ARKANSAS: Summer 2018

ARKANSAS

Summer 2018 Vol. 67, No. 4

Exclusively for Members of the Arkansas Alumni Association, Inc.

Exclusively for Members of the Arkansas Alumni Association, Inc. Summer 2018 Vol. 67, No. 4

On the Trail of

Civil Rights

$6.00

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ON THE CIVIL RIGHTS TRAIL

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Alumnus Art Meripol photographs the iconic places where America stepped toward a more perfect union.

A PORTRAIT HITS HOME

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A political science professor finds an unexpected reflection while searching for a real Rosie the Riveter.

IN THE NEWS

28

Alumnus T.J. Holmes, now with ABC’s Good Morning America, returns to talk with students about perseverance.

arkansas

Campus View

2

On the Hill

6

Profile

14

Association

30

Student Affairs

44

Razorback Road

46

Yesteryear

52

From Senior Walk

54

Last Look

64

Summer 2018 Exclusively for Members of the Arkansas Alumni Association, Inc.

photo by Whit Pruitt

ON THE COVER The image of the statue of the Little Rock Nine at the Arkansas Capitol is one of many created by alumnus Art Meripol for an American Civil Rights Trail.

C A M P U S V I EW

ARKANSAS Publisher Arkansas Alumni Association

courtesy Razorback athletics

Executive Director Brandy Cox ✪ M.A.’07 Editor Charlie Alison ★ B.A.’82, M.A.’04 Associate Editor Catherine Baltz ★+ B.S.’92, M.Ed.’07 Creative Director Eric Pipkin Photo Editor Russell Cothren ✪ Photographers Whit Pruitt ★ Emma Schock

Fulfilling Our Vision to Be the Best Hunter Yurachek

Just more than six months ago, I was afforded the opportunity to join the University of Arkansas and become a part of the Razorback family. When Chancellor Steinmetz called to offer me the position of vice chancellor and director of athletics, it was an easy choice. And while I wasn’t born in Arkansas, it is a special place and we are excited to be part of such a special community that is so passionate about its Razorbacks.

Since then, I have spent countless days and weeks traveling this great state of ours listening to those who have invested in our university and who have supported our intercollegiate sports programs for generations. There is no doubt, Razorback fans are passionate!

It also didn’t take me long to learn what the Razorbacks mean to this institution and to Arkansans in every corner of our state. You want our university and intercollegiate athletics program to be successful in everything we do whether it is on the field, on the court and in the classroom.

I have been asked many times what will be the focus of Razorback Athletics? My response has been simple: • Our Vision – To Be the Best • Our Mission – Building Razorbacks/ Champions for Life • Our Focus – Student-Athlete Success • Our Purpose – To create opportunities for our student-athletes to have success, academically, athletically and in their personal development.

Everything we do each day will be based on accomplishing those guiding principles and preparing our more than 465 student-athletes for lifelong success. Championships, academic

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achievement, graduation and community impact will be the result of our ongoing commitment to these guiding principles.

We will also continue to embrace our important role within the campus community and throughout our state. Intercollegiate Athletics is the front porch of the University of Arkansas.

That doesn’t mean it is the most important room -- it is not. However, the tremendous spotlight that is focused on our program helps illuminate the many other remarkable things being done on our campus.

As we succeed, the entire campus community benefits. As a financially self-supporting athletics program, we do not take any state appropriated or taxpayer funding. Instead, that support is pointed directly to advancing the academic mission of our institution.

If the past six months are any indication, we are in store for even greater success as an institution and intercollegiate athletics program in the years to come. Next time you rise to “Call the Hogs,” you are supporting much more than just the studentathletes competing on the field. You are uniting with students, faculty, staff, alumni and others in our state and throughout the world who invest in the future success of our institution and the Razorbacks.

Go Hogs! n

Writers & Contributors DeLani Bartlette B.A.’06, M.A.’08 Amanda Cantu Nick DeMoss B.A.’11 Robby Edwards Scott Flanagin Jennifer Holland ★ M.Ed.’08 Beth Lewis Matt McGowan Andra Parrish Liwag Michelle Parks B.A.’94 Darinda Sharp B.A.’94, M.S.’99, M.A.’05 Camilla Shumaker B.A.’01, M.F.A.’09 David Speer B.A.’75 Kevin Trainor ★+ B.A.’94, M.A.’05 Steve Voorhies ★ M.A.’78 Heidi Wells BA’88 M.A.’13 Advertising Coordinator Catherine Baltz ✪+ B.S.’92, M.Ed.’07 MEMBERSHIP SYMBOLS ✩ Student Member ★ Member ★+ Member, A+ ✪ Life Member ✪+ Life Member, A+ LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters to the editor are accepted and ­encouraged. Send letters for publication to Arkansas Magazine, Office of University ­Relations, 200 Davis Hall, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Letters should be no longer than 250 words and may be edited for length. Typewritten letters are preferred.

Anonymous letters will not be published. Submission does not guarantee publication.

Arkansas, Exclusively for Members of the Arkansas Alumni Association, Inc. (ISSN 1064-8100) (USPS 009-515) is published quarterly by the Arkansas Alumni Association, Inc. at 491 North Razorback Road, Fayetteville, AR 72701. Annual membership dues are now $55 per household and a portion is allocated for a subscription to Arkansas. Single copies are $6. Editing and production are provided through the UA Office of University Relations. Direct inquiries and information to P.O. Box 1070, Fayetteville, AR 72702-1070, phone (479) 575-2801, fax (479) 575-5177.

Periodical postage paid at Fayetteville, AR, and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to P.O. Box 1070, F­ ayetteville, AR 72702-1070.

ARKANSAS ALUMNI ASSOCIATION Mission Statement The Arkansas Alumni Association connects and serves the University of Arkansas Family.

Vision Statement The Arkansas Alumni Association will be nationally recognized as a model alumni relations program.

Value Statement The Arkansas Alumni Association values: • service • excellence • collaboration • relationships • diversity • learning • creativity Arkansas Summer 18-100 All photos by University Relations unless otherwise noted.

Cover photo by: David Speer Please recycle this magazine or share it with a friend.

Hunter Yurachek Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Save The Date Friday, October 19, 2018

74th Annual Alumni Awards Celebration

For sponsorship and ticket information, please email deuculan@uark.edu or call (479) 575-2292.

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Hog Wild Tailgates

September 1

Eastern Illinois

Get ready to cheer on those Hogs!

All are welcome to stop by the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House and enjoy Hog Wild Tailgates for Fayetteville home games. Hungry or thirsty? Food and drink tickets are available for purchase on game day and food trucks will be located in the west alumni parking lot.

Tailgates begin two and one-half hours before kickoff and conclude 30 minutes prior to kickoff.

September 15

North Texas October 6

Alabama October 20 Homecoming

Tulsa

Check www.arkansasrazorbacks.com to confirm game time.

October 27

• Live Music: The Wranglers • Big Screens to watch the big games • Food Truck Court • Razorback Marching Band

November 10

Catered meals: Game day catered meals* are reserved with your pre-registration. A small number of meals are available to walkups as supplies last.

• U of A Spirit Squads • Special guests throughout the season • Climate Controlled Tailgating • Catered meal option* Pre-Register** Members and guests:..............$20 each Non-Members and guests:....$25 each Ages 12 and under: ..................$15 each

Vanderbilt

LSU

Walk-Up Members:.....................................$25 each Non-Members:...........................$30 each Ages 12 and under: ..................$15 each

* Catered meal ticket includes: 1 “Hog Pen” meal, water, lemonade, tea, 1 ice cream ticket and 2 drink tickets for wine, beer or bottled sodas. ** Pre-registration closes the Wednesday before each home game

www.arkansasalumni.org/hogwildtailgates 1-888-ARK-ALUM or 479-575-2801

UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS

HOME 2018 COMING Oct. 14-20 homecoming.uark.edu

ON THE HILL

U of A Student Named as 2018 Barry M. Goldwater Scholar Olga Brazhkina, a junior at the University of Arkansas, Biomechanics Laboratory in the Department of was named a 2018 Barry M. Goldwater Scholar this Biomedical Engineering, directed by Morten Jensen, spring. The Goldwater Scholarship is the nation’s most associate professor and Arkansas Research Alliance prestigious award for undergraduate students who plan Scholar. doctoral studies and research careers in the fields of “Dr. Jensen has guided me throughout many science, mathematics or engineering. challenging yet rewarding endeavors for the past three years,” said Brazhkina. “And I am extremely Brazhkina is an honors biomedical engineering major grateful for his continued invaluable instruction in the College of Engineering. She is an Honors College and support. Undergraduate research sets students Fellow, an Arkansas Governor’s Distinguished Scholar and apart at this university and prepares us for our future a National Merit Finalist. careers, and I am very thankful to be part of this “I am honored to be selected as a Goldwater Scholar,” community in Fayetteville.” said Brazhkina. “With this prestigious award, I will Olga Brazhkina Brazhkina has presented her work at the Annual continue to seek new educational opportunities and Meeting of the Biomedical Engineering Society and at the annual intensify my research during my remaining time at the University of Freshman Engineering Program Honors Research Symposium, and she Arkansas. This award will help me reach my eventual goals of creating has received an Honors College Research Grant to support her work. advanced methods to solve some of the world’s most complicated Upon completing a doctorate in biomedical engineering, she plans to medical problems while motivating others, especially women, to engage in similar work. I was introduced to research as a freshman pursue a career as a professor, researching cardiovascular biomechanics through the Honors Research Experience offered at the College of and device design. Outside of research, she is an active member of Phi Engineering, and have enjoyed my experience and interactions with Sigma Rho engineering society, Tau Beta Pi engineering honors society, other researchers ever since.”

Engineering World Health, and the Biomedical Engineering Student Brazhkina has performed her research at the Cardiovascular Advisory Board. n

U of A Law Professor, Dean Emeritus Recognized for Excellence, Leadership Cynthia Nance ✪, dean emeritus of the School of Law, those of color, that allows us to continue to break barriers such as she has,” a former student wrote in a has been selected for the American Bar Association’s 2018 letter of support.

Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award.

Nance is passionate about service in general and is The honor, established in 1991 by the American Bar particularly committed to her work as a mentor and Association Commission on Women in the Profession, positive example to women. She has influenced countless recognizes and celebrates the accomplishments of women women to attend law school and pursue legal careers who who have excelled in the field of law and have paved the now tell stories about the important role she played in way to success for other women lawyers. their professional development and personal lives. She “This is a huge honor, and I can think of no one more serves not only as a role model, but also as an inspiration deserving than Dean Nance,” said Stacy Leeds, dean of and champion for others. She actively encourages, guides the law school. “The ABA Commission on Women has and advocates for her fellow legal practitioners and been giving this award for nearly four decades, honoring Cynthia Nance academics. individuals with backgrounds as varied as small-firm “I know that I stand on her shoulders and that whatever my practitioners and professors to U.S. Supreme Court justices and corporate general counsel, and she fits seamlessly into this accomplishments are in the future, it is her belief in me, her illustrious list.” encouragement, her support and mostly her example that will make all Nance’s nomination included more than 20 letters of support. Many of it possible,” wrote another student. “I hope to live up to her vision of of them called her a trailblazer, citing her distinctions as the first woman my potential.” and first African American to be dean of the U of A School of Law and Nance will accept the award at a ceremony and luncheon celebrating the first woman law school dean in the state of Arkansas. trailblazers and their achievements at the American Bar Association “She has forged a path for me and other female attorneys, particularly Annual Meeting on Aug. 5 in Chicago. n

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A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

photo by David Speer

University Bands See Record Enrollment and Academic Success Enrollment in University of Arkansas Bands hit new records for the 2017-18 academic school year. More than 400 students have participated in the band program each semester, resulting in expanded enrollment and additional course offerings through the Department of Music in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

The largest Razorback Marching Band in history took the field during fall 2017 with 367 members, a 14.6 percent increase since 2009.

The Hogwild Band, which supports the Arkansas Razorbacks in volleyball, as well as men’s and women’s basketball both at home and in tournament play, transitioned from a volunteer ensemble to a credited course during the 2014-15 academic year. The ensemble now consists of over 90 members.

Growth has extended to concert bands, as well. The Department of Music offered one concert band in the fall semester and four concert bands in the spring semester during the 2008-09 academic year. This year, the department held two concert bands in the fall and five concert bands in the spring – all with complete instrumentation.

“Diligent recruiting efforts and a focus on coupling scholarship planning with enrollment management has yielded great results and we are happy that so many music majors and more than 200 majors

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

from every college on campus participate in the program,” said Chris Knighten, director of bands.

The rise in band membership has been paired with an increase in performances and outreach by the program. University of Arkansas Bands presented 136 performances over the 2017-18 academic year, compared to 99 performances in the 2009-10 academic year.

Band members’ success has extended from the field to the classroom as well. The average grade point average of Razorback Band members, excluding new freshmen and new transfer students, has steadily climbed from 3.08 in 2009 to 3.41 in 2017.

The six-year graduation rate for the group of first-time, full-time, degree-seeking freshman band members who entered the U of A in 2012 is 69.5, an increase from 68.9 for the 2011 group.

Knighten said that the program’s sustained success is a testament to the students’ work ethic and the strong support of dedicated faculty, staff, alumni, friends and university administration.

“For 144 years, the students in the Razorback Band have represented some of the best at the U of A,” Knighten said. “As faculty and staff, we are honored to be able to support this generation of band members as they push for even higher levels of success.” n

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Malcolm Williamson scanning Carlsbad Cavern with LiDAR equipment.

U of A Researchers Create Digital Map, Cultural History of Carlsbad Cavern University of Arkansas researchers are using laser imaging to create a highly accurate, three-dimensional, digital map of public trails inside Carlsbad Cavern, the namesake cave of Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico.

The mapping project, coupled with an intensively researched history of the cave system’s man-made infrastructure and cultural interactions, will serve as a guide for the National Park Service as it manages both natural and developed environments in the caves. The work may also be used to earn Carlsbad Cavern a listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

The university’s Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies, or CAST, is performing the mapping project using a light-detection and ranging tool, or LiDAR, the same technology it employed to scan the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and the largest building in the ancient city of Petra, Jordan, among other projects. CAST was chosen because of its expertise in this remotesensing technology, which uses a pulsed laser to collect billions of measurements of a physical space in 3-D. The measurements form a “point cloud” used to digitally recreate the space, providing insights into how it was built and what changes have been made.

Malcolm Williamson, a research associate with CAST, said experience gained through mapping about a mile of Blanchard Springs Caverns near Mountain View, Arkansas, helped land the contract with the National Park Service. “We did that in anticipation of infrastructure improvements, and it gave us a pretty good idea of how this will go,” Williamson said.

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Kimball Erdman, associate professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture, will lead the team researching and writing the report on Carlsbad Cavern’s modern history, from the first staircase installed to make the site accessible to tourists in 1925 to the cafeteria 750 feet below the surface, to naming natural features. They’ll create a Cultural Landscape Inventory, a document the National Park Service keeps for many of its properties. “We’re looking at the ways in which humans have interacted with this environment in the past 100 years,” Erdman said. “With this, the National Park Service can take the next steps for restoration, rehabilitation or whatever needs to be done.”

Erdman has done similar work for the National Park Service in the past, documenting Arkansas sites in the Rush Historic District of the Buffalo National River, the Gypsy Camp in Siloam Springs and the Rohwer Relocation Center Memorial Cemetery.

“This has been the focus of my research for eight and one-half years,” Erdman said, “but I personally have never been involved in a subterranean landscape before. This is a first.”

Carlsbad Caverns National Park receives about 500,000 visitors annually, and has almost 200 miles of mapped caves, most of which are not open to the public. Researchers will begin by scanning everything visible from 3.5 miles of developed trail inside Carlsbad Cavern, including the Big Room, an 8.2-acre space that is the largest publicly accessible cave chamber in North America. They are making three visits in January and February, and will complete mapping by early 2019.

Erdman’s team will begin its research in February, then spend a week doing field work along the 3.5-mile trail in the summer. n

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Photos by Vance Green

ON THE HILL

Doctoral Student Partnering with Local Clinician to Develop Prosthetic Vein Valve Images of swollen legs, discolored ankles “There’s not a lot of previous research, so and ulcers probably aren’t what come to we’re having to do a lot of trial and error and mind for most people when they think answer a lot of preliminary questions before of cardiovascular health complications. we can get to the main problem we’re trying However, those are very real symptoms that to solve,” she said. can lead to even more serious complications One of the challenges Laughlin is facing when blood is not properly flowing through is determining how long it takes for venous the veins. University of Arkansas biomedical valves to fatigue. The variability of the venous Doctoral student Megan Laughlin is working to engineering doctoral student Megan valves has also been a challenge, as the valves develop a prosthetic vein valve that would restore Laughlin is working to provide a solution are located in different places in different function and normal blood flow to the deep veins. to these medical woes by developing a people, and the valves are shaped differently prosthetic venous valve that would restore function and normal blood in different people. Additionally, the valves are under extremely low flow to the deep veins. pressures and flows, meaning the valves open and close irregularly.

“Venous valves are kind of the forgotten child of cardiovascular To help address some of these unresolved questions and get a clinical research, but the health problems associated with vein issues are a big perspective, Laughlin and her adviser Morten Jensen have partnered deal,” Laughlin said. “Initial problems result in discomfort and pain with Dr. Kevin Haney at the Ozark Regional Vein Center. in the lower limbs. As problems move into the deep veins, blood clots “I think sometimes research projects can be so stuck in the research develop, and that can lead to deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary side of things that it’s hard to see how it translates outside the lab,” embolism, which can be fatal.”

Laughlin said. “Working with Dr. Haney and getting his feedback on According to Laughlin, conducting research in a relatively unexplored the clinical impact has been amazing. One of the most rewarding parts field is beneficial because there is a lot of opportunity for discovery. But of the project has been working with him and seeing how what we’re being at the forefront of discovery also comes with some challenges. doing can actually change people’s lives.” n

Town Hall Meeting Addresses Racial Incident and U of A Response

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

photo submitted

On March 12, the University of Arkansas administrators and student leaders participated in a campus Town Hall meeting in response to a recent insensitive racial post made on social media by a student.

The meeting — One Choice, One Community, One Commitment — was held at the Hillside Auditorium. More than 75 staff, faculty and students participated.

The panel members were: • Chancellor Joseph Steinmetz • Charles Robinson, vice chancellor for student affairs • Yvette Murphy-Erby, vice provost for diversity and inclusion • Leslie Yingling, director of the Center for Multicultural and Diversity Education • Andrew Counce, president of the Associated Student Government • J’lynn Lowery, president of the National-Pan Hellenic Council Brendan Cook, president of the Black Students Association, acted as moderator.

The event was sponsored by the Black Students Association, the Association of Student Government and the National Pan-Hellenic Council. n

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ON THE HILL

‘Party With a Purpose’ Sets New Record for Participation and Giving The University of Arkansas’ third year,” Steinmetz said. “Our first 10 annual giving day, All In for Arkansas, recipients were awarded scholarships once again showed the power of last fall, and funding for this initiative social media, promoted participation has exceeded $3 million. Gifts and succeeded in surpassing the made during All In for Arkansas number of gifts received in previous are important to the growth of this years. Preliminary reports show that scholarship program and directly 1,292 gifts were made during the support Arkansas students who want event, raising a total of $433,744. to earn a college degree.”

All In took place during a Another challenge gift of $100,000 1,871-minute period from 6 a.m. was also issued for the Advance Wednesday, April 4, to 1:11 p.m.

Arkansas scholarship program from Thursday, April 5. The duration of an anonymous donor in honor of Joe the event symbolizes the university’s and Sandy Steinmetz. founding year of 1871, and this Preliminary reports show $130,685 year’s festivities celebrated the 147th was raised for Advance Arkansas birthday of the U of A. during this year’s giving day.

