Antoinette Grajeda, Arkansas Advocate, Author at Mountain Home Observer

Antoinette Grajeda, Arkansas Advocate

Antoinette Grajeda is a multimedia journalist who writes for the Arkansas Advocate. She has reported since 2007 on a wide range of topics, including politics, health, education, immigration and the arts for NPR affiliates, print publications and digital platforms. A University of Arkansas alumna, she earned a bachelor’s degree in print journalism and a master’s degree in documentary film.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

176 articles published

Arkansas lawmakers adopt recommendations for per-student school funding

The Joint Education Committee recommended Monday that Arkansas increase the per-student funding directed to public schools by more than 2% over the next two years. Schools would receive $8,239 per student for the 2027-2028 academic year and $8,431 the following school year, under the recommendations advanced Monday. Schools currently receive $8,037 per student. The proposed…

October 7, 2026

Northwest Arkansas growing pains, national concerns top issues at Springdale political gathering

Rain and overcast skies didn’t dampen the mood at the annual Chickin, Peelin’ & Politickin’ event Thursday at Springdale’s Shiloh Square as residents, business owners and elected officials networked over plates of fried chicken and shrimp. During election years, the 16-year-old gathering is a popular stop for candidates in a rapidly growing region that’s home…

October 6, 2026

Former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says humility key to democracy

Humility, listening and serving others are important pieces of democracy, former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Wednesday during a lecture at Bentonville’s Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. “The American spirit means to me that we don’t wait on our government to deliver for us, that we deliver for one another,” Rice said.…

October 2, 2026

Arkansas governor hopefuls focus on health, education, prisons

Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Democratic state Sen. Fred Love and Libertarian Colt Shelby said they would address affordability, healthcare, education and the state’s prison system if elected governor, but differ in their strategies. Lowering taxes “at a time when people are struggling to make ends meet,” is a top priority for Sanders, the former…

October 1, 2026

Arkansas State University appoints its first African-American chancellor

Calvin White Jr. became Arkansas State University’s first African-American chancellor when the board of trustees approved a recommendation to appoint him to the post Monday. The board also appointed Ike Wheeler as chancellor of ASU-Newport. He had served as interim chancellor since August 2025. White was executive vice chancellor and provost at Arkansas State before…

September 30, 2026

Rate of insured Arkansas children continues to grow, report shows

Action is needed to address the uninsured rate for Arkansas children, which remains at its highest level in a decade, according to an Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families report released Wednesday. Nearly 57,000 kids — 7.7% of Arkansas children — were uninsured in 2024, according to the annual study, which found that children in…

September 24, 2026

Appeals court hears arguments over Arkansas’ Ten Commandments in classrooms mandate

A federal appeals panel is considering whether to allow six Arkansas school districts to enforce a 2025 state law requiring Ten Commandments displays in all public school classrooms. A three-judge 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel heard arguments Tuesday in St. Louis in a federal lawsuit challenging Act 573 of 2025, which requires public…

September 23, 2026

Oklahoma, Mississippi assisting with wildfire suppression in south Arkansas

The Oklahoma National Guard and Mississippi National Guard are providing aviation resources to help Arkansas suppress a wildfire that’s burned thousands of acres near a Camden industrial park where several defense contractors are located, officials announced Friday. In response to a request from the Arkansas Division of Emergency Management, two Chinook helicopters equipped with 2,000-gallon…

September 22, 2026

Arkansas students learn about 9/11 attacks through oral histories

Army veteran Wesley Jackson remembers his confusion when co-workers told him two planes struck the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. After processing the news of the terrorist attacks, Jackson realized his days as a peacetime soldier were over, and it was only a matter of time before he was deployed…

September 8, 2026

Video of 2 Mississippi County traffic stops prompt calls for Arkansas State Police investigation

The Democratic Party of Arkansas and the NAACP Arkansas State Conference are calling for a review of state police’s use-of-force policy after a video released over the weekend showed an officer pulling a man by his dreadlocks and punching him through a car’s broken backseat window. This is the second video of August traffic stops…

September 3, 2026

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