Monthly Archives: December 2016

Digital Screens Cause Visual Consequences

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by Austin Hayslip
Courtesy of A-State Department of Media

JONESBORO — “I think that we do use it in every single class, except for P.E.,” Samuel Creekmore said.

Instead of flipping the pages of a book, kids are scrolling to the next page on iPads. And that could be affecting their eyesight.

“More and more I’m seeing earlier and earlier detection of visual problems in children,” Dr. Megan Moll of Hilltop Eyecare & Optical said.

Moll said the increase in “screen time” for kids is causing some serious vision problems.

“A lot of times, it’s the increased near-point activities with the devices and increased screen time, holding things a little bit too close has shown to increase the amount of nearsightedness over time,” she said.

Mother of two Shaila Creekmore said her children had vision problems at an early age.

“Both of my boys do wear glasses. Samuel started wearing glasses in third grade; he’s now in seventh. Tyler started wearing glasses right at the beginning of third grade,” she said.

Creekmore’s children aren’t just using devices too often. Findings from VSP Vision Care suggest by the time the average American child reaches the age of 17, they’ve spent nearly six years looking at digital devices.

“Computers and devices aren’t going away; technology is excellent. It’s definitely helped a lot with schools, but some things they can do is make sure the child takes breaks — every 20 minutes do something else,” Moll said.

She also suggests using a blue-light filter for children already wearing glasses or using night mode, a setting available on the iPhone. Another excellent option: spending time outdoors.

Voters Give Officials More Time

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by Kirsten May
Courtesy of A-State Department of Media

Arkansas voters passed an amendment to the Arkansas Constitution that will lengthen term limits for elected county officials from two years to four years. As Kirsten May explains, people in those positions think this will help them be more effective.

JONESBORO — Now even though the new term limits won’t go into effect until 2019, Craighead County Sheriff Marty Boyd said he is excited about what that means for the future of county officials.

“It’s going to be a great benefit to the operations of any department because you can set some long-term goals. Where in the past, just having a two-year office, it made it seem like you were always campaigning,” he said.

Boyd said he hopes the longer terms will let officials dig deeper to accomplish bigger goals, especially in a county that has a 2 percent annual growth rate. He said there are some things you just can’t get done in two years.

“Even though I know economically we can’t obtain maybe as many deputies as we want in the next 12 months, but I can look at the long-range plan and say in five years here is where we need to be,” Boyd said.

He said another benefit is being able to cut costs.

“Elections are expensive. I wish they weren’t, but in this day and time it takes a lot to run a successful campaign. Having to do that every two years, you get tired of the process and your supporters get tired of the process,” Boyd said.

There is also a better sense of job security for those in the department.

“It puts them in a better workplace knowing that they have at least four years to look at instead of two,” Boyd said.

Sheriff Boyd said there has been some concern about having an official in office that long. But he said as long as you research your candidates and know who you’re voting for before the election, that shouldn’t be a problem.

Issue 1 also states certain county officials cannot be appointed or elected to another civil office, and it allows unopposed candidates to be elected without their name appearing on the ballot.