University of Arkansas at Little Rock

As the end of her junior year at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock drew near, Keely Reeves was concerned about a lack of professional experience that she felt would hurt her chances to get a job after graduation. "I will graduate in May 2020," said Reeves, a Benton native double majoring in mass communication and professional and technical writing. "I only had one internship under my belt before last summer, and I was panicking, thinking that I might graduate without having any internships related to my majors." Last spring, she began an intense search for internships that involved video editing, photography, social media, writing, and editing.

After averaging 5.5 digs per set and leading Little Rock to its 34th consecutive win over ULM, senior libero Diana Giordani has been named the Sun Belt Conference's Defensive Player of the Week.

UA Little Rock Trojan student-athlete Asmalia Redzuan has been chosen as the Missouri Valley Conference's Swimmer of the Week after her multiple strong performances during an Oct. 26 home dual against Incarnate Word. This marks the team's first Swimmer of the Week honor since 2016, and Redzuan is also the fourth freshman in program history to earn the recognition.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock Department of Theatre Arts and Dance showcased its fall production of "Eurydice" Oct. 16-20 in the Haislip Theatre in the Center for Performing Arts. "Eurydice" is a postmodern retelling of the classical myth of the legendary Greek hero, Orpheus, from the perspective of his beloved Eurydice. The young couple's time together is cut short when Eurydice is killed on their wedding day. Her journey to the Underworld and Orpheus' subsequent pursuit to reclaim her has been celebrated in art and music for centuries.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate has achieved her dream of becoming a homeowner with the help of the University District's First Time Homebuyer Program. Cadie Foscue, a May graduate of UA Little Rock's Master of Social Work program who now works as a social impact analyst at the Good Grid in Little Rock, had dreamt of the stability of a permanent home ever since she was a child.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has announced 99 Little Rock Trojan student-athletes have earned Sun Belt academic honors for the 2018-2019 academic year. The Little Rock Trojans compete in baseball, basketball, golf, soccer, track and field, cross country, and volleyball. A total of 64 Little Rock Trojans were named to the 2018-2019 Sun Belt Commissioner's List, which recognizes students who have maintained a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher. A total of 35 Little Rock Trojans were named to the 2018-2019 Sun Belt Academic Honor Roll, which recognizes students who have maintained a cumulative GPA between 3.0 and 3.49.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has received a $10,000 Google education grant that will help provide free cloud-based cybersecurity labs for junior high and high school students in Arkansas. Additionally, a three-year $276,424 National Science Foundation grant awarded to the UA Little Rock Emerging Analytics Center is being used to develop a free open-source, cybersecurity curriculum for students in Arkansas with assistance from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education.

UA Little Rock students participated in a study of island biogeography in the Bahamas during the summer of 2019. The students observed the island's many ecosystems and witnessed wildlife including sharks, sea turtles, and the critically endangered San Salvador rock iguana. The students kept field research journals and completed a research project on a topic of interest, which ranged from exploring the abundant life in the Bahamas' coral reef to biodiversity in the forests to the snails that lived in the island's tidepools.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock head basketball coach Darrell Walker has announced the addition of transfer guard Ben Coupet Jr. to the Trojan roster. Coupet transfers from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and will have two years of eligibility remaining.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock graduate student is one step closer to fulfilling her dream of becoming a mental health counselor thanks to a $2,500 scholarship. Ariel Lackey, a master's student in social work, received the Big Red Stores/Family Market scholarship for the 2019-20 year. The scholarship is awarded annually by the UA Little Rock Alumni Association to a full-time or part-time entering freshman, transfer, or continuing student who is an employee or immediate family member of an employee at Big Red Stores/Family Market.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock freshman with dreams of becoming a high school band director was the recipient of this year's Richard Family Fund Scholarship. The $1,000 scholarship will be of immense help to Cesar Guerra Gonzalez, an 18-year-old Little Rock native. The scholarship recognizes academic excellence, and the recipient performs 15 hours of community service with a community agency working with the Hispanic community.

Robbin Cochran, a May graduate of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock's Master of Social Work program, is spending the next year helping veterans as part of the Psychology Postdoctoral and Interprofessional Fellowship at the Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System.

