Bob Clinard, Benton County Judge, declared the county a disaster zone Friday, after the county saw more than 6 inches of rain in the latter half of the week. A recent report shows meaningful long-term benefits for children taking part in the state's "Better Chance Pre-K" program. Rahm Emanuel, mayor of Chicago, spoke at the graduation for the Clinton School of Public Service over the weekend. Governor Mike Beebe likens the recently passed Arkansas Private Option to the successful ARKids First program, though he says that the children's insurance program has room to improve.
Ozarks At Large



In her latest book Cached: Decoding the Internet in Global Popular Culture, Stephanie Schulte says that examples of pop culture like the movie War Games played prominently into how the world perceived the Internet in its earliest days.
Bear hunts, mermaids and dinner, Becca Martin Brown offers plenty to occupy your Mother's Day afternoon. Plus, the upcoming season at the Arts Center of the Ozarks.
Charles Banks Wilson, an American artist, was laid to rest on Tuesday in his hometown of Miami, Oklahoma. He was born and passed in Arkansas. Wilson is best known for his works of the American Indian. Wilson's works are housed in some of the most renowned museums and art galleries in the world, including New York's Metropolitan Museum, Washington's Library of Congress, the Corcoran Gallery, the Oklahoma State Capitol where four 13 feet tall and 27 feet wide murals line the rotunda, and the Gilcrease Museum, which owns more than 300 pieces of the artist's work.

The head of the Hatcher Agency, the state's largest independent insurer, says that many of his clients are providing insurance to employees rather than paying penalties associated with the Affordable Care Act. Senator Mark Pryor talks about his push for answers from the Air Force regarding the 188th Fighter Wing in Fort Smith while Senator Boozman says he is concerned about a backlog in disability claims for veterans. And Elton John is coming to Fayetteville in just a few weeks.


Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Ahead on this edition of Ozarks, how education and employment are more connected than ever in Arkansas. We have a report on yesterday's Career and Technology Education summit in northwest Arkansas. Plus, our technology ambassador Tyrel Denison breaks down some of the new technology that was on display at South-by-Southwest. And, a new report looks at children's healthcare issues in Arkansas.
Roby Brock, from Talk Business Arkansas, says the House and Senate continue to consider private option funding while in session in Little Rock.
Today, Fayetteville is celebrating its first community orchard, which is located at the Yvonne Richardson Community Center.
"The Orchard" by Fire on Fire
Michael Dorcas, herpetologist and professor at Davidson College in North Carolina, will speak this afternoon at 4:00 in Room 604 of the Science Building on the University of Arkansas campus. One of his areas of expertise is the problem of invasive Burmese pythons in southern Florida.
Jim Belushi cancels on northwest Arkansas, and Matt McClure is nominated for a James Beard Award.
Students from Woodland Junior High School prepare to head to Little Rock for the Arkansas Governor's Quiz Bowl Association state championship on Saturday.