Possibly relocating to Hot Springs or Northwest Arkansas

[MichiganGirl]

Hi!

I saw a post over at the city-data forum advertising this forum. First, let me just say WOW! I have spent two days just reading the posts and looking at the awesome pictures. All the

[RemusCal]

Hi!

I saw a post over at the city-data forum advertising this forum. First, let me just say WOW! I have spent two days just reading the posts and looking at the awesome pictures. All the

[monsoon]

Welcome to the forum Jenn. I am glad you found us and thanks for the compliments.

[johnnydr87]

Hi MichiganGirl, thanks for the compliments.

I guess I could give you the run-down on Hot Springs. It's a beautiful city (in its own metro of 90,000) embraced by the mountains and the lakes. Landscape-wise, I'd say Hot Springs has bigger mountains and more lakes. Here's a google map for Hot Springs; you can see the lakes and mountains.

I'm personally a senior in high school...so I could give you run down on the schools too. The primary school districts in the area are Lakeside, Hot Springs, and Lake Hamilton (there are also smaller ones tucked away into the hills). Lakeside has the reputation of being the best, but it also has a reputation of being preppy and shallow. I went there in 1st through 10th grades, and I can attest that there are a lot of rich, lazy kids. Lake Hamilton and Hot Springs are quickly passing Lakeside academically. Lake Hamilton has a lot of specialized math and computer science courses (etc.) which Lakeside lacks. Hot Springs recently adopted the rigorous International Baucclerate (sp?) program, of which only 10-20% finish. The king of academics in Hot Springs and Arkansas is the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and Arts, a residential high school for juniors and seniors. (I go here.) It consistently ranks in the top 1% nationally in ACT scores (average is a 28+) and has amazing academics. It's completely free if your son/daughter gets in, and it's economically/socially/politically diverse......which is a step from the norm of Arkansas. (More info: http://asmsa.net) I must say, Fayetteville school district from what I hear is awsome, and probably second only to Little Rock Central (and third to ASMSA in high school).

I'm really not aware what the crime rate is in Hot Springs, although I know it can't be worse than that of Flint. (Yes, I saw Roger and Me.) I personally don't watch much local news nowadays, but I would guess the crime rate is average in Hot Springs.

Because of it's tourism, Hot Springs has a huge amount of shopping amenities for its size. Over the last 5 years, we've added an Old Navy, American Eagle, Office Depot, Pier 1 imports, Books A Million, etc etc to our already big list (relatively) of stores. And if for some reason you can't find a store here, Little Rock is only an hour away and has a wider array of shopping selections than anywhere else in the state.

I'm not sure if Hot Springs has quite a "small town" feel. I think that's ebbing away for the most part. The pictures of the downtown you saw is mostly a tourist district. I suppose, relative to Flint and most places, it has a small town feel. Then again, I guess one could say that everywhere in Arkansas has a small town feel (other than Little Rock).

The population of Hot Springs is 35,000, and it's metro is ~98,000. And because of all the tourists, it seems a lot more populated than that..

For its size, Hot Springs has a lot to do recreationally (swimming, boating, fishing, hiking, gambling at the racetrack ---lol, magic springs THEME park, and lots of little things).

Good luck, and I hope I answered most of your questions.

BTW, there's also a lot of beautiful places to live nearby good sized metros (like the outskirts of Hot Springs in the Ouachitas or the outskirts of Fayetteville in the Ozarks).... You both are still young...so you might want to explore that possibility.

If you're looking for a good size city that's comparable to Hot Springs and Fayetteville in terms of beauty and amenities, I would say check out Eureka Springs too. Those three are probably the most famous of the Arkansas hill/mountain towns over 25,000 people:

[MichiganGirl]

Welcome to the forum Jenn. I am glad you found us and thanks for the compliments.

Thank you for the welcome Metro!

[MichiganGirl]

Hi MichiganGirl, thanks for the compliments.

I guess I could give you the run-down on Hot Springs. It's a beautiful city (in its own metro of 90,000) embraced by the mountains and the lakes. Landscape-wise, I'd say Hot Springs has bigger mountains and more lakes. Here's a google map for Hot Springs; you can see the lakes and mountains.

