| ARKANSAS | Despite a cloudy fiscal forecast, Arkansas lawmakers approved a slight boost in spending on education for fiscal 2010 during their recently concluded legislative session.
K-12 programs will receive about $2 billion next fiscal year, without taking into account some federal and other funding. For fiscal 2009, those programs got about $1.9 billion. That鈥檚 compared to a fiscal 2010 of about $4.4 billion.
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| Gov. Mike Beebe Democrat |
| Senate: 27 Democrats 8 Republicans |
| House: 72 Democrats 28 Republicans |
| Enrollment: 465,500 |
Gov. Mike Beebe said that even a slight increase in education spending is something to cheer about, especially since so many other states have had to cut money for K-12 programs in the current tough economic climate.
鈥淎rkansas鈥� conservative approach and strong fiscal stewardship means that our students will continue to make progress,鈥� Mr. Beebe said last month.
Arkansas was able to get some small initiatives off the ground, said Matt DeCample, a spokesman for the governor. For instance, the legislature approved a bill that would provide about $3 million in incentives for districts to adopt Smart Core, a college-preparatory curriculum.
The state also is planning to finance some pilot programs aimed at improving after-school and summer programs, Mr. DeCample said. The budget for that effort is still being worked out.
