Facing a state mandate, Arkansas students are volunteering more hours, leaders at some area nonprofit groups said.

Starting in the 2026-27 academic year, public school students must complete 75 hours of community service to graduate. That requirement is part of the LEARNS Act, the state education overhaul passed in 2023.

One area nonprofit, which does not currently take student volunteers, has even said it plans to take a cue from its counterparts in Texas to accommodate teens seeking to fulfill the service mandate.

Morgan Benton, volunteer coordinator at Habitat for Humanity of Central Arkansas, said her organization has heard more from students seeking to satisfy service requirements since Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed LEARNS into law.

"We definitely had an uptick of students re

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