The Bear Ledger

The University of Central Arkansas has named Becky Rasnick as university registrar.

Rasnick has served as interim university registrar since January 2013 and as associate registrar from November 2011 to November 2012. In addition, Rasnick has held the position of director of athletic academic advising since July 2005.

“UCA is fortunate to have a person of Becky’s caliber serving as our registrar. Please join me in congratulating her on her new position,” said Laura Young, associate provost for finance and administration, in an email announcement to the campus. “She has a long history of successful contributions to our campus beginning in 1996 as an academic advisor.”

Additionally, Rasnick has served as Student Government Association Advisor, UCA Alumni Board member, president of the Arkansas Academic Advising Network, president of University Women, and committee member on the following committees: Academic Integrity, University Women Book Scholarship, Grievance, Safety, Health and Wellness, and the Summer Reading Program. Rasnick also is a member of numerous professional organizations in the field of university advising and registration.

“Becky Rasnick is one of those people who make UCA a special place to work and a special place to study. If I could find 100 Becky Rasnick clones somewhere I would find a way to hire every one of them. UCA is a better place because we have Becky as part of our team,” said Steve Runge, provost and vice president of academic affairs.

Rasnick and her husband, Rick, and their two sons are all alumni of UCA. “She is a common presence at UCA athletic and veterans’ events,” Young said. “The rumor is that Becky bleeds purple. She is a true UCA Bear.”

Prior to UCA, Rasnick served as director of Special and Academic Programs and as the head instructor for Basic Skills Education at Central Texas College on the Fort Hood Campus. She also served as a head instructor at Temple University while her husband was stationed in Germany.

UCA completed the search for university registrar with Rasnick’s appointment. The search for director of athletic academic advising begins immediately.

“I know from talking with many people that Becky will be greatly missed in Athletic Academic Advising. However, she is passionate about our students and will be helping regularly as we make the transition to new leadership in the Athletic Academic Advising Center,” Runge said.

The students, faculty and staff of UCA’s Learning Communities, the Residential and Commuter Colleges, are participating in a community-wide food drive called the CANstruction Challenge, and they need help.

The CANstruction Challenge is a canned food drive in which local businesses and colleges collect canned goods, then build fantastic structures from the cans. These can-sculptures are then judged according to design and originality.

Donated canned goods must be clean, un-dented, and have intact labels. No glass, out-of-date foods or soda cans please. Can collection starts immediately and ends 13 February 2014.

The winner of UCA’s CANstruction Challenge will represent UCA in the community-wide contest sponsored by 501Life magazine. Take a look at http://www.canstruction.org to see some fantastic examples of creative cannery.

Collected food will be donated to area agencies such as Bethlehem House, CAPCA, Soul Food Cafe, Haven House, the Women’s Shelter and other food pantries.

For more information on how to donate either canned goods or money to purchase canned goods, please contact the UCA CANstruction Challenge coordinator Brian James (HRC Resident Master) at bjames@uca.edu or call 450.5870. You can also contact Jayme Millsap Stone at jaymes@uca.edu or call 450.5148.

The Instructional Development Center is pleased to provide a service to students at the end of each semester called Thank-A-Teacher. Students may submit online a brief note of appreciation to UCA faculty. The IDC then sends this acknowledgment to the faculty member at the start of the next semester.

Thank-A-Teacher was another great success this semester. We had 286 notes of appreciation submitted to various faculty across campus by students. Faculty, be watching your mail box over the next week…one of these notes may be addressed to you!

Students are encouraged to use this service. Thank-A-Teacher does not take the place of university student evaluations.

The 2013 Arkansas Curriculum Conference, held in October at the Little Rock Marriott Hotel and Statehouse Convention Center, benefitted from the leadership and scholarship of many UCA College of Education faculty. Leadership from the UCA College of Education included Dr. Donna Wake, Assistant Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning, as President of the Arkansas Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts (ACTELA); Dr. Nancy P. Gallavan, Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning, as Board Member of the Arkansas Council for the Social Studies (ACSS) and Board Member of the Arkansas Geographic Alliance (AGA); and Dr. Jeff Whittingham, Associate Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning, as the ACTELA Co-chair of the ACC Membership Committee; Dr. Mary Ellen Oslick, Assistant Professor, Department of Early Childhood/Special Education, as the ACTELA Co-chair of the ACC Presiders Committee; Drs. Wake and Oslick as Co-chairs of the ACC Program Committee; Dr. Whittingham as the ACTELA Co-chair of the ACC Publicity Committee; and Ms. Chris Hogan, Instructor, Department of Teaching and Learning, as Co-Chair of the ACC Registration Committee.

