Dr. Phillip Russell

Phillip Russell is Director of Development and Director of Educational Outreach for Institute for the Creative Arts. In the role of Director of Development, he coordinates all fund-raising activities involved in constructing the Center for the Creative Arts which will house the current after-school programs of CSA as well as the Institute for the Creative Arts, the first performing and visual arts high school in Arkansas. As Director of Educational Outreach, Phillip develops and nurtures cooperative ties with the region so that educational opportunities in the arts can be provided to a larger group of students of varying socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.

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Prior to joining CSA, Dr. Russell was Professor of Education and Associate Dean in the College of Education at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith. Russell received a personal invitation by the late Chancellor Joel Stubblefield to join the UAFS administrative team in 2003. In that capacity, he was instrumental in founding the new College of Education, securing initial NCATE accreditation for the teacher education program, developing some six new degree programs, and authoring the report that resulted in the first-ever accreditation of the middle childhood education program. In addition, Russell formalized the assessment program for the College of Education and coordinated all faculty searches. In 2011, he was asked by Provost Ray Wallace to found and direct the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, the first faculty professional development center at UAFS. The center provided faculty with the opportunity to come together to share knowledge, learn from one another, and find resources and support to improve the instructional process with the ultimate goal of enhancing both teaching and learning.

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Phillip has also served as Associate Dean in the School of Education at Henderson State University and Director of Field Experience at the University of Arkansas – Monticello. At UAM, he was heavily involved in the development of eight professional development schools and a year-long student teaching internship experience. At that time, this endeavor was considered an extremely innovative idea in the field of teacher preparation and is now a commonly accepted practice among universities across the nation.

Russell has been NCATE coordinator at both UAFS and Henderson State University and served as a member of the Teacher Education Council at three Arkansas universities. As the licensure officer for over 20 years at three separate state institutions, Russell has worked closely with the Arkansas Department of Education in assisting literally hundreds of teacher education candidates in obtaining their professional licenses.

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Throughout his career, Russell has been very active in both the Arkansas Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (ArACTE) and the Arkansas Association of Teacher Educators (ArATE). He has served as a board member and president for both organizations on numerous occasions, working with a diverse group of educators from across the state. Prior to his time in higher education, Phillip was a social studies teacher at Dover High School, Dover, Arkansas.

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Dr Russell holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Arkansas Tech University, as well as a Master of Arts degree and a Doctor of Education degree from the University of Arkansas. During his time at Arkansas, Russell founded the Micro-teaching Laboratory in the College of Education. He was also awarded teaching assistantships in both history and education.