Best Public Schools in Zip Code 71635

The three public schools in zip code 71635, all part of the Crossett School District, serve approximately 1,620 students from elementary through high school in a community where a high percentage of families face economic challenges, as indicated by free and reduced lunch rates ranging from 52.5% to 68.4%.

Crossett High School stands out as the district's strongest performer, showing a clear upward trend in its state ranking and a graduation rate of 90.7%, slightly above the state average. It is the only school in the district with an improving rank, and it excels in specific subjects like 10th-grade Geometry and Biology, where proficiency rates actually exceed state averages. In contrast, Crossett Middle School is the most challenged, with the lowest overall proficiency rates in English Language Arts, Reading, and Mathematics. A dramatic academic decline occurs between 6th and 7th grade, with proficiency rates in core subjects dropping by nearly half, suggesting a critical issue with curriculum or instruction at that grade level. Crossett Elementary School shows promise, with the highest spending per student and the strongest overall proficiency rates in the district for the 2025-2026 school year, despite serving the highest percentage of economically disadvantaged students.

The district presents a "two halves" story: early education at the elementary level is showing positive results, but those gains are lost in middle school, while the high school demonstrates that students who persist can achieve strong outcomes. All three schools showed significant year-over-year improvement in test scores from 2024-2025 to 2025-2026, indicating recent interventions may be taking effect. The key to improving the district's overall ranking likely lies in addressing the sharp decline in performance at the middle school level, particularly in 7th grade, which appears to be the primary point of failure in an otherwise improving system.