Karen Flake, founder of Flake-Wilkerson Market Insights and owner of Karen Flake & Associates, was named the new president and chief executive officer for Mount St. Mary Academy, effective Aug. 1.
The announcement was made July 11 to the school’s faculty, staff and students by Tom Devine, chairman of the Mount St. Mary Academy board of directors.
The Mount St. Mary Academy and Mount St. Mary Foundation board chairmen have divided the responsibilities of the president during the interim while the search process took place. Mount St. Mary parents were notified about the selection of Flake through an e-mail letter sent by the school.
Flake, a MSM graduate, replaces Sister Deborah Troillett, RSM, who was elected to serve on the institute leadership team of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and relocated to Silver Spring, Md., in September.
“Karen Flake epitomizes the best qualities of a Mount St. Mary alumna,” Devine said. “Her love and support for this school are well known in our community. The person chosen to fill the shoes of Sister Deborah Troillett, RSM, must be a strong leader trained in the Mercy values. Karen Flake has those qualities and more. The board and I are excited about the future of Mount St. Mary under Karen’s leadership. We are looking forward to working with her for years to come.”
Flake’s career in the research industry has spanned the past two decades. She was managing partner of an entrepreneurial firm, Flake-Wilkerson Market Insights, for 11 years, providing hands-on leadership to the company. Due to its rapid growth, Flake-Wilkerson was named by INC 500 as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in America in 2001, 2002 and 2003. The company was sold in 2007 and became integrated with Market Strategies International. In 2009 she established Karen Flake & Associates, a research and consulting firm which collects primary data and analyzes information to solve strategic problems for clients.
Flake is no stranger to the field of education or to Mount St. Mary Academy. She received a bachelor’s degree in teaching of English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master’s degree in interpersonal and organization communications from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She returned to her alma mater, teaching English at Mount St. Mary from 1972 to 1977. A longtime supporter of the school, she currently serves on the board of directors for Mount St. Mary Foundation and previously held a seat on the Lasting Efforts Campaign Cabinet. Additionally, she was named Outstanding Alumna in 2001 and was selected as keynote speaker at the Mount St. Mary Academy 2010 commencement.
Flake is the out-going chair of the non-profit, operating board of directors at CARTI, where she oversaw a transition in the business model, and she is a current member of the boards of Our House and the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. She has previously chaired both the agency and foundation boards of Centers for Youth and Families, the St. Vincent Women’s Advisory Board at St. Vincent Health System and Arkansas Women’s Leadership Forum, which she co-founded.
Flake has received multiple awards for her public and professional service, including recognition as one of The Top 100 Women in Arkansas. Flake also co-founded The Arkansas Quality Award in the mid-1990s and has been a certified examiner using Malcolm Baldrige criteria. Examiners study all facets of an organization to assess ability to achieve financial and strategic goals. She was appointed by two governors of the State of Arkansas to serve terms on the Arkansas Development Finance Authority, which she chaired in 2000-2001.
Mount St. Mary Academy, like many schools sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, operates according to a president/principal model of administration. The president of the school serves as its chief executive officer and is responsible primarily for development, finances, governance and long range planning.
The principal, Diane Wolfe, serves as the chief operational officer of the school and is responsible for all the academic, co-curricular and extra-curricular programs, as well as the day-to-day operation of the school. Both the president and the principal share the roles of spiritual leadership and promoting the mission of Mount St. Mary Academy.
“The faculty, staff and administration of Mount St. Mary Academy are pleased with the school board of directors’ selection for a new President. We look forward to welcoming Mrs. Flake to our school. We know she has been a longtime supporter of Mount St. Mary Academy and will help strengthen our relationship with the Greater Little Rock community,” Wolfe said. “I really look forward to working with her in this new capacity.”
Flake accepted the position with a grateful heart and expressed her hopes for the organization.
“At this stage of my life, I feel that God is asking me to become involved with Mount St. Mary Academy to help with future vision and strategic planning. I know it is doubtful that anyone can completely fill Sister Deborah’s shoes, who so joyfully dedicated her life to the service of God. I am willing to use my skills and talents, however, to assure that the Mount continues its tradition of offering a high quality education to young women, building leaders who embrace Mercy values to make the world a better place.”
Flake and her husband, John, chairman of Flake & Kelley Commercial, are members of Our Lady of Holy Souls Church in Little Rock. They have two daughters, Jessica Dearnley of Fayetteville and Rebecca Aldea, and five grandchildren.
Flake to head MSM
