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1/22/02 – Rural school districts can look forward to increased federal education funds and more flexibility in how they can spend them.
Congress has appropriated $162.5 million for the Rural Education Initiative, part of the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The appropriation will be split evenly between the Small, Rural School Achievement Program and the new Rural and Low-Income School Program.
These programs offer smaller districts help in acquiring needed federal funds they often previously could not get, because they lacked enrollment, financial resources, or poverty data to compete effectively against larger school districts.
"This bill offers our rural schools unprecedented flexibility in the use of federal funds," says Rep. Tom Osborne (R-Neb.). "Typically, federal education funding has not addressed the unique needs of rural schools."
The Small, Rural School Achievement Program offers annual grants of $20,000 to $60,000 per school district.
The increased flexibility measures allow school districts to consolidate their allocations under several additional federal programs. Districts can use these consolidated funds to carry out a broad list of activities authorized under ESEA, including educational technology, professional development, technical assistance, and teacher recruitment and retention.
Eligibility is expanded as well. To qualify for funds under previous guidelines, rural districts had to be labeled as Department of Education locale code 7 (rural) or 8 (rural near an urban area), and have an average daily attendance of fewer than 600 students.
Districts seeking funds under the new program still must qualify under the locale codes.
But districts can choose among any of three other criteria: their schools are located in counties with a population density of fewer than 10 persons per square mile; the education secretary has determined the district is in an area defined as rural by a government agency; or they meet the previous attendance standard.
The new Rural and Low- Income School Program is aimed at rural schools in which 20 percent of students live at or below the poverty level. Program funds can be used for teacher recruitment, salaries and retention, teacher training, educational technology, or academic enrichment.
The Rural and Low-Income School Program requires grant recipients to establish specific education goals relating to achievement objectives and reducing dropout rates. Districts that do not meet adequate yearly progress goals must use their consolidated funds for school improvement activities.
"Both of these programs will have profound effects on the distribution of federal dollars into rural America," says Mary Conk, legislative liaison for the National Rural Education Association. But there will be a downside, she adds: "It is certain that there will be more paperwork and more federal requirements."
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| Reproduced with permission from the Jan. 22, 2002, issue of School Board News. Copyright © 2002, National School Boards Association. Opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect positions of NSBA. This article may be printed out and photocopied for individual or educational use, provided this copyright notice appears on each copy. This article may not be otherwise transmitted or reproduced in print or electronic form without the consent of the Publisher. For more information, call (703) 838-6789. | |