Support for Arkansas Week provided by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, The Arkansas Times and KUARFM, 89.

Hello, everybody, and welcome to Arkansas week.

I'm your host, Donna Terrell.

Arkansas ranks second in the nation in food insecurity.

This is according to the Arkansas Food Bank and September is Hunger Action Month.

And joining us to talk about how to tackle this problem are Bobby McDaniel, director of development of the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, Ryan Miller, Donor relations manager of the Arkansas Food Bank, and Robert Holt, executive director of Love.

Let our violence end healing waters outreach center in Little Rock.

And first of all, I just want to thank you all for being with me.

This is really an important subject.

Before we start talking, I want to show you some statistics, because I think they're startling.

First of all, 23.6% of Arkansas children have limited access to adequate food.

One in five Arkansans struggle to provide enough food for their family.

Arkansas ranks second in the nation for food insecurity.

I mentioned that right off the start, and 17.3% of our Kansans are facing food hunger.

Now, I'm going to ask you guys something that's quite basic, because I've always kind of wondered.

We refer to food insecurity, but we say that there are folks out there hungry.

I just need you guys to explain to me what is food insecurity.

Let's start with that.

OK, food insecurity is not only when you think about someone not having food in their home, it is the actual.

It it deals with the access to healthy foods as well.

When we talk about food insecurity is can they purchase produce?

Can they purchase beef?

You know we can.

Unfortunately, the unhealthy food is cheaper and so food insecurity, it's not knowing where the next meal is coming from and also access to healthy, healthy foods.

I'm glad you explained that because I actually thought I knew what food and security was, but you just made it clear to me.

Orion, we were talking a little bit about this before this program began and we were basically talking about food insecurity and how, you know, of places where right here in Arkansas where people have to drive 20 or 30 minutes to get fresh produce or foods that are healthy and just food in general.

The the term is a food desert where just communities in our state, you know, I can just drive down the street or even walk.

To a Kroger, a target or Walmart.

We were in the delta a couple weeks ago and at our Delta branch and just I just looked at the map and I was like, where's the next closest grocery store?

And it was about 20 minutes away and it was a bait and tackle shop.

So yes, it has food there, but it's not even, like Bobby mentioned, it's not necessarily even the healthiest food that is that is accessible.

But but I think we need to make it clear that people who end up buying that food, they don't have a whole lot of choices.

Oftentimes they don't have a lot of money.

They're hungry.

This is available.

These foods may not be healthy, but they're good.

I think sometimes we see it where people look at some of our, you know, pictures from our events or mobile distributions and say, oh, that person doesn't look hungry.

Kind of a an appearance that that person has.

They might be a little overweight, but then back to that, what they have access to, what they can afford, is that not as healthier options that they can even.

That they can eat.

Yeah.

And then that's so unfortunate.

And Robert, we, we talk about, you know, areas like the delta, but let's talk about one of our major cities in Arkansas, Little Rock, where you are.

There are food deserts there, believe it or not.

Yes, yes, there are food deserts all over there.

One of the issues that we're having right now are individuals who cannot afford like gas.

They can't afford to go very far.

They can't afford the groceries right now.

They're in the stores.

So then what happens these areas in.

In the Little Rock area, become food deserts because of the shortage of even funding right now for families.

So when we have a food shortage in a city, one of the things that our hope is is that we begin creating little pockets as the Hunger Relief Alliance and others begin pockets of food pantry, smaller food pantries that will begin to help those families who can't afford the gas or can't afford groceries in the grocery store.

Right now.

You know we boast about how Arkansas.

It comes to produce and and farming and how, you know, we're able to produce so much food.

How on God's green earth are we #2 in the nation for food insecurity?

How does that happen for a state, for a state like Arkansas?

Believable, right?

That you think about their families and children and our seniors that can't afford.

How does that?

Well, how does it happen and why is it happening?

Of produce that we that we have in Arkansas, you know cotton, soybeans and rice are some of our leading produce items.

Our rice partners, I don't mean to cut you off, but we have chicken, we have, we have.

So we have so much, we have corn, we have lots, we have more than just that.

And it's also I think the supply chain part of it as well is getting that.

How do you get that food from the producer to somebody's pantry and I think we're all seeing that on the grocery store shelves and so the people that are the most vulnerable.

We're seeing that even impact them even more.

But also I think a lot of what what we don't understand too sometimes is that Arkansas, let's just take rice, they have contracts with people all over the world so already in place that they have to fulfill those contracts.

But should we be taking care of those of us at home?

That's what we should think and they do their best to do that.

I, I, I'm, I'm one that as far as rice and peanut butter, you know, we have we have two, two factories of peanut butter that I know of in Arkansas and so they are right now.

