News & Announcements

The Central Arkansas Library System’s Encyclopedia of Arkansas is celebrating 15 years as one of the most trusted resources for information about Arkansas’s history and culture. In celebration of the EOA’s fifteenth anniversary, this month’s Legacies & Lunch, May 5 at noon, will feature historian William H. Pruden III to discuss “Lessons in Learning: The CALS Encyclopedia of Arkansas &

CALS to host series of panel discussions to share “Our Common Purpose”

Arkansas’s capital city will be the nation’s municipal “champion” as part of a nationwide effort – led by the American Academy of Arts & Sciences – to increase civic learning and engagement across America. The Academy launched a bipartisan Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship to study political and civic life around the country.

Library invites patrons to “Go Green with CALS”

To honor Earth Day, Thursday, April 22, the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) is celebrating all month long. The initiative, “Go Green with CALS,” will offer a variety of socially distanced in-person, virtual, and grab-and-go programing across all the branches and will have many ways for adults and children alike to reflect on and celebrate Earth Day.

The Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) Rock It! Lab will host an event examining a recent report from Winrock International regarding racial and gender disparities in loans to small businesses. Dr. Julia Chears-Young, guest speaker for “The Barriers to Capital Access – Report Discussion,” will guide attendees through the findings of this comprehensive survey of Arkansas-based people of color and women-owned businesses documenting the factors and barriers to capital access.

Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) AmeriCorps members will participate in National AmeriCorps Week (March 7-13) by breaking ground on a community garden at Millie Brooks MicroLibrary, 13024 Highway 365, Wrightsville. The service project will take place Thursday, March 11, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Volunteer registration link is below.

Each year, community members, along with AmeriCorps members across the country,

The Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) has hired Eliza Borné as its new Director of Development effective March 29, 2021. Borné, an experienced grant writer and fundraiser, comes to the library system from the award-winning Oxford American magazine, where she served as editor-in-chief.

“Eliza is an exceptional leader who brings vision and a breadth of experience to the library’s fundraising efforts,” said Nate Coulter,

Six Bridges Book Festival welcomes C. M. Waggoner, author of The Ruthless Lady’s Guide to Wizardry; Nell Irvin Painter, author of Creating Black Americans; and Kevin Brockmeier, author of The Ghost Variations, for a series of author talks this spring. These virtual events are free and open to the public,

Library noted for imagination, focus on equity

The Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) was acknowledged recently by the Gerald M. Kline Family Foundation and Library Journal in the announcement of the second annual Jerry Kline Community Impact Prize. Developed in partnership between the Gerald M. Kline Family Foundation and Library Journal,