Jack Kinnaman, considered one of the founding fathers of the Construction Management Program at UALR, will receive an honorary degree during UALR’s 2013 Spring Commencement on Saturday, May 18, in the Jack Stephens Center.

Kinnaman is the founder of Kinco Constructors Inc., a Little Rock based construction company. He served as its president and chief executive officer for 27 years. He will receive on Saturday an honorary doctor of construction education.

Kinnaman’s contributions to the Construction Management program at UALR include funding the Jack Kinnaman Constructor Endowed Scholarship and the Phyllis Kinnaman Memorial Scholarship in memory of his first wife.

He is also leaving a bequest in his will to provide additional funding for construction scholarships.

UALR Professor and Department Chair Michael Tramel said Kinnaman and one of his company managers were instrumental in getting the program its American Council of Construction Education accreditation in record time.

“As a long-time member of the ACCE, he provided valuable insight into the self-study, selection of the ACCE visiting team, and assistance from the Industry Advisory Council during the visit,” Tramel said.

Kinnaman is a founding member of the Arkansas chapter of Associated Builders and Contractors, and in 1996 was named “Business Executive of the Year” by Arkansas Business. In 2002, he was inducted into the Arkansas Construction Hall of Fame.

Kinnaman is a fellow and former president of the American Institute of Construction (AIC), where he co-authored the AIC Code of Ethics and was a two-time recipient of the National AIC Professional Constructor Award.

In late 2000, Kinnaman sold the company he founded to four longtime employees and formed Kinnaman Consulting LLC, a consulting firm with an emphasis on construction dispute resolution.

He owned and operated Kinnaman Consulting until his retirement in 2006.

“No business leader in Arkansas has devoted as much time, nor had as much impact, on the programs for educating and training future construction industry leaders as Jack Kinnaman,” said UALR Chancellor Joel E. Anderson.

Anderson added, “He had a vision for construction education in the state. Not only did he help launch the program at UALR, he has promoted it and supported its development into the highly successful regional and national level it enjoys today.”

In addition to UALR, he has served on the Construction and Architecture Advisory Committees at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, the University of Louisiana at Monroe, Clemson University, Southern Arkansas University Tech, and John Brown University.