The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is an 1890 Land-Grant HBCU with a diverse student population, competitive degree offerings and stellar faculty.
Location
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is located in the northern part of the city of Pine Bluff in South Central Arkansas. The city has a population of 63,000 and is the county seat of Jefferson County. It is accessible by land via State Highways 65 and 79 and by air via Little Rock Airport.
Cultural and recreational facilities include the Southeast Arkansas Arts and Science Center, movie theaters, libraries, bowling alleys, roller skating rinks, golf courses, swimming pools, parks, a city lake, riverside sporting and recreation activities, and a convention center that attracts top national entertainers. Pine Bluff has major chain motels and a variety of fine restaurants. Just 38 miles to the north is the state capitol, Little Rock. Approximately 142 miles northeast of Pine Bluff is Memphis, TN.
Mission of the University
Historical Mission
One of the most important aspects of the historical mission of Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal College was established by the Legislative Act of 1873 that created the College. The Act stipulated that the institution was being established for the convenience and well- being of the “poorer classes.”
The second statutory provision relating to the mission of the College was the Land Grant Act of 1890, which made the Morrill Act of 1862 applicable in every respect to Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal College.
The Act of 1862 charged the College, without its excluding other scientific and classical studies, and including military tactics, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and mechanic arts. These subjects are to be taught in such manner as the State prescribes in order to provide the liberal and practical education of the laboring classes of people in the several pursuits and occupations of life.
Evolving Mission
While the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff will continue to maintain a special sensitiveness to the needs, aspirations, problems and opportunities of its historic constituents, it shall expand its mission with a high degree of excellence and with a sense of constantly improving quality. The new social context that is emerging as a result of integration requires that this mission be expanded, extended and enriched so as to become consonant with the needs and demands of a more culturally heterogeneous student clientele – a clientele differing academically, socially, racially, ethnically and culturally.
To fulfill its mission of service to this heterogeneous clientele, UAPB shall develop creative and innovative activities that produce new curricular models in the fields of aesthetics, social and political institutions, and scientific technical development. This will be accompanied by new instructional designs and professorial staffs capable of implementing such programs.
The thrust of this new and expanded mission could and should result in the re-examination and improvement of value systems and moral behavior of political institutions and of the economic system. Such a mission does not merely support the advancements of science and technology, it uses science and technology to help solve economic, physical, social, political, racial and cultural problems.
The institution’s ultimate goal is to assist America in building a new social organism that will accommodate racial, ethnic and cultural pluralism in a manner that will enhance the quality of lives and patterns of living and weld the nation into one people, a mission which seems essential to the future security and health of the nation.
Vision Statement
The philosophical basis on which UAPB premises its purposes and activities is best described in a vision statement written during a planning workshop in the 1995-96 year. The statement follows:
We believe it is important to the future of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) that:
UAPB be known as a comprehensive, 1890 Land-Grant institution that provides open door liberal and professional education for its traditional clientele as well as lifelong learning experiences for other population groups with concern for the success of all students; that
UAPB be known for its Center of Excellence –– aquaculture/fisheries biology, and its Centers of Emphasis –– teacher education, mathematics and science, minority business development, student leadership development; that
UAPB offer comprehensive research and services and be an active partner and neighbor in the educational, business and industrial communities of Arkansas and the nation; that
UAPB provide accessible and affordable offerings that are innovative and relevant, and where course offerings and student performance ascribe to the highest principles and standards of academic excellence; that curricular plans be designed to prepare students for functioning in a global environment where human and economic interdependencies are ever increasing; that
UAPB maintain a climate that fosters the intellectual and social development of a diversified student body; that is caring, friendly, and respectful of the dignity of all individuals; that
UAPB be a model of resource and environmental stewardship; that
UAPB take pride in itself as a dynamic, creative, future-oriented place of learning and growth; and that
UAPB accept the responsibility to develop excellence within ourselves and produce students and graduates that reflect some consciousness, intellectual prowess and the highest levels of professionalism and integrity in their lives and work.
The application of the aforementioned philosophical declarations is the basis for the role and scope authority outlined in the Board of Trustees approved Mission Statement.
Accreditation and Membership
The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff is fully accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. It has program accreditation by the National League for Nursing, National Association for Schools of Music, American Home Economics Association, International Association of Counseling Services, the National Association for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, and the National Association of Industrial Technology. The institution is a member of the American Council on Education, American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges, Association of American Colleges, and the National Collegiate Honors Council.
PINE BLUFF, Ark. – The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (UAPB) Beyond the Bricks (BTBP) Community Producers Program Graduation was held recently in Cross-Phipps Auditorium of Caldwell Hall. There were nine young men who finished the program: Brian Donald, Cedrick Parker, Dedrick Parker, LeDarrius Walker, Victor Ryland, Jr. from Pine Bluff High School and Dontarius Slater, CharMarr Parks, Nicholas Dickson, and Jeremiah Young from Dollarway High School . During the program, BTBP program instructor Leroy Brown talked about how they had grown since they started the program and how they taught him how to be patient and to deal with people who environments are not the same.
Beyond the Bricks has a fellows Institute comprised of one graduate from each BTBP site. Brian Donald, a student at Pine Bluff High School and the son of Floyd and Patricia Donald, was selected to attend the fellow institute in New York to be held in July. While attending the institute, Brian will have the opportunity to enhance his knowledge in video and media production and will be taught leadership and life skills.
