2025 Rural Profile of Arkansas offers snapshot of a state in motion
Sept. 1, 2025
By Ryan McGeeney
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Fast Facts:
- Biennial report gives portrait of demographic trends, changes
- Useful tool for community planners, developers
- Available to download online
(967 words)
(Newsrooms: Download cover photo; portrait of Seo)
LITTLE ROCK — The 2025 Rural Profile of Arkansas is now available online. The biennial report from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture lays out data that illuminate trends in the Natural State’s rural population.
Frank Seo, assistant professor of rural development for the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, co-authored the report with Mark Goodman, president of Regional Development Partners, LLC.
Seo said the 2025 profile introduces several notable updates and expanded areas of focus, presenting updated trends and new analyses reflecting shifts in the state’s post-COVID-19 landscape.
“This year’s report highlights emerging issues such as home values, homeschooling and private schooling, with particular attention to the implications of the LEARNS Act,” Seo said. “It also offers a deeper examination of infant mortality and maternal vulnerability.”
The Natural State as a destination
The report divides Arkansas into four main population components, including the Coastal Plains, comprised of most of the state’s southernmost tier of counties; the Delta, representing most of the state’s eastern counties; the Highlands, which represent the largest swath of Arkansas counties throughout the state; and urban counties, representing the state’s metropolitan concentrations such as Northwest Arkansas, Pulaski County and surrounding central Arkansas counties, as well as Craighead, Crittenden and Miller counties. Those metropolitan areas, Seo said, saw population growth after the COVID-19 pandemic, both from migrating rural Arkansans as well as out-of-staters looking to call Arkansas home.
“One notable trend is that Arkansas has emerged as a key destination in the continued migration to Southern states following the COVID-19 pandemic,” Seo said. “According to the U.S. Census, Fayetteville recently surpassed a population of 100,000. In Benton County, Centerton ranked as the sixth fastest-growing city in the United States between July 1, 2022, and July 1, 2023. This rapid growth has heightened housing demand and led to sharp increases in home prices in high-migration areas.”
An aging rural population
The Rural Profile has long noted trends and changes in the demographic makeup of Arkansans, as well as their economic behaviors and geographic movement. Seo said a persistent trend in the state is the widening age gap between rural and urban populations.
“The average age in rural Arkansas is 42.7, compared to 37.8 in urban areas,” he said. “This demographic shift reflects deeper economic disparities. For instance, county median ages range from 32.1 in Clark County to 51.7 in Marion County, with many mid-northern rural counties aging more rapidly. This trend strains the rural labor force and poses long-term challenges to economic sustainability.”
Seo said, however, that there is also evidence that Arkansans are breaking long-standing patterns, including those related to unemployment.
“Historically, rural counties have faced higher unemployment due to limited job access, slower business growth, and fewer workforce resources,” Seo said. “However, the 2025 edition shows the unemployment gap between rural and urban counties has narrowed to a historic low. This is an encouraging sign that rural communities are beginning to share in the state’s broader economic gains.”
That progress aligns with Arkansas’ strong recent economic performance, he said.
“In the third quarter of 2024, the state led the nation with a 6.9 percent increase in real GDP,” Seo said. “Much of this growth was driven by agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, which are sectors with deep rural roots. Consequently, this economic momentum is beginning to benefit regions that have historically faced slower growth.”
Seo cautioned that challenges still remain, however.
“The state’s labor force participation rate continues to trail the national average and has not kept pace with job creation,” he said. “Sustaining recent gains will require strong community development efforts. Data-informed planning, combined with local partnerships and workforce training, is essential to meet diverse community needs and support inclusive, long-term growth.”
Shifts in education
The report notes that the COVID-19 pandemic drove significant increases in homeschooling in the state. During the 2019-2020 school year, about 22,000 Arkansas students were homeschooled. The following year, that number increased to 30,000, including about 12,000 rural students and 18,000 metropolitan students. Those numbers remained steady for the following two years, then jumped again during the 2023-2024 school year to a total of 32,500 homeschooled students in the state.
Likewise, overall public school enrolment peaked for the state during the 2019-2020 school year at 479,000 students. It declined during the following year and was most recently reported at 475,000 during the 2023-2024 school year.
The percentage of Arkansas students enrolled in private schools has also risen steadily over the past decade, from 7.4 percent in 2014 to 11 percent in 2024. In recent years, this has in part been accelerated by the Arkansas LEARNS Act, passed into law in 2023.
The law was designed to overhaul the state’s education system by expanding school choice through vouchers and raising teacher pay, Seo said. LEARNS stands for “literacy, empowerment, accountability, readiness, networking and school safety.”
Seo said the act, now in its third year, shows both promise and challenges.
“On one hand, it provides parents with more options and has boosted teacher pay in rural districts that often struggle to compete,” Seo said. “On the other hand, tuition at many private schools has risen sharply, with some doubling or increasing by thousands of dollars. The voucher amounts for the 2025–2026 school year are $6,994 for most students and $7,771 for students with disabilities, which often fall short of covering full costs.”
The Cooperative Extension Service, the outreach and education arm of the Division of Agriculture, has published the Rural Profile for more than three decades. Seo said that he and his colleagues are now working to incorporate the Rural Profile data into an interactive, web-based dashboard developed by the EDA University Center. Seo said the new version will make it easier for users to explore rural trends across Arkansas in a more accessible, dynamic format.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu/. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
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Media Contact:
Ryan McGeeney
rmcgeeney@uada.edu
501-671-2120