Barrett first worked as a laboratory technologist before becoming a hospital administrator.  Later she was recognized by the Office of Rural Health Policy in Baltimore as a model forerunner of a rural primary care hospital during her time as the President of Jane Phillips Caney Community Clinic.

Since 1991, Barrett has been a part of the St. Louis-based Mercy organization, when she joined Mercy Health System of Kansas as director of outreach services. As director she was responsible for the creation of an outreach strategy to respond to identified unmet community needs, focusing her help on the elderly, the poor, and young families.  She was named chief operating officer of Mercy Hospital in Independence, Kan., later that year, before taking over as president and CEO of Mercy Health System of Kansas. Barrett moved to Rogers in 1999 to accept the role of president and CEO of Mercy Health System of Northwest Arkansas. “We are put here to serve,” she said. “My mom and dad taught me, ‘You’re only as good as those you help.’”

Susan and her husband Rex are the parents of two grown children, Jason and Chody.

As CEO, Andy has been involved in strategic planning and direction for the Center.  He serves as an executive coach to senior leaders as well as facilitating and leading sessions with our customers.  He also speaks on behalf of the Center at a variety of functions as well as spending time teaching in both the Advance Degree and Master’s Degree programs at John Brown University.

Prior to his tenure with the Soderquist Center for Leadership and Ethics, Andy spent 25 years as an innovative leader at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. He dedicated more than 10 years as Vice President and Officer of Store Operations, supervising over 100 stores and 10,000 associates in the Southern, Southeast and Western regions of the United States.  Most recently, he served for 6 years as Vice President of People Division (HR) for all domestic store operations, including over 700,000 associates and management staff.  He assisted in Succession Planning, HR People Measurement Systems, Training and Development, Compensation and Benefits Systems and executive Coaching.  Andy speaks globally on the issues of Leadership, Ethics, Retail Store Operations and Human Resources.

Currently Andy Wilson serves as the Executive Leader of the Ministry and Operations at the First Baptist Church in Springdale and the Church at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers, AR.  He is head of the Communications department at these churches and his missional vission matches that of the church in that his goal is “to reach Northwest Arkansas, America, and the World for Jesus Christ.”

Prior to joining Wal-Mart, John was the President of Mac Tools for seven years.  During his tenure at Mac Tools, John and his leadership team executed a significant turnaround of the business.  Before joining Mac Tools, John spent ten years working for the Frito-Lay Division of PepsiCo. At Frito-Lay, John held a variety of positions in sales, marketing and field operations.  Most recently, he was the Region Vice President of the Midwest Region in North America.  Prior to this assignment, he served as the Director of Sales, Director of Marketing, and a variety of other leadership assignments.

John is married with two children.  He is a board member of the CEO Forum and the Ohio University Sales Centre.  He holds a degree in Economics from the University of Washington.

Some of Jim’s favorite quotes are:

Philippians 4:8 Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, anything that is praiseworthy, think about these things.  “I think that is just a good philosophy to embrace, and it is one of the quotes I use to sign books with.”

Nicholas Vachel Lindsay: “We must have many Lincoln-hearted men.”

Woodrow Wilson: “America lives in the heart of every man, everywhere, who wishes to find a region where he will be free to work out his destiny as he chooses.”

Charles Spurgeon (on the Bible): “Herein lies thoughts that breathe and words that burn.”

Jim is a very passionate man, stating “It is hard for me not to bring a great deal of passion and energy to whatever I happen to be focused on at the moment.  Personal growth is imperative, so that you can continue to lead better.  A stream does not rise higher than its own source, so if you are going to embrace leadership, you must continue to grow.  If you are not growing, you are not continuing to earn the right to lead others, who might choose to follow.  My passion comes out for me in the work that I do: speaking, writing and participating on boards.”

Jim has written Focus or Failure: America at the Crossroads (about bringing together corporate America to help children), The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Franchising, and The Memorial (about Jim’s experience in the U.S. Marine Corps).  Additionally, Jim has been a contributor to the following books: Above and Beyond: Former Marines Conquer the Civilian World, Corporate Giants: Personal Stories of Faith and Finance, The Entrepreneur’s Creed—The Principles & Passions of 20 Successful Entrepreneurs, and The Transparent Leader.

He currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee.

In 1965, he founded Life Management Services.  He remains President of the company and is also President of ToolsCart.com.

He is the author and editor of nine books including Life is Tremendous and has been featured in many well-known leadership books.

Tremendous Jones is a guest lecturer at colleges and universities nationwide.  Thousands of audiences around the world have experienced nonstop laughter as he shares his ideas on life’s most challenging situations in business and the home.

Charlie holds several doctorates.  He has been a recipient of the Life is Worth Living Award, the Lifetime of Sales and Marketing Excellence Award, and the Speakers Hall of Fame CPAE Award from the National Speakers Association among many other commendations.

Known for his blunt, highly practical, no nonsense coaching style, Tommy has earned the title of America’s Success Coach.

