/news-archive/tag/kris-mcabee/ 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Wed, 27 Feb 2019 19:41:46 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 /news-archive/2019/02/27/weekend-university/ Wed, 27 Feb 2019 19:41:46 +0000 /news/?p=73563 ... 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock offers Weekend University for lifelong learning]]> The University of Arkansas at Little Rock will begin a new on March 9 that will offer central Arkansans a series of 90-minute micro-classes on topics ranging from Shakespeare to stargazing. 鈥溙切腣log传媒 Little Rock is committed to offering lifelong learning opportunities in the community, and that鈥檚 what we are doing with this initiative,鈥� Chancellor Andrew Rogerson said. 鈥淭he Weekend University format allows people to come and spend part of their Saturday with some of 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock鈥檚 star professors.鈥� Weekend University, part of the university鈥檚 Extended Education program, will offer morning and afternoon sessions led by 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock faculty and staff. The spring schedule includes two sessions on March 9, April 6, and April 20. The cost is $15 per session or $25 for two on the same day. Sessions will be held at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave. Topics will reflect a diversity of faculty and staff expertise and interests. 鈥淲eekend University promises to be eclectic and enriching,鈥� said Sarah Beth Estes, interim dean of the College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences and associate provost for Community, Careers, and Extended Education. 鈥�The inaugural schedule covers such wide-ranging topics as the earth and the stars, the Met and the Bard, wedding dresses and fake news messes. We hope the community will join us downtown to learn something new, to stimulate their curiosity, and to shift their perspective.鈥� Weekend University Spring 2019 Calendar March 9 – 鈥淲hy Shakespeare?鈥� 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m., Kris McAbee, associate professor of English March 9 – 鈥淲hat鈥檚 Behind the Magic at the Metropolitan Opera?鈥� 1:30-3 p.m., Diane Kesling, instructor of music April 6 – 鈥淎ll the News that鈥檚 Fit to Fake,鈥� 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m., Jan Thomas, professor of philosophy April 6 – 鈥淪targazing Basics for the Beginner,鈥� 1:30-3 p.m., Darrell Heath, past president of the Central Arkansas Astronomical Society April 20 – 鈥淣atural State Geology You Need to Know,鈥� 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m., Michael T. DeAngelis, associate professor of geology April 20 – 鈥淢emorable Wedding Dresses: From the Silly to the Sublime,鈥� 1:30-3 p.m., Yslan Hicks, chair of the Department of Theatre and Dance Fall topics will include the validity of forensic evidence, Middle Eastern archaeology, and how to curate collections. For topic descriptions and costs of Weekend University, visit For more information, contact Christine Cotton, director of Extended Education, at cecotton@ualr.edu.]]> /news-archive/2018/08/07/unique-course-selections-fall-2018/ Tue, 07 Aug 2018 16:25:12 +0000 /news/?p=71335 ... Check out these unique course selections for fall 2018]]> The fall 2018 semester is right around the corner. For students still searching for an interesting course to fill out their , the University of Arkansas at Little Rock has some great choices.聽 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock courses offer students the chance to learn about political themes in classic horror films and literature, real estate development and property management, as well as how teachers can meet the social and emotional needs of gifted and talented children. Check out the following guide for courses that explore interesting and unique topics: ANTH 2316-01 and 2316-02: Cultural Anthropology 12:15-1:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday or 10:50 a.m.-12:05 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday This course examines the concept of culture, cultural processes, and anthropological theories. Topics include marriage, economics, gender, ethnicity, and socialization. Students will gain a better understanding of the hows and whys of cultures, which they can apply in their everyday lives. This is a great course for anyone planning to work with a variety of people, including those majoring in business, criminal justice, education, finance, political science, or international relations. ENG 4350: The Politics of Horror 12-15-1:30 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday by Kris McAbee Inspired by the 2017 breakout hit 鈥淕et Out,鈥� this seminar interrogates the features of cinematic and literary horror to ask how this genre is particularly suited to political commentary. We will cover a range of films including 鈥淕et Out,鈥� as well as 鈥淭he Blob鈥� (1958), 鈥淭he Night of the Living Dead鈥� (1968), and 鈥淭he Shining鈥� (1980), alongside literature like Shakespeare’s 鈥淢acbeth鈥� (1605), Walpole’s 鈥淭he Castle of Otranto鈥� (1765), Le Fanu’s 鈥淐armilla鈥� (1871), Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” (1892), and Jackson’s “The Lottery” (1948). The class offers an exceptional opportunity to analyze texts in different media across several historical periods to encourage students to think about cultural production in reference to the frightening stakes of legal, economic, racial, and gender politics. This course is the Fall 2018 Cooper Honors Seminar but is open to all students. ENGL 4100: Horror on Film 6-8:40 p.m. Wednesday by Kris McAbee Offered in conjunction with The Politics of Horror, this one-credit course will feature screenings of all the horror films discussed in The Politics of Horror course. The course is open to all students, even if they are not enrolled in The Politics of Horror. ENGL 4370 and ENGL 5370: Seminar on Toni Morrison 4:30-5:45 p.m. Monday and Wednesday by Laura Barrio Vilar This seminar provides students with a unique opportunity to study key works by Nobel- and Pulitzer-Prize winner Toni Morrison. Infused with a womanist approach, Morrison鈥檚 writings cover a wide range of topics from race and gender relations, family, socio-economic, and cultural survival to slavery, war, and infanticide. Students will consider not only Morrison鈥檚 major works of fiction, but also her ideas about literature, language, and her goals as a writer. This course counts toward both the minor in Race