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##  Balance Due: Increasing Financial Resources for Small Rural Schools.            ERIC Digest.                                                                 

Small schools--including those in urban areas--offer many advantages            and, despite beliefs to the contrary, recent studies provide some               evidence that small schools can be cost effective (e.g., Stiefel,               Iatarola, Fruchter, & Berne, 1998). Benefits include lower drop-out             rates and higher rates of post-secondary enrollment (Funk & Bailey,             1999). Small schools also reduce harmful effects of poverty on                  student achievement (Howley & Bickel, 1999). Research findings now              provide broad support for the common sense notion that young people             learn best in intimate settings, where teachers can know how to                 boost each students' academic achievement, self-control, and                    curiosity. 
Yet, small public schools have become an endangered                species over the past century. The industrial mantra "bigger is                 better" drove consolidation efforts that eliminated thousands of                small schools. School funding policies reinforced this trend and                starved the remaining small schools of resources. The good news is              that, like the American bald eagle, small schools are returning.                They exist in every state--in urban, suburban, and rural areas. The             bad news is that current funding practices do not meet their needs.             This ERIC Digest suggests strategies that can help small public                 schools, particularly small rural schools, redress funding                      inequalities and get the resources they need. 
Basic strategies for            improving resources at small rural schools include: 
*  increasing             operating funds by changing the state funding formula (increasing               the basic budget) 
*  using existing resources more                            effectively 
*  capturing new resources 
The first strategy is                most effective, but it takes the longest time and requires changing             many minds while working at a distance. The second, midrange                    strategy is where most education leaders begin, rethinking how work             is accomplished. It requires changing minds locally. The third                  strategy takes the shortest amount of time but holds the least                  promise for sustainable improvement. Regardless of differences in               purpose and payoff, each strategy works best when the responsibility            for securing resources is widely shared, inside and outside the                 school. INCREASING THE STATE FUNDINGEach state funds public               education by establishing a dollar amount per student for school                operating expenses. This system appears fair on the surface;                    however, rural schools usually support essential, extensive, and                expensive transportation and facility maintenance costs. When state             per pupil investment is stretched over these comparatively higher               costs, there are fewer dollars to invest in salaries, materials, and            equipment. 
Local districts are permitted to tax themselves to                 supplement state funding, but despite good intentions, inequities               can pile up here as well. The amount of money available from local              taxes depends on the local tax base and the level to which people               vote to tax themselves. Another factor is the assessment value of               property. Resort areas, retirement communities, and expensive second            homes sit on land assessed at a higher value than agricultural land.            In Vermont, for example, schools in districts with a large tax base,            such as in a wealthy suburb or near a ski resort, may invest $11,000            of state and local funds in each student every year and still have a            relatively low tax levy. Residents in a poorer, neighboring urban or            small-town district could tax themselves more heavily (set a higher             mill rate) but have as little as $2,500 invested per student. This              is because their property valuations are lower. Variations among                regions and states can be even more dramatic, a result of                       long-standing public policies. In the West, much of the land is                 public and generates very small payments to support schools. In much            of the South, the land is planted in timber and traditionally                   assessed at a trifling rate. 
Slow and patient work is required to             create funding formulas that treat rural schools fairly. The                    following paragraphs outline strategies that are potent, powerful,              and political. 
Insist that each child, regardless of where she or             he lives, deserves a high-quality education. Community members,                 opinion leaders, and policymakers need to be educated about this                seemingly simple idea. 
Demonstrate through research, testimony,               and example that small schools provide good returns on education                investments. For instance, evaluations based on cost per graduate               rather than cost per student demonstrate that small schools are                 remarkably economically efficient. Publicize the fundamental cost of            appropriate education, adjusting for transportation; facilities                 upkeep; curriculum development; and staff recruiting, retraining,               and retention. Point out the effects of unfair funding formulas and             hold legislators publicly accountable for all of their                          students. 
Look for friends, not enemies, and make alliances with              nonrural partners who share concerns for children. Advocates for                small rural schools are most effective when they come from outside              the school, in partnership with insiders. Expand the circle and                 include people who share similar goals and issues. Finally,                     unpredictable, unexpected, and unusual alliances get attention. Find            ways to collaborate with urban and suburban people in statewide                 efforts. 
