LR district's audit free of deficiencies
The Little Rock School District's second financial review to be completed by Arkansas Legislative Audit identified no findings of material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in the 2015-16 year, district leaders recently reported.
Superintendent Mike Poore told the district's Community Advisory Board members that the clean audit shows that the district "is being a good steward of the resources entrusted to us by the community."
The Little Rock district, which has operated under state control without an elected school board since Jan. 28, 2015, previously hired a private firm to do its state-required audit. With the state takeover came the call that Legislative Audit do the review for the state's largest district -- just as it does for many school districts statewide.
Kelsey Bailey, the Little Rock district's chief financial officer, told the Community Advisory Board that the switch to the state auditing system saved the district about $140,000.
The audit can be viewed at the Community Advisory Board link on the district's website: lrsd.org.
A video recording of the Community Advisory Board's April meeting is also on the district's website, at the LRSD-TV link.
NLR seeks principal to lead high school
The North Little Rock School District is advertising for applicants for the principal's job for the 2,400-student North Little Rock High School.
Superintendent Kelly Rodgers said district leaders want to "hit a home run," with the selection of the leader for the just completed, newly built school.
"We're looking hard," Deputy Superintendent Beth Stewart said about candidates. She said the size of the ninth- through 12th-grade school is about the same size as some of the state's 4A and 5A school districts, and presents an opportunity for an innovative, dynamic leader to make a name for himself.
A job description and application are available through the "human resources" link on the district's website: nlrsd.org.
The new principal will succeed Randy Rutherford, who is taking the principal's job at the smaller Parkview High School in the Little Rock School District, which he said is closer to his home in Benton.
Rutherford, a former superintendent in the Bryant School District, will begin his role as principal at Parkview on July 1 at an annual salary of $112,414. His compensation in North Little Rock this year is $109,544.
3 students in state win scholarships
Three Arkansas high school seniors are among more than 1,000 students to win corporate-sponsored National Merit Scholarship awards this spring.
The Arkansans are Abby C. Hollis, Fayetteville High School, whose scholarship is sponsored by Teradata; Karina Y. Bao, Little Rock Central High, whose scholarship is sponsored by the PPG Foundation of Pittsburgh; and Mitchell A. Harvey, North Little Rock High School, whose scholarship is sponsored by Northrop Grumman Corp., based in Los Angeles.
Partnership provides $75,000 for UAteach
Forward Arkansas, a partnership of the Arkansas Board of Education, the Walton Family Foundation and the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation, is giving $75,000 to the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville for students who are pursuing a teaching license in the computer science field.
The scholarships that are made possible by the gift will be administered by UAteach, a program that combines science or math bachelor degree programs with teacher preparation for work in grades seven through 12.
Scholarship recipients must commit to teaching in a school district in one of Forward Arkansas' five communities -- Crossett, Independence County, Marianna, Pea Ridge or Springdale. That is meant to help fulfill the organization's vision that every Arkansas student will graduate prepared for success in college and the workplace.
More information on the UAteach program is available by emailing teach@uark.edu.
Metro on 04/22/2017