The Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas will hold its 15th annual awards banquet on Thursday, April 17, at the Holiday Inn in Springdale.

The Walton College will honor three distinctive alumni:

• Lifetime Achievement -- Edward M. Penick, Sr., B.S.B.A.'46, J.D. '48, retired chairman and chief executive officer, Worthen Banking Corp., Little Rock, Ark.
• Entrepreneur of the Year -- J. Stephen Lauck, B.S.B.A. '67, president, CEO and Portfolio Manager/Analyst, Ashfield Capital Partners LLC, San Francisco, Calif.
• Outstanding Service -- John C. Reap, B.S.B.A. '70, president and CEO, Town North Bank N.A., Dallas, Texas

Walton College Dean Dan Worrell said: "We have chosen these business leaders because they exemplify the very essence of what we are trying to teach our students. Their accomplishments provide inspiration to the students as well as to our faculty and staff."

In 1948, Penick joined Worthen Bank, which his grandfather had founded in 1877. By 1961, he became president. He was appointed CEO in 1966 and chairman in 1974. Under his leadership, the bank became the largest public financial institution in Arkansas, with 12 banks and nine financial services companies with assets of more than $2.2 billion. He was also the driving force behind the First Arkansas Bankstock Corp., a banking holding company. Boatman's bought the bank in 1994, and in 1998 it merged with Bank of America.

Prior to 2007, Lauck served as president, CEO and portfolio manager/analyst of Ashfield & Co. Inc., the company that later became Ashfield Capital Partners LLC. Before joining Ashfield & Co. Inc. in 1984, Lauck was the vice president at BA Investment Management in San Francisco after serving as head of Bank of America's Capital Counseling Services in Los Angeles. He received an Master of Business Administration from the University of Southern California. Lauck serves on the Walton College Dean's Executive Advisory Board. This year, he made a donation to the college to fund a university scholarship through Access Arkansas, a need-based scholarship program.

Reap has served on the Dean's Executive Advisory Board since 2002 and the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame selection committee since 2006. He was on the North Texas Region Committee of the university's Campaign for the 21st Century. He has also served the Arkansas Alumni Association on its board of directors since 2005 and on the executive committee of the board. Reap has been president and CEO of Town North Bank since 1994. He holds an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University and a degree from the University of Virginia Graduate School of Bank Management.

WALTON COLLEGE OUTSTANDING STUDENT AWARDS

The Walton College's outstanding undergraduate senior awards include:

• Accounting - Yerim Kim, Jessica Hesseltine, Jannae Rieske
• Economics - Connie Zhou
• Economics, International Business - Amanda Otto
• Economics, Arts and Sciences - Lindsay Murchinson
• Finance - Craig Cox, Spenser Piland, Thomas Vo, Marrisa Myers, Jennifer Heisserer
• Information Systems - Elias Bozeman
• Marketing and Logistics - Brady Toops, Katherine O'Connell, Jesse Lane, Phillip Peterson, Tamara Mason, Jonathon Howland
• Management - Rachel McGriff, Andrew Wise
• Ralph Treat Outstanding Cooperative Student Award - Nick Thicksten

Graduate student awards include:

• Master of Business Administration - Kellan Frank
• Managerial Master of Business Administration - Dinesh Hedge
• Master of Accountancy - Miranda Brown
• Master of Arts in Economics - Jing Ou
• Master of Information Systems - Jeremi Summerhill (Professional MIS), Evelyn Ouma (Full-time MIS)

The Sam M. Walton Student Leadership award will be given to Brianna Gamble. The Doyle Z. Williams Student Leadership Award will go to Thomas Vo. The University of Arkansas and Walton College student awards, include: First-ranked Senior Scholars - Jennifer Heisserer, Jessica Hesseltine, Katherine O'Connell, and Amanda Otto. These students completed all of their course work at the University of Arkansas with a grade point average of 4.0. The Senior Scholars are Yerin Kim, Kevin Mathis, Kathleen McGraw, Danial Morris and Katie Watson. They have been enrolled at the university for at least four semesters and had the highest grade point in the college. Russell Moore will receive the Beta Gamma Sigma award, and Joseph Willman will receive the Presidential Scholar award. The Walton College's Outstanding Graduating Senior is Jessica Hesseltine.

OUTSTANDING WALTON COLLEGE FACULTY AND STAFF

Dean Worrell will recognize the outstanding Walton College faculty and staff for the 2007-2008 academic year. He said: "It takes the combined efforts of all of our faculty and our staff to provide these students with the best business education possible. We are grateful for all of their work this year to produce a top graduating class."

Alan Ellstrand, associate professor of management and director of the MBA program, will receive the "Outstanding All-Around Faculty" award for excelling in teaching, research and service. The "Excellence in Teaching" award will be given to Vikas Anand, associate professor of management. The "Excellence in Research" award will be presented to Cary Deck, associate professor of economics. Joanna Newman, management instructor, will receive the "Excellence in Advising" award. The "Excellence in Service" award will be presented to Susan Bristow, information systems instructor. Scott Miller, doctoral student in finance, will receive the "Outstanding Graduate Assistant Teaching" award. The "Faculty Diversity Award" will be given to Carole Shook, accounting instructor.

Worrell will recognize 10 faculty and staff members for their length of service to the Walton College and the University of Arkansas: 10 years of service - Stacy Crotser, Andy Horowitz, Wayne Lee and Beverly Daniel; 20 years of service - David Kurtz; and 30 years of service - Tracy Murray.

The Walton College "Major Contribution" award will go to Dixie Kline, director of communications. The "Superior Service" award will go to Renee Clay, assistant director, Career Development Center. The "Rookie" award goes to Marion Dunagan, assistant dean for graduate programs, and the "Staff Diversity" award goes to Susan Yell, administrative assistant for the economics department.

The Walton College "Outstanding Team" award will go to the Executive MBA in China. Members include: Marion Dunagan, Alan Ellstrand, Nancy Fondren, Anne Marie Grippe, Regina Jedlicka, Wendy MacColl, Rebel Smith, Hilola Tuychieva, Matt Waller and Deb Williams. The "High Performance Team" award will go to the Technology Center. Members include: Rosa Ainley, Will Allred, Saba Beyene, Stacy Crotser, Rhys Dixon, Jim Goodlander, Casey Johnson, Sandy Kizer, Eddie Mahar, Rachael Morrison, Leonard Ridley, Sean Semple, Carolyn Smith and Jeff Waits.