University of Arkansas at Little Rock

On Thursday, April 24, volunteers will construct playground improvements at Bale Elementary School.

The playground development is financed with a grant from KABOOM, matched by the Little Rock School District. KABOOM is a national program that promotes and funds playground projects. 

Bale Elementary is one of three elementary schools located in the University District.   

This will be a one-day event from 8 AM to 3 PM. There will be a playground dedication ceremony at 3 PM. Meals and refreshments will be provided during the day. 

The volunteer assignments will be well organized so there will be tasks available for persons of all levels of physical ability and skills.

There will be a project manager and project safety personnel on site. Please mark your calendar, save the date and plan to join us at Bale Elementary on Thursday, April 24. 

Bale Elementary is located at 6501 West 32^nd Ave. Please call Shawna Edwards at 683-7356 if you want to volunteer for the project or you want additional information about it.   

Bale Elementary Playground Design        

  

During the week of April 14-18, the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis will conduct its inaugural Exploring Innovation in Community Development Week. The event is being launched to draw national attention to innovations in the community development industry. Additional information can be found at www.stlouisfed.org/exploringinnovation/default.html. 

On Monday, April 14^th, the Federal Reserve’s Little Rock Branch will recognize the community development efforts of UALR at an Innovation in the Natural State Reception. The reception will be held at the Peabody Hotel from 4:30-6:30. UALR is being honoured with an Innovation in Partnership Award for inclusively engaging the community in the University District planning process The University convened a cross-section of stakeholders (University District Partnership) to address neighborhood, education, commercial and other socio-economic issues in the University District. 

In addition to UALR, the City of Dyess, Arkansas (boyhood home of Johnny Cash) and Murphy Oil will receive awards. Dyess will receive the Innovation in Rural Development Award for transforming an older historic building into a community performing arts venue. Murphy Oil will be given the Innovation in Private Sector Involvement Award for the El Dorado Promise Scholarship Program.  

The entire University District Partnership is invited to the reception. The reception is free. Parking will be provided at the Stephens Building garage across the street from the hotel. Parking tickets must be presented for validation. 

To RSVP, please contact Barrett Allen at 501.683.7361.

Fed Reserve Press Release