Supporting the theme of “Preparing the Next Generation,” the following sessions were presented by UCA College of Education faculty:

Ms. Audie Alumbaugh, Instructor; Dr. Gary Bunn, Assistant Professor; Dr. Alicia Cotabish, Assistant Professor; and Dr. Debbie Daily; Instructor; Department of Teaching and Learning: A Differentiated Approach to Addressing the CCSS (Math) and NGSS

Dr. Tammy Benson, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning: Dr. Mary Ellen Oslick: Common Core, Social Justice, and Quality Literature: A Perfect Match!

Dr. Rachelle Miller, Assistant Professor; Dr. Alicia Cotabish, and Dr. Debbie Dailey, Department of Teaching and Learning: Gaining STEAM with STEM

Dr. Debbie Dailey: The Adventure of Professional Development for Teachers in Rwanda.

Ms. Marilyn Friga, Instructor II, and Dr. Nancy P. Gallavan, Department of Teaching and Learning: Social Studies Strategies to Engage Learning and Increase Literacy

Ms. Marilyn Friga and Dr. Nancy P. Gallavan: Enhance Higher Order Thinking with Inductive and Deductive Activities

Dr. Nancy P. Gallavan: Optimizing Your TEAM Approach with Students, Parents, Colleagues, and Classroom

Dr. Nancy P. Gallavan: ‘Rev Up’ Your Rubrics

Dr. Rachelle Miller and Dr. Donna Wake: Reaching All Children in the Language Arts Classroom

Dr. Michael Mills, Assistant Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning: BYOD: What Really Works in the Classroom

Dr. Michael Mills: Using BYOT to Bridge the Digital Divide

Dr. Michael Mills: OMG! Effect of Texting on Literacy Instruction

Dr. Mary Ellen Oslick: 2013 Orbis Pictus Award & More: Balancing Children’s Literacy with Nonfiction

Ms. Amy Thompson, Instructor, and Ms. Crystal Voegele, Instructor, Department of Teaching and Learning: Debunking Myths: transitioning from the Classroom to Higher Education

Dr. Donna Wake: Tabletop Twitter

Dr. Donna Wake and Dr. Jeff Whittingham: To Write Digitally or Not to Write Digitally

Dr. Jeff Whittingham: Books Galore: The Best Juvenile & YA Books of 2013

Dr. Jeff Whittingham: The Crisis Mr. Faubus Made: Arkansas Gazette and Central High

 

This fall, the College of Education Lighthouse Beacons celebrated Beacon Bite Days on December 3 and 4. Volunteer faculty and staff brought cookies, aka Beacon Bites, and gave them to students as they passed between classes. Students also were offered copies of the fall final examination schedule and bookmarks with information about the Lighthouse Beacons. Lighthouse Beacons were available to talk with students about their progress at UCA, answer questions about UCA and the College of Education, advise students with their programs of study, and ask students if they have registered for the upcoming semester. Initiated in 2010, the Lighthouse Beacons are College of Education faculty and staff who volunteer to (1) collaborate with students support serves at UCA and in Arkansas communities; (2) enhance academic understanding, course completion, and program graduation rates of all students; (3) expand the number and professional of educations produced by UCA so the educator population is more inclusive and reflective of all people; and (4) build stronger bridges with educators in all capacities across Arkansas. Currently, two events highlight the Lighthouse Beacon outreach: Beacon Bite Days scheduled every semester the week before finals and the Diversity Teacher Candidate Reception held every spring as an opportunity for teacher candidates to meet with faculty to hear about possible programs and available services. Brilliant teachers light, ignite, and excite learning in others; shine on. For more information about the College of Education Lighthouse Beacons, email lighthousebeacons@uca.edu.

The University of Central Arkansas Advancement Division announces a $250,000 gift from Terry Pillow, CEO of Tommy Bahama, Inc., to support UCA’s College of Business dean’s position. The gift will provide current support and create an endowment for future expenses. The fund is named in memory of his parents, Homer and Regina Pillow. It is the sixth fund established in the UCA Foundation to support a faculty, chair or dean position.

“I’m often reminded of how influential my time at UCA has been in my life and career,” Pillow said. “UCA is built on a reputation of excellence and I’m proud to be an alumnus and to support UCA’s long tradition of commitment to educating students.”

