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AACF statement on Common Core State Standards

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF) supports the adoption of Common Core State Standards.  Setting high, clear, and consistent expectations for student learning is essential to improving educational outcomes for all Arkansas students and closing racial and socio-economic...

Covering the bases on Common Core

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF) is releasing three documents aimed at helping low-income parents understand Common Core State Standards (Common Core). The documents are written in family-friendly language that is more easily understood by non-education professionals. One...

How to “fix” schools in academic distress

In a challenging editorial this morning, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette called on our state to begin widely publishing the results of academic success, or lack thereof, classroom-by-classroom. The suggestion would be to make this the next step in academic accountability,...

Speaking up for adequate education

Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families (AACF) was one of eight groups invited to testify before the House and Senate Education Committees Monday to share its strategy for providing an adequate education for all Arkansas children. The need for...

Annual pre-K report underlines need for more funding

  According to the National Institute for Early Education Research’s annual report, total pre-K enrollment in Arkansas followed a national trend in 2013, declining slightly. The state ranks 14th for 4-year-old enrollment, reaching 33 percent of those eligible.* Last...

Giving thanks to Arkansas moms

  There are a quarter of a million working moms in Arkansas who, just like your mom, deserve thanks for the sacrifices they make for their kids. As a state we’ve made huge strides to help working moms support...

Broadband is an educational adequacy issue

The battle for broadband in our schools is on. Broadband is the fiber cabling that allows schools to connect to the internet, to the Arkansas Department of Education and to have enough bandwidth in their schools to run administrative...

Pre-K is OK in Oklahoma

As Arkansas begins to develop its state budget priorities for the 2015 legislative session, it would do well to take note of the major investments that some of our neighboring states have made in young children. Take the case...

Why quality teachers matter

The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the U.S. Department of Education reports that students of color experience more suspensions, poorer quality teachers, and have access to fewer advanced math and science courses. The findings, released March 14, 2014...

Children of color face barriers

A new report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation shows Arkansas has a lot of ground to cover to ensure that all kids – especially children of color – are positioned to thrive. Race for Results: Building a Path...