These are the kinds of initiatives that can help restore community cohesiveness to rural America and strengthen academic achievement in rural schools. Integrated school-community projects benefit the community in many ways. They can help make the community a more appealing place to live, by providing needed services, improving the local environment, and offering quality education. And they can strengthen the bonds of community, encouraging residents to take part, and take pride, in local culture. By working in a collaborative group, you can help assure that your initiative will weather changes in personnel or politics.
Schools benefit in equal measure.
Rural schools gain resources, directly through community contributions of time, expertise, or funds, and indirectly, through a strengthened local economy and broader support for educational initiatives. Schools develop an academic program that is rooted in principles of effective teaching and learning. As a result, children and adolescents face historically unprecedented challenges in finding a sense of purpose in their schooling tasks and a sense of connection with adult roles of authority and responsibility. There are many ways of setting up and carrying out integrated school-community projects. One important strategy for success is to establish a formal collaborative group and process.