Cultivating Excellence in Bentonville Schools with Dr. Debbie Jones and Teresa Hudson

Summary

On this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell sits down with Dr. Debbie Jones, Superintendent of Bentonville Schools. Previously, Dr. Jones served as Assistant Commissioner for Learning Services at the Arkansas Department of Education where she led its largest unit, which worked to enact educational legislation. Additionally, James is joined by Teresa Hudson, Immediate Past Director of Bentonville Schools’ Ignite Professional Studies, a program that provides relevant learning experiences in collaboration with regional businesses, nonprofits and industry professionals. Throughout the episode, James, Debbie and Teresa discuss why Bentonville Schools ranks amongst the top 2 percent in the nation, the school system’s leadership in workforce development and the incredible opportunities offered to students through the Ignite Professional Studies program.

Thanks for tuning in!

Show Notes

Timestamps in this blog are for the audio-only version of the podcast; video timing differs.

(0:47) Introduction to Dr. Debbie Jones and Teresa Hudson

(5:54) Bentonville Schools’ National Rankings and Statistics

(12:40) About Ignite Professional Studies

(20:24) An Ignite Success Story

(24:51) How Ignite Will Continue to Evolve

(27:52) More Bentonville School Programs

(30:26) Local Ignite Partners

(38:28) How Bentonville Helps Debbie and Teresa Live Their Best Lives

(51:36) #BecauseBentonville Story

‍Links

James Bell 

Bentonville Economic Development 

Dr. Debbie Jones

Bentonville Schools

Teresa Hudson

Ignite Professional Studies

Not mentioned in episode: Ignite’s new Director, Jessica Imel

Quotes

“Our employees, they don’t just do it for the money. They do it because they truly love students, and they do whatever it takes to get kids proficient as they should, to master the content, to be the very best musicians, or the best athletes, whatever that may be.” - Dr. Debbie Jones, (6:59)

“In [Ignite Professional Studies], we hope to provide college credit for all our students to do certifications and to have internships. We feel like that’s the perfect blend of college career training that we want all our students to graduate with. What we hope to achieve is that they make better selections of what they want to do after high school.” - Teresa Hudson, (13:17)

“That social piece, having friends, having a supportive network, is linked with longevity. And we have that here…all the city leaders are present and they reach out and will help each other because we all want to be very inclusive. We welcome people here, and we want everybody to be successful.” - Dr. Debbie Jones, (38:29)

“Everyone cares about everything and they want all of it to be good. So I feel like that’s just the essence of Bentonville is that we’re all in it together and we all are looking for excellence in everything we do. And we’re proud, really proud to live here.” - Teresa Hudson, (52:55)