AI & Workforce Training: UA Hope-Texarkana launched a new 12-credit Certificate of Proficiency in Artificial Intelligence, aimed at giving students and working professionals practical skills in data analysis, automation, decision support, and responsible AI use. Health Tech: A new blood test measuring p-tau217 could flag Alzheimer’s-related changes up to 10 years early, potentially improving access for rural patients by narrowing the gap between specialists and primary care. Public Health & Policy: Arkansas Medicaid expansion coverage is under renewed pressure as insurers shift and “trigger” rules could end the program if federal funding drops; the state also faces ongoing debates over reimbursement and access. STEM in the Classroom: Camp Invention returned to Pine Bluff for its sixth year, using hands-on “forensic science” style activities to build critical thinking for kindergarten through sixth grade. Local Industry & Jobs: ArcBest confirmed it will cut 60 Fort Smith jobs as part of broader operational changes, including closing freight service centers and ending an autonomous warehouse system. Energy & Weather Monitoring: ULM won a $4.21M Army contract to expand weather and water monitoring across the Lower Mississippi River Basin, adding 50 environmental stations reaching into parts of Arkansas. Safety & Environment: A tractor-trailer carrying sodium methylate overturned on Arkansas 74 in Washington County; officials said the chemical didn’t spill and cleanup was limited to transfer and removal.