Campus:
ASG Sends Fall Break Survey to Students
University of Arkansas’ students received an E-mail from ASG President Mattie Bookhout asking for their opinion on whether they were in favor of a Fall break being added to the schedule. The poll consisted of two questions. One of those asked the opinion of if students would rather have a two-day extension in the month of October or an extension of the current Thanksgiving break. Votes are needed so that ASG can best present the student opinion to the Calendar Committee.
U of A Adds Millions to State Economy
A study prepared by the Walton College of Business has put a price on the University’s impact at $725.4 million. The study found there are more than 60,000 University of Arkansas alumni living in Arkansas, representing every county in the state, contributing $62.9 million in sales and use taxes to state and county governments and an additional $122.2 million in state income taxes. The researchers calculated that university alumni living in the state earn $2.2 billion in wages a year, significantly contributing as workers, business leaders and consumers in their local economies.
Local:
Remains Believed to Be Local Women
On Tuesday Police found remains they believe to be the missing women. The two women, Louise and Christina Bishop, were last seen at a Bentonville Sam’s Club last June. The police found the remains off Sugar Creek Road off Highway 62 in Benton County near Garfield. Police said a tip inside the Benton County jail led them to the remains.
Benton County Rated Healthiest in Arkansas
According to a report released by University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute said Benton County was the healthiest in Arkansas. Phillips County is reported as being the worst. It ranks Benton, Washington, Pope, Faulkner, Newton and Franklin counties as Arkansas’ healthiest. The least healthy in the report are Phillips, Woodruff, Poinsett, Mississippi and Monroe. The report bases the health rate on the rate of people dying before age 75, the percent of people who report being in fair or poor health, the numbers of days people report being in poor physical and poor mental health, and the rate of low-birthweight infants.
National:
Commercial Flights to Haiti Back On
American Airlines will resume commercial flights into Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Friday. It will be the first airline to do so. Flights will depart from Miami and Ft. Lauderdale starting out and later from JFK in New York.
Fight for Health Care
The fight for health care reform is back in the lime light today as four Democratic Senators asked Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to hold a vote on a government-run public insurance option. Senators Michael Bennet of Colorado, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Jeff Merkley of Oregon, and Sherrod Brown of Ohio signed a letter urging Reid to hold a vote on the proposal under a rule known as a reconciliation, which would allow the measure to pass with only 51 votes — a simple majority.
Ambassador to Syria
After a five-year diplomatic absence in Syria, President Obama is nominating veteran diplomat Robert Ford to serve as U.S. ambassador there. This is a sign of thawing relations between the two nations. Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said that Ford was on experienced diplomat with many years of dealings in the Middle East.
Sports:
Razorbacks take on Gamecocks Wednesday
The Razorback men’s basketball team comes back to Bud Walton Arena Wednesday to take on South Carolina after having their five-game winning streak snapped at the hands of Alabama on Saturday. The Hogs remain in a first-place tie in the SEC West Division with Mississippi State after the loss and know they need to defend their home court if they want to win the division. Sophomore Courtney Fortson continues to lead the Razorbacks, as he is averaging 19.8 points per game. The Gamecocks are led by senior Devan Downey, who is averaging nearly 30 points, and had a fantastic win against Kentucky earlier in the year. The Gamecocks have won three of their last five contests and are in fourth place in a stacked SEC East Division. Tonight’s game will be broadcast by Comcast Sports and tip is set for 8 p.m.
Two track and field Hogs earn SEC accolades
Arkansas Razorback senior Alain Bailey and freshman Regina George, members of the track and field team, earned SEC weekly awards Tuesday. Bailey, a native of Jamaica, was named the SEC Male Field Event Athlete of the Week. He competed in the invitational section of the long jump at the Tyson Invitational this weekend. He won the event with a mark of 26-2.75 and his jump is a personal and season best and an NCAA automatic qualifier. George, a freshman from Chicago, Ill., is the SEC Female Freshman of the Week. She ran the open 400 meters and the anchor leg of the 4×400-meter relay at the Tyson Invitational this weekend. In the last week, she has had three school record-setting performances. The Razorbacks will compete next when they host the 2010 SEC Indoor Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Championships, Feb. 26-28, at the Randal Tyson Track Center.
Winter Olympics Update
What to watch for:
American skiier, Lindsey Vonn, is the favorite heading into the women’s downhill today which has been plagued by weather problems for the last three days and forced the event to be pushed back. Vonn, who suffered an injury on a practice run before the Olympics even started has benefited the most from the delay. Vonn has not raced competitively since January 31, but believes she is ready to finally begin competition.
In hockey news, the Team USA men’s hockey team kicked off their Olympics in style on Tuesday after scoring a 3-1 opening round win over Switzerland. American Bobby Ryan scored late in the first period, and David Backes and Ryan Malone added goals in the second to help the youngest collection of American hockey players since the NHL began supplying talent for the 1998 Nagano Games. The team will continue round robin play against Norway on Thursday.