The University of Central Arkansas (UCA) has created a new college, combining multiple departments in the university. The new college began official on July 1, 2020.
The College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS) will encompass a range of disciplines and departments. UCA is merging the its liberal arts college and its fine arts and communications college. The liberal arts college has the following departments: English; History; Philosophy and Religion; Political Science; Sociology, Criminology, and Anthropology; and Languages, Linguistics, Literatures, and Cultures. The fine arts and communication college has the following departments: Art and Design; Music; Film, Theatre, and Creative Writing; and the School of Communication.
Tom Williams, previously the College of Liberal Arts dean, has been named the dean for CAHSS. Gayle Seymour will serve as the college’s associate dean.
“This exciting collaboration will result in new opportunities for greater student and faculty success, as well as increased administrative efficiencies and long-term sustainability,” Executive Vice President and Provost Patricia S. Poulter said in a statement. “Bringing these two highly compatible colleges together will create a more unified approach to the arts and humanities at UCA and will increase opportunities for collaboration between different programs and among students and faculty.”
The new college was announced in October 2019 with Pouler telling Arkansas Money & Politics at the time that the decision to merge the two colleges was aimed at increasing student retention and optimizing resources.
“It’s a functional decision that will help make us more interdisciplinary and collaborative,” she told AMP.
UCA now consists of five colleges, in addition to its graduate school and honors college. The five colleges include the College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences; the College of Business; the College of Education; the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences; and the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.
READ MORE: UA System Establishes Racial Equity Task Force
