Jennifer Ross (left) and Curt Owens (Courtesy photos)

The Walton Arts Center has promoted Jennifer Ross from director of programming to vice president of programming for the nonprofit performing arts center in Fayetteville, officials announced.

Curt Owens will take over as the center’s new director of programming.

Ross has been with Walton Arts Center since 2002 when she started as the school performance coordinator. Before becoming director of programming, Ross was director of artist and client experience as well as director of production. She oversaw the artist contracting process and the full production crew, client and promoter rentals.

In her new role, Ross will be responsible for booking all of the programming at Walton Arts Center.

Ross said she’s excited about the next phase of her career.

“This organization, the team of people who make the organization tick, and the work that we do for Northwest Arkansas are so important to me,” said Ross in a statement. “I look forward to working with the entire team, other regional arts organizations and our presenting partners to continue Walton Arts Center’s long history of providing a diverse array of arts experiences for our region.”

Owens is a native of Pine Bluff who came to the arts center in Fayetteville after 11 years at NETworks Presentations, a touring production company for the Broadway theater community. Owens has worked on more than 40 productions including War Horse, Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables. Before joining NETworks, Owens worked in both the producing and presenting divisions of Broadway Across America.