Stories by Cynthia Howell

NLR schools to keep existing dress policy North Little Rock Superintendent Greg Pilewski and School Board members acquiesced Tuesday to the majority of parents who said in a recent survey that they don't want their students to be required... June 7, 2023

LR school names top student Lauryn Howard is the Class of 2023 valedictorian at Little Rock Southwest Magnet High School.Zoey Cooney is the salutatorian of the class.Howard, 18, plans to enroll at Washington University in St. Lo... June 6, 2023

Hall High names 2023 valedictorian Maria Velasquez is the Class of 2023 valedictorian at Little Rock Hall STEAM Magnet High School.Zoey Cunningham is the salutatorian of the class.Velasquez, 17, plans to attend the University of Centra... June 6, 2023

Gassaway is Maumelle valedictorian Evan Gassaway is the Maumelle High School Class of 2023 valedictorian.William Hoffman is the class salutatorian.Gassaway is enrolling at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. He plans to major in ... June 6, 2023

2 more Pulaski County schools join career partnership The number of partnerships formed between central Arkansas businesses and Pulaski County's traditional public high schools has now grown by two.The Academies of Central Arkansas on Friday announce... June 5, 2023

UA office releases its school grades Scholarships hit $20M at ASMSA UA office releasesits school gradesThe Office for Education Policy at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville last week posted education "report cards" for traditional school districts an... June 4, 2023

Earle School District released from fiscal distress classification, placed under state authority because of academic concerns The Arkansas Board of Education on Thursday released the Earle School District from the fiscal distress classification that put the district under state control in 2017, but then placed the Crittenden... June 2, 2023

Arkansas Board of Education OKs release of Earle School District from fiscal distress classification The Arkansas Board of Education voted Thursday to release the state-controlled, 415-student Earle School District from the state's fiscal distress classification and, in a separate vote, establish... June 1, 2023

Little Rock office furniture shop reborn as Arkansas Virtual Academy's new home Head of School Amy Johnson uses "unique," "funky" and "fluid" to describe the expansive new headquarters for the Arkansas Virtual Academy in downtown Little Rock.Johnson ... May 31, 2023

Education notebook FEF-Arkansas joins LEARNS suit partiesThe organization selected by state leaders in April to manage the day-to-day operations of the Marvell-Elaine School District has joined the parties in the Pulask... May 28, 2023

LEARNS Act is not yet in effect, judge decides The LEARNS Act championed by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and passed by the Arkansas General Assembly earlier this year is not yet in effect and, as a result, the state Board of Education has no author... May 27, 2023

Pulaski County Circuit Judge issues temporary halt to Arkansas LEARNS Act The LEARNS Act championed by Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and passed by the Arkansas General Assembly early this year cannot take effect yet and the State Board of Education, as a result, has no author... May 26, 2023

eStem Public Charter Schools selects new leader Cherie Labat from the University of Southern Mississippi has been selected to be chief executive officer for eStem Public Charter Schools, succeeding John Bacon who retired late last year.Labat is a c... May 26, 2023

Pulaski County district school leader withdraws S.C. job candidacy The Pulaski County Special School District's superintendent -- whom news reports identified as one of three finalists for the superintendent's job in Charleston County, S.C. -- said Thursday e... May 26, 2023

PCSSD superintendent named a finalist for Charleston, S.C. job; then withdraws name from contention The Pulaski County Special School District's superintendent — whom news reports identified as one of three finalists for the superintendent’s job in Charleston County, S.C. — sai... May 25, 2023

Little Rock Catholic High expands administrative leadership team Catholic High School for Boys in Little Rock has expanded its administrative team, making long-time Principal Steve Straessle the campus’ first Head of School and promoting Assistant Principal M... May 25, 2023

Pulaski County district OKs plan that exceeds state’s LEARNS Act funding by $1.6M The School Board for the Pulaski County Special School District on Wednesday voted 5-0 to adopt a teacher salary schedule for the 2023-2024 school year to comply with the new Arkansas LEARNS Act.At a ... May 25, 2023

Oliva challenges charter school leaders to strive for improved education standards in Arkansas Arkansas Education Secretary Jacob Oliva said Tuesday that Arkansas can do better than its recent ranking of 43rd in the nation in education for students in pre-kindergarten through college."We&#... May 24, 2023

Little Rock graduations planned at War Memorial Little Rock School District high school graduations for more than 1,300 seniors are being held at War Memorial Stadium through Thursday.The events at mid-morning and evening have the potential to incr... May 24, 2023

Little Rock School District graduations continue through Thursday at War Memorial Stadium Little Rock School District high school graduations for more than 1,300 seniors are being held at War Memorial Stadium through Thursday.The events at mid-morning and evening have the potential to incr... May 23, 2023

Education notebook Band director Light honoredBen Light, band director at Joe T. Robinson High School, is the 2023-24 Teacher of the Year for the Pulaski County Special School District.Light was selected from among 27 o... May 21, 2023

Schools in state take step to receive funding Sixteen charter schools and charter school systems asked on Friday to give up their waivers of the state teacher salary law to clear the way for getting state funds to raise their beginning teacher sa... May 20, 2023

Little Rock School District stretching school days Elementary school children in the Little Rock School District will start the school day earlier and end it later in the coming 2023-24 school year, the Little Rock School Board decided Thursday.The bo... May 19, 2023

Little Rock School Board approves longer school days starting this fall Elementary school children in the Little Rock School District will start the school day earlier and end it later in the coming 2023-24 school year, the Little Rock School Board decided Thursday. ... May 18, 2023

UAMS will back health academy at Hall High The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Little Rock School District's Hall STEAM Magnet High School are pairing together to establish the UAMS Academy of Health Sciences at the Hall ca... May 18, 2023

