Andrea Allen named interim director of ASU Delta Center

Andrea Allen has been named interim executive director of the Delta Center for Economic Development, Arkansas State University Chancellor Kelly Damphousse announced Thursday (April 19).

A 1997 ASU graduate, Allen will replace former executive director Shawnie Carrier who resigned this week.

“On behalf of the university, I thank Shawnie for her service to Arkansas State and look forward to Andrea continuing the outreach and programs for the region that are provided by the Delta Center,” Damphousse said.

Allen was named the Delta Center’s deputy director in January 2017, and joined ASU as the DCED’s director of public affairs and special projects in 2016. Prior to the Delta Center, she was deputy chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Rick Crawford, R-Jonesboro, a position she held since 2011.

Allen brings local, state and regional connections to the Delta Center. She is a graduate of the Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy and a member of the Delta Leadership Network.

Allen has spent most of her career in public service working on community engagement initiatives and economic development projects as state director for a former U.S. senator, operations director for the city of Cabot, policy director on a gubernatorial campaign and as director of family programs for the National Guard Professional Education Center.

Founded in 1989, the Delta Center coordinates the economic development outreach services of Arkansas State by providing technical assistance, applied research and guidance for businesses, governments and citizens of Arkansas.  Headquartered on the ASU campus, it supports entrepreneurial efforts in the private sector through research studies, economic impact analysis and feasibility studies.

In addition to professional and workforce development through online and in-house classes, Delta Center is also the home of the Small Business and Technology Development Center and the hub of the A-State Innovation System.