Ed Clifford, CEO of The Jones Center, transitioning to board role; former Walton Arts Center official named successor

Ed Clifford, president and CEO of The Jones Center in Springdale, is set to transition to a new role on its board, effective in early 2022, according to a Wednesday (Nov. 3) news release.

Terri Trotter, president and CEO of the Midland Center for the Arts in Midland, Mich., will succeed Clifford as president and CEO, the release shows. Trotter was selected after a search led by Rachael Davenport of The Footstep Group.

According to the release, Trotter has led cultural organizations, including performing arts centers and museums. She served in several roles at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, from 1998 to 2014, including chief operating officer. She moved to Sun Valley, Idaho, to become president and CEO of the Sun Valley Center for the Arts, overseeing the integration of a producing regional theater company into the center’s organizational structure and increasing the fundraising results for expanded operations. In 2015, she moved to her existing role with the Midland Center for the Arts & Alden B. Dow Museum of Science and Art, where she led the multi-campus organization in developing a new strategic vision. She helped to grow audiences by over 40% and increased earned revenue by 90%.

Clifford joined The Jones Trust Board in 2011 and moved into his existing role for The Jones Center in 2012. According to the release, he’s led the transformation of the center’s business operations and started to reposition the center as a Northwest Arkansas attraction. He also oversaw the revitalization of the Centers for Nonprofit facilities in Springdale and Rogers.

The board for The Jones Center is developing financing to implement the Jones Campus Vision project at the Springdale campus, the release shows. It is the result of a Walton Family Foundation Design Excellence grant. Denver-based landscape architect Civitas Inc. is developing a master plan renovation for the 52-acre campus.

According to the release, “Trotter has exactly the right background and skills to activate the properties, and to work with the Downtown Springdale Alliance to help make downtown Springdale a key regional destination and a thriving part of Northwest Arkansas’ landscape.”