Monticello Live

Voices from the past came to life in the rotunda of the State Capitol last week during a re-enactment of the signing of a piece of legislation that changed the face of higher education in Arkansas.

The event recreated the signing of Act 100 of the Arkansas General Assembly, also known as the Bellamy Act, which created four district agricultural schools. Those schools would eventually become the University of Arkansas at Monticello, Arkansas State University, Arkansas Tech University, and Southern Arkansas University.

Those schools began a two-year celebration of their centennials with the re-enactment ceremony, which drew legislators, educators and alumni from each university. The assembled guests watched as Governor Mike Beebe signed a replica of the original legislation and presented copies to UAM Chancellor Jack Lassiter, ASU President Robert Potts, SAU President David Rankin, and ATU President Robert Brown.

“We’ve just watched the re-enactment of one of the most significant events in our state’s history,” Lassiter told the audience. “What these visionary legislators created a century ago was opportunity for future generations of Arkansans. At UAM, our centennial slogan – Celebrating a Century of Opportunity – is a reflection of our mission, to provide educational opportunity, particularly to those who might not have any other way to attain a college education. As we begin a new century, it is my hope that UAM never loses sight of its unique mission – to the state, to the region, and certainly to its most important constituency – to provide educational opportunity for future generations.”

The re-enactment was performed by students Arkansas State’s Department of Theatre and was the culmination of a two-day event that included a reception at the Governor’s Mansion.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 22nd, 2009 at 5:39 am and is filed under UAM News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.