The top reported proficiency rate is 29% in English language arts. The lowest is 25% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Oakland Heights Elem. School
Oakland Heights Elementary School sits within the Russellville School District in Pope County, serving children from prekindergarten through fourth grade. The school is located in a part of Russellville where the city’s character blends residential neighborhoods, commercial corridors, and the presence of Arkansas Tech University just across town. The broader Russellville economy is anchored by the university, industrial employers like Tyson and Firestone, and Arkansas Nuclear One, the state’s only nuclear power plant, giving the area a mixed industrial and academic base. Home values and rents in the zip code are below national medians, and the local housing market has been relatively flat, which may appeal to families looking for an affordable entry point.
Academically, Oakland Heights Elementary participates in Arkansas’s state assessment system, ATLAS, for its third and fourth graders. The school’s combined proficiency rate across math, English language arts, and science in those tested grades lands in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Pope County. In third grade, roughly one in five students scored at the proficient level in math and ELA, with science slightly higher. Fourth grade results showed a modest improvement: about three in ten students in math, and closer to one in three in ELA, reached proficiency, while science remained near the same rate as third grade. These figures place the school below the midpoint of county districts overall. Because Oakland Heights only serves primary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and no data on chronic absenteeism or discipline were available in the source materials. A parent reading these numbers may want to follow up with the school to understand how the curriculum supports students who are not yet meeting grade-level benchmarks and whether there are targeted intervention programs.
The student body is diverse. The largest group is Hispanic, representing close to half of enrollment, followed by White students at about one-third, with smaller shares of Black students and students identifying as two or more races. Enrollment totals around four hundred and sixty children, with the largest grade levels in kindergarten and first grade, tapering slightly in third and fourth. A substantial share of students, roughly eight in ten, qualify for free or reduced-price meals, indicating a high level of economic need within the school community. The school’s status under Title I was not reported, but given the poverty rate it would be eligible for federal support. Data on students with disabilities and English learners were missing from the profile, which is a notable gap for families who want to understand how the school serves those populations.
The Russellville School District itself did not appear to have undergone any recent major changes or initiatives reported in publicly available sources, according to the district brief. The city of Russellville is growing slowly, and the school is set within a community that has a downtown historic district, access to Lake Dardanelle and the Arkansas River, and a moderate commute time. The school is not a charter or magnet school, and the types of enrichment or program offerings were not listed in the data.
For a family considering Oakland Heights, the picture is one of a school serving a high-poverty, diverse student population in a stable but unremarkable academic context. The proficiency results are below those of many neighboring districts, which may be a concern for parents prioritizing early academic foundations. At the same time, the school is the entry point for the Russellville district’s elementary pathway, and the community offers affordable housing, a mix of industrial and university employment, and a compact city layout. Families would benefit from visiting the school, asking about early literacy and math supports, and learning how the school addresses the needs of its economically disadvantaged student body.
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