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Anne Watson Elementary School

Q: Is Anne Watson Elementary School a good school?

Anne Watson Elementary School ranks 124 th of 491 Arkansas elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-6

124^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 491 Arkansas Elementary Schools

Better than 75% of Arkansas elementary schools

Summary

Anne Watson Elementary School in Bigelow, AR, serves 357 students from Pre-K through 6th grade within the East End School District and has recently achieved a remarkable academic turnaround, jumping from a 2-star rating to a 4-star rating in the 2025-2026 school year.

The most impressive change at Anne Watson is its explosive academic growth. After years of below-average performance, the school now significantly outpaces state averages in every subject, with 65% of students proficient in Mathematics—the highest rate among all 11 nearby schools, including those in the Conway School District. This is especially noteworthy given that 72% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, a higher rate than many high-performing Conway schools like Carolyn Lewis Elementary School and Woodrow Cummins Elementary School. The school achieves these results while spending less per student ($11,368) than many peers, such as Morrilton Primary School ($15,841), indicating strong resource efficiency. A standout 3rd-grade cohort excels in English Language Arts (82.2%) and Reading (83.9%), nearly doubling state averages, which points to an effective early literacy program.

However, parents should be aware of a "5th grade slump" in literacy: while 3rd graders thrive, 5th-grade proficiency drops to 37.5% in ELA and 34.4% in Reading, suggesting a need for stronger support in upper-grade comprehension and writing. The school’s low student-teacher ratio of 15.4:1, lower than many Conway schools, likely helps provide targeted instruction for its high-needs population. Overall, Anne Watson is a standout in its district, outperforming the East End School District average in every subject, and offers a compelling story of rapid improvement that parents should find encouraging.

357

Students ?

15.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,368

Per pupil spending ?

72.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

114 W Panther Drive
Bigelow, AR 72016

(501) 759-2638

District: East End School District

Students who attend Anne Watson Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Bigelow High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

85.7%

Two or more races:

6.4%

Hispanic:

5.9%

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Compare Anne Watson Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 35th percentile in 2016 → 75th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Arkansas average (57% vs 42% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 40 percentile points since 2016

✓Above the Arkansas median (75th percentile)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school57%

District avg52%

Arkansas avg42%

124^th of 491

Arkansas public elementary schools ?

Top 25%▲ up 40 pts since 2016

From bottom 35% (2016) to top 25% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Arkansas Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

39^th of 251East End 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
2026	73.7	124 of 491	74.7%	★★★★☆
2025	48.1	269 of 495	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	50.6	255 of 497	48.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.9	320 of 492	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	56.4	233 of 487	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2021	56.8	229 of 496	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	55.7	236 of 488	51.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	48.4	263 of 480	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2017	50.9	246 of 485	49.3%	★★☆☆☆
2016	42.1	323 of 494	34.6%	★★☆☆☆
2015	59.2	162 of 466	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2014	55.6	231 of 471	51.0%	★★★☆☆
2013	35.7	361 of 476	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	46.2	309 of 468	34.0%	★★☆☆☆
2011	50.2	280 of 471	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	42.7	316 of 457	30.9%	★★☆☆☆
2009	54.3	241 of 445	45.8%	★★☆☆☆
2008	33.4	335 of 439	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	43.3	287 of 440	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2006	40.6	284 of 402	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	41.8	274 of 411	33.3%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Arkansas (2025-2026) ?

