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.
Here is our salute to Seattle and Washington (Bronco fans, we did Denver last week).
1. Nirvana performs Come As You Are.
2. War Games, set in Seattle, begins.
3. Jimi Hendrix, Seattle native, plays Purple Haze.
4. Agent Cooper gives high praise in (and on) Twin Peaks, Washington.
5. Seattle native Bing Crosby sings You Are My Sunshine.
6. Frasier Crane plans to get even with Bulldog on Frasier.
7. Heart, another Seattle band, plays Crazy on You.
8. Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson discuss a possible romantic meeting in Sleepless in Seattle.
9. Detectives Holder and Linden, from the fictional Seattle police department, order lunch in an episode of The Killing.
10. Seattle native Sir Mix-A-Lot and Baby Got back.
Apologies to: Eddie Vedder, Modest Mouse, Macklemore and...oh, about five hundred other bands and musicians. Maybe next time.
Becca says that area residents will have an opportunity to learn about Muhammed Ali and other notable African Americans at an exhibit in Fort Smith.
Here, the quartet from Siloam Springs performs their song "Rosa Lee."
The Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality has a new program designed to help landowners clean up hazardous substances without being fined. Senator John Boozman offers his thoughts on the Farm Bill that passed the House and is now on its way to the Senate. And the state's attorney general is being asked to clarify the state's new voter ID law.
"Extreme Ways" by Moby
Michael Tilley, from The City Wire, discusses financial numbers for Arkansas real estate, Tyson Foods, Walmart and the city of Fort Smith.