Student publications receive awards

Posted on May 14, 2013

UCA’s five student publications took home a total of 57 awards at the Arkansas College Media Association (ACMA)’s 2013 Media Contest held at Ouachita Baptist University on Friday, April 26.

Each year, the ACMA hosts a conference that includes media workshops for students and advisors followed by an awards banquet. The categories for entry are newspaper, yearbook, magazine, television and online, which are divided into specific awards.

UCA’s online daily newspaper The Fountain received 16 awards, including Website of the Year and Website Editor of the Year. The Echo received 15 awards, including first place in Meeting/speech coverage. News6 took home 10 awards, including first, second and third place in Regularly Occurring Newscast. UCA’s literary magazine The Vortex received nine awards, including Magazine Editor of the Year and The Scroll won seven awards, including first place in Student Life Layout.

UCA’s publications were in competition with the student publications of Arkansas State University, Arkansas Tech University, Central Baptist College, Harding University, Henderson University, John Brown University, Northwest Arkansas Community College, Ouachita Baptist University, the University of Arkansas, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

Next year, the ACMA awards will be at Central Baptist College.

For a complete list of the awards that UCA’s publications received, visit http://ucaecho.net/news/student-media-receive-awards-at-acma-conference/.

-Paige Murphy

 

UCA in the news

Posted on May 14, 2013

These are just a few instances of UCA, students, faculty, or staff in recent news:

UCA Bear carving complete; college releases time-lapse video
http://www.thv11.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=264932

Chainsaw Carving Part of Memorial to UCA World War II Fallen Fighters
http://arkansasmatters.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=660692

Five locals awarded UCA nursing scholarships
http://thecabin.net/latest-news/2013-05-11/five-locals-awarded-uca-nursing-scholarships

Memorial tree gets new life as bear sculpture
http://ucaecho.net/campus-life/memorial-tree-gets-new-life-as-bear-sculpture/

Slideshow: University of Central Arkansas Spring Commencement
http://thecabin.net/slideshow/2013-05-07/university-central-arkansas-spring-commencement#slide-1h

Slideshow: Bear carving at UCA
http://thecabin.net/slideshow/2013-05-08/bear-carving-uca#slide-1h

 

 

Documents stored during Torreyson Library renovations

Posted on May 14, 2013

As a depository for both federal and state documents, Torreyson Library at the University of Central Arkansas offers the community access to its collection of documents. However, due to renovations in the library this summer, all federal and state documents will be boxed and stored until renovations are complete. Library staff will offer assistance in locating documents either through online sources or other library partnerships. Contact the library at 501-450-5224 for any assistance in locating government information. Questions about government documents may also be sent through the library’s Ask A Librarian service at http://libguides.uca.edu/askalibrarian.

Chainsaw used to carve tree into bear

Posted on May 1, 2013

Gary Keenan, a sculptor from Iowa, begins carving a tree into a life sized bear on Monday, May 6. The tree is located in front of Wingo Hall.

Keenan expects to complete the carving on Thursday, May 9.

Art classes, campus employees and community members are invited to attend. Seating will be available on the lawn near Wingo Hall.

Keenan is an accomplished artist, having carved animals, people, plants, and objects for individuals and groups throughout the United States and in Europe. In 2007, he was invited to participate in the “Scuptree”/Westonbirt Festival of the Tree in England. Only 20 wood sculptors were invited, and Keenan was the only American. For more information about Mr. Keenan, visit http://www.carvingbykeenan.com/.

Awards Around Campus

Posted on May 1, 2013

Faculty, staff, and alumni were honored recently during several awards ceremonies around campus. Here is a recap of some of the ceremonies:

Night of Distinction

The University of Central Arkansas hosted its annual awards gala, Night of Distinction, on Saturday, April 27, 2013 at 6:30 p.m. at the Farris Center and the only black-tie event of its kind in Conway.

The University of Central Arkansas will presented the Distinguished Alumni Award to Terry Pillow, Chief Executive Officer of Tommy Bahama, ’76, and Dr. Joe Allison, Research Fellow at Phillips 66, ’79. The Alumni Service Award also will be presented to Patsy Minton Newton, lifetime member of the UCA Alumni Association and dedicated volunteer, ’52.

In addition to recognizing these individuals for their achievements, Night of Distinction also served as the public announcement of the Norbert O. Schedler Honors College Campaign that will raise $3 million for the Travel Abroad Grant (TAG) and Undergraduate Research Grants for Education (URGE) programs.

