Spring/Summer 2019

Making History: Windgate Foundation

With numerous television cameras rolling, Mandumbwa spoke before a standing room-only crowd gathered in McCastlain Hall on Jan. 22. Just moments earlier, students, alumni, donors and others listened with rapt attention as President Houston Davis announced the largest gift UCA has received in its 111 years — a $20 million challenge gift from the Windgate Foundation.

College of Education has Apple® for teachers

Arkansas State Normal School, now the University of Central Arkansas, was created in 1907 as Arkansas’s first teachers college. The purpose of the institution was to properly train teachers and transform Arkansas classrooms, creating a legacy that has spanned more than 100 years. UCA’s College of Education is the only one in Arkansas with the Apple Distinguished School designation.

Cyber Range

With new technology, and a new degree program to boot, the University of Central Arkansas is now a resource for cyberdefense training. Thanks to a $500,000 grant from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education, UCA houses a fully functional cyber range, the first to launch at an Arkansas institution for educational training purposes.

Artistic Submersion Brings Community to UCA

A concert hall, park, stadium or other venues are usual places for a musical performance, but at the University of Central Arkansas, a concert could also be held underwater. The university presented a multipart series of events aimed at bringing attention to the importance of water and water conservation. The signature event, “The Water About Us,” included an underwater concert.

Arkansas Coding Academy Opens Doors to Software Development Industry

In six months or less, a program at the University of Central Arkansas can take those with novice computer skills and train them to be entry-level software developers. Arkansas Coding Academy, housed in UCA’s Division of Outreach and Community Engagement, opened in August 2016 as a way to address the shortage of software developers in the state.

Dr. Patty Poulter

When Patricia “Patty” Poulter began her role as provost and executive vice president at the University of Central Arkansas in July 2018, she immediately felt at home in Arkansas.

Nabholz Center for Healthcare Simulation

Supported by a $500,000 gift from the Nabholz Charitable Foundation — the philanthropic arm of construction company Nabholz Corp. — the university opened the new Nabholz Center for Healthcare Simulation and unveiled upgrades to its existing skills lab wing in the Doyne Health Sciences Building in August 2016.

Virtual Tools Designed to Aid Future Surgeons

Tansel Halic, associate professor of computer science, and a team of student researchers have developed two pieces of technology to assist with surgical trainings. The Virtual Arthroscopic Tear Diagnosis and Evaluation Platform (VATDEP) is a simulation model designed to train surgeons for rotator cuff surgery, and the Virtual Fundamentals Arthroscopic Skill Trainer (VFAST) is programmed to help build surgical skills.

Mama Bear

Most people on the University of Central Arkansas campus know Rebekah Rasnick ’77 as Becky, but to many students on campus, she is “Mama Bear.” Rasnick first earned the Mama Bear nickname while working as academic adviser for the athletics department. Students would come to her office and instantly notice her collection of bears, with many of those being purple.

Laurels & Stripes

Laurels & Stripes, a scholarship fundraising gala, was held March 30 in the HPER Center on the University of Central Arkansas campus. The university’s premier event raised more than $700,000 for privately funded scholarships.