Personal Bankers of Little Rock: Ashley Cunningham
March 8, 2018
If anyone has ever dedicated their professional life to the art and science of loaning money to businesses and individuals, it’s Ashley Cunningham!?
Born in Little Rock, Ashley grew up in the neighborhood around Hall High School -- now referred to by many as midtown. In fact, the only work Ashley has ever done outside of banking was working summers in her father’s Dermatology office. Ashley attended Holy Souls and then graduated from Mount St. Mary’s. Following that, she spent four fun and productive years at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville where she earned a degree in Finance.
Upon graduation, Ashley worked at Worthen Bank in the Loan Review Department as a summer intern. Apparently, she did a very good job because she was soon offered a full-time position.
For the next six years, Ashley gained more loan review experience, first at Worthen and then at First Commercial Bank. Ashley moved to Pinnacle Bank and this was an important time for her because it introduced her to the personalized service only available from community banks. In 2002, Ashley jumped at the chance to become the Loan Review Officer at Bank of Little Rock.
"Loan review is a function within a bank that most people don't think about because it's behind the scene, " Ashley says, she is charged with monitoring the bank's loan portfolio and assisting the bank's loan officers in identifying loans that might become problems — both for the customer and for the bank. According to Ashley, "I review groups of loans to make sure we're adhering to the Bank's loan policy, banking guidelines, and to ensure the loans are correctly rated for risk and that the Bank's loan reserves are adequately funded."
On the personal side of life, Ashley married Baker Cunningham in 1998 and the two of them enjoy raising their two sons, Will, 17, and Walker, 15. They all like spending time outdoors. Baker and the boys enjoy hunting and fishing and sometimes Ashley will tag along. They also take a summer road trip to Colorado every year where they spend their time fishing, hiking and biking. Right now a lot of their free time is spent watching Walker play soccer and taking Will on college visits.
Since she works in our upstairs offices downtown, you may or may not run into Ashley when you come by. Just know that she’s always there taking care of business!