A blue trolley-style bus parked at the Jonesboro City Hall building. These buses offer transportation services using the GoJo Transportation System. Photo courtesy of the City of Jonesboro website.
JONESBORO, Ark. — The City of Jonesboro’s new GoJo Transportation System provides a convenient service to Arkansas State University students, offering free, campus-wide transportation. However, limited outreach to students has kept many from using the service.
The new GoJo system, previously JET, provides service to A-State and the surrounding Jonesboro area. It features six routes, ranging from on-campus hotspots to countless places in the city. The new Let’s GOJO! The app and website provide a map of all stops and routes to help users locate the nearest available transportation, as well as live tracking of all buses and trolleys.
The service is free to students with a valid student ID, providing an accessible alternative to driving or walking.
One of the most notable features of the system is the new Trolley-style buses. These vehicles provide classic aesthetics with modern functionality, which gives students a comfortable ride that is also more visually appealing than traditional transportation options.
A red trolley-style bus parked in front of the Arkansas State University Welcome Center. Photo courtesy of the City of Jonesboro website.
City officials and transportation coordinators said GoJo is meant to connect residents, visitors and students to the city of Jonesboro through expanded connections throughout the city, including A-State.
Despite the advantages to students, GoJo is relatively unknown amongst them. International student Boaz Muteba said she followed the news surrounding the new system.
“In the fall of 2024, when public transportation options were expected to increase, I was one of the individuals who participated in the meeting to get more buses,” Muteba said. “Recently, when the idea took shape, I spotted the bus on campus and even saw it featured on Instagram. Unfortunately, I never got the chance to utilize it.”
The system’s impact goes beyond convenience. By encouraging students to use public transit, Gojo supports sustainable efforts and accessibility for those without personal vehicles and eases parking demand that comes with a growing campus.
As Jonesboro and student enrollment at A-State continue to grow, GoJo presents an opportunity to strengthen connections between the city and it’s academia scene. However, its success will depend on public awareness of this new system.
JONESBORO, Ark. – The Arkansas State University Museum is not only a place where people can see parts of history, but also an educational resource for teachers, professors and students.
Many students spend four or more years at A-State without visiting the museum, missing a valuable interactive educational experience that could help them better understand what they learn in history classes. The museum focuses not only on Arkansas history, but also on preserving and showcasing the history of northeast Arkansas and the Delta region.
The museum serves as an informal learning environment, according to Elisabeth Engel, director of the A-State Museum.
“You don’t have to be here. It’s not like class,” Engel said. “So, you know, we value the people that come through because they’ve made an effort to come see us. We hope that they walk away feeling like that effort to brave campus, find a parking spot, and all of those kinds of things, in our particular environment, was well worth it.”
Students, faculty, staff and Jonesboro residents can visit the museum on their own or book a tour with Jill Kary, curator of education at the museum. For teachers and professors, the experience can be especially valuable.
Lillie Fears, professor and interim director in the School of Media and Journalism, brings her classes to the museum every semester to help students understand historical events in ways a textbook cannot.
“My favorite part about taking students to the museum is seeing their reactions when they see something old that we’ve talked about in class, or that is mentioned in our book or in a documentary. These types of experiences can allow them to step out of present-mindedness and to realize how the tools and technology they use in modern times evolved at different eras in U.S. and world history,” Fears said.
Many groups, Engel said, visit the museum with a specific purpose. For some groups, Engel pulls artifacts from storage and creates a “mini exhibit” tailored to their interests.
Fears prefers tours focused on communication history and artifacts, so Engel often brings out old newspapers, cameras and photographs for her students.
“I really appreciate how the director, Elisabeth Engel, is always willing to bring out old artifacts that pertain to mass communications and provide us with special lectures on the history of these media tools. A textbook or video could never do what she and Jill Kary, education coordinator, do for my classes,”
For some students, a focused tour helps them better understand what they have been learning in class.
“It made a lot of the concepts feel more real. In class, we talk about the history of media, but actually seeing the artifacts and examples in person helped me connect everything more clearly, especially how media has evolved and impacted society,” Kaysen Lomax, a junior creative media production major from Jonesboro, said.
For other students, seeing everything the museum offers gives them a perspective they otherwise might not have considered.
