1. Why Rural Matters for North Carolina
Presented to:
The North Carolina Rural Education Advocacy Forum
March 29, 2017
NC Department of Public Instruction
By:
Doris Terry Williams, Ed.D.

2. helping rural schools and communities grow better together
Our Mission
helping rural schools and communities grow better together

3. Goals
The Importance of Rural in the Broader Context of State and National Policy and Practice
Specific Challenges for Rural North Carolina
Teacher and Leader Recruitment and Retention
Funding Equity and Adequacy
Technology Access and Use
Curriculum
Promise and Possibilities for Rural North Carolina
Engaging Our Assets to Address Our Needs
Examples from the Field
10-Point Rural Education Advocacy Agenda

4. Why Rural Matters: Importance of Definition
Rural places are those designated with NCES locale codes 41 (rural fringe), 42 (rural distant), or 43 (rural remote).
District-level locale based upon where the plurality of students in the district attend school; makes it possible to use districts as the unit of analysis
Policy decisions impacting rural education (e.g., REAP funding) are made using district-level designations of rural status and local policies often tend to be crafted at the district level.

5. Why Rural Matters: National
8,959,843 children
18.7% of all students attend rural public schools
5% of all students attend rural school districts
25.2% of rural students are non-White
48.2% of rural students are eligible for subsidized meals

6. Why Rural Matters
Half of rural students in the US live in 10 states, including North Carolina
More than 1/3 of students in North Carolina attend rural school districts
NC is among the states with the highest percentage of ELL students

7. Why Rural Matters Gauge 1: Importance National North Carolina NC Rank
Percent Rural Schools
28.5%
42.4% 18
Percent Rural Students
14.7%
39.4% 5
Number Rural Students
8,959,843
568,161 2
Percent State Education funds to Rural Districts
16.9%

8. Why Rural Matters Gauge 2: Student and Family Diversity National
North Carolina
NC Rank
Rural Non-White Students
25.2%
40.5% 9
Rural ELL Students
3.5%
5.7%
Rural IEP Students
13.4%
13.5% 29
Rural Students Eligible for Subsidized Meals
48.2%
58.4% 13
Rural Mobility
10.6%
10.3% 26

9. Why Rural Matters Gauge 3: Educational Policy Context National
North Carolina
NC Rank
Rural Instructional Expenditures per Pupil
$6,067
$5,101 9
Ratio Instruction to Transportation Expenditure
$10.36
14.91 45
Ratio State to Local Revenue to Schools
$1.24
$3.00
Salary Expenditures per Instructional FTE
$57,798
$54,052 17

10. Why Rural Matters

11. Challenges to Rural Education
Definition of rural for special funding, like REAP
Competitive grant funding
Trends in federal and state policy and funding
Recruitment of teachers and leaders
Technology
Curriculum
Accountability

12. Challenges to Rural Education
Proposed federal budget –
$1.4B – charter, private vouchers, other alternatives
$1B – Title 1 funds, adding “portability”
$2.4B – teacher and school leader training
$1.2B – after school and summer enrichment
$3.9B – Pell Grant reserves
$43M – teacher preparation grants to colleges
$66M – Impact Aid (offsets revenue loss for federally- owned property)
Federal Work Study, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants
Schools don’t operate in a vacuum –
Consider also cuts to HUD, which could increase housing insecurity, homelessness
Cuts to federal job training programs

13. Recommended 10-Point Rural Advocacy Agenda
1. Think forward; think strategically (Think Tank)
2. Build capacity for competitive funding
3. Grow and support you own teachers and leaders
4. Expand broadband access (hot spots on school busses, 1-1 technology devices, and community-based afterschool sites)
5. Develop full-service community schools
6. Expand extended learning opportunities (school and community) that complement schooling
7. Provide equitable funding based on actual cost of educating students in the contexts where they are found
8. Ensure curriculum relevance and equity
9. Leverage university-school-industry connections for a seamless education system
10. Protect the rights of every child to a relevant, high-quality education

14. Why Rural Matters
I, too, am America.

15. Rural School and Community Trust
Doris Terry Williams