Bell Tower | Lion VoicesMay 01, 2026

Campus Becomes Family Legacy for Carol Hill and Her Children

Written By: Tina Alvey Dale

For Carol Hill, the University of Arkansas – Fort Smith is more than a workplace. It is home.

Hill, an academic program specialist in the provost’s office, marked her 20th year at UAFS in 2024 by receiving the Lucille Speakman Award for staff excellence. Over two decades, she has served as chair-elect, chair and past chair of Staff Senate, led the campus United Way committee and completed the Lion Leadership class. Her son, Derek Hill, now serves as Staff Senate chair for 2025-26. He completed the second class of Lion Leadership, with his mom completing the third.

Hill’s daughter, CarolAnn Sturgis, works in the athletics department.

“All three of us are here,” Hill said. “Not many people can say they work at the same place with their kids. I feel really blessed.”

Hill joined UAFS in August 2004, the same year CarolAnn enrolled as a freshman. CarolAnn later earned her associate degree in 2007, and Derek completed a bachelor’s degree in media communication in 2016 before returning to campus as an academic coach in the Academic Success Center. He earned a master’s degree from Arkansas State University.

“If you ask him about the university, he'll will tell you he loves this university,” Hill said.

For the family, campus is woven into life’s milestones. CarolAnn met her husband, Lavelle (‘14), at a Lions basketball game. He proposed at midcourt during a Valentine’s Day basketball game in 2015. The couple married at The Blue Lion in 2016.

“I’ve never felt like I was going to work,” Hill said. “It’s the relationships. You just don’t meet a stranger here. There is a special spirit on this campus.”

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