Saline County has grown faster than most of Arkansas, and Benton and Bryant families who want a private or faith-based school now face a choice. Do you stay close to home with one of the county's own schools, or commute to Little Rock for a larger campus? The Education Freedom Account works the same either way, but the math and the logistics differ. Here's how the options compare.
Schools in Saline County
Five private schools in Benton and Bryant participated in the EFA in 2024-25 or are on the state's current list:
- Arkansas Christian Academy in Bryant is the county's largest, a PK-12 campus with 322 students in the federal survey. It had 165 EFA students in 2024-25, and 92% of them stayed at the school the following year.
- Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School in Benton serves pre-K through grade 8. It had 32 EFA students out of about 90.
- Saline County Christian Academy in Benton is a small Baptist school serving kindergarten through grade 11.
- First Lutheran School in Benton is a small K-5 school where almost every student, 19 of about 20, used an account.
- Cornerstone Montessori Christian Academy in Bryant combines Montessori methods with a Christian program. It had 12 EFA students in 2024-25.
The commuting option
From Bryant, the west Little Rock campuses along the Rodney Parham and Cantrell corridors are within reach on a normal commute. Families also look at Christ the King, Baptist Preparatory School, Pulaski Academy, Little Rock Christian Academy and Episcopal Collegiate. The account follows your child to any participating school in the state. The trade-offs are drive time and, at the larger college-prep schools, a bigger balance after the account.
A quick way to think about it: if a local school charges close to the $7,208 account amount, your out-of-pocket cost is mostly fees and extras. If a Little Rock campus charges substantially more, add the balance to the cost of an extra 45 to 60 minutes in the car each day, and see whether the program difference is worth it to your family.
Transportation: what the account covers
Families often ask whether the EFA can pay for getting to school. It can cover some transportation, but a 2025 law (SB 625) caps transportation spending at roughly a quarter of the account, and it must go through approved channels in ClassWallet. In practice, few families use the account for daily commuting. If a school runs a bus or carpool service and invoices it, ask whether that fee is EFA-eligible.
Grade spans: plan the whole path
Several Saline County schools end early. Our Lady of Fatima runs through grade 8, First Lutheran through grade 5, and Saline County Christian Academy through grade 11. Arkansas Christian Academy is the only one in the county that covers PK-12 on one campus.
If you start at a K-5 or K-8 school, decide early where your child will go next. Catholic families from Our Lady of Fatima typically look at Catholic High or Mount St. Mary in Little Rock. Families from the Protestant schools often look at Arkansas Christian Academy or one of the Little Rock PK-12 campuses. Each school page in our directory lists the participating schools that serve the next grade.
Homeschool in Saline County
Saline County has an active homeschool community, and since 2024-25 the EFA can fund homeschooling. Statewide, about a quarter of all accounts were homeschool accounts in their first year. The state report shows local families paying the Benton Homeschool Co-op and the Saline Open Homeschool Association from their accounts. Families also used accounts for curriculum, testing, and college courses at UA Little Rock and UA Pulaski Tech.
If you homeschool, Arkansas still requires the usual notice of intent filed with your school district. The EFA application is separate and goes through the state's FACTS portal at arkansasefa.com during the spring window. For 2026-27 it ran March 9 to June 1. Returning families renew inside ClassWallet.
A note on very small schools
Several Saline County schools enroll fewer than 50 students. Small schools can offer close attention and a strong community. They also have less depth, such as fewer electives, sports and specialists. When you visit, ask how the school handles subjects it can't staff, and whether it partners with online programs or other schools for upper grades.
Where to start
A worked example
Here's how one Bryant family might compare two options for a second grader. These are illustrative numbers, so substitute real quotes from the schools. Say a local school charges $7,000 in tuition plus $500 in fees, and a west Little Rock campus charges $12,000 plus $800. With the $7,208 account, the local option leaves about $300 to cover. The Little Rock option leaves about $5,600, plus the cost of the longer commute. Neither choice is wrong. The point is to see the real difference before you fall in love with a campus.
Every Benton and Bryant school is in our Central Arkansas directory, with its EFA figures, grades and the closest alternatives. If you'd like an advisor to compare the local and Little Rock options for your child and budget, start a funding check.