What Little Rock School District does

Little Rock School District (LRSD) is a public K-12 school district headquartered at 810 W Markham St in Little Rock, Arkansas, serving approximately 20,000 students as the third-largest district in the state. Governed by an elected Board of Education under the Arkansas Department of Education and led since 2022 by Superintendent Dr. Jermall Wright, LRSD operates a portfolio of high schools (including Little Rock Central High School, Parkview Arts/Science Magnet High School, Hall-West High School of Innovation, and Southwest High School), middle schools, elementary schools, and early childhood centers. The district offers magnet programs, fine arts academies, STEM pathways, championship athletics, special education, gifted and talented services, and the state's first bilingual dual language immersion program launched in 2025-2026 at Chicot and Watson Elementary Schools.

The district's technology stack is built around the Apptegy platform, comprising a custom LRSD mobile app (iOS and Android), the Rooms parent-teacher communication and classroom engagement platform, the StopIt anonymous safety reporting application, and the Thrillshare mass notification system, all linked to the central lrsd.org web presence. Programmatic offerings include Reading in the Rock (a Scholastic-backed citywide literacy initiative launched March 2025), the REAL Deal communication skills curriculum delivered through a $3.18M UAMS Institute for Digital Health & Innovation partnership under a five-year HHS grant, USDA Seamless Summer Option free meal programs across nine locations, and a dedicated athletics platform. Distribution is direct-to-family through attendance zones, in-district transfers, magnet school applications, and the Arkansas School Choice out-of-district program, supported by a multi-channel marketing footprint spanning Facebook, X/Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, the Wright on Education podcast, LRSDTV, and community events.

LRSD's revenue model is government-funded: state and local tax revenues, Arkansas Department of Education appropriations, federal grants (HHS, EPA, USDA), and meal reimbursements, with no commercial tuition. Pricing is freemium in structure — core K-12 education is free to Arkansas residents, with certain specialty programs and extracurricular activities carrying fees. Leadership includes CFO Kelsey Bailey (2026 Truett Goatcher Arkansas School Business Administrator of the Year), Director of Finance Jacqueline Rowlett, Director of Health Services Jacqueline McEuen, Director of Child Nutrition Stephanie Walker-Hynes, and Director of Teaching and Learning Kelli Bell. Strategic partners include UAMS, Scholastic Education, First Security Bank, City of Little Rock, Central Arkansas Library System, Project Transformation Arkansas, Health Information Project, and the Arkansas Department of Education.

Name

Little Rock School District

Legal name

Little Rock School District

Website

https://lrsd.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Little Rock School District is Arkansas's third-largest public K-12 school district, serving approximately 20,000 students in Little Rock with magnet, STEM, fine arts, athletics, and the state's first bilingual dual language immersion program, funded by federal, state, and local government sources.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Public Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Elementary and Secondary Schools (61111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public Elementary Schools (EDAJAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Head Start & Public Pre-K Programs (EDACABAK)

Keywords

• K-12 public education
• Magnet school programs
• Dual language immersion
• Special education services
• Child nutrition programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Little Rock

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Government/Federal Funding: Public school district funded primarily through state and local tax revenues, federal grants, and educational appropriations from the Arkansas Department of Education. Revenue supports educational programs, operations, and facilities.
2. Federal Meal Reimbursement: Child Nutrition Department generates revenue through federal meal reimbursement programs (USDA Seamless Summer Option) while providing free meals to children ages 18 and younger.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Little Rock School District delivers free public PreK-12 education to approximately 20,000 students in the Little Rock, Arkansas metropolitan area, operating elementary, middle, and high schools along with magnet and specialty programs. The district also provides student support services including transportation, child nutrition, health services, special education, and extracurricular athletics and fine arts, supplemented by digital communication tools (mobile app, Rooms, StopIt, Thrillshare) and community-based literacy initiatives.

