Mountain Pine Elem. School, Mountain Pine AR

Original Research by School Decision on Mountain Pine Elem. School

Mountain Pine Elementary sits at the heart of a small, historically working-class community in Garland County, Arkansas, serving children from kindergarten through sixth grade. The town of Mountain Pine was founded as a company lumber mill town in the late 1920s and has experienced significant economic change since the mill closed. The population has declined over many decades, and no single large private employer has replaced the mill. Current employment in the town is dispersed across retail trade, manufacturing, and educational services. The school itself is one of the community’s key institutions, located on a campus along Blakely Dam Road that is physically separate from the small downtown business district.

The student body is relatively small for an elementary that serves kindergarten through sixth grade. The racial and ethnic composition is predominantly white, with a substantial share of students identifying as two or more races. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school is part of the Mountain Pine School District, which research suggests has not seen major recent changes such as referendums, curriculum shifts, or property-tax adjustments that would directly affect families. This stability may appeal to some parents, though others might wish for more publicly available information about the district’s direction.

State testing results from the most recent year available show achievement that is low relative to other schools across Arkansas. In mathematics, for each tested grade from third through sixth, proficiency rates are modest. In English language arts, the pattern is similar. Science results follow the same trend. Across all tested subjects and grades, the school’s overall proficiency places it in the bottom quartile compared to other districts in Garland County. This is an area where a parent would want to dig deeper with the school to understand the instructional strategies and support systems in place.

Because this is an elementary school serving only grades kindergarten through six, there is no graduation rate to report. That metric applies only to high schools. Similarly, data on chronic absenteeism and on special populations such as students with disabilities and English learners was not available in the source material. A parent interested in those dimensions of the school experience may need to ask the school directly.

The housing market in the area is more affordable than state and national benchmarks. The median home value reflects a cost of living that is substantially lower than the state average. The town is a short drive northwest of Hot Springs, and access to Lake Ouachita provides outdoor recreation. For families who value a low-key, rural setting with a small school that has deep roots in its community, Mountain Pine Elementary fits that description. For families judging primarily by academic proficiency rates, the school’s performance is a significant concern that warrants direct inquiry about academic programming and intervention efforts.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 326%

School 26% · District 26%

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 428%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 511%

School 11% · District 11%

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 628%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 39%

School 9% · District 9%

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 30 pts below county median

Grade 416%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 514%

School 14% · District 14%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 617%

School 17% · District 17%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Science

Grade 316%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 27 pts below county median

Grade 428%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 518%

School 18% · District 18%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 624%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

This schoolMOUNTAIN PINE SCHOOL DISTRICT, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.