Spring/Summer 2024

Campus and Community

No Hungry Bears

Arkansas has the nation’s highest rate of food insecurity, according to a recent study by the U. S. Department of Agriculture. To help tackle this issue, the University of Central Arkansas offers the Bear Essentials Food Pantry to combat hunger in our campus community.

Change Starts With Us

The University of Central Arkansas has been selected as the recipient of $30 million in funding as part of the U.S. Department of Education’s Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP). UCA is the first university in Arkansas to receive the GEAR UP statewide grant, which the university’s College of Education will facilitate for programming to prepare students for the pathway to college.

Taking Off – UCA Aviation Academy

The University of Central Arkansas Aviation Academy is a pilot training program where students obtain the knowledge, skill and aeronautical experience necessary to meet the requirements for pilot certification.

When You Give, We Grow

The University of Central Arkansas had the 10th anniversary of its annual Day of Giving on March 7, 2024. As part of Day of Giving, alumni, students, faculty, staff, parents, friends and family members are challenged to donate any amount during the 24-hour campaign to support the university.

Occupational Therapy Celebrates 50th Anniversary

The University of Central Arkansas’ Department of Occupational Therapy celebrates its 50th anniversary of accreditation this year with events inviting the campus and surrounding community to see the impact this innovative program has had since its establishment in 1970 and accreditation in 1974.

Veterans and Military Resource Center

A new location for the Veterans and Military Resource Center officially opened at the University of Central Arkansas during the spring semester of 2024. The newly renovated building will now be shared by both the Veterans and Military Resource Center and the Office of Student Success. The facility offers new amenities, such as a study room, computer lab, kitchen, lounge, meeting room and veteran’s benefits processing office.

Community & The Cosmos

The campus hosted two watch parties on eclipse day. A countdown to totality was performed at Estes Stadium while viewers listened to eclipse-themed music. The College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics hosted learning activities for children and adults, including scientists, to answer questions about the eclipse.

Campus and the Community Connect

Past perceptions of college life may include the experience of being confined to a campus of intellectuals who are muddling through papers and exams to earn a degree and move on to a career. But today’s experience at the University of Central Arkansas moves far beyond that.

On Air at the Ronnie Williams Student Center

A New Space for The Bear 91.3 KUCA-FM The University of Central Arkansas, radio station KUCA, also known as “The Bear 91.3,” is a 5,000-watt non-commercial education station, now located inside a new state-of-the-art studio suite on the main floor of the Ronnie Williams Student Center. “We want to invigorate this space,” says Robin Williamson, […]

Miss UCA 2023 Kennedy Holland

When 2024 Miss UCA Kennedy Holland was an elementary school student, she took note when a friend in a wheelchair couldn’t access their school’s playground equipment. Since then, she has made it her mission to bring about change by informing area schools and communities about the need for inclusive playgrounds.