“Yes, I did thoroughly enjoy the tour Dr. Fears took us on. Seeing how passionate Jill Kary was about the black business district was inspirational. I enjoyed looking at all the old pictures of old businesses and equipment/technology, and find it crazy to see how much those things have changed,” Alexander Riggs, a junior creative media major from Forrest City, Arkansas, said.
While the museum serves as a tool for professors on campus, teachers in surrounding school districts also can use it as a resource.
Photo courtesy of Arkansas State University.
Traveling suitcase exhibits are smaller exhibits teachers can check out for two weeks at a time. They offer hands-on materials, visual aids and lesson plans for each exhibit. Teachers can choose from five options, including Pioneer Living, Portals of the Soul: Native American Culture, World War II on the Arkansas Homefront and more.
“All of them are linked to the educational standards that are dictated by the state,” Kary said.
Visitors can also explore the tinkering studio to test whether they have the same innovation skills as people on the Arkansas frontier.
“If the kids have been paying attention, in every gallery they’re seeing innovation happen,” Kary said. “So they are told to invent things, make something, and if it doesn’t work, tweak it, fix it.”
Learning does not just happen in the classroom; it can happen in many places, including the museum. And learning is not just for students. Anyone who visits the museum is welcome, whether for a specific purpose or simply for fun.
Schools across Arkansas are learning to embrace the natural state’s top crop as the Rice in Schools program pilot run continues.
The Arkansas Rice in Schools program, launched by the Arkansas Department of Agriculture in collaboration with Arkansas Rice and USA Rice, is an initiative to teach students how to cook with rice and educate them on the significance of the grain.
Leslee Tell, the farm-to-school coordinator for the United States Department of Agriculture, directs the program. She said Rice in Schools will teach students where their food comes from.
(Left) Leslee Tell, farm-to-school coordinator for the United States Department of Agriculture, describes the Rice in School Program to the Nettleton School Board at a March 17 meeting. According to the USDA website, the program, which is in a pilot phase, gives schools the tools to serve locally grown rice in healthy meals. PHOTO COURTESY OF JERRY DON BURTON
“Our goal is simple, increase the use of Arkansas-grown rice in schools, while helping students learn about agriculture, nutrition and where their food comes from,” Tell said in a YouTube video introducing the program. “This program is about more than just meals, it’s about connecting students to Arkansas agriculture and supporting our local farmers.”
Arkansas Governor Sarah Sanders developed the program in fall 2025, following the transition of nutrition programs to the Arkansas Department of Agriculture.
In December 2025, the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board approved $15,000 in funding to support the program’s implementation. These funds provided schools with equipment to encourage the usage of Arkansas rice in their menus.
Sanders said the new program will teach students how farmers use rice to feed families around the world. She said students will use food made in Arkansas to develop healthy eating habits.
“Rice isn’t just part of Arkansas’ economy; it’s part of who we are,” Sanders said in a press release published Nov. 13, 2025.
Arkansas is the largest rice-producing state, accounting for more than 40% of rice production in the United States, according to Arkansas Rice. Tell said a majority of this rice is produced in Arkansas’ northeast region.
A graphic presents quick facts about Arkansas rice production. Arkansas is the largest rice-producing state, accounting for more than 40% of rice production in the United States, according to Arkansas Rice. GRAPHIC COURTESY OF ARAKNAS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Almost 20 Arkansas schools and districts are scheduled to participate in the program’s pilot phase, which began in February at Ward Central Elementary in Cabot, Arkansas. The pilot will wrap up in May at Forest Park Elementary in Little Rock.
As part of the program, Tell travels to participating schools with a team to involve students in cooking demonstrations and interactive educational lessons. She also introduces meals with local rice to school menus and trains cafeteria staff in preparing them.
On April 9, Tell traveled to Newport, Arkansas, to introduce the program to students at Newport High School.
Leanne Bradley, the family and consumer science teacher at Newport High School, said Rice in Schools was a beneficial experience for her students.
Bradley said rice’s significance to Arkansas demonstrates the program’s importance.
“I think everybody is aware that if you don’t take care of what you have, you can lose it,” Bradley said. “(Rice) is something that we have that not every other state has.”
Bradley said her food production and culinary students passed out stir-fried rice samples Tell made for elementary students. After sampling different meals made using rice, students placed stickers on a bulletin board to indicate how much or little they enjoyed the meals.