Celebrating the birthday of the University of Arkansas alumnus Early in the event, Chancellor “All In for Arkansas is truly a T.J. Holmes, in sunglasses, and his younger daughter, Sabine, get Joe Steinmetz and his wife, Sandy, campuswide effort,” said Mark cupcakes during the All In for Arkansas day of giving. announced a challenge to donors, Power, vice chancellor for university offering $14,700 in student support funding once 500 gifts were made. advancement. “It brings everyone together and unites us all in a That goal was met April 4, and the Steinmetzes’ gift was allocated to the common goal. Everyone in the Division of University Advancement Advance Arkansas scholarship initiative, which was launched during All partnered together to make this day a success, and they had tremendous In for Arkansas in 2017. support from the university’s faculty, staff and students. Our student “We’ve seen tremendous support of Advance Arkansas over the last ambassador team was stronger than ever this year.” n

Adams Receives Social Justice Award for Work With PROMISE

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disabilities are experiencing for the first time the excitement and thrills of summer camp, are perfecting their soft skills and developing a strong work ethic through the competitive work experience, and are becoming first generation college students,” the nomination said.

Adams ensures major partners and resources from around the state are involved in the lives of the youth and participate in their successful outcomes. Services provided through PROMISE in addition to the paid work experiences include intensive case management, education and employment training and support for youth and families, benefits counseling, and health and wellness training. Families also participate in a financial literacy workshop that focuses on asset building, financial planning and financial management.

CURRENTS, one of the partners that works on the PROMISE project, nominated Adams for the award. CURRENTS, which stands for the Center for the Utilization of Rehabilitation Resources for Education, Networking, Training and Service, is also based in the College of Education and Health Professions. n photo submitted

Philip Adams, director of the Arkansas PROMISE project, received a social justice award in April from the Arkansas affiliate of the Association on Higher Education and Disability.

The Ark-AHEAD award recognizes a person, agency or association in Arkansas that works to promote social justice on a daily basis for people with disabilities in their communities.

Arkansas PROMISE is funded by a five-year, $35.7 million federal grant to the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas and the Arkansas Department of Education. PROMISE provides Philip Adams a group of 1,000 teens who receive Supplemental Security Income with two paid summer work experiences as well as additional training and intensive support services. Each work experience is about 200 hours. A second group of 1,000 teens receives only the usual services provided to youth with disabilities.

PROMISE is an acronym for Promoting the Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income.

“Through the work of Arkansas PROMISE, many youth with

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

photo by Whit Pruitt

Mahsa Lotfi-Marchoubeh holds a prototype of a probe she is developing to measure chemicals in the brain.

Doctoral Student’s Research Aimed at Better Understanding Neurocognitive Disorders Mahsa Lotfi-Marchoubeh pulls shoe covers onto her feet, one at a time. She puts on a face mask, followed by a bouffant cap. She gently pulls a hood over her head, so no part of her head or neck is exposed, except for her eyes. She steps into a jumpsuit, tucks the head into the collar and zips the suit up to her chin. She pulls booties over her feet, ensuring each leg of the jumpsuit is securely tucked inside. She pulls gloves onto her hands and slides safety goggles over her eyes. Now fully outfitted in her cleanroom suit, she’s ready to enter her research lab and get to work.

Lotfi-Marchoubeh must wear a suit at all times when she is in the cleanroom lab, and she cannot bring anything with her into the lab — not even her phone. The smallest speck of dirt or lint could compromise fabrication of the device essential for her research, so she must be diligent in adhering to lab standards.

A doctoral student in chemistry, Lotfi-Marchoubeh is developing a probe to measure chemicals in the brain. Developing the probe takes careful consideration and incredible attention to detail, as it not only must be small enough to enter delicate brain tissue, but also must have the complexity to perform chemical measurements.

“The size is the main consideration to avoid tissue damage,” LotfiMarchoubeh said. “The probe has to be less than 100 micrometers thick, which is the thickness of one strand of hair. The probe also has to be the right length, so it can reach the parts of the brain we’re targeting.”

Once the prototype of the probe is completed, Lotfi-Marchoubeh will travel to the University of Pittsburg to work with collaborators there who will test the probe. In addition to making chemical

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

measurements, the probe will also be tested for its strength upon insertion, the amount of tissue damage caused and the body’s reaction to the foreign object.

The probe features nine gold electrodes, which are used to make the chemical measurements. The probe is attached to an instrument that reads electrical currents, allowing researchers to detect the chemical being measured.

“I measure dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline,” LotfiMarchoubeh said. “The structures of these chemicals are very similar to each other, and their electrical current behavior is very much the same, but they play different roles in our bodies. This probe will allow us to differentiate the chemicals and determine the amounts of those chemicals in the brain.”

Dopamine, noradrenaline and adrenaline are believed to be tied to depression and neurocognitive disorders. Better understanding these chemicals and how they interact in the brain could lead researchers to greater discoveries in treating these conditions.

“The most rewarding part of my research is that it might one day be used to understand depression, Parkinson’s disease and other neurocognitive diseases,” Lotfi-Marchoubeh said. “The fact that we’ll be one step closer to understanding the brain is amazing. When I think of the brain, I think of the cosmos — that’s how complicated it sounds to me. It’s a little four-pound organ, but it’s incredibly complicated.”

Lotfi-Marchoubeh is on track to complete her doctorate in December 2019. After graduation, she plans to stay in academia and encourage students to uncover their unknown scientific interests. n

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ON THE HILL

Sherece West-Scantlebury

Wallace and Jama Fowler

Jonathan Portis accepts in behalf of Charles Portis

Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation Leader Speaks at U of A Commencement Sherece West-Scantlebury, president and CEO of the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, provided the commencement address for the All-University Commencement ceremony in May. The university also conferred an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree on novelist Charles Portis and honorary Doctor of Art and Humane Letters degrees on philanthropists Wallace and Jama Fowler.

“It was a pleasure to be able to honor people who have done so much for the state of Arkansas,” said Chancellor Joe Steinmetz. “Sherece West-Scantlebury and the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation are a force for positive change in this state, but Sherece also shared own story, an inspiration to our students and graduates.

“Just over 19 percent of adults in Arkansas hold a bachelor’s degree and even less that hold a master’s degree or a Ph.D.,” West-Scantlebury said. “You all don’t know how truly special you are. With this degree comes a great deal of responsibility that you have for our state. …

Never has there been a more urgent need for college graduates.”

“Charles Portis and Wallace and Jama Fowler are very worthy honorary degree recipients,” Steinmetz said. “If you love to read, and love Arkansas, you have to treasure the work of Charles Portis, a U of A graduate and author and one of Arkansas’ finest writers.”

Because of health, Portis wasn’t able to attend the ceremony.

“Wallace and Jama Fowler built businesses, created jobs and helped finance growth in our state – but more than that, they generously shared their success with this institution and many others,” he said.

Wallace and Jama Fowler Wallace and Jama Fowler have used their successful partnership to

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improve Arkansas communities and support the University of Arkansas, Arkansas State University, their hometown of Jonesboro and people in need across Arkansas.

The couple started out in separate parts of the state: Wallace Fowler grew up in Manila, in northeast Arkansas, the son of the local school superintendent; Jama Massey was born in Amity, in the southwest part of the state, and her father was in the timber business. They were introduced while Wallace was serving in the Army and stationed in Fort Smith. His brother suggested he meet Jama Massey. Fowler ranks it as the best advice he’s ever gotten.

The couple married in 1955 and have remained partners in life, family, business and community service. They have three sons, 12 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Wallace Fowler built three successful business careers – in retail furniture, fast food franchises and banking – each career based in Jonesboro, each more successful than the last and each with Jama very much involved. They capped these careers off by launching the Bank of Jonesboro, then growing and expanding it into the statewide Liberty Bank system.

Fowler has said his success is the result of hiring the right people and having good partners – especially Jama.

The Fowlers made time for public service throughout their lives, Wallace serving on state and city commissions, Jama’s concern for public health issues leading to creation of the Wallace and Jama Fowler Charitable Foundation to support hospitals and health care facilities.

The Fowler’s other philanthropic efforts include a $5 million gift to Arkansas State University to complete the Fowler Center for the performing arts and a $5 million gift to the NEA Baptist Charitable

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Charles Portis Charles Portis is an author, journalist and University of Arkansas graduate. He’s best known for his second novel, True Grit (1968), a best seller that has been made into popular movies twice. His other four novels, Norwood (1966), Dog of the South (1979), Masters of Atlantis (1985) and Gringos (1991) were not as commercially successful but have been praised by critics and loyal readers as “comic masterpieces.”

Portis was born in El Dorado and grew up in small south Arkansas towns, graduating from high school in Hamburg. He joined the Marines and served in the infantry during the Korean War, earning the rank of sergeant. After his discharge he enrolled at the University of Arkansas as a journalism major.

“You had to choose a major, so I put down journalism” he later explained. “I must have thought it would be fun and not very hard, something like barber college — not to offend the barbers. They probably provide a more useful service.”

Portis wrote for the Arkansas Traveler and the Northwest Arkansas Times while still a student. He worked briefly for the Memphis Commercial Appeal, then almost two years as a reporter at the Arkansas Gazette. He spent three years at the New York Herald Tribune, often covering the civil rights struggle in the South, then served one year as the paper’s London bureau chief. In 1964 he returned to Little Rock to write novels.

Portis currently lives in Little Rock, although he spent much of his career traveling and writing in Mexico. He has gained a degree of fame for his ability to avoid being famous – primarily by politely declining to do interviews with reporters.

Escape Velocity: A Charles Portis Miscellany (2012) was published

by Butler Center Books and includes memoirs, a stage play and an assortment of short fiction, nonfiction and articles from his newspaper career.

In 2010, Portis received the Oxford American’s first Lifetime Achievement in Southern Literature award. The Porter Prize, for outstanding Arkansas writers, awarded its 30th Anniversary Lifetime Achievement Award to Portis in 2014. He was inducted into the U of A’s Lemke Journalism Hall of Fame in 2016. n

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photo by Stephen Ironside

Foundation to complete the Fowler Family Center for Cancer Care.

They both served on the University of Arkansas Campaign for the Twenty-First Century steering committee, and they hold similar positions in Campaign Arkansas. They have donated a total of $4.68 million toward construction of the U of A chancellor’s residence, the Wallace and Jama Fowler House, Garden and Conservatory. Other major U of A gifts include $2.5 million for the Fowler Family Baseball and Track Training Center and $1 million to name the Don and Ellen Edmondson Legacy Studio in Vol Walker Hall to honor their long-time friends. In 2013 Wallace and Jama Fowler received Chancellor’s Medals for their outstanding leadership and commitment to higher education at the University of Arkansas.

Black Box Theater Included in Renovated Global Campus Building Renovations to the Global Campus Building on the Fayetteville Square have created new spaces for providing professional development education and the UA Black Box Theater for sharing performances.

Staff returned to the downtown building in March, following the renovations, and held an open house for the community.

The open house offered business neighbors, academic colleagues and the public an opportunity to explore workspaces and online learning technology usually open only to faculty, staff and students. Visitors toured the new UA Black Box Theater, which is the most digitally advanced black box theater in the state with cutting-edge features such as an 18-foot lighting grid.

“We were excited to give the public an opportunity to get to know the resources behind the powerful learning environments made possible by the latest learning technologies and teaching strategies,” said Donald Judges, vice provost for distance education. “We welcome the opportunity to not only tell you but show you what we do.”

Michael Riha, chair of the Department of Theatre, agreed with Judges and added, “We can’t wait to share this beautiful new performance space with the community. The new theatre will be the most state-of-the-art, digitally advanced black box theater in the state and allow us to even further connect to the city and our ever-growing performing and visual arts community.”

Riha said an average of four shows a year will be produced at the UA Black Box Theater. The University Theatre in the Fine Arts Center on the main campus will continue to produce several shows each year, too.

Global Campus The Global Campus is a support unit for U of A academic colleges on campus that offer online courses and degree programs, as well as professional development education. About 10 percent of the U of A’s student population studies exclusively online, and about 40 percent take at least one online course.

During the open house the public could look, for the first time, behind the curtain to see how innovative content and online learning technology are used to deliver education in powerful, meaningful ways.

UA Black Box Theater The Department of Theatre in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the U of A now has the cutting-edge UA Black Box Theater to offer performances on the street-level floor of the Global Campus Building.n

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KT Photography of NWA

P RO F I L E

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Suzanne Clark, J.D. ’08

Not a Good Thumb-Twiddler

Alumna takes on Arkansas Bar Association presidency while cheering at ballgames, attending dance recitals and running a law firm

By Darinda Sharp B.A. ’94, M.S. ’99, M.A. ’05 On June 15, Suzanne Clark J.D. ’08 was sworn in as president of the Arkansas Bar Association at its 120th annual meeting in Hot Springs. She spent the previous year serving as the association’s president-elect and will serve as past president for 2019-20. While it makes for a hectic schedule, Clark has enjoyed serving the legal community.

“I’m much more comfortable when things are busy than when things are slow,” she said.

“I sort of prefer to have a certain amount of stress. I operate better that way, you know. I’m not a good thumb-twiddler.”

As president, Clark serves as the face and voice of Arkansas lawyers to the public and in front of the state legislature. In a term that coincides with legislation and ballot initiatives that directly affect attorneys and the courts, her year will be particularly busy, and the association’s past president, presidentelect, secretary and treasurer will share the responsibility of managing activities in Little Rock and throughout the state.

“We do lots of outreach,” Clark said. “We’ll speak to civic groups and others to help educate the public and explain the issues.”

Another aspect of the job is supporting lawyers. The Arkansas Bar Association is a professional organization for Arkansas lawyers. It represents its members’ interests, provides services, promotes the profession and alerts its members to the issues created by proposed legislation that affect their law practice. Arkansas has fewer lawyers per capita than any other state, slightly more than 20 per 10,000 residents, and most are located in metropolitan areas, leaving many Arkansans with little access to legal services and rural attorneys with too much work and too little

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support. More than half of the association’s members are in solo practice or part of very small firms, and Clark is among them.

“We are always looking at trying to find new ways to support our members. What things can we offer to help practicing attorneys do their job more efficiently? What resources can we provide that might not otherwise be available? There’s so much difficulty in having lawyers in rural areas. What can we be doing to support those lawyers and those areas?”

Clark chose to go to law school after a successful career as a chemical engineer in the semiconductor industry. She had advanced to various domestic and international senior management positions, both for a Fortune 500 corporation. Tired of the constant travel, she was ready for a lifestyle change.

She started law school at St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens, Florida. After some family discussions, she and her husband, Steve Clark (J.D. ’71), realized that they wanted to be in Fayetteville where they could be near their grandchildren to go to dance recitals and ball games.

“That’s when Steve said, ‘If you want to practice in Arkansas, then you need to finish school in Fayetteville.’ So that’s what we did.”

While not unheard of, law school transfer students are unusual. She was No. 1 in her class at St. Thomas. Coming to Fayetteville, however, didn’t change her class rank, it just meant she had to compete more. She quickly rose to the top of the class and became editorin-chief of the Arkansas Law Review.

“She’s the only student to have transferred in and then become editor-in-chief,” said Jim Miller, the law school’s associate dean for students. “And no one has done it since.”

“The quality of the education is so absolutely linked to the quality of the professors who are teaching,” Clark said.

Among her favorites were professors Mary Beth Matthews and Mark Killenbeck. She often tells students today that they may be tougher than some of the other faculty but take their classes anyway.

“When I think about legal education, it’s all about the professors for me. … Those are the folks who make a difference. They challenge you and make you think and that’s what I think law school is supposed to be about. If you are not feeling challenged about it, then you aren’t getting what you should be out of it. So I think professors who are really demanding are the best ones.”

Clark got all she could out of her University of Arkansas education, including a passion for the Razorbacks. She is such a big football fan that she keeps a helmet displayed in her office and it even affects her anniversary activities.

“He plans our anniversary,” she said. “He’ll say, ‘Don’t make plans over the weekend,’ or ‘Don’t make plans for dinner.’ He’ll have it all planned out. A year or two ago, it was when we were playing LSU. … That week, we were having coffee, and he said, ‘Okay, here’s the deal. We’re not going out for our anniversary because I know you’d be really upset about missing the game.’”

After living many places, Fayetteville is now home. Aside from the grandkids, there are other reasons. “University towns are awesome, and I love everything,” Clark said. “I love when the kids are coming back in the fall, and I love the energy that goes with it — all the athletics and game day weekends. I think it’s awesome.” n

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Photographer Art Meripol Captures the Sights, and Sites, on America’s Civil Rights Trail

By DeLani Bartlette, B.A.’06, M.A.’08

© Art Meripol

When a project came along that needed visual documentation of the iconic and historic sites of the American civil rights movement, the organizers needed a photographer who understood the South. They needed Art Meripol, B.A.’77.

Meripol began his photography career working in the darkroom of the Razorback yearbook in Hill Hall. During Meripol’s senior year, the head of the journalism program was Harry Marsh, who had covered parts of the civil rights movement as a reporter. “He was incredibly good to me and opened doors that really started my career,” Meripol said.

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Indeed, he spent 13 years shooting photos for newspapers, starting with the Northwest Arkansas Times while he was still in college, then the Arkansas Gazette. During the 1970s and 80s, he also covered music concerts, shooting such legends as Bruce Springsteen, Tina Turner, B.B. King, Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash.

In 1989 he joined the staff of Southern Living magazine as a senior photographer for travel, where he spent a great deal of time traveling around the South, the Caribbean and Mexico. That was so much fun, he said recently, that he stayed for almost 25 years. The Arkansas Alumni Association honored Portis with the Citation of Distinguished Alumni in 2009.

In 2013, he left to pursue a freelance career, publishing in the New York Times, The Times of London, USA Today, People, Cooking Light, Sports Illustrated, Time, and the Wall Street Journal.

One of his clients was the Alabama Tourism Department and its director, Lee Sentell. Sentell wanted to have UNESCO recognize Alabama’s Civil Rights Trail as a World Heritage Site, so he had Meripol work with the Tourism Department’s creative agency to produce a presentation book for the UNESCO board. “That was a unique and fun challenge, both artistically and technically,” Meripol said. “The approach was much different [than at Southern Living]. We were looking for iconic and timeless photos that would live longer than a monthly issue of a magazine. I wanted to make each place feel as monumental as its history.”

UNESCO loved the book, Meripol said, but felt it wasn’t broad enough to get the designation.

In 2015, the head of the National Parks Service issued a directive to achieve UNESCO World Heritage site status for civil rights sites with cultural and historic significance. Until then, no one had made an inventory of American civil rights sites.

So Sentell, undeterred, decided to expand the original project. “We did a second book a year later, with more sites from Topeka to D.C.,” Meripol explained. That book eventually led to what is now the U.S. Civil Rights Trail, which comprises more than 100 sites in 14 states across the South. It includes well-known sites like Little Rock’s Central High School and D.C.’s National Museum of African-American History and Culture. It also incorporates lesser-known sites like Monroe Elementary in Topeka, Kansas, where the court case that overturned educational segregation began.

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© Art Meripol

“ We were looking for iconic and timeless photos that would live longer than a monthly issue of a magazine. I wanted to make each place feel as monumental as its history.”

Preceding page: A visitor touches an inscribed name in the black granite of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C. Above: The Edmond Pettus Bridge, site of Bloody Sunday, where armed police attacked civil rights marchers in 1965. Right: A historic image from the march. Far right: A photobook of the Alabama portion of the Civil Rights Trail was produced with Meripol’s photographs.

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© Art Meripol

© Art Meripol

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Meripol had already been to many of the sites while doing the first UNESCO book, so he said he was a natural fit to return to those sites and shoot the additional ones. He explained that the photos needed to be “evergreen,” meaning non-seasonal. “That meant with fall approaching, we had to wrap it all up in short order before leaves started changing,” he said. “We planned to shoot a different state every day and had to hope the weather would not throw us off schedule. That long trip, Sept. 13th through the 26th, had us photographing more than 60 sites in 10 states.”

Despite the whirlwind pace, Meripol said he learned a lot working on the project. “There were so many ‘foot soldiers’ of civil rights, each displaying such a matter-of-fact attitude about moments of personal courage in the face of hate,” he said. “I also discovered so many historic events that aren’t generally known to the public but deserve repeated telling.” He also said he was surprised by how many sites are still almost unchanged: “It seems like so far back in time, but it isn’t.”

