Arkansas State News

Lanes on Highway 65 clear after school bus crash north of Greenbrier

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:37:25 +0000

FAULKNER COUNTY, Ark. - Southbound lanes on Highway 65 are now clear after a crash involving a school bus Friday morning.

Officials with the Arkansas Department of Transportation reported that a school bus and another vehicle crashed near West Republican Road just north of Greenbrier.

Officials have not reported injuries in the crash.

Lanes on Highway 65 clear after school bus crash north of Greenbrier

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:37:04 +0000

FAULKNER COUNTY, Ark. - Southbound lanes on Highway 65 are now clear after a crash involving a school bus Friday morning.

Officials with the Arkansas Department of Transportation reported that a school bus and another vehicle crashed near West Republican Road just north of Greenbrier.

Officials have not reported injuries in the crash.

Pottsville police dress up like a phone to keep drivers off them in school zones

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:20:25 +0000

POTTSVILLE, Ark. – “Get off the phone” is a message the Pottsville Police Department has been trying to get across to drivers in school zones, especially after a crash involving a school bus and a distracted driver.

Chief John Pritchard said their signs were not cutting it.

"We started out with lots of warnings, and we wrote many tickets, but we were still seeing it," Pritchard admitted.

So, he told his officers to look outside the box for a solution. Ironically, that meant putting themselves in a box.

The agency purchased a phone mascot costume and put a big circle with a diagonal line across it. On Nov. 7. they started dancing, waving, and doing anything else they could think of to keep eyes off of their phones.

Officials said it was their way of choosing positive reinforcement over all the negative reinforcement they had given. Parents, like Alexis Terrell, welcome the change.

"I'm happy that they are [doing this] because my daughter's safety is definitely at the top of my list," Terrell said.

The phone is even a hit with kids. Many wave at it on their way in. Liam Hale, a fifth grader at Pottsville Elementary, said his favorite thing about it is the dances, though he admits the officer is not the best dancer he has seen.

As funny as it looks, why it is frequenting the district schools is not a laughing matter. A crash with a school bus and a distracted driver happened before at the same street corner in front of Pottsville Elementary where the police were focusing on Thursday.

"I've seen so many people get pulled over because of it," Hale admitted.

So, the hope is he and his friends will be the ever-present reminder for parents when the police cannot be.

"We create an advocate in every single car that comes through here and that's those kids, so our kids are going to remind mom and dad, 'Hey, you don't need to use a cell phone in a school zone,’" Pritchard concluded.

Pottsville police say they are already planning more ways to expand community policing but are not ready to announce anything yet.

Longest-waiting child in Arkansas foster care system finds forever family

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:20:23 +0000

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.- The long-awaited journey for 17-year-old Jose to find his forever family has now come to an end.

Cheering and crying filled the Ninth West Judicial Circuit Court and the Arkansas Department of Human Services conference room today as the judge declared Jose was now adopted.

Jose suffered from shaken baby syndrome at the hands of a caretaker when he was just a baby.

His birth family took him to a care facility for the 24-hour care that he needed, and soon after his family began to abandon him, which is when the state's foster care stepped in.

His life began to change when Mary Zhang stepped in.

"When I first visited my intention was to be an advocate for him medically speaking, Dr. Zhang said.

Jose suffered severe brain damage, is mostly paralyzed, is verbally and visually impaired, and requires a feeding tube, common symptoms of shaken baby syndrome, which is why Zhang was introduced.

"As we visited him more and more we just knew that we wanted him a part of our family," Zhang said.

Zhang shared with her husband her calling to adopt.

"You know you had kind of gotten to where he needs someone and I was like let's do it," Patrick Sullivan said.

"He's lived his entire life in a facility like I mean how do you," Zhang said.

Zhang and Sullivan said Jose was an answered prayer.

"We want to be his support system, we want to be just a constant presence in his life, we want to pray over him all the time consistently and we just want to try to do everything that we know that Jesus would do," Zhang said.

Thursday under oath, Zhang and Sullivan declared their intentions to the judge to adopt Jose, and it was granted.

After nearly 17 years in the foster care system, Jose now has a family.

"When we look into his eyes and rub his face, he knows that we love him," Zhang said.

Jose will remain in the facility to get the care that he needs, however this time it will be with the support and daily loving visits from his new mom and dad.

Multi-vehicle crash on I-40 near North Little Rock slows Eastbound lanes

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:08:35 +0000

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A crash involving multiple vehicles on Interstate 40 Eastbound slows Friday morning traffic.

Officials with the Arkansas Department of Transportation reported a crash near Exit 148 in Pulaski County just after 7:30 a.m.

Officials also say there are injuries reported.

