Rural school personnel across three districts and states were interviewed to learn their experiences working with refugee youth and their families. These eleven individuals held different roles including administrators, special service providers, and teachers of English language learners (ELL). Through qualitative analysis, the broad themes of…

Sexual minority youth (SMY) students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT+) often struggle with gender identity and sexual orientation (Craig, Austin, & McInroy, 2014). The inclusion of Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA) and Safe Zones have united students and facilitated cultural shifts in schools (Patterson, 2013).…

Principals formulated their responses to the pandemic in terms of a hierarchy of needs: they understood that their students and staff had to feel physically and psychologically safe before they would be successful in the classroom. This is one of a series of briefs that focused on a 'critical incident' surrounding school closure and offers…

This qualitative case study examines the challenges facing rural secondary schools in transitioning youth from high school to post-secondary education and careers, and whether the interventions, strategies and support built into the Early College High School could offer a solution to this long-standing challenge to better meet the needs of special…

This exploratory study addresses the challenge of declining family engagement at the critical transition to high school. We use data from a survey of schools to examine whether and how middle grades and high schools engage families when their students transition to high school. Findings indicate that there is a significant negative relationship…

With the demands on schools to prepare its students to be globally competitive in the 21st century, schools are forced to examine new ways to meet those demands. One of the new reform ideas is that of restructuring traditional high schools into small schools within schools. Through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the North Carolina…

Across the United States, immigrant enrollments in the public schools have rapidly increased, particularly in locales with little tradition of immigration, known as "new immigrant destinations." Despite the widespread nature of this trend, there is much to be learned about how schools are responding to this influx of immigrant students.…

The Boone Hope Foundation has given away over $130,000 in gift cards, rent checks, and eyeglasses--all targeted to help students with emergency needs related to food, clothing, shelter, and healthcare in its rural Iowa community. This is the story of teachers from a typical Midwestern school--relatively small and certainly not affluent--who have…

This is the final external evaluation report prepared by SRI International for the Rural Math Excel Partnership (RMEP) project, an investing in innovation (i3) development project funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Operated by Virginia Advanced Study Strategies, Inc. (VASS), the RMEP project included six rural school districts (LEAs) in…

Texas continues to fall short of the necessary mental health resources for those communities and populations in rural counties. The purpose of this article was to review the mental health resource needs of rural schools in South Texas. The study focused primarily on the perspectives of the school counselors in the identified districts. Funded by a…

Motivating high school students is a complex and challenging task. Add the resource shortfall and issues that result from the small size and remoteness of rural districts, and it may seem a nearly impossible undertaking. Motivation theory and research offer potential tools for teachers to use, but what are the needs of rural students, and what…

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…

A counselor at a rural high school in New York reflects on her career and addresses issues facing rural school counselors. She chose a career in school counseling based on her interests in education, community involvement, and adolescents. As the only high school counselor for 280 students, she soon realized that rural youth faced many of the same…

Middle Tennessee State University recently developed a satellite-linked, interactive distance learning system with six rural K-12 schools. Faculty were then invited to make a single presentation over this system. The social work department, recognizing both the opportunities and the limitations presented by this new system, elected to be one of…

This report addresses issues related to the responsibility of public schools to prepare rural youth for life choices about careers, postsecondary education, and place of residence. A synthesis of current research literature, as well as the perceptions of rural educators and policymakers in the Northwest, explore some potential resolutions to the…