From the Dean
An alumnus once asked me what I thought set Fulbright College apart from other liberal arts institutions. The first things I thought of were people and programs. I know of no other liberal arts college in the country that can boast such a depth and variety of programs.
We have nationally rated programs such as creative writing and psychology. The Center for Protein Structure and Function, which has received nearly $20 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health, brings researchers together from departments across the college to conduct intensive, collaborative research. The $10.2 million the center received in 2006 represented the largest competitive research grant ever received by the University of Arkansas.
The college is a leader in establishing study abroad programs for the campus, such as the international service learning project in Belize, the summer trip to South Africa, and the Rome Program. In Belize, students from nearly every college and school at the university work with faculty to improve education, public health, and social services.
Many of our faculty are nationally recognized. As you’ll see in this issue, when Petra was declared one of the seven new wonders of the world, media around the globe sought the reaction of Dr. Tom Paradise, director of the Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies. He has been working to preserve the cultural richness of Petra since the mid-1980s.
The work of scientists in physics consistently appears in the top journals. For example, the research of Jak Chakhalian and some of his colleagues appeared just recently in the journal Science.
Faculty such as Kevin Fitzpatrick and David Jolliffe are reaching out to communities across Arkansas. Kevin is seeking ways to help the homeless in northwest Arkansas, while David is helping schoolteachers find new approaches for fighting illiteracy.
Some scholars and researchers are simply among the best in their fields. Elliott West is considered the preeminent scholar today of the West, while Peter Pulay is widely regarded by his colleagues as one of the top theoretical chemists in the world. Randall Woods has written nationally acclaimed books on LBJ and Senator Fulbright.
Equally amazing are our students, who consistently compete with students from Yale, Harvard, and Princeton to win Barry Goldwater, Truman, and Marshall Fellowships. Now that the university has a well-endowed Honors College, we can expect even more such awards in the future.
I am always amazed at how prolific and productive our alumni are. Some, like Everett Ortner, lead cultural renovation efforts. Since 1965, he has been a missionary for the brownstone-revival movement in New York City, and for urban revival nationally. Others such as Kay Goss are dedicated public servants. From 1994 to 2001, she served as associate director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, overseeing a staff of 500 and a budget of more than $300 million. She led initiatives in technology transfer and emergency preparedness, and oversaw the creation of a global disaster information network. Others like Louis Daniel Bowen are building a stronger international economy through their leadership. He is chairman and managing director of Asia Capital Management Limited, a Hong Kong-based venture capital and private equity company that he established in 1994. He is also adventurous. In 1992, he became the first native Arkansan to reach the summit of Mount Everest.
What sets Fulbright College apart are these wonderfully diverse, talented, and dedicated individuals. Every day, often unheralded, our students, faculty, and alumni are changing the world for the better. It is truly the greatest pleasure of my job to meet and admire these outstanding men and women.
Donald R. Bobbitt