Hope Public Schools Board President Willie Buck Jr., center, retired from board service at the conclusion of the Feb. 17 regular board session. HPS Superintendent Dr. Bobby Hart, left, presented Buck with a service award from the district as Buck’s wife, Bobbie, looked on. – Ken McLemore/Hope Public Schools

HOPE – Concluding a tenure of board service which has spanned a decade, Hope Public Schools Board President Willie Buck Jr. retired from the board after presiding in his final board meeting Feb. 17.

“I want to thank you all for your support of me,” Buck said prior to gaveling the meeting to a close.

First elected in 2010, Buck has served from Zone 3 and has served as president of the board since the retirement of former board president Joe Short in 2016. Buck has also served as both secretary and vice president of the board.

“We know there will be someone to replace him even though we know no-one can replace Willie Buck,” Superintendent Dr. Bobby Hart quipped.

Retired as a faculty member and dean of the business department at the University of Arkansas-Hope, Buck was named Educator of the Year there in 2010. He is a native of DeQuincy, La., where he graduated from high school, and holds a bachelor’s degree from Grambling University, a master’s degree from East Texas State University and has done graduate study at Auburn University.

Buck is the Chairman of the Deacon’s Committee at Lonoke Baptist Church, and is Assistant Dean of the Southwest District; and, is a member of Gideons. He and his wife, Bobbie, have three children, four grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.