These organizations are trying to produce enough in order to provide here for locally.

I've, I've been, I've had a some farmers to reach out to me that they are cattle farmers and so I know that the Hunger Relief alliance, they do some things like this where they go to auction and purchase, you know, beef in order to have it butchered.

Well, these farmers have contacted us and they are going to start processing beef for us.

So it's a matter of finding the resources in Arkansas.

You know, to help the families just here, we just gotta get a little more creative and outside the box.

OK?

And and and how do we get creative and outside the box?

How do we do that?

I mean, what what's the solution there?

No.

Well, coming together when we get a truckload in and we can't take everything, I call him or I call, I call the food bank and vice versa.

So it's that type of collaboration that begins to happen where it's a forced.

Unfortunately, it's a forced collaboration when we should have really been all collaborating.

All along, which that's what the hunger relief lines is trying to do, right?

And I think it's communication and and we've definitely all tried to step up with that, especially with the pandemic.

You know, the pandemic opened our eyes to different avenues to come together and to try to.

Access different areas.

One of the things that was mentioned right off the the the bat before we begin this program is the problem is getting worse.

It's not getting better right now.

So it sounds to me like whatever is going to be done, however you guys are going to come together, it needs to happen fast.

Absolutely, absolutely.

And it's awareness and it's also working on legislation to try to change some of the avenues where dollars.

Can be accessed.

It's also working on you know during the pandemic discovered how successful it can be to have the waivers with USDA for kids to access healthy meals at school across the board and take out the stigma.

And that's important and that's something the alliance is involved with doing it as you were telling me, it's it's it's a beautiful thing.

Obviously you're, you're you're bringing entities you know these the food banks and pantries and.

In all of these programs together, but you're also making sure that kids have good food, healthy food to eat, I guess morning, noon and night, right?

Yes, because we also are the lead partner with share our strength, no kid hungry.

So with that trying to help after school, feeding programs through school districts, community organizations like cows in Little Rock.

Is one of the major feeding sites.

So trying to pull all that together and give those programs grants for those programs to have what they need to feed our children.

And and I'm I'm sure you, you take into consideration that children that don't get healthy meals, I mean all sorts of things happen, but even as they grow into adulthood they can end up with physical problems that have to be addressed and and that's another burden.

That can you know that the state eventually has to deal with.

Yeah.

You know I I think I think you know and I saw where you know we're getting on time you know short on time.

I I wanted to say this about the there are ample supplies of food right now in our city.

Grocery stores.

Walmarts.

All of those places that throw all their food away.

Because they feel like they have to.

Even though the food bank sometimes goes to pick up.

We're gonna pick up.

But there is many places out here right now that are throwing things away before they go out of date.

Hmm.

And why is that happening?

Wait, because the resources, they don't know.

There hasn't been enough information put out there to let these stores know that.

Hunger Relief Alliance, Arkansas Food bank, places like us, we will come and pick that up.

We have refrigerated trucks.

We will come and pick whatever it is up that you.

Might say, hey, family might could use this.

It's a dented can.

Don't throw it away, we'll come pick it up.

And so it's starting to really happen in greater numbers, but we've got to get the word out there to make it even greater.

So these mom and pop stores even don't throw things away.

Dollar generals don't throw things away.

We can go pick it up.

I think that's where all of the partnerships are are are being created that the dollar generals we were building partnerships across the 33 counties to have those that food go to the local pantries you know we serve.

About 350 pantries across the state and so really trying to get people connected into their communities so they can get that food that's that's accessible.

Let's talk about gardens.

And that really wonderful thing they, I mean, well, here's the thing I I talked to oftentimes it's, well, sometimes it's children who are involved with gardens.

They're they're learning gardening and then I talk with adults that will say, I don't have a garden here at home.

They might live in an apartment or, you know, they don't have a backyard to put their own garden in, but they have one, you know, a few blocks over and they garden with several other other people.

So let's talk about that as a way of of people being able to have affordable food.

So my part of the garden is this.

Through our victory over violence campaign here in Central Arkansas, we've developed these community gardens to bring families together so that we can hope they will start building relationships and bring the violence down.

OK.

But in with that, it's straw Bale garden.

We teach them how to grow vegetables in straw bales, not hay bales, straw bales because.

You could take now, you can't see in front of our desk here, but there's a wood right here.

You could take a straw Bale and put it right down in front of it and start growing right there.

You don't need dirt on the ground, so somebody, a senior, if they're living in an apartment, can grow vegetables right there on their balcony and tomatoes.

That's a great idea.

There's two things you can't grow.

One is corn and full grown okra.

You can grow short okra, but you can grow anything all year long.

In a straw Bale for one year and you could have healthy food.

