Submitted by: Kristen Oitker, koitker1@uca.edu on 09/29/2025
Join us in the Prince Center on Wednesday at 6 PM for another ASUN Conference matchup! The Lions of North Alabama come to town and we need to pack the Prince! Admission is free!
Freedom to Read Week Celebration
Submitted by: Lori Hunt, vhunt1@uca.edu on 09/29/2025
It’s time to celebrate the Freedom to Read! Join us on the front steps of UCA Torreyson Library, October 7-9, 1:30-2:30pm each day for an inspiring event honoring this freedom. Together, we will celebrate the power of books and the importance of open access to ideas.
Featuring:
Open Readings of Book Excerpts
Freedom to Read buttons, bracelets and bookmarks
Light Snacks
Let’s come together to champion intellectual freedom and explore why every voice — and every book — matters.
Fail Forward Week (Sep 29-Oct 3)
Submitted by: Julia Winden Fey, juliawin@uca.edu on 09/29/2025
Each Fall semester UCA observes “Fail Forward Week” in recognition of the important role that failing plays in the learning process. Failure forces us to step outside our comfort zones and search for new paths, thereby building adaptability and persistence. Moving forward after failure isn’t about ignoring mistakes—it’s about using them as fuel for progress. Be sure to share this insight about human nature and how we learn with our students this week!
TINA – The Tina Turner Musical now FREE for UCA Faculty/Staff
Submitted by: Wendy Sparks, wsparks2@uca.edu on 09/26/2025
TINA – The Tina Turner Musical coming to Reynolds Performance Hall on October 16 at 7:00 pm.
The smash hit TINA – The Tina Turner Musical reveals a comeback story like no other, of a woman who dared to defy the bounds of racism, sexism, and ageism to become the global Queen of Rock n’ Roll. TINA – The Tina Turner Musical is a celebration of resilience and an inspiration of triumph over diversity.
One of the world’s best-selling artists of all time, Tina Turner won 12 Grammy Awards, and her live shows have been seen by millions, with more concert tickets sold than any other solo performer in music history. Tina Turner’s contribution as an iconic music artist and performer, her influence on fellow artists and her inspiration to generations who followed, is legendary. Through her life story and her music, Tina Turner inspired and taught so many people around the world to find strength from within.
Current and retired UCA Faculty and Staff may each receive two FREE tickets to three of the Public Appearances performances in the 2025-26 season.
* To obtain your tickets you must visit the box office in person with your current UCA ID before the day of the performance.
* Free tickets are subject to seating availability and, therefore, an event may sell out before the date arrives for free tickets.
* We cannot place orders for free tickets over the phone, nor can you bring the ID of anyone else in order to obtain more than 2 free tickets.
* You cannot receive more than 2 free tickets for an event, however we have great discounts on tickets for purchase.
UCA PUBLIC APPEARANCES BOX OFFICES
REYNOLDS PERFORMANCE HALL
Open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
501.450.3265
WINDGATE CENTER FOR FINE AND PERFORMING ARTS
Open Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
501.470.7572
https://uca.edu/publicappearances/broadway/tina-the-tina-turner-musical/
Psychology of Music: New Spring 2026 Course by Dr. Price-Blackshear
Submitted by: Mollie Price-Blackshear, mpriceblackshea@uca.edu on 09/26/2025
Dr. Price-Blackshear, Assistant Professor in the Psychology and Counseling Department, will be offering a new course titled PSYC 4V80: Psychology of Music in Spring 2026, TR 10:50-12:05pm in 200 Mashburn, CRN: 35794. The psychology of music is the study of music in the human experience. This course will explore the biological, social, cultural, economic, and psychological aspects of music and musicality. Given its interdisciplinary nature, students with a range of interests in and experiences with music and psychology would be ideal students for this course. The prerequisite for the course is PSYC 1300: Introduction to Psychology, the course counts as a psychology elective course, and the course counts as an upper-level (i.e., 4000-level) course for UCA students of any major. Contact Dr. Price-Blackshear if you are interested in learning more.
