Oark High School

Oark High School is a small public high school located in Oark, Arkansas, serving grades 7-12 with a total enrollment of 70 students. The school is part of the Jasper School District, which is ranked 93 out of 250 districts in Arkansas and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Oark High School faces significant challenges, with consistently low academic performance and high poverty rates. The school has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger for most of the past 10 years, and its proficiency rates in ATLAS/ACTASP tests are significantly lower than the state and district averages across all subject areas and grade levels. With 78.57% to 88.06% of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Oark High School has an extremely high percentage of economically disadvantaged students. In contrast, nearby schools like Westside High School, Clarksville High School, and St. Paul High School generally perform better academically and have lower percentages of students from low-income families.

Despite its small size, with only 70 students, Oark High School spends significantly more per student ($15,762 in 2018-2019) compared to nearby schools. This may be due to the need to provide a comprehensive educational program with limited resources. The school's performance has been inconsistent over the years, with its SchoolDigger ranking fluctuating between 114 and 249 out of Arkansas high schools. Interestingly, Oark High School's proficiency rates are generally higher in the 7th and 8th grades compared to the high school grades, indicating the school may be more effective in the middle school years. However, the school's proficiency rates in mathematics, algebra, and geometry are particularly low, with many grades and subject areas performing well below the state and district averages.