Childcare

The Northwest Arkansas Children’s Shelter has provided care for more than 13,000 children since 1993, offering a 24/7 safe haven for youth facing trauma. In 2025, the shelter will expand its mission with new foster family support services, community outreach, and transitional programs for young adults aging out of care.

On today's show, the Northwest Arkansas Children’s Shelter calls for more foster families to step up and help. Also, how a local coffee business leveraged relationships to go from a small roaster to a retail space on Walmart’s Home Office Campus. Plus, a new edition of the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal.

Northwest Arkansas Community College will host its fifth annual Power of Play Conference this month. The single-day conference is designed to help parents, educators and caregivers develop a child’s natural curiosity.

The Annie E. Casey Foundation released the 2025 Kids Count Data Book last week. The annual survey measures how students across the nation perform in four key areas. Lisa Lawson, president and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation, spoke with Ozarks at Large's Daniel Caruth about the report.

Michael Tilley with Talk Business & Politics joins Kyle Kellams to discuss this past week's headlines from the Arkansas River Valley.

Matt Holden’s “what I did this summer” essay for 2025 should be interesting. On today's show, we hear that the Fayetteville teacher’s summer will include trips into the Pacific Ocean and to Africa. This summer also means the inaugural Ozark Music Festival all around northwest Arkansas, so we'll provide a glimpse of what's to come. Also, the city of Fayetteville named this year's Amazing Tree, but what makes it so special?

Flyers needing emergency diapers at Northwest Arkansas National Airport now have a place to get diapers, no matter the time of day. Restrooms near Gate A3 at XNA now have vending machines called Diaper Concierge, which dispense diapers and other related items.

Historians are working to learn—and share—more about Black settlers in Washington County. On today's show, a conversation about the updated Annotated Bibliography on Black Settler of Washington County Arkansas. Also, XNA has new vending machines offering a necessary good: diapers. Plus, we hear from a company based in the UK that is participating in the Arkansas Global Cycling Accelerator.

Last week, the third annual Excel by Eight Foundation’s Collaborative Summit took place in Little Rock. The event brought together business leaders, chambers of commerce and heads of nonprofits. It wasn’t designed to find instant solutions to a wide-ranging problem but to expedite conversations among groups to work toward solutions. The meeting wasn’t open to the press. Still, afterward, Steve Cousins, the board chair of El Dorado-based SHARE Foundation, and Brandom Gengelbach, the president and CEO of the Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce, spoke with Ozarks at Large.

On today's show, we hear from an artist coming to the Fayetteville Public Library who asks, “What did you learn in school today?” Also, how you can stay safe during deer hunting season. Plus, the musical world of Burt Bacharach inspires a new production taking the stage at Walton Arts Center.