Mike Malone named to Arvest Bank in Fayetteville board of directors

Arvest Bank in Fayetteville is pleased to announce that Mike Malone, the President and CEO of the Northwest Arkansas Council, has joined the bank’s board of directors.

Established in 1990, the Northwest Arkansas Council works to identify regional challenges and solutions for the region. Malone has served as the council’s president for more than eight years. 

“We are very pleased that Mike has agreed to join our board,” said Arvest Bank in Fayetteville CEO and President Donny Story. “He has demonstrated key leadership and a deep concern for the betterment of the region while serving at the Northwest Arkansas Council. We know he will bring the same type of concern and leadership to our board.”

A 1987 graduate of Fayetteville High School, Malone is a 1992 cum laude graduate of Hendrix College with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He completed a master’s degree in public policy at the University of Minnesota in 1999.


Before joining the Northwest Arkansas Council, Malone was employed by the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C. He worked at the White House for six years under the Clinton administration performing several roles including Deputy Assistant to the President for Management and Administration. 

Malone is a member of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Arkansas program. He also serves on numerous state and local boards including the Northwest Arkansas Community College Foundation’s Board of Directors, the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors, the Area Health Education Centers-Northwest Advisory Board, the Arkansas Capital Corporation’s Board of Directors, Accelerate Arkansas’ Executive Committee and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals’ Advisory Committee.


From 2009 to 2013, Malone served as a member of the Arkansas Lottery Commission. He has also previously served on the Fayetteville Public Library’s Board of Trustees and the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Committee on Healthcare.

He and his wife, Allyson Malone reside in Fayetteville with their two daughters, Olivia and Mia