Arkansas Teacher Retirement System

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Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS)
Basic facts
Location:	Little Rock, Arkansas
Top official:	Mark White, executive director
Year founded:	1937
Active members:	68,249
Website:	Official website
Total assets under management
2022:	$21,178,397,853

See also: Public pensions in Arkansas

The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS) is a Arkansas state pension fund that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to the state's teachers and their beneficiaries. ATRS had $21,178,397,853 ($21 billion) in total assets under management as of June 30, 2023.

The management of public pension funds can indicate support or opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investment practices. ESG investing considers the extent to which corporations align with and promote certain non-financial standards, such as net carbon emission or corporate board diversity goals. States typically hire asset management companies (AMCs) to direct pension plan investments, some of which have ESG commitments that guide their strategies.

This article features the following sections:

• Background: Information about the structure and functions of ATRS.
• Pension performance overview: Overview of the funding level and assets managed by ATRS.
• Assets and asset management: Information about the asset management companies (AMCs) that contract with ATRS, including a list of contracting AMCs that are participants in the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative and the Climate Action 100+ initiative.
• Governance and accountability: Details about ATRS' oversight board, including members and selection.

Background

See also: Public pensions

The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS), founded in 1937, invests the assets of and provides funding for Arkansas' teachers and their beneficiaries. ATRS operates as a defined benefit plan, wherein the employee contributes 7% of each paycheck while the employer contributes 15%.

ATRS served over 68,249 active members and approximately 54,646 retirees and beneficiaries as of February 2024.

Pension performance overview

The following table features information about the funding level and assets managed by the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS) as of June 30, 2023:

Arkansas Teacher Retirement System pension performance (June 30, 2023)
Fiscal year	Percent funded	Unfunded liabilities	Total market value of assets
2023	80.8%	$4.6 billion	$21,178,397,853

Assets and asset management

Asset management companies (AMCs) are hired to manage asset investment for state pension funds across all 50 states.

As of October 2024, 330 AMCs were members of the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAM), and 391 AMCs were investor participants in the Climate Action 100+ initiative. Both international asset manager initiatives aimed to align the investment decisions of signatories with the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

NZAM announced on January 13, 2025, that it was suspending operations and removing the commitment statement and list of signatories from its website. The group said in a statement it would reevaluate its plans and operations in light of “[r]ecent developments in the U.S. and different regulatory and client expectations in investors’ respective jurisdictions.”

List of AMCs contracting with the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System

The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS) contracted with 261 asset management companies (AMCs) as of March 1, 2024. Of those companies, sixteen were investor participants in Climate Action 100+, and thirty-one were members of NZAM, as of October 2024. The following list identifies the AMCs (and in some cases, the specific funds) contracting with ATRS as of 2023:

Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS) asset management companies Click on a column header below to sort the list of asset managers.
AMC name	Investment type	Assets under management	Percentage of total fund assets	NZAM Initiative signatory as of October 2024	Climate Action 100+ signatory as of October 2024
Blackrock Institutional Trust Company NA	;	1,561,415,588		Yes	No
Franklin Park Associates, LLC	;	1,138,777,178		No	No
Jacobs Levy Equity Management, Inc.	;	1,234,178,399		No	No
State Street Global Advisors Trust Company	;	2,036,362,821		Yes	No
Pershing Square Holdings	Public Equity;			No	No
Trian Partners	Public Equity;			No	No
Trian Co-Investments	Public Equity;			No	No
Jacobs Levy 130/30	Public Equity;			No	No
Kennedy Capital Management	Public Equity;			No	No
Stephens	Public Equity;			No	No
Voya Convertibles	Public Equity;			No	No
Voya Absolute Return	Public Equity;			No	No
Arrowstreet	Public Equity;			No	No
SSgA Global Index	Public Equity;			No	No
T Rowe Price Global Equity	Public Equity;			Yes	No
Lazard	Public Equity;			Yes	Yes
Harris Global Equity	Public Equity;			No	No
Wellington Global Perspectives	Public Equity;			Yes	Yes
Reams Core Plus Bond Fund	Fixed income;			No	No
SSgA Aggregate Bond Index	Fixed income;			No	No
Loomis Sayles	Fixed income;			No	No
Wellington Global Total Return	Fixed income;			Yes	Yes
BlackRock	Fixed income;			Yes	No
BlackRock MSCI ACWI IMI Fund	Public Equity;			Yes	No
Anchorage	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
York	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Capula	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Graham	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Circumference Group Core Value	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Aelous Keystone Fund	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Nephila Rubik Holdings	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Pillar Opportunity	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Parametric Global Defensive Equity	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	Yes
Man Alternative Risk Premia	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	Yes
CFM Systematic Global Macro Fund	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	Yes
Chatham PDSC III	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Chatham PDSC IV	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Silver Point Capital Fund	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Prophet Mtg. Service Opportunities	Opportunistic/alternatives;			No	No
Arkansas Investments	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
JP Morgan Strategic Property Fund	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
MetLife Commercial Mortgage Income Fund, LP	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Prime Property Fund	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Prudential PRISA	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
RREEF Core Plus Industrial Fund	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
UBS Trumbull Property Fund	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	Yes
UBS Trumbull Property Income Fund	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	Yes
Almanac Realty Securities V, LP	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Almanac Realty Securities VI	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Almanac Realty Securities VII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Almanac Realty Securities VIII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Almanac Realty Securities IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Blackstone Real Estate Partners Europe VI (EURO Vehicle)	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Blackstone Real Estate Partners VII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Blackstone Real Estate Partners X	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Calmwater Real Estate Credit Fund III	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Carlyle Realty Partners IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Carlyle Realty Partners VII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Carlyle Realty Partners VIII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
CBRE Strategic Partners US Opportunity 5	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
CBRE Strategic Partners US Value 8	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
CBRE Strategic Partners US Value 9	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
Cerberus Institutional Real Estate Partners III	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
FPA Core Plus Fund IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
GLP Capital Partners IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Harbert European Real Estate Fund IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Heitman European Property Partners IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Kayne Anderson Real Estate Partners V	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Kayne Anderson Real Estate Partners VI	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Landmark Real Estate Fund VI	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Landmark Real Estate Fund VIII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Landmark Real Estate Fund IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
LaSalle Asia Opportunity Fund IV	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LaSalle Asia Opportunity V	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LaSalle Asia Opportunity VI	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VI	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VII	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LaSalle Income & Growth Fund VIII	Real Estate Manager;			Yes	No
