Rural communities in the Southern US are shaped by a legacy of racial oppression carried out through educational systems, in tandem with contemporary policies that perpetuate the marginalization of minoritized students. In this qualitative, revelatory case study, we examine the experiences of rural, southern school leaders who are tasked with…

The researcher conducted a qualitative interview study that identified barriers to higher education experienced by African-American women living in the rural South. The research questions were (1) What is the role of social capital in the accessibility of higher education for African-American females in the rural South? (2) How does social context…

In this descriptive and comparative study, we present results highlighting the complexity and scope of the challenges facing rural districts as they navigate the changing demographics of the students and families they serve. Rapid increases in the number and concentration of racially, culturally, and linguistically diverse students in rural areas…

Many reports on rural education give little attention to digital learning. At most, they tend to note either infrastructure needs or the potential of remote course access, with little focus on instruction, outcomes, or exemplars. This report intends to begin correcting that imbalance by connecting the dots between rural regions, rural education,…

In American popular culture, the word "rural" invokes images of sunny farms and little red schoolhouses--while "urban" means drugs, poverty, and crime. But those who know the reality of both worlds will say that rural schools face many of the same challenges as their urban counterparts. The problems of rural schools are often…

In 1987-88, advanced placement courses were offered by only 39 of South Carolina's 58 small rural high schools, compared to 100 percent of all other high schools. Distance learning systems, such as the Star Schools Project, provide a feasible option to expand the curriculum in small rural high schools. (SV)

Summarizes a dissertation that compares the transition outcomes of special needs students in Georgetown, South Carolina, with findings from the National Longitudinal Transition Study. Both studies found that special needs students were generally unemployed and underemployed and experienced socialization problems after high school, with greater…

This paper reports on a 1989 survey administered to superintendents of the 24 South Carolina school districts considered to be 100% rural. The purpose of the survey was to identify the most critical problems or concerns facing rural school districts in the 1990s. The superintendents were asked to rate 28 different items as being a critical problem…

A case study of a successful alternative school in South Carolina for rural at-risk students suggests that the school exhibits four characteristics of successful urban schools for at-risk students: small class size, caring staff, school as community, and program flexibility. Two other vital features are the leadership role of the principal and a…

In 2002-2003, 27% (12.5 million) of public school students attended school in communities of fewer than 25,000 and 19% (8.8 million) attended school in smaller communities of fewer than 2,500. In this report, the authors focus on the schools in those smaller communities, the most rural schools in America. They frame the report around 22…

Of South Carolina's 91 school districts, 24 are 100% rural. Comprised of small schools, these districts serve a large, sparsely settled geographic area, have a large minority student population, and are staffed by non-minority administrators and teachers. The small number of students and teachers severely limits a school's ability to provide for…

A model of service delivery to rural handicapped children trains classroom teachers onsite to be "Cooperative Extension Service Agents" within their schools. University faculty bring graduate coursework to the school site and "Agent" teachers provide special education inservice assistance to fellow teachers, facilitating local…

Proposed welfare reform could be detrimental to the education and employment opportunities of poor rural women and children. Describes the educational experiences of women who have attended the Low Country Human Development Center (LCHDC) (South Carolina). For the past 20 years, the LCHDC has provided pregnant teenagers with a high school…

Most of the scholarship and commentary on mathematics education deals with issues of curriculum and instruction; this is understandable in a field logically belonging to the domain of curriculum and instruction. Moreover, issues of teaching and learning are compelling to people who love to learn and teach mathematics. Policy receives shorter…

About 79 per cent of the rural schools in the Southern States have only one teacher. It is evident, therefore, that a plan must be worked out which will enable this single teacher to make her school a factor in the development of the life around it. On November 2, 1910, the Peabody Board appropriated $600 to work out such a plan. It was finally…