2[2] (DSD) was a school district headquartered in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, United States.
[3] With over 1,600 students and employing more than 300 educators and staff, the district had three active school campuses at the end of its life.
[4] It also served the unincorporated areas of Hardin,[5] Lake Dick, New Gascony,[6] Pastoria, Plum Bayou,[7] Sweden,[6] Tucker,[8] and Wright.
[10] In 1954 the district board refused a request to have racially integrated classes made by several black parents and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) member William Dove.
[13] John B. Pickhardt, an alumnus of the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, stated that the district was already spending less per capita to educate black students than white ones and so "there was little economic incentive to integrate".
[18] Dollarway Elementary began hosting black students on September 7, 1960, with no incidents of violence occurring.
[21] As a result of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the district created a new desegregation plan involving "freedom of choice" where parents choose which school their children will attend.
[22] Due to still relatively low numbers of black students attending white schools, Pickhardt wrote that the freedom of choice plan effectively kept races separate.
[30] This consolidation meant that small towns and rural areas in northern Jefferson County, including Altheimer, Sherrill, Wabbaseka, Tucker, and Plum Bayou, became a part of the district.
[33] From about 2008 to 2018, the poor economy of Pine Bluff prompted parents to leave the area, and accordingly, Dollarway district officials have an estimate of an enrollment decline of about 900 for the period.
"[28] The legislative document stated, in regards to whether to first prioritize academic improvement or repairing the buildings, "there is little consensus about which part of the problem to address first.
[38] The district held a centennial celebration in 2014 after band director Brandon Shorter read an article in the Arkansas Historical Quarterly that gave the year of establishment in 1914 and he verified that information, prompting him and his colleagues to organize a committee for the centennial.
Parents from seven families, including the president of the Dollarway Parent Teacher Organization, Annie Bryant, argued against the exemption; Bryant stated that due to the large number of students on free or reduced lunch, it was clear that the students had no other choice but to go to public schools, and therefore the district ought to allow transfers.
[42] The Pine Bluff Commercial praised the state takeover and criticized the previously elected school boards.
[44] In December 2020 the Arkansas State Board of Education ruled that the Dollarway School District should merge into the Pine Bluff School District as of July 1, 2021; all seven Arkansas state education board members approved this.
[45] Ryan Watley, the CEO of the organization Go Forward Pine Bluff, argued that Dollarway no longer was viable as an individual school district.
"[47] The pre-Altheimer merger boundaries included two non-contiguous portions, each between the White Hall School District.
[4] It also includes the unincorporated areas of Lake Dick, New Gascony,[6] Pastoria, Plum Bayou,[7] Sweden,[6] Tucker,[8] and Wright.
[53] The Arkansas Democrat Gazette stated that according to analysts, the district's cash reserves eroded because it was not pulling in as much funds as the student enrollment had declined and that bankruptcy was a possibility within several years in the future.
In a December 11 article, state education Secretary Johnny Key said that Dollarway “has made great strides” under Warren, noting progress in its academic program and financial management 3.
“The district has made significant progress both fiscally and academically,” Key said at the time of the board vote 3.