Hunters check 1,231 deer during inaugural early buck hunt

BY Randy Zellers

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas bowhunters harvested 1,231 deer during the state’s first statewide early buck hunt earlier this month. The jump-start to deer season was added during the biannual regulations-setting process this spring to offer hunters the opportunity to pursue a buck still “in velvet.”

Ralph Meeker, deer program coordinator for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, said the hunt’s harvest was within the range expected by biologists when the hunt was announced.

“When we look at historical harvest for the first three days of archery season, hunters typically check between 2,000 and 4,000 deer, depending on the weather,” Meeker said. “But a lot of those deer are does, so when you look at only the buck component of that harvest, it’s around 800 to 1,500 antlered deer.”

Arkansas’s regular archery season has traditionally begun on the fourth Saturday in September.

Meeker says the results of Arkansas’s first statewide early deer hunt also fall fairly close to those found in Tennessee and Mississippi, two neighboring states with similar hunts.

“We had great weather during the hunt, and a lot of hunters were able to enjoy a cooler morning in the stand than anticipated,” Meeker said.

While many hunters enjoyed harvesting an early deer, the timing of this year’s hunt did fall slightly outside the peak time for the deers’ antlers to be shrouded in velvet.

“After talking to meat processors and hunters I know, I’d estimate that only about 10 to 15 percent of the bucks were still in velvet and I’d lean closer to that 10 percent side,” Meeker said. “The hunt is set for the first full weekend in September, and this year it happened to land on the latest possible calendar date for that criteria. As the calendar rotates, we’ll begin to see earlier hunts in future years. We see several bucks “in velvet” harvested in the first few days of the urban hunts, which typically open Sept. 1.”

The hunt also shouldn’t take much of the excitement out of the opening weekend of regular archery deer season, as many hunters still have tags and freezers to fill.

“I think a lot of hunters had to choose between early bucks and doves this year, so they’ll still be out there for the statewide archery opener,” Meeker said. “There are still a good number of people who archery hunt to just harvest a deer. The early hunt mainly attracts those die-hard bowhunters, so I think we’ll still see a lot of people in the woods for archery season. It also was a great opportunity for hunters who wanted to get out in the woods a little when they made their first trip to deer camp to clean up, plant food plots and get ready for the rest of the season. It was nice to give those folks a choice.”

Regular archery season in Arkansas is Sept. 28-Feb. 28. Visit www.agfc.com/deer for more information.

GOOD DEER
Andrew Mizell checked this impressive 8-point velvet buck in Desha County on the opening day of Arkansas’s first early buck hunt. 

UAMS Invests Sam R. Dalvi, M.D., in Eleanor A. Lipsmeyer, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Rheumatology

By Andrew Vogler

LITTLE ROCK — The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine invested Sam R. Dalvi, M.D., professor and director of the Division of Rheumatology and Immunology in the Department of Internal Medicine, in the Eleanor A. Lipsmeyer, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Rheumatology during a Sept. 23 ceremony.

“When I came to UAMS, I outlined a vision that the Division of Rheumatology would be the premier program in the south-central United States in the next 10 years,” said Dalvi, who also serves as the director of the Rheumatology Fellowship Program. “In my mission statement I said that we’re going to transform the care of patients through cutting-edge therapies and developing a team-based approach for all of our patients, and thanks to the Lipsmeyer Professorship we are well on our way to fulfilling these goals.”

Dalvi, who joined UAMS in 2024, is board-certified in rheumatology and internal medicine, and specializes in arthritic diseases, including osteoarthritis, gout, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis.

UAMS Invests Sam R. Dalvi, M.D., in Eleanor A. Lipsmeyer, M.D., Endowed Professorship in Rheumatology

From left, Steven Webber, M.D., Sam R. Dalvi, M.D., Eleanor A. Lipsmeyer, M.D., and Cam Patterson, M.D., MBA. Image by Bryan Clifton

Arkansas Supreme Court refers one of its own for disciplinary investigation

KUAR | By Antoinette Grajeda / Arkansas Advocate

From the Arkansas Advocate:

Members of the Arkansas Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a case filed by Justice Courtney Hudson seeking to block the release of her emails from a public records request and have referred her for disciplinary investigation.

In an unsigned per curiam opinion issued Tuesday, the state’s high court vacated a preliminary injunction granted by Pulaski County Circuit Judge Patricia James on Monday and dismissed the underlying complaint with prejudice for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. “With prejudice” means the case cannot be refiled.

Hudson and Justice Karen Baker dissented. The opinion said written opinions would follow, but none had been filed as of Tuesday afternoon.

Arkansas Supreme Court refers one of its own for disciplinary investigation

John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate

The Arkansas Supreme Court building in Little Rock.

Multi-state study offers recommendations for keeping bermudagrass greener all season

By Nick Kordsmeier (U of A System Division of Agriculture)
With contributions from Marya Barlow (Virginia Tech) and Tobie Blanchard (LSU AgCenter)

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Whether it’s a football field, a golf course, or a home lawn, a new multi-state study offers recommendations for keeping some varieties of turfgrass greener, longer.

GREENER GRASS — Wendell Hutchens, assistant professor of turfgrass science, participated in a study that identified key turfgrass management recommendations to help keep hybrid bermudagrass greener all season. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo)

Researchers currently based in six states collaborated to identify three simple management tips to extend green color and reduce cold-weather injury in hybrid bermudagrass. Those recommendations include raising the mowing height, applying nitrogen fertilizer in the fall, and most importantly, maintaining adequate soil moisture in the lead-up to a short-term freeze event, such as a spring-time cold snap.

The study, “Improving winter survival of interspecific hybrid bermudagrass in the Mid-Atlantic region through cultural practices,” was published in the Crop, Forage & Turfgrass Management journal in August.

Wendell Hutchens, co-author of the study and an assistant professor of turfgrass science with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, noted that although the work focused on golf courses, the recommendations could apply equally in other situations.

“The practices can be used universally,” Hutchens said. “Sod growers can use the same practices, as can sports field managers and homeowners for their lawns.”

Sports field managers, Hutchens added, may benefit the most from this study. Much of the work for golf courses was done on fairway-height bermudagrass, which he said is “usually comparable to sports fields.”

“Many of our turfgrass professionals manage hybrid bermudagrasses throughout the Mid-Atlantic. Winter injury is one of their biggest concerns,” said David McCall, co-author of the study and associate professor of turfgrass pathology and precision management in Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. “This multi-state project was designed to answer some practical questions that would benefit our industry stakeholders.”

According to the study, hybrid bermudagrass is susceptible to cold-weather damage in the transition zone, an area that includes a band from Maryland and Virginia on the East Coast to Arkansas, parts of Missouri and Oklahoma, all the way to California on the West Coast. While the study highlights the Mid-Atlantic region, the work is relevant for anywhere in the transition zone, Hutchens added.

“The transition zone is where cool and warm climates meet,” Hutchens said. “That’s where we can grow every species of turfgrass — warm season and cool season — but they all struggle to some degree. And that provides ample research opportunities.”

In addition to Hutchens and McCall, other co-authors of the study include Joseph Doherty, former graduate student at the University of Maryland; Joseph Roberts, associate professor with Clemson University’s College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences; Eric DeBoer, assistant professor with the LSU AgCenter in Louisiana; Jordan Booth, senior director of the U.S. Golf Association’s course consulting service; and Michael Battaglia, graduate student at the University of Arkansas’ Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences. The Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station is the research arm of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

Results and recommendations from field trials

Hutchens said the research team set out to evaluate the effects of soil fertility, mowing height and moisture to avoid cold-weather injury, also known as winterkill.

“Those are three primary management practices for turfgrass, but particularly with winterkill, they play a major role,” he said. “We found some pretty interesting data during the first couple of years of our study.”

Roberts noted that historically, avoiding late-summer applications of nitrogen on bermudagrass was the standard.

“Healthy roots are vital to winter survival, and it was thought that fall fertilization could favor lush foliar growth in lieu of root growth, therefore increasing chances of winter injury,” Roberts said. “However, our research showed that slow-release nitrogen applications through mid-September had either no impact or in some cases, positive impacts on turfgrass quality and color.

UP CLOSE — A multi-state team of turfgrass researchers collaborated on a recent study that identified recommendations for keeping turfgrass greener longer. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo)

“More importantly, no negative impacts were observed as a result of late-season nitrogen applications,” he said.

The work with mowing height also yielded an interesting insight, Hutchens said.

“Mowing height didn’t have a substantial effect on winterkill, but it did reduce winter weed populations when we mowed at higher heights, which is a really useful finding and a serendipitous takeaway from the study,” Hutchens said.

“The general rule of thumb is to increase mowing heights slightly as bermudagrass approaches winter dormancy,” McCall said. “How much depends on the starting point while actively growing in-season.

“In our study, 0.75 inches seemed to be the sweet spot, though we did not see consistent impacts of mowing height on winter injury. We did, however, notice that mowing lower at 0.5 inches opened the canopy enough for weeds to germinate much more frequently, and mowing at 1 inch sometimes slowed spring green up a little,” he said.

McCall noted that these mowing heights are considerably lower than how a home lawn should be maintained.

Moisture is critical

Due to mild and wet winter conditions at the field trial locations in Maryland and Virginia, the researchers performed several experiments using freeze chambers to mimic winter weather conditions. When Hutchens started his job in Arkansas, he worked with Battaglia and DeBoer to evaluate the relationship between soil water content and level of cold-weather injury.

DeBoer, who mainly participated in the study as a Ph.D. student at the University of Arkansas before taking up his post with the LSU AgCenter, said the research found a strong association between soil moisture and winterkill symptoms.

“There is definitely a positive correlation with increased soil moisture prior to short-term freezing events, resulting in better turf survival,” DeBoer said.

One possible explanation according to DeBoer may be a temporary heating effect from the irrigation water buffering the roots from cold temperatures. DeBoer cautioned there is a high degree of variability from year to year and site to site.

“It’s not cut and dry, say, to irrigate your soil to 25 percent volumetric water content before a freeze, and you’ll be fine,” DeBoer said. “The idea is to avoid having droughty soil before a freezing event.”

Volumetric water content is a measurement of how much water a given volume of soil contains. The amount of water that a field can hold depends on the type of soil, Hutchens noted.

“Adequate soil moisture is certainly one of the most crucial management practices to reduce winterkill,” Hutchens said.

Reaping rewards from collaboration

Hutchens noted that the multi-state collaboration was a key part of the success of this study.

“You get a lot of different ideas and perspectives,” he said. “This project demonstrates that these collaborative efforts across multiple universities can be really successful. It takes a lot of legwork to organize it all, and the initial work is challenging, but the rewards that you reap from it are totally worth it.”

Hutchens said the team began the work in 2019 while he was a graduate student at Virginia Tech, working under McCall as his adviser. Booth was working as a research associate at Virginia Tech at the time before joining USGA. Doherty was a graduate student at the University of Maryland working under Roberts, who later took a job at Clemson University. DeBoer and Battaglia got involved when Hutchens moved to Arkansas in 2022.

“This project exemplifies the benefits of collaboration, as the primary study was performed at three geographically unique locations in the Mid-Atlantic,” McCall said. “By bringing in additional resources from northwest Arkansas, we were truly able to use broad strokes for practical recommendations to turfgrass professionals throughout the transition zone with confidence that our results apply across the board.”

In addition to the value of the research team’s collective experience, Roberts also noted the added value of testing recommendations across multiple geographical areas.

“Collaborative efforts not only helped push this research forward, but performing field research across multiple field sites in different states enhanced the recommendations offered to growers across the transition zone,” Roberts said.

This study was supported in part by grants from the Old Dominion Golf Course Superintendents Association; the Virginia Golf Course Superintendents Association; the Eastern Shore Association of Golf Course Superintendents; the Mid-Atlantic Sports Turf Managers Association; the Virginia Turfgrass Foundation; the Mid-Atlantic Association of Golf Course Superintendents; and the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America’s Environmental Institute for Golf.

The Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Virginia Tech, Clemson University and the LSU AgCenter are part of a system of agricultural research centers at land-grant universities in the southern United States where scientists collaborate to conduct research and outreach focused on conserving the region’s natural resources and sustainably feeding a growing global population.

To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website. Follow us on X at @ArkAgResearch, subscribe to the Food, Farms and Forests podcast and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.

Attorney General Griffin secures Arkansas Supreme Court dismissal of driver's license gender identification lawsuit

LITTLE ROCK – Attorney General Tim Griffin today issued the following statement after the Arkansas Supreme Court entered an order in Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration v. Gallagher dismissing the lawsuit challenging the department’s emergency rule on driver’s license gender identification:

Flickr Image

“I am pleased that the Arkansas Supreme Court granted my motion to dismiss this lawsuit against the Department of Finance and Administration, which has brought its driver’s license gender identification rule into compliance with the law. The Department’s rule must comply with state law, therefore, today’s order is a win for the rule of law.

“I congratulate Solicitor General Nicholas Bronni and Deputy Solicitor General Dylan Jacobs on their successful efforts in this matter.”

For a printer-friendly version of this release, click here.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Sanders delivers remarks at the unveiling of the Johnny Cash statue in Emancipation Hall

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders delivered remarks at the unveiling of the Johnny Cash Statue in Emancipation Hall on Tuesday, September 24th.

The Governor’s remarks as prepared are below:

Johnny Cash - GoodFon Image

It is an honor to be back in our nation’s Capitol to represent Arkansas and honor one of our state’s best-known icons, Johnny Cash. Thank you to Arkansas’ congressional delegation and our congressional leaders for being here.
 
I look out in the crowd and see plenty of friendly faces. Many of you were here last spring when we unveiled Daisy Bates’ statue. I’m glad we’re here again to tell Arkansas’ story.
 
Many of you know that I grew up in politics. But what you may not know is that I also grew up in a musical family.
 
To us – and to just about every other musical family in the South – after God and country came Johnny Cash. Even more than his songs, it’s the image of the man that I remember: the slicked-back hair of his early albums, the seasoned look of his later years. 
 
Perhaps the most iconic: the pictures of Cash at San Quentin and Folsom prisons.
 
Not long ago, my husband and I hosted another Arkansas musician, Zach Williams, at the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion. Zach shares some biographical notes with Cash: he too was raised in the Arkansas Delta. He too got his start in rock music before falling into drugs and alcohol.
 
He too found Jesus, quit using, and started writing Christian music. He too now performs in prisons.
 
Zach shared his experience performing with us: looking out in the crowd, seeing inmates with tattoos on their faces and necks. His thought wasn’t, “how am I different from them.” It was, “I could be sitting right there.”
 
Obviously, there are some differences between Zach and Johnny Cash. When Cash visited Folsom Prison, his most famous line was all Man in Black bravado: “I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.”
 
But Johnny Cash also used to say that he was two people: “Johnny is the nice one. Cash causes all the trouble.” It’s not hard to imagine that he too looked out into that prison crowd and saw a version of himself staring back.
 
Johnny Cash was open about both the struggles and triumphs in his life. He was a hymn-singing Christian. But there were also times when he wrote that he felt like a “walking vision of death.” 
 
That didn’t contradict his image: it was his image. Cash’s first big hit was called “I Walk the Line.” In an era when most musicians’ images were carefully curated, he was open about straddling the border between clean-cut Johnny and cast-down Cash.
 
When so much in today’s world is fake, Johnny Cash was real.
 
Not long ago, I toured Cash’s childhood home in Dyess, Arkansas. I saw the cramped rooms where his parents raised their seven kids. I saw the fields where Johnny and his family worked, picking cotton and singing church music.
 
It was an unspectacular childhood, the same as thousands of other kids in thousands of other little farmhouses in the Delta.
 
But it’s what makes Johnny Cash special. Millions of Americans could look at him, look at his career, look at his success, and still say, “he’s one of us.”
 
Johnny Cash walked the line. It wasn’t a straight line. It was like the Arkansas River: jagged, but always moving forward.
 
We’re a nation of second chances, of constant reinvention, of continuous redemption. Where a singer can start in the cotton fields and eventually perform to stadiums. Where a Christian baptized in the Tyronza River can headline a Billy Graham Crusade.
 
Where a man can defeat his own demons and become a vessel for the Holy Spirit.
 
Johnny Cash was an ordinary man and a superstar, all in one. It’s a story that could only happen in America. And it’s a story that Arkansas – the land of pioneers and patriots – is proud to tell.
 
Thank you to everyone who made this statue and this story possible.
 
May God bless Johnny Cash, and may God bless the great State of Arkansas.

Study offers improvements to food quality computer predictions

By John Lovett
University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Have you ever stood in front of apples on display at the grocery store trying to pick out the best ones and wondered, “Is there an app for this?”

FOOD QUALITY PREDICTION — Dongyi Wang's study showed computer prediction of food quality improved when based on human perceptions under various lighting situations. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo by Paden Johnson)

Current machine-learning based computer models used for predicting food quality are not as consistent as a human’s ability to adapt to environmental conditions. Still, information compiled in an Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station study may be used someday to develop that app, as well as provide grocery stores with insights on presenting foods in a more appealing manner and optimize software designs for machine vision systems used in processing facilities.

The study led by Dongyi Wang, assistant professor of smart agriculture and food manufacturing in the biological and agricultural engineering department and the food science department, was recently published in the Journal of Food Engineering.

Even though human perception of food quality can be manipulated with illumination, the study showed that computers trained with data from human perceptions of food quality made more consistent food quality predictions under different lighting conditions.

“When studying the reliability of machine-learning models, the first thing you need to do is evaluate the human’s reliability,” Wang said. “But there are differences in human perception. What we are trying to do is train our machine-learning models to be more reliable and consistent.”

The study, supported by the National Science Foundation, showed that computer prediction errors can be decreased by about 20 percent using data from human perceptions of photos under different lighting conditions. It outperforms an established model that trains a computer using pictures without human perception variability taken into consideration.

Even though machine vision techniques have been widely studied and applied in the food engineering field, the study noted that most current algorithms are trained based on “human-labeled ground truths or simple color information.” No studies have considered the effects of illumination variations on human perception, and how the biases can affect the training of machine vision models for food quality evaluations, the authors stated.

The researchers used lettuce to evaluate human perceptions under different lighting conditions, which were in turn used to train the computer model. Sensory evaluations were done at the experiment station’s Sensory Science Center. Han-Seok Seo, professor in the food science department and director of the Sensory Science Center, was a co-author of the study.

Out of 109 participants in a broad age range, 89 completed all nine sensory sessions of the human perceptional reliability phase of the study. None of the participants were color blind or had vision problems. In five consecutive days, the panelists evaluated 75 images of Romaine lettuce each day. They graded freshness of the lettuce on a scale of zero to 100.

The images of lettuce the sensory panel graded were of samples photographed over the course of eight days to provide different levels of browning. They were taken under different lighting brightness and color temperatures, ranging from a blueish “cool” tone to an orangey “warm” tone, to obtain a dataset of 675 images.

Several well-established machine learning models were applied to evaluate the same images as the sensory panel, the study noted. Different neural network models used the sample images as inputs and were trained to predict the corresponding average human grading to better mimic human perception.

As seen in other experiments at the Sensory Science Center, human perception of food quality can be manipulated with illumination. For example, warmer environmental colors can disguise lettuce browning, Wang explained.

Wang said the method to train machine vision-based computers using human perceptions under different lighting conditions could be applied to many things, from foods to jewelry.

Other co-authors of the study from the University of Arkansas included Shengfan Zhang, associate professor of industrial engineering in the College of Engineering; Swarna Sethu, former post-doctoral researcher in biological and agricultural engineering department, and now assistant professor of Computer Information Sciences at Missouri Southern State University; and Victoria J. Hogan, program assistant in the food science department.

The study was supported by the National Science Foundation, grant numbers OIA-1946391 and No. 2300281. The authors also recognized graduate and senior undergraduate students Olivia Torres, Robert Blindauer and Yihong Feng for helping collect, analyze and grade samples.

To learn more about the Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website. Follow us on X at @ArkAgResearch, subscribe to the Food, Farms and Forests podcast and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.

Johnny Cash statue unveiled at U.S. Capitol

by Roby Brock (roby@talkbusiness.net)

Singer, songwriter, activist and Arkansas native Johnny Cash is now represented in the halls of the U.S. Capitol.

A statue of Cash, who was born in Kingsland, Ark., and spent his childhood in Dyess in the Arkansas Delta, was unveiled Tuesday (Sept. 24) in Emancipation Hall at the national capitol complex. Arkansas’ Congressional delegation and Gov. Sarah Sanders joined other dignitaries and artist Kevin Kresse of Little Rock in revealing the 8-foot tall sculpture.

Cash is the first musician in history to be included in the National Statuary Hall Collection and his statue is one of two honoring Arkansas icons. Civil rights pioneer Daisy Bates, whose sculpture was unveiled earlier this year, also represents the state.

Johnny Cash statue unveiled at U.S. Capitol

A statue of Arkansas-native Johnny Cash was unveiled Tuesday (Sept. 24) in the U.S. Capitol.

Representatives Hill and Gottheimer introduce bill to protect credit score of American hostages or wrongful detainees

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. French Hill (R-AR) and Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) introduced the Fair Credit for American Hostages Act to safeguard the credit score of American hostages or wrongful detainees. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Senator Chris Coons (D-DE) recently introduced similar legislation in the Senate.

Rep. Hill said, “Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad already have so much to worry about when they arrive home after this unimaginable situation. I thank my colleague Rep. Gottheimer for joining me in leading our legislation that makes it easier for these Americans to get their lives back on track and some sense of normalcy.”

Rep. Gottheimer said, “After being held for days, weeks, and months by terrorists and our adversaries, facing unimaginable horrors, and making it home, the last thing Americans should have to worry about is a hit to their credit score. That's why I'm proud to lead the Fair Credit for American Hostages Act with my colleague Congressman French Hill.”

Sen. Tillis said, "It’s crazy to think an American held hostage in a foreign nation could return to a ruined credit score and financial turmoil because of their inability to make timely payments. This commonsense legislation ensures that Americans wrongfully detained abroad can move forward without worrying about how a poor credit score impacts their financial future.”

Sen. Coons said, “Americans who have been wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad shouldn’t have to worry about their credit score when they come home, and the Fair Credit for American Hostages Act will ensure they don’t have to. I applaud Representatives Hill and Gottheimer for introducing this critical, bipartisan legislation in the House, and I’ll continue to support American hostages and their families when they come home.”

Further Background:

H.R. 9830 - Fair Credit for American Hostages Act: This legislation stipulates that if a former detainee or hostage provides authenticated documentation of their detention, then the credit bureaus must strike adverse information from the time of their detention. 

UAMS College of Nursing’s Undergraduate Programs Ranked 74th in Nation by U.S. News & World Report

By Chris Carmody

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Nursing ranks among the nation’s 100 best undergraduate nursing programs, according to a list released today by U.S. News & World Report.

UAMS climbed 12 spots in the annual ranking, tying for 74th out of 686 programs evaluated by the publication. It was the only Arkansas institution in the top 100.

U.S. News & World Report conducted its evaluations through surveys from top academic and nursing school officials, who rated BSN programs they were familiar with on a scale from 1 to 5. Schools on the list were required to have a bachelor’s-level accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, and they needed to have recently awarded at least 50 BSN degrees.

UAMS College of Nursing’s Undergraduate Programs Ranked 74th in Nation by U.S. News & World Report

The UAMS College of Nursing’s undergraduate programs climbed 12 spots in this year’s ranking from U.S. News & World Report.

Update from State Representative DeAnn Vaught

The deadline to register to vote for the November General Election is fast approaching.  If you are not already registered, you have until Monday, October 7 to turn in your registration form. The General Election and Nonpartisan Runoff Election will be held on November 5. 

Early voting begins on October 21. Polls for early voting will be open between the hours of 8:00 am and 6:00 pm, Monday through Friday, and 10:00 am – 4:00 pm on Saturday. Early voting ends at 5:00 pm on the Monday prior to the election.  

Voting is a cornerstone of democracy, a fundamental right that empowers citizens to influence the direction of their government and society. It gives Arkansans a voice in the decision-making processes that affect their daily lives. When Arkansans participate in elections, they express their opinions on critical issues, ensuring that their values and priorities are represented. 

Submitting your voter application at a state agency, in a voter registration drive, or through the U.S. Postal Service does NOT guarantee your registration. You should follow up on the status of your registration just as you would on any other personal business matter. Before considering yourself a registered voter, you must receive an acknowledgment of your registration from the county clerk. Feel free to call your county clerk and inquire about the status of your application. You may also check your voter registration status online by visiting www.voterview.org. 

Voter registration applications may be found at sos.arkansas.gov. If you are registering to vote by mail you must provide either your driver’s license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number on your Arkansas Voter Registration Application, or check the box in #9 on the application to indicate that you do not possess either a driver’s license or Social Security number.

We encourage you to verify your registration and make plans now to cast your ballot.

Cotton, Rubio, Hawley introduce legislation to end permanent normal trade relations with China

Senator Tom Cotton

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas), Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida), and Senator Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) today introduced The Neither Permanent Nor Normal Trade Relations Act to end Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with China.

“China’s Permanent Normal Trade Relations status has enriched the Chinese Communist Party while costing the United States millions of jobs. This comprehensive repeal of China’s PNTR status and reform of the U.S.-China trade relationship will protect American workers, enhance our national security, and end the Chinese Communists’ leverage over our economy,” said Senator Cotton.

Senator Marco Rubio

“Giving Communist China the same trade benefits that we give to our greatest allies was one of the most catastrophic decisions that our country has ever made. Our country’s trade deficit with China more than quadrupled, and we exported millions of American jobs. Ending normal trade relations with China is a no-brainer,” said Senator Rubio.

Senator Josh Hawley

“More than two decades ago, Washington elites granted China most favored nation trading status, enabling Beijing to exploit our working class. Congress must revoke this sweetheart deal to protect American workers from our greatest adversary and to bring back the millions of manufacturing jobs shipped overseas,” said Senator Josh Hawley.

Text of the bill may be found here.

The Neither Permanent Nor Normal Trade Relations Act would:

• End PNTR for China.

• Phase-in tariffs for Chinese products over five years, including 100% tariffs for goods determined to be important to national security. 

• Empower the President to create supplementary quotas and tariffs to phase out Chinese imports and to institute overriding bans on specific Chinese goods.

• End de minimis treatment for covered nations—including China—and require customs brokers for other de minimis shipments.

• The revenue produced will go towards farmers and manufacturers injured by potential Chinese retaliation, the purchase of key munitions important to a Pacific conflict, and paying down the debt.

Sanders Announces Sam Dubke as Communications Director

Sam Dubke (courtesy of Sam Dubke)

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders today announced that Sam Dubke will serve as her new Communications Director. Dubke previously served as Sanders’ Deputy Communications Director and Speechwriter.
 
“Sam is an efficient and effective communicator who has been alongside me since I first entered office,” said Governor Sanders. “He brings political and public sector experience and, in his new role, he’ll lead a talented team and continue to help me communicate my bold, conservative agenda to Arkansans across the state.”
 
Sam Dubke Biography:
 
Sam Dubke joined the Governor’s staff as Deputy Communications Director and Speechwriter in February of 2023. Previously, Dubke worked as a speechwriter for Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and on the communications teams for the Youngkin for Governor and Trump 2020 campaigns. Dubke is a Georgetown University graduate.

Pharmacy benefit managers will have to pay Arkansas drugstores dispensing fees under new rule

KUAR | By Tess Vrbin / Arkansas Advocate

The Arkansas Insurance Department will require pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to include dispensing fees in their reimbursements to pharmacies for prescription drugs, a legislative panel ruled Thursday.

The new rule will financially benefit pharmacies, especially independently-owned ones in rural areas, as a remedy for years of unfair PBM reimbursements that put them at risk of closing, pharmacists and Insurance Department officials told the Arkansas Legislative Council’s Executive Subcommittee.

PBMs are companies that serve as middlemen to negotiate prescription benefits among manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies and health insurance providers. The companies rank prescription drugs, with the highest-tiered products costing consumers the lowest out-of-pocket costs.

Pharmacy benefit managers will have to pay Arkansas drugstores dispensing fees under new rule

UCA President discusses changes coming to higher ed, ‘enrollment cliff’

by Roby Brock (roby@talkbusiness.net)

University of Central Arkansas President Dr. Houston Davis has helped guide the Conway-based university to some solid enrollment gains over the last four years. Earlier this fall, UCA welcomed one of its largest incoming freshman classes with 2,183 students, marking a 26% increase in incoming students from fall 2023, according to preliminary data.

The incoming freshman class represents the largest year-to-year increase in at least 25 years with 446 more students over last year. This cohort of 2,183 is the second-largest incoming freshman class among all Arkansas four-year universities for the ninth consecutive fall.

Overall enrollment for fall 2024 at UCA is 10,123 which is a 3.4% gain from the previous year. New graduate and transfer students, as well as the incoming freshman class, helped to fuel overall growth at the university.

UCA President discusses changes coming to higher ed, ‘enrollment cliff’

UAMS Researcher to Develop Supervision Strategy for Addiction Treatment Programs

By Kev' Moye

Jure Baloh, Ph.D., MHA, assistant professor in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health’s Department of Health Policy and Management, is leading a study designed to develop and pilot a supervision strategy to support management and staff of addiction treatment programs.

The three-year project launched in August. It’s funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse for nearly $700,000. The study will provide the foundation for a large-scale test of the strategy in the future.

“We’re trying to develop a system for addiction treatment facility supervisors to help support their counselors,” Baloh said. “That way, supervisors and staff can feel empowered and have the tools to help them do their jobs well. We think this approach can also help reduce the rates of burnout. We want to solve those issues.”

UAMS Researcher to Develop Supervision Strategy for Addiction Treatment Programs

Jure Baloh, Ph.D., MHA, assistant professor in the UAMS Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, is the lead investigator on a research project that will aim to support the management and staff of addiction treatment programs.

Ceremony marks operational opening of foreign pilot training center in Fort Smith

by Michael Tilley (mtilley@talkbusiness.net)

With sounds of construction and activity in the background, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) on Friday (Sept. 20) held a “proof of concept” ceremony at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith that essentially opens the foreign pilot training center for business.

Ebbing, home to the 188th Wing in Fort Smith and co-located with the Fort Smith Regional Airport, was selected in March 2023 by the U.S. Air Force to be the long-term pilot training center supporting F-16 and F-35 fighter planes purchased by Singapore, Switzerland, Poland, Germany, Finland and other countries participating in the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program. The preliminary decision to locate the training center in Fort Smith was made in June 2021.

The original plan for the base to support 36 planes has been amended to accommodate 46 fighter jets. Recent estimates indicate the cost of the base when fully operational could be up to $1 billion and produce a $450 million annual economic impact for the region and state. Estimates are that 1,500 military personnel and family members will be associated with the new center once it is fully operational.

Ceremony marks operational opening of foreign pilot training center in Fort Smith

Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson, commander of the USAF Air Education and Training Command (AETC), talks to the media Friday (Sept. 20) at Ebbing Air National Guard Base in Fort Smith.

Cotton, Boozman to Young and Su: All people should have the opportunity for dignified work

Shalanda Young - Creator: Carlos Fyfe | Credit: White House

Washington, D.C. — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) and Senator John Boozman (R-Arkansas) today wrote a letter to OMB Director Shalanda Young and Acting Secretary of labor Julie Su regarding troubling reports that the Department of Labor (DOL) is considering a new rule that would abolish the 14(c) program wherein individuals with cognitive or physical disabilities can find employment and resources in a supervised setting. The Senators stated that all people deserve to have the opportunity for dignified work, and reiterated to Director Young and Acting Secretary Su that any attempt to disrupt this program without Congressional authorization would be illegal. 

Julie Su - U.S. Dept of Labor

In part, the senators wrote:

“All people, regardless of their abilities, should have the opportunity for dignified work. The 14(c) program does not limit the ability of disabled workers to engage in competitive employment. It merely provides those with difficulties in a traditional work environment the opportunity to engage in meaningful work. It provides many vulnerable Americans with a sense of accomplishment and provides their families and caretakers with time to complete activities necessary for the functioning of their households.”  

Full text of the letter may be found here and below.

September 20, 2024

Shalanda Young 

Director

Office of Management and Budget 

725 17th St NW

Washington, DC 20503

Julie Su

Acting Secretary 

Department of Labor

200 Constitution Ave NW 

Washington, DC 20210

Dear Director Young and Acting Secretary Su,

I write regarding troubling reports that the Department of Labor (DOL) is considering a new rule that would abolish the 14(c) program. Any changes to the 14(c) certificate program rests with Congress and not DOL.

Since 1938, the DOL has provided intellectually and developmentally disabled Americans the opportunity to engage in meaningful work through Section 14(c) certificates. According to the Washington Post, despite these longstanding statutes, and no legislative reforms, the DOL is considering a new rule that would be the "regulatory equivalent of abolition of 14(c) programs."

All people, regardless of their abilities, should have the opportunity for dignified work. The 14(c) program does not limit the ability of disabled workers to engage in competitive employment. It merely provides those with difficulties in a traditional work environment the opportunity to engage in meaningful work. It provides many vulnerable Americans with a sense of accomplishment and provides their families and caretakers with time to complete activities necessary for the functioning of their households.

Regardless of any policy objections the administration might have with the 14(c) program, it must be enforced according to the law. Former Secretary Marty Walsh, the last Senate-confirmed Secretary of Labor, agreed that changes to the program rest with Congress, rather than the DOL. Any efforts to make it functionally unworkable without Congressional authorization would be illegal.

Before deciding on the legality of these proposed changes to 14(c), please answer the following questions:

1. Where in the Fair Labor Standards Act and accompanying amendments does the DOL find the legal authority to make significant changes to this program, especially considering the Supreme Court's recent decision to end agency deference in Loper Bright Enterprises .v Raimondo?

2.How many disabled Americans would lose their jobs at sheltered workshops if 14(c) certificates were phased out?

3.Has the DOL considered the secondary effects of these individuals losing their jobs, such as their families needing to provide caretaking services during working hours, rather than working themselves or performing necessary functions for their households? If so, provide the details of that analysis.

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. 

Sincerely,

###

UAMS Researchers Find Health Care Providers’ Advice Matters to Those Hesitant about Vaccines

By David Wise

FAYETTEVILLE — Health care provider recommendations for vaccines are critical for reaching vaccine-hesitant individuals, particularly regarding COVID-19, influenza and HPV vaccination, according to researchers from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS).

According to several studies published this summer, researchers at the UAMS Institute for Community Health Innovation found that hesitant people who received a provider recommendation had significantly greater odds of being vaccinated than hesitant people who did not.

“Provider recommendations matter a lot, especially when patients are hesitant, because it can considerably increase the odds of a person becoming vaccinated,” said Don Willis, Ph.D., an assistant professor at the Institute for Community Health Innovation. “However, not enough people who are hesitant are getting provider recommendations, so hopefully these findings can help health care providers increase vaccine recommendations to their patients.”

UAMS Researchers Find Health Care Providers’ Advice Matters to Those Hesitant about Vaccines

Legislators express support for land-grant research, extension work in Arkansas

HARRISBURG, Ark. — Increasing funding for land-grant work in Arkansas agriculture may take some persuasion, considering how few legislators have ties to agriculture or understand the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s impact in every Arkansas county.

State Sen. Ron Caldwell of Wynne, one of the speakers at the Aug. 30 grand opening of the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center, said, “I think everyone’s surprised at how nice this facility really is. The real issue for us is to find out how much money it’s going to take to run this.”

State Sen. Ron Caldwell speaks during a joint meeting of the House and Senate ag committees on Aug. 30, 2024. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo)

“We have 100 House members and 35 in the Senate, and only about 10 percent of the legislature has rice in their district,” he said of the Arkansas Legislature. “In fact, out of 135 members in the Legislature, we only have one rice farmer: Senator Blake Johnson from Corning.

“We are committed to outreach and education,” Caldwell said. “One of the first outreaches we need to make is our own legislative elected officials, because they need to understand how important rice is to the state and to the country.”

Arkansas is the nation’s top rice grower, producing nearly half of the crop.

“It's amazing the economic impact rice has,” he said. “We as a legislature are going to do our best to fund the Division of Agriculture and our extension service.”

Deacue Fields talks to the joint ag committee about the economic impact of ag in Arkansas. Taken Aug. 30. 2024, at the grand opening of the NE Rice Research and Extension Center at Harrisburg, Arkansas. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo by Mary Hightower)

The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is responsible for two of the three traditional land-grant missions: agricultural and food research through the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and outreach and knowledge transfer through the Cooperative Extension Service, which has offices in all 75 counties. The third mission, teaching, is conducted by the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, which is part of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.

Before the grand opening ceremony, Deacue Fields, vice president-agriculture and head of the Division of Agriculture, gave a presentation about the division, its work, its funding and the return on investment to Arkansas’ economy.

Importance of ag research

Fields recalled that meeting while addressing the University of Arkansas System Board of Trustees on Sept. 12.

“I was asked by someone at the meeting, ‘How does an institution — who has no tuition, who has no income stream, who can't be bonded — how do you build an 18-and-a-half million-dollar center?’

“It’s based on our relationships, our research reputation, and leveraging our resources, so our relationship with the state and our Rice Research and Promotion Board led to a $16 million investment in this center,” Fields said. “Our research reputation led to our industry partnering with us and adding additional funding for the building.”

Fields said the division also added $1 million to the project.

He underscored the importance of agriculture to the state’s economy and talked about the return on investment to the state. For example, ag contributes about $4,530/per capita to state’s economy.

“Farmers last year contributed $14 billion the state’s economy,” Fields said, noting that figure did not include the $450 million contributed by the forestry industry.

“From 2017 to 2022, Arkansas farm gate sales grew by $4.25 billion,” he said. “To put that in perspective, Louisiana's entire industry is $4.8 billion. So, our growth in five years almost totals Louisiana’s total industry.”

“We are able to document that the growth in the industry is highly correlated to the research and discoveries that have happened through the Division of Agriculture,” Fields said. “We did a benefit cost analysis strictly on rice. We estimate that $91 million annually going toward the economy from rice research. That’s a $28.5 to $1 benefit cost ratio.”

Caldwell urged his fellow lawmakers to pursue funding for the Division of Agriculture, noting the last recurring funds increase — $3 million annually — came in 2017.

“So, if we give them an increase, and maybe it will be [20] ’25 before they get this, it will be eight years since they had an increase,” Caldwell said. “Inflation is killing them. This is something we’re going to have to address. But the Legislature is going to have to take the ball and run with it.”

To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on Twitter 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 us on Twitter at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on Twitter at @AgInArk.