SLL & SLANT to Host Visiting Poet Stephanie Choi
Submitted by: Michael Blanchard, mblanchard@uca.edu on 09/26/2025
Award-winning poet Stephanie Choi will be on campus October 14 to give a public reading as part of the Visiting Poet Series, sponsored by the UCA School of Language & Literature and SLANT, the School’s international journal of contemporary poetry. Choi will appear at 7 p.m. in the McCastlain Art Lecture Hall.
A native of Chicago, Choi is an undergraduate alumna of the University of Arizona. She also earned an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Utah. She was formerly poet-in-residence at the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, and is now an Assistant Professor of English at Oklahoma State University.
Her debut poetry collection, The Lengest Neoi, was published by the University of Iowa Press in May of last year and was awarded the 2023 Iowa Poetry Prize. Her poems have also appeared in Bellevue Literary Review, New Ohio Review, PANK, Blackbird, Electric Literature, and elsewhere.
This event is free of charge and open to the public.
SLANT & Vortex to Host Student Poetry Reading
Submitted by: Michael Blanchard, mblanchard@uca.edu on 09/26/2025
SLANT and Vortex will co-host a fall semester Poetry Coffeehouse at 7 p.m. on Monday, October 13, in the Fireplace Room of McCastlain Hall. This event, which is open to both undergraduate and graduate students in any academic discipline, is designed to provide student writers with an opportunity to showcase their creative work.
Students may read up to three poems, which can be either original or from a favorite poet. Other students, faculty, and members of the UCA community are invited to attend in support of our student poets.
To be added to the line-up of readers, students should contact Macy Cloninger, Graduate Assistant for SLANT, at mcloninger@cub.uca.edu.
SLANT is UCA’s journal of contemporary poetry, now in its 39th year. Twice annually, it publishes original work by some of the finest poets from around the United States and beyond. Now in its 50th year, Vortex is an award-winning literary and art magazine run for, with, and by UCA students who comprise the editorial staff and make all editorial decisions.
Freedom to Read Week Celebration
Submitted by: Lori Hunt, vhunt1@uca.edu on 09/24/2025
It’s time to celebrate the Freedom to Read! Join us on the front steps of UCA Torreyson Library, October 7-9, 1:30-2:30pm each day for an inspiring event honoring this freedom. Together, we will celebrate the power of books and the importance of open access to ideas.
Featuring:
Open Readings of Book Excerpts
Freedom to Read buttons, bracelets and bookmarks
Light Snacks
Let’s come together to champion intellectual freedom and explore why every voice — and every book — matters.
Dr. Lesley Graybeal selected as Executive Director of the Office of Outreach and Community Engagement
Submitted by: April Gunn, agunn@uca.edu on 09/24/2025
Dr. Lesley Graybeal has been selected to serve as Executive Director of the Office of Outreach and Community Engagement and will begin her new role October 1, 2025. Academic Affairs is deeply grateful for her willingness to take on this important leadership role, and is excited about the fresh perspective and innovative vision she will bring to Outreach.
Dr. Graybeal transitions to Outreach and Community Engagement from her current role as Director of Living Learning Communities at UCA. Prior to this role, she led UCA’s community-engaged learning and volunteer engagement initiatives. Her work has included advising leaders of service- and civic engagement-related student organizations, providing training and facilitation for faculty and community partners, and championing constructive dialogue initiatives.
She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English and a PhD in Social Foundations of Education from the University of Georgia. Before joining UCA, she taught first-year writing and coordinated the service-learning program at Wake Technical Community College in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Please join Academic Affairs in extending warm congratulations to Dr. Graybeal and expressing appreciation for her continued dedication to serving both our university and the broader community. We are fortunate to have such a thoughtful and committed leader guiding these important initiatives.
Faculty Senate Faculty Research Empowerment Grants
Submitted by: Adam Frank, afrank@uca.edu on 09/24/2025
Attention all UCA Full-time Faculty:
UCA Faculty Senate Research Empowerment Grants are back!
Do you need assistance for organizing and funding your research?
Do you need help covering costs related to conference travel?
Do you need support for inter-departmental research collaboration?
The Faculty Senate has a grant for you!
We are excited to announce a new round of Research Empowerment Grants! Applications will be accepted until October 1, 2025. Faculty Senate will fund two to three $1,500 grants per academic year.
Interdepartmental collaborations are encouraged.
For more details, scoring rubric, link to the application, and to see past winners: