Faculty/Staff
Dr. Julyse Horr: A scientist-practitioner shaped by faith
November 22, 2021Dr. Julyse Migan-Gandonou Horr, Ouachita’s new director of applied behavior analysis, credits her faith with bringing her to where she is today.
Dr. Lewis Shepherd Jr. named Ouachita's VP for Community and Intercultural Engagement
November 11, 2021Dr. Lewis Shepherd Jr. has been named vice president for community and intercultural engagement at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia.
From the "Ouachitonian": Donnie Copeland
June 21, 2021Donnie Copeland had an unconventional upbringing. He grew up over 6,000 miles away from the United States in Ogbomosho, Nigeria. His parents taught at a local seminary and did mission work, such as traveling to remote villages to connect with local churches.
Susan Wink's "Ben Kimpel" biography published posthumously
May 19, 2021The late Dr. Susan Wink, professor emerita of English at Ouachita Baptist University, authored Ben Kimpel, a biography of the longtime chairman of the English Department at the University of Arkansas. The book was posthumously published earlier this year and is available at on Amazon.com.
Tara Pritchard named Ouachita's Support Staff Member of the Year
May 18, 2021Ouachita Baptist University named Tara Pritchard, assistant to the dean in the Sutton School of Social Sciences, as the 2020-2021 Support Staff Member of the Year. Pritchard, who has worked at Ouachita for 16 years, was recognized on April 29 by Ouachita’s Staff Development Committee and President Dr. Ben Sells.
From the "Ouachitonian": Dr. Jeff Root
May 03, 2021Dr. Jeff Root never considered going anywhere else but Ouachita for his undergraduate education. Since both his parents worked at OBU, he spent much of his time growing up on campus. In 1991, Dr. Root came back to Ouachita as a member of the administrative staff and faculty, and in 2002 he became the dean of the School of Humanities.
Christa Neal to serve as Ouachita Title IX coordinator, Community and Family Services program advisor
April 16, 2021Ouachita Baptist University has announced its appointment of Christa Neal as both Title IX Coordinator for the university and program advisor for the Community and Family Services academic program, effective June 2021. Neal is the founding executive director of the Percy & Donna Malone Child Safety Center in Arkadelphia, Ark., a licensed professional counselor (LPC) and a licensed family and marriage therapist (LMFT) in the state of Arkansas.
Shepherd returns to Ouachita with goals for belonging: A Q&A with Dr. Lewis Shepherd
March 11, 2021Dr. Lewis Shepherd returned to his alma mater in August as special assistant to the president. In an interview for the Winter 2021 Circle, Dr. Shepherd answers questions about his new role, conversations he is having with students and alumni of color and university goals for working toward a sense of belonging on campus.
Faculty Profile: Ruth Plymale, holder of the J.D. Patterson Chair of Biology
March 10, 2021Ask Dr. Ruth Plymale what she loves about Ouachita, and her answer is easy – the students! Born in Japan and growing up in Texas and Northwest Arkansas, Plymale arrived at Ouachita to teach biology in 2009 after earning degrees at the University of Arkansas and Penn State. Now Arkadelphia feels like home and her students like family.
Staff Profile: Rob Hewell, director of Online Learning Initiatives & professor of music
March 10, 2021While many of us were home in March learning to bake homemade bread or binging Netflix, Dr. Rob Hewell was working swiftly with IT Services and other campus partners to shift every Ouachita student to remote learning. Hewell thrived not only assisting current students but also faculty and staff with moving courses to Zoom and Moodle while continuing his typical daily work with students in Ouachita’s online degree programs.