Business office John Noah became director of the business office in January, replacing Molly Douglas who retired in May.
College of Arts and Humanities Dr. Ginger Blackstone , assistant professor of broadcast journalism and electronic media production, won first place for her paper “The Eyes Have It: Television News, Fear Triggers, and the Race for Viewers.” Blackstone also won the 2017 Harwood Outstanding Dissertation Award for her doctoral dissertation “The Worst of Times: The Prevalence and Power of Fear in Television News.” She claimed both awards at the Broadcast Education Association convention in April in Las Vegas.
Professor of Art John Keller’s painting “Langshan Mountains Landscape” was selected to be displayed in the National Art Education Association’s Member Exhibition in the NAEA Studio and Gallery in Washington, D.C., from October 2016 through April 2017.
Student publications staff members were honored at the 2016 Southeast Journalism Conference in February for their work on The Bison newspaper. Senior Sawyer Hite ranked seventh for Best Newspaper Page Layout Designer. Junior Jordan Doyle , senior Hannah Moore and alumnus Hunter Beck ranked fourth for Best Public Service Journalism. Senior Garrett Howard ranked ninth for Best Arts and Entertainment Writer, and senior Amanda Floyd ranked third for Best Press Photographer.
Dr. Jay Walls , associate professor of music, was named director of the University’s Arts and Life Concert Series in March.
College of Nursing Dr. Cathleen Shultz , former dean and professor of nursing, became chair of the National League for Nursing’s Commission for Nursing Education Accreditation Board of Commissioners in January.
The Nursing Student Association chapter was named a National Student Nurses Association Stellar School Chapter at the National Student Nurses Association convention in April in Dallas. The chapter president is senior Cami Ash . Ash and seniors Rachel Bow , April Hunn , Emily Jones , Kayla Rogers and Alexa Santamaria claimed six out of 10 scholarships from the Arkansas Nursing Student Association that were awarded to attend the convention.
Patty Smith , assistant professor of nursing, contributed an article “Organizational Perspectives on Rapid Response Team Structure, Function and Cost: A Qualitative Study” to the Dimensions in Critical Care Nursing journal in January. Her article “Organizational Perspectives of Nurse Executives in 15 Hospitals on Impact and Effectiveness of Rapid Response Teams” will be published in The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety in June.
Office of the Senior Vice President Dr. Jim Carr was named vice chairman of the Higher Education Coordinating Board in January. The board is charged by state law “to coordinate higher education in Arkansas and to assure an orderly and effective development of each of the publicly supported institutions of higher education.”