LBA Logistics Value Fund IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Lone Star Real Estate Fund IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Lone Star Real Estate Fund VII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Long Wharf Real Estate Partners V	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Long Wharf Real Estate Partners VI, L.P.	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Mesa West Real Estate Income Fund V	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Metropolitan Real Estate Partners Co-	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Investments Fund, L.P.	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
O'Connor North American Property Partners II,L.P.	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
PGIM Real Estate Capital VII (USD Feeder)	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Rockwood Capital Real Estate Partners Fund IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Rockwood Capital Real Estate Partners Fund XI	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Torchlight Debt Opportunity Fund IV	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Torchlight Debt Opportunity Fund V	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Torchlight Debt Opportunity Fund VI	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Torchlight Debt Opportunity Fund VII	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Walton Street Real Estate Debt Fund II, L.P.	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Westbrook Real Estate Fund IX	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
Westbrook Real Estate Fund X	Real Estate Manager;			No	No
BTG Timber Separate Account	Timber & Agriculture;			No	No
BTG Pactual Open Ended Core U.S. Timberland Fund	Timber & Agriculture;			No	No
HFMS Farmland Separate Account	Timber & Agriculture;			No	No
UBS Agrivest Core Farmland Fund	Timber & Agriculture;			Yes	Yes
Antin Infrastructure Partners II, L.P.	Infrastructure;			No	No
Axlnfra NA II LP	Infrastructure;			No	No
DIF Infrastructure Fund V LP	Infrastructure;			Yes	No
DIF Infrastructure Fund V LP	Infrastructure;			Yes	No
Global Energy & Power Infrastructure Fund II	Infrastructure;			No	No
Global Infrastructure Partners III, L.P.	Infrastructure;			No	No
IFM Global Infrastructure Fund (US) LP	Infrastructure;			Yes	Yes
ISQ Global Infrastructure Fund III	Infrastructure;			No	No
KKR Global Infrastructure Investors II, L.P.	Infrastructure;			No	No
KKR Diversified Core Infrastructure Fund	Infrastructure;			No	No
Macquarie Infrastructure Partners III LP	Infrastructure;			Yes	Yes
Macquarie Infrastructure Partners V LP	Infrastructure;			Yes	Yes
Audax Mezzanine III	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Mezzanine	Private Equity;			No	No
Blackstone Mezzanine I	Private Equity;			No	No
DLJ Investment II	Private Equity;			No	No
Greyrock IV	Private Equity;			No	No
Greyrock V	Private Equity;			No	No
Greyrock VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Insight Mezzanine I	Private Equity;			No	Yes
21st Century Group I	Private Equity;			No	No
Advent GPE VI-A	Private Equity;			No	No
Alpine Investors IX	Private Equity;			No	No
Alpine Investors VIII	Private Equity;			No	No
Altaris Constellation	Private Equity;			No	No
Altaris IV	Private Equity;			No	No
Altus Capital II	Private Equity;			No	No
American Industrial VI	Private Equity;			No	No
American Industrial VII	Private Equity;			No	No
Arlington IV	Private Equity;			No	No
Arlington V	Private Equity;			No	No
Arlington VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Atlas Capital II	Private Equity;			Yes	No
ATRS-FP PE	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Equity	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Funding	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Holdings Note	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Holdings Note 2023	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Holdings Note 2023-2	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Preferred Equity	Private Equity;			No	No
Big River - Sr Secured Debt	Private Equity;			No	No
Bison V	Private Equity;			No	No
Bison VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Blue Oak Arkansas	Private Equity;			No	No
Boston Ventures VII	Private Equity;			No	No
Boston Ventures IX	Private Equity;			No	No
Boston Ventures VIII	Private Equity;			No	No
Boston Ventures X	Private Equity;			No	No
Boston Ventures XI	Private Equity;			No	No
Castlelake II	Private Equity;			No	No
Castlelake III	Private Equity;			No	No
Clearlake V	Private Equity;			No	No
Clearlake VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Clearlake VII	Private Equity;			No	No
Court Square III	Private Equity;			No	No
CSFB-ATRS 2005-1 Series	Private Equity;			No	No
CSFB-ATRS 2006-1 Series	Private Equity;			No	No
Cypress MBP II	Private Equity;			No	No
DH Tech I	Private Equity;			No	No
Diamond State	Private Equity;			No	No
Diamond State II	Private Equity;			No	No
DLJ MBP III	Private Equity;			No	No
Doughty Hanson III	Private Equity;			No	No
DW Healthcare III	Private Equity;			No	No
DW Healthcare IV	Private Equity;			No	No
DW Healthcare V	Private Equity;			No	No
EnCap IX	Private Equity;			No	No
EnCap VIII	Private Equity;			No	No
EnCap X	Private Equity;			No	No
EnCap XI	Private Equity;			No	No
FP CF Access	Private Equity;			No	No