Mathematics65%+21 vs state

English Language Arts56%+17 vs state

Reading55%+14 vs state

Science52%+7 vs state

5.0

2 ratings · 1 written review

5★2

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Monday, July 1, 2019

My daughter loves the staff and is learning so much! Close Quote

Schools Near Anne Watson Elementary School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				ATLAS English Language Arts (2026)					ATLAS Reading (2026)					ATLAS Mathematics (2026)					ATLAS Science (2026)					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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	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
Anne Watson Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	114 W Panther Drive	Bigelow	72016	Perry County	East End School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 759-2638	357	23	15.4	72.3%	306 (85.7%)	7 (2.0%)	21 (5.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (6.4%)	73.7	124^th of 491 public elementary schools	74.7%		48.1	269^th of 495 public elementary schools	45.7%	145	82.2	59.0	37.5	40.0	56.0	83.9	59.0	34.4	34.3	54.5	58.1	61.5	73.5	65.8	65.0	66.1	56.4	40.6	40.0	51.5	$11,368	$1,677	$9,691
Woodrow Cummins Elementary School	Public	K-4	1400 Padgett Rd	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	No	(501) 513-4417	450	25	17.9	36.9%	255 (56.7%)	78 (17.3%)	66 (14.7%)	19 (4.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (7.1%)	78.3	90^th of 491 public elementary schools	81.7%		80	84^th of 495 public elementary schools	83.0%	6	55.2	59.6			57.5	55.1	56.6			55.9	54.0	56.6			55.4	51.7	52.6			52.1	$10,890	$753	$10,137
Carolyn Lewis Elementary School	Public	K-4	1805 Military Rd	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 450-4835	514	30	17.3	54.5%	230 (44.7%)	167 (32.5%)	52 (10.1%)	9 (1.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	55 (10.7%)	82.1	70^th of 491 public elementary schools	85.7%		80.2	82^nd of 495 public elementary schools	83.4%	12	67.0	58.3			62.5	67.0	56.3			61.5	50.5	55.4			53.0	55.5	56.3			56.0	$11,164	$1,159	$10,005
Jim Stone Elementary School	Public	K-4	4255 College Ave	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 450-4808	357	22	15.9	50.7%	173 (48.5%)	77 (21.6%)	67 (18.8%)	9 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (8.7%)	73.9	123^rd of 491 public elementary schools	74.9%		59.8	199^th of 495 public elementary schools	59.8%	76	53.4	59.8			56.4	49.3	61.2			55.0	50.6	46.3			48.6	52.1	53.7			52.8	$13,142	$1,361	$11,781
Perryville Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	625 North Cedar Street	Perryville	72126	Perry County	Perryville School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 889-5146	464	31	14.8	69.0%	408 (87.9%)	3 (0.6%)	25 (5.4%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (5.0%)	41.1	301^st of 491 public elementary schools	38.7%		50.1	257^th of 495 public elementary schools	48.1%	44	47.6	28.8	33.3	28.1	34.3	47.6	30.4	32.0	31.2	35.1	38.1	22.7	39.2	48.4	37.1	53.9	34.8	40.6	37.5	41.6	$10,109	$1,199	$8,911
Morrilton Primary School	Public	PK, KG-1	410 S Bridge St	Morrilton	72110	Conway County	South Conway County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 354-9423	432	19	22.2	81.9%	235 (54.4%)	71 (16.4%)	46 (10.6%)	4 (0.9%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (16.7%)								(n/a)																					$15,841	$2,926	$12,915
Julia Lee Moore Elementary School	Public	K-4	1301 Country Club Rd	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 450-4830	328	22	15.0	40.5%	200 (61.0%)	69 (21.0%)	16 (4.9%)	3 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (12.2%)	66.1	165^th of 491 public elementary schools	66.4%		88.4	46^th of 495 public elementary schools	90.7%	119	50.0	46.9			48.3	54.7	48.2			51.1	46.9	50.6			48.9	50.0	44.4			46.9	$13,210	$1,212	$11,998
Marguerite Vann Elementary School	Public	K-4	2845 Carl Stuart Rd	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 450-4870	359	22	16.0	70.8%	135 (37.6%)	126 (35.1%)	52 (14.5%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (12.3%)	31.5	365^th of 491 public elementary schools	25.7%		28.4	375^th of 495 public elementary schools	24.2%	10	38.5	36.7			37.7	41.4	31.7			36.9	30.0	20.0			25.4	34.3	28.3			31.5	$12,542	$1,188	$11,354
Ellen Smith Elementary School	Public	K-4	1601 S. Donaghey St	Conway	72034	Faulkner County	Conway School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 450-4815	461	27	16.8	63.6%	181 (39.3%)	144 (31.2%)	94 (20.4%)	4 (0.9%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (8.0%)	29.4	379^th of 491 public elementary schools	22.8%		28.6	373^rd of 495 public elementary schools	24.6%	6	38.7	22.1			30.7	41.9	24.4			33.5	26.0	33.7			29.8	41.3	25.6			33.7	$11,593	$1,786	$9,808
Morrilton Elementary School	Public	2-3	1203 N St Joseph St	Morrilton	72110	Conway County	South Conway County School District	No	No	No	Yes	(501) 354-9443	311	19	16.0		184 (59.2%)	45 (14.5%)	35 (11.3%)	3 (1.0%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (13.5%)	53.2	237^th of 491 public elementary schools	51.7%		39.9	315^th of 495 public elementary schools	36.4%	78	40.8				40.8	38.6				38.6	55.7				55.7	42.1				42.1	$12,161	$2,256	$9,905

Frequently Asked Questions about Anne Watson Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of Anne Watson Elementary School?

Students at Anne Watson Elementary School are 86% White, 6% Two or more races, 6% Hispanic, 2% African American.

Is Anne Watson Elementary School a good school?

Anne Watson Elementary School ranks 124^th of 491 Arkansas elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Anne Watson Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 357 students attended Anne Watson Elementary School.

What schools do graduates of Anne Watson Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Anne Watson Elementary School usually go on to attend:

High : Bigelow High School

What district is Anne Watson Elementary School in?

East End School District

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Latest Arkansas data All new data »

2025–26 ATLAS test scoresJul 13, 2026

2024–25 graduation ratesMar 5, 2026

2019–20 through 2023–24 school spending dataJan 6, 2026

2017–18 through 2024–25 dropout ratesJan 6, 2026

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.