Crystal C. Mercer has been announced as the Executive Director of Local First Arkansas (LFAR), a nonprofit dedicated to creating and supporting an alliance of locally owned, independent businesses.
Last year, Mercer served as a voting member on the LFAR Board of Directors in a supportive and creative capacity to signature programming and key events in the community.
Mercer, who graduates this May from the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, earned her bachelor’s degree in theatre arts and dance from UA Little Rock. She has worked for The National Park Service, the Department of Arkansas Heritage.
Last summer, she traveled to Accra, Ghana to spend seven months with the Nubuke Foundation. Mercer created a strategic plan for the use of creative mediums to fulfill the foundation’s commitment to recording and preserving Ghanaian culture. Additionally, she assisted in the implementation of artistic programming, including theatre and poetry.
In January 2018, Mercer became the first Clinton School student to take part in the school’s Speaker Series. She read excerpts from her book of poetry, “A Love Story Waiting to Happen.”