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Matthews Elementary School

Public Grades K-6

457^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 495 Arkansas Elementary Schools

Better than 8% of Arkansas elementary schools

Summary

Matthews Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, serving grades K-6 with a total enrollment of 389 students. The school is part of the Pine Bluff School District, which is ranked 246 out of 250 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger. Matthews Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom 10% of Arkansas elementary schools over the past 3 school years, with a statewide rank between 457-485 out of around 500 elementary schools.

Matthews Elementary consistently underperforms compared to the Pine Bluff School District and the state of Arkansas across all subject areas and grade levels. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, only 18.4% of Matthews students were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 34.7% statewide. In math, the proficiency rate was just 13.6% compared to 38.7% statewide. Additionally, Matthews Elementary has a 100% free/reduced lunch rate, indicating that all of its students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, which is significantly higher than the district and state averages. The school also has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 13.5 to 15.2 over the past 3 years, lower than nearby Southwood Elementary and Thirty-Fourth Street Elementary schools.

When comparing Matthews Elementary to other schools in the Pine Bluff area, it consistently performs worse academically. For example, Southwood Elementary and Thirty-Fourth Street Elementary, which are also part of the Pine Bluff School District, outperform Matthews across all subject areas and grade levels. Additionally, Matthews Elementary's academic performance has remained stagnant or even declined over the past 3 school years, with proficiency rates staying well below state and district averages, suggesting the school is struggling to effectively address the needs of its students.

367

Students ?

15.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,830

Per pupil spending ?

100%

Free/discounted lunch ?

4501 Dollarway Rd
Pine Bluff, AR 71602

(870) 534-0726

District: Pine Bluff School District

Racial breakdown:

African American:

91.6%

White:

3.5%

Hispanic:

1.9%

See top rated Arkansas elementary schools

Compare Matthews Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 2nd percentile in 2023 → 8th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 6 percentile points since 2023

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Arkansas average (15% vs 36% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (8th percentile)

!Science scores 27 pts below the Arkansas average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school15%

District avg11%

Arkansas avg36%

457^th of 495

Arkansas public elementary schools ?

Bottom 8%▲ up 5 pts since 2023

From bottom 2% (2023) to bottom 8% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Arkansas Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 4Elementary Schools in the Pine Bluff School District

246^th of 250Pine Bluff School District among Arkansas districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Arkansas percentile	Rating
2025	11.7	457 of 495	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.8	485 of 497	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.1	481 of 492	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

By subject vs Arkansas (2024-2025) ?