Tell said they compile student opinion data from every participating school. Then, in June, she said they will analyze the data to determine which recipes students liked most and least and make appropriate changes.
Bradley said the students greatly enjoyed the Rice in Schools program. She said her students cooked with rice before, but Tell’s contributions provided them with new ways to use the grain.
The family and consumer science teacher said she appreciated how the program helped her students realize how much rice Jackson County, where the Newport School District is located, produces.
According to the 2022 USDA Census of Agriculture, Jackson County produced almost 80,000 acres of rice, second only to soybeans.
“So just for the kids to realize this is a huge staple that Arkansas provides for the state, and it’s easy and it does not have to be Minute Rice,” Bradley said. “It really doesn’t take that much longer to actually cook your own rice and the quality is just so much better.”
Julie Isbell, superintendent at the Harrisburg School District, where Tell visited in March,
also said she loved how the program connected her students with local rice production.
Poinsett County, where Harrisburg is located, produced about 90,000 acres of rice, according to the same USDA census.
Tell also brought the program to the Nettleton School District in March. Nettleton School Board Vice President, Donnie Hauge, said he supported the program and thinks helping kids learn cooking skills and understand where their food comes from is an important undertaking.
Wes Ward, Arkansas secretary of agriculture, said the program emphasizes how Arkansas’ dominance over rice production could be used to support students and education. He said the program is a good step toward getting Arkansas to buy and use more of its own rice.
Bradley said rice is also versatile and can be stretched further than other ingredients. She said this is especially important for those who cannot afford as much food.
“It’s a very quick and easy staple that you can keep in your pantry and it can go for a wide variety of different types of food,” Bradley said. “If your family is financially disadvantaged, you can pair beans and rice together, and that actually makes a complete protein.”
Bradley said her favorite part of the program was how it helped students interact with and cook rice in different ways than they’re used to. For some, Bradley said this program represents an introduction to rice as an ingredient.
However, the family and consumer science teacher said Tell’s visit to Newport was not without challenges.
Tell was scheduled to return to Newport High School on April 10, but Bradley said she fell ill and missed the second day.
“She could have talked so much more and given the information about it. She did not get to go into depth like she would at other places,” Bradley said.
In the time they did spend together, Bradley said Tell was a very energetic and fun, but professional person to work with.
“I think she’s phenomenal and I liked having the opportunity,” Bradley said. “I hope that this is something that takes off and is able to be utilized in schools across Arkansas.”
Tell said the student feedback, recipe evaluations and participation data gathered in the pilot will refine the program and prepare it for statewide expansion.
In the final iteration of the program, Bradley said she would like to see taste testing and activities for all grade levels.
Tell said the program continuously searches for and develops new and more effective methods of engaging schools.
Bradley said the school will continue building on the foundation laid by Tell and the Rice in Schools Program. She said the school’s student-run restaurant, the Hungry Hound Cafe, started implementing rice meals based on what they learned from the program.
Tell said she is a teacher at heart and loves to cook, so working with students to prepare recipes in the classroom was a great combination.
“We are bringing Arkansas-grown rice to schools across the state,” Tell said. “One plate at a time.” More information about the Rice in Schools program may be found on the Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s website. Program organizers also created a digital guide featuring rice data and recipes from USA Rice.
JONESBORO – KASU is welcoming photographer Art Meripol to Arkansas State University with a reception and “art talk” for his photo exhibit, “We Shall Overcome.”
Headshot photo of Art Meripol. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol
The reception, hosted by KASU, will be held from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Oct. 29, in the Humanities and Social Sciences building atrium.
The photo exhibit, also located in the humanities building and presented by KASU, comprises 25 photographs of various landmarks along the Civil Rights Trail. The exhibit opened to the public June 13. Meripol said his Civil Rights Trail photography is some of his most rewarding work.
“I’ve had a 50-year career and I’m more proud of this work than probably anything I’ve done in those 50 years, and I wanted to share it,” Meripol said.
LaDawn Lee Fuhr, KASU corporate relations specialist, said Meripol’s background in journalism, passion for history and skill in photography will be of interest to a wide range of people at the “art talk” and reception.
