The Bear Ledger

A delegation from the International University of Grand-Bassam in the Ivory Coast met with President Courtway to sign MOU’s and discuss potential programs for the future. The delegation included, Professor Saliou Toure, President of the International University of Grand-Bassam; Mr. Samuel Koffi, Chief Operating Officer; and Mr. Felix Ahoussi, Academic Advising Center Manager.

“The delegation was very gracious and we are extremely appreciative of this opportunity to build upon the very beginning of our collaborative relationship,” said provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, Steven Runge.

Currently, three IUGB students attend UCA to complete degrees in Finance and Risk Management in the College of Business. UCA has admitted 12 additional students from the Ivory Coast for the Spring 2014 semester.

The International University of Grand-Bassam was formally established as an accredited institution of higher education in May 2007.

Professor Saliou Toure, the first President of the International University of Grand-Bassam, has received countless awards and honors. He is a former Minister of Higher Education, Research and Technological Innovation; a member of the Academy of Science, Arts, and Cultures of Africa and of the African Diasporas of Côte d’Ivoire; the President of the Mathematics Association of Côte d’Ivoire; and a member of Mathematics Associations in the USA, France and Japan.

The Center for Community and Economic Development at the University of Central Arkansas partners with Blackbird Academy of Arts, Inc., a local nonprofit agency, to highlight their community arts programs. From now until spring, works by young Blackbird Academy artists will be on display in the Brewer-Hegeman Conference Center on the UCA campus.

Jennie Strange, Executive Director of Blackbird Academy, noted, “ The main purpose of Blackbird Academy of Arts is to provide a quality, comprehensive arts education to all our students. We believe a large part of this is giving our students opportunities to take what they are learning in their classes out into the community.”

Josh Markham, assistant director for the Center for Community and Economic Development, remarked, “UCA is happy to have the opportunity to help showcase the work of Blackbird Academy’s students. The arts are an important part of a thriving community, and we are proud of the work Blackbird Academy commits to everyday to educate children and adults. This exhibit is a great way for these students to display their work to a wider audience.”

Strange said, “….we are so thankful to UCA for the chance for our students’ work to be displayed at the Brewer-Hegeman Center. It shows our students that their work has value outside of Blackbird, and gives them confidence in their ability to show their work.”

The Center for Community and Economic Development is a part of UCA’s Division of Outreach and Community Engagement. The Center manages the Community Development Institute Central, supports Arkansas communities and community developers, and represents the university in its community engagement efforts.

 

Professor Christine Donahue and Dr. Martha Antolik of the UCA Music Department recently accompanied UCA vocal students to the Regional Convention and Student Auditions of the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) on Nov. 7-9. The convention took place at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas. The students competed and attended recitals and masterclasses during the Convention. Three UCA vocal students were selected to sing in the finals of the competition, held in the Reynolds Music Building Auditorium on the Harding campus on Saturday, November 9th. They were Tianna Wilson, who placed 1st in Sophomore Women, Veena Akama-Makia, who placed fourth in Sophomore Women, and Kendra Thomas, who placed 1st in Lower Advanced Women. All three are students of Antolik. Akama-Makia also recently sang at the Investiture of President Tom Courtway.

Mr. Adam Hicks, a UCA MAT internship student, was recently recognized by the Little Rock Family Magazine as one of its Amazing Educators. The award includes a $1000 cash award for outstanding educators in Arkansas. Mr. Hicks currently teaches AP Chemistry at Robinson High School in Pulaski County Special School District.

On November 14, 2013 Teachers United student organization sponsored a bake sale to raise money to support Theodore Jones Elementary school’s Boost for Backpacks program in Conway, Arkansas. The backpack program assists students get healthy nutrition after school hours. Thanks to the customers, the UCA Teachers United members, the College of Education’s Teaching and Learning Department and sponsors Marilyn Friga and Angela Greenland for their efforts in meeting the needs of a local partnership school. Also, thanks to the generous anonymous donors that matched the raised bake sale funds.

John Vanderslice, associate professor of writing, has had his short story collection, Island Fog, accepted for publication by Dialogos/Lavender Ink press in New Orleans.  Also, his review of Wendell Mayo’s story collection, The Cucumber King of Kedainiai , has been accepted by the journal, Timber, and his collage essay on marathon running, “Thirteen More Miles,” published recently in the journal 1966, has been nominated for The Best American Sports Writing  published annually by Mariner Books. Finally, his novella “Reflexology” was named runnerup in the prestigious Faulkner-Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, Novella category, administered by the Pirate’s Alley Faulkner Society of New Orleans. His recently completed novel Nous Nous was named a finalist in the Novel category.

The November/December issue of the Torreyson Library Newsletter is available at the following link: http://libguides.uca.edu/novdec2013.

