We continue our series previewing this weekend's poetry festival at Nightbird Books. Katie Nichol grew up in St. Cloud, Minnesota and says she started writing poetry when she was about 12 years old:
Ozarks At Large
Arkansas' U.S. Senators speak out in favor of the Marketplace Fairness Act, which would require online retailers to collect state and local sales tax on purchases anywhere in the country. Officials with the WestArk Area Boy Scout Council voice their feelings about changes to the national organization's membership policy regarding sexual orientation. The Rogers Farmers' Market will be in a different location when it opens Saturday, and the Bentonville School District gets state funding approved for construction of a second high school, though the battle for building bucks continues.
Nathan Vandiver from our content partner KUAR in Little Rock provides a wrap-up of this year's Legislative Session.


Governor Mike Beebe and the state legislature tie up some loose ends at the conclusion of the legislative session, the Northwest Arkansas Council holds a summit for area leaders to figure out how to connect immigrants--either international or domestic--to resources in the area. A group of concerned area residents held a protest on the U of A campus yesterday in an attempt to draw U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack's attention to the confined animal feeding operation set to operate in the Buffalo River Watershed, and a group of UAFS students plan a run to benefit victims of the Boston Marathon Bombing.
The state's Department of Human Services holds a rally on the steps of the state capitol to raise awareness that April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. One of Northwest Arkansas' two public transit operators get ready to expand certain bus routes in an efficiency reorganization. One economist at the University of Arkansas thinks that construction will help the state, and the nation, recover from the lingering effects of the economic recession. And Walmart sets a record for the amount of donations given by a retailer in a given year.


Recent numbers released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows Arkansas' unemployment rate remains lower than the national average, though the size of the state's workforce has shrank. Governor Mike Beebe touts the state's growing art tourism industry, Senator Mark Pryor's reelection bid will determine whether a Democrat can still be competitive in the state, and the Razorbacks split a series over the weekend, while the Naturals drop another three-game set at home.
Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
Friday, April 4, 2014
Ahead on this edition of Ozarks: the former president of Heifer International speaks on the University of Arkansas campus. Plus, we take a walk through history that begins in Jasper.
Michael Tilley from our content partner www.thecitywire.com has updates regarding a possibility that Caterpillar might take the place of Whirlpool in Fort Smith, ticket designers and printers Weldon, Williams & Lick, Inc. located in Fort Smith printing tickets for the 2012 London Olympics, and more.
Illustrator Otto Lang’s exhibit “Drawing from Life” will be displayed at the Smith-Pendergraft Campus Center in University of Arkansas-Fort Smith through March 30. Ray Wylie Hubbard performs at George’s in Fayetteville tonight. Becca Bacon Martin from Northwest Arkansas Newspapers has the details.
“The 49th Day” by El Ten Eleven
The Berryville group has served undernourished and unhealthy animals in Belize since 2008. Carroll County Vets Without Borders makes its fifth trip starting tomorrow.
Legendary musician Johnny Cash’s home in east Arkansas town of Dyess is being renovated. Michael Hibblen from our content partner KUAR in Little Rock, reports.
Jodi Beznoska from Walton Arts Center has information about Broadway shows, a TheatreSquared play, Taiko drumming, and two legendary musicians visiting northwest Arkansas.
“Blue Suede Shoes” by Jimi Hendrix