By KENDALL OWENS
T-H Staff Writer
County election officials say they're still somewhat confused as to the purpose of a public meeting scheduled for this week in Little Rock with members of the State Board of Election Commission.
Members of the state board decided at its Aug. 18 meeting to request the presence of the county board at its September meeting. Shortly after that, longtime county commissioner Bettye Proctor said that she was unsure what the meeting would be about. This morning, Proctor again said that she didn't know specifically the purpose of the meeting.
"We just don't really know what this is going to be about. We just know that they've asked us to come over there on Wednesday," Proctor said.
"The last letter that we received before being notified about their request was a letter telling us that everything appeared in order and Susie Stormes (Director of the State Election Commission) would be trying to get our funding from the commission. Then we get notified that they want to meet with us in person, so we'll be on our way over there Wednesday," Proctor said.
According to Stormes, in a story that appeared in an August edition of the Times-Herald, the state did receive all of the information it had requested from the county, but state board members wanted to meet with county commissioners prior to releasing funding for the May primary.
Commission chairman Joe Young, who was reappointed to the county commission after resigning in June, echoed many of Proctor's statements. "I'm still not sure what they want. We never really could pin them down on anything. I just know that we'll have a crowd of supporters with us to stand with us."
Young said that he hoped that the meeting would not be anything serious but also said that the commissioners would be prepared for any questions.
"We're going to take everything and be prepared for anything," Young said.
Following the May primary election, county election commissioners received a request for information from Stormes. Stormes followed her original request in June with a second request for information under the Freedom of Information Act.
In July, officials with the state voted to subpoena the records which had not been received. Last month Stormes said that the commission was prepared to issue the subpoena, but received the requested information before that could be done.
Wednesday's meeting will determine whether a public hearing over possible election law violations is necessary. If a public hearing is held, county commissioners could face civil penalties of $25 to $1,000.
According to Proctor, recent complaints from Republican voters may be behind the state's requested meeting with the county group.
"I know that some letters have been sent to us about the Republican ballots from the primary, but I'm not sure whether they were also sent to the state. If they were, then the state may have some questions, but we're ready and we have all of our information ready," Proctor said.
The state board also requested the presence of St. Francis County Judge Carl Cisco and St. Francis County Clerk Elizabeth Smith along with county election coordinator Judy Armstrong. Wednesday's meeting is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. in Little Rock.
By DAVID NICHOL
T-H Staff Writer
An annual charity rodeo has been expanded this year, with the Forrest City Lions Club joining with the Crowley's Ridge Saddle Club.
Glenn Shepherd of the Lions Club and Bobby Huckaba of the saddle club, said working together for the rodeo would be mutually beneficial. The saddle club supports Special Olympics in the school system, while the Lions Club supports hearing and sight aids.
The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association rodeo will be held Sept. 24 and 25 in the horse arena at the Wiley T. Jones Fairgrounds. Gates will open at 6 p.m. and the rodeo will begin at 8.
Advance tickets are $6 for adults and $5 for ages 13 through 18. Tickets at the gate are $7 for adults and $6 for ages 13 through 18. Children 12 and under will be admitted free when accompanied by a paying adult. There are also advance family tickets for $20.
"Our main goal is to talk this thing up and get the most attendance we've ever had to help us support Special Olympics and hearing and sight programs," said Huckaba. "The more people we can get in the gate, the more money we can donate."
"It's a non-profit issue," added Shepherd. "We're not in it to make a profit, we're in it to be able to provide a service."
Huckaba added that it's cheap, family-oriented entertainment.
Events will include saddle bronc, bareback, calf roping, steer wrestling, women's barrel racing and bull riding. Rockin' Bobby Hodges will be a featured clown.
Tickets are on sale at Express Cleaners, Honda of Forrest City, Machen and Bonanza. There will be door prizes.
In addition to the rodeo, on Thursday night beginning at 7 p.m., will be the annual Miracle Rodeo, devoted to kids with special needs.
"What we do is, we take the special kids from the school district (with the cooperation of parents and special education teachers). And we give them the opportunity to ride the horses and talk to cowboys," said Huckaba.
