LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

It is my pleasure to present the 2020-21 Annual Report for the University of Central Arkansas. This report showcases some of the university’s greatest accomplishments from the previous year.

One of the most pivotal moments of the year and one of the most significant in our university history was the launch of the public phase of UCA Now: Impact Arkansas and Beyond, a $100 million comprehensive capital campaign. The launch of UCA Now represents years of research, meetings, and planning to ready our campus and community for this call to action. This fundraising effort will support our campus through student scholarships, endowed professorships, experiential learning, and much more for years to come.

To commemorate this historic occasion, hundreds of alumni and friends visited our campus in April to celebrate with us at the Harding Centennial Plaza and Fountain. Students waived campaign signs with their intended career fields. The UCA Bear Marching Band played our fight song, and at the end of the ceremony, every attendee could toss a commemorative coin into the fountain. To cap off the event, we were able to announce that we had raised $72.5 million toward our goal.

This previous year presented extraordinary opportunities to continue building a community of innovators and creative thinkers both in and out of the classroom. Our faculty and staff maintained the academic rigor and full-bodied campus experience our students and their families expect, and they did so with a global pandemic as a backdrop. The university showed incredible resilience and grit in holding fast to our campus values of putting students first.

I am deeply grateful for the stalwart dedication shown by our faculty, staff, and students who have all contributed to our collective success. I am also grateful for the many alumni, friends, community members, and partners who continue to support our efforts. We have an exciting future ahead, and we know that you share in our anticipation of the impact that lies ahead for UCA, Arkansas, and beyond.

Go Bears!

Dr. Houston D. Davis President