The Little Rock School District is a school district in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. It is one of three public school districts in Pulaski County and encompasses 97.60 square miles (252.8Â km2) of land nearly coterminous with the state's capital and largest city. As of the 2009-2010 school year, the district includes 50 schools, and had an enrollment of approximately 25,000 students. It has 5 high schools, 7 middle schools, 29 elementary schools, 4 early childhood (pre-kindergarten) centers, 2 alternative schools, 1 adult education center, 1 accelerated learning center, 1 career-technical center, and about 3,800 employees.
State Takeover of District
On January 28, 2015 the State Board of Education met for more than five hours before voting 5-4 to immediately take over the Little Rock School District. As part of the takeover, Superintendent Dexter Suggs was allowed to remain in his position on an interim basis and the LRSD school board was immediately disbanded.
The vote came as a result of the State Board of Education classifying six of the nearly fifty district schools as being in "academic distress": Baseline Elementary School, Cloverdale Magnet Middle School, Henderson Middle School, Hall High School, J.A. Fair High School and McClellan Magnet High School. The State Board of Education made this announcement in July 2014. In October of the same year, the Special Committee on Academic Distress met with the Little Rock School District administration. On January 7, 2015 the Little Rock School District administration and School Board provided progress reports to the Special Committee on Academic Distress. On January 8, 2015 the State Board of Education voted to hold a special State Board Meeting on January 28.
LRSD vs. PCSSD (Desegregation)
The three school districts within the countyâ€"Little Rock School District, North Little Rock School District (NLRSD), and Pulaski County Special School District (PCSSD) have been involved in a desegregation case that the courts determined were unconstitutionally segregated and placed under court supervision since 1982. After numerous actions were satisfied, including incorpating those schools within the City of Little Rock boundaries to be unitary with the LRSD. Those actions led to the annexation of J. A. Fair High School from PCSSD to LRSD in 1987. In 2007, the courts determined that all actions by LRSD were completed and that court supervision continues until NLRSD and PCSSD actions are completed.
Secondary education
Comprehensive high schools
The following high schools offer comprehensive education programs with interscholastic activities (e.g., sports teams). Attendance in zoned schools are based on the student's residence, while inter-district schools are able to select students from within Pulaski County's three public school districts.
Middle schools
