Morris College
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is celebrating two significant wins for its Industrial Technology Management & Applied Engineering (ITMAE) program. The first is the program’s reaccreditation through 2031, and the second is UAPB ITMAE majors placing first in a highly competitive student case competition.
The Emerging Scholars Leadership Institute (ESLI) at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) participated in the Unity Summit 2025, a two-day leadership and innovation conference held at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Heartland Whole Health Institute in Bentonville, Arkansas, in November.
This year’s theme, “Voices That Shape, Futures That Rise,” reflected the Summit’s mission to bridge generations and industries through the pillars of Culture, Wellness, and Opportunity, exploring key areas like Health and Wellness, Education and Literacy, Economic Opportunity, and Media and Culture. The event brought together top-performing students, global executives, and leaders from major companies, including Walmart, Netflix, Procter & Gamble, Tyson Foods, and Riceland.
For Veterans Day 2025, the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) is highlighting some of its distinguished veteran alumni. Lt. Col. (Retired) Grover L. Gibson, ’70, recently highlighted the achievements of Jesse Walter Arbor and Dalton L. Baugh, Sr., fellow alumni of Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal College (AM&N), now UAPB. Their accomplishments broke the Navy’s color barrier for officer ranks, paving the way for future African American servicemembers. Arbor and Baugh were members of the U.S. Navy’s Black Officer Training Program, known as The Golden Thirteen.
Dr. Tommie Mabry, a four-time best-selling and award-winning author recognized for his story of resilience and transformation on platforms including The Jennifer Hudson Show, USA Today, PBS Network, and FOX Soul, opened EmpowerU, a two-day professional development conference for University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) students on November 3-4, 2025. The event was hosted by the UAPB Office of Career Services and sponsored by Synchrony Financial.
The “Richard S. Arnold Award for Distinguished Service” was recently awarded by the Eighth Circuit Bar Association to UAPB Alumnus Jerry M. Hunter. Hunter is Senior Counsel at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP with special expertise in labor and employment law. Hunter graduated from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) with a bachelor’s degree in history and government, and later graduated from Washington University Law School in 1977. Ten years later, Hunter completed the Senior Executive program at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.
The Emerging Scholars Leadership Institute (ESLI) at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) recently hosted an engaging and insightful workshop on Professionalism and Leadership for the UAPB Golden Lions Football team as part of their academic readiness program. The workshop offered practical guidance and interactive activities to enhance the team’s professional skills in interviewing, presentation, and leadership.
Mateo Cook, a sophomore at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB), recently wrote a letter to the editor of the Pine Bluff Commercial. His letter was featured in the Opinion section of The Commercial on September 25, 2025. Cook was raised in San Diego, California, and is majoring in Industrial Technology Management and Applied Engineering.
Haley Franklin, a native of Scott, Arkansas, graduated debt-free from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) in May 2024 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a 3.74 GPA. Her journey reflects resilience, faith, and a family legacy of caregiving.Franklin also began her legacy of giving back by launching the Heart to Heal Nursing Scholarship, with the goal of awarding it to a deserving nursing student in Arkansas. She and her parents, Eric and Erika Franklin, came to the UAPB campus to present $500 to Jaylia Knight, a junior Nursing student at UAPB.
The Arts & Science Center (ASC) for Southeast Arkansas hosted a “Homecoming Coloring Activity,” featuring a coloring sheet of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) Mascots, Legend, and Reign. Prizes were awarded to the top three winners. Ten local K-6 elementary schools participated and submitted a total of 888 entries to the ASC for judging. A’kari Miller, a 4th grader attending Coleman Elementary School, won first place. Dakota Brooks, a 5th grader attending Taylor Elementary School, won second place, and Autumn Washington, a 3rd grader attending Friendship Aspire Academy (Main Street), secured third place.
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) announces the continuation of its partnership with Coursera, Inc., a global massive open online course provider based in the United States and founded in 2012 by Stanford University computer science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller. Through the partnership, UAPB has 300 licenses that provide access to the full catalog, which contains over 13,000 individual courses and guided projects, more than 600 specializations, and over 150 industry professional certificates ranging from beginner to advanced levels.