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Events

Welcoming Week NWA Highlights the Region’s Cultural Diversity

Welcoming Week NWA 2023 will take place Sep 8-17, bringing a week full of community events, multiple speaker panels, volunteer drives, and ways to highlight the importance of making NWA a thriving and inclusive place to live and work.

• Hospitality: Welcoming Week NWA begins with an Opening Celebration at the Jones Center on Friday, Sep 8, from 9-11a, featuring keynote speaker Victor Calise — Walmart Director of Global DEI, Paralympian, and advocate for adapting spaces for those with disabilities.

• Making Waves: The Arkansas Coalition of Marshallese will also highlight an upcoming cultural training, and the Ocean Wave dancers will perform traditional dances from the Pacific Islands.

See a full schedule of Welcoming Week NWA events HERE.

Startup

Greenhouse Outdoor Recreation Program Launches Largest Cohort Yet

The Greenhouse Outdoor Recreation Program welcomed its largest cohort ever on Aug 29, with with eight startups participating in the U of A's flagship business incubation program.

• Greenhouse Growth: The 12-week program provides up to $15,000 in non-dilutive seed funding per company. Since 2022, GORP has launched 17 startups and supported over 200 entrepreneurs through various workshops, services, and workspace at the Collaborative.

• Homegrown: Of the eight startups in the fall cohort, five originated in Northwest Arkansas, including startups focussed on outdoor recreation apparel, community apps, outdoor ed services, and one athletic apparel company founded by a local high school student. 


See the full list of startups and their unique ideas HERE.

Sponsored by Red Barn Bentonville

Indulge In A Farm Fresh Dining Experience At Red Barn

Gather with local farmers, chefs, artisans, and members of our community for a special Farm Dinner at Red Barn in Bentonville on Friday, Sep 15, and Saturday, Sep 16.

• On the farm: Red Barn Bentonville is Arkansas's first agri-hood, an urban farming community just minutes from Downtown Bentonville. Proceeds raised by their Farm Dinners support sustainable agriculture and local food initiatives.

• Fresh picks: Enjoy a three-course dinner curated by award-winning chefs Rafael Rios of Yeyo’s and Alicia Watson of Vito & Vera, featuring a delicious menu of high-quality late-summer produce from local farms, handcrafted cocktails, and live music during a one-of-a-kind community event.

Gather around the table at Red Barn. Reserve your seat HERE.

(P.S. Members of our Fan Club have a chance to enter a drawing for two tickets below!)

Arts

Walton Arts Center Features Local Artists In New Exhibit

Walton Arts Center will showcase the creative talents of 67 Arkansas artists from 20 cities across the region in its third annual exhibition of Our Art, Our Region, Our Time — on display in Joy Pratt Markham Gallery from Sep 1 to Oct 29.

• Locally Sourced: This exhibition began with an open call to all self-identifying artists, and 93 pieces by 67 artists were curated for the exhibit by local artist and curator Kathy Thompson.

• Ooh and Aah: Explore the local artists’ work during a free opening reception this Friday, Sep 1, from 6-8p. The free exhibition can also be enjoyed on weekdays from 12-2p or before performances.

See a complete list of the artists and their hometowns HERE.

Economy

Building Permits for Single-Family Homes Up 21%

Residential building permit activity in Northwest Arkansas saw a significant increase of 21% through the first seven months of 2023 compared to last year, indicating a thriving housing market in the region.

• Jumping ahead: Data collected by the Northwest Arkansas Business Journal revealed Bentonville, Fayetteville, Rogers, and Springdale issued a total of 1,099 residential building permits through July — a notable jump from the 908 permits issued during the same period in 2022.

• Tracking Growth: Bentonville led the pack with 376 permits issued through July, up 18.9% from the previous year of 316. Rogers issued 237, a 39.4% increase over last year’s 170. Springdale issued 210 permits, a 112.1% increase over just 99 last year.

Find more details in Talk Business & Politics HERE.

Employment

Cool Jobs In NWA

Looking for a job? Check out the wide range of positions posted to our community board:

• Join Circles NWA in their work to forge meaningful relationships and end poverty as Director of Advocacy & Leadership Development.

• Crystal Bridges has several open positions, including a Marketing Intern, a Director of Library and Archives, and a Curatorial Assistant.

Find listings in the health, education, and retail industries on our Job Board, or find great candidates by posting your open positions HERE.

NWA Daily Picks

In other news…

• 😋 Southern Flavors: This Bentonville restaurant landed the #2 spot on Southern Living’s Best New Restaurants of 2023. Can you guess which one?

• 🐯 Tiger-ific: Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs was recognized by Tripadvisor as a 2023 Travelers’ Choice award winner, placing the big cat sanctuary among the top 10% of all listings on Tripadvisor globally.

• 🍔 Too Sexy to Go On: Big Sexy Food is hosting a Grand Closing before the chefs move out of state with a food truck party on Emma Ave in Springdale today at 5p.

• 👭 New in Town: These two friends from Bentonville are helping NWA Newbies find their people and places here in Northwest Arkansas.

• 🎒 Getting Schooled: Eight of the Top Ten Best Schools in Arkansas are in Northwest Arkansas according to U.S. News & World Report's latest annual rankings.

• 📅 Ditch the FOMO: Post your upcoming events on our Events Page, and stay in the know about upcoming events mentioned in the newsletter.

🚀 Take Off 🚀 

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🥳 NWA Daily Fan Club 🥳

Our fan’s monthly donations keep this thing going. In return for being awesome, they get access to exclusive giveaways — from gift cards to concert tickets to kayaks!

Today, members of the NWA Daily Fan Program have the chance to win two tickets to Red Barn Farm Dinner on Sep 15 or 16.

Dear Fans, enter today’s giveaway below!

Join our Fan Club to read the rest.