PINE BLUFF, Ark. – The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff awarded approximately 225 students more than $200,000 in scholarships during the Honors and Awards Convocation held recently in the John M. Ross Theatre of the Hathaway-Howard Fine Arts Building. Students from each classification competed to receive scholarships from the campus Alumni Endowment Fund, alumni chapters, civic and social organizations, sororities, fraternities and faith-based organizations. Students received awards based on required grade point averages, number of credit hours achieved, declared majors and undergraduate statuses.
Viana Stanley, a senior accounting major from Smackover, Arkansas gave the keynote address that acknowledged the program’s theme: “Educational Excellence – A Powerful Tool.” Stanley, who has a 3.8 GPA, is a Thurgood Marshall Scholar, member of the Carolyn F. Blakely Honors College, Alpha Kappa Mu National Honor Society, and Sigma Beta Delta International Honor Society.
Speaking to her colleagues, Stanley said that education can be described as a tool that can be used as an outlet to prepare students for a better life. She said academic excellence is important and the best way to achieve excellence is practice. During her time at UAPB, she learned that time management is the most important aspect of college life that she learned first-hand while traveling to academic conferences.
“The tool of self-discipline separates scholars. If you do not invest in yourself, no one else will. We have the power to speak things over our lives as we want them to be. Students – continue to work hard to achieve academic excellence and you will possess the most powerful tool to succeed in this world.”
For more information about the Carolyn F. Blakely Honors College, call (870)575-8065.
UAPB News 