/news-archive/tag/good-works/ ĚÇĐÄVlog´«Ă˝ Little Rock Tue, 26 Sep 2017 09:13:08 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 /news-archive/2017/09/26/merci-cssc/ Tue, 26 Sep 2017 09:13:08 +0000 /news/?p=68028 ... College of Social Sciences and Communication launches Merci Initiative to recognize positive acts]]> On Sept. 1, Jasmine Avery’s ordinary Friday afternoon turned extraordinary when she was surprised by the delivery of a note and chocolates to sweeten her day. Avery, a student worker at the Link in the College of Social Sciences and Communication, was surprised to receive a note from her boss, Rachel Jones, assistant dean of learning and student success, thanking her for her good work. “I felt more than happy to receive Rachel’s positive comments,” Avery said. “Ms. Rachel is more than just my boss; she is someone I personally look up to.” The positive note is part of a new initiative in the College of Social Sciences and Communication, where students, faculty, and staff are learning that a kind word or good deed can go a long way. The college rolled out its “Merci CSSC” initiative in August, which allows people to recognize those from the college who have made a positive impact by performing an act of kindness or going above and beyond to help someone. “This allows us to reflect on the people who help and support us and show them thanks,” Jones said. “I wanted to utilize the Merci Initiative to just let Jasmine know how thankful I was for all of her hard work for the first couple of weeks of the semester and encourage her to continue being awesome.” Dean Julien Mirivel said the initiative was a way to celebrate the students and employees within the college. “In the college, we want to create a really positive culture for faculty, staff, and students,” he said. “One way of doing that is to find opportunities where people can celebrate each other.” Mirivel, who is a well-known scholar on the effects of positive communication, said that acknowledging goodness and kind acts will encourage more people to perform similar acts. “There is a lot of research in positive psychology that shows gratitude is a way to experience positive communications both for the receiver and the sender,” Mirivel said. “We should try to find ways of creating positive energy, and this is one way of doing that.” Receiving a positive note so early in her new job did motivate Avery to work harder. “The positive comments I received by Rachel gave me more motivation to keep being myself, working hard, and putting a smile on everyone’s face who comes by my job, just like Ms. Rachel!” Avery said. Sending a positive message of gratitude to someone in the College of Social Sciences and Communication is as simply as filling out an online form. The college had more than 20 submissions in its first week alone. The messages are reviewed by a member of the College of Social Sciences and Communication dean’s office. The message will then be printed and hand delivered to the recipient along with a few chocolates on Fridays.]]> /news-archive/2017/08/08/bill-waddell-bowen/ Tue, 08 Aug 2017 14:03:03 +0000 /news/?p=67587 ... American Bar Association honors Bowen alum for public service]]> A University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law graduate is one of five national recipients of an American Bar Association award that honors public service in the legal profession.  William (Bill) Waddell Jr., a partner at, will receive the American Bar Association’s during an Aug. 12 awards luncheon in New York. The award is given to lawyers and institutions that have demonstrated outstanding commitment to providing volunteer legal services for the poor and disadvantaged. These services are of critical importance to the increasing number of people living in poverty who need legal representation to improve their lives, according to the American Bar Association. “In the end, increased access to justice is crucial,” Waddell wrote on the American Bar Association website. “Individuals in need, particularly women and children, often have nowhere to turn but legal aid, and their unmet problems, which can often be resolved with minimal assistance, result in a loss of community.” Waddell has devoted hundreds of hours as a volunteer, handling more than 300 pro bono adoptions for Bethany Christian Services. He also serves as legal counsel to the United Methodist Church’s Council of Bishops and has served as chancellor to the Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church. In 2009, Wadell’s work led to the creation of the Arkansas Access to Justice Foundation, where he served as chair of the board of directors for eight years. The foundation later merged with Arkansas’ Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts program to diversify support for legal aid. Waddell is a 1978 graduate of the University of Central Arkansas and a 1984 ĚÇĐÄVlog´«Ă˝ Little Rock law school graduate. He is a recipient of a 2017 Outstanding Lawyer Award from the American Bar Association, a 2016 Outstanding Pro Bono Service Award from Legal Aid of Arkansas, and a 2013 Arkansas Bar Foundation Equal Justice Distinguished Service Award. ]]>