Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts will hold its graduation ceremony at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 21 in Summit Arena at the Hot Springs Convention Center. There are 86 students in the Class of 2011, representing 35 Arkansas counties.
Student Government Association President Jessica Cheng and her senior classmates Jamie Smith and Garrett Corpier will speak during the ceremony. Jessica is the daughter of Hong Cheng and Gushong Gu of Magnolia. Jamie is the daughter of Mary Smith of Greenbrier. Garrett is the son of Thomas and Linda Corpier of Hensley.
Former Sen. Steve Faris of Malvern will deliver the commencement address. Faris served in the Arkansas legislature for 14 years. He represented the Malvern area in the House of Representatives from 1997 through 2001. From 2001 through 2010, he represented Senate District 27, which includes Montgomery and Hot Spring counties and portions of Garland, Saline and Grant counties.
“It’s exciting to be a part of this year’s graduation ceremony, especially with so many positive and progressive things happening around the campus,” said Faris, who has been a long-time supporter of ASMSA. He is currently serving on the ASMSA Foundation steering committee.
In addition to his service in the state legislature, Faris served on the State Fair and Livestock Association Board of Governors, is a former chairman of the Hot Spring County Democratic Central Committee and the Hot Spring County Election Commission. He is a charter member and former chairman of the Ouachita Technical College Board of Trustees.
Faris is a graduate of Malvern High School and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Henderson State University. He served in the Arkansas Army National Guard from 1983 to 1989 and graduated from the U.S. Army School of Finance and Administration at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Ind., in 1984.
He is employed at general manager of Central Arkansas Telephone Cooperative in Bismarck.