Great institutions are composed of great people. Every two weeks, we'll showcase a member of the UALR family who works to improve the university experience. Nominate someone who's making a difference.

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posted by Drew Stephens at 9:43 AM 0 Comments

John Barbuto

For our third installment of Difference Makers, we're featuring nominated staff member John Barbuto, an Access Consultant who works in the UALR Disability Resource Center.

He joined the department all the way from Syracuse, NY, after he earned his Master of Arts in Rehabilitation Counseling from UALR and his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Le Moyne College, in Syracuse, NY.

Prior to coming to UALR, John worked in many facets of the disability-related field over the last decade. In his position here, John works with faculty, staff, administrators and students toward creating inclusive and sustainable learning environments. He collaborates with students to determine appropriate accommodations, and to identify aspects of the campus environment that may present barriers.

posted by Drew Stephens at 1:50 PM 12 Comments

Andrew Eshleman

Associate Professor Andrew Eshleman labors in the world of ideas. For him, holding students to the highest standards of ethics and achievement is second nature, and both students and colleagues appreciate his dedication to teaching.

"If you set the bar high, not everyone will make it, but they will all try," Dr. Eshleman said. "In trying they get further than if they didn't try. Maybe they don't get all the way, but they will be in a better place than if you hadn't set the bar high."

Dr. Eshleman demands the same excellence from himself that he expects from his students. To him, the profession is a constant opportunity to reach higher and achieve greater things for himself and his students.

Dr. Eshleman sees himself in many of the students at UALR. He was once a first-generation college student and enjoys encouraging those who may have missed out on positive reinforcement in the past.

"The greatest pleasure of my job is that I sometimes see a similar thing with my students," he said. "They have backgrounds similar to my own in that they don't always know it's OK to ask questions and follow that line of questioning wherever it goes."

Dr. Eshleman earned a bachelor's degree in religious education from Messiah College, master's degrees in religion and philosophy from Claremont Graduate University, and a doctorate in philosophy from the University of California-Riverside. He is a member of the American Philosophical Association, the American Academy of Religion, and the American Society of Bioethics and Humanities. Dr. Eshleman has served as a visiting scholar at the East-West Center in Hawaii and received a faculty internship with the University of Graz in Austria.

posted by Drew Stephens at 11:29 AM 1 Comments

Jennifer Buie Hune

An early aptitude test told Dr. Jennifer Buie Hune that she was an excellent problem solver, and a list of occupations accompanying that test cued the then-business student that she would be a great special education teacher.

Working with students who have been "beaten down" by teachers who cannot understand the uniqueness in the way they learn is what drew the assistant professor and program coordinator for special education to her career. In the resource classroom, Dr. Buie Hune worked on "teaching herself out of a job," ensuring that students who spent their entire day in special education classes learned the social and academic skills to work productively in a mainstream class.

"It just fills your heart and fills your spirit to know that a person -- who didn't feel that they could function and were never taught that they could function -- begin to function and to know that they can," Dr. Buie Hune said.

She works to teach future educators about the challenges and opportunities that special-needs students provide. She reminds all her students that legislation requires general education content for all children -- no matter their skill level. She also emphasizes that special education and mainstream teachers should work together to ensure successful educational outcomes for their students.

After earning a bachelor's and master's degrees at UALR, Dr. Buie Hune earned a doctorate in special education from the University of Kentucky. She is a member of Phi Kappa Phi and has served as chair of the Head Start Health Advisory Committee and the Head Start Collaborators Group.

posted by Drew Stephens at 11:14 AM 0 Comments

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