He said many of the kids who get to participate in the Miracle Rodeo look forward to it every year.
There is no admission charge for the Miracle Rodeo, and it is open to the public. Volunteers are also welcome. Anyone interested in volunteering, or wanting more information about the rodeo, may call Shepherd at 633-5254 or 870-270-6032; Huckaba at 633-0145 or 501-940-4360; or Carolyn Stewart at 870-270-7820.
By ALAN SMITH
T-H Staff Writer
Preschool has been recognized as an important part of childhood development, and in continuing with that, the Arkansas Legislature during its last session approved $40 million in funding for 7,000 three and four-year-olds from low income families to attend accredited quality preschool programs across the state.
According to a press release, Entergy Arkansas, Tyson, the Arkansas Department of Human Services (ADHS), the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF), state Senator Jim Argue and Representative Calvin Johnson have joined together to make the public aware of the program.
According to Rhonda Sanders with the AACF, three of those programs are located in St. Francis County.
"The programs that are located in St. Francis County are at Forrest Hills and Caldwell elementary schools," said Sanders. "The third is located at Hughes Elementary School. There are 90 different programs in the state and 98 school districts have at least one program. Some, like the Forrest City School District, have more than one.
"The programs are located in distressed school districts," continued Sanders. "Placement of the programs are determined by lower test scores. Since the legislature did not approve funding for all of the low-income children in the state to attend preschools, our focus is on the districts with the greatest needs. We are hoping and praying that the legislature will approve funding up to $100 million over the next two bienniums. That is the estimated cost to provide preschool to all children of low-income families in the state. But for now, we are targeting the districts in distress."
According to Sanders, of those 7,000 children, each of the 98 districts have a set amount of low-income slots in their programs. Sanders also stated that she had some information about the amount of slots available the Forrest City and Hughes school districts.
Sanders said there are 85 preschool slots in SFC. Of those slots, 80 are in Forrest City and are divided between Caldwell and Forrest Hills. The other five slots are at Hughes Elementary School. Sanders did say, however, that not all of those slots were reserved for low-income children. Another group that is involved in the quality preschool program is HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters). Sanders did not have information on how the HIPPY slots are divided or how many slots are reserved for low-income students.
Sanders added that the information campaign is necessary because a lot of lower income families might not hear about the program. "We want people to know the program is here if they need it. A problem that we had with the ARKids First program (a health insurance program for low income children) is that a handful of people found out and took advantage of that program. But many times, people didn't know about the program or they didn't believe that the program could do what it claimed. Others might not have known that they were eligible for the program.
"With the ARKids program we had success getting the word out by putting up flyers and trying to make the program as visible as we could," said Sanders. "And that is what we are doing with the preschool program. Entergy Arkansas is footing the bill for posters, brochures and public service announcements in English. Tyson is paying for Spanish versions of the announcements. We want everyone to know that this program is here for them and they should take advantage of it."
Sanders is urging anyone who has children who are three to four years of age to contact the ADHS by Friday, Oct. 1. "When you contact the numbers provided, you can find out if your child or children are available for the program. You will also find out if there are slots available in your district. They can answer any questions that you might have about the program."
According to the release, families who receive Medicaid assistance, are part of the free or reduced lunch program through their school district or are eligible for the ARKids First health insurance program are typically eligible for the quality preschool program.
To find out if your child is eligible, call 1-800-445-3316. There is also a toll free number for Spanish-speaking residents. That number is 1-800-543-7564.
Village Creek State Park will take part in the Great Arkansas Cleanup on Saturday, Sept. 11, from 8:30 a.m. until 1 p.m.
This is also in conjunction with Federal Lands Cleanup Day. This will be the 16th annual cleanup at Village Creek.
Individuals, groups and organizations are invited to get involved by volunteering to pick up trash at the park. There will be a drawing for prizes.
For more information, call Village Creek State Park at 870-238-9406.
Jurors for this term of circuit court in St. Francis County will not be needed on Tuesday, Sept. 7, as originally scheduled.
St. Francis County Circuit Court Clerk Bette Green said potential jurors should call the juror information number at 633-2035 for further instructions.