Sanders, U.S. Education Secretary Tour Arkansas Schools, Highlight LEARNS Act Progress

LITTLE ROCK — Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon for tours and roundtable discussions at Don R. Roberts Elementary School in Little Rock and the Saline County Career & Technical Campus in Benton.

According to the governor’s office, the visits highlighted changes made under the Arkansas LEARNS Act, signed into law last year. State officials said that in the program’s first year, more than 5,500 students applied for an Education Freedom Account, and this year — the first with universal access — over 50,000 applications have been submitted.

The governor’s office also reported that starting teacher pay increased from $36,000 to $50,000, with all teachers receiving at least a $2,000 raise. Through the Merit Teacher Incentive Fund Program, more than 4,200 teachers earned bonuses of up to $10,000 this year, over 1,300 more than in the program’s first year.

Officials said LEARNS established a statewide literacy standard requiring students to read at grade level by the end of third grade, with additional support available through more than 120 literacy coaches. They cited this year’s ATLAS results as showing over 2,700 more students meeting or exceeding English language arts proficiency and math score increases in nearly every grade, with the largest gains in fourth grade.

The act also created the Career-Ready Pathways Program, which requires high schools to offer courses in at least one of 18 high-wage, high-growth fields such as manufacturing, construction, computer science, and welding.

The governor’s office said new legislation passed this year builds on the initiative, including:

• The Bell to Bell, No Cell Act, which prohibits personal electronic devices during instructional time.
• The Good Neighbor Act, providing free breakfast to all public school students.
• The Arkansas ACCESS Act, which expands accelerated coursework, streamlines college admissions, removes barriers to scholarships, and prohibits DEI initiatives in public colleges and universities.

According to the governor’s office, the measures aim to prepare students to “enroll, enlist, or get employed,” and strengthen the state’s workforce.