Summary:
The Bentonville School District in Arkansas is home to two high-performing high schools, Bentonville High School and Bentonville West High School, serving grades 9-12 in a highly ranked district that holds a 5-star rating and ranks 7th out of 251 districts statewide.
Bentonville High School stands out as the top academic performer, ranking 7th in the state (98th percentile) and consistently outpacing its counterpart in every subject. For the 2025-2026 school year, it achieved 62.7% proficiency in ELA and 77% in Biology, compared to Bentonville West High School's 53.2% and 60.5%, respectively. However, Bentonville West High School excels in efficiency and student retention. It spends $1,089 less per student ($10,781 vs. $11,870), maintains a lower student-teacher ratio (9.4 vs. 11.6), and boasts a remarkably low dropout rate of 0.4%—nearly half of Bentonville High's 0.7%. Both schools dramatically exceed state averages, with graduation rates around 96% versus the state's 90.1%.
A key takeaway is the "Algebra Anomaly": both high schools' Algebra proficiency rates (46.9% at Bentonville High and 41.6% at Bentonville West) are far below the district average of 67.6%, suggesting that middle school scores may be inflating the district figure. Additionally, 9th graders at both schools significantly outperform 10th graders in Geometry, likely because advanced students take the subject earlier. While Bentonville High School shows volatile rankings (dropping from 3rd to 9th before recovering to 7th), Bentonville West High School has seen a slow decline from 13th to 17th place. Overall, families can expect exceptional academic outcomes from both schools, with Bentonville High offering top-tier scores and Bentonville West providing cost-effective, supportive education.
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