One site affected him in a powerful way: “Standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, where Time magazine’s Joseph Louw photographed Dr. King’s assassination, was powerful. I still get goosebumps.”

The U.S. Civil Rights Trail was inaugurated on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, 2018, also coinciding with the 155th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. “The overall impact from all the shoots made clear how much has not changed,” he said. “It brought home more powerfully and clearly the importance of today’s protest movements to secure equal rights and opportunities for everyone.”

To see more of Meripol’s work, visit his website at www.artmeripol.com.

To learn more about the US Civil Rights Trail, visit civilrightstrail.com.

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Above: Little Rock Central High School, the scene of unrest during integration in 1957.

Right: A statue of the Little Rock Nine, the nine students who integrated Central High. Middle: The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. Far Right: Wanda Battle, a tour guide at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, where Martin Luther King Jr. accepted his first pastoral assignment.

© Art Meripol

The second UNESCO presentation book won a national ADDY award for book design from the American Advertising Federation, and the website and promotional material won three silver and four gold ADDYs in the regional competition in Atlanta. It will go on now to the national competition. Meripol said, “I’ve won awards for individual images in my career, but none meant so much as recognition for this project.” n

© Art Meripol

“I’ve won awards for individual images in my career, but none meant so much as recognition for this project.”

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© Art Meripol

© Art Meripol

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F E AT U R E

Bess the

Riveter

A serendipitous path of research runs into an unexpected find

By Matt McGowan Occasionally, dry academic research can take a surprising, personal turn.

At her home in the spring of 2014, professor Janine Parry made final edits to the fifth edition of Women’s Rights in the U.S.A., a scholarly text about gender and how it has shaped U.S. public policy. Parry teaches political science, Arkansas politics, American national government and courses related to gender, politics and policy for J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

Though she was on deadline, she had an idea for the textbook that she couldn’t resist.

On the wall in front of her was a large, framed print of Rosie the Riveter, a gift from her mother-in-law. On a different wall downstairs was another Rosie, an oil painting of Parry herself, posing as the famous riveter. This, too, was a gift from her own mother, who also painted it, based on a photograph taken several years earlier when Parry and her daughter Kate dressed up as the World War II icon for Halloween.

While going through the edits of her book, Parry felt inspired to find a photograph of a real-life Rosie, an image that she and co-author Dorothy McBride could use to illustrate the text describing the flood of women into factories and shipyards during World War II. Adding such an image would align with Parry’s recent efforts to incorporate more photographs and other media into her classroom presentations.

Bess Gorman drills holes in the wing of a Liberator bomber at the Consolidated Aircraft facility in Fort Worth, Texas.

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Photo by Howard R. Hollem and the Office of War Information; courtesy of the Library of Congress

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moved days after graduating to begin working full-time for then-Sen. Mark Pryor, B.A.’85, J.D.’88. Living in a new city, she worked evenings and weekends to complete tasks for her former professor.

Not only did she find an entire collection of Rosie images that Parry could use, Lewis tracked down the photograph that appeared in the article Parry had sent her. She found it among a series of similar images at the Library of Congress’ website, part of a collection from the Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information.

“When I found the photo from the article, I was extremely excited,” said Lewis, who now works as assistant director of development in the U of A College of Engineering. “It had such dynamic composition and color that I thought it would make a great addition to the book.”

Lewis downloaded the image, along with several files from the series, and sent them to Parry. In the same email, she included a link to the entire collection and information about reprinting Library of Congress photos.

Though any of the photographs that Lewis sent would have worked, she and Parry preferred the original image, the one that appeared in the industrialization article, mainly because it showed the riveter’s entire body, the full human laborer.

But Parry was fond of the photograph for another reason: She suspected the woman in it was her grandmother.

photo submitted

Another Era

Bess Gorman, right, and a friend in downtown Fort Worth. Photo provided by Lynda Parry.

Parry wanted a high-quality, aesthetic photograph with good composition, preferably a whole-body shot of a woman toiling in one of these facilities. A quick internet search yielded a promising candidate, a thumbnail image credited to the Library of Congress and embedded in an article about mass production. Parry liked the photograph, but she needed assurance that it wasn’t protected by copyright, and she wanted more choices. She was also in a hurry. The publisher was demanding chapters, and Parry was buried in copy.

So she delegated.

She asked Autumn Lewis, B.A.’14, then a recent honors graduate and research assistant, to go online and see what she could find. As an example of what she was looking for, Parry forwarded the article with the photograph.

By that time, Lewis was living in Washington D.C., where she had

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For many years, Bessie Mae Webb Gorman talked about the day a professional photographer visited the manufacturing plant of the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corp. in Fort Worth, Texas, and took pictures of her riveting the wing of a Liberator Bomber. Gorman had left tiny Baird, Texas, to live with her sister and brother-in-law in Fort Worth, while her husband, J.D., by that time a corporal in the Army Air Corps, was stationed outside London. Though she enjoyed the work — in a letter to her in-laws back home, she described it as “hard but really interesting” and “a man-size job but I guess we women ask for it” — Gorman stayed at Consolidated for less than a year. Her husband was re-assigned and sent back to the United States. Now on the move as a military spouse, eventually settling in Spokane, Washington, Bess Gorman did not find out how or if the photographs were ever used.

In 1992, the Fort Worth Times published a story about the women who worked at Consolidated during the war. The story included a photograph, in which Bess appeared, but she was in the background, among several other women.

“My mother loved seeing the newspaper article,” said Lynda Parry, Janine’s mother, “but she was a little disappointed that it was not the ‘special’ picture. She was sure there were more out there.”

The Times story motivated Lynda Parry and Bess Gorman to search for the special photograph. Lynda wrote letters to LIFE, Saturday Evening Post and the Fort Worth paper. The internet was new then, and Lynda searched various magazine websites. “We tried all these things,” she said, “and we got nowhere.” After her mother died in 2000, Lynda continued to hunt for the photograph. She was unsuccessful.

“Of course, I knew about this when I was growing up,” Janine said.

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Lynda Gorman Parry and her mother, Bess Gorman, on Mother’s Day, 1990. Right, an old work log, tucked away in a scrapbook about her mother, helped Lynda Parry confirm her mother’s identity in a Library of Congress photo.

photos submitted

Bess Gorman and her granddaughter, Janine Parry, in 1988. Photos provided by Lynda Parry.

Bess Gorman poses in front of her home in Fort Worth.

She is dressed for her job at Consolidated Aircraft.

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“I was very close to my grandmother. When she and my mom talked about this, my sisters and I listened carefully.”

Decades of listening informed Parry that her grandmother had worked at Consolidated, a detail she included in her internet search for a real-life Rosie.

Pressured to send content to the publisher, Parry included the photograph in the fifth edition of Women’s Rights in the U.S.A. It appears in black and white, on page 8, accompanied by this caption, which Parry wrote: “Here, an unidentified employee of the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation in Fort Worth, Texas, works on a Liberator Bomber in October 1942.”

Though they talked about it, Lynda Parry did not see the photograph until it appeared in her daughter’s book. Initially, she was incredulous.

There was no question that the woman looked like her mother, but the black and white image did not reveal enough features for Lynda to know for sure.

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Putting Clues Together Lynda Parry scanned the photograph and posted it on Facebook, which led to discussions with family members back in Texas. (Bess Gorman had 13 siblings, and Lynda Parry has had more than 50 cousins.) One family member dug further into the Library of Congress collection and shared the original, color image, which Lynda had not yet seen.

“With the color photo, I felt like we had really found mom,” Lynda said. “That picture, in my mind, became less of a question mark and more of … yeah, that’s mom … that’s my mom.”

A photographer herself, Lynda studied the color, digital file. She used a magnifying glass and zoomed in on various areas, including the subject’s hairline and hands.

“Both mom and I did not have nice fingernails,” she said. “We were always sewing and knitting and crocheting, you know, so our fingernails weren’t pristine like some of these other women. In that photo, it’s my

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mother hands; I’d bet money on that. In fact, I have the same finger. If I match it up to the forefinger in that photo, the one holding the tool, um… yeah.”

And then there are the white shoes. Lynda Parry subsequently matched those worn by her mother in the photograph to the same shoes on Bess Gorman in a different photograph from the same era.

Lynda Parry then discovered another clue, a feature that had not been visible in the black and white photograph: a button near her mother’s left shirt lapel. Even in the color version, a shadow makes it difficult to see what’s on the button. Zooming in, Lynda Parry found small lettering and a number – 19.

Inspired by communication with her cousins, and now curious about this mysterious number, Lynda Parry returned to a scrapbook of her mother’s papers. This collection contained scores of primary documents, including letters Bess had written to family and friends and miscellaneous forms from her time at Consolidated. One of these forms

was a work log of sorts, a training record that included information about the type and number of parts Bess Gorman had processed over a specific period of time. At the top of this document, next to the Bess Gorman’s name, was the number 19.

“The most rewarding research projects often feel like solving a puzzle,” Janine said. “But it’s not usually a puzzle that has baffled your own family for generations. Finally, the efforts of four generations of women — all captivated by that iconic image — converged to connect Rosie and Bess.”

When the sixth edition of Women’s Rights in the U.S.A. comes due for printing, Janine Parry plans to identify the worker as Bess Gorman. n Below, Photographer Howard R. Hollem shot a series of photographs for the Office of War Information in 1942. These photographs documented women working in factories related to the war effort. Photos courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Photo by Howard R. Hollem and the Office of War Information; courtesy of the Library of Congress

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F E AT U R E

T.J. Holmes B.A.’99

“There’s Nothing Like the Rush of Breaking News”

By DeLani Bartlette, B.A.’06, M.A.’08 From his hometown of West Memphis, T.J. Holmes traveled across the country, then across the world, to cover some of the world’s most important stories.

Holmes returned to campus as the 2018 Johnson Fellow in April to share his experience with current journalism students. The Arkansas Alumni Association’s Johnson Fellows program is named for Dr. Jeff Johnson, B.A.’70, and his wife, Marcia. The Johnsons endowed the program in 2009 with the specific purpose of bringing esteemed alumni back to the University of Arkansas campus to engage and inspire students.

Holmes was exceptionally generous with this time; he spoke to several classes, including professor Larry Foley’s Television I and II classes and Kara Gould’s Media and Society class. He also visited with the Student Alumni Association and the Black Alumni Society Scholars.

“There is no one more loyal to our program than T.J.,” said Foley, chair of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media. “He’s a Razorback to the core, and our students always love it when he comes back to show them how it’s done at the top of the profession.”

Holmes spoke about his journey, starting with his first journalism class. “I originally came to campus for engineering,” he explained. “But when I took that first journalism class, I was hooked.”

Hoyt Purvis usually taught the introductory class, Mass Communications, now called Media and Society, but he was on sabbatical the semester Holmes took the course. By luck of the draw, Foley filled in for Purvis that semester and taught Holmes during the class.

From there, Holmes landed his first job at KSNF in Joplin, Missouri, driving more than 60 miles to hand-deliver his resume. He was hired on the spot. He said that first contract, which he still has, was for $17,000 a year. “When I get a little down about work today, I go back and look at that contract, and it makes me want to pop a cork on some champagne.”

He worked there less than a year before relocating to CBS affiliate KTHV in Little Rock, a much more competitive market. He began as a general assignment reporter, and within a year, he ascended to weekend anchor.

In 2003, Holmes moved on to KNTV, the NBC station in the San Francisco Bay Area, to become the evening news anchor. That move

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underscored Holmes’ number-one piece of career advice for aspiring journalists: be ready to move anywhere. “You can’t just stay in your hometown. Not if you want to move up.”

While at KNTV, he covered several nationally relevant stories, including the historic recall election of California Gov. Gray Davis that resulted in the election of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. He also traveled to Athens, Greece, to cover the 2004 Olympics, where he first met some of the personalities he would eventually work with at ABC. Three years later, he was faced with a choice: to return to Little Rock or accept an offer from CNN. “It was tempting to move back home,” he said, but a close friend helped him make the decision. “He told me Little Rock would always be there,” he said. “The offer from CNN wouldn’t.”

So Holmes chose CNN, where he would continue to cover fastbreaking news. He reported from the scene of numerous breaking news events, including the devastation wrought by multiple tornadoes in Joplin, Missouri; the immediate aftermath of the shootings on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia; and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in New Orleans.

He still misses the fast pace of live coverage, he said. “There’s nothing like that rush of breaking news.”

After five years, Holmes was ready for another change. In October 2012, Holmes signed a multi-platform deal with BET to host a new late-night hybrid talk show, DON’T SLEEP! “I’ve always been active in the African-American community,” he said, “So moving to BET was just part of that, in my mind.” The show earned him an NAACP Image Award Nomination shortly after its premiere.

However, he faced some challenges while working at BET. He joined the network thinking the network wanted one type of show, and it turned out the network wanted a style of show that simply didn’t fit his sensibility. “It was a part of the journey,” he said. “I learned a lot about production, about showrunners, about managing people and a team.”

He then spent some time as a substitute anchor at MSNBC and a brief return to CNN to anchor the George Zimmerman trial before accepting his current position at Good Morning America. He said he is amazed that people he once thought of as celebrities, he now knows personally, including Michael Strahan and George Stephanopoulos.

Working at Good Morning America is very different than the off-the-

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photo by Charlie Allison

cuff, fast pace at CNN. However, he said what he brings to the table is authenticity. “I don’t like to read a script,” he said. “You’ll never see me reading one.”

After speaking with Foley’s TV I students, he then watched the TV II students’ short segments and offered feedback and advice. Most of his advice to the students boiled down to one thing: trust yourself.

However, there is a line he thinks should not be crossed. When asked about the current trend of reporters and anchors engaging in more editorializing, he was strongly against it, and in favor of fairness. “They want to let you know what side they’re on, and I don’t agree with that,” he said.

Later, Holmes addressed students, alumni and faculty at the annual Roy Reed Lecture, named for Roy Reed, one of the leading reporters of the Civil Rights movement during the 1960s and, later, a professor of journalism at the U of A. The lecture coincided with the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at Memphis, just across the Mississippi River from Holmes’ hometown.

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When asked what it was like to be someone of African-American heritage in a predominantly white news industry, and how to change that dynamic, he answered: “You have to be in the room so your voice is heard. But you can’t make it a fight about yourself,” he said. “We understand that our fight is for the people coming up behind us.”

Though his journey to success has been a winding one, he sees each step as a learning opportunity. “Every mistake, every turn down for an interview, every turn down for a job, was terrible at the moment,” he said. “But they got me to where I am today.”

Holmes is a member of the 100 Black Men of Atlanta and the National Association of Black Journalists. He served on the Chancellor’s Board of Advisors at the U of A and the Board of Visitors at Emory University in Atlanta. In 2007, the Alumni Association named Holmes its recipient of the Young Alumni Award. In 2011, he was named to The Root 100 List of Most Influential Black Americans. He currently serves on the Campaign Arkansas Steering Committee and joined the campus in celebrating the university’s 147th birthday. n

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A S S O C I AT I O N

President’s Message My term as President of the Arkansas Alumni Association ends June 30th. It has been a fun and rewarding two years. My goals during this time have been to support the Association’s mission of connecting and serving the University of Arkansas family and to build on the legacy of those who served before me. I am grateful for what the team has accomplished, but equally thankful for the many new friendships this opportunity has afforded me.

I will offer a welcome to my successor and a few more thanks before concluding, but first let me share some of the association’s efforts around diversity and inclusion, one of the university’s eight guiding priorities.

Keeping D&I at the Forefront of Leadership Our efforts to keep diversity and inclusion at the forefront of the association’s leadership have included a “D&I” moment at the beginning of each board meeting. Our first D&I moment highlighted one of my former accounting professors, Doris Cook. Dr. Cook, who passed away in January 2016, joined the faculty in 1947 and taught for 53 years. She was the first woman CPA in Arkansas and the first woman to hold the rank of University Professor.

Our winter board meeting coincided with the 70th anniversary of Silas Hunt’s admission to the School of Law. On February 2, 1948, Silas Hunt became the first African-American student admitted to a white Southern university since Reconstruction and the first ever admitted

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for graduate or professional studies. Members of the AAA board joined the School of Law’s reception to honor his legacy, in addition to acknowledging this important anniversary at our board meeting.

The board also has promoted diversity and inclusion through team building activities. As an example, at our 2016 biennial retreat, each board and staff member completed the StrengthsFinder assessment, which identifies an individual’s top five talents. We then held a facilitated discussion about our individual results with a goal of understanding one another better and thereby further building trust and teamwork.

Selecting Board Members and Award Recipients We believe the association’s Board of Directors can be most effective when its members reflect the diversity of the university’s alumni. Nominations to the board are open to all graduates who are alumni association members and are not term limited through prior board service. You may nominate yourself or someone you know.

Each year, ahead of the selection process, we compare the pool of nominees to the overall alumni population across a range of available dimensions, including college of graduation, gender, geography, race/ethnicity, and year of graduation. These metrics are provided to association staff and current board members to help promote a diverse pool of candidates.

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A designated committee of the board evaluates candidates based on pre-established criteria, including university involvement, professional accomplishment and ability to support our mission, among others.

The committee’s recommendations are reviewed and approved by the full board.

The selection process for our annual awards program is similar to that for the board.

Extending our reach and engagement The Arkansas Alumni Association extends its reach and engagement to our diverse family in part through chapters and societies. Our societies include Animal Science, Armed Forces, Associated Student Government, Black Alumni, Bumpers College, Civil Engineering, Engineering Early Career, Latino Alumni, Law Alumni, Lemke Journalism, Master of Science Operations Management, Nursing Alumni, PRIDE Alumni, Razorback Band and Razorback Worldwide.

Societies exist primarily to connect members of a given group, but also can serve as a bridge to other alumni and friends.

Local chapters, as well as the Student Alumni Association, play a role in promoting diversity and inclusion by recruiting and developing diverse leadership and by offering a range of welcoming events and activities.

All of these groups exist because of many of you – committed students, alumni and friends who desire a forum for enjoying one another’s company and working towards a common purpose. Thank you.

Code of Ethics and Conduct

continues to lead overall at $280,000 (excluding a related bequest), but the Central Arkansas Chapter has passed Houston, with the two at $235,000 and $213,000 respectively. San Francisco, the only other chapter or society with an endowment greater than $100,000, is fourth at $175,000.

I expect my fellow Houstonians welcome the spirit of friendly competition and will join me in responding to this turn of events. I also expect BAS, Little Rock, Houston and San Francisco welcome competition from any and all. Campaign Arkansas will conclude on June 30, 2020. I look forward to celebrating the achievement of our scholarship and other fund raising goals in two years’ time.

It has been my privilege to follow in the footsteps of Steve Nipper, John Reap, Stephanie Streett and all of the other past presidents. Thank you also to Brandy Cox, Mike Macechko, Graham Stewart, other current and former Association staff, my fellow current and past board members and everyone who loves and volunteers on behalf of the University of Arkansas. I appreciate your support during my tenure and am grateful for the opportunity to have served.

I will offer two lines from an Elton John-Bernie Taupin song in farewell: We all dream of leaving but wind up in the end Spending all our time trying to get back home again…

Woo Pig, Don Eldred ✪+ B.S.B.A ’81 President, Arkansas Alumni Association

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is incorporated as part of the association’s Code of Ethics and Conduct. The code officially covers board members and employees, but the highest standard of conduct is expected of anyone who seeks to represent the association or the university.

The actions and programs outlined above are a few of the ways in which we have supported this priority. We have more work to do, but our aspiration is to fully engage all of our members, alumni and friends.

Please join me in congratulating Teena Gunter on her selection as the next President of the Arkansas Alumni Association. Teena will introduce herself in this magazine’s next edition, but allow me a short welcome. Teena grew up in Texas and now lives and works in Oklahoma, but her heart is in Arkansas. She is a 1992 and 1997 School of Law graduate and also a great karaoke partner… I admire and appreciate her commitment to the university. I know she will do a great job and have our full support going forward.

