School district · Arkansas · LEAID 0506330
Fort Smith School District
Fort Smith School District is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Arkansas districts (14,291 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Fort Smith School District come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).
- $53,052
- Est. avg teacher salary
- $13,870
- Per-pupil spending
- 14,291
- Students enrolled
- 89th
- Pct. in AR
Well above benchmark
Fort Smith School District is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Arkansas districts (14,291 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $53,052, below the national average of $70,245, serving 14,291 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).
- Large enrollment scale: Fort Smith School District is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Arkansas districts (14,291 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
- 89th percentile for Arkansas
- 22nd percentile nationally
- 29% of spending reaches instructional salaries
- Arkansas ranks #49 of 49 on the salary estimate and #32 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
- Fort Smith School District ranks #22 of 199 Arkansas districts by estimated teacher salary and #110 of 199 by per-pupil spending. Fayetteville School District pay #1 at $73,997 is not Warren School District spending #1 at $31,095 per pupil
- -10.4% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)
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Instructional payroll mix vs Arkansas median
Among 234 Arkansas districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Fort Smith School District's instructional payroll puts 7.1% into other programs , 2.8 points below the state median of 9.9%. The mix below is the district's own F-33 program split against the in-state median, not a quality score.
| Program | Fort Smith | AR median | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular program | 74.6% | 73.6% | +1.0 pp |
| Special education | 12.8% | 10.1% | +2.7 pp |
| Vocational programs | 5.5% | 5.7% | -0.2 pp |
| Other programs | 7.1% | 9.9% | -2.8 pp |
Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 234 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 0506330 · FY2023.
LEAID 0506330 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023
Fort Smith F-33 compensation desk
FY2023: $53,052 estimated average teacher salary · P89 in Arkansas · P22 nationally · 29% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Mountain (+$41est. salary).
Salary neighbourhood chart for Fort Smith
Salary neighbourhood · Fort Smith
Fort Smith already leads most of its in-state peer set; the chart plots it against the top and bottom pay poles for context (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).
- Harrison · low pole
Harrison · low pole
$38,762 est. salary
- Brookland · near
Brookland · near
$53,001 est. salary
- Fort · this district
Fort · this district
$53,052 est. salary
- Mountain · near
Mountain · near
$53,093 est. salary
- Greenbrier · near
Greenbrier · near
$53,481 est. salary
- Fayetteville · top pay
Fayetteville · top pay
$73,997 est. salary
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Fort Smith
Fort Smith School District's estimated salary vs. every US district
NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only
$53,052 22nd percentile higher than 22% of 10,684 US districts
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023
What stands out about Fort Smith School District
- Estimated teacher pay here moved -10.4% between FY2019 and FY2023, trailing Arkansas's statewide +9.0% by 19.5 points, a growth rate faster than 4% of the 233 Arkansas districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.
- Enrolment grew 7.8% here, from 13,259 students in FY2019 to 14,291 in FY2023, against a national picture where far more districts shrank than grew over the same period. Growth of this kind typically arrives before the funding that follows it, so per-pupil figures often dip while a district absorbs it.
This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests
- Nominal district estimate
- $53,052.392
- Arkansas price level
- 86.8 / 100
- National-price equivalent
- $61,113
The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.
BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.
+15% versus the nominal figure.
Prices in Arkansas run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.
Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how Arkansas compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.
How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Fort Smith School District
What the Numbers Say About Fort Smith School District
Fort Smith School District is a mid-sized school district in Arkansas, serving 14,291 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $13,870. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $53,052, placing the district in the lower-spending tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 0506330 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.
Relative to the Arkansas statewide average of $43,221, teacher pay in Fort Smith School District runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 22.7% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (24.5% differential). Among enrolling districts in Arkansas, it pays more than 89% of them. Arkansas itself ranks #49 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.
On the budget side, Fort Smith School District reports $198.2M in total expenditure against $205.4M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 29% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $39.7M, special-education teacher pay is $6.8M.
How does Fort Smith School District compare?
Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Arkansas average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.
Fort Smith School District pays -12.8% less than Springdale School District · per-pupil $13,870 vs $15,771
Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.
Data-derived comparison paths
Find comparable Arkansas districts
On pay, Fort Smith School District sits closest to Mountain Home School District; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Benton School District. These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.
Similar estimated teacher pay
Similar per-pupil investment
Out-of-state districts near Fort Smith School District's enrollment scale
Two out-of-state peer sets for Fort Smith School District: closest on enrollment (14,291 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($53,052 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.
Similar enrollment
Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).
Similar estimated salary
Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.
Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.
Revenue & Expenditure
Instructional Salary by Program
The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in Fort Smith School District: the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 91% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 9% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.
Arkansas Teacher Pay Overview
The highest average among comparably sized Arkansas districts belongs to Fayetteville School District at $73,997. Fort Smith School District sits in the upper quarter of that field at 21 of 201, nearer the ceiling than the floor. Mississippi and South Dakota are the states closest to Arkansas on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.
View all Arkansas districts →Other Arkansas Districts
Large-district sample from 198 Arkansas peers with reliable NCES data; bar length shows pay magnitude within this slice.
This is a sample of 6 from 198 Arkansas districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.
Frequently Asked Questions about Fort Smith School District
What is the average teacher salary in Fort Smith School District?
The average teacher salary in Fort Smith School District is $53,052 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).
How does Fort Smith School District teacher pay compare to the Arkansas average?
Fort Smith School District pays 22.7% more than the Arkansas state average of $43,221. The district's average is $53,052.
How does Fort Smith School District teacher pay compare to the national average?
Fort Smith School District pays 24.5% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $53,052.
What is the per-pupil spending in Fort Smith School District?
Fort Smith School District spends approximately $13,870 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.
What percentage of Fort Smith School District's budget goes to teacher salaries?
Instructional salaries account for 29% of Fort Smith School District's total expenditure of $198.2M (NCES FY2023).
Next read for Fort Smith School District
Disclaimer & data sources
Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher
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| Sources | Public official public datasets |