James Allen MIS Honors Graduate
James Allen graduated with Honors in Management Information Systems in the Fall 2017 UCA graduation ceremony. Graduating with Honors in MIS requires a faculty invitation, a cumulative GPA of 3.25, and completion of a significant project or research endeavor. James was a key member of two significant software development projects, both under the guidance of Dr. Jeff Hill. The first was the Arkansas Model UN project that automated all processes related to this UCA History Department endeavor, which was completed in Spring 2017. For this project, James was the primary Java developer, integrating an extensive database with quality forms and reports. The second project, completed in Fall 2017, was the design and development of Report Engagement and Participation (REAP), a web-based, interactive system which tracks and stores student extra-curricular work in their field, such as internships, volunteer hours, meetings, etc. This system allows students, faculty, and administration to gather useful and critical information regarding student successes. James performed two key roles in this project: he was the leader of the project management team, which oversaw the entire project, from requirements gathering to implementation. For this, he assimilated the work of the web design and development teams. In addition, he was one of two developers (coders) in the project (using PHP), which integrated the entire system.
James graduated from the University of Central Arkansas in December 2017. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Information Systems, with a minor in Computer Science, with a GPA of 3.88. He arrived in Arkansas a high school dropout with only a brown paper bag containing all of his belongings. His hard work and determination allowed him to graduate from Vilonia High School in 2002 with a 3.95 GPA. He met his future wife, Laura, in 2003 and was married the following year while on leave from deployment during Operation Iraqi Freedom II campaign. James served 13 years in the US Army before attending UCA. James was recognized as the Outstanding Information Systems graduate in the College of Business for 2017. Previously he was placed on the UCA Presidential Scholar list four times and Dean’s List once. He enjoys spending time with family, reading various technical documents of interest, and considers himself a continuous learner.