Women to Watch at UA Little Rock: An Le
In celebration of Women’s History Month, UA Little Rock is profiling women in leadership positions who are making a difference at the university and in the community.
The next Woman to Watch at UA Little Rock of 2025 is An Le, a first-generation college student from Benton majoring in business management and marketing. Le is a familiar face you’ll often see around campus during her work as the president of the Student Government Association and event coordinator for the Trojan Transition Assistance Center.
Tell us about yourself and your background.
My name is An Le. I am currently a junior pursuing my bachelor’s degree in business management and marketing here at UA Little Rock. I am from Benton and am a first-generation college student. My parents immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam in 2001 and shortly had me three years later. In high school, I was always interested in working in education, but I never thought I would go into higher education. My dream for the longest time was to be an elementary teacher. My first year of undergraduate I was an accounting major, but I changed it soon after to something that suited my personality more.
My first semester of college I started as a student worker in the Office of Admissions giving campus tours to prospective students. This was also when I joined the Student Government Association (SGA) as a freshman senator. I started my love for higher education through these two things. Meeting prospective students and helping them start their path to UA Little Rock was my favorite thing. I also love advocating for students and their needs to the university. The connection with high school students and college students was what put me on the path towards higher education.
My sophomore year I continued giving campus tours and became vice-president of the SGA. I also had the opportunity to study abroad spring sophomore year in Vietnam for half a year. This was one of the most life-changing semesters of my life as I had never left the states by myself for such a long time before. In Vietnam my love for traveling and higher education grew so much. This upcoming summer semester I am traveling to Argentina with the School of Business for a management course.
Many people who know me know I am a big advocate of self-care. In my free time, I enjoy indoor cycling, cooking, baking, and shopping. Indoor cycling is one of the best things because I let out stress while becoming stronger. I love being surrounded by a group of people who are also bettering themselves and most of the time these people are amazing, strong women. I thrive in an environment where people are also bettering themselves and motivating to those around them. Work-life balance is extremely important to me.
What is your current position and professional duties at UA Little Rock?
I currently serve as the event coordinator for the Trojan Transition Assistance Center (TTAC). I help plan the recruiting events for prospective new students ranging from high school to transfer students. I assist with planning and executing events from communication, vendor coordination, staff assignments, to logistics. Some of our upcoming events are Experience, Transfermation, and Discover. I also manage the social media for the Office of Admissions and TTAC. I enjoy coming up with new Instagram reels that help students learn about campus. A series I am excited about is “Trojan Trivia.” I plan to quiz students, staff, and faculty on campus about their knowledge as a Trojan.
I also serve as the Student Government Association president. As SGA resident, I represent UA Little Rock students in meetings with faculty and staff. I lead a team of seven SGA executives, 30 senators, and eight associate justices. The SGA Senate consists of students representing the three colleges, international students, and graduate students. Our Student Court reviews student parking ticket appeals and makes decisions on those. I have come this far thanks to my SGA Executive team who always motivate me. SGA has allowed me to understand the behind the scenes of the university and grow as a leader.
What brought you to UA Little Rock?
Growing up in Benton, I did not expect to come to UA Little Rock because I wanted to go to college far away from home. My senior year of high school I was very lost. I was extremely introverted, was not involved, and had no clue what I wanted to do in college. One of my former elementary teachers, Anne Felan, convinced me to major in business. I toured many colleges and what caught my eye about UA Little Rock was the Donaghey Scholars Program. No other college in Arkansas I toured had such an amazing honors program. I took a chance and applied and was accepted to the program after interviewing. UA Little Rock has offered me so many opportunities. I have grown to a more confident, extroverted, and happy me. The people at UA Little Rock motivate and push me a lot, from Ms. Joyce at Starbucks to my first professor Sarah Clements.
What are some of the exciting projects that you are working on at UA Little Rock?
Currently I am working on recruiting events with Leah Ford in the TTAC office and how we can make events better. Another project is my Donaghey Scholars Final Project. I am working with Dr. Casey Rockwell and Dr. Carrie Phillips to research the enrollment cliff in higher education and how tuition guarantees impact the cliff in public universities in Arkansas. For SGA, I am working on revamping our system to be more professional, helpful to students, and building traditions that will last such as connecting with the chancellor, vice chancellors, and other staff.
One last project I am working on is spreading the message of SAVE10 with Sarah-Catherine Gutierrez to women on campus. We are currently working on how to encourage young women to invest 10% towards retirement/savings to invest in themselves. As women, many of us were not taught about finances and do not know the importance of investing in ourselves.
What woman has inspired you the most and why?
One woman that has inspired me the most is Assistant Vice Chancellor Kara Brown. From day one, AVC Brown has believed in me and pushed me to my potential. She advocates for students, connects with many students, and always is a joy to be around. AVC Brown has so much passion for higher education and was who planted the seed that I should consider higher education as a career choice. Everyone always has such positive things to say about AVC Brown. I know if I am having a tough time, AVC Brown will have advice for me and help me keep pushing.
Another woman that has inspired me is my mom. Growing up, my mom cared for four children while working constantly. By no means were we wealthy, but she always provided the best for her children. She had the courage to immigrate to a place she knew nothing about, knew no one, and could not even speak the language for the future of herself and her children. I am so inspired by my mom and grateful for her sacrifice.
What’s one leadership lesson you’ve learned in your career?
One leadership lesson I have learned in my career is to not worry about things I cannot control and rather focus on what I can control. Working in recruiting events, weather is a big factor that impacts us. Rain or shine, we will continue to provide the best experience for students and parents as possible. Stressing about things out of my control halts my progress, and instead of stressing I could have proactive plans. Another thing is I cannot control the way others feel about me, and I can only control my emotions and continue doing the best I can. This was difficult for me because I struggled with pleasing people, but I learned that no matter what I did, some people will always have something to say. Rather than exerting my energy into what people thought of me, I focused on my own actions and advocating for what I believed in.
What advice would you give to the next generation of female leaders?
My piece of advice for the next generation of female leaders is to fill your glass before filling others. As women I think we are taught that we have to be there for others constantly. Although it is important to help others, helping others when you are burnt out will backfire. Burnout is something I struggled with when all I had on my plate was helping others. Focusing on myself is what allowed me to beat burnout, especially when my roles on campus involve considering many other people from students to prospective students. It is okay to choose yourself sometimes.
Name something about yourself that most people would be surprised to learn.
I love being active! One of my favorite activities is 5ks with my cousins. Enjoying time outside walking is a way I recharge myself too. Some of my favorite places to walk are Mills Park in Bryant and Allsopp Park in Little Rock. Indoor cycle classes are another way I remain active while having fun. When the weather is better, I love to go play pickleball!
What is your favorite quote and why?
“You can be anything.” – Barbie. This is my favorite quote because I grew up watching Barbie movies. This quote would appear in every Barbie movie I watched, and reminded me that no matter what, I could pursue my dreams and be anything. I always had a feeling of inspiration after watching Barbie movies as a kid and that I could literally do anything even though I was a child. To this day, I am reminded that I can be anything if I put my mind to it.