Let me also offer a final fundraising snout out. In my spring 2017 letter, I noted the Black Alumni Society had the largest scholarship endowment among chapters and societies, with my hometown, Houston, having the largest endowment among chapters. Folks in Central Arkansas took this as a challenge. As of March 2018, BAS

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Welcome, More Thanks and Farewell

The University of Arkansas School of Law celebrated the 70th anniversary of the date Silas Hunt was admitted as a student to the U of A School of Law. Hunt made history on Feb. 2, 1948, when he became the first African-American student admitted to a white Southern university since Reconstruction and the first ever admitted for graduate or professional studies.

The celebration included a drop-in reception and screenings of Silas Hunt: A Documentary throughout the day. For more information visit: http://bit.ly/SilasHunt. n

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A S S O C I AT I O N

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Arkansas Alumni Association Announces New Board Members

Courtney Backus Norton

Chris Johnson

The Arkansas Alumni Association is proud to announce the newest members of the National Board of Directors who are a part of the Class of 2021. These alumni have agreed to serve a three-year term, which will begin on July 1, 2018.

Courtney Backus Norton ’07 of Fayetteville is a territory sales manager of National Dentex Corporation. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism with a concentration in advertising and public relations from the University of Arkansas. Norton began her career at B-Unlimited while still pursuing her degree. She is a member of the Delta Delta Delta Fraternity. She serves on the Open Avenues Development Council and is a member of the Community Creative Center Board of Directors. Norton is an annual member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Chris Johnson ’93 of North Little Rock is a C.P.A. and is currently senior vice president, principal financial officer for Dillard’s Inc., a position he has held since 2015. Johnson received his B.S.B.A. degree in Accounting from the University of Arkansas in 1994. He joined Dillard’s 2008 and has served in a variety of roles, rising quickly within the company. He has also served as C.F.O. for CDI Contractors LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dillard’s. Prior to joining Dillard’s, he held various positions with prominent public accounting firms. Johnson currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Baptist Health Foundation, Easters Seals of Arkansas, the University of Arkansas’ Walton College of Business Advisory Board for the Accounting Department, chairman of the Arkansas Governor’s Developmental Disabilities Council, Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame, North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce Executive Committee and he is also a member of the Arkansas Society of CPA’s ethics committee. Johnson is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

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Dr. Bobby Jones

Connie Lewis Lensing

Dr. Bobby Jones ’84 of Savannah, Georgia is the lead physician/ physician manager of a Department of Veteran Affairs Savannah Community Based Outpatient Clinic. Jones earned his bachelor’s degree in natural sciences from the University of Arkansas. He has more than 28 years in internal medicine clinical experience. Jones is a retired Army colonel and has previously served in a variety of posts including as command surgeon of First U.S. Army in Rock Island Arsenal, Illinois. Jones is a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. He has been an active member of the Black Alumni Society and is a past president of the society. Jones has received the Silas Hunt Legacy Award and the Black Alumni Society Citation of Distinguished Alumni. Jones is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Connie Lewis Lensing ’74, ’77 of Memphis, Tennessee is senior vice president in the legal department at FedEx Express. She heads a department with offices in Memphis, Tennessee, and Orange County, Califorina. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a juris doctor with honors from the University of Arkansas. Lewis Lensing is currently vice chair of the Board of Directors and chairs the Executive Committee of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Legal Reform. She is on the Board and Executive Committee of the National Civil Rights Museum. She sits on the Board of Directors, the Executive Committee and is the secretary treasurer of Lawyers for Civil Justice.

Lewis Lensing received the Citation of Distinguished Alumni from the Arkansas Alumni Association in 2016. She is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Five board members were selected to serve a second three-year term.

They are Kristen Allbritton B.A. ’04 of Dallas, Texas; Ashley Harris B.A. ’95 of Fayetteville; Kristin Kaufman B.S.B.A. ’83 of Dallas, Texas; Drake McGruder B.S.B.E. ’06; M.S.E. ’12 of Fort Smith, and Dustin McDaniel B.S.P.A.’94 of Little Rock. n

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The Time is Now!

Save the Date for the

Black Alumni Society Reunion April 1-6, 2019 More details to come.

Past Presidents of the Arkansas Alumni Association Board of Directors 1923-24 Joseph Kirby Mahone ✪ BA’07 1924-25 Robert Hill Carruth BA’11 1925-26 James E. Rutherford ✪ BA’22 1926-27 Winston Lee Winters BSCE’06 1927-28 J.L. Longino BSEE’03 1928-29 Alfred Boyde Cypert BA’12 1929-30 James William Trimble BA’17 1930-31 G. DeMatt Henderson BA’01 LLB’03 1931-32 Dr. Jasper Neighbors MD’18 1932-33 Scott D. Hamilton BA’24 1933-34 Charles A. Walls BA’07 1934-35 Arthur D. Pope BA’06 1935-36 John C. Ashley BA’11 1936-37 Beloit Taylor BA’19 1937-38 John P. Woods ✪ BA’09 1938-39 Glen Rose ★ BSE’28 MS’31 1939-40 Claude J. Byrd ★ BSA’25 1940-41 Charles Frierson Jr. ’29 1941-42 John B. Daniels BSA’33 1942-44 G. DeMatt Henderson BA’01 LLB’03 1944-45 Dr. M. L. Dalton MD’32

1945-46 Jack East ✪ BSE’24 1946-47 Steve Creekmore ★ BSBA’11 1947-48 Maupin Cummings ✪ BA’32 1948-49 Roy Milum BA’04, LLD’58 1949-50 Paul Sullins ✪ JD’37 1950-51 Francis Cherry LLB’38 1951-52 J.C. Gibson BA’24 MS’38 1952-53 George Makris ✪ BSBA’37 1953-54 Edward B. Dillon Jr. ★LLB’50 1954-55 Beloit Taylor BA’19 1955-56 Louis L. Ramsay Jr. LLB’47 LLD’88 1956-57 Stanley Wood ✪ BA’23 1957-58 A.L. Whitten MS’40 1958-59 W.R. “Dub”Harrison BA’20 1959-60 E.M. “Mack”Anderson✪+ BA’32 1960-61 Warren Wood ✪ LLB’32 1961-62 Owen Calhoun Pearce BSBA’41 LLB’41 1962-63 James C. Hale BA’33 1963-64 Jack East Jr. BSBA’48 1964-65 J. Fred Patton ✪+ BA’29 MA’36 1965-66 P.K. Holmes Jr. ✪ BA’37 LLB’39

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1987-88 Rebecca Shreve ✪+ BSE’60 MED’63 1966-67 William H. Bowen ★ LLB’49 1988-89 Robert T. Dawson ✪+ BA’60 LLB’65 1967-68 Guy H. Lackey ✪+ BSBA’49 1989-90 G regory B. Graham ✪+ BSBA’70 JD’72 1968-69 R obert P. Taylor ✪+ BSBA’47 MS48 1990-91 Blake Schultz ✪+ BA’51 1969-70 John Ed Chambers BA’39 LLB’40 1991-92 Chuck Dudley ✪+ BSBA’76 MBA’77 1970-71 Chester H. Lauck ’25 1992-93 Harriet Hudson Phillips ✪+ BA’72 1971-72 Nathan Gordon ✪+ JD’39 1993-94 R ichard Hatfield ✪+ BSBA’65 LLB’67 1972-73 Charles E. Scharlau ✪+ LLB’58 1994-95 Jenny Mitchell Adair ✪+ BA’62 1973-74 Carl L. Johnson ★ BSBA’47 1995-96 Jack McNulty ✪+ BSBA’67 JD’70 1974-75 R. Cecil Powers ✪ BSBA’30 1975-76 J.C. Reeves ✪ ’25 1996-97 Sylvia Boyer ✪+ BSE’63 1976-77 Elizabeth (Sissi) Riggs Brandon ✪+ BSE’55 1997-98 Morris Fair ★ BSBA’56 1977-78 Roy Murphy ✪+ BSIM’49 1998-00 H. Lawson Hembree IV ✪+ BSA’83 1978-79 Fred Livingston ✪ BSBA’55 2000-02 Jeffery R. Johnson ✪+ BA’70 1979-80 Tracy Scott ✪ BSE’53 2002-04 E dward Bradford ✪+ BSE’55 MED’56 1980-81 Edward W. Stevenson ✪+ BSBA’60 2004-06 Brian M. Rosenthal ✪+ BSBA’84 1981-82 Fred Livingston ✪ BSBA’55 2006-08 Kenny Gibbs ✪+ BSBA’85 1982-83 Don Schnipper ✪+ BA’63 JD’64 2008-10 Gerald Jordan ✪+ BA’70 1983-84 Mary Trimble Maier ✪+ BA’49 2010-12 Steve Nipper ✪+ BSBA’71 MBA’73 1984-85 Bart Lindsey ✪+ BSBA’67 2012-14 John Reap ✪+ BSBA’70 1985-86 W. Kelvin Wyrick ✪+ BSE’59 2014-16 Stephanie S. Streett ✪ BS’91 1986-87 Larry G. Stephens ✪+ BSIE’58

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Sylvester, Harris Awarded 54th Senior Honor Citation University of Arkansas graduating seniors Raygan Sylvester ✪ B.S.B.A. ’18 of North Little Rock and Sam Harris ✪ B.S.A. ’18 of Greenbrier were recognized with the 2018 Senior Honor Citation.

Established in 1965 by the Arkansas Alumni Association, the award recognizes a senior male and female student who exhibit outstanding academic achievement, campus and community involvement and leadership.

The award was announced by Chancellor Joe Steinmetz at the end Cardinal & White Banquet at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House May 3.

Sylvester and Harris were among 71 students chosen by the alumni association as the Class of 2018 Seniors of Significance. From this group, 22 Razorback Classic honorees were selected, and the two Senior Honor Citations were then selected.

As the winners of the Senior Honor Citation, Sylvester and Harris received life membership in the Arkansas Alumni Association, permanent recognition on a plaque at the alumni house and will be invited back to campus to represent their class at events, including speaking at their Senior Walk Dedication.

RAYGAN SYLVESTER Raygan Sylvester graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. She hopes to use her skills to aid non-profit organizations in their marketing efforts and to help them to gain visibility for their services and events.

Sylvester founded the non-profit organization Think S.A.F.E.: Seatbelts are for Everyone when she was 15. She has continued her work with the non-profit and was named the official spokesperson of National Teen Safe Driving Week for two consecutive years.

She has participated in internships with Razorback Athletics Marketing and the American Heart Association, and she is a National State Farm Youth Advisory Board Member. Sylvester is also a dance instructor and choreographer. She has served for four years with the Associated Student Government, most recently as its director of philanthropy in 2017.

Sylvester has served as senior experience special projects chair for the Student Alumni Board and as the social media chair for the

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Distinguished Lectures Committee. She is also a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma and a U of A representative to the Arkansas Student Leadership Forum. She is working for GlaxoSmithKline and plans to pursue a Master of Business Administration at John Brown University.

“Shock, confusion, gratefulness,” Sylvester said when asked her feelings upon receiving the Senior Honor Citation. She said she knows many of her fellow Razorback Classics through campus involvement and feels very close to them. Her advice to new U of A students is to find student organizations that support or promote something that interests them, then “just go for it.”

SAM HARRIS Sam Harris, a member of the Honors College, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business and a minor in agricultural leadership. His passion is to help alleviate hunger and food insecurity.

He seeks to make significant contributions toward eliminating hunger and implementing effective rural development initiatives.

Harris is a 2017 Truman Scholar and finished his degree in three years.

He has been a research assistant with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, a community development intern in Dangriga, Belize, with Peacework International and participated in study abroad in Vietnam.

Harris was a Wallace-Carver Fellow at the USDA Risk Management Agency in Washington, D.C., in 2016. He has also served as president of the Student Organization Outreach Involvement Experience (SOOIE); chair of the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences Honors Student Board, and member of the Bumpers College Dean Search Student Advisory Committee. He also served as assistant director of sponsorship for the Student Alumni Board.

“It’s the pinnacle of my undergraduate student career,” Harris said about being named a 2018 Senior Honor Citation winner, although he said he was surprised to hear his name called. Harris said that it was important to him to take advantage of every opportunity available to him on campus, and he would encourage new U of A students to do the same. Harris is working for the U. S. Department of Agriculture and making plans for graduate school. n

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Reading with a Purpose: 2018 Scholarship Review

by Patti Sanders ✪+ B.S.A. ’08 Emails. Directions. Texts. We read every day, but in March, alumni from across the country read for a united purpose…to participate in the 2018 review of incoming freshmen scholarship applications. Thirtyseven alumni chapters and societies also offer scholarships. Together, the Arkansas Alumni Association, along with its chapters and societies, offer more than $1.1 million in scholarships each year.

The Alumni Association’s annual scholarship review is a journey that takes numerous alumni volunteers to complete. The most recent pool of freshmen scholarship applications started with 592 completed applications from throughout the world. Ninety-seven alumni reviewed the top 417 of these applications online in midMarch during the first round review. Through their efforts, the top 100 applications were identified. All 100 have been offered an Alumni Association scholarship.

Moving the first round of reviews online over the past year allowed alumni across the country to participate in the process. Alumni reviewers describe the opportunity as, “outstanding, inspiring and

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inspirational.” Reviewers received a glimpse into students’ struggles and triumphs as they pursue their dreams of becoming University of Arkansas graduates. Reviewing applications also took many alumni down memory lane as they reflected on their own campus experiences.

The Arkansas Alumni Association is excited to offer this chance each year to engage with current and future alumni.

On March 30, 41 alumni gathered at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House for a day of friendship as they reviewed the top 16 applications again. This second round of scholarship reviews culminated with the identification of the two highest-ranking applicants. Sally Senn of El Dorado and Elizabeth Meneses of Jacksonville were offered the Alumni Association’s most prestigious scholarship, the Alumni Endowed Scholarship, which awards $26,000 to each recipient over four years. Readers will meet Senn and Meneses in the winter issue of Arkansas magazine.

For any questions about the Arkansas Alumni Scholarship program, please contact alumnisp@uark.edu. n

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Alumni Association Announces the Razorback Classics Class of 2018 The Arkansas Alumni Association is proud to announce the Razorback Classics Class of 2018.

These students represent the top 11 male and top 11 female graduating seniors at the University of Arkansas. They were selected from the 71 Seniors of Significance recognized in the fall of 2017.

A selection committee of more than 100 University of Arkansas advancement staff, former and current Arkansas Alumni Association

National Board members, and past award recipients scored each applicant based on academic excellence, demonstrated leadership and campus or community involvement.

This year’s class of winners includes representatives from a variety of academic disciplines. The majority of awardees, 18, are students in the Honors College. Arkansans make up the majority of the recipients with 12 students hailing from the state. Other locations represented are Colorado,

The Razorback Classics Class of 2018 are: Sarah-Beth DeLay, San Antonio, Texas Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, agricultural business*

Garrett Bethel, Little Rock J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biology*

Stephen Komar, Kansas City, Missouri J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, economics and international studies*

Sam Harris, Greenbrier Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, agricultural business, pre-law*

Breyanna Dulaney, Little Rock J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biology and African and African American studies

Karli Lipinski, Benton J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, chemistry with a focus in biochemistry*

Ryann Alonso, Tulsa, Oklahoma J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, political science and communications*

Daley Harvey, Des Arc J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biology, pre-dental

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Pooja Lukhi, Conway J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biology and biochemistry* Naseer Naseem, Fayetteville J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, anthropology and biology*

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Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences

University Relations photo

College of Education and Health Professions

College of Engineering

Sam M. Walton College of Business

Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas and Lima, Peru.

The 22 students were recognized at the Cardinal & White Banquet May 3 in Boyer Hall of the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House.

During this dinner and ceremony, each recipient and their mentor was honored. Mentors, chosen by the honorees, are individuals who have made an impact on the students during their time at the University of Arkansas. All of the Razorback Classics will be featured

in the Razorback Yearbook and receive a special honor cord to wear at commencement. At the conclusion of the event, Chancellor Joe Steinmetz announced Sam Harris and Raygan Sylvester as the winners of the 2018 Senior Honor Citation.

Guests at the Cardinal & White Banquet included university leadership, advancement staff, mentors, parents of honorees, past senior award winners and the association’s Board of Directors. . n

Gray Orman, Bryant J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biochemistry, pre-med*

Tristan Locke, Stilwell, Kansas Sam M. Walton College of Business, finance and accounting*

Olivia Tzeng, Conway J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, biology and psychology*

Landri McGregor, Golden, Colorado Sam M. Walton College of Business, supply chain management and marketing*

Macarena Arce, Lima, Peru Sam M. Walton College of Business, international economics and business with a finance minor*

Trent “Jack” Scaccia, Clarksville Sam M. Walton College of Business, economics and finance*

Jack Casey, Overland Park, Kansas Sam M. Walton Collage of Business, economics*

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Raygan Sylvester, North Little Rock Sam M. Walton College of Business, marketing

William Watkins, Arlington, Texas Sam M. Walton College of Business, economics* Grace Davis, Memphis, Tennessee College of Education and Health Professions, nursing Paolo Garcia, Fort Smith College of Engineering, biomedical engineering* Kendrick Hardaway, Poteau, Oklahoma College of Engineering, biological engineering* *Denotes student of the Honors College

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A S S O C I AT I O N

Howard W. Cruce ’22

Bobby Gerald Treece ’48 and Katherine Cruce Treece in New York

Clyde Treece ’36, ’37, ‘59 William Russell Treece ’74 posed with each of his parents, Bobby Gerald Treece ’48 and Katherine Cruce Treece on the steps of Old Main as a young boy.

Margaret Treece ’18 was raised to be a Razorback Fan. Margaret Treece ’18

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William “Bill” Russell Treece ’74 while attending the U of A.

For Margaret Treece ’18, the University of Arkansas is home. Though she grew up in Illinois, her family made frequent trips to the University of Arkansas campus to attend Razorback football games and introduce Margaret to the family alma mater. When the time came to select her college, she decided to attend a place that felt like home. In May 2018, Margaret graduated from the university with a degree in chemical engineering and is the fourth generation in her family to attend the U of A. Margaret’s father, William “Bill” Russell Treece ’74, has researched his family’s relationship with the university and he believes the first to attend the U of A was his maternal grandfather, Howard W. Cruce.

Howard was born in Monticello, Arkansas. After beginning college at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, he transferred to the U of A and graduated in 1922 with a degree in banking. He was also a graduate of Arkansas Law. After a long career in banking, he was elected Vice President of First National Bank of Little Rock and retired in 1968.

Howard’s daughter, Katherine, attended the U of A where she met and then married Bobby Gerald Treece. Bob graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1948 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. According to Bill, Bob is one of seven siblings who all graduated from the University of Arkansas. One of Bob’s siblings is Clyde Treece ’36, ’37, ’59, a former track star and frequent student of the university who returned to take additional classes after retirement.

After Bob graduated, he took a job with Sargent & Lundy, Engineers, which took him and Katherine to New York and then Chicago. Bob was an annual member in the Arkansas Alumni Association.

Bob and Katherine’s oldest child, William “Bill” Russell Treece, was the next in the family line to attend the University of Arkansas. Bill states that he was “groomed to go to the U of A from a young age” and shares photos of himself with each of his parents on the steps of Old Main when he was a young boy. Bill graduated from the university in 1974 with a degree in accounting and has been a member of the alumni association since his graduation. “My accounting training at the U of A gave me instant success: passing the CPA exam on the first attempt and being hired by the most prestigious accounting firm in the world, Arthur Andersen,” Bill said. Bill has gone on to have a very successful career including working for Arthur Andersen and the Sara Lee Corporation.

Margaret has carried the tradition on by attending the University of Arkansas. She has enjoyed working on class projects, learning to meet and work with new people and attending football games as a student. She said her time at the university has helped her to develop her communication skills and has exposed her to a diverse group of people. n

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2018 Razorback Road Trips

Colorado State University September 7-9, 2018 Fort Collins, CO Southwest Classic September 28-30, 2018 Fort Worth, TX For more Razorback Road Trip information or to reserve your travel package go to razorbacktravel.com or arkansasalumni.org

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CHAPTERS

–1– The Central Arkansas Chapter cheered on the Hogs while hosting a watch party for the Razorbacks vs. Samford basketball game November 10, 2017.