I'm personally a senior in high school...so I could give you run down on the schools too. The primary school districts in the area are Lakeside, Hot Springs, and Lake Hamilton (there are also smaller ones talk away into the hills). Lakeside has the reputation of being the best, but it also has a reputation of being preppy and shallow. I went there in 1st through 10th grades, and I can attest that there are a lot of rich, lazy kids. Lake Hamilton and Hot Springs are quickly passing Lakeside academically. Lake Hamilton has a lot of specialized math and computer science courses (etc.) which Lakeside lacks. Hot Springs recently adopted the rigorous International Baucclerate (sp?) program, of which only 10-20% finish. The king of academics in Hot Springs and Arkansas is the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and Arts, a residential high school for juniors and seniors. (I go here.) It consistently ranks in the top 1% nationally in ACT scores (average is a 28+) and has amazing academics. It's completely free if your son/daughter gets in, and it's economically/socially/politically diverse......which is a step from the norm of Arkansas. (More info: http://asmsa.net) I must say, Fayetteville school district from what I hear is awsome, and probably second only to Little Rock Central (and third to ASMSA in high school).

I'm really not aware what the crime rate is in Hot Springs, although I know it can't be worse than that of Flint. (Yes, I saw Roger and Me.) I personally don't watch much local news nowadays, but I would guess the crime rate is average in Hot Springs.

Because of it's tourism, Hot Springs has a huge amount of shopping amenities for its size. Over the last 5 years, we've added an Old Navy, American Eagle, Office Depot, Pier 1 imports, Books A Million, etc etc to our already big list (relatively) of stores. And if for some reason you can't find a store here, Little Rock is only an hour away and has a wider array of shopping selections than anywhere else in the state.

I'm not sure if Hot Springs has quite a "small town" feel. I think that's ebbing away for the most part. The pictures of the downtown you saw is mostly a tourist district. I suppose, relative to Flint and most places, it has a small town feel. Then again, I guess one could say that everywhere in Arkansas has a small town feel (other than Little Rock).

The population of Hot Springs is 35,000, and it's metro is ~98,000. And because of all the tourists, it seems a lot more populated than that..

For its size, Hot Springs has a lot to do recreationally (swimming, boating, fishing, hiking, gambling at the racetrack ---lol, magic springs THEME park, and lots of little things).

Good luck, and I hope I answered most of your questions.

BTW, there's also a lot of beautiful places to live nearby good sized metros (like the outskirts of Hot Springs in the Ouachitas or the outskirts of Fayetteville in the Ozarks).... You both are still young...so you might want to explore that possibility.

If you're looking for a good size city that's comparable to Hot Springs and Fayetteville in terms of beauty and amenities, I would say check out Eureka Springs too. Those three are probably the most famous of the Arkansas hill/mountain towns over 25,000 people:

Hi Johnny! Thank you SO VERY MUCH for your in-depth response! I have noted everything (I have a Word document going for each city, lol ).

The school run-down was exactly what I was looking for, I appreciate it. I will definitely be researching each district.

Flint has a terrible reputation. The new mayor is trying really hard to turn it around and some things are paying off but there's so much urban decay that it's going to take a long while. And this just isn't the place I want to raise my children in. I do live in the city now but I grew up in the township which is a suburb of Flint with the same name. I've never had a problem here but nevertheless - it's time to go.

I love Old Navy! Do you guys have Target?

You did answer many questions - thanks! Eureka Springs is GORGEOUS! That's what I really like about Arkansas - the beauty is breathtaking!

If I asked about the job market would that be violating the rules?

Thanks again!

[johnnydr87]

Nope, no Target. Yeah, that's one of the bummers about Hot Springs. The nearest Target is in Bryant, about 35-40 minutes away. The next is in Little Rock.

Wal-Mart got a stranglehold on the market here early, and we have two huge supercenters. The newer one was supposedly the biggest Wal-mart when it was first built, but I don't know if that's a great claim to fame....

I don't think questions about the job market would violate the rules at all....

Whoa....the population of Eureka Springs is much smaller than I thought (~3,000). I always got the impression it was much bigger, then again, it is a tourist destination.

[MichiganGirl]

Nope, no Target. Yeah, that's one of the bummers about Hot Springs. The nearest Target is in Bryant, about 35-40 minutes away. The next is in Little Rock.

Wal-Mart got a stranglehold on the market here early, and we have two huge supercenters. The newer one was supposedly the biggest Wal-mart when it was first built, but I don't know if that's a great claim to fame....

I don't think questions about the job market would violate the rules at all....

Well, I could handle driving 35-40 minutes to a Target.

We have Wal-Mart here but no supercenters. Unless the new one they built in Grand Blanc is a supercenter...

