Consistent with their name and mission, rural community colleges should be committed to building community. This can be accomplished through comprehensive curricula; extracurricular events; community education programs; continuing education; partnering with businesses and schools to encourage local youth to prepare for college; service learning;…

Examines the potential role of the rural school within the context of community development. Clarifies the differences between community growth and community development, and between community development and economic development. Rural community development is a process of developing the capacity of rural residents to identify common interests…

Evaluations of rural and small schools done by stakeholders provide a broader base of involvement than those done internally by persons with a vested interest or potential conflict of interest. Presents tasks for initiating a stakeholders' evaluation, groups considered to be stakeholders, evaluation standards, and elements to include in a school…

The community and the public school system are on a head-on collision course. Community concerns are taxes, poor teaching, and school responsibility for social ills. Educators "know" what is best and perceive challenges as threats to their integrity. The situation intensifies in rural settings. Good communication can alleviate dissonance/mistrust.…

Winning essays on rural school/community cooperation written by elementary, middle, and high school students recommend community volunteering to raise money, improve school appearance, and help with student supervision; building on the strengths of rural life; revitalizing rural communities through economic development; increased experiential…

Faced with mandated reforms of the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990, a mountain community grappled with the challenges of coupling top-down state mandates with bottom-up advocacy and engagement. A year of participant observation revealed six interrelated and paradoxical themes that emerged as these Appalachians created local ownership of…

1996 National Teacher of the Year--a high school teacher from rural Minnesota--reflects on the 30 years of her career and on social changes that have necessitated that her community and local schools work toward cultural understanding. The community went from a mostly white, middle-class, conservative community to one with at least six different…

Discusses guidance programs in rural schools, suggesting basic functions of guidance programs, such as career development and resources, communication with community, educational planning and assessment, counseling, and follow-up. (AH)

Parents, churches, and the community are important factors in the education of children. In the future, rural educational processes will become much more integrated into the total life of the community, with businesses, government, and social organizations serving as an extension of the classroom. (Author/CM)

Offers three examples of how low cost and innovative methods can be planned to bring expertise and resources to rural school districts: hosting a state/regional educational conference, arranging local evening classes from nearby small colleges/universities, and building/maintaining working contacts with computer software representatives. (NEC)

Describes Alaska village culture and gives five examples of ways that ignorance about the culture can interfere with a teacher's effectiveness in the community. Suggests a coping strategy of "skillful inaction" by which the newcomer can prepare for accomplishment by settling into the village and learning by listening and watching. (JHZ)

Describes an ethnographic dissertation that portrays how patterns of culture and history in a rural community in Maine negatively influence many rural students' academic aspirations. Consolidated schools exacerbate the effect by separating students from their parents and communities and alienating them in school. (TD)

Notes problems for rural science educators caused by the emergence of the postindustrial age. Describes developments in computer technology and notes how computers could assist rural teachers in solving postindustrial problems. Notes how rural schools' computer use could alter the role and preparation of rural science teachers. (SB)

Discusses basic differences between programs for special education students in urban areas and in rural areas and identifies critical needs for delivery of services to special education students in rural and remote areas as: teacher recruitment and development; services to exceptional students; legislation and funding; and parent and community…

Isolation, sparsity, smallness, and differentness hamper pursuit of quality rural education. Necessary basic conditions for quality education are attractive buildings with positive school climate; strong teacher/administrator leadership; core curricula reflecting rural values/culture; high academic expectations for all students; and use of…