That's right, right there in your backyard won't cost you a dime other than just a strong, what it, yeah, cost to actually plan it.

And we actually have grants, we got grants to to do this.

And so we put all those straw Bale gardens out there in Central Arkansas to help families learn, learn how to do it and then they can start growing sustainable food for themselves.

Straw Bell Gardens.

I I never heard of that, but it's awesome.

I'm sure a lot of our viewers are thinking, huh, that sounds like a great idea.

Well, just call me and I'll tell him how to do it.

His name is Robert Holt.

That's where you can call me.

I'll tell him how to do it.

I I love it.

So let's let's talk about some of the more basic things.

When we when we talk about families that are dealing with not being able to get access to food and healthy food, how many families are you able to discern how many people were actually talking about?

I know I I threw out one in five earlier, but what does that really, really mean?

I mean that's not what we we use one in five families and one in four kids, OK.

It is considered food insecure.

So this is hitting and I think if nothing else, the pandemic exposed a lot of the different things that we weren't aware of.

One, we mentioned food for kids programs, how important schools are and how important we need to to feed our kids.

But just how many families that are out there that this could be your neighbor down the street.

It's kind of a, a a hidden problem that that dignity.

People want to maintain their dignity that, that, that, that pride.

Aspect comes into play and so anybody anytime can be affected.

You lose your job, you have a medical emergency and all of a sudden your resources shrink drastically and and and we saw that with the pandemic that's exactly what we saw.

People who had never had to wait in line to get food were waiting in line to get food because just like that and we have a an 800 number that is a call in number to help access SNAP benefits.

That's another key piece of this is making sure those that.

Qualify for SNAP or accessing SNAP and can go through that process.

And I was on that call center all through the height of the pandemic and it was so heart wrenching to hear the phone calls that were coming in that were not your typical person calling, trying to navigate this nap process.

And you know it's it's heart wrenching, but yet let's help them find an answer and if they access those dollars.

Mentioned we talk about the pandemic, pandemic, pandemic.

Unfortunately, what we're seeing is these numbers are still growing, if not even worse, that a lot of the resources that we had during the pandemic have shrunk or disappeared.

So now we're having to address supply chain inflation.

We're seeing it at the Food Bank of trying to get food.

They're seeing it on the front lines of having to serve people and seeing people coming in.

I think it's kind of gone away from our our, our right in front of us, but realizing this is still affecting our neighbors.

It's getting worse.

So I want to.

And on a positive note, I wanna talk about this new food pantry and the delta.

Big deal, right?

Yes.

We're really excited about it and we have two branches at the Food Bank.

One of them is in Lexa and we opened a pantry in Lexa for residents there.

I was there a couple weeks ago and it's really where residents can come in and they were able to the shop for for food.

They were able to look at the shelves and pick and it's also a healthy choice pantry is what we're moving towards to try to have that, that milk, that produce those, those better options.

They're living literally in farmland.

So let's try to give.

Residents that that that produce, that allows them to have a healthy, healthier life.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Alright, you know, I wanna thank you, Ryan, Bobby and Robert.

Thank you.

You know, this is the first time in a long time that I've actually had three people in the studio with me.

Normally it's on Skype, so this is really nice.

Good.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you.

And stay with us.

We'll be right back.

A parent survey regarding children's education in Arkansas was conducted by the Office for Education Policy, University of Arkansas.

So joining us to share its findings is the Executive director, Doctor Sarah McKenzie.

Thank you, Doctor McKenzie, for being with us.

Thank you for having me.

You know, I I want to talk about this study, but first I'm just curious about the.

Work of the Office of Education Policy, what is it that your office does?

So our mission is to use state, national and local research to inform K12 decision makers and stakeholders about what's going well in Arkansas and what changes or opportunities there are for growth, OK. And and that's that's really I'm sure the catalyst behind doing this particular.

Study, right?

Yes, absolutely.

Especially because of COVID.

So I partnered with the Arkansas Department of Education's parent engagement office to do a survey.

In the beginning of COVID sort of in 2021, when we first came back and asked parents about how they were feeling about schools and how they'd been included in the decision making process.

And one of the questions that we got back from the state board was, is this better or worse than parents felt before COVID?

And we really didn't know the answer to that because we haven't been regularly surveying parents about their feelings about education in the state.

OK, So what came out of this report that was really significant?

Well, I think it's significant that the vast majority of parents felt like their students school was good or excellent.

That was about 81% of parents felt that way, and it was across all racial and political ideologies.

And I think that really shows that Arkansas schools have the support of their communities and can leverage that to continue to make improvements in their educational options for students.

You know, one of the things that stood out for me was the finding mentioned 82% of parents think their kids are going to college.

