https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/small-school-districts Small School Districts en-US 2021 (c) Education Week Tue, 08 Sep 2026 12:20:55 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/youll-make-new-friends-what-happens-to-students-when-their-school-closes/2026/09 How two middle schoolers managed uncertainty as their rural school closed its doors. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 12:20:55 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/youll-make-new-friends-what-happens-to-students-when-their-school-closes/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-for-this-school-board-president-leadership-starts-with-humility/2026/09 Amid a big transition, active communication helped this leader hold the community together. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-for-this-school-board-president-leadership-starts-with-humility/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-our-school-leaves-town-every-day-a-story-of-rural-resilience-and-survival/2026/09 For more than a year, this town’s only school has stood empty. The spirit of community endures. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-our-school-leaves-town-every-day-a-story-of-rural-resilience-and-survival/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-when-your-district-goes-through-big-changes-relationships-are-critical/2026/09 A neighboring school closed. His district embraced a reorganization. It was a lesson in leadership. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-when-your-district-goes-through-big-changes-relationships-are-critical/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-the-question-that-guided-this-school-district-through-an-impossible-decision/2026/09 Declining enrollment reshaped her district. This school board member has lessons for other leaders. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-the-question-that-guided-this-school-district-through-an-impossible-decision/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/two-districts-pave-a-road-toward-a-shared-future-and-survival/2026/09 A rural school district was facing the urgent threat of dissolution. Its leaders found another way. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/two-districts-pave-a-road-toward-a-shared-future-and-survival/2026/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/big-ideas-2026-building-bridges-so-students-can-thrive How can you create strong partnerships and manage conflict? A roadmap for education leaders. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 04:01:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/big-ideas-2026-building-bridges-so-students-can-thrive https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/technology/education-groups-say-new-e-rate-bidding-portal-will-hurt-small-districts-hardest/2026/05 Supporters of the measure say it will create a more transparent bidding process. Fri, 01 May 2026 20:57:15 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/technology/education-groups-say-new-e-rate-bidding-portal-will-hurt-small-districts-hardest/2026/05 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/states-consider-district-consolidations-as-student-enrollment-drops/2025/12 Rural educators say the decision to combine school districts is a matter of local control. Fri, 05 Dec 2025 22:03:03 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/states-consider-district-consolidations-as-student-enrollment-drops/2025/12 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-we-get-to-be-a-kayak-why-this-superintendent-isnt-panicking-over-politics/2025/04 A small, rural district is ready to prove the relevance of its schools to parents and policymakers. Mon, 28 Apr 2025 20:00:46 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-we-get-to-be-a-kayak-why-this-superintendent-isnt-panicking-over-politics/2025/04 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/rural-schools-are-fighting-for-their-existence-what-the-future-could-look-like/2024/07 Rural schools have long been contending with enrollment declines that are still relatively new to districts in more populated areas. Mon, 29 Jul 2024 20:40:34 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/rural-schools-are-fighting-for-their-existence-what-the-future-could-look-like/2024/07 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/video-how-this-superintendent-overhauled-literacy-instruction/2023/09 This Kentucky superintendent made overhauling literacy instruction a top priority. Two years later, he’s already seeing results. Fri, 29 Sep 2023 17:24:31 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/video-how-this-superintendent-overhauled-literacy-instruction/2023/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/the-language-of-equity An Alabama district has overhauled how it supports English learners—making great strides in early grades that it may not be able to sustain. Mon, 30 Jan 2023 05:01:34 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/the-language-of-equity https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/this-superintendents-tiny-rural-district-got-no-covid-aid-heres-why-that-hurts/2022/09 The aid formula left Long Lake, N.Y., out of the mix. The superintendent worries that could happen for other kinds of aid in the future. Tue, 06 Sep 2022 21:18:52 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/this-superintendents-tiny-rural-district-got-no-covid-aid-heres-why-that-hurts/2022/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leaders/2022/healthcare-was-hard-to-come-by-so-this-superintendent-stepped-up Ben Thigpen, the superintendent in rural Jones County, N.C., launched a telehealth program to improve medical care for students and staff. Wed, 16 Feb 2022 05:01:11 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leaders/2022/healthcare-was-hard-to-come-by-so-this-superintendent-stepped-up https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/resilience-faith-and-support-how-twin-brothers-forged-diverging-paths-to-college/2021/09 Twin brothers from rural Arkansas reflect on their path to college in the midst of the pandemic. Tue, 21 Sep 2021 18:30:59 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/resilience-faith-and-support-how-twin-brothers-forged-diverging-paths-to-college/2021/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/medicaid-treats-small-districts-and-rural-schools-unfairly-report-says/2019/02 Medicaid spending is the third-largest source of federal funds for K-12, but a national group representing superintendents says the program can do better. Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:37:56 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/medicaid-treats-small-districts-and-rural-schools-unfairly-report-says/2019/02 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/small-arkansas-school-district-installs-safe-rooms-in-all-classrooms/2019/01 A school district in a small Arkansas city has installed steel safe rooms in every classroom. Wed, 23 Jan 2019 01:11:46 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/small-arkansas-school-district-installs-safe-rooms-in-all-classrooms/2019/01 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/technology/public-school-district-enrolls-students-from-private-school-for-online-classes/2017/09 A small and shrinking school district near Los Angeles has come up with a novel way to stem its enrollment loss: Set up a virtual school and enroll students from faraway Roman Catholic schools. Tue, 19 Sep 2017 22:46:29 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/technology/public-school-district-enrolls-students-from-private-school-for-online-classes/2017/09 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/virtual-summer-school-an-option-for-students-in-small-illinois-district/2017/05 In this district about 11 miles outside of Chicago, students can choose among four different summer learning opportunities, including a virtual summer school program. Fri, 05 May 2017 20:25:00 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/virtual-summer-school-an-option-for-students-in-small-illinois-district/2017/05 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/court-dismisses-funding-suit-filed-by-small-n-y-districts/2016/10 A judge has thrown out a lawsuit against New York that claimed the state was shortchanging students in eight small-city districts and denying their constitutional right to a "sound basic education." Tue, 04 Oct 2016 23:21:14 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/policy-politics/court-dismisses-funding-suit-filed-by-small-n-y-districts/2016/10 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/vt-residents-vote-against-consolidating-school-districts-video/2016/06 In a small region of Vermont, a fierce debate raged over consolidating five tiny school districts into one. Thu, 09 Jun 2016 15:52:31 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/vt-residents-vote-against-consolidating-school-districts-video/2016/06 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/video-merging-small-school-districts-showdown-in-vermont/2016/06 With a plummeting student enrollment and skyrocketing education costs, Vermont lawmakers decided last year to begin an ambitious and controversial experiment to consolidate its vast system of public schools. The law, Act 46, intends to dramatically reduce the number of districts in the mostly rural state-there are currently 280 of them-by 2020 using a series of tax incentives. Supporters argue that by sharing resources more efficiently, the state will save millions of dollars and give students access to academically rigorous programs and more electives like the arts. But opponents say the initiative stabs at the very heart of Vermont, with its hundreds of tiny school houses and, more importantly, Vermonters' deeply-felt sense of local control. In this report, John Tulenko of Education Week profiles a northern region of Vermont where residents are sharply divided on whether to combine its five school districts. Read more about this issue on edweek.org. This video aired on PBS NewsHour on May 31, 2016. Fri, 03 Jun 2016 19:13:12 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/video-merging-small-school-districts-showdown-in-vermont/2016/06 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/court-orders-miss-district-to-desegregate-schools/2016/05 Despite the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision striking down racially segregated public schools, one small Mississippi district had resisted—until now. Tue, 31 May 2016 23:54:39 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/court-orders-miss-district-to-desegregate-schools/2016/05 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-for-school-districts-smaller-can-mean-better/2015/12 Big districts get all the attention. Their leaders make headlines. They 100,000+ students; 10,000+ teachers. What they often don't have is the best results for students, writes Arun Ramanathan. Thu, 17 Dec 2015 16:29:37 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/opinion-for-school-districts-smaller-can-mean-better/2015/12 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/education/okla-district-being-probed-for-misuse-of-funds/2015/12 A small Oklahoma school district is under investigation by the FBI and the U.S. Department of Education's inspector general for the alleged misappropriation of at least $235,000 over a five-year period. Tue, 01 Dec 2015 22:30:23 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/education/okla-district-being-probed-for-misuse-of-funds/2015/12 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/small-districts-tally-1-billion-in-annual-unnecessary-spending-report-says/2013/08 A new report estimates small, nonremote school districts account for $1 billion in funds that wouldn't have to be spent if they were larger. Wed, 14 Aug 2013 18:49:55 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/small-districts-tally-1-billion-in-annual-unnecessary-spending-report-says/2013/08 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/report-states-could-save-millions-by-consolidating-small-districts/2013/08 The Center for American Progress has released a new report suggesting that school districts could improve efficiency by consolidating small districts. Thu, 08 Aug 2013 23:30:56 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/leadership/report-states-could-save-millions-by-consolidating-small-districts/2013/08 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/education/rural-new-york-districts-look-to-innovate-to-overcome-funding-challenges/2013/06 Small, rural New York school districts are continuing to explore ideas to combat declining enrollment and funds. Fri, 21 Jun 2013 15:28:59 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/education/rural-new-york-districts-look-to-innovate-to-overcome-funding-challenges/2013/06 https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/opinion-investing-in-tech-to-turn-the-tides-in-wheatland/2013/06 Jason Tadlock helped turned around a tough situation in a small K-8 district outside Milwaukee by investing in technology and teachers. Fri, 21 Jun 2013 10:42:26 GMT https://www-edweek-org.ezproxy.baylor.edu/teaching-learning/opinion-investing-in-tech-to-turn-the-tides-in-wheatland/2013/06