Less than a year after its creation, the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) Trap Shooting team proved to be right on target, finishing among the nation’s best at the 2026 Scholastic Clay Target Program (SCTP) National Championship. 

The team arrived at the national competition, held from July 10 to 18 at the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, Ohio, locked and loaded to compete in the co-ed collegiate American Trap event. 

Each member fired 200 rounds over the course of a two-day competition. The number of successfully shot targets was the shooter’s final score, and the team’s five highest individual scores were combined to determine the final standing. UAM Trap Shooting earned a ninth-place finish, landing them among the top ten of more than 70 collegiate teams.

In addition to the American Trap competition, one team member participated in the Super Sporting Clays event, which the team plans to incorporate into next year’s practice schedule.

The University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) continues to transform higher education in Arkansas through an innovative campus-within-a-campus model that is redefining how rural students earn bachelor’s degrees while creating lasting economic benefits for communities across the state.

What began in 2023 as a single partnership has rapidly evolved into a statewide initiative spanning nine community college partners, creating one of Arkansas’ most significant higher education collaborations. The model provides students with the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree from UAM while remaining on their local community college campus, removing many of the financial, geographic and personal barriers that have historically prevented students from completing a four-year degree.

For rural Arkansas, the initiative represents a transformational investment, not only in students but also in the future workforce and economic vitality of communities throughout the state.

“The campus-within-a-campus model represents one of the most significant innovations in higher education access in Arkansas,” said Dr. Peggy Doss, chancellor of UAM. “For many students, relocating to pursue a bachelor’s degree is simply not an option. By bringing the university to students rather than requiring students to come to the university, we are creating opportunities that change lives, strengthen communities and support the state’s workforce needs.”

Two students from the University of Arkansas at Monticello (UAM) participated on a team that recently won third place at the AI Hackathon and HealthTech Startup Week competition in Little Rock. 

The event, held at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock) from June 8 to 12, was open to high school and college students from Arkansas and surrounding states. Hosted through a collaboration between UA Little Rock, local health care providers, NVIDIA and Google, participants from a variety of health, technical and business backgrounds of all experience levels were brought together to earn AI certifications, learn from health care professionals and solve real-world challenges using AI tools. 

This event was the first hackathon experience for UAM students Pronita Ghimire, a freshman double majoring in computer science and mathematics with a data science option, and Kshitiz Khatiwada, a sophomore double majoring in computer information systems with a cybersecurity concentration and mathematics with a data science option. Friends since high school in Kathmandu, Nepal, the two were eager to participate to advance their knowledge and skills.