The Bear Ledger

Dr. Sally Roden has been appointed interim Vice President of Enrollment Management.

Roden, who has served as associate provost and dean of Undergraduate Studies, began the post on July 1. The Office of Financial Aid, the Office of Admissions, and University College will join the units of the former Division of Undergraduate Studies.

The Division of Enrollment Management will provide a more streamlined process for student recruitment, admission, enrollment, financial aid and scholarship, and scheduling of classes. Students will be provided a number of programs planned to enhance student satisfaction and student success. The results of these program initiatives will be increased student retention and graduation rates.

“By combining admission, financial aid and our retention effort under the umbrella of one division, we will be able to serve our first year students better and more efficiently,” said UCA President Allen Meadors. “I am delighted that Dr. Roden has agreed to step in and help us as the new Division of Enrollment Management evolves. Dr. Roden’s 40-year career at UCA, especially her 17 years as Dean of Undergraduate Studies, should prove to be extremely valuable during this transition year. “

Dr Roden said she was honored to have been asked by President Meadors to lead this very important reorganization of the University’s enrollment management.

“The combination of these units will provide new opportunities for supporting students as this new division works to improve the quality and diversity of UCA’s student body,” she said. “UCA and the Division of Enrollment Management are committed to assisting students in their educational goals and obtaining a college degree.”

Dr. Steven Runge has been appointed the new Dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at the University of Central Arkansas.

Dr. Runge, who first came to UCA in 1991 as an assistant professor, has served as Interim Dean of the College for the past year and has served as Professor and Chair of the Biology Department for the previous six years.

“Dr. Runge is the ideal person to lead the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics”, said Dr. Lance Grahn, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. “He has secured thousands of dollars in grants for the college, promoted undergraduate research and has been instrumental in the planning of the new Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Residential College scheduled to open this fall. He is also helping to establish UCA’s reputation as a scientifically research-active university.”

Dr. Runge said he was excited about the opportunity to continue leading the College. He also was humbled by the support expressed by the faculty and administrative team within the College and by the other Deans, Dr. Grahn and UCA President Allen Meadors.

“While things are tight on the budget front, these are exciting times at UCA as we move forward with our strategic planning and master planning for the university,” he said. “I’m glad to have the chance to be a part of those processes.”

Dr. Runge’s first priority as Dean is to make sure the new STEM Residential College, slated to open in Arkansas Hall in August, gets off to a solid start.

Outside of the STEM Residential College, the College faculty and staff have established a number of goals that include long-term preservation of the Jewel Moore Nature Reserve, raising funds for construction of an iSMEC (Integrated Science and Mathematics Education Center), inclusion of expanded spaces for the departments in the College in the University Master Plan, and the development of innovative ways to deliver the very best science, mathematics, computer science, math education and science education programs.

Runge noted that the College faces several obstacles – budget and space — but it will continue to be aggressive in its effort to secure external funding to help meet these challenges.

“We have an outstanding faculty and staff in our college and an administrative team that is innovative, hard-working and collaborative, so we simply need to ensure that we are all working on the same page toward achieving common goals,” he said. “… The future is bright in Arkansas and at UCA and I am glad to be a part of the good things that are happening.”

Newly elected members of the UCA Staff Senate learned about the role they will play in shared governance and supporting fellow staff members during an orientation June 30.

The senate’s mission is to provide communication and representation on behalf of the staff. Staff Senate President Larry Burns said the senate will continue the push for more staff participation in shared governance.

“The staff of this university can provide a perspective on university policy that may not have been heard in the past,” he said. “The staff of this university should have as much input as other constituencies in the shared governance of UCA. A strong, supported staff senate and a commitment to shared governance by all parties will help to increase morale and help UCA live up to its mission and accomplish its goals.”

Burns noted several accomplishments of the senate during the past year. The senate awarded more than $4,000 in scholarships, raised over $1,700 for the Angel Bear Tree, and secured funding for a yearly professional development fund for staff professional development. It also increased its scholarship endowment and employee of the year endowment.

The Staff Senate will have a busy 2010-11 year, he added. The senate is going to work with the administration to increase the professional development opportunities for staff. Additionally, the senate will be working with the administration to conduct an evaluation of adherence to state job descriptions, duties, and compensation.