Changing public opinion requires education, direct and               indirect. Effective small school leaders should conduct regular                 workshops for education reporters and community members on the local            impact of state funding formulas. The monthly newsletter Rural Roots            reports on strategies used across the nation to increase operating              budgets. Additional information can be found on the Rural School and            Community Trust Web site, www.ruraledu.org. 
Litigation is a last              resort. Of the 22 cases in which small schools have sued states to              change funding formulas, half have been decided for the plaintiffs              and half for the defendants. Of the 11 cases the plaintiffs won,                only four resulted in actual funding increases. Of the 11 plaintiffs            who lost, funding actually increased in one instance (Verstegen,                1999). USING EXISTING RESOURCES MORE EFFECTIVELYAll good                  administrators go over budgets with a keen eye for finding                      opportunities to save funds. The following paragraphs offer some                additional suggestions. 
Community members can provide                         paraprofessional services on a volunteer basis (playground duty,                hall monitoring, paper and test grading, library maintenance and                storytelling, tutoring in a variety of areas, etc.). Since many                 rural areas have become retirement magnets, schools are finding new             talent among people who want to connect to their adopted                        communities. Parents, grandparents, and older citizens are all                  possible contributors. To be most effective, schools need to                    acknowledge volunteers' contributions in meaningful and personal                ways. The best programs recruit one of the volunteers to coordinate             the work by building or district. 
Encourage retiring teachers to              volunteer to mentor new teachers. Retired teachers can offer wisdom,            perspective, and time that practicing teachers may not                          have (Parsons, 1999). Beyond the classroom, the social aspect of                many rural communities can be mysterious to many newly arrived                  teachers. Mentoring builds more effective and satisfied teachers,               which saves money on recruitment. A more stable staff can plan                  long-range professional development as a cadre rather than                      hit-and-miss individual efforts. 
Use the community as a focus of              study. Challenge students to apply theoretical principles to                    real-life situations. Students can serve communities by acting as               historians, researchers, scientists, and environmentalists.                     Community members can supplement classroom teaching by providing                relevant instruction using the community setting. This helps the                entire community view young people as competent, caring                         contributors. Students learn more and produce at a higher level when            they feel their work matters. For hundreds of examples of this kind             of work, see Living and Learning in Rural Schools and                           Communities (Rural Challenge Research and Evaluation Program, 1999).            An added bonus is that community-based work can result in                       significantly lower textbook expenditures and increased community               support for the schools. CAPTURING NEW RESOURCESApplying for              grants from outside sources is often the first strategy for                     capturing new resources; however, savvy small schools look here                 last. Securing grants is a short-term strategy, requires the least              effort (relatively speaking), and likely will have the least impact.            Although grants can provide sudden infusions of cash and accelerate             action, they can distract schools from their primary purposes and               divert effort from long-term sustainable improvements. 
"People                give from their hearts, not their wallets" is the prime rule in                 developing new funding sources. Small schools that are most                     effective in obtaining new resources begin with the people who know             them best, whose hearts they have touched. They track and                       communicate with alumni and establish school and community                      foundations to provide avenues for "giving back." The following                 paragraphs outline some strategies for tapping into community                   resources. 
As part of community meetings, create wish lists of                school needs for current patrons and community members. Offer                   specific information about the contributions that the school makes              to the community, that students make to community life, and that the            community makes to the school. Thank benefactors profoundly,                    publicly, and repeatedly. 
State and federal governments provide               funds for specific purposes through formula grants and discretionary            grants. Formula grants, awarded on a per-student basis, penalize                small schools just as formula funding often does. Help your                     congressional staffers become familiar with the small schools in                their district, the people they serve, and how small rural schools              can receive a fairer share of federal grants. Remember, the                     Congressional representative is important, but his or her staff is              essential. Helpful representatives and their staffs can oversee the             design of competitions and numbers of awards made to small schools              through federal procurement. This serves their present and future               constituencies. ("Thank yous" from young people are powerfully                  motivating to legislators.) 
