Talk to focus on UAPB’s Corbin
Author Gladys Turney Finney and Kimberley Davis, dean and professor at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff School of Education, will honor Professor Joseph Carter Corbin and the founding of Branch Normal College (now UAPB) more than 150 years ago.
The conversation will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. Sept. 3 at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave., in Little Rock. The event will also be available virtually by registering at https://events.cals.org/event/14313529.
The talk highlights Corbin’s to education as part of the Legacies & Lunch series, a free program of CALS Butler Center for Arkansas Studies about Arkansas-related topics, according to a news release.
Branch Normal College opened the doors to what would become a major center of learning for African Americans in Arkansas, starting with just seven students.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The city of Pine Bluff officially recognizes Sept. 27 as Professor Joseph Carter Corbin Day, a resolution passed by the City Council in 2023 to honor his legacy on the 150th anniversary of the university’s founding. Corbin’s story is also featured in Joseph Carter Corbin: Educator Extraordinaire and Founder of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, published by Butler Center Books in 2017.
“As we reflect on Corbin’s lasting impact, this program will focus on the importance of the university’s first years and its continued influence on higher education for African Americans in Arkansas and beyond,” according to the release.
Finney, who has researched Corbin’s legacy, was born in rural southeast Arkansas during the Great Depression and grew up in Pine Bluff. She graduated from J.C. Corbin High School in 1953 and from the Arkansas AM&N (now UAPB) in 1957.
“As the author of ‘Joseph Carter Corbin, Educator Extraordinaire,’ she works to preserve his legacy as a pioneer in education, particularly in the Reconstruction Era. Corbin, the first African American Arkansas State Superintendent of Public Instruction, believed in education for all. In honor of his contributions, Turner Finney established the Joseph Carter Corbin Memorial Scholarship at Ohio University in 2015 and at UAPB in 2022,” accoding to the release.
Davis has served in the field of education as a special education teacher, coordinator, consultant, educational diagnostician and Special Education director. Her research interests include multi-tiered levels of intervention and support, teacher preparation, inequities in special education, inclusive practices and culturally responsive teaching. In 2024, she was named an Impact Academy fellow by the non-profit Deans for Impact.
Gardening study seeks volunteers
Grace Gardening needs 20 new garden volunteers for a health related research project. Interested participants may learn more at an open house at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the State Street Good Earth Garden, 1416 S. State St.
The research will be conducted by affiliates of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Center, according to StuffinTheBluff.com.
Attendees will earn gift cards for participating in a study focusing on the relationship between volunteering in a local community garden and food choices. Qualifying volunteers must live within one mile of the garden and be age 18 or older.
To participate:
Call or text (870) 209-1557 for signup.
Take an initial survey (45 minutes) at the open house event.
Volunteer at the garden for one to two or more hours per week for the eight weeks study period. (Work on active and sit-down projects. Learn gardening and self-sufficiency tips.)
Participate in the project’s closing review.
In six months (2026), complete a final survey.
Details: (870) 209-1557.