The left lane and both the right and left shoulders are currently impacted.

ARDOT officials have not released the cause of the crash or any other details.

Multi-vehicle crash on I-40 near North Little Rock slows Eastbound lanes

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:08:32 +0000

NORTH LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A crash involving multiple vehicles on Interstate 40 Eastbound slows Friday morning traffic.

Officials with the Arkansas Department of Transportation reported a crash near Exit 148 in Pulaski County just after 7:30 a.m.

Officials also say there are injuries reported.

The left lane and both the right and left shoulders are currently impacted.

ARDOT officials have not released the cause of the crash or any other details.

McGehee Army veteran receives car from giveaway

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 06:28:22 +0000

MCGEHEE, Ark. – An Army veteran from McGehee received a life-changing present.

Chuck Harrison served five years in the U.S. Army, but for the past two years he's been without a car.

Well, that all changed Thursday thanks to Progressive Insurance.

In honor of Veterans Day, they held their annual Keys to Progress vehicle giveaway where select veterans all across the country are given the keys to a brand new car.

"I was flabbergasted to say the least,” Harrison said. “I'm excited to get the car because it’s going to make my life so much better.”

Harrison was selected after he entered the Keys to Progress vehicle giveaway program online, but he never thought he would be selected.

He said that the first thing he's going to do when it he gets back home is show off his new wheels to all of his friends.

McGehee Army veteran receives car from giveaway

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 06:28:07 +0000

MCGEHEE, Ark. – An Army veteran from McGehee received a life-changing present.

Chuck Harrison served five years in the U.S. Army, but for the past two years he's been without a car.

Well, that all changed Thursday thanks to Progressive Insurance.

In honor of Veterans Day, they held their annual Keys to Progress vehicle giveaway where select veterans all across the country are given the keys to a brand new car.

"I was flabbergasted to say the least,” Harrison said. “I'm excited to get the car because it’s going to make my life so much better.”

Harrison was selected after he entered the Keys to Progress vehicle giveaway program online, but he never thought he would be selected.

He said that the first thing he's going to do when it he gets back home is show off his new wheels to all of his friends.

Little Rock Central High students stage walkout to protest against Arkansas LEARNS Act voucher system

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 04:41:28 +0000

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Many Little Rock Central High School students staged a walkout on Thursday to voice their concerns about the Arkansas LEARNS Act.

"We are very very concerned for the state of our education system," student and protest organizer Rhone Kuta said.

Protestors said the walkout was to demonstrate the disapproval of students receiving Education Freedom Account funds to attend private schools.

For the 2023-2024 school year, the state spent over $30 million on Education Freedom Accounts which uses public tax dollars to pay for kids to go to private schools in the name of school choice.

"Our state government has been passing a lot of laws that we thoroughly disagree with," Kuta said.

The Arkansas Department of Education reports more than 20,000 EFA applications were submitted for the 2024-2025 school year compared to 6,495 applicants in 2023-2024.

5,548 students were approved with 57% being students with disabilities.

Students approved would receive more than $6,000 to help with private school tuition.

This leads Kuta and his fellow classmates who protested alongside him to fear the future of the public school of their choice.

"We are very concerned for the funding of our schools," Kuta said.

Kuta said it's not just the future of Arkansas that sparks fear, it's the entire country that he feels is moving in a direction of "dark times."

He said that is why the Central High School student body "decided to walk out here to create a safe space and create a feeling of solidarity."

During the 2023-2024 school year, 97 private schools participated in the EFA system compared to 128 for the 2024-2025 school year.

There are eligibility requirements to be approved, but by the 2025-2026 school year, all Arkansas students will be eligible for vouchers.

Eligible children must meet one of the following criteria to qualify for an Education Freedom Account for the 2024-25 school year:

Students from the Succeed Scholarship Program
Students with a disability (IDEA)
Current or former foster care children
Students experiencing homelessness
Children of active-duty military personnel
Children of a military reservist
Children of a US military veteran under Title 38
Children of a first responder or law enforcement officer
Students from "D" or "F" public schools (2023-24 school year) or schools in "Level 5" districts
Kindergartners (private school only)

A spokesperson with the Arkansas Department of Education shared a statement in response to the protest from students at Central High.

"We are encouraged that students are engaged in education. Students need educational options, which LEARNS provides. We fully support local public schools and empowering parents to make the best choices for their child,” the statement read. “The Education Freedom Account program provides students of all races and economic statuses the opportunity to attend a quality school of their choice. More than 14,000 students and their families this year would agree. At the end of the day, everyone wins."

Little Rock Central High students stage walkout to protest against Arkansas LEARNS Act voucher system

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 04:41:14 +0000