Mountain Home Public Schools earned B ratings across all campuses in the 2026 school report cards released on September 17 by the Arkansas Department of Education. Hackler Intermediate School, serving third through fifth grades, made the most significant improvement, raising its grade from a C to a B.
This marks the second consecutive year that a Mountain Home campus has shown improvement. In 2025, the high school grouping, which combines Mountain Home High School and Mountain Home Junior High, also improved its grade from a C to a B, while the district’s other schools maintained their previous ratings.
“We are incredibly proud of the work happening across Mountain Home Public Schools,” said Superintendent Allyson Dewey in a statement. “These scores reflect the dedication our teachers, staff, students, and families put in each day.”
Dewey also emphasized that the grades only tell part of the district’s story. “While we are proud of these results and the growth they represent, a school report card can never fully capture the work happening in our classrooms or the impact our staff members have on students each and every day,” she said.
The new grade follows a milestone for Hackler Intermediate. On August 31, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Education Secretary Jacob Oliva, and University of Arkansas basketball coach John Calipari visited the school to celebrate its win in the state’s #RazorbackReady2026 fitness challenge. Principal Kristyn Goodwin has led Hackler through the busy start to the academic year.
Arkansas uses a statewide A to F grading system for public schools, based on a 900-point scale composed of nine equally weighted measures. For elementary and middle schools like Hackler, one-third of the score is based on student performance in English language arts, math, and science on the ATLAS exam. The remaining two-thirds measure whether students meet individual growth targets year-over-year. High schools are also assessed on how well they prepare students for life after graduation.
This year’s report cards represent the second year of grades under a formula revised by the 2023 LEARNS Act. The system now also includes district-wide ratings based on combined data from all schools within a district.
Mountain Home’s results reflect a broader statewide trend of improving performance. According to the education department, 68 more schools received an A or B this year, while the number of schools earning a D or F dropped by 35. As a result, 15,042 additional Arkansas students are now enrolled in A- or B-rated schools compared to the previous year.
Statewide, there are now 350 B-rated schools—an increase of 58 from last year, per data from the Arkansas Advocate. Nearly 45% of the state’s 1,047 schools retained the same grade as last year. “If kids are learning, you’re going to get a good grade,” Oliva told reporters, according to the Advocate.
However, the Arkansas Education Association has criticized the grading system, arguing that year-end testing cannot capture all aspects of school performance. The association has also pointed out that private schools receiving state voucher funding are not graded under the same system.
Families interested in viewing report cards for any Arkansas school or district can visit myschoolinfo.arkansas.gov. Statewide School and District Rating Dashboard data is also available at ardatahub.uark.edu.