Guest Writers: Kylie Smith, Business Student at the University of Central Arkansas and Janie Lee, Senior Marketing Student at the University of Central Arkansas and Arkansas PBS intern
Many of the contributions to the great state of Arkansas are due to the extraordinary women who have dedicated their lives to creating change and achieving excellence. The mission of the Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame is to recognize these women, past and present, and to inspire the future generation of women in Arkansas. The Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame states these women have “impacted the social, cultural, economic and political well-being of the community, state or nation.”
It is important to the state that these women are shared, and that their history is preserved for many generations. This will portray to young women in Arkansas that it is possible to make a difference no matter your role. Arkansas PBS livestreams the induction ceremony for anyone that cannot attend this event in person, and it will also be available for later viewing. If you want to learn more about previous inductees or ceremonies you can visit Arkansas PBS’s YouTube playlist, Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame, to watch video interviews.
History
The Arkansas Hall of Fame is a nonprofit, that was started on Aug. 11, 2015.
According to the Hall of Fame, it started out as a partnership between the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce and Arkansas Business Publishing Group, and now it is guided by a board of directors. The women who have previously been inducted have been from very diverse backgrounds and have had an abundant number of different roles. They have been, “educators to entrepreneurs, athletes to artists.” We have also seen groups of women honored, such as the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated Beta Pi Omega Chapter. These women were inducted in 2019 for their advocacy of positive change at their college campus and community. A historical inductee was Hillary Clinton, former First Lady of the United States and First Lady of Arkansas, inducted in 2015. According to the Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame, she is an “activist and she has never forgotten where she came from.” The Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame recognizes her commitment to public service and fighting for others.
2024 Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame Inductees:
- Committee of One Hundred for the Ozark Folk Center with an emphasis on its founder Dr. Bessie Boehm Moore
- Bernie Babcock (1868-1962)
- Gussie Haynie (1901-1957)
- Betty Dickey
- Jacquelyn Williams McCray, Ph.D.
- Jamileh Kamran
- JoAnne Bush
- Kathy Webb
Induction Ceremony
The eighth annual induction ceremony into the Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame will take place on Thursday, Aug. 22, at the Wally Allen Ballroom in the Statehouse Convention Center in downtown Little Rock.
Arkansas PBS will host a live stream of the event at myarkansaspbs.org/arkansaslive. Arkansas PBS, in partnership with the Arkansas Women's Hall of Fame, also has a digital series featuring Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame inductees which can be watched on YouTube.
HOW TO WATCH
Tune in to watch the livestream of the 2024 induction ceremony. Also, check out last year’s ceremony, and visit the PBS YouTube page to watch video interviews with the inductees.
LEARN MORE
Read more about the history of this event, nominees, inductees and more, on the Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame website.