Rebecca Bowen and her daughter, Rachael Bowen

It is a typical occurrence to see family and friends attending a commencement ceremony, but family members participating in the same ceremony is somewhat unique; however, this is exactly the case for Rebecca Bowen and her daughter, Rachael Bowen. The mother-daughter duo is graduating together at the University of Central Arkansas on Friday, May 2.��

“It just kind of worked out that Rachael and I get to graduate together and even from the same college, so that is just terribly exciting. We hoped it might happen, but we weren’t for sure,” Rebecca said. “We’ve had many obstacles along the way, and it’s just worked out that we are able to do this together.”

The Bowens will walk in the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences ceremony at 9 a.m. Rebecca will earn a Bachelor of General Studies degree, and Rachael will earn a Bachelor of Arts in interior design.��

“I think I’ve got the better of it because not only am I fulfilling this for myself, but I get to watch my kid graduate, and so there’ll be some tears over that, too,” Rebecca said.

Rebecca Bowen and Rachael Bowen receive congratulatory letters.

While the duo will march during the same ceremony, their educational journeys have been very different. Rachael attended courses in person, starting as a nursing student, so she is now finishing after six years of study. Rebecca started college years ago, but had to stop, so she attended BT����classes online.

Even with their different treks, they did manage to take one class together, a required course for Rachael but an elective for Rebecca: architectural history.��

“I love telling people that my mom is a student at UCA. My whole class knows,” Rachael said. “It was kind of funny with the roles reversed. I was always like, ‘What homework do you have? What tests do you have?’”

And for Rebecca, “I couldn’t have passed the class without her,” she chuckled.��

For both women, completing the degree together is more than just satisfying; it also fulfills a family legacy of earning a college degree.��

Rebecca said, “My father was a professor at Ouachita Baptist, and my mother was an elementary librarian, and all my life, they would be, ‘I wish you’d go back to college. I wish you’d go back to college.’ They both passed away before I started at UCA.”

She plans to wear her father’s tassel from his cap and gown at commencement.��

Once the commencement ceremony is over, they plan to take a few more photos and just enjoy the moment. Rebecca goes back to work in Little Rock, and Rachael starts a new career with Shine Interior Design Studio.��

“So this has been a long time coming. And I am extremely excited, and I’m really excited to just go out into the workforce, honestly, because of what my professors have taught me,” Rachael said.

By: Dr. Fredricka Sharkey

As we close the weekend and look toward the last two weeks of the semester, I want to communicate updates about the shooting incident in the early morning hours on Saturday, April 19. While this is still an open investigation and details will continue to accumulate about what happened, I also want to pass along some of my earliest thoughts about what it means for openness, access, and safety on the campus that we all love and enjoy.

First of all, I want you to know that we are in constant communication with the detectives who are working the case for the Conway Police Department. While I cannot disclose much about those discussions during an ongoing investigation, I can confirm that a second suspect’s name has been shared, and we can confirm that they also are not a current or former BT����student.��

Now that we have evidence that both identified suspects in the violent and blatant disregard for our community were non-students, we will be pulling leadership across campus functions into an evaluation of the safety and security protocol as it applies to the presence of anyone that is not a student, faculty, or staff member or is not a visitor to campus with official business or attending a sanctioned event.

We are proud of and thankful for the student life and social experiences that tie our community together, but we cannot allow outside actors with zero regard for our organizations, departments, and the university to bring chaos and selfishness to the place that we value and that many of us call home. We will use our safety protocol evaluation to bolster our current security measures as well as identify and implement ways to ensure visitors invited to our campus are aware of and able to abide by our policies.

We continue to be relieved that the brief but horrific display of violence did not have more victims, as many students were present along Donaghey Avenue near that parking lot where shots were fired between two vehicles. The one student bystander that was hit continues to recover at home today and is being supported by their family, our student affairs division, and our academic leadership and faculty.

One thing not mentioned in the email yesterday morning was a thankfulness for the rapid response by UCAPD in getting to the area, securing it, and applying initial first aid including a tourniquet to the one victim before paramedic and emergency medical techs arrived and transported to Conway Regional. While this event is one that we hope to never have to experience, I am thankful for the role that UCAPD and local partnerships with the City of Conway and healthcare facilities play in ensuring that rapid response capabilities join constant patrol and preparation.

I want to again remind all of you that this is an ongoing investigation, and anyone with information regarding this case should contact the BT����Police Department at (501) 450-3111. We also want anyone that has a need of the BT����Counseling Center to know that services are available at (501) 450-3138. For students who may need other support services, you may also contact the Office of the Dean of Students at (501) 450-3133. While we were beyond fortunate that this event was not more tragic, the emotional toll is still very heavy. If you need to talk to someone, please reach out to us and know that you are not alone.

