Education
A strikingly unique feature of El Dorado is the educational opportunities available to students. In January 2007, Murphy Oil made a $50 million promise to the students of El Dorado public schools and the community. Known as the El Dorado Promise, this scholarship program provides students who graduate from the El Dorado School District with a tuition scholarship to be used at any accredited two- or four-year educational institution in the United States. The maximum amount payable will be equal to the highest tuition cost payable at any Arkansas public university. The Promise makes a college scholarship as easy as going to school, graduating and getting a scholarship. Since the introduction of the El Dorado Promise, graduates from El Dorado School District that enroll in college have increased 20 percent. Also, school enrollment has increased three percent after a 20-year decline. More information about the El Dorado Promise may be found by visiting, www.ElDoradoPromise.com.
The district also receives support from the El Dorado Education Foundation (EDEF), a non-profit organization that recognizes academic excellence through programs such as chairs, teacher grants, teacher excellence awards and Academic Signing Day. In the past 11 years, the Foundation has awarded over $525,500 to educators who propose innovative projects to enhance learning. Perhaps the most noteworthy contribution of the EDEF has been its assistance in the establishment of the nation’s first elementary and secondary school endowed chair program in mathematics, science, foreign language and literacy.
In addition to the Foundation’s active recognition of education achievement, Murphy Oil Corporation gives significant cash awards to outstanding students in the district through its Murphy Education Program.
On any school day in El Dorado, elementary students can be found observing an aviary in their classroom; designing, building and testing a hovercraft; learning filmmaking or calculating profit and loss figures for the school stores. It is all part of the curriculum used in elementary focus schools, which emphasizes specialized areas of learning in addition to regular classroom work. Students may choose from six elementary focus academies to broaden their educational experience.
A tradition of excellence continues in El Dorado’s middle school (Washington Middle School), junior high (Barton Junior High School) and high school (El Dorado High School). Construction will take place this year for El Dorado’s brand-new high school.
El Dorado High School is competitive with other high schools across the state in academics, Advanced Placement (AP) courses, concurrent credit programs, fine art pursuits and sports.
South Arkansas Community College, a two-year college located in El Dorado, offers traditional academic and occupational education as well as customized training for local business and industry. SouthArk contributes to the life of the community with Noon Symposiums (offered monthly), Children’s College classes and a variety of continuing education and personal enrichment classes.
Also serving the community, Barton Library has a collection of over 69,000 books, periodicals and audio/visual materials. Free Internet access is also available. Summer reading programs are available for students in kindergarten through sixth grade.
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