Arkansas Advocates 2019 Legislative Session Recap, Vol. 11

As expected, several committees and the House met today, in an effort to get through the many bills still left to cover before the end of the session. The AACF […]

Helping Our Littlest Learners by Supporting the Early Childhood Workforce

Boost Wages with a Refundable Tax Credit Linked to Increased Credentials Early childhood educators play one of the most important roles in our education system and economy. Research shows that […]

Arkansas Advocates 2019 Legislative Session Recap, Vol. 10

Despite being a three-day week at the Capitol, it was jam-packed! Several bills worked on by AACF staff cleared important hurdles, and we are gearing up for the sprint that […]

Arkansas Advocates 2019 Legislative Session Recap, Vol. 2

It was a short second week at the Capitol, with state offices closed Monday in observance of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, and no committee meetings on Friday. Did […]

Part III: Quality Early Childhood Education is the Building Block of Success in K-12 and Beyond

When do children begin to learn? Believe it or not, school readiness begins in the womb. Research show the first few years of life, including the prenatal months, are the […]

Education Progress is Stalling, Leaving an Uncertain Future for Kids and Our State

Note: This blog is third in a series of posts covering the findings in the 2018 Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Book. To read the introductory blog post, click […]

AR Poverty Rate Improving, According to Latest National Rankings

The number of Arkansas children in poverty has decreased by 28,000 since 2010, according to data in the 2018 KIDS COUNT® Data Book released today by the Annie E. Casey […]

Threats to Immigrant Families Escalate, Impact Arkansas

The Trump administration has increased threats to the well-being of children of immigrants with a series of ill-conceived policies that promote separation of families, from the U.S. border with Mexico […]

AACF Co-Presents “The Raising of America” Documentary

One thing business leaders, philanthropists, parents, child advocates – and even Hollywood – can agree on: The critical importance of quality early childhood education to our nation’s future. At the […]

National Report Shows Arkansas’s Pre-K Quality Standards Remain High, but State Investment is Stalling

A new national report shows that Arkansas met 8 of 10 new benchmarks for having high quality standards for its pre-K programs. However, state investment is not keeping up with […]