front&center Ruth Couch

Chamber of Commerce director believes in Beebe

By Amy Widner

LITTLE ROCK — Belief in self was the force behind Ruth Couch’s

standout career, but belief in Beebe is what is impor

tant to her now.

Couch worked at Arkansas State University-Beebe

for 32 years and was the community college’s first full

professor and the first woman on the faculty to earn

a doctorate. The distinction of being first was gratify

ing, Couch said, but never her true goal. In reality, it

all started when she first learned what a doctorate was

in the sixth grade and said to herself, “I want one of

those.” The Magnolia native set out to make her dreams a

reality. Along the way Couch had encouragement from

her parents and several key teachers, counselors and

role models. As for all the obstacles beyond her ring of

supporters - she just didn’t let them get to her.

“A lot of things that were hindrances for other people

weren’t to me because I never thought of them that way,”

Couch said. “Yes, there were times I got discouraged, of

course, but it was never that bad because I always had

that inspiration.” Couch retired from ASU-Beebe, where she had gone

from assistant professor of English to division of English

and fine arts chairwoman. She left a legacy of dedicated

attention to education, reading and writing. She en

dowed an ASU-Beebe scholarship to show her appre

ciation to those who supported her, while at the same

time giving the next generation a helping hand. One of

ASU-Beebe’s buildings, which houses its development

offices, bears her name: The Ruth L. Couch Center.

These days, Couch still believes in herself, but she also believes in Beebe. Even as Couch was retiring in 2003, conditions were readying for what would become her next role: promoting her community as Beebe Chamber of Commerce director. And just as she approached the challenge of earning her doctorate with an eye to what is possible, not what is impossible, Couch considers Beebe a town with potential.

“I think it gives opportunities to people who are willing to take them,” Couch said. “I had opportunities in Beebe that I wouldn’t have had anywhere else. I had the opportunity to teach; I had the opportunity to hold offices in many different organizations; I had the opportunity to achieve promotions on the job; and now I have the opportunity to be a leader with the Chamber of Commerce.” Even if Couch didn’t believe in Beebe, she gives little credence to the idea that the number on a town’s population sign is an indication of its worth.

“One shouldn’t be bound by where one is, but what one is,” Couch said.

What Couch is is a dedicated community servant and active citizen. She is a member of the Kiwanis International and first joined the Chamber about 15 years ago.

She is a member of the editorial board for a professional journal called The Community College Enterprise and is still involved with ASU-Beebe through the development council and other committees. She joined Delta Kappa Gamma, a professional honor society for women educators, in 1976 and has held several Delta Kappa Gammaoffices and was chairwoman of the society’s state leadership committee.

She has been active in the Business and Professional Women’s Association, in which she has held a variety of offices - including state president - and the Southwest Regional Conference on the Teaching of English, in which she held a variety of offices. From 1982 to 2004, she served on the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools as a consultant evaluator. She visited about 30 higher education institutions to assist with evaluations for accreditation.

She has published a book of verse about Arkansas history and traditions called This Land of Legend. In 1991 she received a distinguished alumna award from Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, where she earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree. Before she started working at ASU-Beebe, she was a public school teacher for nine years.

In addition to her work at the Chamber, Couch is active with her church, Beebe First Baptist Church, where she is a greeter and teaches Sunday school. She teaches a creative writing class at the Shepherd’s Center of Beebe, a nonprofit senior center. Couch said being in a position to serve the community had always been an aspiration of hers.

“As soon as I finished my doctorate and felt like I was able to really be in a community, I wanted to be a part of it fully,” Couch said. “It was a way that I could network with other people, andI thought it helped me be a better teacher and better member of the community.”

Now she believes all of that experience, both in and out of the classroom, is helping her as Chamber director. Because two of Beebe’s major employers are ASU and the school district, Couch believes her time in education gives her insight - although her transition from education to economic development wasn’t planned. The position fell in her lap while she was pondering what to do after retirement. She kept saying she wanted a job with a small office, where she could help people find what they need and not have to solve major problems.

There’s no such thing, others kept telling her, but during a particularly downcast Chamber of Commerce meeting, the members were bemoaning the fact that there was so much todo and no one to do it.

“Then someone said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice if we could assign some retired person to do all of this for us on a parttime basis?, and I hesitantly put my hand in the air,” Couch said. “I started this job by taking minutes and answering the phone. So I got what I wanted, and it’s grown from there.”

On paper, her hours at the chamber are 20 hours a week. But in reality, Couch just does whatever it takes.

“I can be on duty at any time,” Couch said. “I might try to recruit a Chamber member at church, or a church member at the Chamber. It’s just all so interconnected. I like being part of a community and seeing how it all fits together and helping it fit together.”

Couch said the best part of the job is the people. She’s enjoyed working with the five presidents who’ve held the postsince she’s been director. Each has had their own unique contribution to make, she said. She also enjoys putting together the weekly calendar of Beebe events she sends to Chamber members and others.

“I enjoy serving as an information center for the town,” Couch said. “I like to be able to refer people to merchants who have the products and services they need. I like doing the community calendar because I like knowing what all is going on, and it’s a way we can get information out about what is happening in Beebe and the Beebe area.”

When Couch talks about the encouragement she got as a child to achieve her dreams and her belief in herself, she said it was always discouraging to know that not everyone got that same support. That affected the way she tried to encourageher students in the classroom, and it affects her commitment to Beebe now. Couch said she sees herself continuing with the director position as long as it’s satisfying to her and as long as others are still satisfied with her efforts.

“I can tell Beebe is growing already, and I am proud to be part of that growth,” Couch said.

- awidner@ arkansasonline.commatter of

fact Birth date: Sept.

23, 1936 Occupation: Professor and administrator, Arkansas State University-Beebe (retired); director of Beebe Chamber of Commerce Family includes: Cousins, a sweet pup named Missy and many friendsHobbies: Reading, collecting old or different hymnals, writing, helping others to write, being with friends My name comes from: My cousins.

Both my parents had nieces named Ruth. I think Dad threw in my middle name, Lazelle, just for the fun of it Most people don’t know I’m: A former fifth-grade teacherI cannot live without: Faith, friends and books When I was young I wanted: To be a teacher and a writer What makes me mad: Mistreatment of the helpless The person I admire most: Someone who faithfully year after year cares for an aged or unwell family memberMy favorite memory is: Expressed very well in these lines from an old poem (slightly paraphrased): Richer than I You never can be: I had parents Who read to me The world would be a better place if: People took time to listen to each other carefully and treat each other with compassion Favorite quote: “In all your ways acknowledge [the Lord], and He will direct your paths.” - Proverbs 3:6

Three Rivers, Pages 111, 114 on 09/07/2008