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🌱 Patch AM: How a new Walton-backed campus could reshape Bentonville students’ careers

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Hey there, Bentonville! Let's get started with what's happening in and around town. Read on and stay in the loop. ☀️

In today's newsletter:

  • How a new Walton-backed campus could reshape Bentonville students’ careers
  • How Benton County Jail in Bentonville became an ICE arrest hotspot
  • Why Bentonville’s church pantry is still turning hungry families away

Also on today's calendar: Bentonville Farmers Market - Indoor Season and 6 more events.

Find out what's happening in Bentonvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

Today's riddle: I once read a book about anti-gravity. 🤔 (Answer below!)

Weather forecast:

Find out what's happening in Bentonvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.

  • Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high of 53 and low of 31 degrees.
  • Saturday: Mostly cloudy, temps: high: 53, low: 10. ⛄️ Brr!
  • Sunday: Plenty of sun, with a high of 33 and low of 21 degrees.

📰 News we're reading

1. Bentonville schools' program to expand with help from Walton organizations (axios.com) — Bentonville Public Schools’ Ignite program is set for a major expansion through a new partnership with the Alice L. Walton Foundation and Heartland Whole Health Institute, potentially including a dedicated building on Walton’s planned Bentonville health care campus. The effort aims to open more health, business, technology, and engineering pathways to up to 1,500 students from Bentonville and nearby districts, helping grow the region’s future health care workforce.
   

2. One Arkansas County Helps ICE Make Hundreds of Arrests – [your]NEWS (yournews.com) — Hundreds of people have been arrested by ICE at the Benton County Jail in Bentonville in just seven months, making Northwest Arkansas a key focus of federal immigration enforcement. The report explains how local cooperation agreements, state law, and traffic enforcement are driving the surge and what that could mean for communities like Bentonville going forward.
   

3. Food pantries see high demand despite SNAP reinstatement (nwahomepage.com) — Bentonville’s First United Methodist Church food pantry is still seeing around 230 families on average, even after SNAP benefits were reinstated, and expects to serve about 275 families at Christmas. Alongside a Rogers church pantry, they report turning people away at times as demand stays high, partly because they also offer personal care items on select Tuesdays.
   

4. Bentonville man accused of leading trooper on high-speed pursuit after fleeing crash; chase ends in PIT maneuver (nwahomepage.com) — A 19-year-old Bentonville man is facing multiple charges after Arkansas State Police say he fled a crash on I-49 and was later stopped by a PIT maneuver near Springdale. Court records detail allegations of reckless driving, fleeing, and DUI, and note he was booked into and released from the Benton County Detention Center on bond pending a January court date.
   

5. Walton family fortune: How American's richest family manages their wealth (cnbc.com) — Bentonville gets a nod as the Walton family’s hometown and the base for new investments like a nearby mountain biking park, even as most of the story tracks how America’s richest family manages its vast Walmart-derived fortune. The piece explains their shared family office structure, individual impact-investing efforts, and how younger Waltons are steering philanthropy and projects in new directions.
   

📸 Around Bentonville

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💬 Chatter

What your neighbors are talking about on social media

  • Ok I think it’s time we ask what we as a community can do regarding UPS, Fedex, and Amazons regular and repeated failures to deliver packages to the correct address.
    I just want to help stir up some ideas with hopes that maybe someone that sees this can give up some contact information that will help make progress… (Nextdoor Kristyl Heights)
  • OK, this is a longshot but does anybody know anybody by the name of Andy that bought a storage unit that was auctioned over at Jimani storage rentals yesterday on 12-9.
    It is very important that I get a hold of him. There was a very old desk that my grandmother gave me and it has sentimental value and I would like to… (Nextdoor Glenbrook Ave)
  • K2view posted a job opening for Strategic Customer Business Executive (CBE) in Bentonville. Apply here.
  • City of Bentonville posted a job opening for Water Distribution Operator I in Bentonville. Apply here. You can search for other jobs near Bentonville here.

Ok Bentonville! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!

-- The Patch AM Team

P.S. The answer to today's riddle: I couldn’t put it down.
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Send it to us!

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