In May, 1958, a group of hearing aid dealers met in Little Rock, Arkansas to discuss forming a state association. These included Bob Howell, Beltone; Max Friend, Sonotone; Bill Brock, Radioear; A.L. Burns, Acousticon; and Thomas A. LeBlanc and Jane LeBlanc, Zenith. They hired a lawyer to write a constitution and by-laws, which were adopted at meeting the following month.

The first officers were: Bob Williamson, President; Bob Howell, Vice-President; Max Friend, Treasurer; and Thomas LeBlanc, Parliamentarian. Dues were set at $20.00.

Several meetings were held with a small number of dealers attending. Education was the main issue. Fred Martin, Rehabilitation Audiologist at Arkansas School for the Deaf was contacted to teach a class in audiology each Saturday from 9 AM to 2 PM during the summer. Jerry Luker, Guy Luker, and Herman Gilliam joined the group at this time.

During the 1960's the National Hearing Aid Society was formed, and Pete Mistic a dealer and the National Hearing Aid Society's governor for the southwestern territory, contacted dealers in Arkansas to meet with them. At that meeting a decision was made to recognize the association.

New officers elected were: Thomas LeBlanc, President; Bill Otstatt, Vice-President; and Bob Williamson, Secretary-Treasurer. A short time later the group held a statewide meeting with 35 people in attendance. The name of the group was changed to the State Society at that time.

During 1967 The Society discussed a state licensing law for Arkansas hearing aid dealers and specialists. Several states were requiring licenses or were in the process of enacting licensure laws. A model bill was written and Thomas LeBlanc met with Rep. Jerry Bookout, Rep. Jim Stevens and Sen. "Chubby" Hern, who agreed to sponsor the bill in the state legislature. It was passed in 1969.

The first hearing aid dispensers board was made up of Thomas LeBlanc, Ben Wofford, Richard Maxey, Lorene Hendricks, Mike Winston, Dr. Ellory Gay, and Jerry Luker.

The Society has seen a steady growth through the years, and the annual convention is now attended by approximately 100 hearing professionals including Hearing Instrument Specialists and Audiologists from Arkansas and surrounding states as well as manufacturers representatives.

In 1992 the Board of Directors voted to honor, each year, a member of the Society who has made or is making a significant contribution to the advancement of the Society's goals, and to the service of the hearing impaired population. The award, in the form of a plaque, was named in honor of the first recipient, Thomas A. LeBlanc, and was presented at the annual luncheon during the convention. Recipients of this prestigious honor include:

1992 - Thomas A. LeBlanc (deceased)
1993 - James "Jim" Stevens (deceased)
1994 - Juanita Mason (deceased)
1995 - A.L. Burns
1996 - R.S. "Rudy" Sams (deceased)
1997 - Herman Gilliam
1998 - Ervin Dock
1999 - Jerry Luker
2000 - Ben Wofford. Sr. (deceased)
2001 - Betty Ashley Horton
2002 - Thomas D. "Tom" Burns
2003 - Ben Wofford, Jr.
2004 - Graham Meadville
2005 - Donna K. Collins
2006 - Barry Coplin (AHS Attorney)
2007 - James V. Davidson
2008 - Scott Whitaker
2012 - Jerry Richards
2021 - Barry Hudspeth

At the 1996 annual convention and seminar, the membership voted to change the association's name from the "Arkansas Hearing Aid Society" to the "Arkansas Hearing Society".