Chair calls election board meeting
The Jefferson County Board of Election Commissioners will hold a called meeting Dec. 4 at 6 p.m. at the election center, 123 S. Main St. according to Chairman Mike Adam.
The board will conduct a ballot position drawing for the March 3, 2026, Preferential Primary Election, Nonpartisan General Election, annual Pine Bluff School Election, annual Watson Chapel School Election and the annual White Hall School Election.
UAM to hold fall graduation
The University of Arkansas at Monticello will hold its fall commencement exercises at 10 a.m. Dec. 12 in Steelman Field House. The doors will open at 9 a.m. Guests are encouraged to be seated by 9:50 a.m., as the processional will begin at 9:55 a.m., according to a news release.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
UAM will present academic credentials ranging from master’s degrees to technical certificates. Scheduled speakers include UAM Chancellor Peggy Doss, Kelly Eichler, chair of the Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas System, and Michael Moore, vice president for Academic Affairs at the U of A System.
Commencement will be livestreamed on YouTube. The link will be accessible from the university’s homepage. Security personnel will check all bags at the entrance. For additional information on commencement, visit www.uamont.edu or contact the Office of Academic Affairs at (870) 460-1033.
Imagination Library sets meet, greet
The Imagination Library for Jefferson County, an affiliate of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, will host a meet and greet event to celebrate the holidays and show appreciation to the community for their support.
The event will be held Dec. 9 from 2-3:30 p.m. at the Donald Reynolds Community Services Building, 211 W. Third Ave. The community is invited and there will be appetizers and prizes, according to a news release.
Youth Partners of Pine Bluff-Jefferson County, operating as Imagination Library for Jefferson County, is a partner agency of United Way of Southeast Arkansas. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a 60-volume set of children’s books that begin with the children’s classic The Little Engine That Could. The last book they receive is Look Out Kindergarten Here I Come when they reach their fifth birthday. The books are age appropriate and mailed every month directly to the child’s home (in their name).
A total of 4,465 children have benefitted from this program in Jefferson County including those receiving books in December and those who have graduated from the program.
The goal of the program is to increase early literacy by putting books in every child’s hand from birth to age 5 at no cost to the family because of generous donors, grants, and fundraisers secured by local affiliates.
Dolly Parton started this program for children in her home state and now it has grown to be available all over the United States and other countries.
Youth Partners, along with the United Way of Southeast Arkansas and other community leaders, replicated this program for Jefferson County’s preschool children in 2013.
The Imagination Library program is made possible in part through the United Way of Southeast Arkansas, Altheimer Foundation, Pine Bluff Area Community Foundation and Sarah J. Creasy Endowment, Synergy Forum, Rotary Clubs, Arkansas Imagination Library in partnership with Arkansas Department of Education, Relyance Bank, Simmons Bank, and other local contributors.
For more information on enrolling your child or attending the event, contact Linda Bateman, executive director, at (870) 718-0654 or United Way, (870) 534-2153.
Clinic offers free exams
Jefferson Comprehensive Care System Inc. (JCCSI) will provide free primary care exams from now until Dec. 31. An HIV blood test will be included in the exam.
The exams are being held to commemorate World AIDS Day, which was Dec. 1, in an effort to end the HIV epidemic. The program is in partnership with the Pine Bluff Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, according to a news release.
The free exams will be given at the Comprehensive Care clinics at these locations:
Pine Bluff Clinic, 1101 S. Tennessee St., (870) 543-2380.
Redfield Clinic, 100 Evening Sunset Valley, (501) 397-2261.
Altheimer Clinic, 309 S. Edine St., (870) 766-8411.
Arkansas Baptist College, 1724 S. Bishop St., Little Rock, (501) 737-2014.
College Station Clinic, 4206 Frazier Pike, (501) 490-2440.
Little Rock Clinic, 1100 N. University Ave., Suite 125, (501) 663-0055.
North Little Rock Clinic, 2525 N. Willow St., Suite 1, (501) 812-0225.
Open Hands Clinic, 3000 Springer Blvd., Suite B in Little Rock, (501) 244-2121.
The exams are for all adults ages 18 and older. Appointments must be made in advance. Participants should call the clinics to schedule an appointment and patients must say “Delta World AIDS Day” while making an appointment.
“The mission of JCCSI is to provide high quality, accessible primary healthcare and social services to all patients, especially to vulnerable and special populations, such as the homeless and individuals living with HIV/AIDS,” according to the news release.