President David Burks extended the invitation to Searcy native Gov. Mike Beebe, to speak on the economic development for the state of Arkansas and White County in the Benson Auditorium on Tuesday, March 5 at 7:30 p.m.
According to Burks, Beebe, who had Beebe-Capps Expressway named after him, has been a friend to Harding for a long time. He also served in the Senate as Senate Pro Tempore for 20 years starting in 1982 before being elected the 45th governor of Arkansas.
“I think it’s good to hear from national leaders,” Burks said. “Gov. Beebe has been a major leader in this state for decades and so for him to speak on the economy and his views of education is great for the students who will be there to listen to him because he is one of the nation’s sitting governors. He is a strong governor in his second term and I think students would benefit from listening to someone in that position.”
Junior Laneigh Pfalser said she thinks Beebe will talk a lot about Arkansas’ finances and that this topic will directly affect Harding students.
“A lot of people, once they graduate, do not go back home,” Pfalser said. “They get jobs here in Arkansas. So, if they are going into the workforce here, then that’s going to directly affect them. If you have even a slim chance of getting a job in Arkansas when you graduate, this directly affects you and the way you are going to be living your life here.”
Junior Abby Lloyd said that she thinks this particular ASI speech will be more personal, especially since the governor is from Searcy.
“I think a lot of the time you don’t know who the speaker is or it’s somebody really big and you can’t get a seat,” Lloyd said. “But with this one, everybody knows who Gov. Beebe is, so I think that’s different.”
Associate Executive Director of the American Studies Institute Dr. Bob Reely said he believes Harding students should attend Beebe’s speech for several reasons. Reely said one reason to attend is to be able to gain insight on the current economic development.
“Economic development is economic development whether you’re from Southern California, Texas or Mississippi,” Reely said. “Of course, nationally, if you look at the picture there, you can see politically on economic development, jobs and the economy whether you are Republican or Democrat. That was the principal issue in the last election. Also, economic development is relevant to students because it is the basis for them having well paying job opportunities regardless of where they choose to live.”