Sincerely,

Houston Davis
President

Many of you are waking up to the news of an early morning shooting incident on our campus. While I can thankfully report that this event did not result in a tragic loss of life, it is deeply concerning that something like this can happen on and around a college campus and that violence is becoming so prevalent in our society. This email is intended to provide as much information as possible at this time.��

At approximately 1:08 a.m., an altercation in the Student Success Center parking lot near the intersection of Donaghey Avenue and Bruce Street resulted in shots being fired.��

A student, who was a bystander, sustained a gunshot wound to the leg and was transported to Conway Regional Medical Center for treatment. As of approximately 5 a.m., the student had been released, was home with family, and in good spirits. No other injuries have been reported to police at this time.��

One suspect is in custody. There is no indication that this individual is a current or former BT����student. At this time, we believe this was an isolated incident.

We know that this incident and other campus shootings nationally in recent days and weeks have given us all a sense of anxiety and concern regarding college campus safety. This is a troubling pattern, and we understand and share in that sentiment.��

We work daily to provide a safe and accessible campus for our students, faculty, staff, and constituents. It takes all of us working together to make this happen. This is an ongoing investigation. Anyone with information regarding this case should contact the BT����Police Department at (501) 450-3111.

We will communicate with campus in the event there are additional updates. In the meantime, the BT����Counseling Center is available at (501) 450-3138 if students or anyone in our campus community is in need of their services.

Sincerely,

Houston Davis
President

Keiren Minter (left) as Eurydice’s father and Crystal Daniels as Eurydice

The University of Central Arkansas Theatre Department is proud to present Sarah Ruhl’s Eurydice, a modern, poetic retelling of the classic Greek myth.

Performance dates are April 11, 12, 18, and 19 at 7 p.m., and April 13 and 20 at 2 p.m., at the James M. Bridges Black Box Theatre in the Windgate Center for the Fine and Performing Arts.

Directed by BT����Assistant Professor of Theatre Lauren Carlton, this production brings a contemporary lens to a timeless story of love, loss, and the complexity of human relationships.

Crystal Daniels as Eurydice

Keiren Minter as Eurydice’s father

BT����students, faculty and staff can receive free tickets at the door or at the Reynolds Performance Hall or Windgate Box Office. General admission tickets are $10 and can be purchased . Tickets may also be purchased at the Reynolds Box Office or Windgate Box Office Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or by calling BT����Ticket Central by phone at (501) 450-3265 or toll-free at (866) 810-0012.

Patricia Poulter

A space in the Student Success and Veterans Resource Center at the University of Central Arkansas will now be known as the Poulter Commons, named in honor of former provost and executive vice president Patricia Poulter.

A dedication ceremony was held Tuesday, March 18, before a crowd of at least 100 well-wishers.��

During her remarks, Poulter thanked everyone for attending, but she also recognized the significance of the space to students visiting the building.��

“Your name matters. Your name matters, and being seen matters, and that’s what a place like this does. It tells every student that comes in that you are welcome here,” Poulter said.��

Poulter served from 2018 until her retirement in 2024. The plaque that will be placed in the Poulter Commons includes this excerpt: “Under her leadership, BT����expanded innovative academic programs, broke down barriers for students, and strengthened institutional accreditation efforts. She played a pivotal role in advancing student success initiatives, ensuring that BT����remained a leader in higher education within Arkansas and beyond. Her advocacy for faculty and staff development contributed to a culture of excellence, collaboration, and innovation. The renovation of this facility into the Student Success and Veterans Resource Center is a staple of her vision, leadership, and impact on this campus.”

By Dr. Fredricka Sharkey

Kay Hinkle

Kay Hinkle has been reappointed to the University of Central Arkansas Board of Trustees for a fourth term by Gov. Sarah Sanders. Her new term expires in 2032.

Hinkle was first appointed to the board in 2004 by former Gov. Mike Huckabee, again in 2011 by former Gov. Mike Beebe and a third time in 2018 by former Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

“Ms. Hinkle’s longstanding commitment to BT����has benefited our students, faculty, staff and entire BT����community. We are excited to continue working together, building a positive momentum for our campus,” said BT����President Houston Davis.��

A 1970 graduate of UCA, Hinkle is a charter member and past president of the Stone County Scholarship Foundation. A native of Malvern and resident of Conway, she served on the Mountain View School Board for 11 years and has been a member of the Committee of 100 for the Ozark Folk Center. Hinkle and her husband, Jim, also a BT����alumnus, are longtime active participants in business and civic affairs in Mountain View. They are active members of Flatwoods Baptist Church in Mountain View and have two daughters, both BT����graduates, and four grandchildren.

“I am both pleased and honored to be reappointed by Gov. Sanders to UCA’s Board of Trustees for a fourth term,” Hinkle said. “I appreciate the opportunity to serve my state and alma mater, and I look forward to working with President Davis and the board to continue to move BT����forward.”

The university’s board has seven members who are appointed by the governor and approved by the Arkansas Senate. Board members serve seven-year terms, with one member’s term expiring Jan. 15 of each year.

Their seminar, entitled, “The Ethics and Politics of Climate Change: Two Perspectives on the Current Global Warming Debate,” will take place on Monday, April 14 at 2:30 p.m. in Lewis Science Center room 100. It is hosted by UCA’s Environmental Science Program.

