Resource Identification and Allocation for Learning Improvement: Administrator Practices and Community Connections in Rural Schools

• In Event: 42.083 - Roundtable Session 17
  In Roundtable Session: 42.083-2 - Reconsidering Spatial Inequity in the 21st Century

Abstract

This paper investigates efforts of principals in improving rural schools, and their superintendents, to identify and leverage resources that support learning improvement initiatives. These rural schools demonstrate sustainable achievement gains despite diseconomies of scale. In these successful schools, administrators (a) maximize teachers’ instructional time through assuming additional duties; (b) forge formal and informal partnerships to support student learning and learning-extension opportunities; and (c) leverage the interconnected nature of rural communities in ways that materialize support for schools. Additionally, because rural schools often serve as a community hub and social-service provider, honoring the tight coupling between school and community allows administrators to increase equitable opportunities for students and manage the local politics of resource distribution within the public schools.

Author

• Wesley Henry, Central Connecticut State University