About

Dr. Lewis Shepherd, Jr., began serving in Fall 2020 as Special Assistant to the President, focusing on racial diversity for Ouachita. He also oversees Ouachita's Office of Multicultural Student Programs, which was established in 2017. Dr. Shepherd previously served Ouachita in a variety of roles for 29 years.

From 2009 to the present, Dr. Shepherd has held senior leadership roles at Henderson State University focusing on student life, external relations and community engagement. He has been a bi-vocational pastor, serving since 2000 at Greater Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Arkadelphia, the largest Black church in the community.

Dr. Shepherd also has been involved in numerous civic endeavors, including having served on the Arkansas State Police Commission, as past president of the Arkadelphia Chamber of Commerce and as a founding member of the Arkadelphia Sunrise Rotary Club. He currently is chair of the Board of Directors of the Percy and Donna Malone Child Safety Center.