NEA Business Notes: Two Lyon College Stead Scholars complete summer research

Lyon College biology majors Emily Berry and Hannah Davison spent their summer deepening their understanding of public health research as Stead Scholars with the Arkansas Department of Health (ADH) and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Public Health.

The Stead Scholars program gives Arkansas college students experience in public health research and practice, concluding with a ceremony where each participant presents their findings to family members, peers and health professionals.

Named after William Stead, a former longtime employee at the health department, the eight-week, paid internship launched at ADH in 2012. In 2016, the College of Public Health joined the effort to help host the program.

Davison, a senior from Jonesboro, conducted a time-and-motion study on the role of translation services in local health units across Arkansas, measuring total patient-visit times and average time with nurses. Despite incomplete interpreter-use data, she embraced the project’s complexity and even presented her work during a Disease and Epidemiology meeting—an uncommon opportunity for an undergraduate.

Berry, a junior from Cabot, explored the microscopic world of bacteriophages — viruses that destroy bacteria — collecting samples from a friend’s chicken farm to identify phages active against uropathogenic and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. Through purification, assays and DNA sequencing, her team pinpointed active bacteriophages in the class Caudoviricetes.

The scholars also attended seminars and weekly discussions with public health leaders on topics ranging from vaccines to federal policy, while building friendships and professional networks across the state.

Kylee Townsley Awarded Proventus Scholarship

Kylee Townsley of Batesville has been awarded the Proventus Scholarship in Memory of Cecile Stern. Townsley is a 2025 graduate of Jonesboro High School. She is the daughter of Victor Townsley of Batesville, and is seeking a degree in respiratory therapy.

The Proventus Scholarship in Memory of Cecile Stern funded by Proventus is made possible through the 2024 BRTC Foundation Golf Tournament headlined by Proventus. The $1,000 scholarship package enables donors to offer a $1,000 scholarship to a student the following fall, provided the student meets academic requirements.

FNBC Promotes Cathryn Hays To Assistant Vice President Internal Audit

FNBC has announced the promotion of Cathryn Hays to assistant vice president internal audit. In her promoted role, she will continue to lead FNBC’s internal auditing function and support upholding risk management standards and accountability.

Hays joined FNBC in July 2023 as an internal auditor. Over the past year, she has assumed responsibility for the internal audit program and earned the Certified Community Bank Internal Audit (CCBIA) designation through the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).

Prior to joining FNBC, Hays was a branch manager at another financial institution in Jonesboro and worked as a paralegal. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Arkansas State University.

Endowed Scholarship Established At A-State’s Vet School

Arkansas State University has announced the creation of the Kathryn and Joe Miles Endowed Scholarship, made possible through a $25,000 gift from Joe and Kathryn Miles of Mountain Home. The scholarship will benefit students pursuing a degree in the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM).

A two-time graduate of A-State, Joe Miles earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing in 1974 and his master’s degree in business administration in 1977. He was named a Distinguished Alumnus in 2017 in recognition of his decades of professional achievement and service to his alma mater.

In addition to their initial gift, the Miles family made plans for an estate gift to further grow and sustain the scholarship, ensuring that future students will continue to benefit for generations to come.

Miles was president of Integrity First Bank of Mountain Home and as a member of its board of directors before retiring in 2019. His service to A-State includes terms on the ASU System Foundation board of directors, where he was chairman from 2014 to 2016, and on the A-State Alumni Association board of directors. He is also a 1924 Sustaining Life Member of the Alumni Association.

ASU College of Veterinary Medicine Adds Two Professors

The College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM) at Arkansas State University has added two new faculty members to the growing college instructional staff.

Dr. Philip Johnson has joined the CVM as a professor and associate dean for professional education. Dr. Scott Reiners will be a teaching associate professor of equine practice.

Johnson received a bachelor’s degree from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Bristol, followed by a master’s degree focusing on equine medicine and surgery training at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Johnson holds multiple credentials, including being a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. Johnson has helped educate students for more than three decades at Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Missouri.

Reiners started his veterinary career early on as a licensed veterinary technician, working in that position for nine months in Africa. He graduated from Kansas State University with a DVM degree. He also attended the Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, completing an ambulatory internship, followed by his surgical residency at the Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Methodist Family Health Foundation Hires Development Officer

Methodist Family Health Foundation has announced that Nikki Shannon has joined the organization’s staff as development officer for Northeast Arkansas.

Shannon’s hire comes as Methodist Family Health prepares to open a Methodist Children’s Behavioral Hospital in Jonesboro later this year. Methodist Family Health Foundation will provide essential and therapeutic items, Christmas presents, and transportation assistance for children at the new facility, which will offer acute care for adolescents ages 13 to 17. The Foundation provides these items to children in other programs operated by Methodist Family Health in Northeast Arkansas, including the Dacus Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility in Bono, an inpatient living and learning environment for teenage boys with chronic disorders.

Methodist Family Health also operates the Methodist Counseling Clinic in Jonesboro, and school-based counseling programs in the Jonesboro and Nettleton Public School Districts and at Success Academy in Jonesboro.

With the addition of the new hospital, more resources will be needed to serve more children in Northeast Arkansas who struggle with trauma and mental health challenges.

Shannon holds a master’s degree in sports marketing and management from Marshall University and completed her undergraduate study at the University of Louisville, where she was a member of the rowing team.