Product overview

The Little Rock School District operates a unified platform of digital tools serving its ~20,000 students and families. The core digital portfolio consists of a district mobile app (available on iOS and Android) built on the Apptegy platform, the Rooms parent-teacher communication and classroom engagement platform, the StopIt anonymous reporting app, and the Thrillshare mass notification system. These are supplemented by specialized programs such as Reading in the Rock (a Scholastic-backed literacy initiative) and a dedicated athletics website. All major digital tools are accessed through or linked to the central www.lrsd.org web presence.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Little Rock School District Mobile App Custom-built mobile application for iOS and Android providing district news, events, school information, and access to the Rooms platform for parent-teacher communication.
• Rooms Parent-Teacher Communication Platform Parent-teacher communication and classroom engagement platform accessible via web and the district mobile app, enabling parents to view student classes and engage directly with teachers.
• StopIt Anonymous Reporting App Anonymous reporting mobile application enabling students, staff, families, and community members to report bullying, threats, school violence, self-harm, or other risky behaviors to school administrators.
• Thrillshare Mass Notification System Mass notification and communication platform used by LRSD to send district-wide announcements, emergency alerts, and messages to families via the district app.
• Reading in the Rock Literacy Initiative Citywide literacy initiative partnering with Scholastic Education to provide books, reading tip guides for parents, reading logs for students, and reading resources to LRSD students and families across academic breaks.
• LRSD Athletics Program Athletics program covering sports, schedules, and activities across all LRSD high schools, supported by a dedicated athletics website.
• USDA Seamless Summer Meal Program Free summer meal program serving children ages 18 and younger across multiple school locations during summer months, supported by federal meal reimbursement.
• School Health Services District-wide health services program with professional nurses assigned to schools, managing student health conditions, healthcare plans, and school-based health clinics.
• Magnet and Specialty School Programs Application/audition-based magnet and specialty programs including Parkview Arts/Science Magnet High School, Forest Heights STEM Academy, and the state's first Bilingual Education/Dual Language Immersion program at Chicot and Watson Elementary Schools.
• REAL Deal Communication Skills Program Communication skills program teaching conflict resolution and relationship-building through 16 curriculum-based workshops, implemented in LRSD schools in partnership with UAMS Institute for Digital Health & Innovation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Record number of seniors celebrated during 2026 Academic Signing Day receiving major scholarships
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UAMS Institute for Digital Health & InnovationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 January 2026UAMS received a $3.18 million five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to implement the REAL Deal program in Little Rock schools, teaching communication skills, conflict resolution, and relationship-building through 16 curriculum-based workshops.
• City of Little RockcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2025City of Little Rock is a key partner in the Reading in the Rock literacy initiative, providing community center locations for reading bookshelves and supporting the citywide culture of reading campaign. The partnership includes placing Reading in the Rock bookshelves at city community centers.
• Scholastic EducationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2025Scholastic Education is the primary educational partner for the Reading in the Rock initiative, providing academic break reading take-home packs with books and activities, reading tip guides for parents, and reading logs for students to track progress and earn prizes.
• First Security BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst Security Bank partners with LRSD to operate school banks at elementary schools, offering hands-on financial literacy lessons, career exploration, and student teller opportunities. Fifth LRSD school (Chicot Elementary) recently opened.
• Project Transformation ArkansasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProject Transformation Arkansas runs a Literacy Focused Summer Day Camp for LRSD students, providing reading enrichment activities during summer break as part of the Reading in the Rock ecosystem.
• Central Arkansas Library SystemcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCALS is a Reading in the Rock partner providing library access and summer activities for students, supporting literacy development through community resources.
• Health Information Project (H.I.P.)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerH.I.P. provides a peer-to-peer mental health and wellness model where LRSD student leaders are trained to bring resources to their schools, with every high school student benefiting by senior year.
• Arkansas Department of EducationcoreOthers

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Conway Public Schools: Central Arkansas district serving Conway, a regional hub; comparable mid-sized Arkansas district offering a benchmark for secondary program offerings and budget management.
• Cabot Public Schools: Large central Arkansas district just north of Little Rock; relevant peer for suburban-to-urban student flows and Arkansas School Choice competitive dynamics.

Direct peers

• Bentonville Public Schools: NW Arkansas district recognized for strong community and corporate partnerships (Walmart); comparable as a high-performing Arkansas district pursuing magnet and STEM pathways.
• Springdale Public Schools: Largest school district in Arkansas, serving the Springdale/NW Arkansas metro; comparable in offering magnet, dual-language, and STEM programs and a relevant benchmark for district-scale K-12 operations in the state.
• Rogers Public Schools: NW Arkansas public school district with comparable enrollment scale and magnet/specialty program offerings; relevant peer for benchmarking program breadth and community partnership models.
• Pulaski County Special School District: Largest school district in Arkansas, serving the central Arkansas region adjacent to Little Rock; LRSD's Director of Finance previously managed $250M+ budgets at PCSSD, making it the closest operational comparable for size and funding scale.
• North Little Rock School District: Adjacent K-12 public school district serving North Little Rock directly across the Arkansas River from LRSD; competes for students under the Arkansas School Choice program and serves a comparable urban demographic.
• Fort Smith Public Schools: One of the larger Arkansas public school districts, serving Fort Smith and surrounding areas; similar mid-sized urban district profile with comparable program offerings and governance structure.

Broad incumbents

• K12 Inc. (Stride): Large online and blended K-12 education provider; adjacent rather than directly competing with LRSD's brick-and-mortar model, but represents the broader K-12 education market in which LRSD operates.

Others

• Apptegy: Provider of the LRSD mobile app, Rooms communication platform, and district website CMS; an enabling technology vendor whose platform underpins LRSD's family engagement stack and is also used by thousands of other districts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/lrsd
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/LittleRockSchoolDistrict
• Facebookfacebook.com/mylrsd
• Instagraminstagram.com/mylrsd
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/little-rock-school-district

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Little Rock School District