development functions, shaping strategic initiatives that support organizational growth, culture, and talent development.
With over 20 years of progressive experience in human resources, Kelly has held leadership roles across diverse industries, including healthcare, energy, and insurance. Prior to joining SPP, she served as Vice President of Human Resources and Chief Administrative Officer at Delta Dental of Arkansas, where she led enterprise-wide people strategies and administrative operations.
Kelly is passionate about leadership development, community service, and governance. She serves on the Board of Directors for the Leadership Foundation for Women and on the Governance Board for Arkansas Hospice, where she contributes her expertise in organizational leadership and workforce strategy.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources Administration from the University of Kansas and maintains the Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) certification through the Human Resources Certification Institute.
Affiliation: Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport
Affiliation: Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce
On May 19, 2006, Jay Chesshir became the 15th President and CEO of the Little Rock Regional Chamber of Commerce in its 143-year history. He began his career at the Little Rock Regional Chamber in February 2005, serving as Economic Development Vice President, Senior Staff Executive for Fifty for the Future, and Executive Director of the Metro Little Rock Alliance, an eleven county marketing coalition dedicated to central Arkansas’s becoming recognized as the premier location for new and expanding business within the mid-south.
Affiliation: Entergy Arkansas
Michael Considine is the Vice President of Reliability for Entergy Arkansas, LLC and was named to this position in May 2022, with responsibility for all aspects of transmission and distribution safety, operations, engineering and regulatory within the service territory covering all or portions of 62 counties in Arkansas. Considine leads a team of over 700 employees and hundreds of contract resources.
Prior to his current position he served as the Vice President of Customer Service, a position he held from January 2019 until May 2022, with responsibility for all aspects of customer service in Entergy’s service territory within Arkansas. Considine led a team whose main priority is exceptional customer service to all residential, commercial, governmental and industrial customers across the state.
He served as the Director of Customer Service – Central Region from 2017-2019 for Entergy Arkansas Inc. with responsibility for safety, customer service, operations and engineering for Pulaski, Saline and Lonoke counties. Considine served as the Finance Director for Entergy Arkansas, Inc. from 2014-2017 with responsibility for the financial performance of Entergy Arkansas, Inc. and held numerous positions prior dating back to his start with Entergy in 2001.
Considine spends time giving back to his community through volunteerism with his church family, with a special passion for the Arkansas Foodbank and Our House. Considine has served as an ambassador for the American Cancer Society’s Real Men Wear Pink campaign as well as the Susan G. Komen’s Three Miles of Men. Considine serves on the executive committee and the board of directors for the Museum of Discovery and is in Rotary Club 99. Considine was recognized by Arkansas Business’ 40 Under 40 in 2017 and is a graduate of Leadership Arkansas Class XIV.
Considine holds a bachelor’s degree in professional accountancy from Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana and has completed an executive program through the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business as well as Entergy’s Senior Leadership Program in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Affiliation: Port of Little Rock
Affiliation: Stephens, Inc.
Mr. Eichler is the Chief Operating Officer for Stephens Inc. He currently oversees the Company’s Investment Banking operations which span eight offices in the U.S. and (through its Stephens Inc. affiliate, Stephens Europe Limited) offices in London, England and Frankfurt, Germany. Currently the department has over 170 professionals.
Mr. Eichler joined Stephens in July 1991 as an associate in the firm’s Research Department. From 1992 until 1999, Mr. Eichler covered the property and casualty insurance industry. From 1999 until his move to investment banking, he focused on building the firm’s research effort in Information Technology and Services. In 2006 he was named Director of Research. In 2007 he was named Co-Head of Investment Banking and in 2015 he was named Head of Investment Banking Group.
Prior to joining Stephens, Mr. Eichler spent two years with Merrill Lynch Capital Markets. He holds a BBA in finance from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and earned the designation of Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) in 1995.
Affiliation: CEO Network
Allen Engstrom has an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and previously worked for Motorola Semiconductor as well as Intel Corporation in a variety of roles within Finance, Strategy and Business Development. For years prior to joining CFO, Allen has been involved in small business development and mentoring, serving on the Planning Committees of both the Arizona Venture Capital Conference and the Arkansas Venture Forum.
