Arkansas

New Sculpture Graces Landscape at Arkansas Tech – Arkansas Tech University

Published

2 years ago

June 30, 2024

New Sculpture Graces Landscape at Arkansas Tech – Arkansas Tech University

A new 17-foot long oak sculpture has been installed on the south side of Witherspoon Hall at Arkansas Tech University in Russellville.

The sculpture was created by Julie Benda, 2024 Windgate Foundation artist in residence at ATU. According to biographical information published to her website, Benda is a writer, illustrator and visual artist with a practice in print, sculpture and public art.

A native of Michigan, Benda’s artwork has been featured in Make MN Magazine, MN Original, Hyperallergic and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. She has received the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council Next Step Grant, Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant and the Jerome/MCBA Mentorship.

The artist in residence program at ATU is made possible through a grant from the Windgate Foundation. Additional financial support from the Windgate Foundation over the past five years has allowed Arkansas Tech to establish a summer professional development program for K-12 art teachers, develop enhanced opportunities for ATU graduates to attend medical school, purchase equipment for Arkansas Tech nursing students and establish a need-based scholarship fund.

Benda is the sixth artist in residence in Arkansas Tech history. She was preceded by Manami Ishimura (spring 2019), Tiffany Black (spring 2020), Jade Hoyer (fall 2021), Andrew Malczewski (spring 2022) and Haylee Bolinger (spring 2023).

Learn more about the ATU Department of Art at www.atu.edu/art.

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Arkansas

Arkansas Governor joins national A.I. workforce initiative

Published

2 hours ago

June 25, 2026

Press Room

Arkansas Governor joins national A.I. workforce initiative

LITTLE ROCK, AR (KATV) — Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has joined a new national artificial intelligence initiative that launched Thursday, June 25.

RAISE US, started by former Governor Eric Holcomb of Indiana and Gina Raimondo, former U.S. Secretary of Commerce is a nonpartisan national organization that will partner with governors, employers, workers and training organizations to help the workforce transition to an AI economy.

“As artificial intelligence transforms America’s economy, we have one clear message: technology should empower people, not replace them. By leveraging our Arkansas LAUNCH initiative, and with the resources and expertise provided by RAISE US, Arkansas will turn that mission into reality. We want the Natural State to be a leader on education, workforce training, and up-skilling, and this new partnership gives us the tools we need to build a model for the entire nation.”

The organization will design and pilot incentives to retrain workers, new approaches to support job transitions, and training models tied to employer demand.

RAISE US launches with more than two dozen American companies and philanthropies and initial state partnerships in Connecticut, Maryland and Utah.

“America has a technology strategy for leading the global AI competition. It does not yet have a people strategy — and we cannot lead without one,” Raimondo, who will serve as CEO of RAISE US, said.

“If we build the best AI systems in the world and leave millions of Americans behind, we won’t have won anything; we’ll have automated our own decline. I believe AI will create new jobs and industries over time, but the transition could be disruptive, and it’s already underway. We shouldn’t fearmonger, but we can’t pretend our training and worker support systems are ready either. It’s time for innovative and practical solutions. This moment demands ambition, urgency, and creativity. We’ve assembled the country’s top companies, best economists, and bipartisan governors at a scale rarely seen — all to advance new ideas and incentives, pilot them with governors and business, and scale what works.”

Governor Sanders is partnering with RAISE US to support Arkansas LAUNCH, an AI-powered career navigation platform that connects students and jobseekers to personalized learning and employer-linked career pathways.

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