FORT SMITH (KFSM) -- New hires were announced by the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education on Wednesday (June 1).
The following faculty will be on staff at the new Arkansas College of Osteopathic Medicine at Fort Chaffee Crossing in Fort Smith.
- Lance Bridges, PhD, Associate Professor and Chair of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Sciences
- Marti Echols, PhD, Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs
- Swapan Nath, PhD, Professor and Chair of Microbiology/Immunology
- Stuart Williams, DO, Associate Professor and Chair of Osteopathic Principles
- Brooke Holland, Executive Assistant to the Dean and CAO
- Mandy Keyes, Director of Admissions/Registrar
- Jackie Krutsch, Director of Development
- Levi Risley, Director of Campus Security
- Eric Burns, Director of Buildings & Grounds
- Michael Chancey, Infrastructure Engineer
- Jonathan Hataway, Director of Information & Technology
- Barbara Jetton, Director of Human Resources
- Keith Fudge, PhD, Professor and Associate Dean of Student Affairs
- Rebecca Ameis as Executive Assistant to the President & CEO
- Susan Devero as Director of Community Relations
- Dianna Jordan as Procurement Manager
Recruitment is currently underway of the inaugural class. One hundred and fifty students are planned to begin classes in July 2017 according to a press release from Arkansas Colleges of Health Education. The finishing touches are underway on the 102,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility.
One of the new hires, Levi Risley, walked into the newly constructed building for his first day on the job and said he felt overwhelmed with the architecture.
"It's a beautiful facility. I'm excited to see what the progress will be. To be on the ground floor, to see what it progresses to in five or 10 years," Risley said.
Risley is a retired Fort Smith police officer of 27 years. And resigned from his role as the Vian police Chief the day before starting his new career with Arkansas Colleges of Health Education.
Before he left the job in his hometown he acquainted the new Vian police chief with the small Sequoyah County town of about 1,200.
"One of the things when I took the new position is I wasn't going to leave this job without leaving them with somebody I was comfortable with, that could take over and finish what I started," Risley said. "He's very well qualified for the job."
The new Vian police chief, Ted Johnson, is originally from Georgia where he began his career in law enforcement in 1989.
"I was with the Augusta Richmond County Sheriff's office,"Johnson said.
Johnson also spent time working in Oklahoma for The Boy Scouts of America as a professional scouter.
"I came to help with letters of inquiry,funding letter, to help with the resource center to build the new 911 center and during that time I was offered a job as the chief of police for the city of Braggs," Johnson said. "I served the city of Braggs for five and a half years as their chief.
Johnson currently lives in Muskogee with his wife Gayle and his 14-year-old son Tyler.