The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Commissioned Officers Association (COA) awarded scholarships to three Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) cadets during Homecoming 2025.
Cadets were each awarded a $1,000 scholarship during the COA Scholarship Board meeting held at the Dawson-Hicks building in October. Cadet Scholarship recipients were UAPB sophomore Jaylon Flowers of Little Rock, a health and kinesiology major; UAPB freshman Rhyan Cain of Kansas City, Mo., a biology major; and UAPB freshman Clayton Shuanthony Jr. of Little Rock, a nursing and military science major.
Each year during the UAPB Homecoming week, the campus welcomes UAPB ROTC alumni.
“These individuals not only mentor current program cadets but also play a crucial role in selecting UAPB Commissioned Officers Association scholarship recipients, demonstrating their ongoing commitment to the ROTC program,” according to a news release.
The UAPB COA Scholarship Board is composed of dedicated members who play a significant role in the program’s success, according to the release. These members and the years they graduated include retired Maj. Charles Griffith, 1983; retired Capt. Sharon Alexander, 1983; retired Capt. Ed Shumpert, 1970; retired Col. Karen Chipchase, 1985; and retired Lt. Col. Curtis Lindesay, 1989.
Lindesay shared that the awards target ROTC program freshmen and sophomores to help ease the financial barriers for students.
“The scholarship award reinforces the strong bond between UAPB, its COA alumni, and the ROTC program that has helped advance the careers of nearly 700 cadet graduates since the ROTC program began in 1968,” according to the release.