Arkansas 4-H teams put submersible robots to the test at 2025 SeaPerch Challenge

By Rebekah Hall
U of A System Division of Agriculture

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas 4-H teams from across the state gathered at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for the 2025 SeaPerch Challenge, remotely navigating submersible robots through obstacle and mission courses.

Two hundred and twenty-six Arkansas 4-H members from 16 counties participated in the March 14 event. The annual competition is hosted by Arkansas 4-H, part of the Cooperative Extension Service, and the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas.

Fifty-four teams worked to build remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs, using pieces of pool noodles, electrical tape, 3-D printed parts, PVC pipe and other supplies. They then steered the ROVs through an underwater mission course and obstacle course, both designed to mimic undersea exploration or deep-sea missions. Teams were also judged on their technical design reports, where they documented the construction and engineering design process for the robots.

INTERNATIONALS BOUND — The Grant County Aquanauts are the winning open class team for the 2025 Arkansas SeaPerch Challenge. From left to right: Eli Watson, Priyam Laxmi and Garrett Key. (Photo by the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas.) 

Michelle McVay, extension STEM instructor for 4-H and Youth Development for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, said the SeaPerch program is a great example of how 4-H helps participants learn by doing.

“Instead of just reading about engineering, they actually get to build and test underwater robots, figuring things out as they go,” McVay said. “This hands-on experience makes learning more fun and memorable. STEM programs like SeaPerch are super important because they teach problem-solving, teamwork and real-world skills that kids can use in school, their careers and beyond.”

For the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas, this emphasis on STEM education is at the heart of the organization’s support for the SeaPerch program.

“When we became aware of the program, the cooperatives took an immediate interest due to the kind of learning that SeaPerch provides,” said Rob Roedel, senior director of corporate communications for the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas. “I distinctly remember watching the first competition in 2016 and thinking immediately of ways we could make the SeaPerch program a marquee event for the youth of Arkansas. Each year, the partnership between Arkansas 4-H and the Electric Cooperatives allows us to make the program bigger and better.”

The overall winning junior and senior stock teams, open class team and high score overall team will compete at the International SeaPerch Challenge May 31-June 1 in College Park, Maryland.

Winning Senior Stock Class Team:

• DeepWater Vanguard from Grant County: Gavin McGinley, Gracie McKinley and Callen Shaw

Winning Junior Stock Class Team:

• Hydro Rappers from Grant County: Cooper Henderson, Jackson Knight, Priyesh Laxmi and Abby Martin

Winning Open Class Team:

• Aquanauts from Grant County: Garrett Key, Priyam Laxmi and Eli Watson

High Score Overall Winner*:

• Sea-Cret Agents from Grant County: Jaxson Andrews, Ella Daniels, Sarah Daniels and Luke Douthit

*The Sea-Cret Agents had the next highest overall score after the Aquanauts, so because the Aquanauts secured a spot as the winning open class team, the Sea-Cret Agents will take the high score overall spot.

Fun for families

For the first time in the program’s history, the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas were able to set up cameras in the pool and live stream the ROVs as they navigated through the mission and obstacle courses. The video streamed to the organization’s YouTube channel, and it also appeared on display monitors in the waiting area for teams inside the Donaghey Student Center Fitness and Aquatic Center.

“We’ve tried to do this before, but we never got the cameras just right,” said Chance Allmon, audio visual technician for the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas. “It’s a very hard sport to spectate. So, we wanted the parents to be able to watch their kids and know what’s going on.”

Allmon said it has been rewarding to watch SeaPerch participants grow in their skills since the program first began in 2016.

“During the first few years, the kids were not comfortable with the courses at all. There was a lot of tangling with their tether cables,” Allmon said. “But there were kids just zipping through the course today. We barely saw them drop their ROVs in before they were back out. The kids are really getting this sport down, and it seems like a really fun way to get them into robotics.

“We’re able to give the kids an outlet to learn a new skill, something that will be transferable if they go into engineering or wiring,” Allmon said. “Very rarely will you invest in kids, and it not pay off.”

Engaging and educating the next generation

Roedel said Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas are proud to work closely with the Cooperative Extension Service and Arkansas 4-H.

“The Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas are committed to improving quality of life in the communities that we serve,” Roedel said. “The cooperatives make significant investments in the youth with our communities, as they represent the future. The electric cooperatives in Arkansas would not exist today without the dedication of Division of Agriculture extension agents, who went farm to farm with the state’s electric cooperative pioneers to convince farmers to sign up for electricity back in the 1930s and ‘40s.

“The values of Arkansas 4-H, the Cooperative Extension Service and the Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas closely align, as we all exist to serve,” Roedel said. “The SeaPerch program is just another example of a service that our partnership provides to the Natural State.”

