Rural critical policy analysis (RCPA) goes beyond questions about whether a policy will "work" in a particular place, to examine the impact of policies on rural places. RCPA recognizes that policies represent the allocation of values--and that policy analysis cannot be separated from views of right and wrong. RCPA asks us to consider…

This article describes the author's journey to creating the website Literacy In Place (LIP) and outlines the major components of the site. LIP was created to support the reading and writing of rural stories in an effort to help create rural community across the various (non)rural and academic spaces. The principles of the community are: (1) Rural…

Many rural communities have seen population shifts with burgeoning communities of linguistic, racial, and economic diversity expanding into traditionally homogenous rural communities (e.g. Brenner, 2016; Sharp & Lee, 2017). These shifts can occur rapidly, as a result of regional economic, social, or political forces and are particularly…

Rural undergraduate students at flagship universities in the United States are typically outnumbered by their urban and suburban peers. Students from rural demographic backgrounds bring different forms of social and cultural capital to higher education with them. This phenomenological study at a flagship university in the Deep South region of the…

While there is a significant body of educational literature addressing the character and needs of rural communities in the Appalachian and southern regions of the US, there is a need for a better understanding of rural communities outside of this region. Existing literature focused on US rurality revolves around four main themes: the rural…

For education policies to be implemented most effectively in local contexts, policymakers must consider diverse school and community geographic characteristics. For example, rural geographies often present particularly important dynamics for public schooling, including challenges with school enrollment, school funding, and teacher labor markets.…

This study focused upon a sequence of three inquiry assignments with pre-service teachers (PSTs) in English language arts in an advanced composition and theory methods course. Place conscious and critical literacy scholars argue for a deeper understanding of rural lifeways and note the deficit or lesser than assumptions associated with rural…

The "Rural Educator" (TRE) editor Erin McHenry-Sorber recently spoke with three of the authors of the biennial report on the status of rural education published by the Rural School and Community Trust in partnership with the College Board and the American Association of School Administrators (AASA): The School Superintendents'…

This qualitative study investigated the evolving perceptions of rurality of five Appalachian native, first-year teachers as influenced by their teacher preparation program. Findings suggested tensions between participants' rural upbringings and programmatic and non-rural peer conceptions of rurality that surfaced during their program of study.…

The Coalition of Essential Schools (CES) has existed for thirty years and includes hundreds of public schools that are diverse in size, population, and programmatic emphasis. A qualitative grounded theory approach is utilized to describe how three rural (non-urban/suburban) high schools operationalize CES Common Principles. This research documents…

Formal and informal partnerships between rural schools and their communities can provide a wide range of supports for all students, but particularly those from low-income families. In this analysis of six small rural school districts in Virginia we show how the broad participation of community groups and individuals supports academic achievement…

Special education teachers, through a national survey conducted in 55 rural districts, provided information on the positive and negative aspects of teaching in rural schools. The 203 special educators were asked what they liked best about their position and what they found challenging. Some of the themes identified in the analysis centered on…

Rural schools face difficulties recruiting or retaining qualified teachers. Prospective teachers need help better understanding the nature of rural teaching. Despite many pluses, collegial isolation, low salaries, multiple grade or subject teaching assignments, and lack of familiarity with rural schools and communities are challenges to new…

This article describes a collaborative, distance-delivered, teacher preparation program for rural, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) teacher candidates. Multiple institutions partnered with one university in order to diversify the teaching force in the region and meet the needs of CLD students living there. In describing the program's…

Education authorities continue to experience difficulty in recruiting and retaining teachers in rural and remote schools. In Western Australia (WA), a state noted for its vastness and number of schools located in rural and remote settings, a scheme developed by the Western Australian Department of Education and Training (DET) and the WA Chamber of…