On September 4, the Little Rock School District released the LRSD Forward plan, proposing four options to close three to four elementary and middle schools. The district faces a budget gap of $4 million to $7 million after failing to meet its Fiscal Year 2027 reduction target. The administration's preferred option, reported by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette and Arkansas Times, would close Western Hills, Mabelvale, and McDermott elementary schools, saving an estimated $4.68 million to $5.26 million.
The plan's options
- Option 1 (administration's first choice): Close Western Hills, Mabelvale, and McDermott elementary schools. Estimated savings: $4.68 million to $5.26 million. Western Hills has 192 students including about 36 in its autism program and the highest per-pupil cost among elementary schools, according to the Arkansas Times.
- Option 2 (not recommended): Close Western Hills, Mabelvale, and Williams Elementary. Estimated savings: $4.29 million to $4.83 million, below the district's $5 million target, requiring additional personnel cuts. Williams is a magnet school with 286 students and no attendance boundary, per the Arkansas Times.
- Option 3 (administration's second choice): Close Western Hills, Mabelvale, McDermott elementary schools plus the Mabelvale Middle School program, and relocate Mann Middle School to the Mabelvale Middle campus. Estimated savings: $6.83 million to $7.72 million, exceeding the $5-6 million target, as reported by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
- Option 4 (not recommended): Close Western Hills, Mabelvale Elementary, McDermott, and Mann Middle School, leaving Mabelvale Middle open. Estimated savings: $6.83 million to $7.72 million. The administration does not recommend this because it would end Horace Mann as an LRSD school and its new magnet program, according to the Arkansas Times.
The plan also includes five academic program recommendations for 2027-28: a microschool partnership within a district campus, a sports sciences program at J.A. Fair K-8 Academy, accelerated pathways in all middle schools, enhanced international studies at Dunbar Middle School, and relocating adult education to a current district campus, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. The board was scheduled to discuss the plan publicly on September 8, with community meetings throughout September and a final vote expected in late October or early November.
Earlier restructuring efforts
The LRSD Forward plan is the district's third major restructuring in two years. In December 2024, the board voted 5-4 to close Brady Elementary and consolidate Carver STEAM Magnet Elementary with Washington Elementary as part of the Optimizing LRSD 2.0 plan, which aimed to cut about $15 million from the budget, according to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Brady students were split among six schools, with McDermott receiving the largest share. That round followed earlier closures of Booker, Meadowcliff, David O. Dodd, and Baseline elementary schools, plus Cloverdale and Henderson middle schools.
In September 2025, the board voted 8-1 to end Hall-West High School's traditional program after the 2025-26 school year, according to LRSD board meeting minutes. Hall had fewer than 250 students, down from 1,100 ten years earlier, and a per-pupil cost of $14,994 compared to $9,469-$10,547 at the district's other three high schools. The campus was slated for repurposing for adult education, alternative learning, and child care. In May 2025, the board approved $15 million in budget cuts for FY2026 in a 6-3 vote, including nearly $1.8 million from central office staff and $1.56 million from adult education and non-traditional programs, as reported by the Arkansas Times. Despite these cuts, the district still faces the $4-7 million gap addressed by LRSD Forward.
Enrollment and cost trends
Enrollment decline has outpaced the reduction in school buildings. The number of schools fell from 44 to 38 over the same period, a 15.7 percent reduction, according to the Arkansas Times. A capacity analysis showed the district will have capacity for more than 24,000 K-12 students while enrolling roughly 18,000 to 19,000, leaving about 5,000 to 6,000 excess seats, or 20 to 25 percent of building capacity underutilized. The district's own task force, through a data analysis reported by the Arkansas Times, found that small elementary schools had an average per-pupil cost of $11,351 versus $10,210 at larger schools. Small middle schools had a per-pupil cost of $12,659 compared to $10,863 at larger ones. The task force estimated that reducing the number of elementary schools by five could save $8.4 million annually, and reducing by seven could save $11.7 million. For middle schools, reducing by two could save $5.1 million. These figures are from the district's own analysis, not independent research.