- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Ursin named 2019 Edward L. Whitbeck Memorial Award Winner

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 18:04:07 +0000

A Donaghey Scholar who is passionate about preserving and sharing history through her work at museums has been chosen as this year’s recipient of the Edward L. Whitbeck Memorial Award at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Nicole Ursin, 21, of Batesville, has earned a 4.0 GPA while double majoring in anthropology and history with a minor in nonprofit leadership studies, all while working at nine different museums and historical organizations throughout her college career. The Whitbeck Memorial Award is the single greatest distinction the university annually bestows on a graduating student through a competitive application process that comes with a $2,000 prize. Ursin will receive the award during a luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m. Friday, May 10, at the Clinton Presidential Center Great Hall in Little Rock. In the fall, Ursin will begin a dual master’s degree program in applied anthropology and historic preservation at the University of Maryland. Once her education is complete, she would like to continue her historic preservation and education work at a museum and consult for communities that want to increase tourism based on historical sites. When she started college in 2015, Ursin looked to ��Vlog��ý Little for an affordable, in-state education the provided her access to museums and culture in the heart of the capital city. She was also accepted into the prestigious Donaghey Scholars program, which provides tuition, fees, an on-campus housing subsidy, and a yearly stipend for up to four years, as well as financial assistance toward a Study Abroad program and a computer. “I wanted to stay in Arkansas for the affordability of staying in state, but I also wanted to be in Little Rock where I would be at the center of where things are happening in heritage and culture,” Ursin said. “I wanted to work and intern at museums and historical organizations, and being a part of the Donaghey Scholars helped me get the liberal arts education that I wanted.” During her study abroad experience, Ursin interned at the Národní (National) Museum in the Czech Republic. She preserved historic human remains from medieval times as well as worked in the Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and Native American Cultures. “I even got to piece together a human skull that was broken into fragments,” she said. In Little Rock, Ursin has interned the National Archives and Records Administration, the Center for Arkansas History and Culture, and the Clinton Foundation. For the past two years, she has worked at the Historic Arkansas Museum, where she researched the factors that drive museum audience demographics and diversity. Throughout her internships, she has developed educational materials for the Clinton Presidential Center’s traveling exhibits and photographed and rehoused museum artifacts from President Bill Clinton’s administration. She also created an online exhibit about the life of, the vice principal for girls at Little Rock Central High School who was responsible for protecting the six female members of the Little Rock Nine. Ursin loves the opportunity to bring history to life for people to better understand the past. During her last two years with the Historic Arkansas Museum, she has learned some invaluable 19th-century skills like candle making and butter churning, to the delight of visiting children.

Nicole Ursin, the 2019 Whitbeck award winner, has worked at the Arkansas Historic Museum for two years. Photo by Benjamin Krain.

“I love my time at the Historic Arkansas Museum,” she said. “I have learned the most and been given the most opportunities to work in different parts of the museum. I am on the education staff, so I help coordinate programs and give historic tours. Recently, I coordinated the museum’s spring break week activities where we do a lot of living history demonstrations. We show people how to do historic cooking and laundry, candle making, butter churning, and a printing press. Kids usually love to make butter. People often don’t understand how much of a chore it would be to do these activities back in the 1840s.” Additionally, Ursin has volunteered at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Sequoyah National Research Center, the Quapaw Quarter Association, and the Old Independence Regional Museum in Batesville. She has curated a permanent exhibit panel about school in early Arkansas, helped develop a database of Arkansas obituaries from newspaper records, and researched historic buildings in Arkansas to aid in historic preservation. On the anthropology side, Ursin put her skills to use by studying an immigrant community of Micronesians living in Corsicana, Texas. Along with her mentor, Dr. Juliana Flinn, professor of anthropology and gender studies, she has visited Corsicana on multiple occasions to meet with community leaders and longtime residents to learn about daily life in the community. “I think one of the most interesting components of the research is how much the immigrants are working to preserve their culture while maintaining a deep connection by visiting the island, sending money back to relatives, and staying active in politics,” Ursin said. “They are really trying hard to preserve their culture and share their culture in Texas.” The ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Faculty Senate Honors and Awards Committee selects the Whitbeck scholar based on t citizenship, scholarship, and leadership. Frank L. and Beverly Whitbeck established the award in memory of their son, Edward Lynn Whitbeck, who was a senior at Little Rock University, the predecessor of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, at the time of his death in 1965. Each scholar receives a personalized plaque and a monetary award and will lead the graduating students during the academic processional at spring graduation on May 11.

