LRSD set to open registration period
The Little Rock School District is holding open-enrollment registration for the 2023-24 school year starting at 7 a.m. Monday and going through Dec. 9.
The registration period is for:
• Students who will be new to the Little Rock School District.
• Students who will be returning to the district but are not currently enrolled in the capital city's school system.
• Currently enrolled students who want to apply for a magnet or specialty school.
Students who are currently enrolled and are not applying for a magnet or specialty school will automatically roll up in their current school or to their attendance zone school.
The district is using a new online school registration platform called "School Mint Enroll."
Parents will be able to use their email or phone number, as well as their Google or Facebook accounts, to register. To learn more about the enrollment platform, parents are invited to watch a tutorial video at the following link: https://bit.ly/3VlwIMA.
The district will also be introducing a new "School Finder" site that will allow parents to search for school options within the District based on address and student interest.
Conway's Cullum is top history teacher
Brick Cullum, a teacher at Conway High School, has been named the 2022 Arkansas State History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
The award, intended to highlight the importance of history education, annually honors one kindergarten-through-12th-grade teacher from each state, the District of Columbia, Department of Defense schools and U.S. Territories.
Cullum teaches African American History, World History and Advanced Placement Comparative Government at Conway High. He is also Conway's Teacher of the Year for 2022-23.
Additionally, he serves as the Arkansas State Beta Sponsor and sponsors the school's diversity quarterly, "Mirrors."
Cullum was born and raised in Conway and is a 2018 graduate of the University of Central Arkansas. In 2021, he completed his Master's Degree in Educational Theory and Practice from Arkansas State University.
Cullum says his mission as a teacher is to empower students to use their own life stories for growth.
"It's always about the kids," Cullum said about his work, in a news release. "A student might be the first in his family to go through high school. A student might be working to support her family despite a rigorous curriculum in seven different courses. A student might need my kind words to make it through a rough patch. My students ground me in reality and remind me of my humanity, giving me the passion and drive to work hard every single day as an educator."
In addition to a $1,000 honorarium, Cullum will receive a core archive of American history books and Gilder Lehrman educational materials. He is now one of 53 finalists for the 2022 National History Teacher of the Year Award.
Nominations for the 2023 History Teacher of the Year awards are now open. Students, parents, colleagues, and supervisors may nominate K-12 teachers for the award by visiting gilderlehrman.org/nhtoy. The deadline for 2023 nominations is April 30, 2023.
State board to meet about Marvell-Elaine
The Arkansas Board of Education will hold a special meeting at 11 a.m. Monday to decide next steps for the 306-student Marvell-Elaine School District in Phillips County.
The meeting will be in the auditorium of the Arch Ford Education Building, 4 Capitol Mall.
The meeting can be watched online at the following link: https://bit.ly/3Xw0TlZ.
Arkansas Education Secretary Johnny Key notified Superintendent Katina Ray and School Board President Clyde Williams earlier this month of his plan to recommend to Education Board members that they vote to categorize the district as needing Level 5, the most intensive support from the state.