FACS awards luncheon

The Department of Family and Consumer Sciences hosted its 26th annual Alumni/Student Recognition Luncheon on Friday, April 26, 2013.

UCA President Tom Courtway received the Distinguished Service Award for “his dedication and support” for Family and Consumer Sciences. Courtway was credited as having hosted more than 3,000 high school Family, Career and Community Leaders of America members on the UCA campus for their annual state conference.

The awards program also recognized three distinguished alumni for 2013. Rebecca Rasnick, UCA interim registrar and Lisa Coker, assistant vice president for property and facilities management with Stephens Inc. Investment Bankers were named distinguished alumni. Rachel Schichtl, program coordinator for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children’s Hospital Research Institute was named Distinguished Alum—Young Achiever.

The department also presented 11 different scholarships to 20 students, 11 graduate and nine undergraduate.

60th Annual Service Awards

Employees were honored during the 60th Annual Service Awards on Thursday, April 25, 2013.

The Employee of the Year Award for classified and non-classified employees were Donna Johnson, administrative specialist, Department of Leadership Studies and Jane Andis, DegreeWorks coordinator/curriculum specialist, respectively.

Dr. Lynn Burley, associate professor, Department of Writing, received the Public Service Award. The Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity Award was received by Dr. Nancy Gallavan, professor of teacher education, College of Education. Doug Corbitt, Honors College, received the Teaching Excellence Award.

UCA Instructional Development Center Awards

The UCA Instructional Development Center and Provost’s Office recognized four faculty members for distinctive growth in teaching methods as part of development activities they completed. A reception was held in their honor on Wednesday, April 24. The program was instituted this year, and the four faculty honored were Nina Roofe, Mitchum Parker, Susan Gatto and Julie Meaux.

To see photographs of all of these events and many others, visit the UCA Flickr page at www.flickr.com/photos/ucentralarkansas/.

Two students win prizes at Chinese Competition

Posted on May 1, 2013
Alex Peebles and Savannah Barlow

Alex Peebles and Savannah Barlow

Savannah Barlow, and Alex Peebles, two students who study Chinese at UCA won the Third Place and Honorable Mention, respectively, at the 2013 “Chinese Bridge”— Preliminary Chinese Competition for College Students in the Southern States held in Houston on April 21.

The competition is sponsored by Confucius Institute Headquarters and organized by Chinese Consulate in General in Houston. The first prize winner will go to China to contest in the Semi-Final Chinese Competition.

This year, fourteen college students representing eleven Confucius Institutes and three regional Chinese programs in eight southern states participated in the completion.

Savannah Barlow, a UCA junior who is working on her Chinese minor, impressed the judges and the audience with her eloquent speech and accurate pronunciation. Her lively and graceful Tibetan dance in her talent show won a loud applause from the audience.

Alex Peebles, a UCA senior, gave a very witty speech on his experience in China which won him most laughs from the attendees. His talent show with his nunchuks greatly amazed the judges and audience.

UCA Confucius Institute collaborated with the Chinese instructors in the World Languages Department to screen and prepare UCA contestants for the 2013 “Chinese Bridge”—Preliminary Chinese Competition.

 

Ed faculty engaged in ETS standard setting

Posted on May 1, 2013
Gary Bunn

Gary Bunn

Several UCA College of Education were selected to represent Arkansas in establishing new standards for revised Educational Testing Service (ETS) teacher education admission and licensure exams. Specifically, Dr. Gary Bunn, assistant professor, was selected to represent Arkansas at the standard setting study for the new Praxis I, which will be available fall 2013. The meeting was on the ETS campus in Princeton, New Jersey, and included representatives from many of the states that use the Praxis I exam for selective admission to teacher education programs. The new Praxis I will be more closely aligned with the Common Core State Standards. This panel’s work resulted in the information needed by the Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) to establish the cut scores for our state. They reviewed the math and reading subtests, which started by taking the exams under similar conditions as those who complete the actual tests. From there, individuals reviewed each question, assigning it a level of difficulty based on a definition of expected knowledge of a qualified candidate. The group’s responses were combined and then reviewed again by the entire group, ending with a recommended score that the state departments of education can use to determine their individual state’s passing score.

Marilyn Friga

Marilyn Friga

Marilyn Friga, clinical instructor, was chosen to serve on the middle childhood social studies Praxis II standard setting study panel. The Arkansas panel included social studies teachers and teacher educators.

