NLR district hears of endowment plan
Scott Miller, who chose not to seek re-election to the North Little Rock School Board after serving two terms, announced Thursday that he and his wife Sonja are including in their estate a donation of at least $300,000 to an endowment fund for the district.
"We believe in leading by example and hope our example will inspire others," Miller said at his final regular monthly board meeting last week. "In our own way, this is how we show our appreciation to the North Little Rock School District ... for allowing us to make a difference."
Miller, who served as president of the board, suggested that endowment funds could be used to pay tuition costs for high school students who enroll in concurrent college credit courses, and for other expenses for students who need financial help.
State's SAT-takers beat U.S. average
Members of the Arkansas high school Class of 2015 who took the SAT college entrance exam in reading, math and writing scored well above the national averages.
That is largely because only 1,207 Arkansas students, or 4.1 percent of the senior class, took the 2015 SAT college entrance exam. SAT test-takers in Arkansas are generally high-performing students who are considering enrollment in out-of-state universities, including the nation's elite institutions.
Arkansas students earned an average score of 568 in reading, compared with 495 nationally. The state average in math was 569, compared with 511 nationally. In writing, the Arkansas test-takers earned an average score of 551, compared with 484 nationally. The top score is 800 in each category.
The number of Arkansas test-takers in the Class of 2015 is down from 1,222 in the previous class.
More than 90 percent of Arkansas students each year take a different college entrance exam, the ACT.
Teaching seminar to tackle finances
A one-day summit about saving and investing hosted by Economics Arkansas will be held in Little Rock next month for teachers of students in kindergarten through college.
"Get Smart: The Basics of Saving and Investing" is scheduled for 8.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. Oct. 29 at the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Building, 2301 S. University Ave., Little Rock. Session topics will include studying financial markets, making sound financial and investment decisions, choosing among various saving and investing options, recognizing and protecting against investment fraud, and understanding the role of investment regulators.
Larry Cathey from the Arkansas Securities Department is on the program as keynote speaker.
Registration must be done in advance at www.economicsarkansas.org by clicking on the event calendar and selecting Oct. 29, or by phone at (501) 682-4230. Professional development credit is available for the course.
Japanese exchange coming to Spa City
The Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts in Hot Springs, the Lakeside School District in Garland County, and Hot Springs National Park Sister City Foundation will celebrate the introduction of Japanese language and culture education in that community at a reception Tuesday
The reception -- to be held from 5 to 7 p.m. in the courtyard in front of the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts Student Center -- is planned in recognition of a $30,000 grant from the Japan Foundation to provide Japanese language instruction to students at Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts and the Lakeside School District.
The program is the only Japanese foreign-language exchange program of its kind in Arkansas.
Aozora Ishizaki, who arrived in the U.S. earlier this month, is teaching a Japanese class at Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts three days per week. She also is teaching a class at Lakeside High School each day as well as working with third-grade students at Lakeside Intermediate School on some days.
Special guests at the reception are Japanese Consul General Masami Kinefuchi and Fumiaki Sasaki, president of the Hanamaki International Exchange Association in Hanamaki, Japan, a sister city of Hot Springs.
Metro on 09/20/2015