“All my teachers sent letters to my parents about how I was very intelligent, but also very lazy,” Alvarez acknowledged. Higher education was something he readily admits lacking the motivation to pursue.

One day in February 2012 changed his entire outlook.

Alvarez was driving a truck on his way to work, when he swerved to avoid hitting a dog in the middle of a curved road. The sudden motion unbalanced the vehicle, causing it to flip and roll over into a nearby ditch.

Although Alvarez walked away without a scratch, later, as he looked at pictures of the demolished vehicle, he realized how close his brush with death was. Soon afterward, he was listening to the radio when an old commencement speech given by Steve Jobs was replayed.

“I remember one part of his speech so clearly,” Alvarez said.

“Remembering you are going to die is the best way to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.”

With only a hundred dollars in his pocket, Alvarez followed his heart and moved to Little Rock. He enrolled in classes at UALR in July 2012 to pursue his dream of becoming a mechanical engineer.

However, the year was very challenging, not just academically, but economically as well. For Alvarez, his first year meant surviving by taking out loans, in addition to accepting the small grant he received and work at a part time job to offset his living expenses.

As a Hispanic student, Alvarez is among America’s largest ethnic minority and the fastest-growing demographic of the young work force, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. But statistics also reveal discrepancies in Hispanic educational levels are compared with other groups.

One challenge is that Hispanic families often lack experience with financial-aid processes and scholarship availability, according to Cynda Alexander, non-traditional student program coordinator at UALR.

“Our office strives to demystify these processes and provide our diverse student population with the information they need to make college accessible,” she said.

Alexander said breaking the cycle of under-education among Hispanic and Latino populations is possible when they are given the facts about the numerous scholarship opportunities available.

“Studies have shown scholarship recipients go on to graduate. Finding funding plays a huge role in helping them persist,” said Alexander. “Students are able to focus more on academics instead of providing financial support for themselves or their families.”

Alvarez, now on the Dean’s list with a 3.7 GPA, said even though he is a dedicated student, he doesn’t like the idea of owing lots of money.

So he attended an on-campus scholarship workshop offered by the UALR Office of Campus Life specifically geared toward non-traditional students.

The workshop was presented by Alexander, as well as alumni membership coordinator Derek Boyce and private scholarship coordinator Stephanie Conrad.

Alvarez learned the variety of scholarships available, some of them exclusively for Hispanic students. He immediately applied for several and even won a couple, among them a $1,000 scholarship from LULAC (League of United Latin American Citizens), which offers the possibility of a match from UALR.

And in February, Caterpillar Inc., a leading builder of machines and engines, accepted Alvarez for a Quality Engineer internship. Not only is Alvarez getting paid, he is learning in a real-world environment how to apply the theories he is studying in school.

“I am still amazed at how fast everything is happening,” said Alvarez. “That in just nine months of truly applying myself how much I have accomplished.”

Alvarez said his success so far has only fueled his hunger to try to attain more.

“I have always loved trying new things. Because of that, I have failed a lot,” he said. “But it has also made me lose the fear of failing and gain a healthy fear of not even trying.”

For more information on scholarship opportunities for non-traditional students, contact Cynda Alexander at 501.569.3308.

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Thanks to the Alumni Association for helping us identify alumni who have been on this select list. We’re also pleased that so many more who have attended or worked at UALR have been honored by Arkansas Business.

Congratulations to this year’s alumni honorees Georgia Mjartin ’02, Leo Monterrey ’02, ’07, and Christopher Vanlandingham ’04, as well as all of our alumni who have made significant contributions to enhancing Arkansas.

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The EAC, located on the fourth floor of UALR’s Engineering and Information Technology building, features data visualization systems that are among the first of their kind in the world.

Chancellor Anderson said in the news conference that UALR and its partners in the community are now positioned to conduct cutting-edge research in data-intensive areas, in addition to providing outreach and educational opportunities for students and researchers.