He is the author of The New York Times Bestselling book The 4:8 Principle as well as Success Is Not An Accident; 366 Days of Wisdom & Inspiration and numerous audio programs, including the best-selling series ‘Success Is Not An Accident: Secrets of the Top 1%.’

Tommy lives in Atlanta with his wife, Kristin, and their three boys.

Petrino earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a minor in mathematics from Carroll College, where he played quarterback and twice earned NAIA All-America honors and was named the league’s most valuable player in 1981 and 1982.

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater in 1983 and then moved to Weber State as a graduate assistant and quarterbacks coach in 1984.  He went back to Carroll as offensive coordinator in 1985 and ’86.

In 1992 and ’93, he was the quarterbacks coach at Arizona State where he assisted in the development of future All-American and NFL star Jake Plummer.  1994 saw Petrino named the offensive coordinator and QB coach for University of Nevada; from there he took a position as offensive coordinator for Utah State from ’95-’97.  He had his first stint at Louisville as the offensive coordinator in 1998.  From Louisville, he went to Auburn University as the QB coach in ’99 and 2000 and offensive coordinator in ‘01.

Petrino was named the head coach at Louisville in 2003.  In 2004, his Cardinals team led the nation in total offense and scoring offense, and set an NCAA record by scoring 50+ points in five straight games.  His ‘06 Cardinals held a 12-1 record and seven Louisville players earned first-team All-Big East honors, the most of any league school.  Altogether, his teams posted 41-9 in his tenure there and finished at the school’s highest national ranking of no. 6.

On Dec 11, 2007, following one season with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and a four-year run at Louisville, Bobby Petrino was named the 30th head coach at the University of Arkansas.

Bobby and his wife, Becky, have four children:  Kelsey, Nick, Bobby and Katie, and now reside here in NWA.

Zig Ziglar calls Jay Strack, “entertaining, powerful, inspiring and informative.” As an effective communicator, Jay Strack is acclaimed by leadership in government entities, the business world, and educators as a dynamic speaker and author.

President and founder of Student Leadership University, Jay Strack consistently leads others to imagine and execute positive change in themselves and in their teams. His versatile style has been presented across the nation and in 22 countries, including: NASA, Wal-Mart, Chick-fil-a, Johnson & Johnson, General Motors, Pfizer Pharmaceutical, WenSouth, Homebanc, Universal Studios, SunTrust, Bank, Florida Homebuilders Associaton, RDV Sports and more -professional Sports teams in the NFL, NBA, & MLB, including as a featured speaker for players of the NBA All Star Games.  Also, he has spoken for the Air Force Academy faculty & students, over 9,000 high schools & some 100 universities, as an appointed member of the President’s Drug Task Force under Nancy Reagan, William Bennett, & President Bush.

Having overcome his own drug addiction and past problems, Jay Strack believes, “If I can overcome the past and believe in the future, anyone can. Your dreams determine your destiny.” His is a powerful message of hope, inspiration, and “future tense” thinking for leaders.

Jay is the author of several highly acclaimed books, including, The Three Success Secrets of Shamgar. This popular book grew out of a message presented to the players at the NBA All-Star Game.  As the featured speaker, Jay presented a message entitled “How to Turn Your Season Around,” based on the three success secrets of Shamgar, an ancient but forgotten warrior.

Strack is able to use one of his favorite techniques; that is, applying strong principles from history and tradition to modern-day situations.  From the locker room to the board room, he believes that we can capture the future if we understand that the more things change, the more some things remain the same.  Strack believes anyone can overcome obstacles and achieve great things if you:
-Start where you are
-Use what you have
-Do what you can

Herschel Walker participated in the 1980 Academy of Achievement program as the valedictorian of his class and the most sought-after high school football player in the nation.

At the University of Georgia, Walker set an NCAA freshman rushing record and helped capture the national collegiate football title and capped a sensational college career by earning the 1982 Heisman Trophy in his junior year.

In 1983, Walker gave up his final year of collegiate eligibility and turned professional, joining the New Jersey Generals of the short-lived United States Football League.  Walker dominated the league, earning Most Valuable Player honors and setting the single-season pro football rushing record (2411 yards).  After his first pro season, he finished his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice at the University of Georgia.

Walker joined the Dallas Cowboys in 1986, where he led the entire NFL in rushing and earned All-Pro honors.  Walker moved to the Minnesota Vikings as starting running back in 1989.  In 1992, he joined the Philadelphia Eagles football team, but returned to the Dallas Cowboys in 1996. He retired from the NFL in 1997.  Walker was one of the top running backs in the pros, gaining more yards than anyone in professional football history, counting his seasons in both the NFL and USFL.  He finished his professional career with with a total of 8,225 yards and 61 rushing touchdowns. He also caught 512 passes for 4,859 yards and 21 scores.

Herschel Walker has worked with numerous charitable and educational organizations.  In 1981, he became the first Academy of Achievement honor student to return to the annual program as a recipient of the Golden Plate Award.  In 2002 he was voted into the Collegiate Football Hall of Fame, and was selected as the second greatest player in college football history, just behind the legendary Red Grange.