Dr. Norbert Schedler
Dr. Norbert Schedler, professor of philosophy and founder of the Honors College, and Dr. Joe Anderson, the former chair of the Department of Mass Communication and Theatre, have received the designation of Distinguished Professor Emeritus.
Both men were recognized during Spring Commencement ceremonies on May 5.
Schedler envisioned and created the Honors College in 1982 with the idea of developing a comprehensive program for gifted students. Since its inception, the Honors College has seen nearly 1,300 students complete its curriculum. More than 80 percent of Honors graduates pursued post-baccalaureate education. Schedler came to UCA in 1976 as the chair of the Department of Philosophy. He has received national awards and distinctions for his scholarship and service to professional organizations.
Dr. Rick Scott, the dean of the Honors College, said Schedler’s impact on the university is nothing less than a defining moment. He compared Schedler’s time at UCA as a chairotic moment, which indicates an instance of intense meaning that marks a before and an after.
“Dr. Schedler’s founding of the Honors College thirty years ago is a chairotic moment that transformed UCA,” Scott said. Ask his students. Ask anybody at UCA that knows the before and after. We have not been the same school since, and we are so much the better for it.”
Anderson is credited with helping to transform the Department of Mass Communication and Theatre. An Arkansas native, he joined UCA in July 2002 from Georgia State University and served seven years as the department chair before his retirement in 2009.
Dr. Joe Anderson
“Joe Anderson founded several programs at UCA, including our digital filmmaking programs, organized a new department and brought great vision to the College of Fine Arts and Communication,” said Dr. Rollin Potter, dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. “He is truly one of our most distinguished faculty members and truly deserving of this award.”
Anderson established the undergraduate degree program in digital filmmaking and developed the master of fine arts degree program in digital filmmaking, the only programs of their kind in the state. He is an internationally renowned scholar in the field of film studies.
He founded the Society for Cognitive Studies of the Moving Image, an international organization of film scholars that hosts annual conferences around the world.