University of Arkansas at Little Rock

As he prepares to graduate this fall, Stephen Little has proven that success at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock is as much about mental focus as it is physical strength.

After earning two business degrees debt-free and immersing herself in a community of mentors, leaders, and global experiences, Benton native An Le is stepping into graduation with something rare: genuine confidence about what comes next.

Proving that it's never too late to pursue a calling, Joyce Young White will fulfill a decades-long dream this December when she receives her master's degree in health education and promotion from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Inspired by her mother's work as a registered nurse, Kemiya Bornds knew by age seven that she wanted to pursue a career in medicine. She set her sights on becoming an OB-GYN, a physician specializing in obstetrics and gynecology. With the support of her parents, that dream has never changed. This Saturday, Bornds will take a major step toward that goal as she earns her Bachelor of Science in biology with a concentration in clinical biology.

Balancing law school with a full-time job required tremendous resilience - a quality Verenice Perez Taylor is proud to claim. On Saturday, Dec. 13, the Hope, Arkansas, native will graduate Summa Cum Laude from the UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.

Although COVID-19 abruptly ended his chance to play college basketball, UA Little Rock senior Jairus Dean is preparing to graduate this fall - determined, grateful, and proud of how far he's come. The Newport native graduated from Newport High School in 2021 after helping lead the Greyhounds to a trip to the state basketball tournament. Before the pandemic, Dean had received several college offers to continue his athletic career. But by graduation day, COVID-related eligibility rule changes caused those opportunities to disappear.

When Tanner Smith signed up for a grant writing course offered by the Department of Rhetoric and Writing at UA Little Rock in fall 2024, he never imagined it would lead to one of the most impactful experiences of his life as well as a $110,000 windfall for a neighborhood coffee shop that is trying to make the world a better place one cup of coffee at a time.

Ally DeSordi came to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with two passions: swimming and teaching. Four years later, the Omaha, Nebraska native and senior Little Rock Trojans swimmer will graduate from UA Little Rock on Dec. 13 in K-12 Health and Physical Education and carries with her the lessons, mentors, and experiences that shaped her into the teacher she's becoming.

Christina Doncell, a soon-to-be graduate of the William H. Bowen School of Law at UA Little Rock, has spent the past few years balancing full-time work, part-time living in Texas, and the demands of law school. On Dec. 13, Doncell will graduate magna cum laude from Bowen. A Plano, Texas, native, Doncell began her academic journey by earning a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Texas at Dallas. She later attended Oklahoma Christian University and Collin College before enrolling at Bowen.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student is transforming the way people learn about the insect world through technology with the launch of a new mobile application, Insects AR, now available on the Google Play Store.

Alex Tarpley, a junior civil and construction engineering major, spent the summer interning in Dublin, Ireland, where he gained life-changing experience that expanded his outlook on life, sharpened his professional skills, and deepened his passion for engineering.

Little Rock track and field athlete Brooklyn Marcee has earned one of the Ohio Valley Conference's most prestigious distinctions, being named an OVC Scholar-Athlete, an award given to only six student-athletes conference-wide who embody the highest standard of academic excellence, athletic achievement and leadership.

Two University of Arkansas at Little Rock students, Axton Tackett and Braden Carr, have been selected for the inaugural Arkansas Civic Leadership Academy, a statewide program backed by the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute that prepares the next generation of civic leaders.

Ginger Johnson, a May graduate of the Master of Social Work program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has been named a recipient of the 2025 Love of Learning Award from The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate student has been recognized nationally for her academic excellence and commitment to lifelong learning. Michelle Keithley, a graduate student in the Professional and Technical Writing program, has been awarded a 2025 Love of Learning Award from the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi. Keithley, a native of Springfield, Missouri, is one of only 155 recipients nationwide to receive the $1,000 award this year.

Emma Dorsey, a senior accounting major at UA Little Rock, spent her summer gaining hands-on experience that will help launch her career in accounting. The Little Rock native, who plans to graduate in May 2026, completed a competitive internship with Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, where she worked as an administrative cost and budget intern.

After building a commanding lead through two rounds, Little Rock cruised to the Everett Buick GMC Invitational title Tuesday afternoon at Chenal Country Club. The Trojans blistered the Founders Course, finishing at 34-under par for the week. After shooting 11-under and 12-under on Monday, Little Rock added another 11-under round in Tuesday's finale. UAB placed second at 13-under, followed by Lipscomb at 12-under.

A UA Little Rock graduate student spent her summer interning with Siemens Healthineers, where her strong work ethic and technical writing skills impressed her team so much that the company has extended her internship beyond the summer.

Hannah Jones, a graduate student in mechanical engineering at UA Little Rock, spent her summer interning at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, gaining hands-on experience that brought her closer to her dream of a career in aerospace engineering.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock is welcoming 25 new and talented students to the Donaghey Scholars Honors Program for the 2025-26 academic year. The new cohort of Donaghey Scholars represent the best and brightest students at UA Little Rock. Members receive a financial package that covers full tuition and fees, a stipend, financial assistance for a study abroad program, a housing subsidy, and a new laptop. The program is run by Dr. Simon Hawkins, director, and Dr. Jessica Scott, associate director.

Little Rock junior Eleonore Aernouts continued her strong fall season with a runner-up finish Tuesday at the Lady Red Wolves Classic, hosted at Sage Meadows Golf Club. Aernouts shot 6-under par across three rounds, finishing three strokes behind ULM's Tessa Ion, who claimed medalist honors at 9-under.

A UA Little Rock student spent the spring semester immersed in Spanish culture, where she gained experiences and life skills that she says will help her in any future career path.

For Auriel Del Carmen, studying abroad at the University of Nottingham in England was more than just a chance to complete his final semester of college in a unique and unforgettable setting. It was an opportunity to see history come alive, build lifelong friendships, and gain the global perspective he hopes to bring into his future career.

Hannah Jones, a graduate student in mechanical engineering at UA Little Rock, spent her summer interning at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, gaining hands-on experience that brought her closer to her dream of a career in aerospace engineering.

UA Little Rock student Emilia Berry spent her summer overseas, where she gained invaluable experience that will shape her future career as a speech-language pathologist.

Braden Carr, a junior at UA Little Rock, had a summer filled with professional development and international learning opportunities that are helping prepare him for a career in public service.

Gabriella O'Neil, a Master of Business Administration student at UA Little Rock, spent her summer putting her classroom knowledge into practice during an internship with Baptist Health in Little Rock.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate Brittany Rose has written a successful $16,270 grant on behalf of World Services for the Blind (WSB) to fund a life-changing program for blind and visually impaired students.

UA Little Rock student Josh Wynne-Hudson spent part of his summer studying thousands of miles from home and came back with lessons that will shape his future career.

Dogs may be humanity's oldest companions, but their evolution from wild wolves is still full of mysteries. New research from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock is helping solve one of them by showing how domestication may have altered far more than behavior. Jacob Hansen, a graduate student in biology, and Dr. Raffaela Lesch, assistant professor of biology, have published a groundbreaking study demonstrating that domestication reshaped the canine larynx, the organ responsible for sound production. It's the first anatomical test of a major scientific concept called the neural crest domestication syndrome (NCDS) hypothesis. "This is the first study to test whether selection for tameness affects the voice box," Hansen said. "We found measurable differences between the larynges of dogs and wolves, which supports the idea that domestication doesn't just change behavior but also changes anatomy." The team's research, which was published in the Royal Society Open Science journal in July, offers rare anatomical insight into how domestication impacts the development of the voice box via neural crest cells, which are embryonic cells that influence everything from skull shape to vocal folds. While the NCDS hypothesis has previously been used to explain behavioral and physical changes in domesticated animals, no one had applied it to the larynx before. To conduct the study, Hansen and Lesch used CT scans to analyze and compare the larynges of domestic dogs and wolves. They identified 108 specific anatomical landmarks and worked with international collaborators to gather laryngeal specimens from across Europe. Their co-authors include Nicole D. S. Grunstra, W. Tecumseh Fitch, Andrew C. Kitchener, and Michaela Gumpenberger. "We saw significant differences in the size and shape of the larynx and vocal folds between dogs and wolves," Hansen said. "Dogs, particularly mesocephalic breeds with medium-length snouts, had smaller larynges and shorter vocal folds." Those differences suggest that the evolution of dogs' friendly and expressive behavior may have come with vocal trade-offs. Lesch, who mentored Hansen throughout the project, said the findings help validate a core prediction of the NCDS hypothesis: that selection for tameness reduces neural crest cell migration, which in turn influences multiple body systems. "The larynx is largely derived from neural crest cells," Lesch said. "The fact that we see structural changes in this organ supports the idea that domestication has widespread anatomical effects. This occurs not just on the visible features like ears or snouts, but on deeper systems that affect communication." Their work also hints at larger implications. Some researchers believe humans underwent a process of "self-domestication," evolving to become more sociable and cooperative over time. If so, studies like this could provide a biological roadmap to investigate how human anatomy may have changed as a result, according to Lesch. Co-authors hail from research institutions in the U.S. and Europe, including Austria's University of Vienna and the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, as well as the National Museums Scotland, reflecting the international collaboration behind the study.