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

��Vlog��ýLR announces interim Graduate School dean

Shanna Fitzgerald — Fri, 20 May 2016 14:13:56 +0000

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock has chosen Dr. Abhijit Bhattacharyya to serve as its interim leader for the Graduate School. Bhattacharyya — who already is heavily involved in research and graduate studies at the university — will fill the interim leadership position of vice provost for research and dean of the ��Vlog��ýLR Graduate School. His new role begins July 1. Bhattacharyya currently is the associate dean of the ��Vlog��ýLR Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology (EIT) and previously served as the college’s interim dean and the applied science graduate coordinator. As associate dean of the EIT college, he collaborated with colleagues in the college and throughout campus as faculty developed accelerated Bachelor of Science plus Master of Science (BS+MS) programs. He also played a pivotal role in administering the ��Vlog��ýLR-��Vlog��ýMS joint graduate program in bioinformatics and served as ��Vlog��ýLR’s representative on the Science Advisory Committee of the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers recently elected him as an ASME Fellow, recognizing his significant contributions to the mechanical engineering community. Bhattacharyya will replace Paula Casey, who announced her retirement after serving in the position since 2013. “I want to express my gratitude to Dean Casey for her contributions in advancing our graduate school and our research,” said Dr. Zulma Toro, executive vice chancellor and provost. Bhattacharyya was a great fit based on his academic and research experience and knowledge of the needs, vision, and goals of the university, Toro said.

About Dr. Abhijit Bhattacharyya

Bhattacharyya joined ��Vlog��ýLR in 2002 as an associate professor. His research is in materials engineering with a focus on smart materials and thin films. The Department of Defense, NASA, the Department of Energy and NSF-EPSCOR have funded Bhattacharyya’s research for a total of about $1.3 million, and he is the author of nearly 90 publications. Bhattacharyya has mentored high school and undergraduate students, and also has mentored and taught Ph.D. and Master of Science students. His experience and leadership roles include:

EIT Graduate Curriculum Committee chair (2005-08)
Graduate Council member (2007-09)
Applied science graduate coordinator (2006-10)
EIT associate dean (2011-14 and July 2015 to present)
EIT interim dean (January to June 2015)
��Vlog��ýLR representative on the Science Advisory Committee of the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority (2010-2013)

Graduate student presents research to last living child of Carl Bailey

Taylor Aldana — Tue, 15 Dec 2015 20:41:19 +0000

Giving voice to the people and events of the past is one of graduate student Nicolette Talley’s greatest joys. “With the help of the public history program, I will be able to do this for the rest of my life,” said Talley, who is scheduled to graduate in December from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She discovered the subject for her thesis while a graduate assistant at the ��Vlog��ýLR Center for Arkansas History and Culture. Kaye Lundgren, archival assistant, recently processed a collection on former Arkansas governor Carl Bailey. The subject fell right into her lap, Talley said. “I started asking (Lundgren) more questions when she told me that Bailey had a friendship with Harry Truman before he was president, which I found fascinating,” Talley said.

Gov. Carl Bailey. Photo courtesy of Washington Press Photo Bureau

With a life that spanned from 1894 to 1948, Bailey contributed a lot to the state. He created the Arkansas police force, and he introduced the first merit system in the South. Bailey was a prosecuting attorney and eventually became the attorney general and later a two-term governor of Arkansas from 1937 to 1941. Talley said she couldn’t find research on Bailey, and because she considered him an interesting person, she decided to further explore his life. She presented her thesis research on Dec. 8 to the last living child of Bailey, whose oral record of his father was recorded by the staff at the Center for Arkansas History and Culture, and who also donated articles on Bailey to the center. “I want to make sure that Carl Bailey is remembered for generations to come, and I know that without the donations from his son to the CAHC, I may have never had the chance,” Talley said. Talley gained archival experience at the ��Vlog��ýLR Center for Arkansas History and Culture as a graduate assistant and then later as an intern, learning about digitization and the digital archive experience. She then applied for the graduate assistant position at the William J. Clinton Presidential Library for a different opportunity. She assists the museum department in inventory, collections management, and exhibit installation. Talley is the first graduate student at ��Vlog��ýLR to be accepted into Pathways, a federal government internship program at Central High School National Historic Site in Little Rock, where she works through the National Park Service. At Central High, Talley is a guide, helping create and present programs, giving interpretive tours of the high school and surrounding area, and representing the site as a first-person interpreter at the front desk. She also creates distance learning lesson plans and helps produce educational videos that explain the cultural and historical buildings and areas around Central High School. After Talley goes through the Dec. 19 commencement ceremony, she plans to continue working for the National Park Service. She will switch to a full-time position at Fort McHenry in Baltimore in the new year. “I firmly believe that ��Vlog��ýLR helped me gain experiences in the public history field, including archives, interpretation, and museums,” she said. Talley said her time at ��Vlog��ýLR has been educational, informative, and experience driven. “I looked at many schools across the country before choosing ��Vlog��ýLR, and I know that, in the end, this was one of the best decisions of my life,” she said. To view Talley’s digital exhibit and read more on her research, .

��Vlog��ýLR Names Graduate School Dean Finalists

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 20:21:21 +0000

Three candidates have been selected as finalists for the dean of the Graduate School at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. They will be on campus in May for interviews and presentations. The finalists include Vann Newkirk of Alabama A&M University, Jie Chen of the University of Idaho, and David Devraj Kumar of Florida Atlantic University. Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Zulma Toro appointed Gail Hughes, interim dean of the College of Education, to lead the search committee. The new dean will be responsible for all aspects of operation of the Graduate School and advance the school’s and university’s strategic plans and institutional goals. Newkirk will be on campus May 6 and 7. Currently serving as associate provost for Academic Affairs and dean of Graduate Studies at Alabama A&M University, he is responsible for management and oversight of the Graduate School, sponsored programs, university libraries, institutional research, testing, and the Alabama State Black Archives. He serves as one of two institutional authorities for regional accreditation. He received a doctorate in history in 2002 from Howard University, Washington, D.C.; a master’s degree in library science in 2007 from North Carolina Central University, Durham, N.C.; a master’s degree in history in 1991 from Winthrop University, Rock Hill, S.C.; and a bachelor’s degree in sociology in 1985 from Barber-Scotia College, Concord, N.C. Chen, dean of the College of Graduate Studies and director of Confucius Institute, will be on campus May 8 and 9. He is currently William Borah Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of Idaho (UI). He developed a strategic plan for graduate education at UI and strengthened shared governance in graduate education. He received a doctorate in political science in 1991 from Washington State University; a master’s degree in international policy studies in 1987 from Monterey Institute of International Studies; and a bachelor’s degree in journalism in 1982 from the Institute of International Politics in Beijing, China. Kumar, a professor of science education at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), will be on campus May 15 and 16. He has more than two decades of experience in research and teaching in science education, administration and leadership, and state level public office and service. He has served as associate dean of Research and Graduate Studies at the college level and as graduate program coordinator at the department level at FAU, developing and implementing policies to promote research and scholarship among faculty and students. He received a doctorate in science education in 1991 from Vanderbilt University; a master’s degree in analytical chemistry in 1987 from the University of Louisville; a master’s degree in chemistry in 1980 from the University of Kerala; and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry in 1978 from the University of Kerala. The new graduate dean will replace Paula Casey who served over the past year as interim dean and plans to retire this summer. The dean will report to the executive vice chancellor and provost. The ��Vlog��ýLR Graduate School serves the needs of graduate students, faculty, and staff in a wide range of programs offered in the College of Arts, Letters, and Sciences; the College of Business; the College of Education and Health Professions; the George W. Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology; and the College of Social Sciences and Communication. As the central administrative unit for graduate studies, the Graduate School manages all aspects of graduate education from application to graduation. Together with the individual graduate programs, academic departments, colleges, the Graduate Council, and the Provost’s Office, the Graduate School oversees all curricular matters.

