My first month as Executive Director of ATRS has been both exciting and educational. I have talked with many of you about your concerns, priorities, and questions. I've been learning from the dedicated staff of ATRS who spend every day working to serve you. And I've been working with our financial consultants and with the ATRS Board of Trustees to protect the financial soundness and stability of the System.
Several things have happened in this last month that may be of interest to you:
- We have seen two vacancies occur on the ATRS Board of Trustees. The first one occurred with the retirement of Kelly Davis effective July 1. As I write, we have received 12 applications from individuals seeking to fill this vacancy. The Board will soon appoint an applicant to fill the vacancy temporarily until the System election next year.
- The second vacancy was tragically caused by the death of State Treasurer Mark Lowery. I've known Treasurer Lowery for many years and always enjoyed working and visiting with him. Our prayers and thoughts are with his family in this time of loss. Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has appointed Larry Walther to serve as State Treasurer for the remainder of the term. We welcome Mr. Walther to the ATRS Board and look forward to working with him.
- On July 17, after conducting their annual educational training, the ATRS Board of Trustees held a called meeting and approved two new investments on behalf of ATRS members. The first was a $25 million purchase of stock in Arkansas-based Westrock Coffee Company. The second was a $38.5 million loan to Hybar LLC towards construction of a new steel rebar mill near Osceola. We expect both of these investments to provide good returns for our members as well as create jobs for Arkansans.
If you aren't following ATRS on Facebook, I encourage you to visit the ATRS Facebook page and click "Follow" and "Like." We will be posting regular updates as well as answers to questions that we commonly get from members.
For example, many are confused over a recent law change to "Normal Retirement Age." What's important for you to know is that this change has nothing to do with when you are eligible to retire. ATRS retirement eligibility requirements have not changed. If you'd like to learn more about the confusion and what has actually changed, please take a look at the explanation we posted to Facebook.
As always, I welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. You can email me at MarkW@artrs.gov or you can call me at the numbers below. Thank you for the trust you have placed in us, and thank you for your contributions to education in Arkansas.
Mark White
Executive Director, ATRS
MarkW@artrs.gov
Office: (501) 621-8853
Cell: (501) 541-2057