2024 Best High Schools in Arkansas

What High School Paths Does Arkansas Provide?

Arkansas has 429 high schools, the large majority of which are public, 335 to be exact, leaving just 82 private schools in the state. Although the average state has about 486 high schools (Arkansas has 12% fewer), per capita the state actually has 28% more than the typical state, ranking it #12 in the nation. This can mean that there are diverse education paths in many parts of the state, particularly in and around larger cities. As a whole, the state's average school rating is a B– which is right in line with the national average.

In total, 78% of Arkansas's high schools are public and they have an average rating of B–. Of those 335 schools, the majority are traditional public schools (286). Approximately 62% of those traditional public schools sit above the national average, so you can rest assured that there's still 176 such schools that are considered better than normal.

Diving deeper into public high school alternatives, there are also 46 charter schools, which not seem like much, but it actually ranks Arkansas in the 6th spot for most charter schools per capita vs the average state. In total, 57% of those charter schools exceed the national average in quality. Also, of the 3 magnet high schools, 2 earned above average marks.

Shifting now to private high schools, there are 82 in total to choose from (roughly 19% of all schools). Again, although the figure may seem relatively small, Arkansas actually has 2% more private school options than the average state per capita, so despite a smaller state population there are still numerous private school options. With a median rating of A–, only 44% of Arkansas's private schools are rated above the national average. About 84% of private high schools in Arkansas are religiously affiliated, led primarily by Christian schools which total 64. The state ranks 9th for most religious schools per capita, so it actually falls a bit above average in terms of how much religious influence there is in its school options. There are also 5 all-boys schools in Arkansas, which is exactly on par with the typical state (after normalizing for population size). There are also 2 all-girls options in the state.

Many of the high schools are also beginning to increase their online offerings, but as of now just 5 are offered online (just 1% of all schools). This actually ranks Arkansas in the 24th position in terms of online schools per capita vs. the typical state (it's above the average by 6%).