“We feel like bringing this history and this art together is great for the overall community,” Fuhr said. “We’re hoping that people will come out and see it and meet Art, talk to him, and understand his process.”
Audio story by DDNS Reporter Jerry Don Burton
Mosaic Templars Cultural Center. Meripol said he woke up at 4:30 a.m. to capture the center in pre-dawn light. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
Fuhr was a major force in bringing Meripol’s photography to A-State. She said the concept of the exhibit and reception blossomed from a conversation between her and Meripol.
After not having seen each other for decades, Fuhr and Meripol reconnected at the Old State House Museum in Little Rock on July 12, 2024. Fuhr said she was impressed by his photography work on “The Official United States Civil Rights Trail: What Happened Here Changed the World,” a book published in 2021 by Alabama tourism director Lee Sentell, and wanted to create an exhibit of his Civil Rights Trail photographs.
Meripol said he knew the project would be worthwhile, but was initially daunted by the work, time and logistics it would take to complete such an exhibit.
“Once I got started, I got pretty excited about the possibilities to go through all the work I did on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail and narrow it down,” Meripol said. “I think that was what intimidated me more than anything was trying to pick 20 or 25 pictures out of all that.”
A majority of the photos featured in the exhibit were taken in 2017, when Meripol said he traveled to 10 states in 12 days to expand coverage of the Civil Rights Trail. Starting in Alabama, where he is based currently, Meripol covered sites in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Kansas, Washington, D.C., Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.
Little Rock Central High School. In 1957, nine teens known as the “Little Rock Nine” were the first African American students to enter the school following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court ruling that made segregated schools illegal. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
Meripol said some of his favorite career experiences came from his work photographing the Civil Rights Trail.
Meripol said one such experience was his visit to Medgar Evers’ home. Evers, a civil rights activist and the first NAACP field secretary in Mississippi, was assassinated in the driveway of his home in 1963.
Prior to his arrival, Meripol said the caretaker of the home did not know he was coming to take photos. He said she was suspicious at first, but they ended up having a wonderful time together.
“We ended up sitting at the kitchen table at Medgar Evers’ home with her, and she was telling stories of when she was in high school and how they all adored Medgar Evers,” Meripol said. “Just seeing her face as her mind went back to that time and her memories was just magic.”
Evers’ home was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2017.
Medgar Evers’ home. Evers was dedicated to ending racial segregation at the University of Mississippi, enforcing voting rights and expanding opportunities for African Americans prior to his assassination in 1963. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
Meripol said another particularly memorable experience was his time in Washington photographing the Martin Luther King Jr. and Lincoln memorials.
Due to flight delays caused by storms, Meripol didn’t arrive in Washington until midnight. He took an Uber at 4 a.m. to the memorial to capture it before sunrise. He said he could not have asked for better lighting and was so inspired in fact, he decided to walk to the nearby Lincoln Memorial.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, located in Washington, D.C. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
The Lincoln Memorial is typically a high-traffic tourist attraction, making it hard to photograph. But, due to the storms, Meripol said the memorial was empty, save for one employee.
“A U.S. government employee, an older Black man, was polishing the floors in front of Abraham Lincoln with the morning lights streaming through the columns and lighting him up,” Meripol said. “And I shot maybe one of my single favorite pictures of my life.”
Lincoln Memorial. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
Meripol said he hopes his work inspires viewers to visit the historic landmarks in his photos.
“I have a picture of the Edmund Pettus Bridge where the Bloody Sunday marches happened for voting rights,” Meripol said. “I hope they see that picture and want to go experience the bridge themselves. If they do, they’ll walk over the bridge as the marchers did back in the early sixties.”
Edmund Pettus Bridge, located in Selma, Alabama. The bridge was the site of Bloody Sunday, a conflict on March 7, 1965, when police attacked civil rights demonstrators as they were marching to the state capital. Photo courtesy of Art Meripol.
Fuhr said Meripol’s photography is important for preserving and highlighting the history of the United States.
“It’s a trite statement, but it’s true. If we don’t know our history, we’re doomed to repeat it,” Fuhr said. “I think any of us have a connection to the history that made this country. I feel it’s important to be seen in such a beautiful way. Because there was such pain, but it’s presented in such an appealing, beautiful way that people can appreciate.”
