Maumelle Charter High School earns national award

CAC hires Howard to be football coach, Maumelle Planning Commission Meets tonight, Pitchford hired by French Hill, plus sports and headlines

Jan 26, 2023

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Death toll stays steady

The total number of dead Arkansans this past week was 34.

Last week, it was 30, and the week before that it was 38.

The total number of dead Arkansans is now at 12,800.

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The Headlines

Upcoming meetings: The Maumelle Planning Commission will meet tonight and in a rare occurrence, neither Maumelle or North Little Rock city councils will be meeting next Monday. Enjoy the night off council members.
Upcoming events: The groundbreaking for the new 12-court pickleball facility is this Friday at North Little Rock’s Burns Park. The groundbreaking will start at 11 a.m. and the facility, when completed later this year, will be open and free to use. The city of North Little Rock is also participating in what’s called a “point-in-time count” with Little Rock and Jacksonville, along with the Central Arkansas Team Care for the Homeless. It is, as it sounds, a count of the homeless and unsheltered in those communities, which will then provide data to help address those problems. For more information, click here.
ICYMI: Maumelle: All-inclusive playground on track

Maumelle Charter High School earns national award

Maumelle Charter High School recently earned the College Board AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award for achieving high female representation in AP Computer Science Principles. Schools honored with the AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award have expanded girls’ access in AP computer science courses.

Pictured Front Row, Left to Right - Natalie Wood, Annika Pecanty, Makayla Nguyen, Mary Tinsley, Lacey Hilpert ; Back Row, Left to Right - Trinity Ellis, Bailey Ferrara, Nicha Saftich, Riley Allen, Zoe Gronwald, Bryley Elder, Olivia Stevens, Emma Stewart

More than 1,100 institutions nationwide achieved either 50% or higher female representation in one of the two AP computer science courses or a percentage of the female computer science exam takers meeting or exceeding that of the school’s female population during the 2021-22 school year. In 2022, Maumelle Charter High School was one of 832 recognized in the category of AP Computer Science Principles.

“We’re thrilled to congratulate our female AP computer science students and their teachers on this step toward gender parity in computer science education,” said Principal Katie Johnson. “We’re honored that our school earned this distinction and look forward to seeing these young women and others pursue and achieve success in computer science education and careers.”

“Computer science is the source code of our economy and so much of our daily lives,” said Trevor Packer, College Board Head of the AP Program. “In the five years since we began the AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award, it’s been heartening to see schools like

Maumelle Charter High School welcomes so many more young women into this vital field.”

The first year of AP Computer Science Principles in 2016-17 attracted more students than any other AP course debut, and participation is on the rise. In 2022,134,651 students took the AP CSP Exam—more than triple the number of exam takers in the course’s first year. In 2022, 44,811 women took the AP CSP Exam, more than three times the number who tested in 2017.

Providing female students with access to computer science courses is critical to ensuring gender parity in the industry’s high-paying jobs and to driving innovation, creativity, and representation. The median annual wage for computer and information technology occupations was $97,430 in May 2021. However, women represent just 24% of the five million people in computing occupations.

That’s why College Board research about AP CSP is so encouraging. According to the data, female students who take AP CSP in high school are more than five times as likely to major in computer science in college, compared to female students of similar background and academic preparation who did not take CSP. The study also finds AP CSP students are nearly twice as likely to enroll in AP CSA, and that for most students, AP CSP serves as a stepping stone to other advanced AP STEM coursework.

These findings highlight the importance of schools nationwide achieving gender parity in AP computer science classrooms. Overall, female students remain underrepresented in our high school computer science classes, accounting for just 33% of AP Computer Science Principles participants and 25% of AP Computer Science A participants. Currently, 51% of the nation’s high schools teach foundational computer science. The 1,105 schools that receive this year’s AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award serve as inspirations and models for all U.S. high schools.

Maumelle Charter is at 9701 White Oak Crossing, North Little Rock and is part of the Academics Plus Charter Schools with other campuses in Maumelle and Scott

Maumelle: Planning Commission meets tonight

The Maumelle Planning Commission will have its regular monthly meeting at 6:30 p.m. tonight.

