The Norfork School District has been selected as one of eight Arkansas districts to participate in a Forward Arkansas program that ties vendor compensation to student academic progress. The initiative, called the Instructional Interventions Outcomes-Based Contracting cohort, aims to improve the effectiveness of academic interventions such as tutoring by linking at least 40% of a vendor’s payment to measurable student success.
Each participating district will receive a $10,000 flexible grant to design and implement an outcomes-based contract during the 2027-28 school year. Other districts in the cohort include Harrison Public Schools in Boone County, Camden Fairview, Delta Preparatory Schools, Glen Rose, Jonesboro, Palestine-Wheatley, and West Fork.
According to Forward Arkansas, the cohort’s objective is to shift financial risk from school districts to third-party service providers, ensuring that public funds are spent on interventions that demonstrate tangible results. "Outcomes-based contracting helps ensure districts’ dollars support what matters most: real progress for our state’s students," Edie Stewart, CEO of Forward Arkansas, said in a statement. "We’re excited to invest in this proven approach to help even more districts strengthen their instructional interventions, transform their partnerships with providers and improve student outcomes statewide."
The nonprofit will lead the program in partnership with the Center for Outcomes Based Contracting. Training for the district leaders will begin in late October 2026 at Forward Arkansas's Outcomes-Based Contracting Fall Institute, held at the Clinton School of Public Service in Little Rock.
Norfork is the only participating district in Baxter County. Superintendent Richard Blevins declined to comment in the release on which specific interventions the district plans to address under the new contract model.
The Arkansas Department of Education (ADE) supports the outcomes-based contracting structure and gave preference to districts, including Forward Arkansas cohort members, during the awarding of grants for high-impact tutoring for the 2026-27 school year.
This is the third cohort organized by Forward Arkansas as part of the outcomes-based contracting initiative. Proponents of the model believe it offers a pragmatic approach to improving the state’s educational outcomes by holding service providers accountable for results while reducing financial risks for schools.