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1 / 25#25. Vilonia High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Vilonia School District, AR
- Enrollment: 859 (10:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
Best high schools in the Little Rock metro area
According to the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics, 15.5 million students attend public high school every year, and more than 3.76 million are expected to graduate in 2025. However, those students have a wide variety of experiences over the course of their high school careers.
To start, issues surrounding equal educational access persist throughout the United States. A January 2025 report published in Frontiers found that disparities across socioeconomic status, race, gender, and geography can lead to negative outcomes and the perpetuation of systemic barriers.
Outside of these issues, students also pursue many different paths within high school. Roughly 8.3 million high schoolers attend educational programs to prepare for careers in fields like transportation, landscaping, and culinary arts. Meanwhile, nearly 2.5 million are in dual enrollment programs that offer high school and college credit for the same course, allowing students to get a jump on higher education degrees.
Dual enrollment programs are particularly useful considering that more than 3 in 5 (61%) high school graduates head to college, per a 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics report. Unfortunately, high school doesn't always guarantee college success. In 2024, the average SAT score declined for the third straight year, and nearly 2 in 5 (39%) test-takers met or exceeded the test's college readiness benchmarks. ACT scores are also on the decline year over year, down to 19.4 out of 36, and just 3 in 10 students met at least three of the ACT's college readiness benchmarks.
With that said, attending a quality high school will typically help prepare students for their next steps in life, whether that's college, technical school, or going straight into the workforce. Stacker compiled a list of the best high schools in the Little Rock metro area using data from Niche, which uses seven weighted factors for its rankings. Most of the score is based on academics, but other factors include culture and diversity; sports; clubs and activities; resources; and surveys of parents, teachers, and students.
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2 / 25#24. LISA Academy West High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: LISA Academy Public Charter School District, AR
- Enrollment: 412 (9:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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3 / 25#23. North Little Rock Center of Excellence
- School type: Public School
- Location: North Little Rock School District, AR
- Enrollment: 372 (11:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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4 / 25#22. Abundant Life Christian Academy
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sherwood, AR
- Enrollment: 338 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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5 / 25#21. Beebe High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Beebe School District, AR
- Enrollment: 1,031 (8:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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6 / 25#20. Parkview Magnet High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Little Rock School District, AR
- Enrollment: 1,081 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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7 / 25#19. Founders Classical Academy of West Little Rock
- School type: Public School
- Location: Founders Classical Academies of Arkansas, AR
- Enrollment: 62 (10:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B
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8 / 25#18. St. Joseph School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Conway, AR
- Enrollment: 490 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
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9 / 25#17. The Baptist Preparatory School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 409 (6:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
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10 / 25#16. Maumelle Charter High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Academics Plus Charter School, AR
- Enrollment: 454 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: B+
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11 / 25#15. Bryant High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Bryant School District, AR
- Enrollment: 2,199 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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12 / 25#14. Conway Christian School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Conway, AR
- Enrollment: 545 (7:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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13 / 25#13. Cabot High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Cabot School District, AR
- Enrollment: 2,198 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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14 / 25#12. eStem High Public Charter School
- School type: Public School
- Location: eStem Public Charter School, AR
- Enrollment: 528 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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15 / 25#11. Benton High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Benton School District, AR
- Enrollment: 1,319 (11:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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16 / 25#10. Catholic High School for Boys
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 712 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
LStockStudio // Shutterstock
17 / 25#9. LISA Academy North Middle-High School - High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: LISA Academy Public Charter School District, AR
- Enrollment: 299 (10:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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18 / 25#8. Cabot Freshman Academy
- School type: Public School
- Location: Cabot School District, AR
- Enrollment: 784 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
19 / 25#7. Central Arkansas Christian Schools
- School type: Private School
- Location: North Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 936 (11:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A minus
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20 / 25#6. Mount St. Mary Academy
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 446 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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21 / 25#5. Conway High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Conway School District, AR
- Enrollment: 2,181 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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22 / 25#4. Central High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Little Rock School District, AR
- Enrollment: 2,338 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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23 / 25#3. Little Rock Christian Academy
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 1,739 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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24 / 25#2. The Episcopal Collegiate School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 788 (7:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
25 / 25#1. Pulaski Academy
- School type: Private School
- Location: Little Rock, AR
- Enrollment: 1,414 (8:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
This story features data reporting by Rob Powell, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 97 metros.
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