Family honors parents with $500,000 matching gift

LITTLE ROCK – The children of Kula and the late Dr. Frank Kumpuris established a distinguished lecture series at the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service with a $500,000 matching gift, it was announced today.

The Frank and Kula Kumpuris Endowed Distinguished Lecture Series was established with the gift by Dr. Dean Kumpuris, Dr. Drew Kumpuris and Katherine Ann Kumpuris Trotter in honor of their mother and in memory of their father. Dr. Frank Kumpuris, a prominent Little Rock physician and surgeon, served for 10 years on the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees and Kula Kumpuris has been actively involved in numerous civic, charitable and community activities. The entire family has a strong commitment to quality higher education.

“Our parents have always taught us to care about our community and our world,” Dean Kumpuris said. “They always believed that through understanding, teaching and discussion, the world could be a better place, and they taught us that giving back to the community and the world is important and worthwhile. So, we decided that in keeping with our parents’ teachings, the Clinton School of Public Service was a perfect place to give back.”

“The Frank and Kula Kumpuris Distinguished Lecture Series will take our public programs to a new level,” said Skip Rutherford, dean of the Clinton School. “It is a wonderful and much appreciated gift, and we are very grateful to the Kumpuris family for their generosity and support. What makes this even more special is knowing how much Frank loved the University of Arkansas System and that Kula will be able to enjoy this series"

By age 23, Little Rock native Frank Kumpuris had graduated from both Tulane University and Tulane University Medical School in New Orleans. He did his internship at Charity Hospital in New Orleans and his surgical residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. During his 41 years of practicing medicine, he also served as Chief of Surgery at St. Vincent Infirmary and Medical Center as a member of the UofA Board of Trustees, he spearheaded the development of the Cammack Campus (System Office and Office of the President) and the implementation of system-wide educational standards. He also served as President of the Parents and Alumni Board at Washington and Lee University, where his sons received their bachelor's degrees.

Kula Makris Kumpuris is a native of Pine Bluff. She has been an active member of the Little Rock Garden Club and has participated in numerous volunteer projects for the Little Rock Public Schools, Our House, the Arkansas Symphony, the University of Arkansas and St. Francis House. She is a member of St. Mark's Episcopal Church and is a Rotary Club Paul Harris Fellow.

The Clinton School now will match the Kumpuris gift dollar for dollar with the goal of establishing a $1 million endowed lecture series. Fundraising for the match will begin immediately.

The Clinton School’s academic curriculum and public service projects are enhanced with a series of public programs, guest lectures and community conversations. Among the many guests at the school have been Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, former Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and Madeline Albright, Rawanda President Dr. Paul Kagame, Congressman John Lewis, Bob Cohn, editor of Wired Magazine; Walter Pincus and Rick Atkinson of the Washington Post; University of Pennsylvania Professor David Eisenhower, the grandson of President Dwight D. Eisenhower; and former Senators Bob Dole and John Edwards. Thousands of people have attended the free and numerous public sessions. Upcoming speakers include Jesse Jackson on November 30 and George Stephanopoulos on December 5. The school's spring series will be announced in a few weeks.

The Clinton School of Public Service is an independent entity of the University of Arkansas System, working in collaboration with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. For more information, visit www.clintonschool.uasys.edu. Graduation ceremonies for its first class will be December 13th.

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