04_UAFS_SPSU10:G&W
4/9/10
5:05 PM
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Grand+Waldron CAMPUS NEWS AND NOTES
Tiaras and Tuition
UA Fort Smith’s new residence complex is expected to earn a LEED Silver certification.
New Residential Complex Adds 446 On-campus Beds UA FORT SMITH’S NEW STUDENT housing complex, set to open in time for the fall 2010 semester, includes two residential buildings enclosing a total of about 110,000 square feet and an airy, modern 9,500-square-foot dining facility. Designed by Allison Architects of Little Rock, in partnership with Little Diversified, it is expected to earn a coveted Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design (LEED) Silver certification for energy efficiency and clean construction. In its proportions and color palette, the complex echoes the sharp, contemporary looks of the nearby Pendergraft Health Sciences Center. The four-story residence halls overlook a grassy central courtyard, and the dining facility doubles as a venue for cultural, educational, and entertainment programming. Designed with today’s underclassmen in mind, the rooms—mostly doubles as well as some singles and triples—are equipped with “loftable” furniture and broadband internet access and arranged in suites around community lounges. The new complex nearly doubles UA Fort Smith’s campus housing capacity, adding 446 beds to the 480 already available at the Sebastian Commons apartments. Increasing demand for on-campus housing reflects not only increasing total enrollment, but also a healthy expansion of UA Fort Smith’s service area.
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JUNIOR MATH MAJOR Rebecca Wheeley took home more than a tiara from the Miss UA Fort Smith Scholarship Pageant in March; she also scored scholarships worth a total of $6,000 for her last two years of school plus a $1,600 cash scholarship. Contestants in the pageant, first held in 1978, have gone on to Miss Arkansas, Miss Oklahoma, and Miss America titles. Wheeley—who won the talent category with a pointe dance to “Man of La Mancha” as well as the lifestyle and fitness and interview categories—plans to pursue a master’s degree after graduation and then teach high school or college math. First, though, she’ll represent UA Fort Smith at the Miss Arkansas Pageant in Hot Springs in July.
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—ROBERT A. YOUNG III, Chairman of the Board of Arkansas Best Corporation, speaking to UA Fort Smith graduates at a December 17, 2009 commencement ceremony
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BELL TOWER spring/summer 2010
KAT WILSON ’96
Texting and Facebook are no substitute for direct face-to-face contact with people. Contact allows you to read a person’s real self.”
Miss UA Fort Smith Rebecca Wheeley plans to teach high school or college math after earning her master’s.