Eilperin also covers politics and the 2008 presidential election for the Washington Post. She has received the Luce Scholarship, the Templeton-Cambridge Journalism Fellowship in Science and Religion, the Western Enterprise Reporting Fellowship from Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West and the Woods Hole Ocean Science Journalism Fellowship. She also delivered the inaugural Muncy Journalism and Politics lecture at the University of Kansas Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics in 2006. She is the author of the 2006 book, Fight Club Politics: How Partisanship is Poisoning the House of Representatives and is currently writing her second book, on sharks, which Pantheon will publish in the spring of 2009. Eilperin serves on the board of the Washington Press Club Foundation, an organization committed to supporting women and minority journalists, and she graduated magna cum laude from Princeton with an A.B. in politics and a certificate in Latin American Studies.

Light is currently associate professor of philosophy and public affairs at the University of Washington-Seattle. He will become director of the Center for Global Ethics at George Mason University in September. He has received the Harrington Faculty Fellowship from the University of Texas-Austin, a Center fellowship at the International Center for Advanced Studies at New York University, and an Individual Scholar Award from the National Science Foundation. He has authored or edited 17 books on environmental ethics, philosophy of technology, and aesthetics, including Environmental Pragmatism and Reel Arguments: Film, Philosophy and Social Criticism. He graduated magna cum laude from Mercer University in 1989, with a triple major in philosophy, political science and history. He received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of California at Riverside in 1996.

The new Ambassadors are: Aaron Killingsworth, Alicia Haflick, Amanda Hickman, Amanda Tyson, Amber Race, Andreya Reed, Angela Brooks, Angela Setliff, Anna Street, Antonia McDonald, Ashley Simons, Ashley Watts, Ashton Barnett, Austin Hudson, Bradley Mullins, Brittany Williams, Britynn Davis, Caitlin Porter, Caroline Timm, Cassie Sweeney, Chris Carter, Damon Borchert, Danielle Atwoode, Dannis Armikarina, Dean Turbeville, Debbie Oluokun, Deborah Sanders, Desiree Paulhamus, Emily Bradley, Emily Clark, Emily Hester, Haley Morgan, Hannah Abbott, Hannah Smith, Heather Bennet, Jamie Mose, Jared Matheney, Jasmine Vanhook, Jessica Bell, Jessica Goodnight, Jill Mann, JJ Holland, Jon Sumners, Jonathan Lauver, Josh Bramlett, Josh White, Julianna Smith, Julie Storing, Katy Freyaldenhoven, Kristen Burk, Kristen Qandah, Kristin Elrod, Kristin White, Krystal Lutz, Kyle Meacham, Kyle Schnebelen, Lauren Foster, Lauren Miller, Leah Jacks, Lindsey Davis, Lindsey Wright, Madeline Phillips, Maegan Thompson, Melinda Wheeler, Melissa Swint, Michael Washingon, Oliver Sobik, Rachel Whitfield, Samantha Newman, Samantha Walker, Shea Crotzer, Shirley Carr, Stephanie Long, Stephanie Sollis, Sunni Hartsfield, Suzette Thornes, Tammy Andrews, Taylor Scott, Taylor Thompson, Tazzmin Maxfield, Tobin Williamson, Tyler Young, Whitley Watson, and Whitney Raney.

The production is under the direction of Chris Fritzges, assistant professor of Theatre, with set design by Director of Theatre, Greg Blakey. The play is stage managed by Sinovia Mayfield of Little Rock with costume design by Shauna Meador, assistant professor of Theatre. Cast members include Erica Summers of Cabot, Taylor Galloway of Maumelle, Shannon Suit of Bonnerdale, Kyle Smiley of Rogers, Aaron Holt of Hot Springs, Aaron Stevens of Jacksonville, Matt Peoples of Carlisle, Josh Miller of Mena, Jack Walsh of Harrison, Gavin McCollum of North Little Rock, Natalie Culbreth of El Dorado, Tom McLeod, Jordy Neill, and Brian Lachowsky, all of Conway, and Aaron Kopf, Cameron Backus and Allison Benton, all of Little Rock.

Tickets are $8 each and can be purchased at BT����Ticket Central at the Reynolds Performance Hall or by calling 501-450-3265 or toll-free 866-810-0012. The general public may also purchase tickets online at .

Additional information about BT����Theatre and Twelfth Night can also be obtained online at .

Debra L. Burris, Assistant Professor of Physics at UCA, was a panelist for the Science Cafe LR discussion on Space Science in Arkansas. The panel was held in conjuction with the first “birthday” of the Science Cafe series in Little Rock, which meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Other panelists included Ed Wilson (Harding), Ann Wright (Hendrix) and Tillman Kennon (ASU). Panelists gave a ten-minute overview of their field of research expertise then fielded many questions from the audience. More info on Science Cafe can be found at .

Adriian Gardner, Instructor in UCA’s Department of Speech and Public Relations, has been selected to serve as a research paper reviewer for the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) during its national conference in August. His duties will include reviewing research papers which were submitted for the AEJMC schoarly research competition. The reviewers will make comments about the strengths and weaknesses of the papers, and they will determine if the papers will be accepted, rejected or not applicable for the research competition presentations.