Engineering alumnus William Cravens (BSIE ’56) joined other local business leaders in the Arkansas Business Hall of Fame in February. William L. Cravens’ career spans many years and a variety of endeavors. He served as a leader in manufacturing, public accounting, banking, information services and thoroughbred racing. After graduating from the University of Arkansas with an industrial engineering degree, he worked for General Electric, a job that took him to Kentucky, Massachusetts, Illinois and back to Arkansas. He moved to Little Rock to become a partner in the Russell Brown & Co. firm as a certified public accountant. In 1976, he moved to the First National Bank in Little Rock, becoming its president and chief executive officer. At the same time, he became a director of the Oaklawn Jockey Club, a position he still holds.
Cravens was instrumental in the merger of the First National Bank and Commercial National Bank, forming First Commercial Bank. He later joined Worthen Banking Corp. After a brief retirement, Cravens returned as vice-chair and later chair of Alltel Information Systems. He also helped establish Pinnacle Bank, where he served as chair. He is a long-time supporter of the U of A, and was inducted into the College of Engineering Hall of Fame in 2006.