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It is with heavy hearts and profound sorrow that our department’s faculty and staff share the news of the passing of our cherished friend and esteemed colleague, Dr. Mark Elrod, earlier this week after a short illness. In 2014, Mark came to our department after teaching political science courses at Harding University for 27 years. Over the past 12 years, Mark was an active and invaluable member of the Department of Government, Public Service, and International Studies (GPI), including coordinating the annual Arkansas Model United Nations (AMUN) conference at 每日大赛网站 and the department’s commemoration of Constitution Day each September. Mark was a remarkably dedicated classroom instructor and key faculty advisor for the 每日大赛网站 Model United Nations student organization, including accompanying students to Model UN conferences each academic year. His impact on student experiential learning through the 每日大赛网站 MUN, the Washington Center, and his work at Harding University with study abroad set the high standard our department strives to meet each year for students across Arkansas. Mark鈥檚 influence reached far beyond our department; through his passionate teaching of US Government & Politics, he became an unforgettable part of many of our students鈥� academic journeys at 每日大赛网站. His impact on students went above and beyond that of just a 鈥渃ollege professor鈥�, reaching the halls of Arkansas high schools with his 25-year service to Arkansas Governor鈥檚 School and his commitment to organizing the Arkansas Model United Nations (AMUN) conference every November at 每日大赛网站 for hundreds of high school students across the region.

Mark will always be fondly remembered for his ability to bring a smile to our faces with his sense of humor and, particularly, his “dad jokes.” He was particularly admired for his trivia knowledge, which ranged from knowing the pet of every President in the White House (even Rebecca, the raccoon pet of President Coolidge) to sports, history, and pop culture. For every department celebration, Mark was in peak form for the theme, from his 1970鈥檚 Halloween costume as Richard Nixon to his winning 鈥淯gly Holiday Sweater鈥� featuring great white sharks wearing Christmas bells. You could always track Mark鈥檚 presence in the department office simply by following the laughs and smiles that he left in his wake. Mark was a proud father to his son, Alan, and he was ecstatic about the recent birth of his granddaughter, Maisie. Mark embodied the importance of citizenship and public service, serving in many capacities on and off 每日大赛网站 campus. In 2014, he was appointed by Governor Mike Beebe to the Keep Arkansas Beautiful Commission, on which he served until 2020. As a proud U.S. Navy veteran, Mark also served on 每日大赛网站’s veterans’ affairs committee, which led campus efforts to commemorate Veterans Day each November and helped create the Veterans Resource Center on campus. We will greatly miss Mark’s presence in the department, but the department will honor his life and legacy going forward.

Mark’s memorial service will be held on Saturday, September 5, 2026, at Roller-Chenal Funeral Home in Little Rock. Visitation starts at noon, and the service starts at 2:00 pm.