The agenda can be viewed by clicking here.

The agenda is a lengthy one as it is essentially two meetings in one as the December meeting was postponed due to inclement weather.

The meeting is open to the public and will be held at Maumelle City Hall.

Pitchford to lead Hill’s district office

Jeff Pitchford, below,was named Wednesday as the district director in Little Rock for U.S. Rep. French Hill.

Hill serves the 2nd Congressional District that serves portions of Pulaski County and most of central Arkansas.

Pitchford, a native of Mountain Home, lives in Conway and was most recently Executive Vice President at the Arkansas Farm Bureau. Before that, he was Director of State Affairs for the University of Central Arkansas, Pitchford’s alma mater. He also has a master’s degree from UALR.

“I am delighted to have Jeff joining my team,” Hill said. “His immense passion for serving Arkansans will bolster my efforts throughout the Second Congressional District. His deep knowledge of Arkansas and extensive background in public service will make him an outstanding District Director."

Pitchford also served as Director of Rural Services for then Gov. Mike Huckabee in the 1990s.

Scholarship Fund created in honor of Adams

The Southern Arkansas University Tech Foundation and the Arkansas Fire Training Academy recently announced the creation of a scholarship fund in honor of Lt. Jason Adams, who was killed in the line of duty in 2016.

Adams, of North Little Rock, above, was a volunteer firefighter with the East Pulaski County Fire Department and was shot and killed when he responded to a medical call.

He also worked for the fire department in Sherwood. Adams was 29 when he was killed.

The scholarships will be for successful completers of the Academy's on-campus Emergency Medical Responder Training course and is specifically for volunteer firefighters.

For more on Adams, click here.

Producers next month at Argenta Community Theater

Mel Brooks, the funniest human alive, is having a moment. Or maybe he’s always having a moment?

Anyway, The History of the World, Part II debuts later this year on Hulu, and set your calendars accordingly but closer to home, The Producers will be in production at the Argenta Community Theater in downtown North Little Rock with the first show set for Feb. 22.

The performances run through March 4.

There’s a total of 10 shows with evening shows starting at 7:30 p.m. and a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets range from $25 to $35 and can be purchased by clicking here.

Starring as Max Bialystock is Jayphen “Jay” Clark, above, who is also the senior pastor at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church in Little Rock. Michael Klucher, below, is Leo Bloom and Klucher is a teacher at North Little Rock High School and also serves as the scene designer for the school’s very good drama department.

You’ll be humming “Springtime for Hitler” and, with that, it should be noted the show contains adult humor and references and is not recommended for younger audiences.

No kidding!

Andy Hall serves as director while music and vocals are by Jeannie Cross, costumes are by Stacey Herrison, choreography by Moriah Patterson, assistant direction by Jamie Scott Blakey, stage management by Trystan Benson and technical direction by Sara Cooke.

Sports

CAC hires Howard to be football coach

Central Arkansas Christian hired Ryan Howard to be the program’s new head football coach.

Howard, who played quarterback at the University of Central Arkansas, is currently an offensive analyst for the University of Missouri, and its head coach Eliah Drinkwitz, the native of Alma.

Howard, 31, above, also spent six years at UCA working for the football program in various capacities. As a player, Howard passed for more than 4,000 yards and 42 touchdowns as UCA’s starting quarterback.

“My wife [Stephanie] and I are super excited to get back to the area and get started,” Howard said. “I cannot wait to get to know our student-athletes and build relationships with them. We have a lot of talent at CAC that we hope to build on and develop. It’s going to be a fun journey, and we’re going to play some fun football, that’s for sure.”

Howard is from Vestavia Hills, Ala. and was recruited to UCA after throwing for more than 4,000 yards and was an all-state performer.

“When we met with Coach Howard, it was apparent that he offered everything we were looking for in the next head coach of Mustang Football,” Athletic Director Hayden Cruce said. “He prioritizes relationships with his athletes, he is detail-oriented and he has experience coaching with high-level programs. He is also a man of deep faith who believes in our mission at CAC. He is the right person to lead our program into the future.”

Howard is expected to make the move to central Arkansas soon and hopes to be at Mustang Mountain for spring drills.

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