Spring Break
Mrs. Smith goes to Little Rock
Jack Willems, Senior Staff Writer
Issue date: 4/25/06 Section: News
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Many students may feel a connection with professor Lindsley Smith. She too knows what it is like to hold down two jobs.
Smith is the state representative for District 92. Serving as a Democrat, she was first elected in 2004. In addition to her work in Little Rock, she currently teaches political communication and interpersonal communication at the UA.
Smith said she is working half- time at the university and whenever she must be in Little Rock she takes unpaid leave. With a schedule like hers, she must be able to manage doing many things at the same time.
"During the past academic year, I was able to effectively balance a two-class per semester teaching load, travel to and from Little Rock for committee meetings, and also managed to publish three journal articles, two of which were designated as lead articles," she said.
Having divided attention does not mean Smith does not accomplish much in the Arkansas House of Representatives. Smith said she has sponsored several bills whose topics include requiring verifiable paper records for electronic voting machines, an increase in the minimum wage, insurance coverage for contraceptives, extension of protective orders to reduce violence in dating relationships, reform of predatory non-consensual towing of vehicles, compensation for unused sick leave by UA employees, donation of prescription medicine to charitable clinics, and appropriations for several institutions in Fayetteville including the Fayetteville Public Library.
Smith also mentioned one act designed to put an end to "strategic lawsuits against public participation." She said litigation is sometimes used to silence public discourse instead of achieving justice.
"While the First Amendment and analogous provisions of the Arkansas constitution guarantee the right, this legislation protects the right against expensive and frivolous litigation," Smith said.
Smith said being an educator has given her a greater insight into the UA's budget priorities. She has been able to direct more state funding toward institutions such as KUAF public radio, the Diane Blair Center for Southern Politics, the Special Collections Department of Mullins Library, and the Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History. Teaching in primary and secondary schools has also been beneficial to her understanding of educational ideas, Smith said.
Smith is the state representative for District 92. Serving as a Democrat, she was first elected in 2004. In addition to her work in Little Rock, she currently teaches political communication and interpersonal communication at the UA.
Smith said she is working half- time at the university and whenever she must be in Little Rock she takes unpaid leave. With a schedule like hers, she must be able to manage doing many things at the same time.
"During the past academic year, I was able to effectively balance a two-class per semester teaching load, travel to and from Little Rock for committee meetings, and also managed to publish three journal articles, two of which were designated as lead articles," she said.
Having divided attention does not mean Smith does not accomplish much in the Arkansas House of Representatives. Smith said she has sponsored several bills whose topics include requiring verifiable paper records for electronic voting machines, an increase in the minimum wage, insurance coverage for contraceptives, extension of protective orders to reduce violence in dating relationships, reform of predatory non-consensual towing of vehicles, compensation for unused sick leave by UA employees, donation of prescription medicine to charitable clinics, and appropriations for several institutions in Fayetteville including the Fayetteville Public Library.
Smith also mentioned one act designed to put an end to "strategic lawsuits against public participation." She said litigation is sometimes used to silence public discourse instead of achieving justice.
"While the First Amendment and analogous provisions of the Arkansas constitution guarantee the right, this legislation protects the right against expensive and frivolous litigation," Smith said.
Smith said being an educator has given her a greater insight into the UA's budget priorities. She has been able to direct more state funding toward institutions such as KUAF public radio, the Diane Blair Center for Southern Politics, the Special Collections Department of Mullins Library, and the Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History. Teaching in primary and secondary schools has also been beneficial to her understanding of educational ideas, Smith said.