Allen has also been involved in working with universities such as Arizona State on developing technology into growing companies. Allen’s last role at Intel was an Alliance Manager where he worked directly with small companies to form partnerships with Intel. Prior to that, Allen spent 2.5 years working for Intel Capital executing mergers and acquisitions for Intel’s Communications Group.
Affiliation: Simmons Bank
Affiliation: Entrepreneur
Affiliation: Dean Emeritus, School of Business
Affiliation: Forvis
Shawn Grotte is a member of the Insurance Practice, the Regional Industry Leader for the Southwest Region and is a member of the firmwide Insurance Committee. He has more than 22 years of experience providing accounting and audit services to large and small privately held and publicly traded companies in a variety of industries, including insurance and financial institutions.
Before joining Forvis Mazars, he was a senior manager with an international firm. Shawn also has worked as a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reporting manager for an international offshore drilling contractor and as controller for an international telematics service provider.
A licensed CPA in Texas and Arkansas, he is a member of the American Institute of CPAs, Arkansas Society of Certified Public Accountants and Insurance Accounting & Systems Association. He is a frequent speaker at the IASA national conference. Shawn previously served on the firm’s accounting and auditing (A&A) committee, which was responsible for internal accounting and auditing policies and procedures.
He currently serves on the advisory board for the School of Business at the University of Arkansas Little Rock.
Shawn is a 1996 graduate of Texas A&M University, College Station, with a B.B.A. degree in accounting.
Affiliation: The Hatcher Agency
Woody and his wife, Tracy, are both 1996 graduates of the UA Little Rock College of Business. Woody Harrelson has been with The Hatcher Agency since 1992 and has held every major role within the organization. With over three decades of experience, including 22 years of managing his own book of business, he brings unmatched insight into employee benefits strategy and carrier negotiations. Woody’s leadership is rooted in the principle that “the customer is always right.”
Woody has served the community in various ways including UA Little Rock as a member and Board Chair of the Foundation Fund Board.
Affiliation: Legacy Termite and Pest Control
Jay founded Legacy Termite and Pest Control in 2009 and currently serves as VP-Administration. They cover a 75 mile radius around Little Rock with current offices in Little Rock and Arkadelphia. They provide residential and commercial termite control, general pest control, and wildlife control.
Jay has served on the board of directors for the Arkansas Tennis Patrons Association, the CareLink Board, The Oauchita Board of Trustees, the Metropolitan Board of YMCA, and the National Association of Independent Medical Equipment Suppliers.
Affiliation: Colliers International
Drew is active in the areas of industrial, office, retail, and investment brokerage and provides clients with various acquisition, disposition and real estate analysis expertise. Drew joined Colliers International Arkansas’ brokerage team in 2005 prior to earning his BBA in Professional Sales from Harding University.
He later completed the requirements and earned his MBA from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s MBA program, graduating with high honors. In 2013 he became a shareholder of Colliers International | Arkansas and Vice President of Brokerage Operations. He was named a Principal with the firm in 2015.
Affiliation: The Haybar Group, LLC
Affiliation: Arkansas Economic Development Commission
Esperanza Massana-Crane is the director of the Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise (MWOBE) Division for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. In her role, Esperanza facilitates the growth, development and expansion of minority and women-owned businesses by helping them gain access to valuable information, new market opportunities and financial resources.
She began her career at AEDC in 2013 in the Business Development division where she worked as project manager and then transitioned to serve as marketing director in 2016.
She currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Central Arkansas Library System, the Board of Directors for the Girl Scouts – Diamonds and is a member of the Little Rock Sister Cities Commission. She is a graduate of the Greater Little Rock Class XXX and a graduate of Leadership Arkansas Class XII. In 2018, Esperanza was recognized in Arkansas Business’ “40 Under 40” list and in 2021 was honored as one of Arkansas’ 250 most influential leaders.
Esperanza graduated with honors from Harding University with a double major in Marketing and International Business and has an MBA from Harding. She lives in the Hillcrest community of Little Rock with her husband Christopher, son Sebastián, and their two furry rescue pets.
Affiliation: USAble Life
Affiliation: Cheesecake on Point!
