Arkansas Tech University students with an interest in urban development and architecture made the streets of Little Rock’s historic Hillcrest neighborhood their classroom for one day during the spring 2025 semester.
Thirty ATU students in an interdisciplinary, project-based class visited with local experts and gained a greater understanding of how people and places interact.
“Being able to walk through Little Rock’s Hillcrest district was a great opportunity for us to learn about the various types of architecture used in historic homes,” said Haley Greer, an ATU student from Springdale. “This class has shown students how to look for historic features in Russellville, which is something I find myself looking for as I drive around town.”
The ATU students represented a two-section course that is meeting during spring 2025. They are enrolled in a Sociology Capstone class taught by Dr. Julie Mikles-Schluterman, ATU professor of sociology, and an Urban Geography class taught by Dr. Patrick Hagge, ATU professor of geography.
“This has been such a great experience seeing students from across disciplines working and learning together,” said Mikles-Schluterman. “Getting outside of the classroom and having a hands-on experience always transforms the class.”
Hannah Ratzlaff, urban designer from the City of Little Rock, and Antoinette Johnson, historic preservation and design consultant with Johnson Consulting, led the students on guided tours of Hillcrest.
Tricia Bean, executive director of the Quapaw Quarter Association, Rachel Patton, executive director of Preserve Arkansas, and Sara Jondahl, director of sustainability and resilience with the City of Russellville, also engaged with ATU students during the tour.
Ralph Wilcox, deputy state historic preservation officer of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, and Iain Montgomery, local government coordinator of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, met with the ATU students over lunch.
Mikles-Schluterman and Hagge expressed appreciation to the ATU Department of Behavioral Sciences for supporting travel costs associated with the outing.
“We are so thankful to all these experts from Little Rock who graciously gave their time to our students,” said Hagge. “It’s amazing to watch our students learn using real-world examples outside a typical classroom.”
Jondahl is working closely with the ATU students throughout the spring 2025 semester. The end result of their collaboration will be a documentation of Russellville’s historic neighborhoods. That project has benefited from contributions by Betsy McGuire, retired executive director of Main Street Russellville, and Greg Barborek of Entergy Arkansas.
Learn more about the ATU College of Arts and Humanities at www.atu.edu/humanities.
