Summary:
The two public schools in zip code 71950, serving the Kirby, Arkansas area, are part of the Kirby School District, a small, rural district ranked 153rd out of 251 in Arkansas. The district includes Kirby Elementary School (PK-6) with 216 students and Kirby High School (7-12) with 176 students, creating a combined enrollment of just 392 students.
There is a stark performance gap between the two schools. Kirby Elementary School is the standout, consistently earning a 3-star rating from Schooldigger and outperforming state averages in Mathematics, where 51.3% of students were proficient compared to the state's 44.1%. In contrast, Kirby High School holds a 1-star rating and struggles significantly, with only 30.6% proficiency in English Language Arts and 32.8% in Science. The high school's 10th-grade ELA proficiency rate is critically low at 16.7%, and it recorded 0% proficiency in Geometry. Despite this, the high school boasts a strong 92.3% graduation rate and a very low 0.5% dropout rate.
Key metrics highlight a "small school paradox." Kirby High School has an exceptionally low student-teacher ratio of 3.8:1, which typically allows for individualized attention, yet its academic outcomes are the weakest in the district. Meanwhile, Kirby Elementary has a healthier ratio of 11.1:1 and higher performance. Per-student spending is nearly identical at around $12,500 for both schools, and 77.78% of elementary students are eligible for free or reduced lunch, indicating high economic need. Year-over-year volatility in test scores, such as elementary math proficiency dropping from 51.3% to 34.7% in one year, is common in very small schools where a single cohort can heavily influence averages.
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