Developed on January 30, 2007

Official Representatives:

AASA –- Mary Kusler

Arkansas – Jimmy Cunningham

California – Dave Walrath

Kansas – Bob Newhouse

Missouri – Ray Patrick, Vice Chair

NREA – Bob Mooneyham

Oklahoma – Mike Kellogg

Pennsylvania – Joe Bard, Chair

Texas – Seth Adams

Members not Represented – AESA, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, New York

Rural schools are a vital part of the American public education system, serving over 30 percent of the nation’s students. The National Rural Education Advocacy Coalition strongly encourages Congress to take into consideration the unique needs of rural schools as one-size-fits-all policy can often have devastating effects.

NREAC advocates a fundamental transformation of the federal role in education as defined by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. NREAC believes that the primary responsibility for determining educational methods and strategies should reside at the local level, consistent with the U.S. Department of Education Organization Act.

NREAC supports a federal role that is consistent with both the intent of the 2001 reauthorization of success for each child and the original 1965 statute to improve outcomes for low-income children.

NREAC believes that the role of the federal government in education is to help ensure access to equal educational opportunity for each child by helping states and school districts develop capacity, providing leadership and providing resources. The federal government should supplement and support rather than dictate state efforts in education.

The terms of the basic agreement between school districts and the federal government under ESEA, must be clearer and fairer. School districts should enter into a contractual relationship with the federal government to provide services to eligible students based on the cost of activities required by ESEA. This contractual relationship must have maximum flexibility to ensure that local districts, especially in rural America, can help increase the student achievement for each child.

To help clarify the federal role in public education, Title I students should be considered as a separate subgroup and schools/ school districts should be held accountable to the terms of the contract with the federal government for their success.

Federal efforts should focus on program improvement for schools and districts that need assistance rather than on one-size-fits-all sanctions that do not meet the unique needs and challenges of rural schools. There should be maximum flexibility to ensure that options for rural schools are crafted to meet their unique circumstances.

NREAC believes that poverty has an impact student achievement. Schools are partners in the effort to overcome and help mitigate the effects of poverty by working with other agencies and efforts, such as health care and housing.

The NREAC recommends that the reauthorized law require the Department of Education to develop rules that guarantee states and school districts consistency of application and transparency of administration, with an emphasis that the federal government’s role is not to set curriculum or make local education decisions, which should be left to states and school districts.

NREAC recommends an emphasis on formula rather than competitive grants. Formula grants, especially when used with guaranteed minimum allocations, are the only way to ensure that rural school districts receive their fair share of assistance.

States should be responsible for determining the type and frequency of assessment, including the use of growth or progress models. Students should be treated as individuals under such assessment systems and with an emphasis on growth, improvement and closing achievement gaps. The progress states are making advancing each student’s achievement level should be evaluated by 2014.

The Individualized Educational Program team should make the determination of how special education students are assessed and their measurable results reported. Assessment opportunities for students with disabilities should not be limited by arbitrary caps and grade-level requirements.

States and school districts should have the responsibility for identifying, assessing, and evaluating English Language Learners based on their individual needs and reporting the results. You could include the HS reform and the standards bit here.

NREAC believes that excellent teaching is essential and that the states are better able to set appropriate teacher standards than the federal government. States are more aware of the unique circumstances that face multiple subject and other types of teachers in rural America.

The NREAC reaffirms the benefit of parental advisory committees at Title I schools. Parents are a critical partner in ensuring the success of each child. ESEA should continue to support the development of processes that engage and support parents as partners. However, the nature of parental engagement should not be prescriptive, but rather encourage and allow local district innovation.

The NREAC does not support the requirement of voluntary or any other type of national standards. Standards and curriculum decisions should be made at the state and local level.

NREAC strongly recommends that Congress authorize and fund a NAEP oversample of rural schools. This oversample will help provide useful insight into the performance of students in rural America.

Focus on Rural Schools

NREAC is concerned that current policy targets Title I funds to concentrations of poverty based on large numbers of students, not merely percentages. This clearly disadvantages poor children in rural areas. NREAC encourages all Title I funds to be focused on percentages of students in poverty. All school districts participating in Title I should receive a minimum amount of assistance under Title I.

NREAC believes that the federal government should support states in their ongoing high school improvement efforts and recognizes the important role of career and technical education in preparing students for a competitive economy.

Education technology funds should continue to be distributed on a formula basis to ensure parity for rural schools. NREAC recommends that a minimum guaranteed grant size be established.

