APAC to open satellite office in NW Arkansas

By Mary Hightower

Fast Facts:

APAC to open satellite office at NWACC
Ribbon cutting set for Monday, April 6, 2 p.m. at Shewmaker Center for Global Business
APAC has facilitated $24 million in contracts for Arkansas businesses

(300 words)

LITTLE ROCK -- The Arkansas Procurement Assistance Center, which last year helped clients obtain nearly $24 million in government contracts, is expanding into one of the nation’s fastest growing economies – northwest Arkansas.

APAC, part of the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, teaches Arkansans to navigate the process of obtaining government contracts. In the 2014 fiscal year, APAC helped 672 clients obtain 674 contracts worth nearly $24 million.

APAC -- The Arkansas Procurement Assistance Center helps Arkansas Businesses obtain government contract work. (U of A System Division of Agriculture file photo)

APAC’s satellite office will be located in the Shewmaker Center for Global Business Development at the NorthWest Arkansas Community College campus in Bentonville. Max Franks, extension program associate for APAC, will be joining NWACC President Dr. Evelyn E. Jorgenson, for a ribbon cutting at the satellite office on Monday, April 6, at 2 p.m.

“We see this alliance with NWACC as a means of extending the reach of our community and economic development mission,” said Tony Windham, associate vice president-agriculture-extension for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and director of the Cooperative Extension Service. “APAC is just one of the channels the Cooperative Extension Service uses to help our neighbors and communities thrive and we are excited to open a new chapter.”

Franks said he was looking forward to working with the small businesses in northwest Arkansas.

“By helping companies take advantage of state and federal contracting opportunities, we will work together to grow their businesses,” he said. “It’s part of our community development mission to continue to grow Arkansas's economy and to put people back to work.”

“We are so pleased to have an office of the Arkansas Procurement Assistance Center on our campus,” said Jorgenson. ““This center will provide assistance to many small and large Arkansas companies that are trying to navigate how to obtain federal, state, or local government contracts.”

APAC started in 1988 as an offshoot of the Entrepreneurial Services Center operated by the University of Arkansas. In 1993, the university began a partnership with the Department of Defense to take part in the nationwide Procurement Technical Assistance Program. Under this agreement, APAC serves Arkansas businesses and dozens of public agencies.

To learn more about APAC, visit http://uaex.uada.edu/business-communities/apac-government-contracting/default.aspx.

The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service is an equal opportunity/equal access/affirmative action institution. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate or need materials in another format, please contact your County Extension office (or other appropriate office) as soon as possible. Dial 711 for Arkansas Relay.

The Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

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Media Contact: Mary Hightower

Dir. of Communication Services
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2126
mhightower@uada.edu

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