“We will work with the administration to focus on alleviating the salary and duty inequities among the staff,” Burns said. “Another goal will be increasing employee recognition by the university. Currently, all Employee of the Year recognition and funding is provided by the Staff Senate and our fundraising activities. We will work with the university to continue these activities, but with support from the University.”

Health & Wellness Offers Smoking Cessation Classes

The UCA Health & Wellness Center will offer free smoking cessation classes to help faculty, staff and student quit the habit. Six classes, each lasting an hour, will be held in Room 307 in the Student Health Center. Classes are scheduled for July 8, July 15, July 22, July 29, Aug. 5, and Aug.12. The classes will start at noon.

If you are not able to attend classes, there are other options available. They are: free use of online quit guide, including expert/ coach support and self-help books available at the Resource Center.
UCA became a tobacco-free campus on July 1. For more information, contact Lee Schwager at schwager@uca.edu or call at 450-3133

Math and Science Investigator Program Scheduled July 12-16

The third annual Math and Science Investigator Program, MSI’10, will be held the week of July 12-16.
The event is organized by Dr. Ramesh Garimella, chair of the Mathematics Department, and is partially funded by the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority. The summer program is designed to enhance students’ interests in mathematics, physics, and biological sciences. For more information on MSI’10, contact rameshg@uca.edu or call 450-3147.

Youth Theatre Presents Two Short Plays July 14-15

The Youth Theatre of Central Arkansas will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer by presenting two short plays. The Youth Theatre, in association with UCA Theatre and the UCA Theatre Foundation, will present “Ernie’s Incredible Illucinations” by Alan Ayckbourn and an adaptation of “The Frogs” by Aristophanes on July 14 and 15 at 7:00 pm in the Bridges/Larson Theatre of the Snow Fine Arts Center on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas, 201 Donaghey in Conway. Both plays will be performed each evening, with “Ernie’s Incredible Illucinations” starting at 7 p.m. and “The Frogs” beginning approximately 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. Tickets are not required. Doors open at 6:30 pm each evening. Information about the Youth Theatre is available online at uca.edu/theatre or by calling Liz Parker, Youth Theatre Coordinator, at 450-5092.

National Conference of Academic Deans Slated July 29-31

The University of Central Arkansas is hosting the annual meeting of the National Conference of Academic Deans July 29-31 at the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center. The theme for the 2010 conference is “Sustainability in the Academy: Best Practices for Deans”.

Keynote speakers will be Dr. John Churchill, and Dr. Nick Brown. Dr. Churchill is the Secretary of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, and was formerly Vice President for Academic Affairs, and also Interim President at Hendrix College.

Dr. Brown is Executive Assistant for Sustainability at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville. Special sessions for new deans are also provided. Deadline for early registration is June 15.

Alumni Services Department Seeks Information on Homecoming Activities

UCA Homecoming 2010 is scheduled for the week of Oct.24 – Oct. 30. If your college or department plans to host an event or activity during the week of homecoming and you would like to have it communicated to alumni, please contact the Alumni Services Department at alumni@uca.edu by August 1. Information will be posted on the alumni events website and published in the homecoming brochure. For additional information, please contact Jan Newcomer at 450-3130.

History Symposium Looks at War and Impact on Society

UCA’s History Symposium “War and Its Impact on Society,” is scheduled for Aug. 6 at the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center. Keynote speaker is Dr. Gary Gallagher, who is one of the foremost scholars of the Civil War in America. He is the author of several highly acclaimed books, including The Confederate Ward, Lee and His Army in Confederate History, and Causes Won, Lost and Forgotten: How Hollywood and Popular Art Shape What We Know About the Civil War. Cost is $25. Six hours of professional development credit is available. For more information, contact the UCA AO-Professional Development at profdev@uca.edu or (501) 852-2394

Summer Graduation Slated for Aug. 13

Summer graduates will receive their degrees during commencement services Friday, Aug. 13. The ceremony begins at 7 p.m. at the Farris Center.

Clarence Finley, assistant coach, Men’s Basketball, June 1.

Leticia Rodriguez, Institutional Services Assistance, Custodial Care, June 16.

