The Rankin College of Business Hall of Fame was established in 2019 by the Business Advisory Council. Each year, the council selects alumni who have distinguished themselves in business, leadership, and service. On October 27, 2023, Gary Sewell, class of 1971, and Dr. Gayle White, class of 1963, were recognized as Southern Arkansas University’s newest inductees.
Gary Sewell, a 1971 BBA graduate from SAU, formerly Southern State College, spent his career working in and serving south Arkansas. In 1984, he became director of First Federal Savings and Loan, a small bank in El Dorado, which is now First Financial Bank. That same year, he started Sewell Operating Company, Inc., an exploration and production company. In 1990, he took ownership of Hammond Oil Company, renaming it Sewell Oil Company, and established Sewell Drilling Company, LLC.
Sewell has served as Chairman of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission since his appointment by Governor Asa Hutchinson in 2016. He also serves on the Rankin College of Business Advisory Council. However, nothing gives him greater pleasure than working on his 800-acre ranch near El Dorado and spending time with his wife Kristi, their two sons, and four grandchildren.
Dr. Gayle White graduated from Southern State College in 1963. She earned an MBE in 1966 and an EdD in 1972, both from the University of Mississippi. Dr. White went on to pursue postgraduate studies at the University of Illinois in 1984 and Harvard University in 1989. Turner Professor of Management and SAU Distinguished Professor Dr. White taught for 43 years in the Rankin College of Business at SAU and served as dean of the School of Business from 1980-1994. Among her many achievements, Dr. White was selected by the Arkansas Business Education Association as the 1980 Arkansas Business Educator of the Year, was named the 1997-1998 SAU Honor Professor, and received the SAU Faculty Excellence Award for Research in 2003. Since her retirement, Dr. White has enjoyed spending time with her husband, daughter, and two grandchildren in North Carolina.
