From student to faculty: Meet UALR’s Dr. Tutsy ten-Bensel
February 1-7, 2016
By Becca Bona
Tutsy ten-Bensel grew up in Hot Springs, Ark., unsure of what her future held, but knowing that learning would always be at her life’s core.
After attending Lake Hamilton High School, she made her way to the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, not exactly sure what her area of study would be.
“Criminal justice courses were pretty much what kept my attention … the faculty that taught them were often experienced and professionals in the field,” she remembers. Her connection with the subject and faculty was such that she went on to major in.
When it came time to graduate, she decided she wasn’t through studying yet. “I just loved learning, and I was not ready to be done with school,” she laughs. Thus, she took the next step to get her master’s at UALR.
“I still wasn’t finished learning,” she says, and ten-Bensel made her way to a Ph.D. program at the University of Nebraska, Omaha. When she did finish, she had taken her education as far as it would go, and knew it was time to find a job.
Little did she know she’d actually end up at her alma mater.
She remembers when the opportunity opened up: “I started applying and UALR obviously was one of my choices, because I’m from here, knew the faculty, and I knew the type of environment.”
UALR was also in the process of starting a criminal justice Ph.D. program, something ten-Bensel was very interested in. Currently, UALR offers the only Ph.D. program for criminal justice in the state. She had high hopes to be a part of that move, as she says, “It was a very big component of my decision to come back because I wanted to be a part of not only the stabilization of this department, but also the new Ph.D. venture.”
Holding her breath, she applied, interviewed and got the job.
“It’s rare to be a student and go off and get your Ph.D. and then be able to come back home as a professor. … I got really fortunate in that,” she says.
She couldn’t have picked a better time to return, a short four years ago. Little Rock is and has been on the move, and she says she’s noticed. “I’ve seen the growth not only toward West Little Rock but also the Bryant/Benton area and … it’s just becoming more of a vibrant city.”
As an assistant professor within the criminal justice department, ten-Bensel has truly found her niche teaching students.
She says, “I absolutely love the mentoring component – working with students on projects and ideas.” She mostly teaches international crime and crime against women and is constantly amazed by her students’ growth. She adds, “When you see the light bulb go on in the classroom, you see future social scientists being born.”
Ten-Bensel also finds time to conduct her own research. Currently she is looking at the effects neighborhoods have on repeated prison visits. Specifically she’s examining the impact disadvantaged neighborhoods have in the equation.
She says she plans to get her students involved with her findings – “It has a lot of implications on the community as well. Tying that back together by bringing the students in and seeing how research actually helps our community, it’s just exciting.”
As someone who received their bachelor’s and master’s from the very program she now teachers, ten-Bensel fills a special space.
“I feel really privileged to be able to get my studies done here and to be able to come back here as an alumni. I’m kind of a student-alumni and now a faculty. I’ve now experienced both sides,” she says.
Being back at UALR has opened up new interdisciplinary interaction for ten-Bensel, largely due to the university’s semi-recent restructuring. The experience has been one she’s enjoyed, as she says, “There’s been a lot of interdisciplinary collaborative efforts – that’s become huge in our college. … It’s been great to see how other people tackle problems, teach classes, how they do research.”
If she had to give one piece of advice to newly graduated students, whether in criminal justice or beyond, it’s this: “Balance, balance, balance. … Learning how to balance your work life, your home life is extremely important because they complete each other. If you could figure out how that works for you early on, the better it’s going to be for you in the long run.”
When not working, ten-Bensel spends time with her husband and 13-month-old son. She loves to travel and read, although she prefers fiction over crime novels.
