Kyle Parker, JD, CEO of the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education, possesses a nationally recognized presence in the fields of law, technology, business, and higher education. Beginning as a private practice attorney, Kyle wrote the first artificial intelligence software (CLARA) ever granted a registered copyright for the legal profession while he was still in law school. He then created a word search engine, and in 1989 digitized the Arkansas legal case opinions, and statutory and regulatory laws to release the first legal CD-ROM in history (CaseBase). His efforts were subsequently recognized by the Arkansas Bar Association with the Lawyer-Pioneer Award, the first and only time this award has been granted. Kyle was also recognized by the Arkansas House of Representatives and the Arkansas State Senate, and was later awarded the Technology Award by the National Center for State Courts. And, in 1994, Kyle conceived and created the first searchable legal information internet site (loislaw.com).
Kyle directed Law Office Information Systems, (LOIS), a 700 employee company, taking the company “public” in 1999, where its stock was traded on NASDAQ. During his tenure of LOIS, Kyle was recognized by numerous state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court for revolutionizing legal research throughout America and making it affordable. He received the Ernst & Young, Southwest Finalist, Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2000, was recognized as one of the Top 10 most influential graduates of Franklin Pierce Law Center, as well as being named in the top 200 CEO Entrepreneur Companies in America. Most recently, Kyle was inducted into the Arkansas Academy of Computing. He has also had numerous articles written about his entrepreneurial works, and he has appeared on Bloomberg, CNN, and CNNfn.
In 2001, Kyle directed the sale of LOIS to Wolters Kluwer NA, an Amsterdam-based world publishing company. At the time of the acquisition, LOIS had over 23,000 law firms, every accredited law school in the U.S., and every State appellate court including the U.S. Supreme Court as its customer. After the acquisition in 2001, Kyle directed the traditional print publishing units of Wolters Kluwer toward digitally available products and services. As Executive Vice President of Business Development and Strategic Planning, his responsibilities included the merging of various business units’ products and services from a traditional transaction model to a recurring revenue model for more than 300 digital offerings.
In 2009, Kyle was employed by the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith as Vice Chancellor of Technology. Responsible for the technology needs of 8,000 students and 1,000 staff and faculty, he directed the changing of technology that led to increased speed and reliability from 84% to 99.98% uptime, full redundancy, and complete disaster recovery, while reducing energy expenditures by 80%. Collaborating with faculty and students, he directed the creation of study labs, web site redesign and architecture, a 24-hour technology enabled study zone, and a complete update of the PCs for all faculty and administration. He also directed the creation of a new service department help system for technology, building and grounds, and human resources.
In 2010 Kyle’s responsibilities expanded when he was appointed Vice Chancellor of Operations to include the strategic direction for growth of the institution. His additional responsibilities included oversight of technology, plant operations, the physical plant, health and safety, police, building and grounds, shipping and receiving, inventory, campus and community events, and renovations and new construction including a $14.1 million dollar Boreham Library expansion and renovation project. In addition, his strategic energy initiatives produced an annual savings to the University in excess of $1.8 Million per annum.
Throughout his professional career, Kyle has partnered with private banking firms to acquire and manage various “turn around” and growth businesses. He has worked directly with the CEOs of various companies to create new executive management, operation structures, sales, and technology solutions to control expenditures and increase revenue, while also serving on each company’s respective Board of Directors.
Kyle is also active in his community as he serves as a volunteer Board member for various civic, charitable, and educational institutions and organizations. Kyle and his wife, Renee, are the parents of two sons, Marshall and Christian, and reside in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
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Brian Kim, JD, joined the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education as the President in July 2019. Over the course of Kim’s distinguished career, he has accumulated over 35 years of legal experience and more than 20 years of academic experience. He recently worked as vice president for the Department of Accreditation and Associate General Counsel for the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the member organization for more than 145,000 U.S. osteopathic medical doctors and osteopathic medical students. That job also included his role as secretary to the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation (COCA), the accrediting agency for all osteopathic medical schools.
Kim was the first Asian American judge appointed to the District Court of Maryland for Montgomery County. He presided over criminal and civil dockets in a trial court of limited jurisdiction. He also served as Deputy Counsel for the Office of the Attorney General of Maryland for the Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration.
A native of Seoul, South Korea, Kim has completed 101 marathons, including the Boston Marathon and the New York City Marathon. He is an accomplished violinist and has played with numerous orchestras, including the Trinity Chamber Orchestra, in Washington, DC, Chicago Citywide Symphony Orchestra, and serving as concertmaster of the Montgomery Symphony Orchestra.