Telcoe-school venture includes school branch Maumelle High School in the Pulaski County Special School District will become home to a Telcoe Federal Credit Union office to be staffed by students for the use of students and teachers.The credit un... May 17, 2023

Mount St. Mary’s picks top students Megan Denery, 18, and Erin Strickland, 18, are Class of 2023 co-valedictorians at Mount St. Mary Academy.Anna Alyse Patterson, 18, is the school's salutatorian.Denery plans to major in biochemistr... May 17, 2023

Catholic High announces its top 2 students Nicholas Andrew Tarini, 18, is the Class of 2023 valedictorian at Little Rock Catholic High School for Boys.John Nicholas Verdaris, also 18, is the salutatorian of the class.Tarini plans to attend the... May 17, 2023

23 seniors named scholarship winners Twenty-three Arkansas seniors are among 2,500 students nationally to be named recipients of $2,500 scholarships from the National Merit Scholarship Corp.National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners are t... May 16, 2023

Gala names LRSD awards recipients Rhonda Adams, a gifted-and-talented teacher at Gibbs Magnet Elementary School, has been named the Little Rock School District's 2023 Teacher of the Year and the Marian G. Lacey Educator Award reci... May 16, 2023

23 seniors named National Merit scholarship winners Twenty-three Arkansas seniors are among 2,500 students nationally to be named recipients of $2,500 scholarships from the National Merit Scholarship Corp.National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners are t... May 16, 2023

education notebook LRSD school day hours under reviewThe Little Rock School Board could vote as soon as Thursday on a proposal to extend the length of the elementary and secondary student school day by as much as 30 min... May 14, 2023

List released of those chosen to help state implement LEARNS law The Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education has published the selection of individuals for three of six work groups that will provide ideas, expertise and feedback to the state agency ... May 12, 2023

Earle School District improves finances; academics still a struggle The Earle School District has improved its financial operations since it was taken over by the state for fiscal distress in 2017, but the 415-student school system continues to struggle with academic ... May 12, 2023

Lost Wynne school days waived Students in the Wynne School District will not have to make up the five school days they missed when campuses were closed in the aftermath of a March 31 tornado that ripped through the city, destroyin... May 12, 2023

Arkansas agency to recommend easing state control over Earle School District The Earle School District has improved its financial operations since it was taken over by the state for fiscal distress in 2017, but the 415-student school system continues to struggle with academic ... May 11, 2023

State gives Wynne schools waiver for required classroom days due to tornado damage The Arkansas Board of Education on Thursday gave the Wynne School District a waiver of the 178-day school year because of the March 31 tornado that destroyed Wynne High School and heavily damaged Wynn... May 11, 2023

Entergy to partner with Arkansas high schools Leaders of two Arkansas school districts and an electrical power utility shared a podium Wednesday to announce that Entergy Arkansas will partner with two high schools to provide courses of study in t... May 11, 2023

3 students in state earn U.S. honors Three Central Arkansas students are among 161 high school seniors nationally to be named U.S. Presidential Scholars by U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona.The Arkansas students being recognized... May 11, 2023

State to do LEARNS guidance for districts The Arkansas Department of Education is presenting education leaders with guidance on how to comply with Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders' executive order from Jan. 10 that "prohibits indoctrinati... May 10, 2023

3 Arkansas school districts to receive $17M for building costs Three Arkansas school districts in which voters recently passed property tax increases for campus building projects -- only to see construction costs soar -- are getting some extra help from the state... May 9, 2023

Reform Alliance scholarship applications are being taken The application period is now open for the state's Philanthropic Investment in Arkansas Kids scholarships for the 2023-24 school year.The application period will continue through June 1, or as fun... May 9, 2023

Education notebook: 1st-time teachers’ permit fees waived; LR graduations to stay at stadium 1st-time teachers' permit fees waivedApplication fees for the state licensure of first-time Arkansas teachers have been temporarily waived.The waiver period began Monday and will go through Aug. 3... May 7, 2023

'Transformation contract' authorized for state-controlled Marvell-Elaine School District Arkansas education leaders on Friday authorized the tiny, state-controlled Marvell-Elaine School District to enter into a first-of-its-kind-in-Arkansas "transformation contract" with an outs... May 6, 2023

Non-profit affiliated with a charter school authorized to run Marvell-Elaine School District Arkansas education leaders on Friday authorized the tiny, state-controlled Marvell-Elaine School District to enter into a first-of-its-kind-in-Arkansas “transformation contract” with an ou... May 5, 2023

Arkansas Board of Education meeting to explore school district’s options The Arkansas Board of Education will hold a special meeting at 2 p.m. today to consider contracting with a third-party organization to manage the day-to-day operation of the state-controlled 306-stude... May 5, 2023

Arkansas board to decide whether charter school group will run Marvell-Elaine district The Arkansas Board of Education will hold a special meeting at 2 p.m. Friday to consider contracting with a third-party organization to manage the day-to-day operation of the state-controlled 306-stud... May 4, 2023

Education notebook 2 in Spa City earn perfect ACT scoresTwo juniors at the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts in Hot Springs earned a perfect score of 36 on the ACT college entrance exam.Nasya Choy o... April 30, 2023

Arkansas will receive $1M grant to assist with “high-impact” tutoring within school day Arkansas is one of five states named Thursday to receive a $1 million grant for incorporating "high-impact" tutoring into the school day in the coming 2023-24 school year.Accelerate, a natio... April 28, 2023

Pay plans get OK from board for Little Rock schools The Little Rock School Board on Thursday approved 2023-24 salary schedules for all employees, setting the salary for a beginning teacher with a bachelor's degree at $50,000, as required by the new... April 28, 2023