Well, I don't have any specific questions about the job market. Is it good? Like, here, jobs are pretty sparse and when you DO find them they're usually $6-$7 an hour (which up here is NOT a wage one can live on) unless you have crazy mad skills that will make them pay a lot to have you. Does that make any sense at all, what I'm asking?

Thanks again!

[johnnydr87]

Honestly, I don't know if I'm the best source to comment on jobs. According to this site, http://www.economagic.com/em-cgi/data.exe/...a/lauMT05263003, the unemployment rate is 4.3%.

The main industry, obviously, is tourism, so there are a lot of $6-$7 jobs as well.

Since Hot Springs is a good sized metro and growing fairly fast, new types of jobs are continually popping up all over the area. Also because of the size, hot Springs is the epicenter of this area in the state (so we have the hospitals, facilities, etc for the county). I know I have friends whose parents are doctors, engineers, etc....so apparently those jobs are available.

Xerox is a good example of a company that recently moved a facility to Hot Springs. (According to http://www.xerox.com/go/xrx/template/019d....USA&Xlang=en_US, it's a "digital imaging and repository" facility.....whatever that means.) Like I said, new stores/offices are popping up regularly.

Uhhh....there's also logging? lol....

There MUST be some resource out there for relocating to Hot Springs with better info....

[Mith242]

Welcome to the forum MichiganGirl. Both Fayetteville and Hot Springs are both nice places that tend to get a lot of recognition as great places to live. Hot Springs is smaller but has a lot of advantages of a city it's size because it draws a lot of tourists. Fayetteville is a larger city and is also in a larger metro. The job market is great up here. In fact we need more people to fill jobs, our unemployment rate has been around the 2.5-3% mark which is actually ridiculously low. Fayetteville is probably more known as a college town but it's really a great place to live for everyone. Fayetteville was picked in a couple of books recently as one of the top 50 places to raise a family in and also top 50 to retire. Most estimates place Fayetteville around the 70,000 mark but there are also several other cities that make up the northwest Arkansas metro. Depending on what figures you look like the NWA metro is around 300,000 to 350,000 although some current estimates have it closer to 350,000 to 400,000. Northwest Arkansas is a fast growing area, the 6th fastest growing metro in the nation for the 90's. I can't say I know a lot about the school system but I have heard good things about it. That and I can say we have a Target here. Both Hot Springs and Fayetteville have some great scenery. Hot Springs is in the Ouachitas Mtns and Fayetteville in the Ozarks. Hope this helps some. Feel free to ask any other questions.

[johnnydr87]

MichiganGirl, this website is exactly what you need:

http://www.relocatetoarkansas.com/

It has a LOT of good information.

Fayetteville is definitley the faster growing of the two, and in a bigger metro area. Like Mith said, the place is booming and it is an economic powerhouse. That would honestly be the safest bet for decent-good paying jobs (other than Little Rock).

[Mith242]

MichiganGirl, this website is exactly what you need:

http://www.relocatetoarkansas.com/

It has a LOT of good information.

It's not a bad site but it's a little light on some of the numbers and such. But it does give some ideas.

[johnnydr87]

And more specifically:

Hot Springs:

http://www.relocatetoarkansas.com/find-hom...ity/Hot+Springs

Fayetteville:

http://www.relocatetoarkansas.com/find-hom...ty/Fayetteville

Honestly, I haven't gone through the site, but I was assuming it would be good :-p It does look light on statistics, and it only seems to cover the "funner" aspects of the cities.

[mcheiss]

Welcome MichiganGirl to Urban Planet!!

As you can see, many of the Arkansas Forumers are very informed about the cities of Hot Springs and Fayetteville. I myself reside in a City within Northwest Arkansas called Rogers, which is one of the fastest growing cities in Arkansas. If you'd like any info on that city, I'd be more than happy to share it with you.

[MichiganGirl]

My goodness! I can't thank you enough for all the links and all the help you're giving me!

Johnny: I checked out the site for the rates of unemployment-thank you. Flint is 7% so 4.3 (and especially 2.5-3%) looks pretty good! Okay, so the $6-$7 there - do the costs of things there allow one to live on that? Here, car insurance ($300 per month for 2 cars for full coverage here, I'm waiting for a quote from Hot Springs) is really high as are our utility bills ($400-$500 November-March and that is no exaggeration, $300-$400 the rest of the months, typically). I checked out the gas prices for both Fayetteville and Hot Springs at gasbuddy.com and they're comparable with those here.

LOL@ the logging! I'll run that by my husband but I can only imagine the look I'll receive.

