In the past decade, rural education has been critiqued for contributing to brain drain and social stratification that saps the human, social, and economic resources of rural communities. This article, based on an investigation of six small rural school districts in the same state, offers an alternative view of the role of community groups and…

SAE programs were designed as an integral component in SBAE. However, participation has continued to decline. This qualitative study examined exemplary SAE programs in rural SBAE to discover factors that were working in SAE development and implementation. Through focus groups, individual and informal interviews, and observations, two themes that…