With a goal set by Gov. Mike Beebe to double the number of college graduates in Arkansas by 2025, the state took another step toward that goal today by announcing an initiative to award more associate degrees to students who have completed the relevant coursework. Shane Broadway, Interim Director of the Arkansas Department of Higher Education, and Dr. Ed Franklin, President of the Arkansas Association of Two-Year Colleges, announced the “Credit When It’s Due” initiative, a partnership between the 22 two-year colleges and all 11 four-year public universities, to award associate degrees to students who have earned the required credentials after transferring to a four-year university. The project will be funded by a $500,000 grant from the Kresge Foundation. Said Broadway: “Credit When It’s Due, also known as reverse transfer in the higher education community, is a higher education partnership to significantly increase associate degrees awarded to transfer students when they complet...

The University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton announces plans for “Starlight Cinema,” a free outdoor community movie night. The event will feature “Trouble With the Curve” Monday, June 24, from 8:00 until 10:00 p.m. on the lawn near the Plaza courtyard on the UACCM campus. Attendees should bring blankets or lawn chairs. Morrilton Boy Scout Troop 93 will manage a concession stand at the event as a fundraiser for their summer camp costs. The concession stand will open at 7:30 p.m. and will have Coke products, bottled water, popcorn, and candy for sale. In case of inclement weather, the event will be moved indoors. “Trouble With the Curve” is a Warner Bros. film released in 2012 starring Clint Eastwood, Amy Adams, and Justin Timberlake. In the movie, Eastwood plays a baseball scout whose failing eyesight poses a problem. His estranged daughter (Adams) assists him in an out-of-town scouting assignment. During the trip, Adams unexpectedly sparks a romance with another ...

Sen. John Boozman and his staff visited the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton Wednesday, May 29. UACCM Chancellor Dr. Larry Davis and Vice Chancellor for Administration Dr. Linda Birkner welcomed the senator to campus. They presented an overview of the College and were able to share some exciting things that are on the horizon for UACCM. Sen. Boozman and his staff took a walking tour of campus which began with a stop by the Admissions Office to visit with the UACCM student ambassadors. The tour included a visit to the Library Complex showcasing the newly restructured Academic Commons which will allow for extended library hours beginning in the fall. Davis and Birkner highlighted UACCM’s Advising Center and the services it provides to students. They also shared the latest improvements in the nursing department, including a compressed video lab that links UACCM to other campuses throughout the state. Among other topics discussed during the visit was UAC...

SEMCO employee Randall Mars works on a task during training. One of the River Valley’s most successful manufacturing companies, SEMCO, has discovered the benefits of training its employees through the University of Arkansas Community College at Morrilton Community Education Center. The condensed, specialized program will cut training time by nearly half for SEMCO employees. With two of its three production facilities located in Morrilton, SEMCO is a unique indoor environment products manufacturer serving the key disciplines of air distribution, noise abatement, temperature, and humidity control in the commercial and industrial building markets. The 85 full-time employees at the Morrilton plants produce a complete line of desiccant-based products and systems that recover energy, increase ventilation, and control humidity. Products made by SEMCO are essentially the commercial heat and air systems found in shopping malls, schools, arenas, and other commercial facilities. SEMCO...

The Arkansas Rural Nursing Education Consortium has announced the recent approval from the State Board of Nursing to increase acceptance for 16 additional students and with current applications, they plan to accept 26 additional students, program-wide. This larger class will begin January 2014. “ARNEC has already exceeded the number of applications from last year, so we feel it is vital to increase student acceptance in 2014,” said Crystal Gillihan, ARNEC Director. “Our students are very successful. They are employed quickly after graduation in both acute care and long-term care settings. Many of our students chose to further their education and are gaining acceptance into BSN programs. ARNEC is a vital piece to rural education and rural health care in Arkansas.” The program is fully approved by the Arkansas State Board of Nursing, and the eight colleges that comprise the consortium have graduated approximately 225 students each year from the program, prior to the increase. ...