June 4, 1954

Arkansas PBS, which operated under the name Arkansas Educational Television Network (AETN) until 2020, began with the creation of the Arkansas Educational Television Association, a citizens’ group interested in establishing a non-commercial alternative to the growing commercial television enterprise. Its mission includes offering lifelong learning opportunities to all Arkansans, supplying instructional programs to Arkansas schools, enhancing the lives of Arkansas citizens, and illuminating the culture and heritage of Arkansas and the world. Instrumental in the establishment of the operations were land made available at Arkansas State Teachers College (now the University of Central Arkansas) in Conway (Faulkner County) and the provision of significant financial support from Conway Corporation.