Implementing the No Child Left Behind Act: Implications for Rural Schools and Districts
Demographic Characteristics of Rural Districts and Schools
According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), in 1999/2000 there were 89,594 public schools in the U.S., of which 37,548 were located in rural areas or small towns. Schools in rural areas or small towns account for about 42 percent of all schools in the nation and 30 percent of all students (U.S. Department of Education, 2001)1. Characteristics unique to rural areas include geographic isolation, small populations, and declining enrollments. Rural schools and districts tend to be smaller than their urban and suburban counterparts. The average urban U.S. school enrolls about 634 students, compared to rural schools that average about 400 students (NEA, 1998). Moreover, most rural school districts are comprised of one, two, or three schools, whereas urban/suburban districts can have hundreds of schools.
In many rural areas, school enrollment is decreasing. In 22 states, more than half of all rural schools lost students between 1994 and 1997 (AASA, 2000). Declining enrollments mean declining budgets. Because most school funding formulas are based on either average daily enrollment or cost per pupil, when students leave schools, so does funding. Faced with declining enrollments, schools must cut expenses or raise revenues. Too frequently, schools are forced to cut programs and/or staff, close schools and/or consolidate. Of all the school consolidations between 1986 and 1993, 59 percent were in small rural districts (Howley & Bickel, 2000).
The demographic characteristics of rural schools and districts affect the availability of funding and access to programs, services, and training opportunities. This lack of access plays a large role in the ability of rural districts to build local capacity to comply with NCLB.
