Dr. Wade Derden
Dr. Wade Derden is a sixth-generation Arkansan. He is currently the Executive Vice
President for Advancement and Government Relations at National Park College. While
his early years were spent in the delta along the banks of the Mississippi, he grew
up in central Arkansas. His love of the state and its people have centered his 20-plus
year career in education.
Dr. Derden first taught as a part-time instructor at ASU-Beebe on the Little Rock
Air Force Base and at Pulaski Technical College in North Little Rock. Upon appointment
as a full-time faculty member at PTC, he taught classes in history, political science,
and the humanities. Next, he chaired the Social Science Division at National Park
College before becoming the Vice President for Academic Affairs. He has served in
his current position since April, 2023.
Dr. Derden received his Ph.D. in Public Policy from the University of Arkansas. His
research focused on the social and cultural factors in a community that may predict
students’ choices to attend college and their likelihood to complete a degree. His
thesis for the Master of Arts at the UA explored southern masculinity and religion.
His Bachelor of Arts degree in history is from Hendrix College.
As a child who studied in the library while his mother took classes at the nearby
ASU-Beebe campus, Dr. Derden is living proof that a comprehensive community college
can be a transformative force and a powerful economic development tool with generational
impact. His commitment to postsecondary education in Arkansas includes service as
the president of the Arkansas Community College’s Board of Directors. He also collaborated
with college leaders from across the state and University of Arkansas faculty to develop
a graduate program in the College of Education and Health Professionals for community
college leadership.
Governor Hutchinson appointed Dr. Derden to the University of Arkansas’s Criminal
Justice Institute Board of Advisors. As a peer reviewer for the Higher Learning Commission,
Dr. Derden often travels to colleges in the heartland.
Dr. Derden is married to Angie Macri, an Arkansas Arts Council Fellow. They and their
four children enjoy exploring the natural beauty and history of Arkansas.