–2– The Charleston Chapter rooting for the Hogs to beat the Bulldogs!

–3– D.C. Chapter welcoming ASG students to the capital March 19.

–4– The Chicago Chapter hosted a dinner event April 5 with Dean Shields and Dr. Dowe of Fulbright College.

–5– The Dallas Chapter participants in the 2018 Dallas St. Patrick’s Day parade.

–6– The Fort Smith Chapter rooting on the Hogs to beat Missouri at Whole Hog Café.

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–7– The Greater Indianapolis Area Chapter hosted a basketball watch party and Razorback Roundup at Union Jack Pub February 17. They cheered on the Hogs during their road win over Ole Miss and discussed plans for revitalizing the chapter.

–8– The Las Vegas Chapter cheered on the Hogs during the October 21, 2017 football game vs. Auburn. They gathered again for a Homecoming Game watch party November 4, 2017 where future Razorbacks got into the spirit!

–9– The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter poses for a photo with Vice Chancellor Mark Power at their ‘Hogs in the Fog’ Scholarship event in July 2017.

– 10 – The Tulsa Area Chapter hosted a Happy Hour Hogs event September 28, 2017.

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– 11 – New York Gathering The New York City Chapter and the Master of Science in Operations Management Alumni Society hosted a networking event at the Yale Club in New York City March 12.

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SOCIETIES

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–1– The Armed Forces Alumni Society held its inaugural reception March 15 at the Janelle Y. Hembree Alumni House. Brandy Cox, associate vice chancellor and executive director of the Arkansas Alumni Association, gave the alumni welcome. Danielle Williams, society president, shared the mission and purpose and Erika Gamboa, society vice president, presented information on how to get involved. Chancellor Joseph Steinmetz was the keynote speaker. Major General Mark Berry, the adjutant general for the state of Arkansas National Guard, was in attendance.

–2– The Black Students Association and the Black Alumni Society Scholars hosted Shades of Ebony February 15. The theme for the event: “A Legacy of Endurance, A Future of Promise.” John L Colbert, past Black Alumni Society president, was the keynote speaker. Shades of Ebony celebrates cultural awareness.

Special thanks to Brendan Cook, Black Students Association president and Xavier Smith Black Alumni Society Scholars president.

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–3– The Latino Alumni Society held its fall graduation program for December 2017 graduates.

A reception was held in honor of the seniors and their families.

Erika Gamboa, past LAS president, was the keynote speaker.

–4– The PRIDE Alumni Society, the PRIDE LGBT and Straight Ally Associate Resource Group and the Women’s Resource Council recently hosted the Arkansans’ Views of LGBT Human Rights at the Walmart Home Office at the Sam M. Walton Auditorium.

Speakers and researchers for the program were Janine A. Parry, professor of Political Science and Arkansas Poll director; Geeboo Song, assistant professor of Political Science; and Briana Kordsmeier, Distinguished Doctoral Fellow of the Public Policy.

Members of the PRIDE Alumni Society and Arkansas Alumni Association in attendance: Brandy Cox, associate vice chancellor for Alumni and executive director; John Forrest Ales, president; John Berry, board of director and Angela Mosley Monts, director, Constituent Engagement.

The PRIDE Alumni Society and the PRIDE LGBT and Straight Ally Associate Resource Group viewed a screening of Love, Simon at the Malco Razorback 6 Theatre in Fayetteville.

–5– PRIDE Alumni Society and Arkansas Alumni Association staff members in attendance: Jordan Garcia, vice president, John Berry, board of director and Angela Mosley Monts, Director, Constituent Engagement.

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STUDENT A F FA I R S

Center Supports Educational Access for Students

Removing Obstacles Makes the Hill a Home Rather than a Challenge for Students with Disabilities

By Beth Lewis George Turner is quick with a smile and to tell you he loves his job — a job that he wouldn’t have if he hadn’t received his college diploma.

And that, he says, wouldn’t have happened if not for the University of Arkansas’ Center for Educational Access. The 31-year-old Turner, who graduated from the university in 2012, is a development manager for the university, and his responsibilities include assisting with research, support activities and communication with donors.

“I never dreamed of graduating from college,” he said of his

44

accomplishment. “Along with my dad, the CEA helped get me where I am today.”

Turner has spina bifida, a condition that requires him to spend most of his time in a wheelchair. “Like most toddlers, I began trying to learn to walk but it took me several years to learn. I eventually taught myself to walk by age five by practicing in the family room,” he said. “It took a lot of falling down, but I finally did it.”

Turner, a native of Dallas, was also diagnosed with a learning disability

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

and says that he had to work twice as hard as his classmates to keep from falling behind. With help from his father, he transferred to the University of Arkansas to pursue a business degree, which he later changed to communication. Turner found out about the university’s Center for Educational Access. He quickly made an appointment for an assessment for services before his classes started for the 2010 spring semester.

Providing Access and Training The center, which is funded by the Division of Student Affairs, provides direct support for students who have disabilities as well as training and educational resources to the university as a whole. It helps to facilitate campus access for students who have disabilities, chronic health problems or temporary limitations.

Director Laura James says that providing reasonable accommodations for students is a collaborative effort between her organization, the instructors and the student. “Good communication is key to the best outcome,” she said.

Each semester, a student must make a request, depending upon need.

Aid for Nearly 3,000 Students According to James, the Center for Educational Access served 2,722 students last year and is serving an additional 244 students this year. It has a testing center that can accommodate 32 students. James said these spots are often not enough, particularly during final exams.

“I would love to see an institutional testing center that is more inclusive,” she said. “There is sometimes a social stigma attached to a student who doesn’t show up for a test in a classroom and that could be alleviated with a campuswide testing location.” James has a staff of 11 full-time employees, four graduate assistants and 30 part-time student workers.

One of those undergraduate student workers is a senior. To preserve her privacy, we’ll refer to her as Victoria. She works the center’s reception desk, greeting students and their families and helping guide them to the right person in the office.

“We have staff members who specialize in certain areas, like housing, alternative formatting and note-taking,” Victoria said. She says she sometimes shares her personal story with students who are new to the program in order to reassure them and help them become more confident. “I always start off telling about my freshman year,” she said, “because I suffered from depression and test anxiety, too.”

Victoria said she had difficulty taking notes and with testing, but she received accommodations through the Center for Educational Access that helped her improve. She tells students that it’s very important to seek help as soon as possible, because the more a student struggles, the more their grade point average is affected. “A lower GPA can affect your scholarship requirement or your chances of getting into graduate school,” she said.

Victoria said it was awkward with her peers the first time she tested at the testing center instead of in the classroom. “My friends texted me asking where I was and telling me I had missed the exam,” she said. “I

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

Accommodations Accommodations include: • Extended time for examinations • Document conversion to alternate formats like Braille, enlarged print or specialized electronic format • Note-taking assistance • Temporary supplemental transportation assistance between classes • TypeWell transcribers • American sign language-certified interpreters In addition, assistive technology is also available including: • Screen reader applications • Screen magnifier applications • Enlarged monitors • Voice-to-text software • Assistive listening devices • Scan and read applications • Accessible work stations told them I had already taken the test, and I thanked them for their care and concern. I think you just have to decide how much you are going to share and how you’re going to handle it,” she said.

Raising Awareness “Our philosophy at the CEA is to provide an environment in which students are encouraged to develop independence, the ability to selfadvocate and the knowledge of resources that will allow them to take advantage of opportunities in the world,” James said. “I’m very proud of George Turner, because as one of our former students, he advocated for a university Disability Day to raise campus awareness of what differently-abled students experience.”

Turner said the idea for the event started out as a single day and then was expanded to a full week. To help the university community better understand what a person with a disability experiences, individuals could participate in wheelchair and sight-impaired relays.

In addition, student volunteers shared statistics about persons with disabilities by writing them in chalk on the campus sidewalks. Other highlights included a luncheon with a keynote address by the director of Americans with Disabilities Act Services for Walmart Inc. and an evening presentation featuring a student forum and former chancellor David Gearhart. Turner said the events designed to increase awareness of disabilities have been expanded and managed by the Center for Educational Access. They are currently held during October, which has been designated as Disability Awareness Month.

For James, the best part of her job is seeing a former student like Turner succeed and to watch Victoria reach her collegiate goals.

“I love helping students access the tools they need to be successful, to see them graduate and then begin to pursue their dreams,” she said.

“Without a doubt, my favorite day is Commencement!” n

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photo courtesy Razorback athletics

R A ZO R B AC K ROA D

Broyles Tribute Film Wins National Award Frank Broyles, Arkansas Legend, a tribute to the late University of Arkansas head football coach and men’s director of athletics, won the top award offered during the Broadcast Education Association Festival.

The documentary was produced by Larry Foley, chair of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media, and Jim Borden.

The film won the King Foundation Award during the association’s Festival of Media Arts, a competitive festival open to faculty and students who are members of the Broadcast Education Association.

The film was researched and written by Foley and narrated by former University of Arkansas quarterback Scott Bull. Bull played for the Razorbacks under Coach Broyles from 1972-75. Foley collaborated with Jim Borden of Fayetteville and Kevin Trainor of the University of Arkansas Department of Intercollegiate Athletics to produce the tribute to longtime University of Arkansas football coach and athletic director, who died in August 2017. Borden served as the film’s archivist and editor. Trainor served as a film consultant on behalf of

46

Razorback Athletics and the Broyles family. The University of Arkansas Department of Intercollegiate Athletics commissioned the film.

The short film will be posted on ArkansasRazorbacks.com in August 2018, commemorating the one-year anniversary of Coach Broyles’ passing and leading into the 2018 University of Arkansas football season.

Best of Festival winners were honored at the 16th annual Broadcast Education Association Best of Festival King Foundation Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas in April as part of association’s annual convention. During the ceremony, recipients were recognized with a specialized screening of their winning projects.

The 2018 Best of Festival winners were selected from a pool of more than 1,540 entries, representing over 175 colleges and universities in the following competitions: audio, documentary, film and video, interactive multimedia, news, scriptwriting, sports and two-year/small colleges. n

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

R A ZO R B AC K ROA D

Moncrief Elected to National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame Arkansas legend Sidney Moncrief was named to the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2018 in March.

The National Collegiate Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place Nov. 18 in Kansas City.

Moncrief becomes the third Razorback to be inducted into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, joining his former coach Eddie Sutton, who was selected in 2011, and Nolan Richardson, who entered in 2008. All three Arkansas legends have a banner hanging in the rafters of Bud Walton Arena.

One of Arkansas’ famed “Triplets,” Moncrief ended his career at Arkansas with the second-most points in program history, scoring 2,066 points from 1976-79. He poured in more than 600 points each of his last two years in Fayetteville, one of just four Razorbacks to score more than 600 points during two separate seasons.

Moncrief helped lead Arkansas to two Elite Eight appearances and the 1978 Final Four, when the Razorbacks recorded Arkansas’ first of five 30-win seasons in program history, going 32-4 overall. A 14-time All-American, Moncrief’s name is scattered all through Arkansas’ record book. He still ranks sixth in scoring average among Razorbacks at 16.9 points per game in his career. He also ranks second in field goal percentage in a career at 60.6 percent, while holding the school record in free throws made (588), free throws attempted (752) and rebounding

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(1,015) in a career.

He was named All-Southwest Conference his last three years as a Razorback, while being named to the 1978 NCAA Tournament AllRegional West Team and to the 1979 All-Regional Midwest Team.

Moncrief was drafted fifth overall in the 1979 NBA draft to the Milwaukee Bucks, where he spent his first 11 NBA seasons, before finishing his career in Atlanta in 1990-91. The Little Rock native was just the second Razorback in school history to be selected in the first round of the NBA draft and remains the only player to be taken in the top five.

While in Milwaukee, Moncrief earned All-NBA first team honors once (1983) and second team honors four times (1982-85 and 1986).

The five-time All-Star was also named to the NBA’s All-Defensive first team four years (1983-86) and second team in 1982, along with earning NBA Defensive Player of the Year honors two seasons (1982-83 and 1983-84). During his 12-year NBA career, Moncrief averaged 15.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.

Others being inducted into the class are Arizona’s Sean Elliott, Houston’s Otis Birdsong, North Carolina’s Sam Perkins, Morgan State’s Marvin Webster and USC’s Paul Westphal will join former Charleston coach John Kresse and former Oregon Tech coach Danny Miles. n

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

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Three-peat: Fayetteville Named ‘Best Place To Live’ In SEC U.S. News & World Report ranked Fayetteville as the best city to live in the Southeastern Conference and the fifth-best city overall in the nation on the publication’s annual “Best Places to Live” list.

The city’s top-five overall ranking places the University of Arkansas at No. 1 in the SEC and No. 2 among all Power Five Conference institutions for the third straight year.

The “Best Places To Live” list is U.S. News’ evaluation of the 100 most populous U.S. metropolitan areas whose rankings were based on its value, desirability, job market strength, quality of life and other factors.

Fayetteville, a home away from home for students attending school and fans from across Arkansas, scored an overall 7.3 out of 10 for the second straight year, reaching high marks for value (7.9), job market strength (7.1), quality of life (7.5) and net migration (8.0).

U.S. News also cited the city’s affordable housing costs ($182,508 vs. $222,408 nationally), mild winters, short commute times (4.9 minutes shorter than the national average) and low unemployment (1.7 percentage points below the national average) as additional favorable factors.

The publication’s percent-weighting for each index category in 2018 favored Fayetteville’s strengths: The job market index accounted for 20 percent, value index at 25 percent, quality of life index at 30 percent, desirability at 15 percent and net migration at 10 percent.

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

Including Fayetteville, only six out of 14 SEC cities made the list: Nashville moved up two spots to No. 11; Lexington, Kentucky, entered at No. 21; Columbia, South Carolina, remained at No. 56; Knoxville, Tennessee, fell three spots to No. 64; and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, entered at No. 100. n

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R A ZO R B AC K ROA D

Special Dates Set for Razorback Football The University of Arkansas will host numerous special events surrounding the 2018 football schedule, including the debut of a renovated Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Family Weekend and the traditional Homecoming Weekend.

Arkansas will open the season against Eastern Illinois on Saturday, Sept. 1 at the renovated and expanded Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. The home of the Razorbacks is currently undergoing a $160 million renovation and north end zone addition that will provide all fans with additional gameday amenities, including new north stadium entrances and easier concourse access to areas throughout the stadium.

The season opener will also be Military Appreciation Day, where Razorback fans may sponsor a military member by providing them a ticket to a game. To sponsor a military member for either the two designated games, contact a Razorback Ticket representative.

Two weeks later, Arkansas will host North Texas on Saturday, Sept.

15, for the University of Arkansas’ Family Weekend. Family Weekend provides a great opportunity for families to return to campus to visit their sons or daughters attending the University of Arkansas. Learn more about

University of Arkansas programs and services and explore the Northwest Arkansas area before the Razorbacks host the Mean Green.

The North Texas weekend will also feature the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor festivities. Several former Arkansas student-athletes and coaches will be recognized for their success as Razorbacks. The inductees will be inducted at a banquet on the evening of Friday, Sept. 14 and will also be recognized during the game against North Texas.

Homecoming will be celebrated during the weekend of Saturday, Oct. 20, against Tulsa. University of Arkansas graduates are encouraged to return to The Hill to join former classmates and all Razorbacks for a special weekend in Fayetteville. Homecoming week will be filled with fun activities, including the annual Homecoming Parade and Pep Rally on Friday night, Oct. 19.

Arkansas will wrap up the regular season with Senior Day against LSU on Saturday, Nov. 10. The Razorbacks will honor senior football student-athletes participating in their final game at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium. n

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A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

University, Razorbacks Pay Tribute to Fred W. Smith

By Kevin Trainor B.A.’94 M.A.’05 Fred W. Smith, former chair of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation and longtime benefactor of the University of Arkansas and Razorback Athletics, passed away at age 84 April 29 in Santa Monica, California.

“It is impossible to fully measure the positive impact Fred W. Smith made in the lives of thousands of Razorback student-athletes, University of Arkansas students and individuals throughout our state and the nation,” said Hunter Yurachek, vice chancellor and director of athletics.

“Through his leadership in his role as the longtime chairman of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation and his extraordinary personal philanthropic commitment, our institution and our state has been changed forever. Fred’s love of the Razorbacks was eclipsed only by his love for his family and his passion for improving the quality of life for others. The Razorback Family has lost a very dear friend. However, Fred W. Smith’s legacy will continue to shape our program, our institution and the state he cherished for many years to come.”

Born in the Peno Bottoms of Oklahoma near Fort Smith, Smith had an extensive career in advertising and media before being named chair of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation in Las Vegas. During his 43-year career at Donrey Media Group, Smith worked his way through the ranks to become president and chief operating officer and chief executive officer of one of the nation’s largest privately held media companies.

Through his work with the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation, Smith was instrumental in the university’s securement of several multi-million dollar gifts, including the Steven L. Anderson Design Center within the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design; the Reynolds Center for Enterprise Development in the Sam M. Walton College of Business; and the Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium expansion, the Jerry and Gene Jones Family Student-Athlete Success Center and the Student-Athlete Development program, within Razorback Athletics.

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

“You don’t have to walk far on our campus to see the impact Fred W. Smith has had on the University of Arkansas in so many different areas,” Vice Chancellor for Advancement Mark Power said. “He simply loved the university and Razorback Athletics. Our students, faculty and staff as well as our student-athletes, coaches and Razorback fans will continue to reap the benefits of the philanthropy of the Reynolds Foundation as well as his personal generosity for decades to come.”

In 2011, under Smith’s leadership, the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation issued a $10 million challenge grant to help generate funding for a new football operations building for the University of Arkansas. In 2013, the $40 million Fred W. Smith Football Center was dedicated providing Razorback Football with a new 80,000-square-foot home.

On a personal level, Smith and his wife, the late Mary B. Smith, contributed to several initiatives at the university, including the Barbara Broyles Caregiving Legacy Fund, the Jerry and Gene Jones Family Student-Athlete Success Center and the Fred W. and Mary B. Smith Golf Center.

In 2001, he and his wife were awarded the distinguished service award as part of the University of Arkansas Sports Hall of Honor. In 2003, Smith was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Arkansas. In 2013, the Smiths were honored with the Chancellor’s Medal in recognition of their extraordinary leadership and commitment to higher education at the University of Arkansas.

After 49 years of marriage, Fred’s beloved wife, Mary, passed away in 2010. In 2016, Fred married Maria Hearley, and, at the time of his death, the couple made their home in Pebble Beach, California. In addition to his wife Mary, Fred was preceded in death by his mother, Erma Wells, and his stepfather, Paul Wells. He is survived by his wife, Maria Hearley-Smith, three children — Fred Wesley Smith Jr. (Stacie), Deborah Smith-Magness, and Dr. Jonathan P. Smith (Amy) — and four grandchildren. n

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Y E S T E RY E A R

1878

Gregson Hall, a men’s residence hall named in honor of William “Pop” Gregson, are built.

• The university awards its first honorary degree to R.W. Trimble, a pastor and member of the Georgia Board of Vocational Education.

• War Memorial Stadium is dedicated in Little Rock and becomes a home-away-fromhome for the Arkansas Razorback football team.

1888

• Gov. S.P. Hughes makes recommendations to the state legislature including the need for more land for agricultural use.

1898

• A conservatory for horticultural research is built between Old Main and Maple Street.

1908

• Charles Frederick Adams is named second dean of the College of Agriculture.

• The Arkansas Federation of Woman’s Club establishes a scholarship to be awarded to two first-year students based on top scores of a competitive exam.

1918

• The University Weekly, the student newspaper, editorializes about the “stick” law, a rule that requires a student who has been absent a total of 16 credit hours from class to complete one extra semester hour for graduation.

The editor, however, became involved in a hazing incident and was put on disciplinary probation and eventually expelled.