Meripol said the United States has always acknowledged its failures, but the current political climate is leading to the burial of some history.
“When we start hiding those failures, then you don’t know what needs to be paid attention to,” Meripol said.
In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order targeting funding for programs that “degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with federal law and policy.” A few months later, in August, the Wall Street Journal reported that the White House ordered a review of exhibits at the Smithsonian Museum to align with Trump’s interpretation of American history.
Civil rights leaders, advocates and historians have criticized these moves as singling out content on slavery and civil rights in an effort to minimize the contributions of Black Americans.
National Museum of African American History. Photo Courtesy of Art Meripol.
“There is an effort to try to hide those things, hiding Black history, which is American history. It hurts to see it happen,” Meripol said. “I’m hoping this exhibit will keep people discussing these things and finding ways to move forward.”
Fuhr said KASU’s involvement in creating the exhibit and reception aligns with the non-commercial public radio station’s mission to be a resource for the community.
“This is the kind of thing that public radio does that others don’t really do, which is to go deeper in the world and be able to bring this to the community.”
Mark Smith, KASU station manager, said the radio station is excited to bring Meripol’s photographs to the community. He said viewers will be immersed in the rich history and the craftsmanship on display.
Fuhr said bringing the exhibit to A-State was a joint effort between many individuals, both within and outside of A-State.
The event is sponsored by the A-State Office of the Provost, A-State College of Liberal Arts and Communication, Mosaic Templars Cultural Center and Arisa Health.
Kendall Moody, interior/exterior team leader for facilities management project services at A-State, was responsible for much of the physical preparation regarding the exhibit. Fuhr said his contributions were integral in ensuring the photos were placed properly without damaging the walls and columns of the humanities building.
Fuhr said the exhibit is planned to stay up until early 2026, but is interested in presenting the photos at other venues as a traveling exhibit.
“Each time I look at a photograph, I get a different sense of it, and so I want it up long enough for people to really appreciate it and really feel it,” Fuhr said.
Information from the Tennessee Department of Transportation
MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE—In a powerful celebration of culture and history, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) proudly announce that the new iconic Interstate 55 (I-55) bridge spanning the Mississippi River between Memphis, Tennessee, and West Memphis, Arkansas, will now be known as Kings’ Crossing.
This new name, officially adopted by the Tennessee General Assembly and the Arkansas Highway Commission, honors three transformative figures known as “Kings”: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.; B.B. King; and Elvis Presley.
“Kings’ Crossing is more than just a piece of infrastructure; it is a symbol of our collective history, heritage, and the enduring spirit of unity that defines this region,” said TDOT Commissioner Will Reid. “Naming this bridge in honor of these gentlemen pays tribute to their extraordinary legacies – individuals who transcended barriers, fostered cultural exchange, and used their talents to build bridges between people.”
“It’s only fitting to name this vital crossing after three historic figures from this region,” said ARDOT Director Jared Wiley. “We’re grateful for the partnership and collaboration with TDOT on this project. It truly is the result of a regional effort that will benefit industry across this national corridor and the thousands of individuals who depend on this connection each day.”
In July 2024, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded a landmark federal investment in Tennessee and Arkansas of nearly $400 million toward half the cost of replacing the I-55 Bridge over the Mississippi River. In addition to the nearly $400 million from the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) program, TDOT, utilizing a state general fund allocation provided through the Transportation Modernization Act, and the Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) have each committed up to $200 million, demonstrating a collaborative effort to fund this bridge replacement. This marks the single-largest transportation investment in Tennessee and Arkansas’ state history.
The I-55 Bridge, a vital link for national commerce, is set to undergo a comprehensive overhaul to add capacity, improve safety standards, ensure route resiliency, and maintain optimal operational conditions. The existing bridge, which has served travelers for 75 years since its construction, will be replaced with a larger structure designed to meet modern seismic codes, as it sits on the New Madrid fault line.
The environmental process is wrapping up on the I-55 Bridge Replacement project. Design is underway, and Right-of-Way coordination should begin later this year. Construction is estimated to start in fiscal year 2026. TDOT and ARDOT are partnering to design and construct the bridge utilizing the Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) project delivery method. CM/GC is used for complex projects, aligning technical direction, organizational structure, and budgets with the department’s strategic vision.
Delta Digital News Service 