So innovative is the center’s technology, Gov. Beebe quipped one might almost need a degree to comprehend it. To explain the type of resources available, the governor borrowed an oft-used phrase of media for Monday’s big announcement.

“The easy way to understand the technology … is ‘a picture is worth a thousand words,’” Beebe said, adding that the bottom line is what the center will do to contribute to economic development in Arkansas.

A number of technologies are integrated for the EAC to serve a diverse group, including partners in business, sciences, health care, education, and engineering. Linked through fiber optics to UALR’s Computational Research Center, the facility includes 35 screens and monitors with more than 50 million pixels offering high definition resolution for both 2D and 3D applications.

The systems at the center, including the EmergiFLEX™ and the Mobile EmergiFLEX™ systems, were custom designed and built for UALR by Mechdyne Corp, a leading provider of visual information technologies headquartered in Marshalltown, Iowa.

Unique features include a massive, 24-screen reconfigurable video wall providing 3D data immersion with additional 3D floor projection; the latest haptic interface technology to “touch” the data with force feedback sensations; and advanced video collaboration tools that include new robotic “telepresence” equipment.

Made possible by a grant of more than $5 million from the George W. Donaghey Foundation, the EAC is led by Dr. Mary L. Good, UALR special advisor to the chancellor for economic development.

The grant provides funding for a full-time, post-doctoral staff member working in data science, two specialized graduate students, and technical and operational support personnel.

Good said that Donaghey Foundation board members understand that advanced data analysis and data visualization are the tools needed now to solve critical problems in all fields.

“The EAC and its potential to positively impact large and small businesses in Arkansas are critical to our state’s economic growth,” she said. “It will give all of us a competitive edge and position us for a bright future in the era of big data.”

According to Good, big data provides the next frontier in discovery, business, and society, as more data is produced, stored, and analyzed. New federal research programs at the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Health, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency are aimed at analyzing and using the flood of available information.

The center will build on the faculty expertise and resources of UALR’s diverse academic offerings and research in advanced data science and data analytics, which already include Advanced Computational Research, Information Quality, and Virtual Reality (3-D immersive environments). In addition, there will be a statewide set of activities for education and economic development.

Also on Monday, Grant Tennille, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC), introduced the center’s new Data Science Advisory Board. The board is comprised of regional and national leaders from academia, industry, and government working to provide ongoing input for the center.

The EAC has three development and promotional partnerships: Mechdyne Corporation, HP, and Today’s Office.

A series of corporate and organizational data previews followed the announcement, which was streamed live over the Internet. AEDC, Acxiom, the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Southwest Power Pool, and Nabholz Construction Services were among those demonstrating how data visualization can be used to boost businesses in Arkansas.

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The four-person scramble seeks to raise funds for a permanent endowment to support College of Business programs for students, including professional development workshops, placement activities, and student competitions such as the Microsoft Imagine Cup and the Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Business Plan.

The George W. Donaghey Foundation has provided a $500,000 challenge matching gift. The registration, which is already full, costs $1,200 per team or $300 per player.

“We are delighted to have so many sponsors and participants this year and also excited that our program will better serve our students by expanding the supporting activities available,” said Dr. Jane Wayland, Stephen Harrow Smith Dean of Business.

Sponsors for the tournament include: Ameriprise, AR Mutual, Arvest Bank, Arvest Mortgage, Bank of America, BBA Solutions, Clark Contractors, Clark Power, Dassault Falcon, Datamax/Flake Kelley, Dixon Golf, Dillard’s Inc., Entergy, Fidelity, Kutak Rock, Little Rock Chamber of Commerce, LSC Promotional Marketing, Matlock & Associates, PDC Companies, Riser Ford Lincoln, Southwest Power Pool, Summit Bank, The Daily Record, UALR IEA/COB, UALR COB Alumni Association Society, UALR Office of Development, USAble Life, Vestcom, Welspun, and Wonderstate Mortgage.

