Summary:
The Ashdown School District is home to one elementary school, Ashdown Elementary School, which serves students in grades K-5 in Ashdown, Arkansas. With an enrollment of 621 students and a high level of economic need—over 72% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch—the school is a central pillar of the community.
Ashdown Elementary School shows clear signs of improvement, with proficiency rates rising across all subjects from the 2024-2025 school year to the 2025-2026 school year. The school’s state ranking improved from the 31st percentile to the 37th percentile, now sitting at 310 out of 491 elementary schools in Arkansas. Overall proficiency rates remain below state averages—for example, 34.7% of students are proficient in English Language Arts compared to the state’s 39.4%—but the upward trend is encouraging. The school’s standout strength is in 5th grade science, where 56.4% of students are proficient, outperforming the state average by 12.6 percentage points. This success could serve as a model for improving other subjects.
A key area of concern is a significant drop in performance between 3rd and 4th grade. In English Language Arts, 3rd graders achieved a 39.2% proficiency rate, but 4th graders fell to just 24.4%, a pattern also seen in reading and math. This “4th grade slump” suggests a need to examine the curriculum and instruction for that grade level. With a student-teacher ratio of 18.2:1 and per-student spending of $11,048, the school has resources to address these challenges. Overall, Ashdown Elementary School is on a positive trajectory, and its recent gains offer hope for continued progress.
Thank you for your feedback!