• Ida Tarbell, one of the “muckraker” journalists at the beginning of the 20th century,

52

The singer James Brown, who “stole most students’ hearts and everyone’s soul,” as the Razorback yearbook put it, entertained students during the annual Gaebale Celebration in 1968.

spoke at the university, telling students that they must prepare themselves for a long struggle and develop a proper spirit to fight the World War in Europe.

1928

• The men’s basketball team wins its third straight conference championship.

• Professor Chalmers K. McClelland develops a variety of soybeans with genetic resistance to root rot and cysts, increasing yields and more than doubling the state acreage suitable for growing soy beans. He called the new variety Arksoy.

• Room and board at the university is about $50 per month.

• The university adds a 220yard straightaway to its track in anticipation of hosting the Southwest Conference track meet the next year.

1938

• A survey of students shows that the student body is split on the question of mandatory participation by male students in the Reserve Officers Training Corps. Forty-four percent recommended participation be mandatory; 46 percent favored making the program optional; and 12 percent recommended abolishing the program at all nonmilitary schools.

• John C. Futrall celebrates 25 years as president of the University of Arkansas.

• The departments of Agricultural Engineering and Industrial Engineering are established.

• Holcombe Hall, a women’s residence hall named in honor of Jobelle Holcombe, and

• The university’s Publications Board approves creation of a printing plant in the basement of Hill Hall. Costs would be $46,000 for a press and $12,000 for a linotype machine.

• Engineering students design a “human cannon” for use during the annual GAEBALE festivities.

• Alumnus Sid McMath, then 36, is elected the state’s youngest-ever governor.

1958

• Ralph Clayton Barnhart is named the fourth dean of the School of Law. • Alex Poularikas, an exchange student from Greece, discovers a new isotope — scandium-50 — which he believed had a half-life of about 22 minutes.

• Two sociology students survey their fellow students on their drinking habits and find that most students who drink alcohol did so before coming to the university and that drinking behavior is largely cultural.

• Bowling is added to the intramural opportunities.

1948

1968 Razorback

• The first men’s residence hall is built west of Old Main. Early in the 20th century, it is named in honor of university President John L. Buchanan.

• Although doctorates had been awarded earlier, the first curriculum-designated Doctor of Philosophy degree is approved.

1968

• More than 70 members of the

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Life Members ✪

By becoming Life Members, the University’s friends and alumni help form a strong foundation on which to build the future of the Arkansas Alumni Association. We welcome the newest Life Members, listed in order of membership number: 8701 Sean Wright 8702 Brigette Beaton Wright ’97 8703 James G. Minmier ’62 8704 Nina B. Minmier 8705 Gayle Lynn Clark ’86 8706 Taylor Clark 8707 Dr. Justin Keith Walden ’06 8708 Kendra Walden 8709 Billy Montgomery ’78 8710 Cindy Seaton Montgomery ’79 8711 Dr. C. Kemp Skokos ’73 8712 Tawnya Skokos 8713 Jeremy Pickett 8714 Brandi Pickett ’07 8715 Zan A. Sproles ’01 8716 Christi Nelson Sproles ’00 8717 Carter Berry ’72 8718 Amber Bright White ’82 8719 Mark McNair ’77 8720 Cindy McNair ’79 8721 Frank E. Thomas ’76 8722 Sylvia R. Thomas ’74 8723 Roger M. Corbin ’78 8724 Melinda Hood ’70 8725 Dr. Cleveland T. Hood ’70 8728 Willis B. Winston ’74, ’84 8729 Judy Ann Reid ’84 8730 Tommy Reid 8731 Sam E. Harris ’18

8732 Raygan Sylvester ’18 8733 Richard G. Murphy ’73 8734 Gaston P. Gibson Jr. ’63 8735 Ann Gibson ’72 8736 Terrence R. Dake ’66 8737 Regina D. Hopper ’81, ’85 8738 Marsha W. Wilson 8739 Glenn Wilson ’74 8740 Michael C. Schaufele ’71 8741 Marty Bettis Schaufele ’71 8742 Rosemary D. Griffith ’50 8743 Clifford J. Henry ’82, ’85 8744 Judy Henry ’81, ’84 8745 Robert Joseph Zeiler ’08 8746 Harvey Morgan Jr. ’41 8747 Michael R. Goldschmidt ’10 8748 Vineet Majmudar ’90 8749 Tony A. Downs ’86 8750 Kristan Hoglund Robinson ’83 8751 Dr. Ernie Woodard III ’91 8752 Dr. Tacy Sundell Woodard ’92 8753 Dr. Nicki Hilliard 8754 Joe Hilliard 8756 Toni Turrentine Boone ’86 8757 Susan Dubriske Mace ’91, ’93 8758 Brad Mace 8759 Amy Harrod 8760 Toni M. McCrory ’07 8761 Adam McCrory

8762 Dr. Joan E. McKinney ’73, ’84 8763 Timmy McKinney 8764 W. Clark Robinson II ’83 8765 Cheryl A. Robinson ’82 8766 Ray Jones 8767 Cheryl Jones 8768 Cindy Lou George ’80 8769 Randell Kris Coleman ’91 8770 Godfrey St. John White ’78 8771 Lucy Smart White ’81 8772 Edward M. Cooper Jr. ’72 8773 LaNita Cooper ’76 8774 Dr. Craig W. Thompson 8775 Jan R. Thompson 8776 Cynthia A. Hoyer ’76 8777 Gifford L. Hoyer 8779 Patricia Griffin 8780 James D. Griffin ’62 8781 Dr. David Mulkey ’62 8782 Laura Taylor Mulkey 8783 Linda E. Willis ’69 8784 Dick Willis ’69 8785 Bobby Greenberg 8786 Susie Kanke Greenberg 8787 Dr. Bob L. Bond ’64, ’68 8788 Janet N. Fotioo 8789 James G. Fotioo ’75, ’78 8790 Edison Williams Sr. 8791 Charles L. King ’88, ’90

student group Black Americans for Democracy barricade the entrance to Hill Hall to prevent student journalists from accessing the office of The Arkansas Traveler until the newspaper agrees to publish a letter about the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. that was submitted to the paper by John Rowe.

business with apartheid South Africa.

honored with the university’s Centennial Alumnus medallion.

• The UARK Theater on Dickson Street expands to include a movie theater, art gallery, dramatic studio and dance studio.

• The University of Arkansas Press publishes The Long Shadow of Little Rock by Daisy Bates, and it wins the American Book Award.

• Lou Holtz becomes the new head football coach for the Razorbacks.

• A computer lab with 16 Macintosh computers is opened in Kimpel Hall and available to all students.

• The first trial transit system on campus shuttles students from Hotz, Reid and Fulbright halls to the center of campus for classes.

1978

• Students demonstrate in front of the Administration Building and call on the U of A Board of Trustees to divest any ownership in companies based in or doing

1988

• During commencement, Arkansas first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton is the commencement speaker and announced that Gov. Bill Clinton would release $3 million for renovation of Old Main. Former Sen. J. William Fulbright is

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

• Nine Razorback teams win Southwest Conference championships: the men’s and women’s teams in cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field, baseball, football and tennis.

8792 Dana L. King 8793 Paula C. Martucci ’87 8794 Beth A. Carter ’88 8795 Kay B. Martin ’67 8796 Rick Moore ’80 8797 Marilyn Russo 8798 Dawn Vickers Reinhart ’96 8799 Charles Mark Reinhart 8800 Barbara Yates ’70 8801 James Freeman 8802 Dr. Mike Condit ’69 8803 Linda F. Condit ’69 8804 Dr. Taylor Prewitt III ’59 8805 Mary B. Prewitt ’60 8806 Nancy L. Black ’73 8807 Jan Roberts Clark ’71 8808 Daniel R. Clark ’75, ’77 8809 Mark S. Rushing ’93 8810 Tina Rushing 8811 Suzanna Gibbs 8812 Scott Elgin ’85 8813 Sheri Elgin ’85 8814 JT Hale 8815 John L. Howard III 8816 Tony R. Merriweather ’70 8817 Mollilou Merriweather ’69 8818 Leigh Ann Rose Gibson ’94 8819 Ryan Gibson

1998

• The student newspaper editorializes against a proposal to erect a building on the Old Main Lawn, saying: “The UA shouldn’t relinquish the most beautiful spot on campus to put up another architectural wonder like the Science and Engineering Building.”

2008

• The School of Law posthumously awards a law degree to Silas Herbert Hunt on the 60th anniversary of his enrollment at the university.

Hunt died of tuberculosis after his first year of classes before finishing his law degree.

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F RO M S E N I O R WA L K

Class Notes Let us know about your milestones and anything else you would like to share with your classmates — births, marriages, new jobs, retirements, moves and more. Please include your degree, class year, and when applicable, your maiden name. To provide the most thorough coverage of alumni news, we publish notes about members and non-members of the Arkansas Alumni Association and will indicate membership status for reference. You may send us news or simply update your information. Since the next issues of Arkansas are already in production, it may be a few issues before your item appears.

Submit Class Notes online at www.arkansasalumni.org/classnotes; by mail: From Senior Walk, Arkansas Alumni Association, P.O. Box 1070, Fayetteville AR 72702; or by email: records@arkansasalumni.org.

These symbols indicate Alumni Association membership:

’50 ’60

John F. Cross ★ BSA’57, Eureka Springs. He began his 63rd year with Cornerstone Bank, formerly bank of Eureka Springs, where he serves as Chairman of the Board.

James W. Langley ★ BSBA’67, Smackover.

He and his son, Jimmy, via Smackover Motors made Ford Motor Company history receiving Ford’s highest award for dealers, “The President’s Award,” for the 17th time. No other Arkansas dealership has won this award as many times in Ford’s history.

’70

Gary K. Adams ✪ BSIM’75, Rogers.

He received the 2018 Petrochemical Heritage Award. Adams received the award in recognition of his unique and thoughtprovoking analyses of chemicals and plastics markets, as well as his respected wisdom and trusted leadership in the petrochemical industry. Founded in 1997, the Petrochemical Heritage Award is awarded annually by the Science History Institute and the Founders Club

54

to recognize outstanding contributions to the petrochemical community.

’80

Mary L. Harmon ✪ BSBA’76, New York, New York. She was recognized by the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the college’s annual awards banquet with a lifetime achievement award.

Catherine Hastings Owen BSBA’80, Little Rock. She is the first women to lead the Arkansas Bankers Association.

Susan McChristian Haney ✪ BSA’82, Fayetteville. She celebrated 32 years as a USDA Food Safety Inspection Service Food Inspector February 4.

’90

Randy M. Robinson ★ BS’91, Alexander. He is the Assistant Director, Risk Management Division of the Arkansas Insurance Department.

Tina Eloise Siddons ★ BA’97 and Bobby Hunt ★ were married Nov 20, 2016, and reside in Booneville.

Christine M. Sanderson BA’98, Fayetteville. She was named to USA Today’s “50 States: 50 Female Chefs” list. She has been a chef for 14 years

University Relations photo

✩ Student Member ★ Member ★+ Member, A+ ✪ Life Member ✪+ Life Member, A+

and established Mockingbird Kitchen in 2016 with her wife, Leigh A. Helm BA’91.

’00

Michael J. Paladino BSBA’01, Bentonville.

He was recognized by the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the college’s annual awards banquet as the college’s 2018 entrepreneur of the year. He is the cofounder and chief technology officer of RevUnit in Bentonville.

Neil and Jamie Fotioo Groat ★ BA’05 announce the birth of their daughter, Helen Elizabeth, Nov 6, 2017, Conway.

Michael A. Brown ★ BSBA’06 MA’07, Charlotte, North Carolina.

He was recognized by the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the college’s annual awards banquet with an outstanding service award.

Bo Zhang PHD’06, Blacksburg, Virginia. She is the assistant professor of crop and soil environmental studies in the Virginia Tech College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

In Memoriam 1930

Marie E. Crouch BA’37, Springdale, April 5, 2017. Survivors: three sons, eight grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren.

1940 Floy B. Lawson BSHE’42, Fayetteville, March 20, 2017. Worked in teaching and food service in Bentonville, Springdale and at the University of Arkansas. Survivors: one son, two daughters, 12 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren.

Mabel Melson Wann ★ BA’42, Springdale, April 23, 2017. She was a Kindergarten teacher and then the manager of the Junior department at Dillard’s until retirement. Survivors: a daughter, a sister, four grandchildren, three great-grandchildren.

Gwendolyn Alter FS’47, Mt. Vernon, April 20, 2017. She became the Dewitt School Food Service Director in 1965, launching a 41-year career. Survivors: a son, a daughter, 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Spotlight:

photo submitted

Jennifer Dean M.A.T. ’14 Kiersten Lima, left, and Abby Best work on a podcast called All Girls Considered.

U of A Alumna Leads Middle School Girls in Podcasting Venture At 13 years old, Abby Best of Leander, Texas, near Austin, considers herself a “huge feminist.” That’s one reason she’s enjoyed a project her English teacher Jennifer Dean, a 2014 University of Arkansas graduate, started at Leander Middle School.

“The idea is to interview an inspiring woman about her job and everyday life,” Dean said about the podcast, called All Girls Considered. “One thing I noticed that is not unique to this school is the girls were extremely competitive. There is a lot of in-fighting, and girls are not necessarily supporting each other. This was my first exposure to it as a teacher, and I felt it was an issue. I was also dealing with a group of girls who had a lot of trauma and challenges at home, and they were bringing that to school with them every single day.”

Dean, who earned a Master of Arts in Teaching in the secondary education program, said she wanted to create a space girls could come just to be girls, to support each other. She had experimented with a podcast in which she talked about people who inspired her and so decided to suggest the idea to the girls in her class.

Last year, the girls interviewed a director at the National Science Foundation, an Episcopal priest and a choir teacher in their building.

Then they snagged an interview with Grace Bonney, a woman whose website and writing on interior design got her named by Forbes magazine as No. 1 in the home category on the magazine’s list of top influencers. Dean thinks that’s how the podcast got noticed and included in a recent New York Times feature on “Podcasts Made Just for Kids.”

“The girls got extremely invested, writing the interview questions, conducting the interviews, editing and having podcast-listening parties at school,” Dean said.

In the Bonney podcast, the girls ask the entrepreneur how she got started, how she made certain decisions in her business and why she chose certain directions. Bonney laughs with delight several times as Betty Wells Crouse BA’48, Harrison, December 17, 2015. She taught school in Texas and started her own company, Northwest Arkansas Grading Company.

Survivors: a son, a daughter, a brother,

three sisters, seven grandchildren 13 great-grandchildren.

Joyce C. Pipkin BSE’48, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, April 11, 2017. He served

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

she answers and compliments the girls on their insightful questions.

Best said being a feminist means that she believes women deserve to be treated as strong individuals and not stereotyped.

“Some women aren’t comfortable in their workspace because there are stereotypes all over the place,” she said. “Grace Bonney has done so much. She’s really inspired me to get up there and take chances and, hopefully, it’ll work out.”

And, although her beliefs are strong, Best is keeping her options open as far as her own future.

“I know I’m very academic and artistic, but I don’t know what I want to do,” she said. “I love writing.”

The students also manage social media accounts for the podcast.

They meet after school two days a week to work on the project and have learned the technology needed for the entire process of podcasting.

“They are learning so much from how do we share our ideas, how to communicate what we think and make connections with people who inspire us in some way, technology, computers, software, what’s appropriate on social media and how to share effectively,” Dean said.

In talking to women about their struggles and how they overcame them, the girls are learning, growing and developing leadership skills that will help them when they go to college and into the workforce, she said.

“They see themselves as being able to create positive change,” Dean said.

Dean is creating a nonprofit organization based on the podcast project in order to provide opportunities for other schools to use the Leander model. She is developing a youth advisory board so girls can be involved in the organization’s direction. n The podcast is available at soundcloud.com/allgirlsconsidered. in the Navy and earned two bronze stars for his time as the crew chief of a Special Forces Underwater Demolition Team.

He was a former player of the NFL and retired as the Director of Operations for

Reynolds Aluminum. Survivors: wife, Carol Patton; four children; four stepchildren; 11 grandchildren and 13 greatgrandchildren.

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F RO M S E N I O R WA L K

14 years and went on to become the Communications Director for the Little Rock School District before retiring in 1989. Survivors: husband, Jim Williams; a daughter, three stepdaughters and six grandchildren.

In Memoriam

photo submitted

Department of Biological Sciences Mourns Passing of Distinguished Professor

Dr. Kimberly G. Smith ★ M.S. ’75, Distinguished Professor of biological sciences, who served the university for 37 years, passed away suddenly April 9. He was 69.

Smith began teaching at the University of Arkansas in 1981 and pursued research in various areas of terrestrial ecology. His interests ranged widely from black bears, to birds, to bugs. His numerous contributions to the university were recognized by his promotion to University Professor of biological sciences in 2009, and then to Distinguished Professor in 2015. During his career, Smith served as departmental chair of biological sciences from 2004 to 2008 and was a highly productive researcher.

He was a devoted educator and enjoyed nurturing students at various stages of their career preparation and development. He was also deeply involved in numerous professional organizations in a variety of roles: officer, editor and meeting organizer. From 2000 to 2004, he served as editor in chief of The Auk, the primary scientific journal Ralph M. Otwell FS’48, Hot Springs, March 8, 2017. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army and served during World War II. He retired as the editor of the Chicago Sun-Times. He was the former president of the Society of Professional Journalists and the recipient of the Wells Key. Survivors: three sons, five grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

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1950

of what is now the American Ornithological Society.

Smith presented a retirement seminar in the Department of Biological Sciences April 5, just four days before he died. He entertained a packed room with a humorous summary of his life and career titled “Life in the Fast Lane: My Life as a Community Ecologist.”

He ended his seminar with some advice to younger colleagues: “Be curious, be creative, challenge yourself to learn new things, learn the history of things that interest you, take students on field trips, take students abroad,” and finally, “have fun doing what you do. … I did.”

He will be deeply missed by his many friends and colleagues.

Smith received his Bachelor of Science at Tufts University, a Master of Science from the University of Arkansas and Doctor of Philosophy from Utah State University. He was a postgraduate research ecologist at Bodega Marine Lab at University of California-Berkley in 1980 and 1981, and also served as research associate at Manomet Bird Observatory from 1977-1980.

Kim Smith is survived by his beloved wife of 45 years, Peggy; their daughter, Mallory; her husband, Sheldon Steinert of Fayetteville; and grandchildren Erowyn, Simon, Laura and Kara.

In lieu of flowers, the family invites contributions to causes and activities valued by Smith. Specifics about contributions, as well as a celebration of his life, will be announced at a future date. n

Florence Adams Albright BA’49, Little Rock, April 26, 2017. She worked as an educator but was also an accomplished actress and director, making several TV and radio commercials and even appearing in a movie. Survivors: two sons, a sister, two grandchildren and three greatgrandchildren.

Robert H. Sloan BSA’49, Little Rock, May 8, 2017. He was an army veteran of World War II. Survivors: wife, Billie Jean Hartwick Sloan; a son; a daughter; four grandchildren and four greatgrandchildren.

Julia May Williams FS’49, Little Rock, April 12, 2017. She was an English and Journalism teacher for

Ernest E. Pfeifer BSA’50, Dardanelle, April 5, 2017. He served in the Navy.

Later, he founded Eureka Egg Farm and went on to serve as chairman of the Water and Sewer Commission and the City Planning Commission.

Herald Kaffka Sr. BSBA’50, Jonesboro, May 10, 2017. He served as a cook at Fort Chaffee during the Korean War. He later opened his own real estate agency, Herald Kaffka Realty Co., where he worked until he retired. Survivors: two sons, two daughters, two brothers, one sister, and four grandchildren.

Johnny T. Farmer ★ BSBA’50, Little Rock, April 24, 2017. He served in the Air Force and went onto teach history and economics until retirement.

Survivors: wife, Dora M. Farmer; one son; three daughters and five grandchildren.

Lavon Benson Smith BSE’50 MED’63, Lead Hill, July 8, 2013. He was U.S. Army 1st Calvary veteran and worked as an educator in the Fayetteville Public School System for many years.

Survivors: wife, Fran Smith; one son; 13 grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.

