J.M. Rowe, N5XFW, of Hot Springs, has been appointed as the new ARRL Arkansas Section Manager with a term to begin on December 22, 2008. Rowe is taking over the Section Manager reins from David Norris, K5UZ, who was elected Vice Director of the ARRL Delta Division in November; Norris assumes his office on January 1, 2009.

When Norris announced that he was stepping down from the Section Manager post he has held since April 2005, he recommended Arkansas Section Emergency Coordinator Rowe for the position. Rowe was already scheduled to become Arkansas Section Manager on April 1, 2009, since he was the only nominee for the next term of office when the petition deadline passed on December 5.

According to the Rules and Regulations of the Field Organization, when a vacancy in the office of Section Manager occurs between elections, the position is filled by appointment by the Membership and Volunteer Programs Manager, in consultation with the Director. MVP Manager Dave Patton, NN1N, consulted with outgoing Delta Division Director Henry Leggette, WD4Q, and with Mickey Cox, K5MC, the incoming Delta Division Director; Cox, like Norris, will begin his term January 1, 2009.

Rowe has been Arkansas Section Emergency Coordinator for nearly four years. He was first appointed Emergency Coordinator in 2000 and was promoted to District Emergency Coordinator in 2001, a position he continues to hold. Rowe also served as an Assistant Section Manager from 2002-2005. Rowe's term of office as Section Manager continues through March 31, 2011.