It was recently reported in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that, based on day ten attendance, the Springdale School District has surpassed Little Rock as the largest school district in Arkansas.
This is true.
However, what was not reported is that, despite weak population growth in the City over the past few decades, more students now attend public schools in the Little Rock School District footprint and the City of Little Rock than at any time in history.
| Year | LRSD | PCSSD (in LR) | Charters (in LR) | Total | LR Population | Public School Students as % of Population |
| 1985 | 18,834 | – | ||||
| 1986 | 19,060 | – | ||||
| 1987 | 26,079 | – | ||||
| 1988 | 26,663 | – | ||||
| 1989 | 25,090 | – | ||||
| 1990 | 24,658 | – | 175,795 | |||
| 1991 | 24,476 | – | ||||
| 1992 | 24,364 | – | ||||
| 1993 | 23,264 | – | ||||
| 1994 | 23,013 | – | ||||
| 1995 | 24,433 | – | ||||
| 1996 | – | |||||
| 1997 | 24,665 | – | ||||
| 1998 | 24,975 | – | ||||
| 1999 | 25,047 | – | ||||
| 2000 | 25,077 | – | 183,180 | |||
| 2001 | 25,936 | – | ||||
| 2002 | 25,727 | – | ||||
| 2003 | 25,701 | – | ||||
| 2004 | 24,424 | 4,872 | 163 | 29,459 | ||
| 2005 | 25,095 | 4,823 | 299 | 30,217 | 186,396 | 16.21% |
| 2006 | 25,500 | 4,830 | 359 | 30,689 | ||
| 2007 | 25,738 | 4,719 | 655 | 31,112 | ||
| 2008 | 24,660 | 4,411 | 1,714 | 30,785 | ||
| 2009 | 24,380 | 4,301 | 1,918 | 30,599 | ||
| 2010 | 24,226 | 4,101 | 2,215 | 30,542 | 193,524 | 15.78% |
| 2011 | 24,049 | 4,033 | 2,870 | 30,952 | 195,048 | 15.87% |
| 2012 | 23,594 | 4,624 | 3,015 | 31,233 | 196,228 | 15.92% |
| 2013 | 23,676 | 4,430 | 3,052 | 31,158 | 196,830 | 15.88% |
| 2014 | 23,363 | 4,366 | 3,374 | 31,103 | 197,235 | 15.78% |
| 2015 | 23,164 | 4,385 | 3,745 | 31,294 | 197,864 | 15.82% |
| 2016 | 22,759 | 4,130 | 4,244 | 31,133 | 198,307 | 15.70% |
| 2017 | 22,338 | 4,145 | 5,044 | 31,527 | 198,606 | 15.87% |
| 2018* | 22,664 | |||||
| Increase/Decline | Since 1985 -3,415 (-13%) | Since 2005 -727 (-15%) | Since 2005 +4,881 (+2,994%) | Since 2004 +2,068 (+7%) | Since 2005 +5,082 (+6.6%) | Since 2010 +0.09 |
*10th Day Attendance; Includes Pre-K
Fast Facts:
- There were more public school students in Little Rock last year than at any time in history
- Public school enrollment in Little Rock has increased +2,068 students (7%) since 2004
- Open-enrollment public charter school enrollment is the only increasing public school enrollment
- Public school enrollment as a percentage of Little Rock’s population has essentially been stable over the past 12 years
- Since charters were introduced to Little Rock in 2004, they have grown enrollment by 4,881 students, while LRSD lost 2,086 and PCSSD lost 727 for a combined district loss of 2,813.
- Charter enrollment exceeded the combined school district loss by 2,068 students
- Charters are retaining, returning public school students to Little Rock at a rate which exceeds population growth