Springdale Largest District, More Money in Fayetteville

With 10,127 students, the Springdale Public School District is the largest in Northwest Arkansas. It is followed by the Rogers Public School District, which expects to have 10,000 students this fall. In one note of interest, Rogers schools have 300 more employees than Springdale does but operate with a budget $2 million smaller than Springdale’s $46 million budget.

The Fayetteville, Bentonville and Siloam Springs school districts round out the top five on the list. Fayetteville expects 7,716 students this fall and will operate with a budget of $50 million. Bentonville will have an enrollment of 6,131 students and a budget of $32 million, while Siloam Springs expects a budget of $14 million dollars and 2,780 pupils.

Overall, the Gentry Public School District has the highest dollar-to-student ratio, with a budget of $7 million for 1,175 pupils.

Not surprisingly, the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville tops the list of Northwest Arkansas colleges and universities. The Fayetteville campus is the oldest and largest in the University of Arkansas system and expects to have more than 14,000 students this fall.

NorthWest Arkansas Community College in Rogers has had the largest increase in enrollment over the past year. The college had 2,690 students last fall but expects to have about 3,500 for the 1998-99 school year.