Dr. Paul B. Beran, chancellor at the University of Arkansas - Fort Smith, has asked R. Mark Horn, vice chancellor for university relations, to serve as guest speaker for the Dec. 11 fall commencement exercises, making the event one of the last official speaking opportunities for Horn before he retires on June 30.

 

The 7 p.m. ceremony in Stubblefield Center will include the awarding of degrees and certificates for those completing graduation requirements during the second summer term and the fall semester.

 

Horn’s upcoming retirement ends his 22-year career at UAFS and signals more than 40 years of experience in higher education and public sector administration.

 

Horn first came to UAFS in 1992 and has served the institution under three of the University’s identities -- Westark Community College, Westark College and UAFS. His first position was vice president for finance and administration from 1992-1997, followed by vice president for planning and accountability from 1997-2002, vice chancellor for planning and budgeting from 2002-2005, vice chancellor for finance and administration from 2005-2011 and vice chancellor for university relations beginning in 2011.

 

In Horn’s current role at UAFS, he works to convey the priorities and mission of the institution by building and strengthening relationships with the University’s many stakeholders.

 

“It truly has been an exciting and fun ride to be part of this institution through what I sincerely believe were some of the most compelling and singularly significant years in its history,” said Horn. “I am humbly proud of the role I played in shaping the institution over the years.”

 

Horn reminisced, “I was fortunate to have had a hand in a wide-ranging number of tasks and privileged to represent this institution in the nation’s capital, at the Statehouse, before the Board of Trustees and the Higher Education Coordinating Board, within the higher education community and locally with city and county leadership, the Chamber and the citizens we serve.”

 

Horn has had a hand in remaking the face of the campus with facility projects he planned and supervised, building the financial strength and capacity of the institution, and strengthening the UAFS Foundation through its earlier formative years. He was also instrumental in leading the efforts that resulted in the creation of the self-funded health plan and outsourcing of dining services and bookstore management.

 

“What my resume doesn’t show is my heart,” he said. “I care deeply about this institution and its people and, if in the process of getting the job done I raised the human spirit and affirmed the worth of those doing the work on the ground, then I am pleased. My hope is that I’ll be remembered as much, if not more, for who I am rather than what I did.”

 

Chancellor Paul B. Beran said Horn has been “a key player” for him.

 

“Mark Horn is someone I can trust and who I know will tell me the truth, good or bad,” said Beran. “I have always known that with him the ethical way is the only way. I value these qualities and have depended on Mark for insight and guidance in all things related to how the institution does business.”

 

Beran said he appreciates the role that Horn has had in the emergence of the institution.

 

“What Mark Horn has done for UAFS has been vitally important to where we are today,” said Beran. “He will truly be missed, but we wish him the best as he transitions into the next phase of his life.”

 

Before assuming a position with the University, Horn was on active duty in the U.S. Air Force for 22 years, retiring with the rank of lieutenant colonel. He is a Vietnam veteran who served in both command and staff positions around the world.

 

Within the community, Horn served 15 years on the Fort Smith Airport Commission, was co-chair of the Fort Smith Chamber of Commerce Transportation Committee and was a member of the City of Fort Smith Audit Committee and the Sebastian County Extension Council. He presently serves on the Boards of the Employers Health Coalition and the Westark Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America. His Boy Scouts affiliation has included working in three different Boy Scout Councils and supporting the group at the unit and district levels.

 

Horn received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Texas at San Antonio. He completed additional studies in national security management through the National Defense University, Washington, D.C. Horn attended the Harvard University Institute of Educational Management in 2008 and is a 1995 graduate of the Leadership Fort Smith program. He and his wife Lynn have two children, Ramsey and Leslie, and four grandchildren.

 

Beran said UAFS has plans to restructure at the senior staff level when Horn retires by placing an emphasis on enrollment management through a new vice chancellor’s position. The new vice chancellor will be responsible for developing and leading the implementation and execution of a comprehensive enrollment management plan that is consistent with the University’s strategic goals and direction.

 

The fall 2013 candidates for graduation represent 234 bachelor’s degrees, 155 associate degrees and 29 technical certificates. Summer II graduates include 57 receiving bachelor’s degrees, 53 receiving associate degrees and 22 receiving technical certificates.