FP CF Access II	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Co-Invest VI	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2011	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2012	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2013	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2014	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2015	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2016	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2017	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2018	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl 2019	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl X	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Intnl XI	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture Opp	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture XIII	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture XIV	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2008	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2009	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2010	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2011	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2012	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2013	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2014	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2015	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2016	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2017	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2018	Private Equity;			No	No
FP Venture 2019	Private Equity;			No	No
Greenbriar V	Private Equity;			No	No
Greenbriar VI	Private Equity;			No	No
GTLA Holdings	Private Equity;			No	No
Highland Contingent Note	Private Equity;			No	No
Highland Equity	Private Equity;			No	No
HMTF III	Private Equity;			No	No
HMTF IV	Private Equity;			No	No
HMTF V	Private Equity;			No	No
Insight Equity II	Private Equity;			No	Yes
JF Lehman III	Private Equity;			No	No
JF Lehman IV	Private Equity;			No	No
JF Lehman V	Private Equity;			No	No
JF Lehman VI	Private Equity;			No	No
KPS III Supplemental	Private Equity;			No	No
KPS IV	Private Equity;			No	No
KPS Mid Cap II	Private Equity;			No	No
KPS Mid-Market I	Private Equity;			No	No
KPS V	Private Equity;			No	No
Levine Leichtman V	Private Equity;			No	No
Lime Rock Resources III	Private Equity;			No	No
LLR III	Private Equity;			No	No
LLR VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Mason Wells III	Private Equity;			No	No
NGP IX	Private Equity;			No	No
NGP X	Private Equity;			No	No
NGP XI	Private Equity;			No	No
NGP XII	Private Equity;			No	No
Oak Hill I	Private Equity;			No	No
One Rock II	Private Equity;			No	No
PineBridge Structured III	Private Equity;			Yes	No
Revelstoke III	Private Equity;			No	No
Riverside IV	Private Equity;			No	No
Riverside V	Private Equity;			No	No
Riverside VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Riverside Value Fund I	Private Equity;			No	No
Second Cinven	Private Equity;			No	No
Siris III	Private Equity;			No	No
Siris IV	Private Equity;			No	No
SK Capital V	Private Equity;			No	No
SK Capital VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Sycamore Partners II	Private Equity;			No	No
Sycamore Partners III	Private Equity;			No	No
TA XI	Private Equity;			No	No
Tennenbaum VI	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Discover	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Discover II	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Discover III	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Discover IV	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Explore I	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo Explore II	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo XI	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo XII	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo XIII	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo XIV	Private Equity;			No	No
Thoma Bravo XV	Private Equity;			No	No
Vista Equity III	Private Equity;			Yes	No
Vista Foundation II	Private Equity;			Yes	No
Vista Foundation III	Private Equity;			Yes	No
Wellspring V	Private Equity;			No	No
Wicks IV	Private Equity;			No	No
WNG II	Private Equity;			No	No

Governance and accountability

This section features information about the 15-member board of trustees that oversees the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS). The board is specific to oversight of ATRS and does not exercise oversight duties for other state funds.

Board selection method

The board of trustees that oversees ATRS is made up of 15 members. Eleven trustees are elected, and the remaining four trustees are the cabinet secretary of the Arkansas Department of Education, the state treasurer, the state bank commissioner, and the state auditor.

Board of trustees membership

A 15-member board of trustees oversees the operation and administration of ATRS. The following individuals served on the board as of March 2024:

• Danny Knight, chairman
• Bobby G. Lester
• Jeff Stubblefield
• Anita Bell
• Kelsey Bailey
• Shawn Higginbotham
• Mike Hernandez
• Keri Hamilton
• Arthur "Chip" Martin
• Michael Johnson
• Susan Ford
• Jacob Oliva, cabinet secretary, Arkansas Department of Education
• Susannah Marshall, state bank commissioner
• Dennis Milligan, state auditor
• Larry Walther, state treasurer

See also

• Public pensions in Arkansas
• Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• Arguments about environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• Opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing
• Reform proposals related to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
• State legislative approaches opposing ESG investing
• State legislative approaches supporting ESG investing

External links

• Search Google News for this topic

Footnotes

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