Alicia Cotabish

Alicia Cotabish

Additionally, Dr. Alicia Cotabish, assistant professor, was chosen to serve on the ADE middle childhood science Praxis II standard setting study facilitated by ETS. Also, Dr. Cotabish previously served on the Arkansas Department of Education STEM Education Planning Committee, the committee charged with drafting the comprehensive state STEM education plan tied to the Common Core Standards. We sincerely appreciate the professional service these faculty have provided to Arkansas and the teaching profession.

College of Education Lighthouse Beacons hosts Beacon Days

Posted on May 1, 2013

Expressing both amazement and appreciation, College of Education students were treated to “Beacon Bites” on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 9 and 10. Volunteer faculty and staff, known as Lighthouse Beacons, gave away cookies, bookmarks, and the spring final exam schedules for two mornings to let their students know that the Lighthouse Beacons are available to help them register for summer and fall courses and navigate through the rest of the spring semester. The College of Education Lighthouse Beacons is a group of 27 faculty and staff who provide student support services for students in all three departments: Early Childhood/Special Education, Teaching and Learning, and Leadership Studies.

Led by Drs. Patty Kohler-Evans, Nancy P. Gallavan, and Angela Webster-Smith, the Lighthouse Beacons seek to improve students’ academic progress and professional development by collaborating with student support services at UCA and in Arkansas communities, enhancing academic understanding, course completion, and program graduation rates of all COE and PEU students, expanding the number and professionalism of educators produced by UCA so the educator population is more inclusive of all people, and building stronger bridges with educators in all capacities across the state of Arkansas. To locate a Lighthouse Beacon, look for the large welcome signs illustrated with a lighthouse displayed proudly by the office door letting students know, “It is your time to shine.” For more information about the College of Education Lighthouse Beacons, please contact Nancy Gallavan at ngallavan@uca.edu.

Vanderslice published

Posted on May 1, 2013

John Vanderslice, associate professor of writing, has had his memoir essay “A Minute Inside the Ocean Cafe, July 1980” accepted for publication by the literary journal Squalorly.

Professor collaborates to create mobile app

Posted on April 22, 2013

 

Julie Meaux

Julie Meaux

Julie Meaux PhD, RN, associate professor in the Department of Nursing, and Kim Dielmann PhD, from Conway Psychological Assessment Center, collaborated with Omniscience Mobile and Rebar Interactive to develop a mobile phone application (app) called Traxer. The app has been selected as one of five finalists in the Shire Pharmaceutical ADHD Transitions Challenge.

Traxer now moves to Phase II in which Traxer will be developed into a working mobile App.

The Shire competition called for innovative ideas for web or mobile apps to help young adults entering college or the workforce to manage their medication and help them conquer daily organizational and life management challenges. The winning app will be selected based on technical development, potential to impact quality of life for users, potential to connect to health resources, creativity, and market potential.

The Traxer app is designed to provide a suite of support tools uniquely suited to the needs of the young adult with ADHD. The young adult with ADHE has been Dr. Meaux’s area of study for the past 10 years.

“This is so exciting and rewarding to see years of hard work and research potentially result in a product that can be used to assist adolescents with ADHD with the challenges they face,” said Dr. Meaux.

 

OT awards grad for fieldwork

Posted on April 22, 2013
Benji Benson of Greenbrier

Benji Benson of Greenbrier

Benji Benson, of Greenbrier, was named the UCA 2012 Cynthia B. Cole Outstanding Fieldwork Educator of the Year.

The Cynthia B. Cole Outstanding Fieldwork Educator Award is given each year to a practitioner who has demonstrated outstanding performance as an occupational therapist and a fieldwork educator. This award is named after Cole, who provided years of dedicated work as UCA’s Fieldwork Coordinator. Throughout the year, as students participate in their fieldwork experience, they are able to nominate their fieldwork educator for this award. After reviewing several highly qualified nominees, the 2012 Cynthia B. Cole Outstanding Fieldwork Educator Award was given to Benson.

Benson has been a role model for the occupational therapy students at UCA by demonstrating good ethics throughout practice, continuing her education in occupational therapy, and using occupation as the foundation of her practice. When describing her focus during treatment, she stated, “All activities that are performed during treatment should be a building block to the ultimate ’ADL independence’ goal.” Mrs. Benson also discussed her goals as a fieldwork educator by saying, “ I feel it is my responsibility as an occupational therapist to give back to the community, not only by providing therapy services during their hospitalization, but also by sharing my knowledge and experiences with the many students who pass through my door. I remind myself that I was a student once who had to begin somewhere.”

Benson received her Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy in 2005. Since then, she has worked at Conway Regional Health System, in the areas of home health, outpatient, and rehabilitation with the adult population. She currently works in the acute care setting.