William E. Shook BSME’50, Fayetteville, May 20, 2017. He was a U.S. Army Air Corp veteran of World War II. He retired from IBM Corporation.

Survivors: a son, two daughters, two grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Wallace C. Cummings BSA’51 MS’65, North Little Rock, April 18, 2017. He was retired from Cooperative Extension Service. Survivors: wife, Betty Jo Cummings; two sons; four grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren.

James F. Mobra BSE’51, Claremore, Oklahoma, March 8, 2013. Served in the U.S. Marine Corp during World War II. He was a high-school football coach and eventually an athletic director, retiring in 1995. Was inducted into the Oklahoma Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Survivors: wife, Mary; a son; a daughter; a sister; five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Lloyd W. Stephens BSME’51, Fayetteville, May 14, 2017. He was a U.S. Army veteran. He had a 43-year career at Arkansas Western Gas Company, later a subsidiary of Southwestern Energy Company.

Survivors: wife, Wanda Lorene Brewer; three daughters; a son and four grandchildren.

George W. Ware Jr. BSA’51 MS’52, Tucson, Arizona, April 25, 2017. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was an officer in the U.S. Army during the Korean conflict. He was Professor Emeritus of Entomology and Associate Dean of the College of Agriculture at the University of Arizona.

Survivors: wife, Doris Ware; and children and grandchildren.

Carolyn Virginia Beebe BSE’52, Lakeport, California, April 24, 2017.

She worked in real estate and sold antiques. Survivors: three sons, one daughter, five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Kay L. Matthews LLB’52, Little Rock, May 14, 2017. He was a veteran of the U.S. Navy and the National Guard.

Survivors: wife, Vera Matthews; two sons and three daughters.

Patsy Mashburn Robertson BA’52, North Little Rock, May 10, 2017. She was a lifelong teacher in subjects such as AP American History, Sociology and Psychology at Sylvan Hills High School.

Survivors: husband, Gip I. Robertson Jr. BA’53; a son; a daughter; three grandsons and three great-grandchildren.

James P. Wallace BSBA’52, Austin, Texas, April 17, 2017.

Nina Warren Cash FS’53, North Little Rock, May 12, 2017. She worked for St. Vincent Infirmary Education Department and Administration.

Survivors: a daughter, a son, two granddaughters and three greatgrandchildren.

Robert G. Hall MS’53, Jacksonville, June 4, 2017. He served in the U.S. Army and received a Victory Medal and American Theatre Service Medal.

Survivors: wife, Doris Eilen Kizer Hall; a son, 11 grandchildren and 25 greatgrandchildren.

Catherine Cox Kennedy BSBA’53, Little Rock, May 1, 2017. Survivors: husband, James W. Kennedy; two daughters; a stepdaughter; a stepson; a sister, five grandchildren; four

step-grandchildren and 10 step-greatgrandchildren.

Russell McAlister ✪+ BSE’54 BSBA’55, Nashville, May 12, 2017. He was a U.S. Army veteran. He became majority owner of Bishop Roney Lumber Company until he retired.

Survivors: wife, Shirley McAlister; a son; a daughter; a sister and six grandchildren.

Markley L. Trimble BSCE’54, Hollister, Missouri, February 11, 2017. He served in the U.S. Air Force for 12 years. He was a businessman in Branson, Missouri, active in the creation of such attractions as the Fantastic Caverns in Springfield and the Ozark Auto Show Museum. Survivors: wife, Lea Benedict Trimble; a son and three grandchildren.

Ralph E. Blythe ★ MED’55, Springdale, October 1, 2016. He served the country in the Army National Guard. He served on the Elm Springs City Council for 12 years. Survivors: wife, Dorothy Louise Blythe; two sons; a daughter and five grandchildren.

Mary Sue Wherley BSE’55, Dierks, April 19, 2017. She was a first-grade teacher in Pine Bluff for 30 years.

Carole A. Barger BA’56, Fort Smith, March 23, 2017. She was retired from Westark Community College. Survivors: two sons, two daughters, a sister and 10 grandchildren.

Dana Dowell Judkins ★ BM’56, Little Rock, February 13, 2016. She was a licensed life and health insurance agent and with her husband, she owned Judkins Insurance and Financial Services Inc. Survivors: her husband, Billy R. Judkins ★ BSA’56; two sons; five grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.

Jessie G. Kemp Sr. BSEE’56, Calico Rock, April 24, 2017. Survivors: wife, Anna Kemp; three sons; two daughters; 11 grandchildren and two greatgrandsons.

Robert H. Peacock BSA’56 MS’60, Batesville, May 25, 2017. He was a U.S. Army veteran, retired minister and educator. Survivors: wife, Ruth Beaver Peacock; two sons; two daughters and several grandchildren and greatgrandchildren.

Jim Edward Brain BSME’57, Springdale, April 2, 2017. He was a U.S. Army veteran and retired professional

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

engineer at Southwestern Bell, where he worked for 43 years. Survivors: wife, Sandra Gail Brain; a son; a daughter; three brothers and four grandchildren.

on Virginia gazebos. Survivors: two sons, three stepdaughters, three grandchildren, four step-grandchildren and a step-greatgrandchild.

Lena Cotten Cunningham BSE’57, West Helena, May 18, 2017. She was an elementary school teacher for more than 35 years and later enjoyed a career in the gift shop business until she was 80.

Survivor: a brother.

Rosemary G. Compton ✪+ BA’59, Little Rock, April 12, 2017. Survivors: two daughters, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

Richard L. Cunningham BSEE’57, Pottsboro,Texas, May 17, 2017.

Survivors: wife, Gaye Abbett Cunningham; three daughters; a stepson; a sister and eight grandchildren.

Rogers L. Overbey ★ BSBA’57, Edmond, Oklahoma, June 1, 2017. He served in the U.S. Army and went to work for Southwestern Bell for 35 years.

Survivors: wife, Marcia; a daughter; a son; three sisters; seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

John W. Meux MA’57, Denton, Texas, March 13, 2017. He was a veteran of World War II in the U.S. Marine Corps and served 14 years in the U.S. Army reserve. He went on to teach college mathematics, chair the department at Midwestern State University and then serve as dean of the School of Science and Mathematics. Survivors: a son, a daughter, four grandchildren and a greatgrandson.

Marjorie Ann Thompson Yeatman BSHE’57, Alpharetta, Georgia, April 27, 2017. She became the supervisor of the first home health care service in the country. Survivors: two daughters.

Lota J. Alsobrook MED’58, St. Augustine, Florida, April 13, 2017. She was a retired elementary-school teacher of 35 years. Survivors: two sons and two grandchildren.

Norma Lee Jepson Crabtree BA’58, Hot Springs, April 2, 2017. She was an artist. Survivors: a daughter, three sons and a grandson.

Don A. Madden Sr. ✪+ BSBA’58, Newport Beach, California, May 14, 2017. With his sons, he helped develop a successful financial services firm, Trinity Financial Services. Survivors: wife, Julia Patricia Madden; three sons; nine grandchildren and five greatgrandchildren.

Gwynn Cochran Prideaux BSE’58 MED’64, North Little Rock, March 24, 2017. She was a teacher and a photographer. She also published a book

W. Murphy Jones Jr.FS’1959, Pine Bluff, April 25, 2017. He was an electrical engineer and later was the secretary/treasurer for Sissy’s Log Cabin.

Survivors: wife, Sissy Jones; a daughter; a son; a brother; two sisters and nine grandchildren.

Margie B. Raff BSE’59, Little Rock, April 28, 2017. Survivors, husband, Robert H. Raff ✪+ BSE’60, two daughters, one son and four grandchildren.

1960 Mary Lynn Dudley FS’60, Little Rock, March 17, 2017.

Louie M. Heerwagen Jr. ★ BSIE’60, Haltom City, Texas, April 22, 2017.

He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He worked as a leader in manufacturing management for General Electric, Phillips North America and Selmer Instruments.

Survivors: a daughter, two sons, two sisters, six grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.

James G. Sandlin BSBA’60, Fayetteville, April 17, 2017. He was a retired partner of an accounting firm, Sandlin, Parham and Anderson.

He was a licensed CPA for more than 40 years. Survivors: wife, Renee Sandlin; three sons; a daughter; a stepson; two stepdaughters; a sister; four grandchildren and eight stepgrandchildren.

Joe Shackelford Jr. ★ BA’60, DeWitt, May 2, 2017. He was a U.S. Army veteran, serving during the Korean Conflict. He taught and drove a DeWitt school bus for many years. Survivors: wife, Linda Shackelford; two daughters; a son; 10 grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren.

Patricia P. Upton ★ FS’60, Heber Springs, May 23, 2017. She was a former model and founder of a global fragrance company, Aromatique.

Survivors: husband, Richard H. Upton ★ BSBA’62, two sons and four grandchildren.

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Giving for the Next Generation Tameka A. Jennings is a faculty member because of private gift support.

Growing up in Gould, a small town in the Arkansas Delta, Jennings knew she wanted to attend college. Her parents supported this goal but also knew they couldn’t afford to help her.

“If I had not had a scholarship, there’s no way I could’ve completed my undergraduate degree,” she said.

Thanks to that funding, her own incredible drive and influential mentors, she did complete her degree, and she went on to earn a doctorate from the University of Arkansas in cell and molecular biology.

Jennings is now a clinical assistant professor in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences and

JOIN US IN FOSTERING INNOVATIVE CHANGE AT THE

UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS

continues to benefit from private gift support – this time in the form of grants from the Women’s Giving Circle. With this funding, she has found a way to help a new generation of students from the Arkansas Delta.

Her summer camp, Root of STEM: Recruitment of African-American Women, launched in 2015 with funding from the circle and was enhanced by another grant from the organization in 2016. So far, this program has influenced the lives of 35-40 young women in the Delta and has even inspired one student from the area to attend the U of A. “Had it not been for the Women’s Giving Circle, there’s no way I could’ve implemented this program,” she said.

“They not only provided funding, but support, time and wisdom as well.”

The Women’s Giving Circle are alumnae and friends of the University of Arkansas who recognize that women as donors are uniquely positioned to make a tremendous impact on the university, its students, faculty and staff. This impact grows exponentially when contributions from women are united in support of the university through one collective voice. Since its creation in 2002, the circle has awarded more than $1.2 million in grants to 92 recipients in support of innovative programs and research at the University of Arkansas. We would love for you to be a part of this collective voice so that we can expand the influence of women in philanthropy across this campus, the Northwest Arkansas community and the state.

For more information about the circle or to join, please call (479) 575-2381, email wgc@uark.edu or go online at https://womens-giving-circle.uark.edu.

THANK YOU FOR BEING

$433,744 GIFTS FROM

40

STATES &

COUNTRIES

867

GIFTS OF $50 OR LESS

150

DIFFERENT AREAS IMPACTED

1,292 TOTAL GIFTS 222

SOCIAL MEDIA AMBASSADORS

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR ALL IN PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS AND THE RECIPIENTS OF BONUS BUCKS!

PARTY LIKE A PIG PET PHOTO CONTEST

Winner: Mandi Maclean, Student Pictured: Hallie the Hedgehog hanging out with hog-wild friends Bonus Bucks: College of Education and Health Professions ($200)

HOG-WILD FAMILY PHOTO CONTEST

Winner: Areta Moseley, B.S.B.A. ‘03 Pictured: Areta’s mom, Jeanie Hill, and daughter, Molly, with Ribby Bonus Bucks: Nursing Students Give Back in Ghana Initiative ($200)

PARTY CART PHOTO CONTEST

Winner: Student Hog Callers Pictured: Celebrating the U of A’s 147th birthday on the All In party cart Bonus Bucks: Food Pantry ($50) and PRIDE in Education Scholarship ($50)

GO ALL OUT FOR THE ALL IN SELFIE CONTEST

Winner: Ralph Carruth, M.S. ‘79 Pictured: Ralph with Space Launch System Intertank structural test at NASA Bonus Bucks: J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences ($200)

F RO M S E N I O R WA L K

Boyce C. Brown BSEE’61, McCroy, May 27, 2017. He was a veteran of the Korean War. We worked at NASA for 30 years as an Aeronautical Engineer.

Survivors: wife, Patsy Lantrip Brown; a daughter; three sisters; a brother; two grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren.

Charles E. Presley MED’61, Fort Smith, April 25, 2017. He was a highschool coach, winning a state track championship and a state football championship. Survivors: a son, a daughter, 13 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

James Fred Price ★ BS’61 MS’62, Midwest City, Oklahoma, March 23, 2017. Served in the U.S. Navy in World War II and Korea. He was a professor of radiologic technology at several colleges.

Survivors: wife, Deloris Price; four daughters; eight grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

Frances M. Stokes ✪ MED’61, Fayetteville, June 3, 2017. She owned and operated the Frances Stokes Dance Studio in Fayetteville and taught dance for more than 50 years. Survivors: husband, Johnnie K. Stokes Jr. ✪ BSBA’65 MED’72 EDD’75, and a daughter.

Lewis Q. Gardner MED’61, Smackover, May 29, 2017. He was the retired principal of Smackover Elementary School. Survivors: wife, Joyce Gardner; a son; a daughter; four grandchildren; several stepgrandchildren; six great-grandchildren and several step-great-grandchildren.

Jay W. Dickey Jr. BA’61 LLB’63, Pine Bluff, April 20, 2017. He served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Arkansas’ Fourth Congressional District. Survivors: three daughters, two sons, a sister and 11 grandchildren.

Steve Castleberry BSE’62, Hot Springs, May 29, 2017. He had a distinguished career in education, serving as dean for Eagle University and Austin Peay University as well as principal of Arkadelphia High School and superintendent at Warren and Newport High Schools. Survivors: wife, Becky Castleberry; three sons; two brothers; a sister; and four grandchildren.

Rae Dunn BSHE’64 MS’78, Farmington, February 9, 2017. She was an award-winning professional potter and opened her own studio, called The

60

Clay Castle. Survivors: husband, James E. Dunn; a son; a daughter; three sisters and five grandchildren.

Herb L. Fine MA’64 PHD’69, Prairie Village, Kansas, February 1, 2017.

James E. Gauntt Jr. BA’64, Little Rock, April 28, 2017. In his career he worked as a computer programmer, an operations research analyst and an instructor of accounting at UALR. Survivors: wife Jan O. Gauntt; a daughter and two brothers.

Dale Mize BSME’64, Benton, April 11, 2017. He served in the U.S. Army for two years and went on to become a mechanical engineer. Survivors: wife, Peggy Mize; three daughters and two grandchildren.

Wayne M. Smiley BSE’64, Clarksville, Missouri, September 16, 2016. He was the Minister of Music at various churches and later went on to open B.T. Dove Antiques.

Robert H. Janes Jr. BS’65, Fort Smith, April 23, 2017. He served in the U.S. Air Force. He was an accomplished surgeon, practicing for many years and eventually serving on the Commission on Cancer at the American College of Surgeons and also gov. Huckabee’s Breast Cancer Control Advisory Board.

Survivors: wife, Patricia Janes ✪+; three sons and five grandchildren.

Harvey M. Labban BA’66, August 9, 1992.

Jacquelyn M. McAdams BSBA’66, Shreveport, Louisiana, December 10, 2015. Survivors: husband, Alan Marshall McAdams; four sons; a daughter; eight grandchildren and a great-grandson.

Sue McAlister FS’66, Abilene, Texas, April 5, 2017. She was a wonderful homemaker and later worked for other organizations including the Texas Department of Transportation, where she retired after 23 years. Survivors: husband, Jerry McAlister ★ BA’68; a son; a daughter; six grandchildren and a great-granddaughter.

James F. Epes ✪ BS’67, South Pittsburg, Tennessee, March 16, 2017.

Survivors: wife, Leone Kilgore Epes; two daughters; a sister; a brother and four grandchildren.

Charles D. Robinson BSBA’67, Napa, California, May 4, 2017. He was a computer analyst. Survivors: wife, Tove Robinson; a son; two daughters; a sister and six grandchildren.

Martha McDermott Westmoreland BA’67 MED’73, Wynne, April 8, 2017.

She was a mental health social worker and homemaker. Survivors: husband, James K. Westmoreland; two sons and two granddaughters.

Norma Jean Wood BA’67, Springdale, May 11, 2017. She was an accomplished stage actress, producer, director and television writer.

Louis Dewett MED’68, Springdale, May 31, 2017. He was an educator for 37 years and a pastor for 40 years.

Survivors: wife, Mary Dewett; a daughter; a sister; two granddaughters and six great-grandchildren.

James M. Lavender ✪ BSBA’68 MBA’70, Bella Vista, Arkansas, April 21, 2017. He retired after 26 years from Wicks Limber, where he served as Senior Vice President and went on to own several businesses in Northwest Arkansas.

Survivors: wife, Carol C. Lavender; a son; a stepson; five grandchildren and one great-granddaughter.

Charlotte Ann Smith BM’69 MM’72, Little Rock, April 17, 2017. She worked for more than 20 years as a part of the Baptist Health System; taught piano at UCA and in her home; and taught Tai Chi. Survivors: a daughter, a son, a brother and five grandchildren.

Wanda R. Dailey BSE’69 MED’81, Fort Smith, April 21, 2017. She was a retired Fort Smith Public School teacher. Survivors: three daughters, six grandchildren and four greatgrandchildren.

Joe Paul Daves BS’69 BSE’69, Searcy, April 19, 2017. Survivors: wife, Carol Snelson Daves; two sons; a sister and seven grandchildren.

Dick A. Jarboe JD’69, Walnut Ridge, April 1, 2017. He was a lawyer. Survivors: wife, Jane Jarboe; a daughter; two sons; two sisters and three granddaughters.

Ralph Stephens ✪ BSBA’69, Port Charlotte, Florida, May 1, 2017.

Survivors: husband, Alan Turney; two daughters and two granddaughters.

Dennis W. White BSE’69 MA’74, Jonesboro, April 22, 2017. He was an decorated U.S. Army veteran serving both in active duty and the Army Reserves and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel.

He retired as the chairman of the Department of Speech Communication at Arkansas State. Survivors: wife, Vicki Russell White; and a daughter.

1970 Larry A. Black BARCH’70, Mt. Ida, April 15, 2017. He was the founder and president of the architecture firm Black, Corley, Owens and Hughes. He was also a member of the State Board of Architects and the Advisory Board of the University of Arkansas School Of Architecture. Survivors: wife, Elaine Ebeling Black; his father; two sons; a brother; a sister and five grandchildren.

Billie L. King MED’70, Clarksville, March 15, 2017. She had a 44-year career in public education; she also served for 15 years at the College of the Ozarks and retired as an Emeritus Professor of English. Survivors: two sons, a sister, seven grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.

JoeAnne Barnett BSE’71, Fayetteville, May 27, 2017. She was a fourth-grade teacher for 37 years. Survivors: husband, Johnny Lara Gonzales; a daughter; a son; four grandchildren and a greatgranddaughter.

Leland D. Easterday EDD’71, Joplin, Missouri, April 26, 2017. He was a veteran of the U.S. Army. He was a teacher for over 40 years and retired as a professor of elementary education at Missouri Southern State University.

Survivors: two daughters, two brothers, four grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren.

Phillip F. Kalcich ★ BSEE’71 BSME’77, El Dorado, April 21, 2017.

He was a veteran of the U.S. Army and an electrical engineer for TOSCO. Survivors: wife, Linda Kalcich; a son; a daughter; three sisters; a brother and five grandchildren.

Randy L. Spicer BSBA’71 MBA’72, Rogers, March 20, 2017. A U.S. military veteran, he went on to work in the field of group insurance for more than 30 years. Survivors: wife, Diane L. Spicer; a son; a daughter and five grandchildren.

Charles D. Steigler Jr. BSBA’72, Hot Springs, April 2, 2017. He spent over 40 years in the financial services industry, working with Wells Fargo Advisers for the last 16 years of his career. Survivors: wife, Robin; two daughters; a sister and three grandchildren.

Janet Merriman BSHE’72, Jonesboro, May 4, 2017. She worked at the Arkansas Health Department for 37 years before retiring in 2015. Survivors: husband, Steve Merriman; a daughter; a sister and two granddaughters.