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Thomas Webb, Jr. possesses a distinguished career as Vice President, President, and Chief Operating Officer of several successful businesses and corporations. In these positions of leadership, Mr. Webb was charged with managing employee relations, oversight of contract law, financial accountability (including A.P. and A.R), cash management, and driving day-to-day operational improvement and long-term growth strategies. Tom has also served as the Executive Director of The Degen Foundation and the Fort Smith Regional Healthcare Foundation.
Active in community and civic affairs, he has served as a board member for various professional and civic organizations including the Fort Smith Girls Club, the Fort Smith School Board, and the Fort Smith Chamber of Commerce. He has also served on the Board of Directors of the Arkansas Poultry Federation and has held positions as Chairman, Vice Chairman, and Treasurer for Sparks Health System Board of Trustees.
Tom is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi earning a B.S. in Business Administration. An avid outdoorsman, he enjoys fishing and spending time at various lakes in the region. Tom and his wife, Susan, have two sons, Joel Webb and Neil Webb (deceased) and three grandsons, Gavin, Hunter and Lawson.
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Dennis Bauer was born in Paris, Arkansas, and has resided exclusively in Arkansas ever since. He attended Subiaco Academy and graduated with a B.S. in Accounting from Arkansas Tech University. Dennis has spent most of his career in hospital finance, holding numerous positions at Sparks Regional Medical Center in Fort Smith, Arkansas, including Internal Auditor, Director of Business Services, Director of Treasury Services, Controller, and Assistant Chief Financial Officer. Following the sale of Sparks, he most recently served as Chief Financial Officer for The Degen Foundation and Fort Smith Regional Healthcare Foundation.
Bauer received his Certified Public Accounting certificate in 1978 and practiced in public accounting for a short while before joining Sparks Regional Medical Center. He and his wife Fran live in Fort Smith and are the parents of four sons, Casey, Corey, Jason, and Brad. He and his wife have nine grandchildren.
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Dr. Elizabeth K. McClain is the Associate VP for Academic Affairs & Wellness and a Professor for the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education (ACHE). Prior to joining ACHE, Dr. McClain served as the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs of William Carey College of Osteopathic Medicine and Associate Professor of Medical Education. Previous academic roles include, Assistant Dean of Clinical Education, Assistant professor of Family and Community Medicine at Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences and Assistant Dean in the Office of Graduate Medical Education at the University of Kansas Hospital.
Dr. McClain is a member of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), and is very active in the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM). She has served on academic task forces including the 2012 ACCOM Osteopathic Core Competencies for Medical Students, the 2016 EPA Liaison Group and the 2017 National Collaborative for Improving the Clinical Learning Environment. Dr. McClain has served as an associate editor for the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association since 2015. She focused on health disparities and was involved in public health and bioethics community outreach.
Dr. Elizabeth McClain is married to Dr. Rance McClain and they have four children.
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Les received his B.S. in Finance from the University of Arkansas and later a Graduate Banking and Finance Degree from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA. He has spent the last 20+ years with Arvest Bank. Through the affiliation/partnership between Arvest and ACHE, he met Kyle Parker (CEO), Tom Webb (COO), Dennis Bauer (CFO) and many other outstanding staff members. When offered the chance to join ACHE, it was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
Les has been married for nearly 20 years to his wife, Monica. They have two children, 8 year-old daughter, Cameron, and 5 year-old son, Cooper.
Les looks forward to getting to know more of the ACHE staff members and students.
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Starting in banking as a teller with Arvest Bank in college and eventually being promoted within the same organization to Executive Vice President / Loan Manager.
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Joel Webb, Arkansas Colleges of Health Education Vice President and Chief Technology Officer, is responsible for defining ACHE’s long-term technology strategy and vision and ensures technology excellence. Webb has over 20 years of experience delivering cutting-edge technology solutions to both private and public sectors.
Prior to joining ACHE, Webb served as the IT Director at USA Capacity Solutions, Inc., where he was able to offer advanced IT capabilities that provided continuous service to employees across North America. He also has experience with the federal government, working for both the United States District Court and the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Arkansas. Webb led strategic initiatives in next-generation infrastructure, cloud technologies, and disaster recovery.
Webb holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Information Systems from John Brown University. He also carries technical certifications from Microsoft, Dell, Cisco, VMware, and ITIL.
Natives of Fort Smith, Joel and his wife, Tracy, have five children Gavin, Sam, Hunter, Mariel and Lawson.
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