District overview
Little Rock School District
How Little Rock School District is funded, governed, and what it is building right now.
Who runs LRSD, and how did that just change?
The State Board of Education took over LRSD in 2015 and dissolved its elected school board; full local control was restored by 2021. In 2025, a new state law (Act 503) forced another change: because LRSD's enrollment fell below 20,000 students, its old nine-member board had to be replaced with either five or seven members elected by zone. The board chose seven zones, adopted a new zone map in August 2025, and held the first election under the new map in March 2026. The reconfigured seven-member board held its first meeting on March 19, 2026.
Seven zone members, four-year terms
Act 503 of 2025 also changed board terms statewide to four or six years, replacing the old three-to-five-year range.
New zone map adopted August 28, 2025
The board chose one of four draft maps (Draft Map 4) on a 7-2 vote to define the seven new board zones.
First reconfigured board seated March 19, 2026
The new board's first act was electing its own officers and drawing lots for staggered term lengths.
History of state intervention
LRSD spent 2015-2021 under full state control before local control was restored, then went through this second, smaller restructuring in 2025-26.
The board restructuring was a state mandate tied to enrollment, not a sign of new district trouble — LRSD has been fully locally controlled since 2021. It does mean every family's board representative changed in March 2026.
Where the district stands
32.0 mills for general maintenance and operation, 2.0 mills dedicated to technology and capital projects, and 12.4 mills for paying off existing construction debt. The board's resolution states this is the same rate as the year before — no increase.
Sum of the nine expenditure categories in the board's July 2025 proposed budget resolution: $126.1M salaries, $35.4M instruction, $63.2M maintenance & operations, $8.3M dedicated M&O, $15.4M transportation, $1.1M non-bonded debt, $31.4M bonded debt, and $35.0M building fund. Each category is verified; the total is our sum.
NCES district profile, most recent available. The district's own August 2025 board record confirms only that average daily membership has fallen below 20,000 — the old threshold that required a nine-member board — without stating an exact count.
Net proceeds of $75,447,843.63 fund the district's six-year facilities master plan.
Covers Pulaski Heights Elementary, Pulaski Heights Middle, and Forest Park Elementary; paid through guaranteed energy savings and state partnership funds, not new local taxes.
Sum of two separate board-approved figures: $891,637.75-$1,005,721.97 for certified staff (Feb 26, 2026, upper end used here) and about $176,000 for child-nutrition, transportation, and security staff (Apr 23, 2026). Each vote's figure is verified individually; the combined total is our sum.
Major projects
Six-year facilities master plan / 2025 construction bonds
in_progressA $76.7 million bond sale funds districtwide building work under LRSD's six-year facilities master plan, submitted annually to the state.
- Board approves bond sale to BofA Securities
- Bonds close; funds available
Funding
Construction Bonds, Series 2025 ($76.73M sold, dated November 18, 2025)
HVAC replacement, Fifth Amendment to Energy Performance Contract
in_progressReplaces aging heating and cooling systems at three schools without new local tax revenue.
- Board approves $12.9M contract amendment, 9-0
Funding
Guaranteed energy savings financing (Performance Services, Inc.) plus state partnership funds
Central High School science wing
completedCentral High School's first new academic building in nearly a century opened in 2025; naming it after the school's just-retired, 20-year principal was under discussion as of July 2026.
- New 67,000-square-foot science wing opens, first new academic building at Central since 1927
- Board discusses naming the building for retiring principal Nancy Rousseau
Funding
Not stated in the collected record
Hall High School conversion charter application
pendingHall High School is seeking district-run charter status to offer a smaller, non-traditional program outside standard state staffing rules.
- Board votes 5-2 to authorize a conversion-charter application
Funding
TBD; stated goal is reduced staffing costs under charter waivers
FY27 budget reduction framework
adoptedA months-long process that produced the staff contract-length cuts described above, among other reductions.
- Budget reduction discussions begin
- Board approves the FY27 Budget Reduction Framework Planning Document
Funding
N/A (internal budget planning)
Central High School softball field
in_progressBuilt after concerns that the softball program's facilities lagged far behind the school's baseball field.
- Board approves a short-term plan (“Option B”)
- Board commits property-sale proceeds to a permanent softball field and adopts a new Title IX construction-review policy
Funding
Proceeds from the sale of two district properties
Recent news
Every agenda and minutes file the district's Diligent Community meeting portal published from August 2025 through August 2026 was downloaded and read. Figures marked verified are stated directly in a collected document and cite it. Figures marked context are calculations, external comparisons, or facts not found in a collected document.
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