Is that realistic?

Is that true?

Well, we don't know if all these kids are going to go to college, but based on historical data, that's not true.

Only about less than half of Arkansas high school graduates go to college and less than half of those will graduate with a degree within time.

And 1/2, which is 6 years in a four year institution or three years in a 2 year institution, which is really different than what we normally think of of going to college and graduating in four years.

It's changed quite a bit.

It has changed, you are right.

About that.

So will this study, in your opinion, provide any significant reforms or reforms needed?

It sounds like a lot of parents were just kind of overall grateful for.

For how things are right now.

Yeah, I think that they are.

And I loved the information that they felt welcome in their student school and that they felt happy with the curriculum that was being provided and the extracurriculars, and that they thought that grading practices and discipline practices in their school were fair.

I think that where we find a rub is when we look at discipline research, which we just put out this week, showing that there are significant disproportionality by race.

In terms of the severity of student discipline, and we've seen those for a long time and there's big gaps in student achievement based on socioeconomic factors and race.

So there's definitely room to improve, but it's great to know that parents are feeling like they're welcome and that their students getting a good education.

So how did you choose the folks that you surveyed?

Who who were they?

Is there a a profile for for the the the type of person?

Is there a geographic location?

That you targeted?

Who are the folks who were surveyed?

That's a great question.

So we partnered with you Gov, which uses a panel in order to identify.

Statistically representative sample of Arkansas parents and we got 500 parents and using weights we can represent the general population of the state.

So there was public school parents and private school parents and home school parents and we got a nice cross section that represents the demographics of the state in terms of race and political ideology.

So, you know, I mean one of the things that.

Come to mind for me when I think of of schools and public or private is bullying was was, you know and some of the the violence that's happened with some of the schools you know not not you know around the country for that matter and the concerns that parents have and especially after you ivaldi had about even sending their kids to school.

Was any of that addressed?

So we didn't ask about that in the survey.

We fielded this survey last fall and so our just now getting the results out, but that was prior to even student even child vaccinations being available.

So we did have questions about some specifically timely question topics like free pre kindergarten.

That was a big topic back when we fielded this survey and we did find that over 80% of parents in this state supported free pre-K for three and four year olds.

Now that's sort of.

Off the federal agenda.

So there's always new topics, but we're going to continue to repeat this survey every other year with the teacher survey in between.

So we can sort of weave together parent and teacher perspectives on these timely issues.

Yeah.

And and and now I, I have a clearer picture in terms of when this particular study was actually conducted versus some of the things.

But I mean, you know, things like bullying have been happening for a very long time and even even violence for that matter, in school.

So.

I mean that's that's pertinent even when this study was was conducted.

It said here that diverse perceptions of teacher salary 5050% think that teachers make a lot less than they actually do.

I bet there are some teachers out there that are saying you're right, but according to the study.

50% are wrong.

So, so I come from a background in the classroom and I do a lot of research on teacher salaries in the state.

And we're working on sort of identifying exactly where teacher shortage areas are and what policy changes we can make to sort of shore up those opportunities for communities that are having a difficult time finding teachers.

But one of the things that I thought was interesting was that parents really underestimate by a substantial amount how much teachers are actually making a substantial amount.

So what are we talking about so in about?

So in about 442% of the cases, it was more than 1/4 of what teachers actually make.

OK, OK, that's.

So when we ask parent, it is substantial.

And when we ask parents if they'd like their child to become a teacher, only 25% said that they would.

So I'd like to bridge that gap and sort of highlight all the great things about teaching so that we can continue to have a strong teacher workforce.

I'm so glad you brought that up because I was going to mention that, you know.

The majority of the parents want their kids to go to college but really don't want their child to become a teacher.

That is not good.

That's not the news we need to hear, especially at a time when we're dealing with teacher shortages.

That's right, and I understand that teachers want to advocate for better salaries, and, you know, those salaries are decided by the local school district.

That is not a state.

Sponsored issue.

Each local district determines their salary schedules, and there are some interesting things that can be done to sort of shore up beginning teacher salaries while still supporting the older teachers.

But I think the message of teachers have such a difficult job and it's terrible and we don't get paid anything has really been resonating with parents.

And I think as a state we need to change that message and talk about a lot of the great benefits that come with being an educator.

And I agree with that and I look forward to more.

Studies and being able to compare them as we go along.

Doctor Sarah McKinsey, thank you so much for being with us.

Thank you for the opportunity.

Have a great day.

You too.

And I want to thank all of you for joining in.

I'm Donna Terrell for Arkansas week.

I'll see you next time.

Support for Arkansas Week provided by the Arkansas Democrat Gazette, The Arkansas Times, and K UAR FM, 89.