Date changes for quorum court
The Jefferson County Quorum Court meeting originally set for Monday has been rescheduled for April 24 at 5:30 p.m. according to a news release. The quorum court meets at the courthouse.
PBSD stakeholders to meet
The Pine Bluff School District Unified Stakeholders will meet at 6 p.m. April 13 in the Hospitality Room in the Arts Building on the Pine Bluff High School campus. Important business will be discussed, according to a news release. Wilma Kindle is president.
New St. Hurricane sets Easter Carnival
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
New St. Hurricane Missionary Baptist Church, 3319 S. Ohio St., invites the community to a free Easter Carnival at 3 p.m. Saturday. There will be food, live music, games, horseback rides, face painting, bounce houses and a video game truck, according to Stuff In The Bluff.com.
“Don’t miss out on all of the fun and excitement at the Easter Carnival on Saturday,” a spokesman said.
Derick Easter is the pastor at New St. Hurricane.
Brunson sets first ward event
First Ward Council Member LaTisha Brunson invites residents to a Friends of the First Ward event at 6 p.m. May 6 at the ARTSpace on Main, 623 S. Main St.
“It will be my official welcome and I will be highlighting small businesses in my ward,” Brunson said in a news release on StuffInTheBluff.com. “We have some gems in the city, and I want to recognize their hard work and dedication to the city of Pine Bluff, specifically to Ward 1.”
The attire is socially after 5. Food will be provided by Ward 1 restaurants. Participants are asked to RSVP by April 21 through email to brunsonward1@gmail.com.
Arkansas Rice offers scholarships
High school juniors graduating in 2024 are eligible to apply for up to $16,000 in scholarship funding. Arkansas Rice’s Rice Reps is a five-month program to help educate students about the rice industry while equipping them to act as advocates in their communities and on social media, according to a news release. Reps actively participate in activities from May through September designed to teach students about rice farming and the importance of the Arkansas rice industry at home and abroad. They are also asked to attend four on-site experiences during the program to better understand the reach of rice in Arkansas.
At the end of the program, Rice Reps can submit a scholarship application showcasing their advocacy activities. For details, visit the website at https://www.arkansasrice.org/rice-reps. The deadline to apply is April 14.
UAM to continue teacher academy
The Arkansas Department of Education approved funding for the University of Arkansas at Monticello to continue as a Special Education Resource Teacher Academy during the 2023-2024 academic year.
UAM was initially approved as a Special Education Resource Teacher Academy after receiving a grant for the 2022-2023 academic year in March 2022 as the result of a grant proposal.
The proposal was submitted on behalf of the UAM School of Education by Kim Level, dean of the UAM School of Education, and Deborah Givhan, special education coordinator and instructor, according to a news release.
For the 2023-2024 academic year, UAM has received a grant to sponsor 36 teachers to obtain their K-6 or 7-12 Special Education Resource Teacher Endorsement. This includes full tuition and fees for 12 hours of graduate credit, all books and materials and the cost of one application of the Praxis exam.
The opportunity is open to all licensed Arkansas teachers K-6, ELA (4-8 or 7-12), math (4-8 or 7-12) and science. The first in-person meeting will be held June 3, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Capital Room at UAM. This is a mandatory meeting. The four required courses are 100% online and run Summer I: May 30 to June 28, 2023; Summer II: July 3 to Aug. 2, 2023; Fall I: Aug. 16 to Oct. 5, 2023; and Spring I: Jan. 10 to Feb. 29, 2024.
Applications will be accepted from April 10-18, 2023, and will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. All applications must be submitted through the Educator Preparation page on the Wufoo website which will go live on April 10.
All requirements must be met by the end of May 2024. Details: Deborah Givhan at givhan@uamont.edu.