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“It’s never too early to start thinking about your final project,” Associate Director Dr. Marcia Smith tells them. “It is a requirement of the program in order to graduate.”

The scholars–who come from across Arkansas, as well as Texas, Kansas, and even Germany–ask questions about core course requirements and study abroad opportunities, but mostly, they just listen.

Approximately 350 graduates of the program have gone on to notch successful careers and opportunities across the globe.

The program, open to all majors, offers a distinctive undergraduate environment that emphasizes critical thinking through the reading of primary texts, writing, and discussion.

For the first time, UALR is offering this newest cadre of 25 scholars an overnight stay as part of their orientation in order to allow time with older, more experienced scholars and a more immersive campus experience.

Their orientation comes on the heels of the program’s Silver Jubilee celebration on June 1 at the Jack Stephens Center. June marks the 25th anniversary of the first graduating class of the program, as well as 25 years of Donaghey Foundation support.

About 170 people attended the celebration, including close to 100 former Donaghey Scholars, which was also a kickoff fundraiser to establish the C. Earl Ramsey Distinguished Lecture Series. Ramsey has served as the program’s director for 25 years and will retire in December.

About $14,000 was raised at the event and even more donations are flowing in for the campaign that ends Dec. 31, according to Howard Walker, major gifts officer in the UALR Office of Development.

Jessica Scott, Donaghey Scholar program administrator, said the event marked the first time UALR formally sponsored a reunion of scholar alums, although many informal get-togethers have occurred throughout the years.

“We are incredibly pleased with the turnout,” Scott said. “The response has been very positive and enthusiastic, so far. Our scholars clearly want to be involved with the program and UALR.”

Among them is Joy Matlock, legal services liaison at Heifer International in Little Rock. Matlock not only made the Silver Jubilee, she also served as a host committee member responsible for encouraging other Class of 1996 scholars to attend.

During the reunion, Matlock personally thanked one of the program’s first administrators, Emily Lewis, who planted in Matlock the idea to apply as a Donaghey Scholar during a visit to her high school honors English class. The double major in international studies and Spanish said UALR was not even on her radar at the time. Matlock remembers vividly getting the phone call to interview for a spot in the program and then having to explain to a committee what it meant to be a “scholar.”

“I remember saying it was someone with a thirst for knowledge, but who also deeply felt that for everything he or she knows and learns, there is still so much more to know and learn,” she said.

“It was, and still is, about making a connection to knowledge and personal growth and how you relate it to the people around you and society as a whole … you only grow when you keep moving forward.”

Matlock said she received a phone call from Ramsey welcoming her to the program. The money she received as a scholar enabled Matlock to immerse herself in a study abroad program in Spain for five weeks one summer and also to graduate from UALR without debt.

It also endowed her with the intensive level of reading, writing, and critical thinking skills later required of her at the law school at Washington University in St. Louis.

Matlock said the jubilee was a wonderful time to honor Ramsey as well as reflect on the program itself.

“You sometimes forget what is great about it. Back then, I could not see the bigger picture, but now I see what they were trying to accomplish, and it was stellar. I am eternally grateful,” Matlock said.

“It is a hidden jewel on our campus and a wonderful resource to allow UALR to be a contender for certain students.”

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A book signing will follow.

Adams landed her first leading role in the The Dalton Gang in 1949. After a series of Western films, Adams starred alongside James Stewart in Bend of the River. She became a Hollywood star following 1954’s Creature from the Black Lagoon.

Guests may purchase Adam’s memoir, The Lucky Southern Star: Reflections from the Black Lagoon, for $30 at the Bailey Alumni Center. Copies may also be reserved by calling 501.683.7208.

The book provides an in-depth look at Adam’s rise to stardom in Hollywood following her time in Depression-era Arkansas and graduation from then-Little Rock Junior College.

All are invited to attend, including those who met Adams at the awards luncheon in May.