Adam Hensley, Institutional Services Assistance, Custodial Care, June 16.

Ontee Robinson, Insitutional Bus Driver, Shuttle Bus, June 16.

Joey Williams, Apprentice Tradesman, Grounds Maintenance, June 21.

Former UCA Soccer Coach Ryan Strong, 44, of Amarillo died Sunday, July 4, 2010.

He was hired by the University of Central Arkansas as the first men’s head soccer coach and later served as coordinator of athletic facilities and game management.

Ryan received his bachelor of science degree at Texas Tech University, did post-baccalaureate studies at Rice University and earned his master of science degree from the University of Central Arkansas.

Survivors include his wife, Lorna Strong; two sons, Luke Strong and Samuel Strong, both of Amarillo; his father, Dick Strong of Amarillo; and a brother, Lyle Strong and wife Paula of Amarillo.

The family suggest memorials be sent in Ryan Strong’s name to the following: the South Georgia Baptist Church Scholarship Fund, the South Georgia Baptist Church Building Fund, the Randall High School boys soccer program; or the Randall High School Student Assistant Fund.

Sign the online guest book at www.coxlagrone.com.

Source: Amarillo Globe-News, July 7, 2010

A new scholarship has been endowed through the University of Central Arkansas Foundation for students studying journalism.

The Dr. Will Counts Journalism Scholarship Fund has been endowed at the $25,000 level and will provide scholarships for students studying in the journalism department at UCA.

During a reception at Buffalo Alumni Hall for family and friends, a plaque unveiled in honor of the endowment. The plaque will take permanent residence on the Donor Wall of Honor in McCastlain Hall.

Counts’ wife, Vivian, said she was thrilled that a scholarship named in honor of her late husband had been endowed at his alma mater.

“Many don’t know this, but Will came to college because of a scholarship he received,” she said. “If he hadn’t received that scholarship, there’s no way he would have ever been able to attend college.”

Counts earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Arkansas State Teacher’s College (now UCA) in 1952. While attending ASTC, he worked as the school’s photographer and as a freelancer for the Arkansas Gazette and Arkansas Democrat.

In 1954, he earned a master’s degree from Indiana University in Bloomington. He was rehired, in 1957, by the Arkansas Democrat as a staff photographer. Counts’ first powerful images of the Central High School desegregation crisis appeared on Sept. 4, 1957. The most recognizable photo is that of Elizabeth Eckford being harassed by white students in the front of the school.

In 1997, Counts and his wife, Vivian, successfully organized a reconciliation between Eckford and Hazel Bryan Massery, the young white student pictured screaming at Eckford in the now infamous photo.

“I was a journalism minor when I was in school here in the 1960s and Will Counts name was well known then as it is today,” said UCA President Allen C. Meadors. “His images truly captured the essence of the old saying ‘A picture is worth 1,000 words’. We truly appreciate Will Counts’ family and friends for endowing this scholarship in his honor to help future journalists and photojournalists.”

For more information or to make a contribution to the Dr. Will Counts Journalism Scholarship Fund, contact the UCA Foundation at 501-450-5288. – Jennifer Boyett

Look for the new issue of UCA Magazine in coming weeks. The Spring/Summer issue features the new College of Business, latest news around UCA campus, and updates on alumni.

History Day in Arkansas, a UCA Department of History sponsored program, had another successful year at the National History Day competition held at the University of Maryland at College Park June 12-17.

Fifty-one Arkansas middle-level and high school students participated in the competition. They were accompanied by their teachers, many of whom are UCA alums.

State coordinator and History Department faculty member Pat Ramsey accompanied the students to the competition, along with History Department adjunct instructor William Richardson.

Conway Carl Stuart Middle School student Rebecca Philpott took first place in the Junior Individual Exhibit category for her entry, “The Crossett Experiment of 1916: An Innovation That Changed Malaria Eradication.” Sherry Holder and Kaye McMillian are her teachers. Conway High School students Lauren Hart, Anna Jordan and Annie Patton won the special prize for History of the Federal Government for their Senior Group Exhibit, “The Road to Innovation: The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956.” William Richardson and Charles Williams are their teachers.

