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Archives for October 2025

T-Rec Area Closures

Submitted by: Anthony Fillippino, anthonyf@uca.edu on 10/13/2025

Wednesday, October 15: Basketball Courts
Thursday, October 16: Basketball Courts, Indoor Track, Golf Simulator, and Racquetball Courts

 

Homecoming Parade – Signup today!

Submitted by: Rachel Ross, rross6@uca.edu on 10/13/2025

The UCA Homecoming Parade is a spirited campus tradition, featuring floats, marching bands, student organizations, and community groups winding down Bruce St and throughout campus. Join us on Saturday, November 1, at 1:30 pm as we celebrate Bear pride and the excitement of Homecoming weekend before the big game! Want to be part of the fun? Sign up to have a parade entry at uca.edu/go/Parade25

 

Shumaker-Wright Mentorship Award

Submitted by: Patricia Smith, psmith@uca.edu on 10/13/2025

Nominations are now open for the Shumaker-Wright Undergraduate Mentorship Award. This award recognizes faculty members for their role in supporting, encouraging, and promoting a positive and inclusive scholarly and teaching environment, and for contributing to the professional and personal development of undergraduate students. Mentoring involves not just successfully directing projects, theses, and dissertations, but also guiding and motivating in the context of students’ interests, passions, and personal circumstances. Student mentorship combines the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service which are held as the cornerstones of academia. This award will recognize faculty members who devotedly advise and work one-on-one with students on personalized, creative, enriching projects.

Please see the attached nomination form. Nominations are due on October 24. Direct any questions to Dr. Patricia Smith.

https://uca.edu/honors/files/2025/10/2025-2026-Mentorship-Award-Nomination-Form.docx.pdf

🥗 Bear Bites Lunch Oct. 14 – Supporting Students + Faculty for Successful Students Week 8

Submitted by: Jennifer Brewer, jbrewer1@uca.edu on 10/13/2025

This week’s Faculty for Successful Students focus is: Provide Individualized Support.

Slide:

Weeks 8 & 9 Slide to support the faculty for successful student campaign - Ask for help.

This theme aligns with the student campaign emphasis: Ask for Help.

Providing individual support to college students is vital for their academic success. Tailoring assistance to each student’s needs helps clarify misunderstandings, strengthen student-teacher relationships, and offer targeted resources. This personalized approach improves performance, builds confidence, and enhances overall academic achievement.

Faculty Tips to Reinforce Success
Here are a few simple ways you can encourage these habits in your classes:

  • Complete progress reports.
  • Consider scheduling conferences or short check-ins with students; you may want to devote a class period or time during your office hours to meet with students about the course or other topics.
  • Keep a file of commonly-used grading comments so that you can quickly customize substantive and meaningful feedback for students on graded assignments.
  • Promote Tutoring Services, the Center for Writing and Communication, and Peer Success Coaching in class.
  • Remind students that office hours are for them – make yours welcoming.
  • Share examples of times you asked for help to normalize the behavior.
  • Direct students to support services when you see them struggling.

Bear Bites Logo

You are invited to join us for Bear Bites: Supporting Students – Without Losing Your Sanity on Tuesday, October 14, at 12:15 p.m. in the Christian Cafeteria Executive Dining Room. This lunch program will highlight low-lift, high-impact ways to personalize student support and connect them to resources. The focus is on small but powerful strategies you can use to offer individualized support to students—without burning out and protecting your own time, energy, and boundaries. UCA faculty who are doing this well will be on hand to provide details about their experiences. Join us and leave with realistic ideas you can start using right away.

👉 Register for this Bear Bites event!

Resources for You:

When we work together, we make it easier for students to grow, thrive, and succeed here at UCA. Thanks for all you do to support them!

Center for Excellence in Teaching and Academic Leadership & Student Success Services

https://uca.edu/cetal/faculty-for-successful-students/

OARS: Social Media Accessibility Training

Submitted by: Christina Lammers, clammers@uca.edu on 10/09/2025

Description: Per the Digital Accessibility training you attended through Vector Solutions, this training session will provide more information on how to start implementing and maintain digital accessibility through your social media accounts now.

Please note: We encourage you to complete the Digital Accessibility Training available via the Vector Solutions platform prior to attending any of these seminars, as it will give you a general foundation of knowledge for what will be discussed during these seminars.

Presenters: Dr. Veneta Fricks, Associate Dean of Students & Alyssa Sparks, Digital Media Specialist
October 21 (RWSC 225) and October 28, 2025 (RWSC 215) (Tuesday)
1:40-2:30 pm (X-Period)
Ronnie Williams Student Center or ZOOM

*Please register at the link provided for your chosen session format.

https://uca.edu/hr/protectedcontent/seminar-information/

How to Utilize Your HSA/FSA Benefits

Submitted by: Christina Lammers, clammers@uca.edu on 10/09/2025

Join the UCA Benefits Team and ASIFlex for an HSA & FSA Info Session!
Get ready for 2026 Open Enrollment by learning more about your taxadvantaged healthcare account options. The UCA Benefits Team, in
partnership with ASIFlex, will be hosting an informative session on:
– Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)
– Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs)

What You’ll Learn:
–Key differences between HSAs and FSAs
–How to maximize your savings
–Contribution limits and eligible expenses
–Tips for planning your healthcare spending
–Health Savings Account (HSA) (Must be on the CDHP Plan)
–Flexible Spending Account (FSA) – Can be on the PPO plan, or no plan.*
*Limited Flexible Spending Account (LFSA) – CDHP plan for dental and vision – NOT medical

Zoom Meeting – Tuesday, October 21 1:30 – 2:45 pm
Meeting ID: 814 9166 7612 Passcode: 851079