“A gift from this distinguished business leader confirms that UCA is headed in the right direction,” UCA President Tom Courtway said. “We are very grateful for his generosity.”

The recently released UCA’s Framework for the Future, a comprehensive strategy aimed at positioning UCA as a national leader in higher education, specifically notes the need for private support of faculty and staff positions. “The establishment of the endowment and the use of the available funds will be vital for recruiting and retaining the very best person as the next college of business dean,” said UCA Provost Steven Runge.

Pillow, a native of Corning, AR, was named as one of the UCA distinguished alumni at the 2013 Night of Distinction. While a student, Pillow was an active member of the Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity and class officer. He graduated with a BBA in marketing in 1976.

His career started at Neiman Marcus in Dallas, and has worked his way through the ranks of the clothing industry. While in college, he worked full time at Browning and White, a Conway men’s clothing store, which he parlayed into a position in the Neiman Marcus executive training program following graduation.

Pillow has served in his current position at Tommy Bahama Group, Inc. since 2008. Tommy Bahama has more than 3,000 employees and approximately $500 million in sales revenue.

Prior to that, he was CEO of Ralph Lauren Footwear; CEO of The Rockport Company; President of Coach Apparel and President of A/X Armani Exchange.

He and his wife, Kelley, live in Seattle with their young son, Sam.

The following is a sampling of UCA news mentions:

UCA Board of Trustees chooses 2014 Chair
http://thecabin.net/news/local/2013-12-16/uca-board-trustees-chooses-2014-chair#.Uq9tUdqA270

Commencements set for Arkansas universities
http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2013/dec/12/thousnands-students-graduate-arkansas-colleges/?f=latest

Universities reschedule finals due to icy conditions
http://www.thv11.com/video/2921381492001/1/Universities-reschedule-finals-due-to-icy-condition.

Tommy Bahama CEO gives $250,000 to UCA

• http://www.knoe.com/story/24215661/tommy-bahama-ceo-gives-250000-to-uca
• http://www.arktimes.com/ArkansasBlog/archives/2013/12/13/tommy-bahama-ceo-gives-250000-to-uca
• http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2013/dec/13/uca-gets-250000-gift-tommy-bahama-ceo/
• http://www.thv11.com/news/article/290837/2/Tommy-Bahama-CEO-gives-250000-gift-to-UCA
• http://www.thedailycitizen.com/news/state/article_ae6151eb-81c8-5b26-9a31-72f1608f2c4d.html
• http://www.topix.com/city/conway-ar/2013/12/tommy-bahama-ceo-gives-250-000-to-uca
• http://www.westplainsdailyquill.net/news/state_news_arkansas/article_70ab3da1-74cb-51c9-9547-02693ad5c738.html
• http://www.wftv.com/news/ap/education/tommy-bahama-ceo-gives-250000-to-uca/ncKb9/
• http://www.arkansasbusiness.com/article/96146/arkansas-native-terry-pillow-donates-250k-to-uca-college-of-business
• http://www.katv.com/story/24217397/tommy-bahama-ceo-gives-250000-to-uca

New study to focus on economics of educating women in Arkansas
http://maumelle.todaysthv.com/news/schools/337443-new-study-focus-economics-educating-women-arkansas

Has someone you work with done something outstanding this quarter (October – December)?

Employee of the Quarter is given to a staff member who has done something exceptional during a specific time period. UCA has many outstanding staff members that deserve recognition. This award was developed to recognize a specific “Above and Beyond” action that happened during the current quarter.

Nominations are being accepted for the Employee of the Quarter (I) Award. One full-time staff member will be recognized each quarter for outstanding job performance, going above and beyond, during that quarter. Any staff member with at least one year of service as of September 1, 2013 is eligible to be nominated. Any faculty, staff, student, or alumni can submit a nomination. Staff Senate sponsors this award and its aim is to recognize staff for their contributions to UCA.

This nomination form must be submitted by December 31, 2013 at 4:30 p.m. It only takes a few minutes!

https://uca.edu/staffsenate/employee-of-the-quarter/nomination-form/

Nominate someone today that deserves recognition. The winner will receive some great prizes including $150 BearBucks, two tickets to UCA’s future Night of Distinction, and a reserved parking spot for the following quarter.

For more information on the process, please contact Stephanie McBrayer at smcbrayer@uca.edu.