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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.
Goals of the University
The following long-and short-range goals, which emerge from the university’s mission, address the major role and functions of the institution:
To establish a planning and information management system that enhances decision-making and facilitates administrative effectiveness and program excellence.
To set in place, organize and implement programs, personnel, resources and supportive environment as needed to accomplish the vision, mission, goals and objectives of the university.
To develop an integrative planning, assessment, and budgeting process.
To continue to adequately prepare students for the work force and/or graduate and professional studies in the various academic schools.
To provide adequate financial and other resources, including a multi-functional conference/education center, to support planning and resource management, teaching, research and outreach activities.
To develop criteria and procedures to facilitate the recruitment and retention of highly qualified faculty and staff.
To develop a comprehensive enrollment-management system to enhance the quality and quantity of the overall student population.
To assess the needs of the community and to provide lifelong learning opportunities through access to university resources, extended academic programs and specialized services.
To conduct research and scholarly activities that enhances the problem solving capacity of the institution and contributes to an expanding knowledge base.
To implement a comprehensive marketing and public relations program.
To provide access to world-wide information networks for the faculty, students and staff in support of the planning, fiscal management, teaching/learning, research and service objectives of the university.
To establish a campus environment that is more aesthetically pleasing, user friendly, and technologically up-to-date.
To provide appropriate resources and checks and balances to ensure continued and sustained progress on the Arkansas Higher Education productivity measures.
To create a process by which evidence of congruence between the institution’s vision, mission, goals and objectives and the actual outcomes of its programs and activities are assembled and analyzed with systematic feedback provided in order to improve teaching/learning, research and service.
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.
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