06/02/2026
Some people are built for public service. Major Ross Batson is one of those people.
Batson grew up in Arkadelphia watching his father, a World War II veteran, climb telephone poles for the electric company, and his mother nurse patients before becoming a nursing professor at Henderson State University. It was never a question of whether he would serve, only how.
By 1979 he was a certified EMT, sleeping nights at the ambulance service and rushing to the ER between college classes. Then came the Army, then the National Guard, then a sheriff's deputy badge slid across a counter on his 21st birthday.
He arrived at a brand new Springdale AHP station in 1986 and never looked back.
What followed was a majorly decorated career with the AHP. Batson became one of only nine certified truck inspection instructors in the entire nation, traveling the country teaching other agencies the craft. He built FTO programs, launched statewide audit initiatives, commanded special operations, and spent countless nights protecting highway workers in construction zones.
"People do not realize the knowledge that the highway police have," he said.
His favorite part of the job is teaching the next generation. "It's fun to show them what's going on and explain the importance of the highway police."
Now it's time for travel, hobbies, and the family he built, including his wife of 36 years, who he met working in the office he’s leaving this week.
"It's hard to leave," he said. "That's how you know it was good."
His legacy rides on with every officer he ever taught.
