Summary:
The Paris School District in Arkansas is a small, unified district serving 1,000 students across three schools: Paris Elementary School (PK-4), Paris Middle School (5-8), and Paris High School (9-12), with every student eligible for free or reduced lunch, reflecting a community with very high economic need.
Paris Middle School is the standout performer, showing a consistent upward trend in its state ranking to the 69th percentile and achieving exceptional results in advanced coursework—its 8th graders posted a 72.7% proficiency rate in Algebra, nearly double the state average. In contrast, Paris High School is the most troubled, with a dramatic ranking decline from the 74th to the 20th percentile, despite having the highest per-student spending ($15,046) and the most favorable student-teacher ratio (7.7:1). Paris Elementary School provides a stable foundation, consistently earning a 3-star rating and excelling in Mathematics, where 55.4% of all students were proficient in 2025-2026, outpacing the state average of 44.1%.
Key metrics reveal a paradox at the high school, where high resources do not translate into academic success, except in Biology, where proficiency is 56.9% versus the state's 42.7%. The district's graduation rate is a solid 92.5%, above the state average, and the dropout rate is very low at 0.6%. The middle school's Algebra success does not carry over to the high school, where Algebra proficiency is just 5.8%, suggesting a need for better alignment. Overall, the district earns a 3-star rating and ranks 113th out of 251 districts, demonstrating that high achievement is possible even under challenging socioeconomic conditions.
Thank you for your feedback!