SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL

SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL is one of the expansive senior highs in SHERWOOD, Arkansas, overseen by PULASKI COUNTY SPECIAL SCHOOL DISTRICT, with 1,120 students on its rolls from grades 9 through 12. That puts it 120% above the typical public school in Arkansas, which averages around 510 students.

PULASKI COUNTY SPECIAL SCHOOL DISTRICT runs 26 schools in total, collectively educating 12,586 students. SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL is one of those campuses.

On demographics, SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL logs that the largest single group is Black at 47%, but no single group is in the majority. The remainder is composed of 37% White, 10% Hispanic, 6% multiracial. By comparison, Pulaski County as a whole is about 37% Black, so the school skews visibly more Black than its surroundings.

Looking at school resources, On paper, SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL has 88 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 12.7:1. The state averages around 8.8:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Around 51% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Pulaski County (around 71%), the school's rate is somewhat below typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL falls in the UNDERPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations residual. Given its student profile, a typical campus would land near 40.1%; this one comes in at 21.4%, -18.7 points off the demographic line.

Across the wider county, census data for Pulaski County shows median household income runs about $62,873, about 38% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 13% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, Pulaski County runs 133 public schools (combined enrollment of about 64,124 students), of which SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL is one.

Nearest neighbor: SYLVAN HILLS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, around 0.2 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL ranks 9th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 31.8%.

Geographically, the school is in a commuter-belt area.

Five-year trend. SYLVAN HILLS HIGH SCHOOL's enrollment has edged down 22% since 2018, when it stood at 1,437 (now 1,120). Over the same period, the White share ticked down from 46% to 37%. Class-load math has tightened: from 15.5:1 in 2018 to 12.7:1 in 2025.

On the community side, recent activity here tends to focus on classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.