The Project One Student Team, with the support of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff faculty and staff, is making strides in the implementation of the Workday Student platform. This platform unifies processes associated with a student’s progression from admission through graduation in a simple, cloud-based information system.
One of the key people leading the effort is Willette Totten, UAPB’s director of technical services. She was appointed project coordinator of the UAPB Project One Student Team.
Attendees learned about the platform during a town hall meeting in November in the S.J. Parker 1890 Extension Complex auditorium. Starting in Spring 2025, the UAPB Workday Student Project Team will introduce Workday Student to the entire campus as they transition from the current Golden Gateway system to Workday.
This transition will streamline administrative processes, provide a more user-friendly interface and enhance the student experience, according to a news release.
Members of the Project One Student team discussed the program’s functionality and previewed what’s coming up in the next few months. They also demonstrated the Faculty Teaching and Advising dashboard and shared what students can expect.
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In May, Totten obtained a Master of Science in Computer Science & Technology from UAPB. She said furthering her education gave her the necessary tools to lead the team.
“I feel that the master’s degree program has prepared me to be a project coordinator. The coursework and practical experiences gave me the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively lead and manage projects, including Project One Workday Student and other project assignments,” Totten said.
She learned about a grant that UAPB offered to encourage more minorities to get a higher degree in computer science. She spoke to associate professor Karl Walker, graduate coordinator in UAPB’s Department of Mathematics and Computer Science. Her inquiry led to enrolling in the program along with two members of her staff — Trammell Howell, information system manager, and network administrator Darrell Hood.
Totten stresses that age should not stop one from seeking more education.
“You’re never too old to learn. You’re never too old to get your degree. You never know what you will need it for or how it will come into play,” she said.
As a student, she was able to experience and better relate to the challenges a student might face and the resources they might need.
“And also, I wanted to be able to, in my position, understand what a computer science student (encounters) … how it was from a computer science student’s perspective and a professor’s perspective. So that was a good thing with me going back into college life,” she said.
According to Totten, what UAPB offers to students is “truly eye-opening.” She expressed that students may not be taking full advantage of the newer technology and opportunities such as attending conferences and networking. As a recent graduate, her passion has been reignited to ensure students are aware of these resources.
“You know that you can truly speak to it. It’s not just what we heard, but you’ve experienced it,” Totten said.
UAPB continues to progress by offering a relevant and impactful curriculum that fosters a strong sense of community, allowing graduates to compete and excel in the global marketplace.
“We’re doing all the things that other universities are doing to get our students prepared,” Totten said.
Totten and her son, Roger Totten II, graduated from UAPB together during the Spring 2024 commencement ceremony.
“It just worked out at this time in my life that I was able to take advantage of that opportunity, and at the same time, my son, Roger, could take advantage of his opportunity,” Totten said. “The Lord just put it in my spirit — your time. I always wanted that master’s, but it just didn’t fit in the schedule of life. I’m almost 60 years old. What do I need a master’s at this time in my life? The opportunity just fell in my lap.”
Roger Totten obtained his Master of Arts in teaching. The mother shared that her and her son’s dual graduation was unplanned. Both realized that they would graduate together in their final semester of school.
“Actually, I am not even sure that we started at the same time,” she said.
Roger Totten teaches and coaches sixth through eighth graders at Dumas High School. He provides instruction in career and technical education classes and business and technology.
“For the past three years, I’ve been teaching Project Lead The Way (PLTW) … basically teaching kids how to be engineers … intro to engineering and design and modeling,” Roger Totten said.
He compared his students to being “baby industrial technology majors” because they are learning the basics of industrial technology. PLTW classes include two sessions per semester, focusing on design and modeling and the second on automation and robotics.
Roger Totten obtained a Bachelor of Science in physical education from UAPB in May 2019. He started his educational journey with a concentration on teaching but says he later changed his major, resulting in graduating with a “nontraditional teaching license.”
“Teaching was one of the biggest things I was advised to do,” he said.
Upon returning to UAPB several years later to obtain a traditional teaching license, he said he received “the big surprise” of being able to graduate with his mother, which he describes as “a blessing.”
“That’s why I say it’s timing. Everybody’s story is different,” Roger Totten said, emphasizing the unexpected blessings that can come from pursuing education.
He and his mother never talked about them both returning to school.
“It was just God’s timing. It was just meant to happen,” Roger Totten said.
He added that occurrences like this might be considered “uncommon favor.”
He explained that UAPB showed him how to sharpen his skills in the “out-of-body experience of being a teacher. What I mean by that is knowing the ins and outs of being a teacher.”
The educational process aided him in becoming a better teacher in general. He credited his adviser, Machell Dailey, with teaching him preparation, time management and professionalism. He shared that the master’s degree has helped him to improve efficiency and make the best use of his time while handling double duties as a teacher and coach.
He also perfected his communication skills with his students’ parents.
“Being a young teacher and a new teacher, sometimes you can miss the steps of knowing how to communicate with parents when something’s going wrong or things of that nature,” Roger Totten said.
He developed new classroom management skills, which he found beneficial inside and outside the classroom.
“I don’t really have classroom problems, but you can’t ever say that you won’t have any classroom problems. It’s always good to find new ways to manage your classroom. Like they say, different strokes for different folks. There are different ways to skin a cat. I learned how to sharpen those tools to use them in both aspects, whether it’s coaching or teaching,” he said.
UAPB had the tools he needed to complete his undergraduate and master’s degrees.
“I’m a Golden Lion at heart. I grew up in this town my whole life. UAPB is what you make it. If you do not ask for help, you will not receive help,” Roger Totten said.
He mentioned Betty Hayes Anthony, Kimberley Davis, Vera Lang-Brown, William Torrance and Todd Garner as “tremendous” aids to his academic success.
“I could go on and on. I could name a lot of people who always helped me in some way, form or fashion for me to get to the finish line. I couldn’t have done it without them,” Roger Totten said.
“UAPB is great. I can’t say it enough. I think anyone should come to the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and get a degree. I will continue to always have pride in the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, and any way that I can help the university, I’m always here for it,” he said.
The Tottens offer encouragement to those who may be considering returning to college.
“Just trust God’s timing, and you can do it. … It will get discouraging at times, it will get tough, but as my dad, (UAPB golf) coach Roger Totten, would say: ‘You’ve got to be able to see dry land in muddy waters.’ That’s one of the sayings that kept me going,” he said.
His mother added that it’s never too late.
“There is always an opportunity to learn. Sometimes when an opportunity presents itself, you just have to step out on faith and say, ‘It’s my time.’ If God brought it to you, He’ll bring you through it and give you everything you need to finish it,” she said.
Learn more about Workday Student at the UAPB Workday Student Information Hub at https://uapb.edu/administration/academic-affairs/center-for-teaching-learning/workday-student-info-hub/#meet-the-uapb-workday-student-project-team.