Meet Our Instructors
Meet CharMaine Beleele, noted Fort Smith photographer who can shoot anything from babies to 
super models, weddings to winners and has done so from Arkansas to Hollywood! She is a speech communications adjunct instructor at UAFS and also contributes her time to teaching non-credit photography classes for the Center for Lifelong Learning, all while running her own photo studio at http://www.angelkissedphotography.com. Her expertise in using the studio including portrait photography receives rave reviews from all who have taken her classes and they are frequently full. CharMaine has a BA and MA in Communications and Theater, and her work and creativity and passion for photography and teaching new skills is obvious to her students who always enjoy her classes.
Lin Chen holds a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Art, with a concentration in painting, from University of Arkansas. While study at the University Lin was awarded Outstanding Art Student in 1999 (UAFS), and was the twice receiver of the Blanche Elliot Scholarship through academic competitions, as well as the winner of the 2004 Best Art History Paper Award for her research on the artist Paul Klee (UA Fayetteville). Lin paints primarily in oil and directly from life. Her subjects are still life, landscape, and human figure, often blending them in interior or outdoor conditions. No subject is too exalted or mundane. To her the key is the craft of a visual poetry wrought by line, shape, color, and rhythm, made visible through paint, transfigured by the artist's perception. Thus her work occupies the narrow edge between the concrete and the abstract, striving for an ongoing search for fresh, surprising angles to see and represent reality, and a dialog with tradition motivated by a contemporary inquiry. Lin's work has been widely exhibited locally and regionally, held in both private and public collections. She has taught art at the University of Arkansas Fort Smith, as well as classes and workshops to both adults and children through local art centers and organizations.
Hui Apple teaches "Discover China" and is fluent in the Mandarin Chinese language and has also taught in China. She also knows some French, which came from her teaching French engineers Chinese at a previous role in China. Hui obtained her Bachelors degree in Accounting as well as Hospitality Management from Arkansas Tech University, Russellville, AR.
Meet Pettus Kincannon who was born and raised in Fort Smith, educated at Northside High and UA Fayetteville, served in the US Army and now has a successful part in the brokerage firm of Raymond James as a Certified Financial Planner. Pettus brings this financial planning knowledge to our classes in understanding the basics of the stock market, and also a class just for women who may want to think about their own financial planning needs.
Sofia Cunningham is a Venezuelan native who was born Sofia del Carmen Guerrero Flores in 1961, in the small village of El Dorado, Bolivar State, Venezuela. She says "...my parents were working people: my father serving in the National Guard and my mother in our home as a seamstress. I remember those days when my mother, while my sisters and I were in primary school, started buying books, so we could acquire a better Spanish language by practicing a lot of reading (libraries were not a resource available, back in those days in my country). Today my students love to hear about Latin-America, trips, customs and expectations. I speak about Venezuela, Colombia, Spain, Cuba, Central America, from the fullness of my experience growing up in my rich Spanish culture first hand..." Sofia has a degree in Accounting from University of Carabobo-Venezuela, 1988. She moved to the USA in 2001 and now serves as Adjunct Instructor in Spanish I at UAFS and also works full-time in Human Resources for a local Corporation.
Todd Whetstine is an award winning landscape photographer who has been featured in many magazines and journals including our own local @Urban publication. Todd grew up in Coffeyville, Kansas, and moved to Arkansas eleven years ago. Inspired by nature photographer Tim Ernst, he decided he wanted to follow in his footsteps. And what better place, he says, because Arkansas is the equivalent of a kid’s Candyland for a nature photographer. In 2008, Todd was voted Photographer of the Year by the Photographic Society of Northwest Arkansas. His award-winning work has also been published in “Capture Arkansas.” Examples of his work can be found at http://www.wildwoodsphotography.com/Homepage
Nathaniel Benoit has worked at UAFS for over 3 years. He received his BAS - Graphic Design in 2008 from UAFS. His official title is Graphic Designer in the Department of Marketing and Communications.
Nathaniel specializes in digital arts and contains a wealth of knowledge in the Adobe Creative Suite, the industry standard for designers and digital artists. This includes Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash, and Dreamweaver. Nathaniel is teaching Photoshop for Photographers and Photoshop: The Next Level.
Nathaniel is a native to the Fort Smith region and currently resides here. Visit his website at nathanielbenoit.com or his YouTube Channel NathanielB9 for a portfolio of his work or to contact him. You can also follow him on Twitter @NathanielB9 or friend him on Facebook at facebook.com/nathaniel.benoit.
Jane Wineland’s love for all things French began in the late 70s with a year-long stay in Paris, where she studied at Lycée Lamartine, an all-girls high school, and Alliance Française, an international school specializing in French language and culture. Upon her return to the U.S., Mrs. Wineland earned a BA in print journalism from the University of Oklahoma, worked as a newspaper reporter, got married and raised two daughters, was a high school teacher, and earned an MA in French literature from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. Mrs. Wineland has returned several times to France, most recently as a translator for the US Marshals Service. She teaches three levels of French at UAFS, loves working with college students, and especially enjoys teaching adults at the Center for Lifelong Learning.
Kim Murdock has been scrapbooking for over 15 years and enjoys chronicling the lives of her two sons. Kim's husband claims their sons " are more documented than National Geographic." A graduate of Hendrix College, Kim works as the Librarian at Union Christian Academy Elementary, teaches piano and writes freelance for the Times Record. In her 15 years of scrapbooking, Kim has compiled over 20 family scrapbook albums as well as albums for her husband and the boys' grandparents and great-grandparents. She has also created digital scrapbooks to preserve special memories for her boys.
Meet Erica Bartels, She received her Bachelor's Degree in Interior Design from Mississippi State University in 2003. After working for architecture and interior design firms in Atlanta and Dallas she moved with her husband to Fort Smith in 2007. Erica worked locally for Architecture Plus, Inc. for three years with highlighted projects of MoJo's Ivory House and Central Christian Church. Recently she is pursuing her masters degree in Architecture with specialization in interior design. Erica enjoys teaching others all aspects of interiors and looks forward to meeting you!
Elaine Birgelis is married and has one son, who just graduated with a Civil Engineering degree from the U of A. Elaine was born and raised in Fort Smith. She lived in Tulsa for 8 years where she worked in the Corporate Training Dept for World Com, teaching desk top applications. Since returning to Fort Smith in 1998 she has freelance taught computer skills and creating websites. She specializes in teaching new and older users the computer. She love teaching the beginners and seeing their eyes as it becomes clear to them. In her spare time she enjoys watercolor painting and working in her yard.
James Jones is a Design Draftsman for a local construction company. He enjoys photography and flying. His lifelong interest are in Japanese culture and martial arts. James is a direct student of Fumio Toyoda Shihan. TH Dan (Yondan) registered in Jamp (Aiki Kai) in Aikido. 3rd in Dan Karate and 5th in Kyu Iaido - swordsmanship. He is a member of the National Technical Committee for AWA (Aikido World Auiance) and the founder of Gyokushinkan Aikido Dojo.
