We know that every parent, guardian and community member can be a powerful force in promoting an equal opportunity to learn in Arkansas, and we have an incredible opportunity to shape a huge investment in our K-12 education system here in the coming months. Through the American Rescue Plan (ARP), Arkansas is receiving $1.2 billion […]

Arkansans want what’s best for our children. We all want kids to have happy, healthy lives. Access to affordable medical care is an important part of overall health, and each Arkansan should have access to health care. But, as shown in the data in this report, Arkansas is getting further from the Finish Line of […]

Every child needs access to an adequate amount of healthy food to thrive. Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, however, too many of Arkansas’s children were facing hunger, especially our Black and Hispanic or Latino children.

The American Rescue Plan is a historic and much-needed response to a global pandemic. In the short term, the federal relief will help many of us recover from months of lost wages and overdue rent. Here are some benefits in the Plan that may help you or your family. For a more comprehensive list of […]

More than a thousand bills were passed during the 2021 General Assembly. Do you know how they will impact kids? From positive changes for immigrant families in Arkansas to increasing teachers’ salaries, and to defending the state’s Medicaid expansion program, our Kids at the Capitol 2021 Legislative Summary covers it. Read about the good laws that passed, […]

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families’ (AACF) mission has always been to ensure that all children and their families have the resources and opportunities to lead healthy and productive lives and to realize their full potential. In many ways, the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic strain highlighted the importance of our work on behalf of […]

by Bruno Showers Senior Policy Analyst   Introduction At Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, we work to ensure that all children have the resources and opportunities they need to realize their full potential. And what happens in a child’s early years is critical in determining their future success. The first years are especially important, […]

From shoring up rural hospitals to providing health insurance to unemployed Arkansans during a pandemic, the first decade of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has changed our state’s health care system for the better. Our new policy brief outlines the myriad ways the ACA has improved health care for individuals, hospitals and the overall state economy. In […]

More than 150,000 Arkansans are estimated to be newly food insecure since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and state policies are making it harder for families to get the nutritional support they need during this time of crisis. Our new report calls for the state to eliminate policies that make it more difficult to be hungry here […]

In our annual Finish Line report, Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families looks at the status of health care coverage for Arkansas’s children and families. The report examines changes over the years and recommends actions to get Arkansas to The Finish Line: 100 percent coverage of Arkansas’s kids. Between 2017 and 2018, Arkansas slightly improved the […]