and Ethnicity and the minor in Gender Studies. FINC 4397: Real Estate Development and Property Management 6-8:40 p.m. Thursday by Elizabeth Small This seminar has interdisciplinary characteristics combining the real estate process with an entrepreneurial approach and a corporate umbrella approach. The course analyzes an eight-stage model of real estate development using examples in the local community as well as national cases. Students learn the value of city planners, legislators, regulators, contractors, lawyers, and lenders throughout the development process. Site visits and conversations with developers, lenders, and contractors are all a part of the educational environment. Learning from the experiences of those in ownership, property management, construction, and consultant rolls is a crucial part of the class experience. Students end the semester by presenting a development project of their own creation. GATE 7363: Affective Needs of the Gifted Online course by Bronwyn MacFarlane This graduate course is a study in the social and emotional needs of gifted children. Emphasis is placed on responding to affective needs of gifted students and development of social skills through lesson planning, teacher training, and parent awareness. GEOG 4300: Spaces of Violence Online course by David Baylis In this class, students will approach violence from a social geographic perspective. This course will address the following topics: gendered, sexualized, and racialized violence; serial killers as urban gentrifiers in the Revanchist City; memorializing and erasing landscapes of violence; imagined geographies of violence; crime mapping and its applications and errors; violence, violent spaces, and popular culture; and the role of place in the production of moral panics. HIST 3326: Islam and the Modern Middle East 12-12:50 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday by Katrina Yeaw What are the root causes of the Arab Spring? What are the origins of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict? What role does Islam play in Middle Eastern politics? This course focuses on these and other issues fundamental to understanding the modern Middle East from the 19th century to the Arab Spring demonstrations in 2011. This course will address the following topics: the decline of the Ottoman Empire, imperialism and colonialism, nationalism, the emergence of modern nation states, oil, political Islam, the Arab-Israeli conflict, gender identities, American intervention, and the Arab Spring. HIST 4356 and HIST 5356: History of Race and Ethnicity Online course by John Kirk The course examines the history of race and ethnicity in the United States from prehistory to present with a focus on selected topics in the experience of the nation’s diverse and multicultural heritage. 聽The course is unique in being the only one at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock to provide a comprehensive history of race and ethnicity in the United States and is one of two core classes for the Race and Ethnicity minor. HIST 4393: Haitian Revolution in World History 6-8:40 p.m. Monday by Nate Marvin This course explores the events and significance of the Haitian Revolution (1789-1804) from its beginnings to the present day. The revolution that transformed the largest and most brutal of Europe鈥檚 slave plantation colonies into the independent nation of Haiti unfolded in a series of major historical precedents. What began as a home-rule movement among white colonists became a civil rights struggle among free people of color, eventually setting the stage for the largest slave uprising in the history of the Americas. Despite its world-historical significance, the Haitian Revolution was once marginalized in historical writing and college curricula. In this course, students will think critically about that obfuscation and other such “silencings” of history and analyze the wealth of new scholarship on the importance of the Haitian Revolution in world history. Topics will include the revolution’s effects on the demographics and culture of the early United States; politics and philosophy in France, Great Britain, and Germany; Latin American independence movements; the African slave trade; the abolition movement; and other 19th- and 20th-century struggles against racial inequality and colonialism. INTS 2303: Intro to International Studies 12:15-1:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm This course provides a broad interdisciplinary introduction to globalization. The course will explore the many different facets of globalization: economic, political, cultural. Students will examine important debates about globalization such as its affects, whether it is positive or negative, whether it is a new phenomenon, and what the future may hold. In addition, the course will discuss various forms of resistance to globalization. PHIL 3370: Existentialism 6-8:40 p.m. Wednesdays by Keith Robinson In philosophy, literature, and film, existentialist ideas problematize our understanding of freedom and responsibility and challenge our attitudes to the meaning of life and death. Existentialist thinkers pay special attention to moods like nausea, anguish, and anxiety and the ways in which they structure our experience of daily life. This course explores this influential philosophical and literary movement through readings of selected texts as well as viewings of selected films with existentialist themes. PHY 4399 and PHY 5399: Biophysics 3-4:15 p.m. Monday and Wednesday by Gregory Buisbiers This is a new class at the boundary between physics and biology. This class will give students the tools they need to understand the living world from a physicist’s perspective. This class will cover topics that students will not see in any other class, such as scaling laws, fractals, and bio-tribology. POLS 4331: International Organizations 10-10:50 a.