Three University of Arkansas at Little Rock students are helping to uncover the secret to successful community partnerships between religious and nonprofit organizations in Little Rock. The Little Rock Congregations Study is an ongoing research project led by Dr. Rebecca Glazier, associate professor in the UA Little Rock School of Public Affairs, stemming from research begun in 2012 about the effects of religious organizations on community engagement in Little Rock. In 2018, student researchers surveyed more than 110 clergy members in the Little Rock area, conducted interviews with 24 clergy members, and wrote 22 stories highlighting partnerships between congregations and community organizations. This fall, they are surveying nonprofit organizations to learn more about when and how partnerships form.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock business student Shibani Lal has been selected for the Forbes Under 30 Scholar Summit. Lal, who will graduate in May 2020, is looking forward to the conference to gain advice and investors for her future startup business.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock doctoral student Patricia Covington has found a passion for international collaboration after attending a prestigious summer ecology program in France.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock student-athlete Aaron Ramos finished among the individual Top 10 at the competitive Trinity Forest Invitational held this fall in Dallas.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock student-athlete Logan Pate finished among the individual Top 10 at the competitive Trinity Forest Invitational held this fall in Dallas.

The newly elected student leaders of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock are ready to take charge. Kaitlin "Katie" Zakrzewski, a senior Donaghey Scholar studying criminal justice and anthropology, and Brittany Fugate, a senior history major, were announced last month as the new president and vice-president of the UA Little Rock Student Government Association.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock forward Ronjanae DeGray, a two-time first team all-conference honoree, was named the Sun Belt Conference's 2018-19 Athlete of the Year. The Sun Belt Athlete of the Year award, which annually recognizes one female and one male student-athlete, is the highest individual honor given and based on athletic performance, academic success, outstanding leadership and character.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has announced the newly elected members of the Student Government Association for the 2019-20 academic year.

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has announced the student-athletes who will make up the inaugural wrestling team roster for the 2019-20 season. The wrestling team includes four Arkansans, seven wrestlers from previous collegiate teams across the nation, six freshmen from the southern region, and nine freshman from the midwestern region.

UA Little Rock announces its summer 2019 Chancellor's List, recognizing students with superior academic performance in a semester. To be eligible for the Chancellor's List, students must earn at least nine credit hours and at least a 3.9 grade point average. Students must not have D, F, I or "no credit" grades on their semester grade reports.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student has been selected out of thousands of students from across the globe to participate in the Forbes Under 30 Scholar Summit in October. Jared Stovall, a senior biology major from Cedar Hill, Texas, was thrilled to learn that he had been accepted to the prestigious program to attend the elite young entrepreneur conference.

Incoming students at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law began their first fall semester on Aug. 10 with a day of public service at Booker T. Washington Elementary School on South Main Street in Little Rock. After a welcome from law school administration, 161 students converged on Washington's campus in record-breaking rain. Little Rock received 3.87 inches of rain, beating a record that had stood since 1915. Through it all, the students, their group leaders, and Bowen Law School staff completed projects both inside and outside the elementary school.

Eleven students at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock have been awarded scholarships from the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) to continue their education this fall. UA Little Rock's students are among the 35 students from colleges and universities across the state selected for this year's awards. The 11 students are collectively receiving $10,000, with some matching funds from the university. All students were honored Sept. 13 at the LULAC Council 750 Little Rock Scholarship Gala beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Great Hall of the William J. Clinton Presidential Center, 1200 President Clinton Ave. in Little Rock.

wo University of Arkansas at Little Rock researchers have used a novel approach to quantitatively portray legislative change in Ukraine to provide a view into the larger political dynamics of the country.

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student artist and her longtime family friend will display their unique art styles during a debut pop-up show.

A concurrent student from the UA Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law and the Clinton School of Public Service recently completed his International Public Service Project with African Prisons Project (APP), a nonprofit organization with the vision to empower changemakers within prisons by providing them with legal training and services.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock's Carol Barbosa was named to the Sun Belt Conference's 2019 Preseason All-Conference Volleyball Team.

Ryan Bourgoin, one of three UA Little Rock recipients of the U.S. Department of State's Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship, spent seven weeks this summer living with a host family in Vedado, a neighborhood in Havana's business district, through USAC's La Habana (Havana) study abroad program. He took courses at The Instituto de Filosofia and studied government and politics in Latin American and Latin American social revolutions.