NREAC supports the role that Safe and Drug Free Schools plays in fighting ongoing and new challenges in rural America, such as methamphetamine labs. NREAC believes that 100 percent of the funding under Safe and Drug Free School Act should flow directly to local school districts to ensure the maximum benefit at the local level. In addition, NREAC supports the inclusion of school resource officers as an allowable use under this program.

NREAC supports the role of after school programs such as 21^st Community Learning Centers and encourages increased funding and that rural schools be guaranteed a proportionate share of funding.

NREAC recommends increasing the percentage of funding that goes directly to school districts under the Education Innovative Block Grants and recommends a minimum guaranteed grant size be established

NREAC supports the expansion of transferability to 100 percent of federal formula grants to better serve children. However, NREAC would oppose being allowed to take money out of Title I; rather, districts should only be permitted to add funding to Title I.

Title VI – Rural Education Achievement Program

NREAC applauds the enormous success of REAP and the role it plays in targeting resources to meet the needs of rural schools. Given the decline in funding to rural districts, NREAC supports increased funding for REAP to continue to support students in rural America.

The NREAC believes that the education of our nation’s children should remain a high priority within the federal budget. Children being educated today are our nation’s future.

NREAC strongly supports the fulfillment of Congress’ promise to pay 40 percent of the National Average per Pupil Expenditure for every child in special education. Mandatory funding of IDEA is the only way to ensure that Congress reaches this goal.

NREAC believes that the district of residence should be responsible for the equitable participation of parentally placed private school students. NREAC supports a return to the principles of IDEA 1997 law for this provision.

NREAC supports efforts to increase the number of quality teachers in rural schools. Therefore, Title II of the Higher Education Act should encourage best practices to attract teachers to rural settings. Additionally, NREAC supports the creation of a tax-credit incentive to encourage teachers to work in rural settings.

NREAC supports the expansion of the definition of a high-need school district to include rural school districts in addition to high-poverty districts, recognizing the unique staffing needs and shortages of geographically isolated districts.

NREAC supports a national pilot effort for grow-your-own teacher programs to improve efforts to recruit and retain high quality teachers in rural schools.

NREAC encourages proactive partnerships between LEAs and degree-granting institutions in teacher training, recruitment, and retention efforts.

NREAC strongly supports maintaining E-Rate as an element of the Universal Service Fund. The E-Rate serves an important role in increasing the connectivity of rural schools to the internet and helping to bridge both the digital and geographic divides that impact rural schools.

The coalition supports the current E-Rate distribution matrix and opposes any efforts to distribute E-Rate through a formula.

NREAC supports a streamlined application process that encourages more rural school districts to apply for E-Rate support. NREAC believes in accountability within the E-Rate program but opposes any changes to the program that would increase participation costs to local school districts. Increases in paperwork within the application process often prevent rural districts from applying. School districts already have fiscal accountability requirements that they must meet for their states.

NREAC believes the Universal Service Fund should be permanently exempt from the Anti-Deficiency Act.

Success in the program should focus on the level and quality of the connectivity. Connectivity is important but so is the speed and reliability of the connectivity in order to ensure the highest quality distance learning services.

NREAC supports efforts to increase the expansion of broadband into rural America.

NREAC recognizes the challenges of rural school districts located in federal forest counties and urges the continuation of the safety-net legislation to ensure a consistent funding stream for these school districts.

NREAC believes that rural districts should be reimbursed for medical, administration and transportation expenses attributed to Medicaid eligible students. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Solutions should work with rural districts to make reimbursement more feasible for geographically isolated districts. NREAC supports expansion to 504 students. NREAC also supports a more streamlined application process and uniform methodology resulting in a consistent set of rules across all states. NREAC supports the Protecting Children’s Health in Schools Act.

NREAC supports efforts to develop a new definition of nutritional value in conjunction with appropriate exceptions for fundraising, school-sponsored events and classroom celebrations.

NREAC supports efforts to expand health insurance to all children and pregnant mothers up to 300 percent of the poverty line. Health care has a direct impact on student achievement.

NREAC strongly believes that public funds should be used to fund only public schools. Federal funds should not be used to fund private schools through vouchers, scholarships or tuition tax credits. With limited funding available, dollars should be focused on the public districts that must face public accountability.

NREAC recognizes the success of the QZAB program in addressing some school facility needs. NREAC supports the expansion of this program to include new construction and additional resources.