Reading19%-16 vs state

English Language Arts18%-16 vs state

Mathematics14%-25 vs state

Science11%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Matthews Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ATLAS English Language Arts (2025)					ATLAS Reading (2025)					ATLAS Mathematics (2025)					ATLAS Science (2025)					Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ATLAS English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ATLAS English Language Arts 4th Grade	ATLAS English Language Arts 5th Grade	ATLAS English Language Arts 6th Grade	ATLAS English Language Arts All Grades	ATLAS Reading 3rd Grade	ATLAS Reading 4th Grade	ATLAS Reading 5th Grade	ATLAS Reading 6th Grade	ATLAS Reading All Grades	ATLAS Mathematics 3rd Grade	ATLAS Mathematics 4th Grade	ATLAS Mathematics 5th Grade	ATLAS Mathematics 6th Grade	ATLAS Mathematics All Grades	ATLAS Science 3rd Grade	ATLAS Science 4th Grade	ATLAS Science 5th Grade	ATLAS Science 6th Grade	ATLAS Science All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Matthews Elementary School	Public	K-6	4501 Dollarway Rd	Pine Bluff	71602	Jefferson County	Pine Bluff School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 534-0726	367	24	15.2	100.0%	13 (3.5%)	336 (91.6%)	7 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.9%)	11.7	457^th of 495 public elementary schools	7.7%		5.8	485^th of 497 public elementary schools	2.4%	28	19.2	17.6	23.5	14.5	18.4	19.2	16.2	23.5	17.8	18.9	12.7	14.7	2.0	22.6	13.6	17.0	4.4	7.9	16.1	11.0	$15,830	$2,840	$12,990
Coleman Elementary School	Public	2-5	4600 West 13th	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Watson Chapel School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 879-3697	426	31	13.8	79.8%	44 (10.3%)	366 (85.9%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.6%)	8.7	474^th of 495 public elementary schools	4.2%		20	427^th of 497 public elementary schools	14.1%	47	13.1	14.0	14.8		13.9	13.1	15.0	18.3		15.6	12.2	15.0	12.2		13.0	6.0	14.0	10.4		10.0	$12,336	$1,756	$10,580
Gandy Elementary School	Public	K-5	400 Gandy Avenue	White Hall	71602	Jefferson County	White Hall School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 247-4054	366	25	14.6	65.0%	230 (62.8%)	104 (28.4%)	16 (4.4%)	12 (3.3%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.8%)	53	244^th of 495 public elementary schools	50.7%		47.7	270^th of 497 public elementary schools	45.7%	26	38.7	53.2	27.9		38.8	37.1	43.8	31.2		36.9	37.1	52.1	27.9		38.1	35.5	41.7	27.9		34.5	$11,292	$1,357	$9,935
Friendship Aspire Academy Downtown Pine Bluff	Public, Charter	K-3	Pine Bluff Ar 71601	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Friendship Aspire Academies Arkansas	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(870) 515-4001	245	16	15.7	79.2%	3 (1.2%)	235 (95.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.0%)	49.6	262^nd of 495 public elementary schools	47.1%					(n/a)	39.1				39.1	23.9				23.9	39.2				39.2	39.1				39.1
Taylor Elementary School	Public	K-5	805 West Street	White Hall	71602	Jefferson County	White Hall School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 247-1988	373	23	16.2	71.6%	162 (43.4%)	131 (35.1%)	24 (6.4%)	27 (7.2%)	3 (0.8%)	16 (4.3%)	10 (2.7%)	54.7	233^rd of 495 public elementary schools	52.9%		47.2	273^rd of 497 public elementary schools	45.1%	40	44.8	54.3	38.1		45.3	39.6	54.3	38.1		43.7	27.6	28.8	18.3		24.4	39.6	37.3	32.4		36.2	$10,756	$1,354	$9,402
Edgewood Elementary School	Public	K-1	4100 West 32nd	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Watson Chapel School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 879-1252	199	15	13.5	78.4%	24 (12.1%)	168 (84.4%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.0%)								(n/a)																					$13,689	$1,836	$11,853
Friendship Aspire Academy Hazel St Pine Bluff	Public, Charter	K-5	Pine Bluff Ar 71603	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Friendship Aspire Academies Arkansas	Yes	No	No	Yes	(870) 395-7401	469	29	16.2	80.0%	6 (1.3%)	447 (95.3%)	6 (1.3%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.4%)	4 (0.9%)	40	314^th of 495 public elementary schools	36.6%		59.6	209^th of 497 public elementary schools	57.9%	105	32.1	27.8	28.4		29.3	30.8	30.7	30.6		30.7	39.8	50.5	25.3		38.8	38.4	29.5	19.0		28.4	$17,582	$4,906	$12,676
Southwood Elementary School	Public	K-6	4200 S Fir St	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Pine Bluff School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 543-4390	345	23	15.2	100.0%	15 (4.3%)	312 (90.4%)	3 (0.9%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (3.5%)	15.6	438^th of 495 public elementary schools	11.5%		10.7	469^th of 497 public elementary schools	5.6%	31	16.2	9.5	13.2	34.0	19.2	21.6	11.9	18.5	34.0	22.2	8.1	7.1	7.9	26.0	13.2	13.9	7.2	2.6	14.0	9.6	$15,646	$2,336	$13,310
Broadmoor Elementary School	Public	K-6	1106 Wisconsin Street	Pine Bluff	71601	Jefferson County	Pine Bluff School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 543-4368	283	20	13.9	100.0%	11 (3.9%)	253 (89.4%)	3 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	15 (5.3%)	3.9	494^th of 495 public elementary schools	0.2%		5.7	487^th of 497 public elementary schools	2.0%	7	8.5	7.5	3.1	10.3	7.7	8.5	5.0	6.3	15.4	8.8	3.4	5.0	3.1	12.8	5.9	6.8	2.5	3.1	5.2	4.7	$16,699	$2,977	$13,722
Thirty-Fourth Street Elementary School	Public	K-6	801 East 34th Ave	Pine Bluff	71603	Jefferson County	Pine Bluff School District	No	No	No	Yes	(870) 543-4392	399	23	17.5	100.0%	8 (2.0%)	363 (91.0%)	7 (1.8%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.5%)	6.3	486^th of 495 public elementary schools	1.8%		9.2	474^th of 497 public elementary schools	4.6%	12	13.6	6.1	13.2	13.4	11.3	13.6	6.1	16.9	14.9	12.6	13.7	4.6	9.5	9.0	8.7	13.7	3.1	11.3	3.0	7.0	$16,198	$3,313	$12,886

Frequently Asked Questions about Matthews Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of Matthews Elementary School?

Students at Matthews Elementary School are 92% African American, 4% White, 2% Hispanic, 2% Two or more races, 1% American Indian.

How many students attend Matthews Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 367 students attended Matthews Elementary School.

What district is Matthews Elementary School in?

Pine Bluff School District

Is Matthews Elementary School a good school?

Matthews Elementary School ranks in the bottom 7.7% of Arkansas elementary schools.

Rate Matthews Elementary School!

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Schools in Pine Bluff, AR

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Arkansas Division of Elementary and Secondary Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.