Anna Beth Gorman's Mission of Empowering Women
Anna Beth Gorman, CEO of the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas, has committed her professional life to public service with a specialized focus on advancing the status of girls and women in our society. In her tenure with the Women’s Foundation, she is leading the effort for the Foundation to be the leading equity partner in building women’s economic security across the state of Arkansas. The Foundation has seen tremendous growth under her leadership while focusing on two signature initiatives, Girls of Promise and Women Empowered.
In 2022, she was the Democratic Nominee for Arkansas Secretary of State. In the same year, she was recognized as one of the 250 most influential leaders in Arkansas by Arkansas Business. She is widely recognized as a business and community leader, practitioner of economic development and is a sought after expert on the value of including women in the economy.
Before her tenure with the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas, she was the Chief Membership, Volunteer, and Program Officer for Girl Scouts Diamonds of Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas, serving as an executive with the Girl Scout organization for several years. She began her career in Public Service working for the Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia, as well as a Master of Public Administration and a Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She is the immediate past chairman of the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce, active in Club 99 Rotary, board member of Arvest Bank Little Rock, Arkansas Women’s Hall of Fame, and a founding board member of the Southern Capital Project.
- Anna Beth grew up in Texarkana.
- She graduated from Pleasant Grove, where she was a Showstopper. (She's looking forward to attending the 40th-anniversary event later this year).
- She was a Girl Scout at the local council and went to college on a Girl Scout scholarship.
- During the summers in college, Anna Beth would return yearly to Texarkana to be with her family and work.
- Her mom lives on the Arkansas side, and her dad on the Texas side. Her brother (Justin White) is a Texarkana resident and president of Guaranty Bank.
