Two New Department Chairs Named in Fulbright College

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Larry Foley and Ed Minar

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Two veteran University of Arkansas faculty members, each with at least 20 years of experience in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, have been named as the new chairs for the departments of journalism and philosophy.

Larry Foley, professor of journalism and Edward Minar, professor of philosophy assumed the duties for their respective departments on July 1.

Foley joined the Walter J. Lemke department of journalism in 1993 to teach and to build and direct an academic center for television reporting and production. In 1996, he founded the campus television station, UATV, an on-air laboratory where students practice the craft they learn in the classroom. 

He has produced more than three dozen documentary films in his 37 years in TV news and production, first for KATV in Little Rock, then Arkansas public television station AETN and later as an independent producer at the U of A. The subjects of his films have ranged from Arkansas people, places and history to significant achievements in University of Arkansas sports, to a history of the U of A itself. His documentaries have aired nationally on PBS, ABC, CBS and ESPN and have earned five Emmy Awards and 13 Emmy nominations. In addition, several faculty members who worked on his films have also received Emmy awards and nominations. Journalism students working in Foley’s courses have received an additional six Emmys. Foley’s films have won three Best of Festival of Media Arts awards from the international Broadcast Education Association.

Foley’s films are primarily funded through grants with proceeds from DVD sales going to support the UA Press and the department of journalism's documentary fund. The grants he’s received have paid for thousands of dollars of equipment for the university. He has been recognized with the University's top two research awards for his documentary work: the Fulbright College's master of research award and the Arkansas Alumni Association award for outstanding faculty researcher.

In October 2003, he was inducted into the Lemke department of journalism's Hall of Honor, the highest award given to journalism alumni. 

Ed Minar joined the U of A faculty in 1994 as assistant professor, after teaching at the University of Pennsylvania and Johns Hopkins University. He is editor of Philosophical Topics, a major scholarly journal in the field published through the U of A philosophy department. He teaches undergraduate and graduate level courses, including Honors courses. He also directs honors, masters and doctoral student theses.

Minar has published numerous articles and is working on a book on applications of the philosophy of the major 20^th century thinker, Ludwig Wittgenstein, to the theory of knowledge and philosophy of mind. He is also a noted scholar on the writings of controversial philosopher Martin Heidegger, the history of analytic philosophy, and the philosophy of the mind.

His philosophical background and extensive experience in dog training have led to his current research and writing on the subject of non-human animal minds. Minar published the article “Reflections on Anthropomorphism and Dog Training: What Your Dog Can Teach You About Philosophy of Mind.” A second article on the subject, “Anthropomorphism, Realism and Animal Minds,” is due to be published soon. He is also working on a book on this subject, approaching the debate over thought and consciousness in non-human animals from a philosophical perspective.

He has been awarded a Baum Teaching Grant for new course development and a Teaching Innovation grant from the U of A.

Minar received his doctorate in philosophy from Harvard University.