McVay said Arkansas 4-H’s partnership with Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas is critical to the program’s success.

“The Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas play a huge role in making the SeaPerch Challenge possible,” McVay said. “As the sole sponsor since the beginning, they provide the funding, resources and support needed to keep the program running and growing each year. By reaching out to your local Electric Cooperative, new teams can secure their first SeaPerch kit completely free of charge. By supporting this competition, they’re not just investing in the event itself — they’re investing in the future workforce and leaders of Arkansas.”

For more information about the Arkansas 4-H SeaPerch Challenge, contact McVay at mmcvay@uada.edu or visit 4h.uada.edu. To learn more about the SeaPerch program, visit seaperch.org/about.

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. 

Bills signed into law March 12th by Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — On Wednesday, March 12, 2025, the Governor signed into law: 

HB1400 – An act to amend the law concerning the redemption of a tax-delinquent parcel; to exempt disabled veterans from certain penalties when redeeming a tax-delinquent parcel; and for other purposes. 

HB1556 – An act to amend Arkansas music appreciation day; to change the date on which Arkansas music appreciation day is celebrated; and for other purposes. 

SB236 – An act to amend the insurance holding company regulatory act; and for other purposes. 

HB1466 – An act to amend the fair mortgage lending act; and for other purposes. 

HB1184 – An act to amend the fair mortgage lending act; to protect a consumer’s privacy in certain mortgage applications; and for other purposes.

SB292 – An act to amend the law concerning the date of annual school election; to move the annual school election if the annual school election is scheduled on a state holiday in certain instances; and for other purposes. 

HCR1007 – To encourage the United States Congress to reevaluate the Medicare physician fee schedule locality structure and ensure accurate geographic practice cost indices for the metropolitan statistical areas of this state. 

HB1182 – An act to replace the defined term “medication assistive person” with the defined term “certified medication assistant” throughout § 17-87-701 ET SEQ.; to set forth the certification requirements, qualifications, and the scope of practice for a certified medication assistant; and for other purposes.

HB1213 – An act to amend the Arkansas athletic trainers act; to clarify the definition of “athlete” within the Arkansas athletic trainers act; to define “healthcare provider” regarding student athlete concussion education; and for other purposes. 

HB1217 – An act to establish the interstate massage compact in Arkansas; and for other purposes. 

HB1309 – An act to amend the law concerning coverage of examinations for breast cancer; to clarify the cost-sharing requirements for examinations for breast cancer; and for other purposes. 

SB119 – An act to establish the interstate medical licensure compact; and for other purposes.

HB1369 – An act concerning the establishment of the maximum campaign contribution limit by the Arkansas ethics commission; amending portions of law resulting from initiated act 1 of 1990 and initiated act 1 of 1996; declaring an emergency; and for other purposes.

HB1452 – An act clarifying the law on the use of medical marijuana in certain places; to prohibit the possession of an unsealed container of certain forms of medical marijuana in a motor vehicle; and for other purposes.

SB188 – An act to amend Arkansas law concerning initiative petitions and referendum petitions; to require public posting of statewide initiative petitions and referendum petitions; and for other purposes. 

SB209 – An act to amend the law concerning initiative petitions and referendum petitions; to disqualify signatures obtained by a canvasser under certain circumstances; to declare an emergency; and for other purposes. 

SB210 – An act to create the require examining of authoritative documents act; to amend the law concerning initiative and referendum petitions; to require the signer to read the ballot title of the petition in the presence of a canvasser; to declare an emergency; and for other purposes. 

SB244 – An act concerning postponement of judgement in district court; to permit a suspended imposition of sentence in certain district court cases; and for other purposes.

SB251 – An act to amend the law concerning the Arkansas Trails Council; to amend the law concerning the executive secretary of the Arkansas Trails Council; to amend the law concerning the participation of the Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism on the Arkansas Trails Council; and for other purposes. 

SB260 – An act to amend the law concerning the collection of court fines, fees, or costs after default; and for other purposes. 

SB272 -An act to amend the law concerning voter registration; to prohibit pre-filled fields on a voter registration form in certain instances; to amend provisions of Arkansas constitution, amendment 51, § 6; and for other purposes. 

SB291 – An act to amend the law concerning complaints of election law violations; to amend the deadlines for complaints of election law violations; and for other purposes. 

SB294 – An act to amend the law concerning election audits; to allow the state board of election commissioners to audit a county in the preceding election in certain circumstances; and for other purposes. 

SB295 – An act to amend the law concerning appropriation for election expenses; to allow compensation for a certified election monitor as an election expense; and for other purposes. 

