Honoring a Legacy: UA Little Rock, Family Honor Karen Stanley
In a poignant tribute to a life cut tragically short, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock has awarded a posthumous degree to an accounting student who passed away less than two months before graduation.
UA Little Rock awarded the degree to the family of Karen Stanley, a 61-year-old student from Little Rock who was supposed to graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in accounting on May 11.
“We are honored by the university for doing this,” Karen’s mother, Betty Stanley, said. “We consider it a great honor. I think Karen would have been humbled by it, as we are.”
Tom Clifton, interim dean of the College of Business, Health, and Human Services, and the faculty of the Department of Accounting, Economics, and Finance presented the diploma to Stanley’s parents, Jim and Betty Stanley of Little Rock.
“Despite the demands of working full-time, she attended classes part-time, consistently excelling academically and making the Dean’s List with a nearly perfect 4.0 GPA,” Clifton said. “Her parents, Jim and Betty Stanley, will accept this diploma on her behalf. I want to personally thank them for joining us today. I hope that they and their family will take consolation in the knowledge that this university forever remembers your daughter’s accomplishments in conferring this posthumous degree.”
After graduating from Little Rock Central High School, Karen Stanley received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UA Little Rock. After working for various auto companies in a variety of roles, she worked for the finance department at McLarty Auto Group, where she earned an Employee of the Year Award. Her parents described Karen as a dedicated and hard-working employee who went on to earn a second bachelor’s degree to support her love of business.
“She was always a good employee,” Jim Stanley said. “Karen had a work ethic that you just can’t find any more. She was working in finance and wanted to have an accounting degree. She felt like it would help her in her job.”
Karen Stanley’s sister, Patti Downing, described her as a warm, loving person with a great sense of humor who was passionate about life.
“She was passionate about her family,” Patti Downing said. “Despite spending all day at work, and most of her nights in school, she still managed to carve out time for her family. She was a faithful friend. If Karen called you a friend, you were lucky. She will be missed by those who knew that friendship. Karen loved dogs, especially her own poodle Mickey. She had a fascination for frogs, and all things green.”
Jim and Betty Stanley also commented that their daughter loved crocheting, spending time at her church, the Church at Rock Creek, and was looking forward to her graduation.
“She was counting the days until graduation,” Betty Stanley said. “It was so much fun when she would tell us about the professors she had. They were all very nice, and she had good stories to tell about them.”
In honor of their daughter, the Stanleys are creating an endowed scholarship in Karen Stanley’s name that benefits accounting students at UA Little Rock.
“We wanted to start the scholarship to honor Karen and to help other people who want a degree,” Betty Stanley said. “Since this degree was so important to her, we knew there would be other folks who need and appreciate a scholarship.”