Adams will make another appearance in Little Rock at the Old State House Museum for the opening reception of the new exhibit, Lights! Camera! Arkansas! The event will begin at 7 p.m. Friday, June 7.

The exhibit will illustrate the numerous ties Arkansas has to Hollywood through both cinema and television. It will include five galleries of costumes, scripts, film footage, awards, photographs, theater posters, and props.

Other celebrities featured include Mary Steenburgen, Harry Thomason, Johnny Cash, Jeff Nichols, and many more.

Although reservations should be made, admission is free for the opening reception and the exhibit during regular museum hours.

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Although most education advocates agree that scholarship funding goes a long way towards mitigating debt, non-traditional students in particular fail to realize just how much financial aid is available to offset the growing cost of higher education.

Cynda Alexander is the non-traditional student programs coordinator at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. She says many adult learners simply don’t know how to address the challenge of finding free money for school, or they assume it is not available for them.

“It can be daunting,” Alexander said. “But the money is out there if the student is willing to put in the effort.”

That was the case for 42-year-old Wendy Lyons, a triple major in small business management, accounting, and professional and technical writing.

So far, Lyons has applied for, and been awarded, upwards of $6,500–enough to cover the cost of full-time tuition and fees at the university this fall.

Lyons spent several months sifting through a variety of scholarship applications after she attended an on-campus workshop offered by the UALR Office of Campus Life specifically geared toward non-traditional students.

The workshop is presented by Alexander, as well as Alumni Membership Coordinator Derek Boyce and Private Scholarship Coordinator Stephanie Conrad.

“I was flying blind,” admitted Lyons. “I never understood how financial aid worked or much of anything about scholarships, so I was going by the seat of my pants for a while.”

To help make the process less formidable, Alexander said much of the legwork is done for the students ahead of time, including supplying a spreadsheet that lists about 70-80 awards specifically for the non-traditional student.

Alexander also invited representatives of various scholarship foundations to give the 75 workshop attendees an idea of what is available for non-traditionals, if they only asked.

Lyons spent hours each day applying for any scholarship for which she fit the criteria. She applied for close to 30 scholarships, many of them from private sources outside of UALR.

Lyons first found success with a scholarship from the UALR Alumni Association that paid for all her textbooks, saving her hundreds of dollars.

But the real shocker, she said, was a $2,500 AT&T War Memorial Scholarship, awarded annually to a veteran of any branch of the military planning to enroll in an accredited two- or four-year college or university in Arkansas.

Because she assumed the competition would be fierce, Lyons did not think she stood much of a chance after submitting her 500-word essay for the scholarship. Only four veterans applied. In another instance, a local scholarship deadline was extended because Lyons was the only student to apply at the time.

The lack of scholarship applicants is not unusual, according to Alexander, who said only 30 percent of available funding is distributed because of low applicant numbers. It is indicative of the challenge educators face in recruiting students who believe the only way through school is substantial debt, she said.

“What these non-traditional students need to understand is that people want to give money to this applicant pool because they are generally such a great investment,” Alexander said.

“They want to know that the student will be able to pay it forward. And these students almost always will.”

Lyons was fortunate. The supervisor at the small firm where she works not only suggested she return to school–all her courses so far have been online–he has provided financial assistance to help her do so.

Now Lyons is able to return the favor as she finds money in many unusual places to help pave her own way. As she awaits word on the last few scholarships she has applied for, she says even if she receives nothing more the process has been worth the effort.

Lyons said perhaps the scholarship committee members appreciated her opening hook in the essay she used for most of her applications, which reads: “When I was 18, I was an idiot, and college would’ve been wasted on me.”

“People need to see that the scholarships are out there, it just takes a little time and dedication to apply,” Lyons said. “I owe Ms. Alexander a lot. The seminar she led was very productive, obviously, but you just have to be willing to go after it.”

