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Arkansas AG rejects proposed education constitutional amendment for 2026 ballot
This story was updated at 11:45 a.m. on Aug. 30, 2024 to include additional comments from the attorney general’s office. Arkansas’ attorney general on Thursday rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would require identical standards for public and private schools that receive state funding. In his six-page opinion, Attorney General Tim Griffin said he could […]
Federal judge temporarily blocks ‘wet signature’ rule for Arkansas voters
This story was updated at 10:35 a.m. on Aug. 30, 2024 to include comments from Get Loud Arkansas. A federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked the implementation of a new rule barring the use of electronic signatures on Arkansas voter registration forms except at certain state agencies. State lawmakers in May approved an emergency rule […]
Arkansas Republicans sue state chairman over primary rule change
A simmering rift among Arkansas Republican activists and leaders spilled into federal court on Tuesday with the filing of a civil rights lawsuit against party Chair Joseph Wood and Secretary of State John Thurston. The plaintiffs claim Wood and Thurston have refused to enforce a new party rule to close the state’s Republican primaries. Attorneys […]
Arkansas lawmakers approve ADE request to identify professional development providers
State lawmakers on Friday approved a request from the Arkansas Department of Education to seek proposals from vendors to provide professional development programs to school districts. State law requires $16.5 million be provided for professional development activities and the implementation of professional learning communities. Education department staff told the Arkansas Legislative Council Friday morning that […]
Arkansas lawmakers approve emergency rule to grant SNAP benefits to Marshallese migrants
A legislative subcommittee on Thursday approved an emergency rule to comply with a new federal law that extends certain public assistance program benefits to migrants from the Marshall Islands. Arkansas is home to the largest Marshallese community in the country, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates. The emergency rule the Department of Human Services presented […]
Panelists say telemedicine, doulas could improve Arkansas’ poor maternal health outcomes
Participants in a maternal health roundtable discussion in Bentonville Wednesday morning said education, collaboration, meeting patients where they are and telemedicine are all strategies for addressing Arkansas’ poor maternal health outcomes. Arkansas has one of the nation’s highest maternal mortality rates and the third-highest infant mortality rate, according to the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement. […]
Arkansas officials outline next steps in federal broadband grant program
The Arkansas State Broadband Office on Tuesday launched a series of town hall meetings aimed at preparing community leaders to support local projects that will apply for a $1 billion broadband infrastructure grant program later this year. Created through the Infrastructure Investment Jobs Act of 2021, the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program provides […]
Arkansas lawmakers table corrections department medical contract
A legislative subcommittee on Monday delayed approval of a $235.5 million medical contract for the Arkansas Department of Corrections after lawmakers voiced concerns about the extent of coverage for inmates and an ongoing dispute over prison bed expansion. The contract presented to the Arkansas Legislative Council’s Review subcommittee represents the first two years of a […]
Immigrants in Arkansas struggle to achieve better life they came to the U.S. to find
A Pacific Islander and his family left the Marshall Islands more than a decade ago in search of better education, health care and job opportunities in the United States. Similarly, a mother and her four youngest children moved to Arkansas from Mexico 25 years ago, joining two children and their father and hoping to improve […]
Heads of Arkansas private schools participating in state voucher program cite aid to families
As Arkansas students head back to the classroom this month, around 12,000 will be attending one of more than 120 private schools that have been approved for the second year of the state’s school voucher program. Created by the LEARNS Act, a 2023 law that overhauled Arkansas’ education system, the Educational Freedom Account Program allows […]
Judge rejects motion to dismiss Arkansas school voucher lawsuit
A judge on Monday denied the Arkansas attorney general’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the state’s new school voucher program. Parents and guardians of public school children filed a lawsuit in Pulaski County Circuit Court in June asking a judge to block enforcement of the new Educational Freedom Account Program, which […]
Arkansas school districts consider implementing new state cell phone, mental health program
More than 200 Arkansas school districts have expressed interest in a new pilot program to reduce cell phone access with the goal of improving students’ mental health, according to the Arkansas Department of Education. In early July, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Education Secretary Jacob Oliva issued a letter to superintendents inviting them to participate […]