schoolsbycounty

Phillips County Schools & Education

School Score

19/100

Percentile-style score

Score Band

Lower Signal

Graduation Rate

84.7%

National avg 87.5%

Education Statistics

Graduation Rate

84.7%

National avg 87.5%

State avg 90.3%

Per-Pupil Spending

$6,046

National avg $13,239

State avg $6,160

School Score

19/100

Percentile-style score

State avg 38/100

State Score Position

#66

of 75 counties by score

Education Data Brief: Phillips County

Measured School Summary

Phillips County faces educational challenges with a school score of 19/100 and a graduation rate of 84.7%, falling below typical benchmarks.

Funding Context

At $6,046 per pupil, Phillips County operates with limited funding, which may constrain staffing, materials, and extracurricular offerings.

Neighbor Context

Its school score is 49% below the Arkansas average, and its graduation rate trails the state average by 5.6 percentage points, while per-pupil spending is 2% lower than the state norm.

School Data Brief

How to read Phillips County before comparing districts

County-level education data is best used as a screening layer. It summarizes the local school environment, then points you toward the district and school records that matter for local review.

Local context that changes the interpretation

9 public schools and 4 districts are represented below. Use those school and district records to confirm whether the county-level context fits the neighborhoods you are actually considering.

Overall screen

19/100

Lower measured signal. Ranks #66 of 75 Arkansas counties with school score data.

Completion

84.7%

5.6 pts below the state average

Funding context

$6,046

$114 below the state average

School coverage

9

4 districts represented in the county school list.

Start with measured county context

The county-level signal is lower, so review individual schools and local records before interpreting the score. Compare the score, graduation rate, and spending together rather than treating any single metric as final.

Check the local school mix

Phillips County has 9 public schools across 4 districts, so school-level fit can vary inside the county.

Verify local rules

Use this page as county-level context, then confirm attendance zones, transportation, special programs, and current school boundaries with local districts.

Parent decision brief

What Phillips County school data means before you move

County averages are useful for screening, but parents choose addresses, grade pathways, and district rules. This brief turns the public data into the checks that matter before you sign a lease or mortgage.

Choice-program county

Phillips County has a visible charter, magnet, or virtual-school layer in NCES records. The practical question is eligibility, lottery timing, and transportation, not just whether a school appears nearby.

State position

#66

of 75 Arkansas counties with school score data. The county score is 19 points below the state average.

Data confidence

Usable

3 of 5 county signals are present, and 100% of listed schools report enrollment. Compare schools, then verify missing fields locally.

K-12 continuity check

These are the largest visible district slices in the county data. They show whether elementary, middle, and high school records appear together or whether a family needs to investigate transition points.

HELENA/ W.HELENA SCHOOL DIST.

Elementary and high visible

1,012 students

Elementary 1Middle 0High 1Other 0

2 listed schools in this county slice.

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Elementary to high school visible

832 students

Elementary 1Middle 1High 1Other 0

3 listed schools in this county slice.

BARTON-LEXA SCHOOL DISTRICT

Elementary and high visible

674 students

Elementary 1Middle 0High 1Other 0

2 listed schools in this county slice.

MARVELL SCHOOL DISTRICT

Elementary and high visible

331 students

Elementary 1Middle 0High 1Other 0

2 listed schools in this county slice.

District reality check

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS is the largest listed district slice, with 5 schools. County pages do not prove address assignment, so verify boundaries with local district tools.

What the data cannot tell you

NCES records do not confirm current attendance zones, private-school options, transfer approvals, program capacity, transportation, or whether a listed school is available to a specific address.

Questions to ask before choosing an address

Which district actually serves the addresses we are considering in Phillips County?

Do the neighborhoods we like fall inside the same district, or are we comparing different Phillips County district systems?

What changes at the elementary-to-middle and middle-to-high transitions in the district pathway we would likely use?

Which charter, magnet, or virtual options require a lottery, application window, separate transportation plan, or address eligibility check?

Are the largest listed schools the ones our address can actually attend, or are they only county-level context?

