C4_UAFS_FW1112:covers 1&4 11/11/11 11:34 AM Page C4
Bell Tower UAFS Alumni Association P.O. Box 3649 Fort Smith, AR 72913
NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 479 FORT SMITH ARK CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED
A Look Back
Just before midnight on December 31, 2001, despite the bitter cold, a crowd of some 300 gathered at the flagpoles across from the Baldor Technology Center to sip hot chocolate and help lower the Westark flag and, for the first time, raise the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith flag over campus. Earlier that year, the Westark Board of Trustees had officially agreed to merge with the University of Arkansas System, effective January 1, 2002. As the bells sounded the stroke of midnight, J. Michael Shaw, chair of the brand-new UAFS Board of Visitors, raised the flag while the crowd cheered through chattering teeth. January 1, 2012 marks the 10-year anniversary of the transformation of Westark College into the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith. Let’s hope for a warmer night…