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In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Office of Diversity and Community hosted its first “Women’s Tea Time: A Celebration of Womanhood” on Saturday, March 14, 2015.

The tea was open to UCA faculty, staff, students, and other women in the community. The UCA Presidential Dining Room was the venue for the event.

The event featured guest speaker, Dr. Angela Webster-Smith, associate vice president for Institutional Diversity and a silent auction to support the programming efforts of the Women’s Shelter of Central Arkansas. Guests, who were encouraged to sport their “big hats”, enjoyed enriching conversation with the background music of violinist and UCA student Gustavo Agreda, sampled traditional, delectable tea cuisine, and engaged in competitive bidding during the auction period.

Because of the generous donations of businesses in Central Arkansas and the gracious guests, the event raised $750.00, which was presented to the Women’s Shelter of Central Arkansas in April.

The 2016 Women’s Tea Time will be held on Saturday, March 12 at 11:30 a.m. in the Brewer Hegeman Conference Center.

As before, proceeds for the auction will be used to support an organization that assists girls and women as a part of its mission.

The 51��¥ will begin a new performing arts series for K-12 students in Central Arkansas. The Main Stage EdUCAtion Series will start during the 2015-2016 academic year and reservations will be taken on a first come, first serve basis. Performances include “Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas!”, “Walk On: The Story of Rosa Parks” and “Doktor Kaboom in LIVE WIRE: The Electricity Tour!”

The series connects children, teachers and schools with performing arts in meaningful ways that complement the school curriculum while introducing the students to live theatre. Each performance is carefully selected to be entertaining while educating the audience on an academic topic.

“Exposure to the arts contributes to the overall social and cognitive development of children,” said UCA President Tom Courtway. “Performing arts provides students with a creative outlet of expression that can improve academic achievement, adapts to a wide variety of learning styles and develops diverse multicultural perspectives.”

It will also serve as an aid to local educators in their efforts to integrate arts into the school curriculum. All shows will be performed by professional, national-touring artists that will provide high quality performances.

“We are thrilled to introduce this new program that will increase access to the arts for schools in Central Arkansas,” said Reynolds Performance Hall director of public appearances Amanda Horton. “The arts can improve academic performance, enrich the lives of our students and enhance the cultural viability of a community.”

Students will be charged $5.00 per ticket and schools may apply for a limited number of ticket vouchers for low-income students. School groups will receive one free adult chaperone ticket per 10 student tickets purchased. Additional adult tickets may be purchased for only $10.00.

For more information, call Amanda Horton at 501-450-3265.

 

The Office of Student Wellness and Development finished up a 3 part series on weight loss last week entitled “Don’t Weight to Lose”. The program was based on findings from a wellness needs assessment conducted during the fall semester. Students expressed an interest in learning more about weight loss, specifically fitness and nutrition.

Arian Story, the assistant director of the HPER center, spoke on February 11 about fitness. She gave practical tips on how to overcome gym intimidation. For those not yet ready to get inside a gym, Arian showed several at-home exercises that require no special equipment. She also recommended the free fitness assessment offered by the HPER and talked about the option of investing in a personal trainer.

London Almond and Madison Wineland are Health Education interns this semester for Student Wellness and Development. They spoke about motivation on February 18. They helped students identify barriers that prevent weight loss and and assisted in the development of realistic goals. London and Madison talked about specific ways to stay motivated such as using free smartphone apps.

Janet Dance, UCA’s registered dietitian, spoke about nutrition at the final session on February 25. She helped students understand that excessive weight is a major factor in the nation’s leading causes of death such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Janet recommended setting up a free consultation with her for students who want to pursue a lifestyle of healthy eating.

Overall, Don’t Weight to Lose was an informative, engaging way to meet the needs of students through skill development and education.