Southern Bancorp, a rural community development bank, has agreed to buy a small El Dorado bank and use it as an anchor to reach disadvantaged areas in south Arkansas, Southern Bancorp’s chief executive officer said Thursday.

Troubled Timberland Bank of El Dorado announced Thursday that it will be acquired by Southern Bancorp of Arkadelphia in a deal that is expected to close within 90 days. Southern Bancorp is paying between $5 million and $6 million in cash for the bank – about half its book value, according to Southern CEO Phil Baldwin. But it is also allowing Timberland Bank’s holding company, Timberland Bancshares Inc., to retain in the form of a dividend some $5.8 million worth of nonperforming assets.

Webmaster Note: Southern Good Faith Fund has been leading the Arkansans Against Abusive Payday Lending coalition to protect Arkansans from abusive rapid refund anticipation loans.

LITTLE ROCK — A state lawmaker says he wants more protections for consumers who apply for so-called “instant refunds” or “cash advances” on their income tax refunds.Rep. Darrin Williams, D-Little Rock, said he plans to present Friday in the House Insurance and Commerce Committee a bill that would require any business offering short-term loans based on anticipated tax refunds to disclose to consumers any fees they may have to pay.

HELENA-WEST HELENA — Orlando Jones of the Boys and Girls Club of Phillips County has been named the Youth of the Year for the state of Arkansas by Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Jones, a 17-year-old senior at Central High School in Helena-West Helena, will receive a $1,000 scholarship from the Reader’s Digest Foundation. He is among hundreds of Youth of the Year winners across the country recognized by Boys and Girls Clubs of America for sound character, leadership skills and willingness to give back to the community.

Orlando Jones, a 3-year member of the Boys and Girls Club of Phillips County, has been named the Youth of the Year for the state of Arkansas by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA). In addition to winning this prestigious title, Jones will also receive a $1,000 scholarship from the Reader’s Digest Foundation. He is among hundreds of Youth of the Year winners across the country recognized by Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) for his sound character, leadership skills and willingness to give back to the community.

Actions are being taken to bring high-speed Internet service to everyone in Clark County, from Arkadelphia to all rural areas.

Members of the Economic Development Sub-committee of the Clark County Strategic Plan met at noon Monday to hear a presentation from Kim Tran of Connect-Arkansas, a private, non-profit organization designed to “link all Arkansans, especially in rural areas, to the Internet.”

Paul Harvel, chief executive officer of the Arkadelphia Regional Economic Development Alliance, gave the Clark County Quorum Court an annual report Monday on the Economic Development Corp. of Clark County.

How do you start a profile of Scott Shirey, the founder and force behind the Delta College Prep charter school in the historic ruins of Helena, a once-hopping river town?

You could start with Shirey the teacher. Picture him in his small classroom of 11th-graders, their desks arranged in a loose circle, their attention on the day’s assignment, an interpretive look at Arc of Justice, a book about a civil-rights trial in 1920s Detroit by Kevin Boyle.

Delta College Prep is a member of the successful Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) charter system. The 11th-graders are on schedule to becoming the school’s first graduating class. Twelve of the 13 students in Shirey’s classroom are black, one is white, an only slightly skewed representation of the demographic breakdown of this Phillips County seat.

Funding for computers, software part of Southern Bancorp initiative

Mayors and their representatives from throughout St. Francis County got a look at a computer accounting system Thursday that Southern Bancorp may help them get.