Sprawl is now one of the nation's most significant land-use issues, said Robert Burchell, a Rutgers University professor who has studied the trend in five states. Schools feel the pinch Elizabeth Stover has seen residential growth negatively affect the education of her two daughters. The girls go to school in Falmouth, which has one of Maine's most crowded school systems. That has contributed to a rise in school enrollment from 1,132 students in 1991-92 to 1,550 this school year. The ability to give students individual attention decreases.
Growth hits schools harder than any other aspect of community life.
The cost of educating children who move into new homes far outpaces the taxes their families pay. The figures add up to problems for schools in fast-growing towns. Education suffers as class sizes increase. Property taxes rise as schools need more money to serve all the new students. At the Lunt School, for kindergarten through second grade, a 10-classroom modular building is being built this summer to relieve crowding.