A Medal in the Making

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Kendall Curlee
Sculptor Hank Kaminsky leans forward and peers through a magnifying visor pulled over his gray ponytail. His 6’3” frame hunches over a clay disk 12” in diameter – a new medal in the making. The words “Honors College” curve across the top in a flourish of Celtic-inspired script, while the outlines of the new addition to Ozark Hall – future home of the Honors College – are roughed in below. Kaminsky, himself a proud honors alumnus of the University of Arkansas, has been laboring on the clay model for more than a month.
Posted in Alumni Updates, Art, J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences | Leave a comment

Study Abroad: Postcard from Greece and Turkey

Posted on January 26, 2012 by AJ Salois

Hannah Breshears, honors history and architectural studies major, encountered both ancient monuments and contemporary economic woes last summer in Greece …..

Continue reading →

Posted in Architectural Studies, Fay Jones School of Architecture, Greece, History, Honors College Study Abroad Grant, J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, Study Abroad, Turkey | Leave a comment

Postcard from Buenos Aires: Lauren Davenport

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Kendall Curlee
After three months in Buenos Aires, honors international business/marketing major Lauren Davenport is finding fluency in Spanish – and taking time to check out one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
Young woman in front of a series of spectacular waterfalls.

Lauren Davenport at Iguazu Falls, recently voted one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

Hola todos!

I am currently studying in Buenos Aires, Argentina, one of the largest
cities in the world. It is a beautiful Latin city with a lot of
Italian and European influence. Three months have passed out of the
ten I will be here for. The time has flown by! I am currently wrapping
up the intensive Spanish class I have been taking all semester. Let me
just say that learning a language in another country makes a world of
difference. Being able to leave the class room and actually start
applying what you are learning right then and there is the best way to
learn a language. Continue reading →
Posted in Argentina, International Business/Marketing, Sam M. Walton College of Business, Study Abroad | Leave a comment

Tricks of the Trade: Essay Tests

Posted on December 7, 2011 by AJ Salois

After being a physics major for 3 and a half years I decided to add on an English major just for kicks (and so that I would have a reason/time to read and enjoy some great books!) After some essay tests I’ve gathered a couple of suggestions that might be useful to you too. Good luck with all of your finals/essays this year!

~AJ Salois

ESSAY TESTS:

  1. If you have a hard time remembering titles and authors make notecards with a short summary on the front (an identifying factor). Read it, make your guess, and then turn it over to see what and who it is! Continue reading →
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Tricks of the Trade: Mathematically-based Exams

Posted on December 5, 2011 by AJ Salois

As a physics major I’ve had my fair share of physics and mathematics tests. They can be pretty crazy, but there are some things you can do to prepare yourself. These are just a few of the tips that have worked for me! I hope they help you too.

~AJ Salois

MATH-BASED TESTS:

  1. Write down all of the equations you think will be on the test and make sure you can match which equations relate to which problems. I would usually do this just to be thinking of general problems. Sometimes I write numbers of example problems in the books next to the equations to do as practice. Continue reading →
Posted in Advice/Tips, J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, Physics | Leave a comment

Alumni Survey: Results Are In

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Kendall Curlee

Our alumni have spoken, and the word is: research! One-third of the alumni who took our recent online survey emphasized the value of undergraduate research, commenting on this aspect of the honors experience more than any other. The honors thesis, in particular, was singled out as especially valuable in preparing students for a wide range of professional endeavors. Continue reading →

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Taking the Test with a Chicken

Posted on November 23, 2011 by AJ Salois

To focus on the stress of school? Or to focus on crazy chicken?
That is the question.

When you walk out of a test and you can’t feel your jaw, that’s when you know it’s time to try something different for studying and test taking. That’s what used to happen to me. I would work myself up so much over tests that I would clench my teeth the whole time and lose feeling by the end. Please, don’t do this. Teeth clenching does not raise your scores, trust me. In light of this, I began searching for ways to alleviate my test anxiety and improve my scores. It’s not always an easy thing, and in my fifth year of college, I think I’ve worked it out, for the most part. And, the chicken above played an important role in all of this! Continue reading →

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Study Abroad: Ryan Hagedorn, Civil Engineering, and Belize

Posted on November 21, 2011 by AJ Salois

Ryan Hagedorn, an honors civil engineering student, went to Belize last summer with a mission: partner with the people of Dangriga to create new resources for their community. Below, Ryan describes how his team used their engineering know-how to build a water fountain and gazebo for children at Christ the King elementary school.

Hello everybody,

I am a little sad to that I write this from my home back in the States. I had limited internet access while in Belize, so I will do my best to sum up my experience now.

Students with the water spigot they built in Belize. (L to R: Megan Peters, Cary Beth Lipscomb, Chase Henrichs, Ryan Hagedorn, Courtney Hill and Chris Martindale)

Continue reading →

Posted in Belize, Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, Honors College Study Abroad Grant, Study Abroad | Leave a comment

Undergraduate Research: Taylor Spicer and Ilha de Maré

Posted on November 11, 2011 by AJ Salois

Taylor Spicer, an honors anthropology major from Tennessee, used her Honors College undergraduate research grant to travel to Brazil and learn more about the country’s people. 

I utilized the research grant to continue my anthropological field research on an island called Ilha de Maré, the Island of the Tide, off the coast of the city of Salvador in Brazil.  I spent the summer living with a family on the island to learn their daily ways of life, the problems that they encounter with the government and the petro-chemical companies that lie on both sides of the island, and how they attempt to address these problems by mobilizing.  Continue reading →

Posted in Anthropology, Brazil, Honors College Research Grant, Honors thesis, J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, Research | Leave a comment

Undergraduate Research: Ali McAtee and Algae-based Biofuel

Posted on November 4, 2011 by AJ Salois

Ali McAtee is an honors college fellow in the College of Engineering studying chemical engineering. She and her research team were featured on a Planet Forward Earth Day special for their work with algae and butanol fuel. Ali received honorable mention from the Barry Goldwater Scholarship Foundation.

 

Young woman in safety glasses and gloves is working in lab, holding up glass jar of sludge. During the summer and fall semesters of 2010, I performed research in the chemical engineering department under my advisor, Dr. Jamie Hestekin.  The overall goal of the research group is to use algae to produce fuel-grade butanol.  My specific goal is to implement hollow fiber membranes into the algae growth systems in order to promote growth.  Hollow fiber membranes used to pump carbon dioxide to the algae will increase carbon dioxide concentrations in the water as well as gas levels reaching the algae and, in doing so, increase the algae’s growth rate.  By substantially increasing the algae’s growth rate, the amount of butanol able to be produced from the algae’s lipid content is drastically increased. Continue reading →

Posted in Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Honors College Research Grant, Honors thesis, Research | Leave a comment