Signature Experience Award recipient studies life, growth, and challenges in Texas immigrant community

Thu, 11 Apr 2019 20:13:08 +0000

In the 1970s, a small group of international students from the Federated States of Micronesia at Corsicana, Texas, founded what has become a burgeoning community of hundreds of Micronesian immigrants. Since last fall, Nicole Ursin, a senior anthropology major at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has been conducting original research on the immigrants. She is able to do the research as one of more than 100 undergraduates who received a $1,000 grant to conduct research as part of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Signature Experience Award Program. Since beginning her research, Ursin has visited Corsicana on multiple occasions to meet with community leaders and other longtime residents to learn about daily life in the community and why it has continued to grow. “Most choose to stay because Corsicana is a small, quiet town that doesn’t have all the rush and stress of a big city. The Federated States of Micronesia also has an agreement with the United States where its citizens are allowed to live and work in the U.S. indefinitely,” she said. Ursin is also looking into the unique challenges they face in their community, as well as how issues from their home islands over 11,000 miles away continue to affect them. “Micronesia was just hit by a major tropical storm a few weeks ago, which devastated much of the islands’ crops by flooding them with seawater,” Ursin said. “Since then, it’s been more difficult for Corsicana residents to access imported staple foods like taro and breadfruit. The Corsicana community has been working to raise funds to send rice back to their home islands.” Ursin credits her faculty mentor with introducing her to the Corsicana community and providing her with access to community leaders. “The man who currently leads the community is one of Dr. Juliana Flinn’s former students, and we’ve both been welcomed into it because of that,” Ursin said. Throughout this process, Ursin herself has also gained valuable practical experience in anthropology. “In the early stages of this project, I learned from Dr. Flinn the basics of proper anthropological field work. I’ve done anthropological work in museums before but actual field work was completely unknown to me, and I’m very thankful that Dr. Flinn was there with me to show me exactly what to do,” Ursin said. After finishing her research, Ursin hopes the lessons she has learned from doing the research and the experiences in the field will land her a career in anthropology. “My interest overall isn’t just in Micronesia but in transnationalism and community development overall,” she said. “This research is helping me further understanding how a community develops in one specific area, why people stay, and how a city can help these communities that grow within them thrive.” Overall, Ursin is thankful for the experience she gained from the Signature Experience Award program and encourages other students to look into the program. “If you have a solid project in mind and a good mentor, you should definitely do it,” Ursin said. “On my own I couldn’t have gone to Texas and met all these people or know what to do when I met them. It’s an experience I’ll remember for a long time.” Ursin will be a member of a research panel discussion where she will discuss her research at the Undergraduate Research and Creative Works Expo on Thursday, April 18.

Faculty members, campus organizations honored as ‘Awesome Allies’

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 13 Dec 2018 18:39:20 +0000

University of Arkansas at Little Rock professors and campus organizations were honored as “Awesome Allies” by The Alliance during an awards ceremony on Dec. 12. The Alliance is a student organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or questioning (LGBTQ) students and allies to come together in an open environment to discuss topics related to both gay and straight communities. “Awesome Allies” are faculty members and campus offices who have shown support through LGBTQ inclusive curriculum, classroom behavior, or campus practices. Dr. Juliana Flinn, professor of anthropology, and Dr. Rachel Tennial, assistant professor of psychology, were named “Awesome Allies” for their gender-inclusive curriculum and classroom activities. “I feel honored,” Flinn said. “I didn’t know I did anything special, so it feels like an extra honor.” “By choosing to honor these faculty members, we are hoping to inspire other faculty to include more gender-inclusive classroom activities in their curriculum,” said Bee Chaney, a junior psychology major and president of The Alliance. The Alliance also honored campus organizations Safe Zone and the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Student Social Work Organization. “We are honoring Safe Zone for their commitment to employee education on LGBTQ issues and the Student Social Work Organization for partnering with us to hold a successful Little Rock Pride Fest booth in October,” Chaney said. Safe Zone provides training about LGBTQ issues and safe zones where individuals affected by homophobia, hateful acts, and sexual violence can safely go for support and assistance from trained faculty and staff. Meanwhile, the Student Social Work Organization’s mission is to represent, lead, and unify the student body with the School of Social Work. All of the “Awesome Allies” award recipients received a rainbow cord to wear during commencement. The Alliance holds meetings every Wednesday from 3-4 p.m. in Donaghey Student Center 201T, where participants discuss campus education, activism, and fundraising opportunities. Additionally, the group meets Tuesdays from 6-8 p.m. to provide a safe space for students to socialize. The Alliance is fundraising to send four students to the Creating Change Conference in Detroit in January 2019 to learn about LGBTQ initiatives that can be brought to campus. Donations can be at Facebook.com/��Vlog��ýLRsAlliance. In the upper right photo, Bee Chaney, president of The Alliance, recognizes Dr. Juliana Flinn as an “Awesome Ally.”