The relocation site is definitely interesting and I bookmarked both. Thanks for your help!

Mith: Thank you! Fayetteville certainly has the numbers to back up the good things said about it. Do you know if things like car insurance and utilities are comparable to those of Hot Springs?

mcheiss: Thank you! Yes, everyone is VERY informed which was exactly what I was looking for - facts and figures are great but they only go so far. Talking to people who live their lives in these areas are what can really give a person a feel for a place. Rogers is in the area we are considering so yes please, any info you can share would be appreciated. Thanks!

My own questions (and you knew there'd be more, lol):

As I said above, I'm waiting to hear back from State Farm (Hot Springs) on a car insurance quote (we have State Farm here as well). I spoke to the nicest woman there yesterday! She gave us the phone numbers to the cable company, the utility company, etc. We talked to the cable company (Internet is the same cost here but digital cable is cheaper) but can't get ahold of Entergy. So all of that stuff is slowly being worked out. (I'm working on one city at a time, starting with Hot Springs. ) What I'd like info on is:

1) Insects. Particularly insects that would harm animals. We have 3 dogs (cats too but they're strictly indoors. The dogs are indoor pets as well but gotta go outside, lol) and I'm concerned about insects that could/would harm them. And is there much of a mosquito problem?

2) On the subject of animals, veterinary clinics. The AOL yellow pages show which clinics are there but I'm wondering if somebody can tell me ones they consider to be the best or those to avoid?

3) Hot Springs, I know is a touristy town and as such they have the water park and the theme park and such. What are the non-touristy type parks like or do they even have them? Some place you can take the kids to play, just a basic park.

4) Snowfall. Being from Michigan we see our fair share of snow (thankfully not like New York just saw though!), there's snow on the ground right now. Do you get a lot of snow down there? Any type of accumulation?

5) And on the subject of weather - tornadoes. I know that Arkansas isn't in the National Weather Services area of "Tornado Alley" but do you get a lot of them?

I will stop for now. lol. Sorry for running on but all these questions just keep coming into my mind! Know for sure though that your comments and your time are appreciated immensely. As usual if there's simply a website you'd like to point me in the direction of that would answer any of the above - that would be great as well.

Happy Tuesday!

Jenn

[johnnydr87]

1) Insects. Particularly insects that would harm animals. We have 3 dogs (cats too but they're strictly indoors. The dogs are indoor pets as well but gotta go outside, lol) and I'm concerned about insects that could/would harm them. And is there much of a mosquito problem?

Hahahhaha. Jenn, we're from Arkansas---not some remote tropical island. Granted, we are farther to the south, so we do have more mosquitoes. Again, it really depends where you live and if there's any standing water nearby.

In some parts of the Ozarks/Ouachitas, there are lots of chiggers/ticks, especially where there is a large deer population. I remember this was a problem when I was hiking over the summer. In the residential areas, there isn't a problem at all. Pretty much any residential area you move to will be the exact same, unless you decide to move to some secluded farm tucked away on the hills.

2) On the subject of animals, veterinary clinics. The AOL yellow pages show which clinics are there but I'm wondering if somebody can tell me ones they consider to be the best or those to avoid?

I don't know of which ones to avoid or not.....but I do know we have a decent selection.

3) Hot Springs, I know is a touristy town and as such they have the water park and the theme park and such. What are the non-touristy type parks like or do they even have them? Some place you can take the kids to play, just a basic park.

Of course. Plenty. There's Whittington Park, Hot Springs Creek Park, Hollywood Park, and all the state park/national park areas. There's probably more that I don't know of. Whittington Park is in the valley adjacent to the National Park and a good place to go running/jogging. Hot Springs Creek Park travels along the Hot Springs Creek (running/biking/jogging). Hollywood Park has playgrounds and family recreational things. And there's plenty of nearby state parks along the lakes, on top of the mountains, etc etc where you can set up a barbecue on the grill and picnic tables. Lake Ouachita state park is beautiful and they have paddleboats/canoes/ tennis courts/playgrounds/picnic tables. Canoing is especially fun with the family be because the lake is so huge and there are literaly dozens of islands to explore (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=hot+springs,+Ar&ll=34.597889,-93.35701&spn=0.167021,0.43396&t=k).

There are also 2 lakes (Catherine and Hamilton) closer to the city/in the city that are much more commercialized.

There are probably a few more smaller, regular parks out there that I have no idea about, as the parks I mentioned are in my vicinity.