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm Many are concerned that international organizations like the United Nations and the World Trade Organization increasingly affect our lives. This course will explore the conception and modern functions of international organizations and the international and domestic political forces that impact their effectiveness to help people assess whether such concerns are overblown. In particular, the course will focus on the role of international organizations in issues of war and peace, human rights, and development. Students will conduct research on and participate in international organization models, including a United Nations Security Council simulation. POLS 4341: International Human Rights 9-9:50 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday by Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm This course provides a philosophical and political exploration of human rights. It will begin with an intellectual history of human rights before examining the international politics of human rights. Students will look at international law dealing with human rights, and the different ways in which human rights are promoted globally. Students will discuss the conditions under which countries are likely to comply with international human rights law and norms, as well as the circumstances under which states are willing to enforce human rights obligations. RELS 3300: Theories of Religion 9:25-10:40 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays by Edward Hale This course provides an overview of theories about religion, as well as methods in the study of religious traditions. It explores such questions as “What makes something religious?;鈥� “What is the relationship of religious practices and beliefs to other areas of life?;鈥� and “Where did religion come from?” It covers approaches to the phenomenon of religion from several disciplines, including anthropology, sociology, psychology, and history.]]> /news-archive/2018/03/06/shakespeare-scene-festival-march-8-9/ Tue, 06 Mar 2018 14:54:52 +0000 /news/?p=69688 ... Arkansas students to perform at Shakespeare Scene Festival March 8-9]]> About 300 elementary, 聽junior high, and high school students from central Arkansas will perform at the Shakespeare Scene Festival on Thursday, March 8, and Friday, March 9, at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Students from Arnold Drive Elementary School, Bethel Middle School, Dardanelle Middle School, Henderson Middle School, and Little Rock Central High will perform from 9:30 a.m. to noon in the University Theatre in the Center for Performing Arts. The festival provides teachers and students a venue for the performance of Shakespeare鈥檚 plays. It is sponsored by the Department of English and the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance. The festival is free and open to the public. For a performance schedule, visit the festival鈥檚 website. For more information, contact the festival鈥檚 director, Dr. Kris McAbee, at kxmcabee@ualr.edu.]]> /news-archive/2017/12/21/mcabee-early-modern-period/ Thu, 21 Dec 2017 14:32:08 +0000 /news/?p=68901 ... 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock professor organizes feminist panels on the early modern period]]> A University of Arkansas at Little Rock professor is making it her mission to revive interest in research of the early modern period for a national women鈥檚 studies conference.聽 Kris McAbee, associate professor of English, organized two panels for the conference held Nov. 16-19 in Baltimore. As a member of the conference鈥檚 Early Modern Women Interest Group, McAbee said that interesting has been waning in the group. To get the group back on track, McAbee and fellow members organized two panels they hoped would tempt feminist researchers back to the area. The early modern period runs from around 1,500 to 1,800 A.D. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been latent the last few years, so I spoke with some colleagues about trying to bring some life back to that group,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he way we started was to put together two interdisciplinary panels. Our panels were well placed to look at, how in the early modern period, a period so historically removed from our own, we still have examples of women resisting oppression.鈥� The first panel, 鈥淓arly Modern Nasty Women: Shrews, Whores, and the Legacy of Resistance,鈥� featured research on women living in authoritarian regimes in the 17th century who participated in acts of resistance against oppression. The second panel, 鈥淭ransgressive Sexualities in Early Modern Capitalist, Carceral, and Colonizing States,鈥� featured research exploring how colonialism and capitalism were used to subjugate women. The panel covered early modern period examples of anorexia, cross dressing, imprisonment, and witch hunts. McAbee, who is already organizing panels for next year鈥檚 conference, also aims to publish these papers as articles in a special edition of an academic journal.]]> /news-archive/2017/11/22/feminist-research-collective/ Wed, 22 Nov 2017 14:05:52 +0000 /news/?p=68622 ... Faculty members create research collective to highlight feminist research]]> Faculty members at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock have started a group to explore feminist research and collaboration opportunities around campus.聽 The Feminist Research Collective is open to all faculty members interested in intersectional feminist research, advocacy, and pedagogy at 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock. Kris McAbee, associate professor of English and one of the group鈥檚 founders, said faculty members have talked about starting such a group for years. She was inspired by a similar group her friends started at the University of Texas at Dallas. 鈥淭hey found really productive engagement with each other,鈥� McAbee said. 鈥淥ne rhetorical scholar and one artist have collaborated on projects and now have a joint installation at a museum in Dallas. It鈥檚 a relationship they wouldn鈥檛 have formed had they not come together through this group.鈥� This semester, the group has held two meetings exploring research on masculinity and child sexual abuse in abolitionist narratives by Dr. Laura Barrio Villar, associate professor of English, and the work on anti-racism, love, and politics by Dr. Jana McAuliffe, assistant professor in the Department of Philosophy and Interdisciplinary Studies. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been so heartwarming and encouraging to meet and work with colleagues who have interests that I didn鈥檛 know were so similar to mine,鈥� McAbee said. 鈥淚 think it can be easy to get isolated in your department. This is a way for us to collaborate across departments and fields and share our research with each other. It鈥檚 nice to have a group to keep us committed to keeping up our scholarship.鈥� For more information, contact Kris McAbee, kxmcabee@ualr.edu, or Catherine Crisp, clcrisp@ualr.edu. ]]>