Local schools rewarded for students’ test scores

Two Carroll County elementary schools will receive a financial boost after performing well in statewide testing growth.

Green Forest Elementary finished in the top 5 percent in student growth and will receive $43,200. Eureka Springs Elementary finished in the top 6-10 percent and will get $10,000.

“That’s a big deal,” Green Forest Superintendent Matt Summers said of the money the district will receive sometime in early 2024. “Always any time we are recognized it just makes all that hard work come into full perspective, and I don’t mean just by the staff. I mean by our students, certainly our teaching staff, our paraprofessionals and our parents.

“There are parents who are taking their child’s education seriously and doing little things like practicing spelling words at home or reading with their child before bed, those type of things. You know, there is a definite snowball effect in a positive direction.”

The Arkansas School Recognition Program was created to provide financial awards to public schools that experience high student performance, student academic growth, and for secondary schools, high graduation rate. Arkansas Code authorizes rewards in an amount up to $100 per student who attends a public school or public charter school in the top 5 percent of all Arkansas public schools in student performance or student academic growth. Green Forest Elementary was included in that category.

Up to $50 per student enrolled was awarded to Eureka Springs Elementary, along with all other public schools or public charter schools between the top 5 percent and the next 5 percent (schools in the top 6-10 percent) of all public schools in Arkansas in student performance or student academic growth.

Total performance and growth amount in the state was $6,950,900, according to the Arkansas Department of Education website.

“We’re excited about it,” Eureka Springs Superintendent Bryan Pruitt said.

How the funds are spent will be decided by a committee of staff at each campus, the superintendents said.

“They will put together a committee and decide how to use that,” Summers said of the district’s elementary school. “What they have done in the past, one year they upgraded the playground equipment and in the previous years, they had voted basically a bonus for the teaching and learning staff.

“So, it’s a little interesting. It really doesn’t go through the superintendent or the board. The rules by the state is that the campus develops a committee to determine how to use that money.”

Eureka Springs Elementary was awarded $10,000 last year and the money was used to purchase a book vending machine, Pruitt said.

“It has been a huge hit and success with our kids,” Pruitt said. “The students get tokens for things and then they can purchase a book from the vending machine, just like a snack machine. We’re constantly buying new books for it and it has been a good benefit for our students. I’m sure we’ll come up with something along the lines of instruction or supplies we can use to help us increase literacy.

“Anything we can do to promote or increase literacy.”