Data Story

Phillips County Reports Composite School Score of 19.2

Education data brief for Phillips County, Arkansas.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorPublished Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor
Lead metric:School score

The composite school score in Phillips County is 19.2, which is significantly lower than the Arkansas state average of 38.1 and the national median of 50.0. The county’s educational landscape is notable for its high concentration of charter schools; three of the nine public schools are charters, accounting for 33.3 percent of the school mix. KIPP Delta Public Schools is the largest district, operating five schools with a total of 1,224 students. The countywide graduation rate is 84.7 percent, which is below the state average of 90.3 percent and the national average of 87 percent. Per-pupil expenditure stands at $6,046, which is lower than the state average of $6,160 and less than half of the national average of $13,000. Total enrollment across the four districts in the county is 2,849 students. Compare district boundaries before drawing conclusions.

Sources

School Overview

Total Schools

9

in Phillips County

Reported Enrollment

2,849

9 schools reporting

School Districts

4

districts

Charter Schools

3

33% of total

School Level Breakdown

Elementary4
Middle1
High4
Other0

4 School Districts in Phillips County

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

5 schools
1,224 students

HELENA/ W.HELENA SCHOOL DIST.

2 schools
1,012 students

BARTON-LEXA SCHOOL DISTRICT

2 schools
674 students

MARVELL SCHOOL DISTRICT

2 schools
331 students

9 Public Schools in Phillips County

Sorted by reported enrollment. Every NCES public school remains listed here; no school-level profile pages are included in the current generated coverage for this county.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Level

Showing 9 of 9 matching schools

J.F. WAHL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

HELENA/ W.HELENA SCHOOL DIST.

HELENA, 72342 / Rural: Fringe

RecordPK–6Primary519 students

CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL

HELENA/ W.HELENA SCHOOL DIST.

WEST HELENA, 72390 / Town: Remote

Record7–12High493 students

KIPP DELTA ELEMENTARY LITERACY ACADEMY

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

HELENA, 72342 / Town: Remote

RecordPK–5Charter451 students

BARTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

BARTON-LEXA SCHOOL DISTRICT

BARTON, 72312 / Rural: Distant

RecordPK–6Primary351 students

BARTON HIGH SCHOOL

BARTON-LEXA SCHOOL DISTRICT

BARTON, 72312 / Rural: Distant

Record7–12High323 students

MARVELL PRIMARY SCHOOL

MARVELL SCHOOL DISTRICT

MARVELL, 72366 / Rural: Remote

RecordPK–6Primary204 students

KIPP DELTA COLLEGIATE HIGH SCHOOL

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

HELENA, 72342 / Town: Remote

Record9–12Charter199 students

KIPP DELTA COLLEGE PREPARATORY SCHOOL

KIPP DELTA PUBLIC SCHOOLS

HELENA, 72342 / Town: Remote

Record6–8Charter182 students

MARVELL HIGH SCHOOL

MARVELL SCHOOL DISTRICT

MARVELL, 72366 / Rural: Remote

Record7–12High127 students

Education Funding Detail

Annual Per-Pupil Expenditure

$6,046

State avg $6,160

Compare Nearby Counties

Review Phillips County against other counties using the same NCES-backed metrics.

Open Compare

Browse Public Schools

See school-level enrollment, grade ranges, school type, and district affiliation.

View Schools

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Arkansas counties have the highest graduation rates?
Newton County (96.3%), Cleveland County (96.1%), and Conway County (95.8%) currently lead Arkansas among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.
What is per-pupil spending like in Arkansas?
Across Arkansas counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $6,160. The highest current county values are Dallas County ($9,545), Stone County ($7,285), and Woodruff County ($7,079). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.
How should I read the school score in Phillips County?
Phillips County has a school score of 19/100, which is a lower measured signal in this county-level index. This score is calculated from available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data, with school-level records shown separately below.
What is the graduation rate in Phillips County?
The high school graduation rate in Phillips County is 84.7%, which is below the national average of 87.5%. This figure is based on NCES district-level data for public high schools in the county.
How much does Phillips County spend per student?
Phillips County spends $6,046 per pupil annually on public education, based on NCES district finance data. Current operating spending per fall enrollment, including instruction, support services, administration, transportation, and operations. It excludes capital outlays and debt service in the SchoolsByCounty methodology.

Counties with Similar School Profile

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.