University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service (UACS) Collection Now Available

The Clinton School of Public Service is a graduate branch of the University of Arkansas System and is the nation’s first to offer a Master of Public Service (MPS) degree.

Established on January 29, 2004, the Clinton School is located on the grounds of the William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park in Little Rock, Arkansas. The school embodies former President Clinton’s vision of building leadership in civic engagement and enhancing people’s capacity to work across disciplinary, racial, ethnic, and geographical boundaries.

Students also benefit from participating in the school’s public lecture series, which features leaders in government, politics, business, foreign policy, journalism, and philanthropy addressing issues in public service.

Former U.S. senator David Pryor was the founding dean of the Clinton School. James L. “Skip” Rutherford became dean following Pryor’s retirement in 2006. The inaugural class graduated in December 2006.

Through a partnership with the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service and the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS), CALS’s Butler Center for Arkansas Studies became home to a collection of documents that covers the early history of the Clinton School.

The collection includes administrative correspondence; reports and responses; and lists of faculty, speakers, recommended reading, and alumni boards.

Some materials have been digitized, including commencement programs and speeches since the inaugural graduation ceremony in 2006 through the most recent in May 2021, as well as the plans, reports, and early histories of the creation of the Clinton School.

Also included in the collection are documents, articles, publications, and photographs related to the school’s foundation and growth, such as copies of student practicum reports and projects, articles highlighting the program and student activities, blueprints and plans for the downtown campus, and the sheet music for “We Will Build a Bridge.” Newsletters, student catalogs, admission packets, and photos from these early years have also been digitized.

The digitizing of these documents coincided with the retirement of Dean Skip Rutherford in June 2021.

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The collection can be accessed in the Research Room of the CALS Bobby L. Roberts Library of History & Art.

The finding aid for the collection can be accessed online at https://arstudies.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/findingaids/search/searchterm/uacs.

Visit the CALS website (opens in new window) for Roberts Library visiting information (opens in new window).

By Jamie Middleton, processor at the CALS Roberts Library