SB296 – An act to amend the law concerning the designation of an early voting location by the county clerk; and for other purposes. 

SB297 – An act to amend the law concerning municipalities choosing to elect council members; to require the governing body of the municipality to file the ordinance describing the election of city council members with the county clerk; and for other purposes. 

SB308 – An act to amend the law concerning a write-in candidate; to remove references to a write-in candidate; and for other purposes.

HB1279 – An act to amend the Arkansas Egg Marketing Act of 1969; to authorize repackaging of eggs by a retailer if certain criteria is met; and for other purposes.

HB1325 – An act to amend the provisions regarding credited service under the Arkansas Public Employees’ Retirement System; to allow a member of the Arkansas Public Employees’ Retirement System to receive service credit from service under an alternate retirement plan to meet eligibility requirements for a retirement benefit under certain circumstances; and for other purposes. 

HB1379 – An act to amend the law concerning the special authorization for reimbursement for meals and lodging while traveling on official business of the state; and for other purposes. 

HB1499 – An act to amend the sale and purchase procedure for public property; and for other purposes. 

HB1568 – An act to amend the law concerning examinations, investigations, and postmortem examination; to amend the law requiring a postmortem examination when a death is by apparent drug, alcohol, or poison toxicity; and for other purposes. 

SB224 – An act to repeal the law concerning natural organic fertilizers; and for other purposes. 

SB249 – An act to amend the law concerning violations and penalties related to forestry; to amend the powers of the Arkansas Forestry Commission; and for other purposes. 

SB250 – An act to amend the pest control law; to reassign certain duties of the state plant board; and for other purposes. 

SB259 – An act to transfer appointment authority for the director of the Arkansas Waterways Commission to the Governor; and for other purposes. 

SB265 – An act to reduce and modify the membership of the licensing committee relating to wastewater; to reduce and modify the membership of the licensing committee relating to solid waste; to amend the apprenticeship licenses in solid waste licensing; to amend participation requirements for environmental officers; and for other purposes. 

SB267 – An act to repeal the Arkansas alternative motor fuel development act; to repeal the alternative motor fuel development fund; and for other purposes. 

HB1146 – An act to make an appropriation for personal services and operating expenses for the Office of Attorney General for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026; and for other purposes. 

HB1175 – An act to make an appropriation for personal services and operating expenses for the Department of Parks, Heritage, and Tourism – Division of Heritage for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026; and for other purposes.  

HB1493 – An act to make an appropriation to the institutions of higher education for capital improvement projects; and for other purposes. 

HB1544 – An act to make an appropriation for state turnback for counties and municipalities by the Office of the Treasurer of State which shall be supplemental and in addition to those funds appropriated by Act 140 of 2024; and for other purposes. 

Second Arkansas Graveler bike event set for early June

by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)

The Ozark Foundation’s second annual Arkansas Graveler, a five-day bike journey across county and forest backroads from the Ouachita National Forest in western Arkansas to scenic Greers Ferry Lake in north central Arkansas, will take place June 3-8, 2025.

The event will begin in Mena on June 3 and finish in Heber Springs on June 8. The course is known as The Bigfoot Route.

Approximately 400 touring and recreational cyclists from across the country are expected to participate in the ride which will include four stops in host communities along the route.

Second Arkansas Graveler bike event set for early June

Arkansas winter ag production meeting schedule kicks off Jan. 9

By Mary Hightower
U of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

These meetings, held between harvest and planting, are a time when land-grant extension and research personnel can share their findings and latest best practices with farmers in hopes of improving the following year’s crop.

Winter production meetings are an off-season staple to earn about new research and find ways to improve the next season's crop. (U of A System Division of Agriculture image)

UNDATED — Winter production meetings are a long-held tradition of agriculture’s off season, combining information, conversation and digestion — usually of catfish or barbecue — but sometimes even the most well-planned agendas can go up in smoke.

Jeremy Ross, extension soybean agronomist, and Scott Stiles, extension economics program associate for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, are both veterans on the winter production meeting circuit. Over the decades, the two have made dozens of appearances, and traveling thousands of miles to these county meetings, speaking to farmers across the Delta and the Arkansas River Valley.

“Over the years, we have had meetings in all types of venues,” Stiles said. “We've had meetings in warehouses, restaurants, churches, extension offices and research centers, country stores and country clubs, hunting clubs, civic centers, grain elevators, fire departments, community colleges, airports, armories, cotton gins, fairgrounds, and farm shops. 

“If it had a roof and four walls, we've had a meeting in it,” he said.

Technology changes

PowerPoints and videos may be the current standard for presentations, but that wasn’t always the case.