��Vlog��ýLR doctoral student accepted to national ASHE seminar

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Wed, 09 Oct 2013 00:41:42 +0000

Angie Choi, a doctoral student in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s higher education program, has been accepted by competitive application to the 2013 Association for the Study of Higher Education Graduate Student Policy Seminar. The seminar will provide an opportunity for Choi to interact with researchers and policymakers who are knowledgeable about critical public policy issues in higher education, as well as interact with graduate students from across the nation who share similar interests. The ASHE seminar will be held Nov. 14 to 16 in St. Louis. Choi’s research agenda focuses on understanding student pathways from science and engineering academic programs into labor force entry, and the implications for national higher education public policy. “I hope to further understand policy communities and the potential for my research to inform policy-making,” Choi said. “I also look forward to engaging in policy discussions with graduate students from other universities.” To be eligible to attend the seminar, Choi had to first be nominated by ��Vlog��ýLR higher education program faculty and then submit an application and abstract to the ASHE Graduate Student Policy Seminar. She became interested in disciplinary paradigms after reading research for a course taught by Dr. Jim Vander Putten, an associate professor of higher education. This summer, she attended the National Data Institute, which was jointly sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the National Center for Education Statistics. While there, Choi spoke with project officers for NSF data sets, and these conversations led to her current focus. Choi moved from California to Mabelvale, Ark., in 2008 to be closer to family. She said she chose the ��Vlog��ýLR doctorate in higher education program because her supervisor, a graduate of the program, had encouraged her to consider it. “I also wanted to make a more stable life for myself by advancing professionally,” she said.

Donors establish new EIT doctoral scholarship

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Wed, 28 Aug 2013 19:36:58 +0000

Anonymous donors recently established a gift agreement with ��Vlog��ýLR’s Office of Alumni and Development to fund a doctoral scholarship in the Donaghey College of Engineering and Information Technology (EIT). The donors have agreed to contribute $26,000 annually to support a graduate assistant in the field of operations research for EIT, according to Office of Alumni and Development officials. The scholarship bears the name of the Chan Wui and Yunyin Doctoral Scholarship in Operations Research. The donors see operations research as a key foundation of systems engineering. The fund was started to specifically promote and support operations research in the systems engineering track of the Engineering Science and Systems doctoral program — a track that has yet to realize its full potential, according to the donors. The donors said that while systems engineering is a formal track in the graduate program of study, their hope is to make it a driving force and a more widely recognized discipline in the doctoral program. Going well beyond a regular graduate assistantship, the financial support for an outstanding graduate student may include, but is not limited to, financial aid, tuition, equipment, and travel. The recipient of the scholarship is expected to carry out doctoral-level research in the designated field, namely operations research. For more information on how to apply for the Chan Wui and Yunyin Doctoral Scholarship in Operations Research, go to College of Engineering and Information Technology site.

��Vlog��ýLR grad school holds informational sessions this week

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 17:42:59 +0000

The ��Vlog��ýLR Graduate School is offering current and prospective students several opportunities this week to visit with officials about pursuing a graduate degree. All events will be held at the Bailey Alumni Center. The purpose is to provide a fun atmosphere and technological resources to help with the graduate application and enrollment process, according to Dr. Johanna Lewis, associate dean of the ��Vlog��ýLR Graduate School. The first event is for returning graduate students and will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 25. The second is for undergraduate students who have recently graduated or are expecting to graduate soon and will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 27. Current graduate students considering enrolling in courses this fall may stop by between 6 and 7 p.m. on either June 25 or June 27. To register for the event, email Dana Steele at djsteele@ualr.edu and include name, student I.D. number (if applicable), contact email, program interests, and preferred date.

Interim vice provost and dean of graduate school named at ��Vlog��ýLR

��Vlog��ý Little Rock — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:41:56 +0000

Dr. Zulma Toro has announced the appointment of Paula Casey, interim dean at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Bowen School of Law, to the position of interim vice provost for research and dean of the graduate school at ��Vlog��ýLR. The new appointment is effective July 1, 2013. Dean Casey has spent the majority of her career at the law school teaching legal skills and serving as the trial team coach. She has taught at the law school since 1979 and is its longest serving faculty member. From 1990 until 1992, while on a leave of absence from the school, she was Chief Counsel and Legislative Director for U.S. Senator Dale Bumpers. In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed her as United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas. She left that office in 2001 to return to the law school. Casey graduated with her bachelor’s degree from East Central University of Oklahoma in 1973 and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville School of Law in 1977.

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

����Vlog��ýLR announces interim Graduate School dean

Graduate student presents research to last living child of Carl Bailey

����Vlog��ýLR Names Graduate School Dean Finalists

����Vlog��ýLR doctoral student accepted to national ASHE seminar