U.S. News & World Report’s recent 2024 Best Elementary, Middle, and High School rankings included no less than five schools within the Pulaski County Special School District within the top 150 in their respective categories. The lists include more than 79,000 public elementary and middle schools and 25,000 high schools across the country. Schools are ranked at the state and district level, with Best Charter Schools and Best Magnet Schools ranked as stand-alone categories.
- Baker Elementary – Ranked #1 in Arkansas for Elementary Schools
- Chenal Elementary – Ranked #14 in Arkansas for Elementary Schools
- Cato Elementary – Ranked #119 in Arkansas for Elementary Schools
- Joe T. Robinson Middle – Ranked #42 in Arkansas for Middle Schools
- Joe T. Robinson High – Ranked #94 in Arkansas for High Schools
“We couldn’t be more proud of the leaders and professional staff at each of the five buildings as they are nationally recognized for supporting our students,” said PCSSD Superintendent Charles McNulty, Ph.D. “What’s even more exciting is that we, as a district, build capacity across all of our K-12 schools with a student-centered approach. Therefore, we believe this is just a tip of the iceberg of great things to come for our students and their families.”
Schools were ranked based on state assessments of students who were proficient or above proficient in mathematics and reading/language arts while accounting for student backgrounds, achievement in core subjects, and how well schools are educating their students. Student-teacher ratios were applied to break ties in the overall score.
“The 2024 Best rankings offer a way for parents to get a snapshot of their child’s school and how well it is doing compared with other schools in their community,” said LaMont Jones, managing editor for education at U.S. News. “In addition, U.S. News provides easily accessible data on student-teacher ratios, district spending and the number of counselors a school makes available to its students.”
