Newsmakers: Spring 2018

Athletics Head cross-country and track coach Steve Guymon was inducted into the Oklahoma Christian University Athletic Hall of Fame on Jan. 30, 2018. Billy Morgan , the voice of the Bisons, was awarded the 2017 Sully Award at the Little Rock Touchdown Club annual awards banquet Jan. 11, 2018. The award is presented each year to Arkansas’ top broadcast play call for both high school and college football games.

Center for Student Success Stephanie O’Brian was appointed director of Upward Bound in February following the retirement of Katrina Smeltzer . Scott Palmer was named academic coordinator for Upward Bound in March replacing Lynn Smeltzer who retired at the end of February. Jessica McCumpsey was named assistant director of new student programs in April.

College of Arts and Humanities Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson appointed Lori Klein to serve on the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission Committee on Dec. 20, 2017. In January, Senate President Pro Tempore Jonathan Dismang appointed Klein to the five-member Arkansas Ethics Commission. Susan Shirel successfully defended her dissertation at Ball State University to earn a D.M.A. with an emphasis in music education and vocal performance. The title of her dissertation is “Using Learning-Theory-Based Teaching Strategies for Teaching Singing: An Explanatory Sequential Study of Collegiate Teachers of Singing.”

College of Bible and Ministry Dr. Nathan Guy was awarded the Coventry Prize in recognition for his doctoral dissertation titled “The Theological Basis of John Locke’s Political Thought.” The award recognizes the student achieving the highest mark or recommendation in divinity at St. Edmund’s College, Cambridge, England.

College of Business administration Mark Farley , assistant professor, successfully defended his dissertation titled “Optimal Bank Offices and Bank Office Entry in Rural U.S. Markets,” on April 4, 2018, at Louisiana Tech University.

College of Education Dr. Todd Patten , associate professor and licensed professional counselor, has been appointed chair of mental health and wellness. Dr. Leeann Howard , assistant professor of education, has been appointed director of field experiences. She replaces Dr. Amy Adair who returned to full-time teaching. Dr. Kimberly Flowers , associate professor of education, has been named director of educational leadership following the resignation of Dr. Lynette Busceme . Pat Bashaw , assistant professor of education, was appointed director of the Master of Arts in Teaching program. He replaces Dr. Susan Grogan who will continue teaching full time while devoting more attention to literacy and dyslexia studies.

College of Sciences The family and consumer sciences department awarded two students, Elizabeth VanCuren and Savanna Phares , the opportunity to attend the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo in Chicago during October 2017. It is the world’s largest conference of food and nutrition professionals and experts.

Office of the Senior Vice President Dr. Jim Carr has been named to the editorial board of the Journal of Institutional Real Estate — Americas edition.