Faril Simpson
Faril grew up in Grant County, Arkansas. He did undergraduate work at UALR and Hendrix and received his Ed.D. from the University of Arkansas. He taught primarily freshman chemistry, physical science and geology at UCA from 1958 to 1988.
He had an undergraduate minor in Spanish, and soon after his retirement from UCA, he became aware that there was a shortage of Spanish teachers in the area. He enrolled in Spanish classes at UCA and took a part time job teaching Spanish at Bigelow High School. He also taught Spanish at Central Baptist College in Conway for a time.
Faril was a founding member of the “Professors” band in 1967, and remains involved in music. He continues to write songs, play with a group or two,and does some single gigs. He has recorded several albums of original material.
He says, “Other than these two hobbies, I spend a lot of time in the waiting rooms of about a dozen physicians.”
Faril passed away in the fall of 2011 after battling severe kidney disease for a number of years.
George Paul
George grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and received his B.S. from Coe College. He completed his Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry in 1965 and joined the UCA chemistry faculty that year. George taught physical chemistry and advanced inorganic chemistry in addition to a variety of introductory courses. He retired in 2005 after 40 years of service to the department.
George and his wife, Patsy, continue to live in Conway. Since retiring he has returned to weight lifting which was a passion for him for a number of years. After only one year of retirement he returned to teaching on a part time basis at Pulaski Tech.
George’s e-mail address is gryphonquill@alltel.net
Michael Rapp
Mike grew up in Missouri, received his B.S. degree from Southeast Missouri State University, and his Ph.D. from Indiana University. He joined the UCA chemistry faculty in the fall of 1968 and estimates that he taught over 5000 students in his 30+ years here. He taught organic and general chemistry courses and also graduate courses for high school teachers. He served as director of the Arkansas State Science Fair from 1981 through 2006. As a faculty member he received both the Teaching Excellence Award and the Public Service Award.
Mike and his wife, Sharon, who taught French at Conway High for over 30 years, have two daughters (Inge and Gretchen). These days a lot of time is spent on the road going to visit their granddaughter, Zoe, who was born in November, 2004.
Other activities since retirement include service in community organizations (Autumn Manor – a Section 8 HUD complex for low-income elderly, Bethlehem House – a transitional housing facility for homeless, and Conway Men’s Chorus) and many roles at Peace Lutheran Church (most recently chairing the benevolence committee, which works with families in emergency need). He and Sharon are currently teaching ballroom dance lessons. Mike enjoys keeping in touch with students and colleagues, and he would appreciate contacts from others. Recreation includes canoeing, hiking, camping, and fishing. Favorite authors are C. S. Lewis and Philip Yancey.
Mike’s e-mail address is mrapp@conwaycorp.net
Arthur Hoyt
Art grew up in Conway and graduated from UCA (then ASTC). After completing his Ph.D. at Purdue he returned to UCA and served as a faculty member for 23 years, retiring in 1992. His specialties were analytical and biochemistry and he taught quantitative analysis, instrumental analysis and biochemistry in addition to freshman classes. During a sabbatical and a couple of summers at the University of Tennessee Art became proficient in Capillary Zone Electrophoresis and published a number of papers in that area.
In 1995 Art married Jan Smith in Carlsbad, NM. Actually Art didn’t know he was going there to get married, but that is a story he can tell. Jan worked as a deputy clerk in federal court.
After retiring from UCA, Art worked until 1997 at UAMS, teaching one Analytical Biochemistry course, doing Capillary Electrophoresis research, and synthesizing DNA primers for the genetic cloning work there.
Subsequent to that, he and his built 5 houses and any number of outbuildings. “We were not in the business really, just providing a service to friends and kinfolk.” He also got into restoring old vehicles, and at last count had done 6 old cars and is working on the 5th truck. Each one requires a year to a year and a half to complete. He was in the process of finishing an old Ford dually in 2003 when he was diagnosed with Lymphoma. Chemo seems to have worked and everything has shown to be OK.
Jan took an early retirement and she and Art bought property in the Missouri Ozarks. They first constructed a barn for her horses, then a workshop to support woodworking and mechanic work, and lastly a house. They sold their home in Wooster and moved to Gainesville, MO permanently in April 2006. Art says, “I have had an offer to teach at the Missouri State branch in West Plains, but that part of life is probably over.”
Art’s e-mail address is drhoyt@centurytel.net
Conrad Stanitski
Conrad grew up in eastern Pennsylvania and received his B.S. degree from Bloomsberg State. After briefly teaching and coaching at the high school level he received a masters from Northern Iowa and a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut. Conrad began his college teaching at Georgia State University where he also began his career as a writer and has since written a number of popular chemistry textbooks. After serving as Executive Assistant to the President of Franklin and Marshall College, and as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the College at Mount Union College, Conrad became chemistry department chair at UCA in 1992. During his tenure as chair Conrad oversaw a significant increase in the research activities in the department and the approval of the department by the American Chemical Society.
Conrad retired from UCA in 2005 as Distinguished Emeritus Professor and moved to Lancaster, PA which is home to his wife Barbara. From 2005 to 2013 he was a Visiting Professor of Chemistry at Franklin and Marshall College and is now a Visiting Scholar there. He and Barbara sing in the Lancaster Symphony Chorus; Conrad plays clarinet in the F&M Symphonic Wind Ensemble, alto sax in two jazz ensembles, and plays tennis at every opportunity.
Conrad can be reached at conrad.stanitski@fandm.edu
Paul Krause
Paul grew up in Racine, Wisconsin and attended Debuque College after a short time at the Air Force Academy. His graduate work was at the University of Iowa where he received a Ph.D. in physical chemistry. After a post-doc at the University of Pittsburg in IR spectroscopy, he accepted an instructorship at Miami, Ohio. Paul joined the UCA faculty in the fall of 1976 and specialized in teaching physical chemistry and in the freshman chemistry program. He was the recipient of the UCA Teaching Excellence Award in 1995 and consistently embraced new teaching methods throughout his career. He and his wife, Marlynn, plan to spend their retirement traveling and with their grandchildren. Paul continues to exercise regularly and is an avid biker.