“For my first meeting, I went to the Oil Trough Country Store for the Independence County meeting. That was so long ago that we used transparencies and an overhead projector,” Stiles said.

“We met kind of off to one side of the store while lunchmeat was sliced for customers and the local quilters met in another corner of the store,” he said. “It was a hoot.

“I recall we had a meeting in a chemical warehouse down in south Arkansas once,” Stiles said. “We sat on boxes of chemical instead of chairs. Some of us got our pants all messed up with Prowl or some yellow herbicide. We all realized it when we were driving home and wondered what the smell was.”

Quite alarming 

However, there is one meeting in Cross County in the early 2000s that brings a twinkle to the eyes of both Ross and Stiles.

The meeting took place in an almost-new fire station. In a previous year, the presentations went on in an adjoining meeting room and lunch tables were set up in the bay with the fire engines. This time, the usual meeting room was in use, so the production meeting took place in the fire engine bay. This proved awkward, as light streaming through the garage’s big windows washed out the slide presentations, Ross said.

Being scheduled in January or February, “it was really, really cold outside, and cold inside the garage, even with the doors closed,” Ross said.

Two or three presenters had given their talks, and then Trey Reaper, who was the soybean verification coordinator at the time, stepped up to speak.

“Trey was about halfway through his talk, when the alarms went off,” Ross said. “And if you’ve ever been in a fire station when the alarms go off, it’s pretty loud.”

Then, “the firemen come out and put their gear on, and then they started the trucks,” he said. “They didn’t open the garage doors before they started the trucks. So here are these diesel engines just sitting there producing exhaust.”

Stiles said “the trucks had filled the station with a blue cloud of diesel exhaust and we all coughed the rest of the meeting. Nobody heard a word we said.”

“They finally opened the doors and this cold blast of winter air comes through and we’re all grabbing papers and stuff and coughing, and it’s about 20 degrees cold than it was,” Ross said. “It was pretty comical.”

“That was about the funniest experience I've had at a production meeting,” he said.

2025 winter schedule

With any luck, the 2025 slate of meetings will be less eventful.

Please note that the meeting times may be subject to change due to inclement weather or other factors. Be sure to contact the local county extension office for location, times and other details.

JANUARY

• Jan. 9 – Conway County – corn and soybeans

• Jan. 10 – Poinsett / Craighead counties – rice and soybeans

• Jan. 16 – Greene County – technology

• jan. 24 – Miller / Little River / Lafayette counties – corn, cotton, soybeans and rice

• Jan. 30 – morning: Cross County – corn, rice and soybeans

• Jan. 30 – afternoon: White County – corn, rice and soybeans

• Jan. 31 – morning: Greene County – corn, rice and soybeans

• Jan. 31 – afternoon: Clay County – corn, rice and soybeans

FEBRUARY

• Feb. 5 – Clay / Greene counties – cotton and peanut

• Feb. 6 – morning: Arkansas County – rice and soybeans

• Feb. 6 – afternoon: Jefferson County – corn, rice and soybeans

• Feb. 6 – Mississippi / Crittenden counties – corn, cotton and agricultural economics with Hunter Biram

• Feb. 7 – Jackson / Independence counties – corn, rice and soybeans

• Feb. 10 – Woodruff County – corn, rice and soybeans

• Feb. 11 – morning: Ashley / Chicot counties – rice and soybeans

• Feb. 11 – afternoon: Lincoln / Desha / Drew counties – rice and soybeans

• Feb. 12 – Crittenden / Mississippi counties – soybean, rice and agricultural economics with Hunter Biram

• Feb. 13 – Prairie / Lonoke / Pulaski counties – rice and soybeans

• Feb. 14 – Craighead/Poinsett counties – corn and cotton

• Feb. 18 – Ashley / Chicot / Desha / Drew / Lincoln counties – corn and cotton

• Feb. 20 – Phillips / Monroe / Lee / St. Francis counties – corn, cotton and agricultural economics with Scott Stiles

• Feb. 21 – Randolph / Lawrence counties – corn, rice and soybeans

• Feb. 27 – Clark County – cotton, corn, rice and soybeans

• Feb. 28 – Phillips / Lee counties – rice and soybeans

MARCH

• March 4 – Craighead / Poinsett / Greene / Mississippi counties – peanuts

• March 4 – Arkansas River Valley – rice and agricultural economics with Ryan Loy

• March 6 – St. Francis / Monroe County – rice, soybeans and agricultural economics with Ryan Loy.

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. 

Arkansas Soybean Science Challenge: A new decade of students using their bean

By Mary Hightower
U of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture

LITTLE ROCK — For a decade, the Arkansas Soybean Science Challenge has been planting seeds for students contemplating a future in research.

The idea behind the program was simple: Pique the interest of students from grades 6-12  to consider a science fair project involving soybeans, and by extension, agriculture.

Alyssa Butler, was a 17-year-old senior at Carlisle High School in Carlisle, Arkansas, in 2021, when she won both her regional-level competition in the Arkansas Soybean Science Challenge. She is now pursuing a degree in agriculture, inspired by the competition. (Courtesy photo)

Karen Ballard, a now-retired extension professor who conceived the program, gained the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board as a partner to help fund the outreach work of the Soybean Science Challenge.

“Many students, even those in cities near farming areas, have never thought of research in agriculture as a career,” said Julie Robinson, professor-community, professional and economic development for the Cooperative Extension Service. Robinson has administered the program for five years. “The humble soybean is more than just livestock feed. It’s the basis for biofuels. Its fibers are used in making fabrics and foam for seat cushions. Its oils replace petroleum bases in paints, candles and inks. Soybean meal can be used in making adhesives. 

“Over the decade, we’ve seen our student researchers put their own creativity and brainpower into creating plastics, computer climate models or evaluating the effects of radiation on soybean growth,” she said.

While the program offers cash prizes as an incentive, “even more importantly we’ve seen the program work. Many of the participants who have had their enthusiasm stoked by the Soybean Science Challenge have gone on to continue their research in college,” Robinson said.

Confidence and comfort zones

The challenge has been a career-builder for Alyssa Butler, who won five times at the regional and state levels. She is an undergraduate student working as an extension program associate in plant pathology.

 “The Soybean Science Challenge was the first time I ever pushed myself outside of my comfort zone and did any form of public speaking,” Butler said. “I was terrified and self-critical, but after knowing I did good enough to make it to state, I had more confidence in myself than ever.

"When I competed at the state level and won first place at Soybean Science Challenge, I was so proud of myself and all my research,” she said. “For me, it wasn't just about winning or the prize that came with it, it was about the fact that weeks of hard work, stepping out of my comfort zone, and pushing myself paid off.”

Butler said when she worked on her first experiment, looking at Southern root-knot nematode resistance, she gained a deeper appreciation for plant pathology and knew she wanted to continue research in that field.

“It is one of the best opportunities that high school has to offer,” she said.

Keith Harris, extension ag education program associate who coordinates the challenge, said he finds gratification in seeing the program fulfill its mission by “students showing an interest in research, specifically agricultural research, and them seeing agriculture as an industry with career options.”

The next decade

A decade later, “we are still focused on engaging student researchers through regional and state science fairs,” Robinson said.

The program has done some growing of its own over the decade.

“We have expanded the program to include teacher in-service, Grow Your Own Protein, and a variety of classroom curriculum available for free,” Robinson said.

The Grow Your Own Protein program provides edamame seeds for schools, community groups. 4-H clubs and others to grow edible soybeans in their own gardens. There’s also a “soybean store,” where those interested in taking part in the Soybean Science Challenge as a student researcher, can request a variety of soybean seeds, including conventional soybeans, soybeans tolerant to Roundup and tofu soybeans.

2023 winners

Last year, 15 students were named 2023 Soybean Scholars after their projects won the Soybean Science Challenge at district and state science fairs.

First-place went to Bennet Chen, 14, a freshman at Little Rock Central High, for his project, “Forecasting the future; a predictive modeling approach to deciphering climate change's impact on county level soybean yields.” Chen won the 2024 Soybean Science Challenge First Place Award at the State Science and Engineering Fair held at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway on March 30, and the Senior Division SSC Award at Central Arkansas Regional Science and Engineering Fair held at UA-Little Rock on March 1. 

How it works

The 2025 Soybean Science Challenge is now open for entries.

Students interested in participating are required to complete six online course modules before submitting their science project to their district science fair, the state science fair or the Arkansas FFA Agriscience Fair.

Each project submitted is assessed by judges from the Soybean Science Challenge. The project must focus on soybeans to qualify. Winners of the Soybean Science Challenge special award win a cash prize. The winning students’ teachers also win a cash prize if their student wins at a regional science fair.

“The Soybean Science Challenge allows us to engage young people and demonstrate the vast opportunities within the agricultural industry,” said Brad Doyle, Poinsett County soybean producer and chairman of Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board. “Their fresh perspectives, skills and innovative ideas are vital to the growth and sustainability of our industry.”

For additional information on the soybean science challenge, visit the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board website at www. themiraclebean.com.

To learn more about the program, see its 10th anniversary video.

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk.