Enrollment
2,045
Arkansas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Mabelvale, AR
Little Rock Southwest High School
Federal NCES profile for Little Rock Southwest High School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 45/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 050900001687
👥 S:T ratio 47
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 18
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Little Rock Southwest High School earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median. It is also one of the largest schools in Arkansas.
- 45
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.3:1
- students per teacher
- 68.0%
- free-lunch eligible
- 2,045
- students enrolled
Little Rock Southwest High School has class sizes near the Arkansas median. Computed live against every Arkansas school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Little Rock School District · Arkansas
NCES ID 050900001687 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
154.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.3:1
vs 13.6:1 Arkansas avg
-2% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
68.0%
vs 59.2% Arkansas avg
+15% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Little Rock Southwest High School compares with Arkansas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Little Rock Southwest High School
Little Rock Southwest High School is a higher-need, large combined-grade school in Mabelvale, Arkansas, enrolling 2,045 students.
At 13.3:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Arkansas median, within a few percentage points of the 13.6:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 68.0% of students eligible for free meals.
By headcount it is one of the larger campuses in Arkansas, bigger than 99% of state schools at 2,045 students.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 1,066 scored Arkansas schools.
Its student body is led by African American (56%) and Hispanic or Latino (37%) (diversity index 55/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 409 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Its district draws 20.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 764 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 2,045 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 150 expulsions at this campus for 2021-22.
Little Rock School District also operates Central High School (2,371 students) and Parkview Magnet High School (1,072 students) alongside Little Rock Southwest High School.
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 Little Rock Southwest High School compares
Little Rock Southwest 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 | 13.3:1 | ▼ 2% | 13.6:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 68.0% | ▲ 15% | 59.2% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 2,045 | top 1% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.3:1
Leaner classes than 64% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
2,045
Bigger than 98% of US schools by enrollment, a large campus nationally.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
68.0%
free-lunch eligible
- 15% above the Arkansas average of 59.2%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.3:1
students per teacher
- 2% below state mean
Top 45% in Arkansas - lower ratio than 55% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Funding equity
$14,597
per pupil, district-wide
- above Arkansas avg of $12,251
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors5.0 FTE
Per 409 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
203
in-school suspensions + 561 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 9.9 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 37.4 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 150 expulsions.
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
African American 56.4%
Hispanic or Latino 36.7%
White 4.8%
Two or More 0.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.6%
Asian 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.1%
Largest group: African American at 56.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 54.5/100
Simpson diversity index - at 54.5, Little Rock Southwest High School is more mixed than the Arkansas school average of 40.4.
Programs
AP courses offered 7
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Little Rock School District, which includes Little Rock Southwest High School.
$14,597
Per student
+19%
vs Arkansas
Avg $12,251
-12%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 52.7%
State 26.7%
Federal 20.7%
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 Little Rock Southwest High School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central High School | Similar size | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Parkview Magnet High School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Don Roberts Elementary School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Chicot Elementary School | Smaller | Higher economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Pinnacle View Middle School | Smaller | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Little Rock Southwest High School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,371
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 1,072
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 1,035
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 897
- Students per teacher
- 19.9:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
- Enrollment
- 807
- Students per teacher
- 12:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
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 (~2,045 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Little Rock Southwest High School's federal record.
- Compare Little Rock Southwest High School against another school. Compare schools
- Little Rock 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 Little Rock Southwest High School
How many students attend Little Rock Southwest High School?
Little Rock Southwest High School has 2,045 students enrolled. It is a public school in Mabelvale, AR.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Little Rock Southwest High School?
The student-teacher ratio at Little Rock Southwest High School is 13.3:1, which is 2% lower than the Arkansas average of 13.6:1 and 15% 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 Little Rock Southwest High School?
68.0% of students at Little Rock Southwest High School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Arkansas average of 59.2%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Little Rock Southwest High School?
The largest demographic group at Little Rock Southwest High School is African American at 56.4% of enrollment, in Mabelvale, AR. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.5/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Little Rock Southwest High School?
Little Rock Southwest High School has a Resource Investment Index of 45/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, AP course offerings, counselor availability. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Little Rock Southwest High School a good school?
Little Rock Southwest High School earns 45/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Arkansas median. It is also one of the largest schools in Arkansas. 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 Little Rock School District?
Besides Little Rock Southwest High School, Little Rock School District also operates Central High School (2,371 students), Parkview Magnet High School (1,072 students), and Don Roberts Elementary School (1,035 students). See the Little Rock 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.