Affiliation: Infinant, Inc.
Mike is an IT executive with over 25 years of experience in the creation, sales, and delivery of financial services IT solutions. He effectively analyzes the competitive landscape and designs product vision and market strategies. Mike’s strength is in directing cross-functional and R&D teams to manage full solution life cycle. He is an effective evangelist and product champion able to present value propositions to large audiences at industry events and in one-on-one meetings with key analysts, clients, and prospects.
Areas of specialization include Bank Operations, Core Accounting Systems, Direct Banking, Retail Banking, eCommerce, Channels Applications, Distributed Systems, Product Planning and Budgeting, Thought Leadership, and Client Relationships.
Affiliation: The Venture Center
Affiliation: Centennial Bank
Gordon Silaski began his over 30 years in commercial banking as a Credit Analyst with the original Twin City Bank in Little Rock, Arkansas. Mr. Silaski joined what is now Centennial Bank in 2000 and has since served in various capacities including Regional Chief Lending Officer. Since 2010, Mr. Silaski has served as President of the Little Rock Region and is a member of the Bank’s Executive Loan Committee. Mr. Silaski holds a BA in Economics and an MBA from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. He is a graduate of the Mid South School of Banking in Memphis, TN and The National Commercial Lending School in Norman, OK. Mr. Silaski serves on various community boards including the Little Rock and North Little Rock Chambers of Commerce, the Quapaw Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, and the Heart of Arkansas United Way.
Mr. Silaski serves on advisory boards of the UA Little Rock Department of Economics and Finance and the UA for Medical Science College of Public Health. He is a Trustee of the Arkansas Arts Center, and a member of Little Rock’s Fifty for the Future.
Affiliation: Arvest
Affiliation: Regions Bank
Affiliation: Tuggle Services, Inc
Cathy Tuggle is the Owner and Principal Broker of Tuggle Services, Inc. DBA Apartment Hunters and Arkansas Suites. Cathy is a native of Central Arkansas and has over 31 years of experience in the multifamily industry through marketing, training, and property management. Not only is Cathy the Principal Broker, but she also holds the Certified Apartment Manager and National Apartment Leasing Professional designations through the National Apartment Association.
Cathy has been serving on the Executive Committee at the Little Rock Regional Chamber for the past 10 years as Membership Chair, Small Business Chair, and recently served as the Chairman of the Board in 2018. Cathy also serves on the AR Kids Read Board of Directors for the past 6 years. Cathy serves on the Arvest Bank Board of Directors, the Commercial Real Estate Council of Metro Little Rock, and Fifty for the Future. She is a member of the Downtown Rotary Club 99.
And, Cathy is the past President for Apartments Across America, an exclusive professional locator organization, which includes apartment locators throughout the US. Cathy was named one of the 28 Women to Watch in Little Rock in 2015!
Affiliation: Mangan Holcomb Partners/ Team SI
Sound strategic thinking, flawless execution and measurable results are the hallmarks of the tightly integrated marketing programs Sharon delivers for agency clients. Launching her agency career as an intern at Mangan Holcomb in 1994, Sharon became a principal in the firm in 2005 and was named president in 2010. Along the way, she has nurtured many advertising and public relations campaigns from strategic development to award-winning recognition.
A member of the Arkansas Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America, Sharon was selected by Arkansas Business as a “40 Under 40” honoree in 2005 and was recently named a Paul Harris Fellow by the Rotary Club of Little Rock.
Affiliation: Baptist Health
Doug Weeks is the executive vice president of strategy and innovation for Baptist Health. He is responsible for overall system strategy development and is the leader of all of Baptist Health’s partnership and collaborative efforts across the state. He serves as the corporate administrative officer and oversees Arkansas Health Group, Human Resources, Information Technology, Strategic Development, Governmental Relations, the Baptist Health Foundation, Parkway Village, and Community Outreach.
His career at Baptist Health began in 1989 as an administrative resident. Since then, Weeks has held a number of positions including senior vice president of hospital operations and administrator of Baptist Health-Little Rock and Baptist Health Rehabilitation Institute.
He received his bachelor’s degree from Louisiana Tech University and his master’s degree in hospital administration from Tulane University.
Affiliation: FIS