Cossatot River Elementary School

Cossatot River Elementary School in Wickes, AR, serves 200 students in grades 3 through 6 and is part of the Cossatot River School District, which has a 2-star rating. Despite over 98% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, the school has earned a 4-star rating for five of the last six school years, though its most recent ranking dropped to a 3-star rating for the 2025-2026 school year.

The school’s standout strength is Science, where 56.4% of all students were proficient in the latest school year, significantly outpacing the state average of 44%. This is especially impressive in 3rd grade, where 70.3% of students were proficient—25 percentage points above the state average. In English Language Arts, the school performs similarly to nearby Dequeen Elementary School (47.2% vs. 48.9%), despite serving a much higher poverty population. However, Mathematics is a clear challenge: only 42% of students were proficient, compared to 59.4% at Dequeen Elementary. A notable "5th grade slump" appears across subjects, with 5th graders dropping sharply in Math (28.6% proficient) and English Language Arts (35.7% proficient) compared to 4th graders.

The school’s student-teacher ratio has improved to 14.6, lower than Dequeen Elementary’s 16.4, which may support its relative success in Science and ELA. Yet, spending per student has fluctuated wildly, from $12,129 to $17,911 and back to $12,026 in recent years. While Cossatot River Elementary defies expectations by achieving strong results in Science and English Language Arts despite high poverty, its persistent weakness in Mathematics—especially in 5th grade—is a critical area for improvement. The school’s recent ranking drop from the 85th to the 65th percentile likely reflects this math gap, making targeted intervention essential.