State discretionary grants are usually            made in response to proposals, but small schools seldom get their               fair share of these funds. The application process can be                       burdensome, particularly when people are stretched across multiple              responsibilities. Small schools may not have the insight or skills              to produce polished, focused proposals (for assistance, see Geever &            McNeill, 1997). Some states assign an internal advocate for small               schools within the state department of education. This person is                responsible for streamlining the proposal application process. Each             slate of successful awards is then analyzed to determine whether                small schools have a fair share of the state's resources. 
Small               schools within a state, within a region, or from across the nation              can develop grant proposals collaboratively and share intelligence              about the grant awards process by taking turns evaluating grants.               When staff and community members volunteer to evaluate grants, the              insights they gain can be shared with other potential small school              applicants. 
Foundations are a final source of additional funds.               Every nonprofit foundation is established with a specific mission.              Advocates for small schools (usually staff, but also community                  volunteers) can learn about a foundation's mission by reading its               free annual report. Foundations welcome letters of inquiry. A simple            description of the school's community and student body as well as               the size, scope, and nature of the request will tell the foundation             whether there is a good match between its program and the school's              needs. Information about foundations, including descriptions and                contact information, is available through libraries. (See guides                listed below by the Foundation Center, 2000; Johnson and Morth,                 1999; and Morth, 1996.) REFERENCESFoundation Center. (2000).              The Foundation Center's guide to grantseeking on the Web. New York:             Author. 
Funk, P., & Bailey, J. (1999). Small schools, big results:            Nebraska high school completion and post-secondary enrollment rates             by size of school district. Lincoln: Nebraska Alliance for Rural                Education. 
Geever, J. C., & McNeill, P. (1997). The Foundation                Center's guide to proposal writing. New York: The Foundation                    Center. 
Howley, C. B., & Bickel, R. (1999). The Matthew project:              National report. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 433                 174) 
Johnson, P. J., & Morth, M. (Ed.). (1999). Foundation                    fundamentals: A guide for grantseekers. 6th Ed. New York: The                   Foundation Center. 
Mathews, D. (1996). Is there a public for                  public schools? Dayton, OH: Kettering Foundation Press. 
Morth,                M. (Ed.). (1996). The Foundation Center's user-friendly guide: A                grantseeker's guide to resources. 4th Ed. New York: The Foundation              Center. 
Parsons, C. (1999). Mentors strengthen community service.             Chester, VT: SerVermont. 
Rural Challenge Research and Evaluation              Program. (1999). Living and learning in rural schools and                       communities. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Graduate School of                          Education. 
Scott, B. D. (1999). Standing up for community and                 school. Washington, DC: The Rural School and Community                          Trust. 
Stiefel, L., Iatarola, P., Fruchter, N., & Berne,                      R. (1998). The effects of size of student body on school costs and              performance in New York City high schools. New York: Institute for              Education and Social Policy, New York University. (ERIC Document                Reproduction Service No. ED 420 464) 
Verstegen, D. A. (1999). The             impact of school finance litigation on rural and small                          schools/districts. Randolph, VT: The Rural School and Community                 Trust. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 436                           853) 
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For a free subscription to Rural Roots, write to the             Rural School and Community Trust Policy Program, P.O. Box 68,                   Randolph, VT 05060 or sign up on the Web                                        site <www.ruraledu.org>. 
Dr. Toni Haas is former co-director of               The Annenberg Rural Challenge. 
This publication was prepared with             funding from the Office of Educational Research and Improvement,                U.S. Department of Education, under contract no. ED-99-CO-0027. The             opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the positions              or policies of OERI, the Department, or AEL.                                 **Title:** Balance Due: Increasing Financial Resources for Small Rural Schools.            ERIC Digest.                                                                 **Document Type:** Information Analyses---ERIC Information Analysis Products (IAPs) (071); Information Analyses---ERIC Digests (Selected) in Full Text (073); **Available From:** ERIC/CRESS, P.O. Box 1348, Charleston, WV 25325-1348. For full text:            http://www.ael.org/eric/digests/edorc002.htm.                                **Descriptors:**  Advocacy, Community Resources, Educational Equity (Finance),                   Elementary Secondary Education,  Fund Raising, Grants, Politics of              Education,  Rural Schools, School Community Relationship,  School               Funds,  Small Schools,  State Aid, State School District                        Relationship, Volunteers                                                     **Identifiers:** ERIC Digests                                                                 
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