Loyd named woman of the year
by October 12, 2017 12:51 pm 416 views
Arkansas State University interim dean of the College of Business Dr. Kathy White Loyd has been named “Woman of the Year” by the Jonesboro Business and Professional Women.
Loyd, a member of the board of directors for Mattel Inc. since 2001, will be honored at reception Monday (Oct. 16), inside the Delta Center for Economic Development. She has served as the interim dean since May.
Loyd is the executive director of the ASU Women’s Business Leadership Center. The center is located inside the ASU Business College building. There were 32 “founders” recruited to give money and volunteer time and expertise to this new program. It has garnered $350,000 in donations toward programs and another $160,000 in donations toward scholarships.
A national mentoring program is the center’s primary focus. The Step Up Reach Back program will recruit successful and professional woman from Little Rock, New York City, Nashville, and other locales to mentor upper class students at the college. Those students will then mentor freshman.
An alumna and long-time supporter of ASU, she brought a diverse background of academic achievement and business executive leadership to the dean’s office. A contributor in the field of information technology and economic development, her ties to the Jonesboro region include being a founding partner of Rural Sourcing, a programming company located downtown. Prior to her business career, she was a tenured associate professor of information technology at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro.
Loyd holds an undergraduate degree and master’s degree in business administration from ASU and a doctorate from the University of Memphis. During her career, she has served as a corporate officer and chief information officer for several Fortune 500 companies. Loyd retired from Cardinal Health, a $90 billion healthcare and distribution company, as its executive vice president e-commerce and chief information officer.