Rural Matters: States Archives

Sharing Responsibility for Our Kids and Our Communities

Sometimes it seems to me that we live in a time with a prevailing ethic of I’ve-got-mine-you-take-care-of-your-own. Maybe it’s always been this way.

I was reflecting on this several weeks ago while I listened to yet another radio report of a wounded volunteer soldier back from Iraq whose family is losing almost everything as a result of his (in this case) service in the military. Do we have any sense of what we owe each other, I wondered, any sense of how we benefit from each other?

Later that day I began making calls to people in rural Arkansas for a story for Rural Policy Matters about ACRE, Advocates for Community and Rural Education. I talked to about eight people, mostly parents and community residents, including people who do not have kids in school but who nonetheless care.

I opened with a pretty general set of questions: tell me about ACRE and why you are a part of it.

The responses were a powerful antidote to what I heard on the radio.

Continue reading "Sharing Responsibility for Our Kids and Our Communities" »

Posted by Robin Lambert at 09:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

New State Finance Updates

We've just posted updates on what's happening around the country as legislatures tackle school finance and education funding.

Help us keep these updates, well, up-to-date. Find your state by clicking on the state name the column on the left. Then add new information by posting a "comment" to the latest post in your state. Or, apply to be a Guest Author.

Don't see your state? Send your information here and we'll get it posted.

Want to talk about your state, but what you want to say is not related to school finance?

No problem.

Send your information here, or apply to be a Guest Author and you can post directly to Rural Matters.

Posted by Robin Lambert at 02:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

State Updates on Rural Matters

Rural Matters provides this sampling of education policy issues that will be considered by a variety of states in the 2007 legislative session. These summaries, however, are not comprehensive reports on likely legislative action, and additional issues may be present or arise during the session.

To see an update from a specific state, click on the state's name in the left column of this blog.

If you would like to add information or updates to a state, simply click on "Comments" (below the entry) and add your information.

Your state isn't listed? To add information from a state that is not listed, please email bog@ruraledu.org or click on "Guest Author" in the right column and follow the instructions. Be sure to include the information that you want to add.

Posted by Robin Lambert at 05:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Corporal Punishment -- Still Legal in 22 States

Slapping kids around to keep them in order is a lot less unusual in schools than you might think. Corporal punishment – using physical force on kids to maintain discipline or enforce school rules – has been condemned by common sense and all kinds of scholarly research.

But it happens. A lot.

Take Florida, for example, one state that keeps score and posts the results on its website. It’s not a pretty picture, especially in small rural districts.

Continue reading "Corporal Punishment -- Still Legal in 22 States" »

Posted by Marty Strange at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)