McNulty, Worthen to be inducted into Arkansas Tourism Hall of Fame

The Arkansas Department of Parks and Recreation announced it will induct Montine McNulty, executive director of the Arkansas Hospitality Association, and Bill Worthen, director of Historic Arkansas Museum, into the Tourism Hall of Fame during the 2016 Governor’s Conference on Tourism.

The Hall of Fame honor is presented annually to an individual or individuals who have been actively involved in tourism for many years and who have made substantial contributions to the betterment of the industry as a whole.

Through her leadership for the leisure and tourism industry, McNulty has played an essential role in promoting tourism-related legislation over the past 25 years, including the passage of the 2% Tourism Tax and the 1/8th Cent Conservation Tax. A member of numerous boards and associations, she has worked to ensure the voice of the tourism industry is heard among members of the Arkansas General Assembly. In 1995, McNulty was named Tourism Person of the Year.

For more than four decades, Worthen has served the State of Arkansas as director of Historic Arkansas Museum, shepherding the museum through significant expansions of facilities, programs, collections, publications, exhibits, research, partnerships, community development and tourism.

Worthen’s leadership and advocacy have contributed to the revitalization of downtown Little Rock and helped put both Little Rock and Arkansas as a whole on the map as a travel destination. In 1991, the Arkansas Territorial Restoration, as the Museum was then known, won a Henry Award for Arkansas Heritage.