Caregivers won’t meet
Area Agency on Aging of Southeast Arkansas won’t have its Alzheimer’s Caregivers Support Group meeting June 16. The next scheduled meeting is July 21 from 11 a.m until noon, according to a news release. Details: Carolyn Ferguson at Area Agency, (870) 543-6309.
New Community to open pantry
New Community Church, 321 N. Birch St., will give away food from its pantry on June 21 from 8-9:30 a.m., according to a news release. The community is invited to participate.
Local on Tennessee Dean’s List
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Middle Tennessee State University at Murfreesboro, Tenn., named Jack England of Rison to its Dean’s List for the spring 2025 semester, according to a news release. Honorees must maintain a semester grade point average of 3.5 or above and earn at least 12 semester hours to be named to the list.
Local on Alabama’s Dean’s List
The University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa named Austin Miller of Pine Bluff to the Dean’s List for the 2025 spring semester. Honorees must have an academic record of 3.5 or above to be named to the list, according to a news release.
Warren resident on Dean’s List
Mississippi College in Clinton, Miss., named Keller Bigham of Warren to the spring 2025 Dean’s List. To be eligible for the Dean’s List, a student must maintain a 3.5 grade point average, based on a 4.0 system. The student must take a full course load of at least 12 semester hours of undergraduate credit, according to a news release.
Extension helps with USDA grant forms
Amanda Philyaw Perez, extension associate professor of food systems and food safety specialist for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said she encourages Arkansas farmers to take advantage of $26.5 million in grant funding available under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Local Agriculture Market Program.
The Local Agriculture Market Program, or LAMP, includes three programs that are designed to support the development and expansion of local food systems and producer-to-consumer marketing, strengthen connections between producers and consumers, and support food business enterprises.
LAMP is administered by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, and it includes the Farmers Market Promotion Program, the Local Food Promotion Program and the Regional Food System Partnerships.
Perez said each program under LAMP targets specific needs:
Farmers Market Promotion Program supports direct-to-consumer marketing efforts, such as farmers markets and community supported agriculture programs, or CSAs.
Local Food Promotion Program funds intermediary supply chain projects, such as food hubs and shared-use kitchens.
Regional Food System Partnerships Program supports relationship development between local and regional food businesses and institutions, such as state agencies, private corporations or institutions of higher education.
Perez said it is important for Arkansans to carefully prepare their grant applications. As part of the Local, Regional and Safe Foods program at the Cooperative Extension Service, Perez and her team support the development of local food systems.
“My program provides technical support after the harvest for food safety, infrastructure, and regulations that impact sourcing or selling Arkansas-grown food,” Perez said. “These grants offer funding to help farms and food business with similar after the harvest activities.
“These grants can be transformative for local food systems and value-added startups, whether you’re working from home, on the farm, or launching a commercial operation,” Perez said. “If you have a concept in mind, I encourage you to reach out for technical support. And most importantly, read the full grant guidelines, deadlines and timelines before you begin writing.”
Perez said LAMP is an umbrella program that was created in the 2018 Farm Bill.
USDA announced last month that $26.5 million in grant funding is now available through LAMP.
This marks the reopening of a limited number of grant funds, after a federal freeze on USDA grant funding. Applications are due by June 27 and must be submitted electronically at Grants.gov.
Details: https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/lamp or Amanda Philyaw Perez at aperez@uada.edu.