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Imagine what it must be like to hear music for the first time, the sounds of a busy street, or even the tone of your own mother’s voice.  A search on YouTube or Google will unearth numerous videos of first time hearing experiences in which the new listener’s facial expression is worth a thousand words.

Medical practices have come a long way in terms of hearing and speech, and these strides can be seen locally at UALR and UAMS. The Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology is nationally recognized for educational, clinical and research programs that serve Arkansas.

To promote the program Jazz & Juleps benefits the joint program between UALR and UAMS. The fourth annual event also celebrates May’s Better Hearing and Speech Month.

Attending guests gathered at the Governor’s Mansion as jazz flowed from the band, Mojo De Jazz. This year’s event honored Loris Mayersohn Fullerton by creating the Loris Mayersohn Fullerton Student Scholarship fund. Fullerton has been instrumental in raising money for the program, and her work has opened doors for many students.

Graduate students Jack Johnson and Alyssa Staton, recipients of the Nan Ellen Dickinson East Student Student Scholarship fund were on hand to say a few words, and are direct proof to the hard work of many, including Fullerton. She has a personal connection to the program, which can be seen in her tireless work to support it.

Department Chairman Dr. Tom Guyette said, “Very few people have had the kind of impact on the lives of our students than Loris.” Vice Chancellor for Development Bob Denman agreed, “Honoring Loris with a new named scholarship fund is in no way a large enough thank you for all she has done.”

Fullerton took the podium for a short but meaningful speech. After playing a video of a young child’s reaction to a new set of working ‘ears,’ she shared a story about her niece.

Her niece did not have the access to the medical resources in Little Rock that she needed some years ago. Fullerton explained that her niece ended up traveling to Saint Louis to get the medical attention needed. “This is a program that we really need,” she explained.

Little Rock has since grown to harbor the program at UALR and UAMS, and Fullerton’s contribution cannot be overlooked. She has worked to support the program by raising 250,000 for student scholarships. On top of that hard work, she was a large force in the first Jazz and Juleps event, which debuted in 2010.

As Fullerton stepped back into the crowd, KTHV’s Craig O’Neill took the microphone to auction off various items in name of the program.

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When David Goodwin called UALR Alumni Association to investigate oppurtunities to give back to the institution he feels gave him so much, he never dreamed he’d be spending the next few years serving as a tutor and mentor to elementary school-aged children.

Fortunately for the UALR Children International program, what started out as a ‘let’s try it and see what happen’s volunteer venture turned into a match made in heavem. David eventually went on to assist with the outcropping of that program: a computer training class for the parents and guardians of those same children.

David tells the story of when he knew he’d really made the connection with one child. “She looked across the table at me and said, “Can I touch your hair?” What might have seemed like a strange request to others merely signaled to David that his efforts to reach this little girl and gain her trust had finally paid off. It was on of many rewarding moments during his time at the UALR Homework Center.

Finding Meaning in Work and Life

Born into a family that loves medicine, David’s efforts to find satisfaction in his work life weren’t initially as successful. His brother helped by taking an active role in exposing David to various areas of medicine, and that’s when the magic happened.

Advances in technology created a new medical profession and David was ecstatic to be among the first group trained to become cardiac sonographers. It’s a profession he continues to practice and love 31 years later.

A job opportunity at UAMS brought David to Arkansas, and he took advantage of tuition discounts to attend UALR. What started out as an interest in speech communications turned into a bachelor’s degree, followed by a master’s degree in adult education.

David represents the best of UALR: smart, witty, and philanthropic. He’s given of his time and talent, garnering the 1999 UALR Alumni Association Volunteer of the year Award, and he’s taken that generous spirit to the next level by naming UALR as a major beneficiary in his estate plans. We’re glad to welcome him as a member of UALR Heritage Society.

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Making a gift of stock is an easy way to save on taxes while supporting UALR. To make such a gift, please call our business office at 501-569-3194. We will be happy to walk you through the very simple process. Thank you for your support of UALR.

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