Obesity focus of conference
FAYETTEVILLE — Health researchers from across the state will gather later this month to discuss obesity, nutrition and ways to collaborate on new projects.
The Arkansas Nutrition, Obesity, and Health Research Retreat will take place Oct. 25-27 at the Don Tyson Center for Agricultural Sciences in Fayetteville.
Arkansas is one of five states to have an adult obesity rate of 35 percent or higher, according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The retreat aims to bring scientists together “to build the foundation” for efforts leading to federal grants, according to the event’s website.
Organizers include UA, the UA System’s Agriculture Division, and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
$8 million in grants to aid language teaching
FAYETTEVILLE — Three federal grants totaling more than $8 million will help two university faculty members develop programs to help English-language learners.
Janet Penner-Williams and Diana Gonzales Worth-en have won grants from the U.S. Department of Education to improve training for teachers.
Penner-Williams plans to provide online training for 175 educators and also develop outreach activities for families to improve engagement with English-language learning. Gonzales Worthen aims to help teachers earn English-as-a-Second Language endorsements as well as help paraprofessionals become certified teachers.
In 2016-17, the most recent year with data available, there were 41,456 students in state school districts considered as English-language learners — about 8.7 percent of the total student population — according to online state data.
Ex-chancellor joins Fulbright council
FAYETTEVILLE — David Gearhart, from 2008-15 the top administrator at UA, is part of a newly created group of education leaders advising the nonprofit Fulbright Association.
The Fulbright Association Presidents Council is made up of former university presidents and chancellors, according to a statement from UA.
The association, a membership group founded in 1977, advocates for the continuance of the Fulbright Program, an academic exchange program sponsored by the U.S. government and named after J. William Fulbright. He introduced legislation in the 1940s to establish a student exchange program. Fulbright was a U.S. senator from Arkansas and a former UA president.
“I am truly honored to be asked to serve on the council and most grateful for the opportunity,” Gearhart said in the statement.
Bible professor’s papers now public
FAYETTEVILLE — The collected papers of James Bales, a Bible professor known as a crusader against communism, have been made public by UA libraries.
The former Harding College professor’s correspondence with world leaders, along with photographs, speeches and other items, makes up the materials now open to researchers.
Bales died in 1995. He warned that communism was a threat to religious faith, and the collection includes what have been described as “parachute Bibles” dropped by air over China after the Communist Party seized power.
A collection index lists correspondence with physicist Albert Einstein, among other notables that include conservative author Phyllis Schlafly, Arkansas Gov. Orval Faubus and U.S. Sen. J. William Fulbright.
The papers “provide a nearly unparalleled opportunity for scholars and those interested in the rise of modern conservatism to examine the growth of this political movement,” Lori Birrell, head of UA’s Special Collections, said in a statement released by the university.
Hurricane-recovery study gets $124,527
FAYETTEVILLE — A $124,527 grant from the National Science Foundation will help university researchers study recovery efforts after Hurricane Harvey, the storm that caused major flooding in Houston earlier this year.
Kevin Fitzpatrick, Xuan Shi and Matthew Spialek will study the importance of social ties in recovering from the hurricane that made landfall over Texas in August.
Interviews will be done with about 300 people forced to leave their homes, including those able to relocate easily and others who faced more difficulty.
Sociology graduate students also will work on the project.
Group for stutterers holds first session
FAYETTEVILLE — A support group for those who stutter met for the first time last week, with organizers planning monthly meetings to boost self-confidence and practice speaking.
Graduate students in the speech-language pathology program lead the sessions under the supervision of a licensed pathologist.
Four people attended the first session Wednesday, Heidi Wells, director of communications for the College of Education and Health Professions, said in an email.
Meetings of the Fayetteville chapter of the National Stuttering Association are open to adults who stutter as well as their family members and others interested in learning about stuttering, with the group “committed to protecting the privacy of all group members,” according to the university.
A sign-up form is available at cdis.uark.edu/speech- hearing-clinic.