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Bismarck, Arkansas - 3 schools
An equity score of 56/100 ranks Bismarck School District #95 of 250 districts in Arkansas (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,762 per pupil, Bismarck School District ranks #130 of 255 Arkansas districts by per-pupil spending (Arkansas districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
1,020
Total Enrollment
3
Schools
$11,762
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, Elementary
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Bismarck School District operates 3 public schools serving 1,020 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Arkansas. The school portfolio breaks down into 1 combined, 1 elementary, 1 high schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Hot Spring County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,762 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 255 Arkansas districts by per-pupil spending. See how Arkansas compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 25.8% local, 46.5% state, and 27.7% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 56/100, ranked #95 of 250 in Arkansas against a state average of 50, in line with the typical spread seen across the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 3 schools offering Advanced Placement (3 AP courses district-wide), a 344.7:1 student-counselor ratio, well above the ASCA benchmark though still under the roughly 408:1 national average, and 18.5% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 90.5% White, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.7% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Bismarck Middle School, with a diversity index of 19.3/100.
Its largest campus is Bismarck Elementary School, enrolling 379 students (37% of the district's total enrollment).
Bismarck Elementary School accounts for 36.7% of all Bismarck School District student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Bismarck School District-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: combined. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Bismarck School District has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 53.8% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Bismarck School District student-counselor ratio is 345:1 — near the typical range (US average ~408) — within the typical range for U.S. public districts
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Variation between sub-units within Bismarck School District is typically wider than the Bismarck School District-aggregate figure suggests.
Bismarck School District chronic absenteeism rate is 18.5% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Bismarck School District is typically wider than the Bismarck School District-aggregate figure suggests.
Bismarck School District has 3 schools, including 1 combined, 1 elementary, 1 high. Total enrollment is 1,020 students.
How much does Bismarck School District spend per student?
Bismarck School District spends $11,762 per student. The district has an equity score of 56/100, ranking #95 in Arkansas.
What is the demographic composition of Bismarck School District?
Bismarck School District students are 90.5% White, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 0.7% African American, 0.6% Asian, averaged across 3 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Bismarck School District?
Bismarck School District has an equity score of 56/100, ranking #95 out of 250 districts in Arkansas.