In recognition of their professional achievements, 18 faculty members at A-State were awarded promotions Friday as the Board of Trustees approved recommendations from the Promotion, Retention and Tenure Committee and the university administration.  

Those promoted to professor and their respective disciplines are: Amy R. Pearce and Karen Yanowitz, psychology; Lauren Schack Clark, Marika Kyriakos and John Edward Owen Jr., music; and J. Stephen Guffey, physical therapy. 

Those promoted to associate professor are: Brandon Kemp and Shubha Kher, engineering; Tim Bohn, theatre; John Harlan Norris, art; Christopher Wilson, music; Veena S. Kulkarni, sociology; Holly Hall and Po-Lin Pan, communication; Elizabeth Nix, nursing; Travis Marsico and Paul Sikkel, biological sciences; and Hong Zhou, statistics.  Congratulations to all.

Congratulations to Dr. Katarzyna Lecky, assistant professor of English, on her selection for the Huntington Grant from the Renaissance Society of America, a prestigious award and stipend given to one person annually.  The stipend will help support continued research for her project, “The Laureate Poetics of Pocket Maps in Renaissance Britain,” which also has won support from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Folger Shakespeare Library.

The Department of Military Science and Leadership conducted its officer commissioning Friday.  Lt. Col. Cecil L. Clark (pictured), professor, and Major Brian Mason, assistant professor of military science, led the commissioning ceremony, which is made possible through the efforts of the entire departmental faculty and staff.  Eight seniors, who received their university diplomas Saturday, were pinned with their gold bars as second lieutenants and will assume various duty assignments in the active Army, Army Reserve or National Guard.

If you were not able to attend Faculty Honors Convocation, this is for you.  A video package highlighting the event is posted to the university’s Vimeo page.  Four individuals received the annual Faculty Achievement Awards, and 21 retirees were recognized as they conclude their service to the university, including Sam Gennuso (pictured), who has been an A-State faculty member for an amazing 51 years.  The video on Vimeo is available here; online news releases list the award winners and retirees.

The Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council has approved funding for two Heritage Sites preservation projects, according to Dr. Ruth A. Hawkins, director.  Learn about work to be undertaken at the Dyess Colony restoration and the V.C. Kays House on campus.

Congratulations to Bill Hall, university planner in Facilities Management, who has been reappointed by Gov. Mike Beebe to a five-year term on the Arkansas State Board of Architects, Landscape Architects and Interior Designers.  Hall has been part of A-State’s staff since 2002.