Governor Mike Beebe yesterday officially issued the call for a special session of the state legislature. The Federal Reserve Bank released its quarterly Burgundy Book, which provides some insight into the health of the state's economy. hundreds of volunteers associated with World Changers are descending upon Fort Smith to help with some repairs to homes in the city. And the city of Fayetteville recently released a new Web application to help city residents find city information applicable to where they live in the city.
Ozarks At Large


Links:

The Principal Fellows program at the U of A yesterday announced it had received a $1.9 million grant from the Walton Family Foundation. A recent report suggests that in coming years, the northwest Arkansas economy will be among the fastest growing in the U.S.. And the Bentonville City Council gets ready to fill two vacancies.

UA Professor Angie Maxwell argues that the attention the South received throughout the 20th century in regards to three particular events has shaped the Southern Identity that exists yet today. She discusses her book The Indicted South: Public Criticism, Southern Inferiorty, and the the Politics of Whiteness with Ozarks’ Christina Karnatz.
Latest Edition of Ozarks at Large
July 4th Weekend, 2014
For this holiday weekend we listen again to music recorded inside Firmin-Garner Performance Studio during the first six months of 2014. We hear from:
Pearl Brick
Cletus Got Shot
Sweetwater Gypsies
Isayah Wofford
The Riverblenders
Xcluded
Sons of Otis Malone
Finvarra's Wren
Dick Johnson
Elephant Revival
And a weekend update of things to do from Becca Martin Brown from Northwest Arkansas Newspapers.
This weekend Fayetteville shoppers will be able to shop at local businesses and have an easy way to adopt a dog. More information is available at www.facebook.com/faydogdaysofsummer.
“The Dog Days Are Over” by Florence and the Machine
New cell phone devices and other portable electronics are providing new ways for people to communicate with each other even if they have trouble seeing the keys. Hali Phillips from our content partner KUAR has this report on the benefits of assisted technology.
Governor Mike Beebe says he continues to look into the benefits and fiscal feasibility of Arkansas opting into the expansion of Medicaid coverage that is part of the Affordable Care Act; the Arkansas Forestry Commission says despite some recent rains in parts of the state, much of Arkansas’ fire danger remains high; and more.
“Blue in Green” by: Mods Tolling
A notable part of Ramadan is prayer so the Center for Multicultural and Diversity Education on the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville has allocated its lecture hall as a place where Muslims can go to pray during certain times of the day. In this interview, Hameed Naseem, faculty adviser for the Al-Islam Student Association, explains more about the holy month of Ramadan. For more information, visit Multicultural.uark.edu.
Roby Brock from www.TalkBusiness.net talks with Arkansas’ Surgeon General, Joe Thompson, and Micheal Stock, the CEO of QualChoice, one of the state’s largest health insurance companies, about what to expect now that the Affordable Health Care Act has been upheld by the United States Supreme Court. Roby began the conversation by asking Michael Stock what the new law means for Arkansans.
“Chelsea Bridge” by:Vince Guaraldi Trio