7 ��Vlog��ý Little Rock students receive research fellowships

Janea Snyder — Mon, 22 Jan 2018 20:40:11 +0000

Seven ��Vlog��ý Little Rock students have received a prestigious Student Undergraduate Research Fellowships from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education to conduct research. The Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program provides up to $2,750 to undergraduate students and their mentors to conduct in-depth research projects in their specific fields of study with the assistance of faculty mentors. To be eligible, all fellowship recipients have a minimum grade-point average of 3.25, at least 30 hours of credit toward a degree, and support of a faculty mentor. Funds also are provided for students to travel to conferences to present their accomplishments. Students from all academic disciplines were encouraged to apply. “Research is the foundation of every great discovery, and the only way to prepare students for advanced research at the graduate level is to prepare them as undergraduates,” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Chancellor Andrew Rogerson said. “It’s so important for our students to learn best practices under the guidance of faculty mentors so they are prepared for more rigorous research as graduate students and as professionals.” The ��Vlog��ý Little Rock fellows include the following:

Saiyeeda F. Hossain of Pine Bluff, a double major in sociology and psychology, received $2,750 to research “Personality and Depressive Disorder of College Students: A Focus on Undergraduate Students at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock.” Saiyeeda’s faculty mentor is Dr. Neveen Shafeek Amin in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology.
Dylan Wright of Little Rock, a Spanish and political science double major, received $2,000 to study LGBTQ rights and research “Critical Film Perspectives in the Argentine Queer Community.” His faculty sponsor is Dr. Erin Finzer in the Department of World Languages.
Jesse Horton of Marshall, a criminal justice major, received $2,125 to research the “Impact of County-level Economic Disadvantage on Juvenile Case Dispositions in Arkansas.” His faculty sponsor is Dr. Molly Smith in Criminal Justice.
Nicole Ursin of Batesville, a Donaghey Scholar who is majoring in history and anthropology, received $2,125 for her research project, “Understanding Museum Demographics: Historic Arkansas Museum.” Her sponsor is Dr. Juliana Flinn in the Anthropology Department.
Trye Price of Benton, a criminal justice major, received $2,125 to research “Influence of Location and Client Characteristics on Perceived Violence Among Victims of Human Trafficking.” His faculty sponsor is Dr. Molly Smith in Criminal Justice.
Olivia Pate of Jonesboro, a geology and math major, received $2,750 to research her project “Refining the Sol-Gel Synthesis of Intermediate Composition, Nano-Scale Olivine.” Her faculty sponsor is Dr. Michael T. DeAngelis in the Department of Earth Sciences.
Patrick Elliott of Little Rock, an electrical and systems engineering major, received $2,750 to research “Effective Real-Time Energy Management in a Southern US Power Grid.” His faculty sponsor is Dr. Kamran Iqbal in the Department of Systems Engineering.

The students will complete their research in the spring 2018 semester, and six of the students who also received Signature Experience Awards will exhibit their work at the Student Research and Creative Works Showcase on April 12 in the Jack Stephens Center.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock student wins award to transcribe music of world-renowned Arkansas fiddle player

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Thu, 09 Feb 2017 14:05:01 +0000

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock student hopes to make the musical stylings of a famous Arkansas fiddle player easier to learn by identifying the unique elements of his signature music style. Emily Phillips, a junior majoring in anthropology and Spanish at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, received $2,000 from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education’s Student Undergraduate Research Fellowship for her project to transcribe the music and stylistic elements of “Fiddlin’ Banjo Billy Mathews.” Mathews is a world-renowned fiddle player known for his intricate and unique playing style. He has been performing for more than 40 years and has greatly contributed to the American folk music catalog. Under the supervision of her mentor, Dr. Juliana Flinn, professor of anthropology, Phillips, who is also a champion fiddle player, will transcribe Mathews’ recordings and identify unique elements of his music style on paper. Mathews began on the banjo and later learned to play the fiddle. Due to the influence of his banjo playing, he was able to mimic banjo techniques on the fiddle, such as “pull-offs,” “hammer-ons,” and “slides.” By transcribing these recordings, Phillips will be able to investigate how his style was influenced by the traditions of other regions and players. She will also see how his playing style differed from those who previously played the same tunes. Phillips will transcribe the audio recordings on the album, “500 Fiddle Tunes: Old-Time Archive,” using music transcription software. Her goal is to make Mathews’ songs and playing style more accessible for other players to emulate.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock