LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 15 -- Gov. Asa Hutchinson, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: Governor Asa Hutchinson has created a working group to continue the study of the state's occupational licensing rules and regulations that began with a working group he created in February 2018. The Occupational Licensure Reform Sustainability Group will continue the work of the Red Tape Reduction Working Group to recommend ways to streamline the state's licensing and certification process wit  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- Gov. Asa Hutchinson, R-Arkansas, issued the following news release: * * * - Arkansas third state in the nation to gain federal approval * * * Arkansas has become the third state to win federal approval of its Family First Prevention Plan, Governor Asa Hutchinson announced. The plan, which is called Family First Fits Us, outlines how the state Department of Human Services (DHS) Division of Children and Family Services (DCFS) will implement the new federal Fam  more

GREENBRIER, Arkansas, Feb. 11 -- The Arkansas Department of Agriculture issued the following news release: Four fire departments in Ashley County recently received grants for continuing efforts to reduce their communities' wildfire risks through the Firewise USA(R) recognition program. Crossett, Hamburg, Milo, and Unity-Frost Prairie fire departments completed Firewise USA(R) renewal requirements of conducting education and mitigation activities that address local wildfire safety concerns. The  more

JONESBORO, Arkansas, Feb. 12 -- Arkansas State University issued the following news: Arkansas State University's Master of Accountancy (MAcc) students continued to perform significantly above the national average and highest in the state on the 2018 Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Exam, according to the recently released National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) Report. An impressive 71.4% of A-State MAcc students passed sections of the CPA exam on their first attem  more

LOWELL, Arkansas, Feb. 15 -- Arvest Bank issued the following news release: Arvest Bank announced recently that its mortgage division originated record volume in 2019. Arvest's total mortgage loan volume of more than $2.8 billion represents a 39.3-percent increase over 2018 and a 9.2-percent increase over its previous record of more than $2.5 billion, which it set in 2012. Additionally, 2019 marks the fourth time - and second consecutive year - Arvest has topped $2 billion in mortgage loan pro  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- The University of Arkansas Little Rock campus issued the following news on Feb. 12: The University of Arkansas Little Rock has announced new members and officers for the Alumni Board of Directors. New members include Eundra Boles, vice president of information technology services at Celerit Solutions Corporation; Ellen Brown, farmer engagement manager for Heifer USA; Victoria Brown, associate state director of AARP Arkansas; Loris Fullerton, travel agent with   more

ARKANSAS CITY, Kansas, Feb. 4 -- Cowley College issued the following news release: Cowley College and Wichita State University signed a 2+2 articulation agreement that will provide Biomedical Engineering students with the opportunity to complete their first two years at Cowley and seamlessly transfer their credits into WSU's Biomedical Engineering degree. "It takes everyone working together to make these partnerships possible," Cowley College president Dr. Dennis C. Rittle said. "It takes an e  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 12 -- The University of Arkansas's School of Medical Sciences issued the following news release: James Graham, M.D., a longtime educational leader in the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) College of Medicine, has been named the college's executive associate dean for academic affairs. Graham, previously associate dean for undergraduate medical education since 2010, assumed the new role after the retirement of Richard P. Wheeler, M.D., on Jan. 31. "D  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 11 -- The University of Arkansas's School of Medical Sciences issued the following news release: Lisa Smith has been named director of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Library. She replaces Jan Hart who retired as library director in late 2019. Before coming to UAMS in early January, she served in Fort Worth, Texas, for three years as executive director of National Network of Libraries of Medicine, South Central Region. While there she served  more

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 14 [TNSgrants] -- The University of Arkansas issued the following news: A $125,000 gift from the Schmieding Foundation in Springdale will fund an internship position and increase visibility for the School of Social Work in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. The organization's gift counts in Campaign Arkansas, the university's $1.25 billion capital campaign, and will provide quality research and learning experiences   more

SPRINGFIELD, Arkansas, Feb. 13 -- Tyson Foods, a producer of chicken, beef and pork, issued the following news release: Kevin M. McNamara, the lead independent director for Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN), has been given the additional role of vice chairman of the board, the company announced. The appointment means McNamara, who has been a Tyson Foods board member since 2007, will take on additional duties and responsibilities to assist the chairman with board matters, support the executive team  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- The University of Arkansas's School of Medical Sciences issued the following news release on Feb. 13: Scott Dickson, M.D., residency program director for the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) Northeast Regional Campus, was invested Feb. 6 in the Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, George K. Mitchell, M.D., Endowed Chair in Primary Care. "My words really can't express my gratitude and my deep appreciation for this recognition today," said Dick  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 11 -- The University of Arkansas Little Rock campus issued the following news: Robert Steinbuch, a law professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law, will serve as chair of the Arkansas Advisory Committee of a federal organization dedicated to advancing civil rights through investigation, research, and analysis. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, an independent bipartisan federal agency, first appointed Steinbuch to the Arka  more

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 12 -- The University of Arkansas issued the following news: A study by think tank Cardus has found that the type of university or college Americans attend influences how they think about life after graduation. "What Do They Deliver? A Report on American Colleges and Universities" surveyed American graduates and found: * About two-thirds of private religious school graduates agreed that it is very or extremely important to have a job that "directly helps others."   more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 15 [TNSsociologyresearch] -- The University of Arkansas Little Rock campus issued the following news: University of Arkansas at Little Rock criminal justice students presented their research on criminology topics at the American Society of Criminology conference Nov. 13-16, 2019, in San Francisco, California. The American Society of Criminology is an international organization whose members pursue scholarly, scientific, and professional knowledge concerning the meas  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 12 [TNSgrants] -- The University of Arkansas Little Rock campus issued the following news: The University of Arkansas at Little Rock Children International will help many children in the central Arkansas area keep a bright and healthy smile, thanks to a $30,000 grant from Delta Dental of Arkansas Foundation. UA Little Rock Children International received the grant to provide dental treatment to students in the Little Rock School District through the Future Smiles De  more

LITTLE ROCK, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- The University of Arkansas Little Rock campus issued the following news: A course taught and designed by Dr. Amar Kanekar, associate professor and graduate coordinator of health education and promotion at UA Little Rock, has received the Quality Matters (QM) Certification Mark for course design quality. Organization and Administration in Health Education and Promotion Programs, HHPS 4378/5378, is an online undergraduate and graduate course taught during a 5-we  more

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 11 -- The University of Arkansas issued the following news: Since its founding in 2006, students enrolled in the University of Arkansas School of Law Transactional Clinic have assisted roughly 200 community groups across Arkansas to achieve and maintain their status as nonprofit organizations. In setting up each nonprofit organization, law students develop practical skills attorneys use daily and get experience applying business and nonprofit law to clients' needs.   more

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 15 -- The University of Arkansas issued the following news: Acclaimed poet Patricia Smith has been named series editor for the Miller Williams Poetry Series and will select the winner and finalists of the annual $5,000 Miller Williams Poetry Prize. Smith is the author of seven books of poetry and the winner of the NAACP Image Award, the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, the Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize, a two-time Pushcart Prize winner, a four-time National Poetry Slam   more

BENTONVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 12 -- Walmart issued the following news release: Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) will webcast its 2020 Investment Community Meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 18, from approximately 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. EST. A live video webcast of the presentations will be available through the link provided on the events portion of the company's corporate website. In addition, the company will release its fourth quarter and full year fiscal 2020 earnings results at approximately 6 a.m. EST on Feb. 18  more

BENTONVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- Walmart issued the following news release: Less than two years ago, we started our partnership with Guild Education to offer Walmart associates a path to a debt-free college degree through our Live Better U initiative. This is an exciting time, because this month, we have our first group of more than 30 pioneering associates earning either associate's or bachelor's degrees. And this is just the beginning. With more than 12,000 of our associates currently pursu  more

BENTONVILLE, Arkansas, Feb. 14 -- Walmart issued the following news release on Feb. 13: Since launching Store No8 three years ago, one of our primary goals has been to launch new capabilities that can grow and be fueled by the Walmart engine, eventually shaping how we serve customers in the future. They may not scale to everyone today, but rather lay the foundation for capabilities that we believe will have a big impact on how customers shop tomorrow. A recent example of this is InHome, which   more