University of Arkansas at Little Rock

Social work was an easy career choice for new graduate Katherine Holtz, whose difficult personal circumstances led to her decision.

Chloe McGehee, from Bryant, Arkansas, has graduated from UA Little Rock with bachelor's degrees in mass communication and political science. McGehee has known she wanted to be a journalist since middle school, where she was editor of the Bryant Junior High yearbook. When she transitioned into high school, she remained on the yearbook staff and became editor of the award-winning Bryant High School yearbook staff her senior year.

Victoria Temples has always believed in following her gut, which led her to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. A week before she began college in 2019, the Little Rock native was set to attend another college as a biology major, but Temples had a change of heart and has never looked back.

Mackenzie Rash has loved science since the tender age of 10, so earning a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock seemed like a smart and easy decision. "I've always been interested in science since the fifth grade," Rash said. "I had an awesome science teacher, and we did experiments all the time. I always loved science and participating in science fairs."

Last year, UA Little Rock student Griselda Delgado Torres had an experience that is unusual to most graduating seniors. She completed her final semester of her Bachelor of Social Work degree program from a hospital bed in the Intensive Care Unit, where she had just spent two weeks on a ventilator and feeding tube recovering from pneumonia.

In his hometown of Omro, Wisconsin, Caleb Boutin has spent his high school years and summers working at Omro Building Center. Upon his acceptance to the Donaghey Scholars Honors Program, he traveled nearly 800 miles to begin his college career at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, never imagining that his college journey would eventually lead him back to his small hometown of about 3,500 people.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Olivia Fitzgibbon was an active and engaged college student, living on campus and enjoying life in the Donaghey Scholars Honors Program at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.

Life is moving fast for UA Little Rock graduate and Donaghey Scholar Alyssa Smith. After graduating with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, Smith will marry her college sweetheart, fellow UA Little Rock graduate Baker Rodgers, on June 10. After a honeymoon cruise in the Caribbean, she will start work as a natural gas engineer at Summit Utilities.

Ahad Nadeem, a biology major from Little Rock, has been named the winner of the 2023 Edward L. Whitbeck Memorial Award at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Frank L. and Beverly Whitbeck established the top graduating senior award in memory of their son, Edward Lynn Whitbeck, who was a senior at Little Rock University, the predecessor of UA Little Rock, at the time of his death in 1965. Each scholar receives a personalized plaque and a monetary award.

While growing up as a child in Nepal, Mayor Inna Gurung had little exposure to computer science. "It started out as a mere curiosity as a kid to understand how devices were working, how websites are built, and how they made certain applications," she said. "But as I grew up, I understood there is way more to it. As a family with a business background, my parents were always hesitant for me to pursue a career in computer science."

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student who is graduating this spring plans to use her Master of Social Work degree to help other adults who are neurodivergent. A native of Monticello, Leslie Beard went back to school in 2020 to pursue a career in social work. The graduate student became a part of a growing number of women who learned they were neurodivergent as adults.

After losing her home to the devastating tornado that struck central Arkansas on March 31, a graduating UA Little Rock student and mother of four from Little Rock is looking forward to the positive things in life, including starting a new career as a nurse.

Graduate student Nahiyan Bin Noor has an analytical mind, and he is always exploring ways that he can use his skills to solve problems.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock congratulates its Fall 2022 graduates with multiple degrees.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock announces its Fall 2022 graduates.

A UA Little Rock history student is celebrating the completion of his lifelong dream of finishing his college education, a dream that is 50 years in the making.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate is exploring how to attract more women to enter Arkansas's growing construction industry. Gozde Gursoy, a native of Izmir, Turkey, will graduate with a Doctor of Education in Higher Education Administration from UA Little Rock.

A UA Little Rock student has earned his master's degree after advancing cybersecurity education for hundreds of students and teachers throughout Arkansas. Andrew Bomberger, of Hot Springs, will graduate with a master's degree in computer science on Dec. 17. While he's grown into one of the department's leading students, Bomberger was originally on a very different career path before discovering his passion for cybersecurity.

A graduating UA Little Rock student is thankful to the university for helping her prepare for a future career helping people as a medical surgeon. Taylor Arnold, a senior biology major from Hot Springs, said she was inspired to follow in her father's footsteps to the medical field.

Kristina Johnson, a Little Rock native who now lives in Hot Springs Village, has known since high school that she wanted to pursue her passion for writing in college. "When I was a senior, I thought about what I was good at. I really liked English and creative writing. I've enjoyed writing short stories in my free time for many years."

Christine Jones, a graduating student at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has been honored as the LULAC Student of the Year.

Right after high school, Jacobi Malone was adamant that he was never going to attend college. Eleven years later, the Little Rock native is understandably excited about his upcoming graduation from the UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law.

When future lawyer Johanna Baker Wade was an undergraduate student at Henderson State University, she recalls two events that shaped her life.

A UA Little Rock business graduate is honoring a promise she made to her children to finish her college education. Anita Burnett, a North Little Rock resident, will graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Business Analytics degree on Dec. 17, more than 23 years after she initially began her college career.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock congratulates its spring 2022 graduates with multiple degrees.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock announces its spring 2022 graduates.

A group of UA Little Rock students participated in a pilot program by the Academy for Public Service that gave students experience in serving in a state legislative session and the Supreme Court.

Graduating seniors from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock learned the challenges of undertaking international construction projects as part of their year-long capstone project.

UA Little Rock setter Sophia Reynolds has finished up her summer of training and playing in Mexico at the Women's U21 Pan American Cup, guiding the Dominican Republic to an eighth-place finish.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock students were honored for their skills in international diplomacy. UA Little Rock student diplomats competed in the National University Model Arab League Conference March 23-27 in Washington, D.C., where they represented the country of Iraq.