Michael Hargis, UCA’s new provost and executive vice president of academic affairs, will have some serious shoes to fill and many concerns to address, such as declining enrollment and a lack of diversity, as he transitions into one of the college’s most fundamental roles. 

Hargis will replace Patricia Poulter, who has served as provost since 2018 and announced her resignation last year. 

According to an article from The Echo, Hargis was the only internal candidate in the pool because he’s worked at UCA since 2006 and currently serves as the dean of the College of Business. 

He also served as interim provost and vice president for an academic year, a role he described as “transformative.”

These factors mean he has an intimate perspective on how UCA operates, making him a knowledgeable but comfortable nominee. 

He has worked at the university for almost two decades and has an impressive background in improving workplace conditions — slightly different from Poulter’s affection for fine arts.

According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Hargis has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Hendrix and a master’s and doctorate of philosophy in industrial-organizational psychology from Wayne State University in Detroit.

He is a member of the Conway Development Corporation and the Arkansas Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors and was previously on the Arnold Innovation Center Planning Committee.

According to uca.edu, Poulter previously served as dean of the College of the Arts at Kennesaw State University in Georgia and associate dean of the College of Arts and Humanities at Eastern Illinois University, where she received a bachelor’s in music education and a master’s in conducting.

She also earned her doctorate in music from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Poulter was the first female provost at UCA, a passionate supporter of the arts, a qualified leader and a cancer survivor. 

The provost is at UCA’s pulse; the job involves overseeing all five academic colleges, the Schedler Honors College, the Graduate School and Enrollment Management. 

As provost, one of Hargis’ most pressing concerns will be ensuring UCA stands out from other state colleges and doesn’t fall too hard off the national enrollment cliff.

While higher institutions nationwide are battling enrollment declines, several colleges in Arkansas saw increased enrollment last year. 

According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, since spring 2023, Arkansas Tech University’s student enrollment has increased by 1.2%, Arkansas State University’s enrollment has increased by 11% and the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville’s enrollment has increased by 5%.

According to an article from The Echo, UCA saw a less than 1% decrease in spring 2024 — two students less than last year. 

UCA enrollment has declined by 9.2% since spring 2020. 

Yet, according to an article in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Fayetteville’s has increased by 16% over the past five years. 

Even smaller colleges like Lyon displayed admirable growth, with its enrollment rising from 440 to 558 students, a 27% increase from last spring. 

UCA Commitment, a debt-free pathway for tuition for incoming freshmen from Arkansas households earning up to $100,000, will start in the fall this year. 

While this program will certainly attract more first-year students, Hargis will need to implement ways to ensure UCA maintains a decent retention rate, the percentage of first-time undergraduate students who return in the fall. 

According to College Factual, both UCA and A-State have a 79% retention rate, and Fayetteville has an 87%. 

Considering room and board rates increased 5% this year, and tuition has been consistently raised over the past several years, Hargis needs to engage proactively in student affairs and conduct research on how to increase retention and student satisfaction. 

Another matter Hargis should keep under his radar is UCA’s lack of diversity, specifically in its faculty. 

According to College Factual, the faculty is 85.9% white and 9.9% Black. 

Even fewer are Asian, Hispanic or Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander. 

UCA’s staff should reflect its student body, which is 66.7% white and 15.8% Black. 

Hargis will hopefully remember UCA’s tenets of diversity, belonging, inclusion and equity and not only encourage but initiate the hiring of more people of color so students can see themselves reflected in their leaders. 

UCA is the third largest college in Arkansas, and as competition stiffens, Hargis must work to maintain or raise this position, which means reflecting on what makes students stay at UCA and what makes them leave.