The Faculty Presentation Series, hosted by Torreyson Library, hosts the documentary film, A Cheerful Heart: The Dave Madden Story and presentation by Dr. Bob Reising on Monday, November 18, 2013 at 3:00 p.m. at Torreyson Library, Room 215. This event is free and open to the public.

A Cheerful Heart is the story of Dave Madden, who contracted polio in 1948 and was confined to an iron lung for sixteen years in Rochester, Minnesota. A nephew of Dr. Archibald Wright “Moonlight” Graham’s wife, Madden became nationally famous for his cordiality and good humor in spite of his debilitating health. This film was produced and released by the Mayo Clinic with Dr. Reising as a consultant.

Dr. “Moonlight” Graham, the professional baseball player who inspired the film Field of Dreams, was the focus of Dr. Reising ‘s book Chasing Moonlight: the True Story of Field of Dreams’ Doc Graham.

Stephanie Vanderslice was recently interviewed by Tasha Golden on the Ploughshares online literary magazine for an article entitled “Writing In A Changing World” at http://blog.pshares.org/index.php/writing-in-a-changing-world-craft-readerships-and-social-media/.

In June, she published the essay, Creative Writing is Not a Fast Food Nation, with the “gang of five” creative writing professors in the daily news source Inside Higher Education http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2013/07/05/essay-defending-way-creative-writing-taught.

 

 

Dr. Jud Copeland, associate professor, received the Pat McDonald Outstanding Individual Achievement Award during the Arkansas Association of Instructional Media (AAIM) conference in Rogers, Arkansas in April.

The Arkansas Association of Instructional Media is a group of professional educators dedicated to the improvement of education through the use of technology and media. The group hosts a professional development conference each spring providing educators with workshops specific to instructional technology, media usage, and current innovations in library media.

Dr. Jud Copeland has been teaching at UCA for five years. During his time at UCA, he has been teaching subjects such as cataloging, classification, intellectual property, and copyright. “AAIM inspires us to become more effective teachers with a passion for learning,” Copeland said.

 

Amy Whitehead, director of the University of Central Arkansas Center for Community and Economic Development, was recognized by the Arkansas Community Development Society (ACDS) at their annual conference and awards presentation on Thursday, October 24.

ACDS awarded individuals in five categories. Whitehead was awarded in the New Professional category, which was designed to recognize and encourage community developers who are new to the field.

ACDS is an educational nonprofit organization that works to advance community development and the community development profession by providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and the development of common interest among the members of the Chapter, providing for the publication and dissemination of community development information to members of the public, advocating excellence in community development scholarship research and practice for the good of mankind, and promoting citizen participation as essential to effective community development.

 

Dr. Deborah Dailey from the College of Education was awarded the Herbert M. Handley Outstanding Dissertation Award at the Mid-South Educational Research Association’s (MSERA) annual conference in early November 2013. For the award, Dr. Dailey received a plaque and a $250 cash award. Dr. Dailey’s dissertation, The Effects of a STEM Intervention on Elementary Teachers, was also presented in a paper session at the conference. Teaching and Learning Department Chair Tammy Benson indicated, “I heard the presentation of Debbie’s dissertation and it is very impressive.” Each year, MSERA sponsors the Herbert M. Handley Outstanding Dissertation/Thesis Award. Any current member of MSERA who has completed a dissertation or thesis (in the current year) within the member states of MSERA may submit their dissertation abstract for award consideration. In addition, the abstract from the winning dissertation is recognized on the MSERA web site and in the MSERA Educational Researcher publication. Dr. Dailey is currently serving as a faculty member in the Department of Teaching and Learning and earned her doctoral degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

 

Dr. Candice Barnes, Assistant Professor Early Childhood and Special Education, spoke to faculty at the Instructional Development Center’s (IDC) Eat, Engage, and Energize lunch session, October 31. Barnes joined fellow faculty members Kim Little-History, Sophie Dix- Writing, and Amy Pitchford-Communication for an interactive discussion about ways to incorporate service-learning pedagogy into teaching, research, and scholarship at UCA.

Barnes addressed the specific benefits of service-learning pedagogy as a teaching strategy for students in her education courses. As the Coordinator of Service-Learning activities for the Institute for Research on Social and Emotional and Service Learning, a part of Barnes’ role is to support the Mashburn Institute and colleagues. Within both the department and college, she organizes service-learning projects that support the scope and aim of teacher education. Teacher candidates must have varied and rich experiences engaging in service-learning projects so that they can more effectively engage their students in deep, rich learning. Therefore, working to create richer partnerships with local schools is vital to engaging students in both local, school-community and global projects.

Barnes is one of eight faculty who took part in UCA’s inaugural service-learning faculty fellows seminar. The seminar engaged faculty from colleges across campus for an interactive seminar focused on strengthening and incorporating service-learning pedagogy into teaching and learning.