Mary Frances “Frankie” Sears has joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ (UAMS) College of Nursing Advisory Board.
Sears’ term on the board will end Jan. 1, 2020.
Sears, of Mayflower, has devoted her entire life to service and health care. She spent more than 30 years as a nurse anesthetist, and another 20 years before that as a staff nurse, at various hospitals and clinics in central Arkansas. She retired in 2008.
Sears joined the Arkansas Army National Guard in 1976 and served in various roles throughout her 21-year military career, including at military posts in Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana. Sears spent six months in Saudi Arabia, where she provided anesthesia care for American and allied soldiers, as well as prisoners of war, as chief nurse anesthetist.
She was the first woman to serve as president of a state National Guard association in the United States. Sears retired at the rank of colonel in 1997. She was also the first woman in the Arkansas National Guard to graduate from the United States Army War College
Sears served on the Arkansas Governor’s Commission for Veterans Affairs for eight years, and on the Advisory Committee for National Cemeteries and Memorials for seven years, including stints as chairperson for both organizations. Sears was a volunteer for Heifer International for four years.
She is married to Don Sears. The couple have three children and five grandchildren.
The UAMS College of Nursing Advisory Board furthers philanthropic support for the College of Nursing and assists the college through leadership efforts in the community.
UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with colleges of Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Health Professions and Public Health; a graduate school; a hospital; a northwest Arkansas regional campus; a statewide network of regional centers; and seven institutes: the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, the Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute, the Myeloma Institute, the Harvey & Bernice Jones Eye Institute, the Psychiatric Research Institute, the Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging and the Translational Research Institute. It is the only adult Level 1 trauma center in the state. UAMS has 3,021 students, 789 medical residents and two dental residents. It is the state’s largest public employer with more than 10,000 employees, including about 1,000 physicians and other professionals who provide care to patients at UAMS, Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the VA Medical Center and UAMS regional centers throughout the state. Visit www.uams.edu or www.uamshealth.com. Find us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or Instagram.