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Spotlight: photo submitted

Edgardo “Tony” Moreno ✪ ’08

U of A Alumnus Takes Command of the USS San Antonio Captain Edgardo A. Moreno relieved Capt. Darren W. Nelson as Commanding Officer of amphibious transport dock ship USS San Antonio (LPD 17), during a Change of Command ceremony at BAE Systems in Norfolk on Jan. 25.

Guest speaker Rear Admiral. Jeffrey W. Hughes, Commander, Expeditionary Strike Group 2, spoke about the importance of command saying, “Command is a privilege bestowed upon a select group of Officers. It is also the most solemn duty these Naval Officers will ever undertake. It is a highly coveted position certainly well earned by these two officers we recognize here today.”

Moreno became the 10th Commanding Officer in the ship’s history. Prior to assuming command of LPD 17, he served as the ship’s Executive Officer. Moreno is a native of South Gate, California and graduated from Norwich University in 1993. He also obtained his Master of Science in Operations Management (MSOM) from the University of Arkansas in 2008.

Moreno chose to pursue his master’s degree at the University of Arkansas due to the prestige and exceptional reputation of the university.

“The entire experience in the pursuit of my MSOM degree was Alton Parish ★+ EDD’73, Fort Worth, Texas, April 28, 2017. He was a college professor for 34 years at Tarrant County Junior College. Survivors: wife, M. Juanita Parish; a son; a daughter; a sister and three granddaughters.

Larry E. Hall BSIM’73, Conway, May 9, 2017. He was a veteran of the Arkansas National Guard. He retired after 22 years of service with the Farm Credit of Western Arkansas. Survivors: wife, Jean W. Hall BSBA’72; his mother; a daughter; a son; a brother and four grandsons.

Wayne Muncy BSBA’73, Fort Smith, March 21, 2017. He was the owner of Wayne Muncy Appraisal Services, Inc. Survivors: wife, Meredith; two

daughters, a son and six grandchildren.

Deborah Treece BSE’73 MED’75, Alma, April 30, 2017. She taught school for 30 years and retired from Alma School District. Survivors: mother and two brothers.

Carroll L. Birge BSBA’75, Damascus, May 9, 2017. Survivors: wife, Joy Birge; his mother; a son; a daughter; a brother; a sister and three grandchildren.

John E. Fox Jr. ★ BA’75 MED’77, Tulsa, Oklahoma, April 9, 2017. He was a Certified Public Accountant. Survivors: a son, two sisters and two grandchildren.

David M. Lanier BA’75, Bentonville, April 7, 2017. He was a well-known

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

remarkable” said Moreno. “From the interaction with the professors in the classroom to the incredible people I met from diverse backgrounds was simply amazing!”

He explained that obtaining a master’s degree from a well-known and well respected university not only strengthened his military record, but kept him upwardly mobile. It will also provide great opportunities for him when he retires from military service and transfers to the civilian sector.

Moreno is a life member of the Arkansas Alumni Association because he wanted to stay connected to the tight-knit group of great alumni and he wanted to make a commitment to helping out fellow alumni in any way he could. “I am immensely proud and honored to know that my master’s degree was obtained from an elite university and the network of alumni is like having a second family,” said Moreno.

San Antonio is the first ship named for the city in Texas, and the first amphibious transport dock ship in the San Antonio-class. Her motto is “Never Retreat, Never Surrender.” n

writer and sports editor of the Benton County Record and Springdale News.

Survivors: a sister and brother.

Mary W. Smithers MED’75, Benton, April 6, 2017. She was a school teacher and taught for more than 20 years. Survivors: four daughters, a son, six grandchildren, a step-grandson, seven great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson.

Kathryn G. Presley BSE’77 MED’81, Fort Smith, March 30, 2016. She retired from the Fort Smith Public School System, serving as principal of Ballman Elementary School. Survivors: husband, Charles E. Presley MED’61; a son; a daughter; a sister; 13 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Ralph M. Clifton JD’78, Brinkley, April 20, 2017. He was an active city attorney for 31 years. Survivors: three brothers and a sister.

Daniel R. McCormick ★ BSA’78 MSA’85, Fayetteville, May 9, 2017. He was a licensed CPA who built his own accounting practice. Survivors: wife, Mary Jernigan McCormick; his mother; two sons and a brother.

Nathan Summitt ★ MS’78, Blytheville, June 12, 2017. He worked at Agrico Chemical Company in Blytheville and retired from there.

Survivors: a daughter, a sister and two grandchildren.

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F RO M S E N I O R WA L K

John Montell Robinson Jr. JD’81, Fort Smith, March 5, 2017. He served in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg. He practiced law for many years in Fort Smith and had several businesses in the community. Survivors: one son, a brother, a sister and three grandchildren.

In Memoriam

photo submitted

William McAninch

Bill McAninch ★ LL.B.’65 Alumnus William “Bill” Shepard McAninch, 77, of Bat Cave and Asheville, North Carolina, died Friday, Feb. 23, 2018, at the St. Joseph Campus of Mission Hospitals.

He was born in Little Rock and went to college at Tulane University in New Orleans, where he met Jerry Wright Burford, who became his wife of 56 years. After Tulane, he entered the University of Arkansas School of Law in Fayetteville, and, upon graduation, taught in the School of Law briefly. Following law school, he began active service in the U.S. Marine Corps, attaining the rank of captain. Following his service in the Marines, he earned a graduate law degree at Yale University.

He joined the faculty of the University of South Carolina School of Law where he spent most of his professional life, retiring as a distinguished professor. Early on, he developed a clinic in which third year law students under his supervision served as attorneys for indigent inmates of the Department of Corrections. He and his wife also established a Public Interest Law Loan Forgiveness Fund at South Carolina that Charles Spencer Palmer MSIE’79, Smithfield, Virginia, April 30, 2017.

He served in the U.S. Army for 27 years and achieved the rank of colonel.

Following his military service, he taught college math for nine years. Survivors: wife, Patricia Dixon Palmer; a son and a brother.

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encourage graduates to take public interest law jobs.

“The burden of law school debt often precludes an attorney from practicing in these relatively low-paying positions,” McAninch said in 2017.

“Consequently, my wife, Jerry, and I donated $50,000 to establish [the fund] to provide debt relief to these lawyers.”

McAninch returned to the University of Arkansas in 1997 to teach again as a distinguished alumnus.

Howard Brill, the Vincent Foster Professor of Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility at the University of Arkansas, recalled meeting McAninch in 1982 when he taught at South Carolina.

“I enjoyed visiting with him and his wife about his days in Fayetteville as a law student,” Brill said. “I was pleased when he returned here as a visiting professor for a semester. He was dedicated to his students and the public service aspect of the legal profession.”

His primary teaching interests centered on criminal law and procedure, and constitutional law. Additionally, he taught seminars on capital punishment and other related areas. He developed a seminar in which trial court judges and law students together analyzed sentences in recent criminal court cases.

He was always interested in civil liberties issues and served as a pro bono legal consultant in many such cases. He also served on the national Board of Directors of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Survivors include his wife, Jerry; a daughter; a son; a brother; twin grandchildren and triplet grandchildren. n

Stephen G. Smith FS’79, Little Rock, March 22, 2017. He was the former president of the Arkansas Game and Fish Foundation and served two sevenyear terms as an Arkansas State Police Commissioner. Survivors: wife, Marietta Irving Smith BSE’73; two sons; a brother and two grandchildren.

1980 Harvey L. Johnson BSIE’80, Camden, May 8, 2017. He was an engineer at Raytheon. Survivors: wife, Velmon Ackerson Johnson BSE’81; a son; a daughter; nine brothers; three sisters and one grandchild.

Lance Alan Fry BSEE’84, Oro Valley, Arizona, May 15, 2017. Survivors: wife, Jennifer Dedman Fry; his mother; his father; a son; a daughter and a sister.

Paula S. Merrigan BARCH’86, Saint Paul, Minnesota, February 15, 2017. She was named Principal and CFO of DJR Architecture, Inc. Survivors: wife, Martha Mockus; her mother and a brother.

Larry A. Hamel MS’88, Olive Branch, Mississippi, April 7, 2017. He served in the Navy for 26 years and was awarded the Navy Meritorious Service Medal and the Navy Commendation Medal.

He later started Computer Solutions, an information technology consulting firm.

Survivors: a brother and two grandsons.

Donnie E. Smith MED’88, Harrison, April 5, 2017. He coached basketball, taught history and finished his career as a school administrator, retiring from education after 41 years in the state of Arkansas. Survivors: wife, Becky Smith; his father; a son; a daughter; a brother and four granddaughters.

Sheldon L. Buxton EDD’89, Sallisaw, Oklahoma, April 27, 2017.

He taught graduate courses in school administration for many years at the University of Central Oklahoma and served as dean of education at Oklahoma Wesleyan University. Survivors: wife, Patti Buxton, and a son.

Linda Marie Hepler BSE’89 MED’01, Huntsville, March 19, 2017. She was the gifted and talented coordinator for the Huntsville Public Schools. Survivors: husband, Timothy Hepler; her stepfather; a son; two daughters; a brother; two sisters and two grandchildren.

Richard Glenn Underwood BA’89, Ormond Beach, Florida, January 23, 2017. He was a nuclear pharmacist with Triad Isotopes in Daytona Beach, Florida. Survivors: his mother, his father, two brothers and a sister.

1990 James Franklin Patterson MED’94, Fort Smith, April 13, 2017. He served as an officer in the U.S. Army for two years. After a career in construction,

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

ARKANSAS

ALUMNI OFFICERS

President Don Eldred ✪+’81, Houston President-Elect Teena Gunter ✪ ’92, ’97, Oklahoma City, OK Treasurer Kenneth Biesterveld ✪ ’05, ’10, Bentonville Secretary Debbie Blume ✪+ BSBA’08, Fayetteville BOARD OF DIRECTORS Class of 2018 Kristen Allbritton ★ ’04, Frisco, TX Ashley Harris ✪ ’95, Fayetteville Sharon Hunt ★ ’73, ’75, Fayetteville Kristin Kaufman ✪ ’83, Dallas Bill Kerr ✪ ’88, Tampa, FL Dustin McDaniel ★ ’94, Little Rock Drake McGruder ✪ ’06, ’12, Fort Smith Charles Redfield ✪ ’89 Bentonville Class of 2019 John Forrest Ales ✪ ’02, Bentonville Linda Bedford-Jackson ★ ’80, Austin, TX Susan Kemp ✪ ’73, ’75, Mountain View Robert Kolf ✪+ ’78, Wildwood, MO Greg Lee ✪+ ’70, Fayetteville Paul Parette ✪+ ’89, Dallas Ron Rainey ✪ ’91, ’93, Little Rock Lott Rolfe IV ★ ’94, Maumelle Roger Sublett ✪ ’64, ’65, Mason, OH Amy Tu ★ ’96, Seattle Brian Wolff ✪ ’89, Washington D.C. Class of 2020 John Berrey ✪ ’91, Tulsa, OK Tori Bogner ★ ’13, ’16, Fayetteville, AR LaTonya Foster ★ ’96, Springdale, AR Cecilia Grossberger-Medina ★ ’08, Fayetteville, AR Steven Hinds ✪ ’89, ’92, Fayetteville, AR Regina Hopper ★ ’81, ’85, Alexandria, VA Jordan Patterson Johnson ✪ ’00, Little Rock, AR Don Walker ✪ ’74, Fayetteville, AR Victor Wilson ✪ ’85, Arlington, TX STAFF Associate Vice Chancellor for Alumni and Executive Director of the Arkansas Alumni Association Brandy Cox ✪ MA’07 Director of Membership and Marketing Terri Dover ✪+ Director of Constituent Engagement Angela Mosley Monts ✪ BA’80 Director of Outreach and Programs Thomas Ellis ★ BA’96, MBA’98 Director of Finance Hal Prescott ✪ Lisa Ault ★ BSBA’94, Accounting Specialist; Catherine Baltz ✪+ BS’92, MED’07, Assistant Director of Communications; Tim Barker ★, Fiscal Support Analyst; Debbie Blume ✪+ BSBA’08, Board and Campaign Coordinator; Deb Euculano ✪, Senior Associate Director of Alumni Special Events; Florence Galbraith ★, Fiscal Support Analyst; Mercedes Gazaway ★, Assistant Director of Student Programs; Brock Haegele ★ BA’17, Chapters and Student Programs Assistant; Katie Harrison ★ BA’12, Marketing Specialist; Mary Kate Harrison ★ BA’15, MA’17, Chapters and Student Programs Assistant; Lisy McKinnon ★ BA’97, Associate Director of Chapter Programs; Colton Miller ★, Marketing Assistant; Lora Nanak ★, Constituent Engagement Assistant; Emily Piper ★, Administrative Specialist; Alyssa Pruitt ★ BSBA’13, MED’15, Assistant Director of Membership & Marketing; Patti Sanders ✪+ BSA’08, Associate Director of Alumni Scholarships; Julie Simpson ★, Associate Director of Facilities and Special Events; Edison Williams Sr. ✪, Manager of Affinity Programs & Analysis.

he became a vocational rehabilitation counselor. Survivors: wife, Nancy Patterson; two sons; two daughters; two brothers and nine grandchildren.

Houston Robert Harper BSIE’05, Edmond, Oklahoma, April 28, 2017.

He was an industrial engineer. Survivors: his mother, a son and a brother.

Greg Breece FS’95, Daytona Beach, Florida, May 25, 2017. He was a veteran of Desert Storm and later became a registered nurse. Survivors: his mother, his father, two daughters, one stepdaughter, two stepsons, one sister and one brother.

Jennifer Lin Jordan FS’07, Huntsville, May 29, 2017. She worked at Camp Aldersgate in Little Rock and ERC in Fayetteville. Survivors: her mother, her father, a son, a grandmother and two sisters.

William Flanagan FS’96, Fayetteville, April 20, 2017. He was an artist and was a founding member of the original Fayetteville Underground, the revived Underground, and Fenix Fayetteville.

Survivors: wife, Barbara Jaquish MA’07; and one sister.

Linda Marie Reifenrath FS’99, Garfield, November 16, 2014. Survivors: husband, Peter Reifenrath; mother; father; one son; three daughters; one stepson; one brother; one sister; three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

2000 Lora Elizabeth Little BID’01, Bella Vista, April 28, 2017. She was an architect, a stay-at-home mom and then a consultant for Thrive Life. Survivors: husband, Christopher Little BSA’01; her mother; her father; a daughter; two sons; her maternal grandparents and a brother.

David Bowlin BSE’02 MAT’03, Lowell, April 29, 2017. He served in the United States Air Force. After teaching for many years, he became a licensed associate counselor with Vantage Point and was on track to earn his permanent license in counseling. Survivors: wife, Roseann J. Bowlin BA’89; mother; father; three daughters; one brother; and three grandchildren.

Natalie Sloan Charles FS’03, Benton, May 17, 2017. Survivors: her mother, her father, her stepmother, a daughter, a sister and two stepbrothers.

Jim Morriss BA’03, Fayetteville, April 12, 2017. He was the longtime editor of The Springdale News and The Morning News. He worked more than 50 years in the newspaper business and was inducted into the Lemke Hall of Honor in 2003. Survivors: a son, a daughter, five grandchildren and two greatgrandchildren.

Leanna Faye Obenshain BA’03, Rogers, April 13, 2017. Survivors: her mother, a brother and a sister.

Summer 2018 • A R K A N S A S

Kyle David Marshall BS’07, Siloam Springs, May 3, 2017. He was a server.

Survivors: his mother, his father, a brother and a sister.

2010 Myles Austin McCullough BSME’13, Fayetteville, June 9, 2017. He worked for Central States Manufacturing in Lowell. Survivors: wife, Stephanie Leah; his mother; a son; a daughter; paternal grandfather; maternal grandmother and three sisters.

Tyler A. Cullum FS’16, Fayetteville, May 22, 2017. Survivors: his mother, his father, his maternal grandparents; his paternal grandmother and a sister.

Chloe Michelle Sanders FS’19, Fayetteville, May 14, 2017. She spent much of her time advocating for the Make-A-Wish foundation, later becoming an intern for the organization.

Survivors: her father, her mother, her maternal grandmother, her paternal grandfather, a brother and a sister.

Faculty & Staff Jackie Carl Bartlett, Elkins, May 13, 2017. He retired from the University of Arkansas as Inventory Control Manager in 2007 after 48 years of service.

Survivors: wife, Kathryn L. Bartlett; a son; a daughter; two step-sons; a stepdaughter; a sister; nine granddaughters and five great-grandchildren.

Diane Worrell, Fayetteville, May 16, 2017. She was a special projects librarian with University of Arkansas Libraries.

Survivors: husband, Dan L. Worrell, and a son.

Friends John E. Bland ✪+, Arkadelphia, May 24, 2017. He was a World War II veteran and retired school teacher.

Survivors: wife, Bobbie Kelly Bland ✪+ BSE’50; two sons; two daughters; a brother; nine grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.

Melva B. Davis ★, Little Rock, April 29, 2017. Survivors: husband, Ed Davis ★; three daughters; two sons; two sisters; a brother and 12 grandchildren.

Oscar Washington Jr. ★, Little Rock, April 18, 2017. He was vice president of customer service for Entergy Arkansas and the owner of multiple businesses.

Survivors: wife, Doris Eskridge Washington BSA’89; his mother; two daughters and three brothers.

CORRECTION: In the spring 2018 issue of Arkansas the surviving spouse of Charles Wilson BSE’65 MED’68 was misidentified. We apologize for the error in our records.

His memoriam listing should have been as follows: Charles Wilson BSE’65 MED’68, Little Rock, Mar. 17, 2017, He was an educator and a coach. Survivors: wife, Jae L. Wilson; two sons; grandchildren and great-grandchildren. n

Steven M. Neuse, Fayetteville, May 26, 2017. He taught at the University of Arkansas until his retirement in the early 2000’s. Survivors: wife, Jeanine N. Neuse; two sons; a brother and three grandsons.

David Westendorf, Fayetteville, May 22, 2017. He was a psychology professor at the University of Arkansas until his retirement in 2005. Survivors: wife, Anita Zisner; three sisters; a brother and two grandchildren.

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photo by Russell Cothren

L A S T LO O K

Picturing the Future Sydney Spradlin, a graduating senior in biomedical engineering, and her friend, Diamond Bogle, a graduating senior who majored in sociology and criminal justice, thumb through images that they took of each other on the front steps of Old Main, a popular spot during the days leading up to Spring Commencement. More than 4,400 students applied for graduation during the spring semester, adding to the more than 1,200 who graduated in December. It just means Senior Walk will keep growing and growing. n

64

A R K A N S A S • Summer 2018

Travel the World in 2019

with Razorbacks on Tour

Members, alumni, friends and family – anyone can travel with R azorbacks on Tour.

Baja California and the Sea of Cortez Among the Great Whales January 19-28, from $7,530 Legends of the Nile featuring Abu Simbel February 12-23, from $4,895 Historic South and Golden Isles Cruise March 2-11, from $4,695 Legendary Europe: Monte Carlo to Rome May 7-15, from $2,599 includes economy air from select gateways D-Day 75th Anniversary: An Iconic Journey of Remembrance May 29-June 7, from $12,599 The Great Journey through Europe featuring a Rhine River Cruise and the Glacier Express June 6-16, from $4,695

Ireland ~ Killarney June 25-July 3, from $3,295 Canadian Maritimes July 6-15, from $3,995 Waterways of Russia August 2-13, from $5,995 Costa Rica: Eco Explorer (Young Alumni Tour) August 21-25, from $1,375 Greek Island Odyssey September 1-7, from $1,498 Southwest National Parks October 2-11, from $3,995 News Year's on Cloud 9 - Innsbruck, Austria (Young Alumni Tour) December 29-January 2, from $1,695

NOTE: Prices are per person based on double occupancy unless otherwise noted. Airfare is not included unless otherwise noted. PRICES AND ITINERARIES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

For details on the 2019 Razorbacks on Tour trips visit www.arkansasalumni.org/tours or contact travel@arkansasalumni.org or 800-775-3465.

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