Dr. J. Frank Kenney, a long-time professor who was instrumental in creating the university’s honors program, died Friday, Aug. 3. He was 80.

A memorial service will be at noon Wednesday, Aug. 8, at Roller-Chenal Funeral Home, 13801 Chenal Parkway.

A native of Boston, Kenney was a professor of religious studies at UALR for 30 years. He was an accomplished author with works dealing in religion, poetry, and meditation.

“Frank was a dedicated teacher above all, in addition to being an accomplished scholar,” said former UALR philosophy chair Joseph Pappin III, now with the University of South Carolina. “This was reflected in his selection in the early 1990s as the university’s teacher of the year at UALR, a most remarkable accomplishment,”

He is survived by wife, Bobbye Cazort Kenney, two sons, and a daughter.