Re-entry program at UALR gets boost
The Bernard Osher Foundation of San Francisco has selected the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for a $1 million endowment to support scholarships for nontraditional college students.
The foundation previously provided UALR with $50,000 per year since 2012, a university news release said. The endowment ensures funding will continue and helps bridge the gap in the cost of education for more students at UALR, the only Arkansas institution to offer the Osher Re-Entry Scholars Program.
The scholarship is for working adults between 25 and 50 with a cumulative gap in their education of five years or more who are pursuing a first baccalaureate degree. Potential scholars must show academic promise and a commitment to completing the degree, the release said.
Financial need also is considered for the scholarships, which provide $4,000 for full-time students and $2,000 for students who are enrolled part time.
Bernard Osher established the foundation in 1977 to seek to improve quality of life through support for higher education and the arts. He is funding the UALR endowment from his personal reserves, the release said.
$800,000 to help restore UCA hall
CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas’ Advancement Division has been awarded an $800,000 grant from the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council for renovation and restoration of McCastlain Hall, a university news release said.
The grant will be used to restore many of the original features of McCastlain Hall, as well as to update technology. Renovations in the East Commons include a coffered ceiling and installation of new audiovisual equipment.
The project also features a new Grand Hallway, which will create a pathway linking the East Commons, historic Fireplace Room and Baum Gallery of Art, the release said. Built in 1939 as the first stand-alone cafeteria on campus, McCastlain Hall is now one of eight buildings comprising UCA’s Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council funded a planning grant in 2013 to thoroughly review and plan for the renovation project. The council’s grants are funded through the state’s real estate transfer tax.
New college chief’s pay set at $160,000
HOT SPRINGS — When John Hogan becomes National Park Community College’s fourth president, he will be paid an annual salary of $160,000 plus fringe benefits, according to his contract.
Hogan, most recently vice president for student affairs and placement with the Ivy Tech Community College System in Indianapolis, was hired as president of the Hot Springs community college on May 2. He starts his new job July 1.
Benefits for Hogan listed in the contract he signed May 2 include a housing allowance of $1,500 per month; the use of a college vehicle, plus gas and maintenance; and “other employee benefits as provided by the Board of Trustees, Foundation, or the State of Arkansas.”
Hogan is replacing Sally Carder, who will retire June 30 after nine years at the college.
Tech tobacco ban adds e-cigarettes
RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas Tech University board of trustees approved measures Thursday that amend the school’s tobacco policy and issued $6 million in bonds for construction.
The board updated the existing tobacco-free policy at Arkansas Tech to prohibit electronic cigarettes, defined as “a battery or USB powered device containing a nicotine-based liquid that is vaporized and inhaled, used to simulate the experience of smoking tobacco.” The ban covers all property, buildings and grounds owned or operated by Arkansas Tech.
Trustees also voted to approve new general revenue bonds in the amount of $6 million to fund construction of an allied health programs building and a new roof for the Technology and Academic Support Building at the Arkansas Tech-Ozark Campus.