Arkansas Outstanding Junior Entry was awarded to LISA Academy students, Morgan Depriest, Alena Higgins, and Yulia Batalina, for their Junior Group Documentary. Dustin Seaton is their teacher.
The Arkansas Senior Outstanding Entry was awarded to Alma High School students Courtney Craft and Breanna Witherspoon for their Senior Group Documentary. Toney McMurray, Erin Mills and Manesseh Moore are their teachers.

Other winners were: Braydon Montgomery and Peyton Bettencourt of Northridge Middle School, teacher Jeanie Perkins, ninth place junior group documentary; Emily Austin of Russellville Junior High, teacher Aimee Mimms, 14th place, junior paper; Elisa Detogni of Conway High School East, teachers William Richardson and Charles Williams, 12th place senior individual documentary; T.C. Zhang of Pulaski Academy, teacher Jody Musgrove, 9th place, Senior Web Site.

UCA Police Capt. Justin Tapley’s family was named the Faulkner County Farm Family of the Year for 2010 in June. The Tapley family was chosen because of their innovative techniques in their section of the industry. The Farm Family of the Year program is sponsored by the Farm Bureau of Arkansas and the Faulkner County Extension Office and others, Joe Thrash, president of the Faulkner County Farm Bureau Board said. Jim Tapley, his wife Kathey Tapley and their sons, Justin and Jason Tapley, run the farm, which was homesteaded in the 1800s by Jim Tapley’s great-grandfather.

Linda Palmer, a Freshman Enrollment Specialist, has two young adult paranormal romances and a YA “novel byte” coming out later this year. Nightmare Interrupted is scheduled to come out this month. In October, Wolf-Run will be offered by Wild Horse Press as an e-book and in print. This is book two of a series called Wolf of My Heart. The Jingle Bell Jinx will be offered by Uncial Press as a download to e-readers in November. This is a novel byte also known as an alias short story.

IT Moves

The Audio Visual Division offices have moved from Main Hall to Burdick Hall Room 116. Please note the new location for future visits. The Audio Visual viewing room has moved from Main 003 to Burdick 205. The IT training room in Burdick has moved from Room 110 to Room 218. The video teleconferencing Room in Brewer-Hegeman has moved to Burdick 220.

AREON

AREON has finally arrived and we can now take advantage of the high speed networking services available from it. One of those is more available bandwidth for the commodity Internet. We have increased our available Internet band-width to 250mb.

HPC Cluster

The Callisto Cluster is now operational. The Callisto Cluster is UCAs first high performance computing (HPC) cluster, conceived and implemented with significant effort by Clarence Burg, Patrick Carmack, Sinan Kockara, R. B. Lenin, and Scott Meader.
http://www.uca.edu/callisto/

Network Upgrade

Network upgrade activity scheduled for the following locations within the next 30 days.
Main Hall, Bernard Hall, and McCastlain Hall.

IT Moves Student Email

IT plans to upgrade the student email system, discarding the current Net-mail system and moving students over to our established GroupWise system. The Netmail system has not been updated by the manufacturer in some time and the features provided by it are inadequate. The GroupWise web interface is superior, with significantly more features. The new system should also supply considerably more mail storage space to students. Besides providing a better service the change will eliminate some problems we have experienced with having separate email systems, such as conflicts with student workers who require a mailbox on both Netmail and GroupWise. Student worker GroupWise accounts need no longer expire at the end of each term, and students will be able to receive email at the @uca.edu domain.

Upcoming Events

GroupWise Calendaring, July 12, 10 a.m.

IT Maintenance Period , July 23, 4:30 p.m.

GroupWise Basics Class, Aug. 9, 1:30 p.m.

Sophos security Class, Aug 13, 1:30 p.m.

Network Maintenance, Aug. 20, 4 p.m.

GroupWise Calendaring , Sept. 6, 1:30 p.m.

Network maintenance, Sept. 17, 4 p.m.

Sophos Security Class . Oct. 8, 10 a.m.

GroupWise Basics , Oct. 11, 10 a.m.

GroupWise Calendaring. Nov. 8, 10 a.m.

Call the IT Helpdesk at 450-3107 if you would like to attend a training session.