It was a good week for...
JUDICIAL APPOINTMENTS.Gov. Mike Beebe filled a list of judicial vacancies created by election, retirement and at least one disciplinary-related resignation. The top appointment is that of current Court of Appeals Judge Cliff Hoofman, a colleague of Beebe when both served in the state Senate, to replace a retiring Supreme Court justice until the next election. He also named another former Senate colleague, Bill Walmsley, to a Court of Appeals seat.
KELLEY BASS. The UALR assistant dean was hired as CEO of the Museum of Discovery. He succeeds Nan Selz, whose tenure saw the revamping of the interactive science museum with help from a $9.2 million grant from the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.
ALEXIA WEIMER. Weimer, a kindergarten teacher who has worked the past six years at Avondale Elementary in the Marion School District, was named Arkansas Teacher of the Year. She'll receive a $15,000 check from the Walton Family Foundation, which sponsors the award.
A ZOO FIRST. The Little Rock Zoo announced the hatching of its first penguin chick. The penguin babe doesn't have a name yet.
It was a bad week for...
ARKANSAS FOOTBALL. Despite a stronger effort than in previous weeks, the Hogs couldn't pull the upset against the LSU Tigers. The loss wrapped up a 4-8 season, the team's worst record since 1990. Now, Athletic Director Jeff Long is tasked with finding a big-name head coach to appease fans and return the team to the heights it knew under Bobby Petrino.
PUBLIC ART, AGAIN. Last week, we told you about the theft of three bronze sculptures from the Vogel-Schwartz Sculpture Garden in Riverfront Park, which police said was possibly the work of scrap metal thieves. This week brings news of another piece of Little Rock public art, Michael Warrick's "Fusion, 2009" sculpture, badly damaged. Main Library cameras captured three men knocking over the sculpture at about 2 a.m. Friday. Warrick, a UALR professor, will repair it.