University of Arkansas – Fort Smith issued the following announcement on Dec. 17.
Three of the more than 450 University of Arkansas – Fort Smith students who will be honored this Saturday at the university’s 105th commencement ceremony shared reflections on their university careers this week, looking back on the triumphs, struggles, and joys that led to the monumental achievement of graduation.
Kellie Lindsay Garner, Bachelor of Business Administration graduate from Fort Smith, said she faced a multitude of challenges as a first-generation student, working mother, and business owner. Despite her non-traditional college path, Kellie shared that she found so much more than an education at UAFS. “I came back to school thinking I would earn a degree for a promotion at work, but I’m leaving having earned a promotion in life.”
After graduation she will move to Omaha, Nebraska, to pursue her Ph.D. in economics at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She was awarded a graduate assistantship in the Koraleski CABLab at UNO, which begins Jan. 3, 2022.
“The faculty in the College of Business and Industry went out of their way to motivate me and to push me to reach beyond my limited idea of what was possible for my future,” she shared. “Each one inspired me by their brilliance and by their dedication to advancing business students in the world of academia.”
“Kellie Garner is the best representation of what UAFS offers – transformation,” shared Dr. Latisha Settlage, dean of the College of Business and Industry. “As a non-traditional student, Kellie found confidence as she excelled in the classroom. As she built relationships with her business faculty, she found a professional calling. While at UAFS Kellie served as a peer advisor and peer mentor. She interned with the Literacy Council of Western Arkansans, and her supportive family received the first-ever UAFS Family of the Year Award in 2020.”
Original source can be found here.
Source: University of Arkansas – Fort Smith