4) Snowfall. Being from Michigan we see our fair share of snow (thankfully not like New York just saw though!), there's snow on the ground right now. Do you get a lot of snow down there? Any type of accumulation?

I'd say we get accumulation every other year, and it usually melts within a few days. It snows every year, but most of it doesn't seem to stick. (The whole global warming thing.)

5) And on the subject of weather - tornadoes. I know that Arkansas isn't in the National Weather Services area of "Tornado Alley" but do you get a lot of them?

We get them in Arkansas, but it's rarer than OK or KS because of terrain. The chances of your house, or even community, being struck by a tornado is very rare. I've lived in HS for 12 years, and I can think of only one tornado that was very short-lasted and weak. (It did do some damage, though.)

[Mith242]

My goodness! I can't thank you enough for all the links and all the help you're giving me!

Johnny: I checked out the site for the rates of unemployment-thank you. Flint is 7% so 4.3 (and especially 2.5-3%) looks pretty good! Okay, so the $6-$7 there - do the costs of things there allow one to live on that? Here, car insurance ($300 per month for 2 cars for full coverage here, I'm waiting for a quote from Hot Springs) is really high as are our utility bills ($400-$500 November-March and that is no exaggeration, $300-$400 the rest of the months, typically). I checked out the gas prices for both Fayetteville and Hot Springs at gasbuddy.com and they're comparable with those here.

LOL@ the logging! I'll run that by my husband but I can only imagine the look I'll receive.

The relocation site is definitely interesting and I bookmarked both. Thanks for your help!

Mith: Thank you! Fayetteville certainly has the numbers to back up the good things said about it. Do you know if things like car insurance and utilities are comparable to those of Hot Springs?

mcheiss: Thank you! Yes, everyone is VERY informed which was exactly what I was looking for - facts and figures are great but they only go so far. Talking to people who live their lives in these areas are what can really give a person a feel for a place. Rogers is in the area we are considering so yes please, any info you can share would be appreciated. Thanks!

My own questions (and you knew there'd be more, lol):

As I said above, I'm waiting to hear back from State Farm (Hot Springs) on a car insurance quote (we have State Farm here as well). I spoke to the nicest woman there yesterday! She gave us the phone numbers to the cable company, the utility company, etc. We talked to the cable company (Internet is the same cost here but digital cable is cheaper) but can't get ahold of Entergy. So all of that stuff is slowly being worked out. (I'm working on one city at a time, starting with Hot Springs. ) What I'd like info on is:

1) Insects. Particularly insects that would harm animals. We have 3 dogs (cats too but they're strictly indoors. The dogs are indoor pets as well but gotta go outside, lol) and I'm concerned about insects that could/would harm them. And is there much of a mosquito problem?

2) On the subject of animals, veterinary clinics. The AOL yellow pages show which clinics are there but I'm wondering if somebody can tell me ones they consider to be the best or those to avoid?

3) Hot Springs, I know is a touristy town and as such they have the water park and the theme park and such. What are the non-touristy type parks like or do they even have them? Some place you can take the kids to play, just a basic park.

4) Snowfall. Being from Michigan we see our fair share of snow (thankfully not like New York just saw though!), there's snow on the ground right now. Do you get a lot of snow down there? Any type of accumulation?

5) And on the subject of weather - tornadoes. I know that Arkansas isn't in the National Weather Services area of "Tornado Alley" but do you get a lot of them?

I will stop for now. lol. Sorry for running on but all these questions just keep coming into my mind! Know for sure though that your comments and your time are appreciated immensely. As usual if there's simply a website you'd like to point me in the direction of that would answer any of the above - that would be great as well.

Happy Tuesday!

Jenn

I can't speak for Hot Springs very well but I don't think Hot Springs or Fayetteville have many problems with mosquitos. They're not too easy to find in the Ozarks and I would imagine it could be the same for Hot Springs and the Ouachitas. Unless it's the Ozark's bat population that helps in that category. On the veterinary I have a coworker who has a lot of pets I'll ask her about if she has any recommendations. I would imagine Hot Springs has some of the more standard parks you are asking about. Three in Fayetteville that I would recommend would be Lake Fayetteville, Gulley Park and Wilson Park. I should have some pics of those in my Pics of Fayetteville topic in the Northwest Arkansas subforum. I can post a link to it if needed. We do get snow in Arkansas but certainly nothing like what you get in Michigan. But it seems in many ways snowfall has been really declining at least in northwest Arkansas. Arkansas does also get tornadoes although we aren't anywhere as bad as states like Oklahoma. I can't speak for Hot Springs but tornadoes are actually quite rare in Fayetteville. I think the terrain of the Boston Mtns to the south help prevent quite a few of them despite the fact we're rather close to Oklahoma. Can't say I have a lot of info about the insurance rates or utilities. But I am pretty sure that Fayetteville has different utilities than what much of the state has. For natural gas there's Arkansas Western Gas. For electricity there's Southwestern Electric Power and Ozark Electric Co-op. The city provides water and Cox provides the cable service. I did manage to find a link that has some of this info that might be helpful.

