Enrollment
227
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Bearden, AR
Bearden High School
Federal NCES profile for Bearden High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 60/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 050003200053
👥 S:T ratio 81
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 55
📋 Attendance 35
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Bearden High School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 96% of Arkansas schools.
- 60
- Resource Index · Higher
- 4.8:1
- small classes for Arkansas
- 50.9%
- free-lunch eligible
- 227
- students enrolled
Bearden High School has class sizes smaller than 96% of Arkansas schools. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Bearden School District · Arkansas
NCES ID 050003200053 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
47.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
4.8:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-65% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
50.9%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Bearden High School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Bearden High School
Bearden High School is a higher-need, mid-sized combined-grade school in Bearden, Arkansas, enrolling 227 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 4.8:1, Bearden High School is leaner than roughly 96% of Arkansas schools and 65% under the state's 13.6:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 50.9% lands close to the Arkansas typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 227 puts it in the smaller third of Arkansas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Against 135 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #18.
Its student body is led by White (52%) and African American (36%) (diversity index 59/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 227 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 26.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 23.1% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 54 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 227 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Its district, Bearden School District, also runs Bearden Elementary School (219 students).
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Bearden High School compares
Bearden High School on the metrics families compare, against Arkansas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Arkansas | Arkansas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 4.8:1 | ▼ 65% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 50.9% | ▼ 14% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 227 | top 82% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
4.8:1
Leaner classes than 99% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
227
Bigger than 23% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
50.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 14% below the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
4.8:1
students per teacher
- 65% below state mean
Top 4% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 96% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
26.0%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$12,585
per pupil, district-wide
- above Arkansas avg of $12,251
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 227 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
38
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 16.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 23.8 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 52.0%
African American 35.7%
Two or More 7.9%
Hispanic or Latino 4.0%
Asian 0.4%
Largest group: White at 52.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 59.4/100
Simpson diversity index - at 59.4, Bearden High School is more mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
AP courses offered 3
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Bearden School District, which includes Bearden High School.
$12,585
Per student
+3%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-24%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 23.6%
State 53.3%
Federal 23.1%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Bearden High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bearden Elementary School | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Bearden High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 219
- Students per teacher
- 11.5:1
- Resource Index
- 50/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Arkansas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~227 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Bearden High School's federal record.
- Compare Bearden High School against another school. Compare schools
- Bearden School District's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Bearden High School
How many students attend Bearden High School?
Bearden High School has 227 students enrolled. It is a public school in Bearden, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Bearden High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Bearden High School is 4.8:1, which is 65% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 69% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Bearden High School?
50.9% of students at Bearden High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Bearden High School?
The largest demographic group at Bearden High School is White at 52.0% of enrollment, in Bearden, AR. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 59.4/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Bearden High School?
Bearden High School has a Resource Investment Index of 60/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Bearden High School a good school?
Bearden High School earns 60/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 96% of Arkansas schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Bearden School District?
Besides Bearden High School, Bearden School District also operates Bearden Elementary School (219 students). See the Bearden School District district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.