Arkansas State University System notebook

NEA Sports Club lease plan OK'd

Arkansas State University will modify its lease agreement with Cobblestone Vintage Good Guild Inc., doing business as NEA Sports Club, and enter into separate lease agreements with Elm Street Center Inc. and Aggie Road Center Inc.

The Arkansas State University System board of trustees approved the plans Friday.

In 2015, ASU entered into a 10-year lease agreement with NEA Sports Club to sell and serve alcohol in certain areas of Centennial Bank Stadium (home of the Red Wolves football team) and other designated Jonesboro campus locations.

The lease was modified and extended in 2021, and -- since that time -- NEA Sports Club has raised more than $150,000 for the Arkansas State University Red Wolves Foundation Inc., and has provided enhanced services at premium seating areas at sporting events, as well as during concerts in First National Bank Arena, according to the ASU System.

"Beginning in 2021, A-State and NEA Sports Club began looking at options to enhance the services originally contemplated in the initial agreement, [and] NEA Sports Club wishes to modify the lease agreement in order to authorize additional areas of service in Centennial Bank Stadium, including service throughout the entire stadium."

Subject to additional approval by the Jonesboro City Council and the Alcoholic Beverage Control administration, NEA Sports Club wishes to transfer and expand its service at Tomlinson Stadium to Aggie Road Center Inc., and transfer its service at First National Bank Arena to Elm Street Center Inc., according to the ASU System.

NEA Sports Club, Aggie Road Center, and Elm Street Center share the same board of directors and the same nonprofit purpose of providing benefits to the ASU Red Wolves Foundation under the proposed new lease agreements that will begin on the effective date and will remain in effect for 10 years.

"We are simply structuring this exactly as required by Arkansas Beverage Control," said ASU System President Chuck Welch.

Trustees recognize Kays Foundation

The Scarlet to Black Program at Arkansas State University will now be known as Kays Foundation Scarlet to Black Program for Financial Independence.

"The Kays Foundation has made significant contributions to A-State of a magnitude worthy of special gratitude and lasting recognition, including transferring an endowment from the discontinued Kays Foundation Women's Health Residency Program to the Scarlet to Black Program for Financial Independence, to help provide economic autonomy to, and improve the financial health and literacy of, students having monetary difficulty at A-State," according to a resolution presented to the Arkansas State University System board of trustees Friday.

The Scarlet to Black Program was created in April 2018 to improve the financial wellness and literacy of the university's students, with a specific emphasis on assisting first-year students, according to ASU.

It "helps with financial literacy for students, which is so big," ASU System President Chuck Welch said. "[We appreciate the Kays Foundation for its] commitment and support."

The Kays Foundation exists for the sole purpose of supporting the university, according to the foundation.

Trustees approved the resolution at their meeting Friday.

Game sites are set for Newport teams

ASU-Newport Chancellor Johnny Moore is "really looking forward" to the debut of men's basketball and women's softball teams at his college in 2023-24, he said Friday, when Arkansas State University System board of trustees met in Malvern.

ASU-Newport will be a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association and will compete in Region 2 at the Division II level.

The fieldhouse at Newport High School, an indoor arena that accommodates up to 1,145 spectators and features a hardwood court, an electronic scoreboard and modern amenities, will host the basketball team, according to the college.

George Kell Park -- named for the Hall of Fame baseball player from Newport -- will be home to the softball team. The outdoor complex includes multiple baseball and softball fields, a concession stand and batting cages.

ASU Mid South is also adding athletic teams, baseball and softball squads, next year to join the existing men's and women's basketball teams, said Chancellor Deb West on Friday. "We already have coaches in place."

West added that the college's graduation rate this year surpassed not only the state average for two-year schools but also the national average, as the rate increased from 34% last year to 43% this year, she said. Those are marked increases from the 15% rate when she began as chancellor in 2015, and this has "been a really heavy lift for our institution."

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