http://www.accessfayetteville.org/utilitie...d_cable_access/

Just ask if there's any other questions.

[MichiganGirl]

Quote:

***

Hahahhaha. Jenn, we're from Arkansas---not some remote tropical island. Granted, we are farther to the south, so we do have more mosquitoes. Again, it really depends where you live and if there's any standing water nearby.

***

Hon, I live in Michigan and we've had mosquito problems for the last 2 years, lol. :-) I wondered because of all the greenery and lakes. Glad to hear it isn't too much of a problem. Thanks again for all your help!

Mith: I'll go look at the rest of the pics of Fayetteville. I've been trying for most of the day but the forums and my computer don't seem to be cooperating with each other today. Thanks for the site, I'll check that out too. :-)

This forum is great! I've learned many things about Arkansas that I never knew! I don't think I have any other questions at this time (though I'm sure I'll come up with more). I can't wait to come to Arkansas in April! Soon, maybe I'll get to post as a resident of the state!

[Mith242]

Quote:

***

Hahahhaha. Jenn, we're from Arkansas---not some remote tropical island. Granted, we are farther to the south, so we do have more mosquitoes. Again, it really depends where you live and if there's any standing water nearby.

***

Hon, I live in Michigan and we've had mosquito problems for the last 2 years, lol. :-) I wondered because of all the greenery and lakes. Glad to hear it isn't too much of a problem. Thanks again for all your help!

Mith: I'll go look at the rest of the pics of Fayetteville. I've been trying for most of the day but the forums and my computer don't seem to be cooperating with each other today. Thanks for the site, I'll check that out too. :-)

This forum is great! I've learned many things about Arkansas that I never knew! I don't think I have any other questions at this time (though I'm sure I'll come up with more). I can't wait to come to Arkansas in April! Soon, maybe I'll get to post as a resident of the state!

Great, you'll have to let us know what you decide on.

[mcheiss]

Yes, glad to see you are serious about Arkansas!!!

[itk]

Hi!

I saw a post over at the city-data forum advertising this forum. First, let me just say WOW! I have spent two days just reading the posts and looking at the awesome pictures. All the

[johnnydr87]

I didn't see anyone really mention crime rates and schools in Northwest Arkansas. I can say as someone who lives in Little Rock now but grew up in Fayetteville that Northwest Arkansas has very little crime and very good schools. I still find it weird that public schools in the Little Rock metro are considered poor, and people will travel far to bring their kids to good schools (and private ones). In Fayetteville (and Springdale I know for sure) have very, very good schools, and that is a big attraction for out-of-staters I think. Also, crime to my knowledge has ever been a problem in Northwest Arkansas. Occaisionally, you'll hear about a stabbing at a bar by some drunks or some domestic violence but that's about it.

Is Flint the city where the mayor has proposed buying an old auto plant to build cars? I thought I read that somewhere. Good luck with you search/

I always hear praise for Central High and Mills University, but not much good about the others in LR.

[mcheiss]

Doesn't LR Mills have one of the Highest average ACT or AP Test Scores in the Nation?

I've heard good remarks from Little Rock Episcopal High as well.

[johnnydr87]

LR Mills was ranked pretty high for their AP program....I don't think it had much if anything to do with scores...Otherwise my school would be up there.

Is Episcopal private? Because I was only including public.....otherwise LR has a HUGE amount of good private schools.

[Arkansawyer]

LR Mills was ranked pretty high for their AP program....I don't think it had much if anything to do with scores...Otherwise my school would be up there.

Is Episcopal private? Because I was only including public.....otherwise LR has a HUGE amount of good private schools.

Pulaski County's Mills University Studies was ranked the 59th best school in the country by Newsweek. Central High came in at 205 on the same list.

To answer your question, look at the name of the school again. Episcopal has the largest endowment of any private high school in the country (thanks to a $30 million dollar gift by the Stephens). Yes, LR does have several good private schools.