Once schools finally achieve adequate funding, they must then work to ensure that the money makes a positive difference for students. School governance is another issue that cannot be separated from educational policy. Having to respond to federal and state policy mandates regarding the implementation of standards brings new school governance issues to rural schools. Schools, especially rural schools constrained by budget and geographic isolation, will have to seek more flexibility to meet the needs of their students. But first, state policy will need to examine potential constraints on school practice so that rural schools can better meet accountability standards.
School boards are a school district's governance.
Some research evidence suggests that rural school boards are more intimately involved in school organizational and educational processes than are urban school boards. Their involvement can have both positive and negative effects on rural schools. The regional educational laboratories have collected information, shared practices, and developed strategies to help rural school districts come to grips with the tough issues of school finance and governance. These strategies follow in this section. Included are guides on developing new organizational arrangements such as rural school cooperatives and clusters, management strategies for rural school principals and superintendents, discussions of rural school funding issues, and more.