Nebraska lawmakers the week of April 10, 2006 approved a hotly debated bill to break up the Omaha Public Schools--largely along racial and ethnic lines--under a plan that critics say amounts to state-sanctioned segregation and that likely will face a legal challenge. Passed April 13, 2006 in the last hours of the legislative session and signed the…

Following the approval of legislation that would divide the city's public school system into racially and ethnically distinct districts, many Omaha community members and leaders mid-April 2006 expressed a mix of outrage, confusion, and disbelief. In this article, the author discusses the measure that calls for dividing any school system in the…

The nation's best-known civil rights group has jumped into the fray over a controversial Nebraska law that would divide the 45,000-student Omaha school system into three separate districts, largely along racial and ethnic lines. In a lawsuit filed May 16 in US District Court in Omaha, Nebraska, the Omaha branch of the National Association for the…

School district reorganization is a process that requires considerable planning. This guide provides information on school district reorganization in the state of Nebraska, to interested boards of education and county and citizen reorganization committees. Topics discussed include planning for reorganization, establishing citizen committees, using…

Using a methodology previously applied to municipalities, this paper examines the fiscal condition of Nebraska's school districts. Nebraska contains over 900 districts, ranging from very small to large full-service districts in Lincoln and Omaha. The largest and smallest districts are in best fiscal condition. State aid inequities could be…

Examined relationship between 1983-84 Nebraska high school enrollments and program breadth and junior-senior high school enrollments and teacher endorsement rates. Concluded rural district reorganization/consolidation resulting in larger secondary grade enrollments would probably result in more course offerings but would not affect percentage of…

Position papers on planning for school district organization were prepared for the project staff of the Great Plains School District Organization Project, a four-state study. A total of 104 studies and reports were prepared by personnel from secondary schools, institutions of higher learning, State Departments of Education, and related educational…

School consolidation or reorganization continues to be a controversial issue in rural areas, with many contentions and claims about the advantages and disadvantages of small schools at the center of the debate. In fall 1986, a Nebraska survey examined attitudes toward school size and reorganization issues among school board presidents. Respondents…

Five major problems have emerged out of the mobility of the Nebraska population. Declining populations in sparsely populated areas, the outmigration of young adults of child-bearing age, and a concern by the people of Nebraska for the future of their State have created an awareness of the facts and the need to come to grips with the problems and…

This study of Nebraska's existing school structure (i.e., costs, curriculum offerings, and organization) is part of an interstate project on school district reorganization. Historical development of education in Nebraska and national trends in school district reorganization are discussed. Seven guidelines for planning and implementing a statewide…

An analysis of the experiences of two states perceived as school choice innovators, Iowa and Nebraska, is presented in this paper. Three problem areas contributed to uncertainty are identified: classroom capacity, transportation, and funding. Recommendations include: limited parental choice; establishing enrollment loss ceilings; clear governance…

The Great Plains School District Organization Project, approved by the State Boards of Education in Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota and financed by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, had two objectives: (1) To strengthen the State Departments of Education, and (2) to seek ways and means of strengthening the Departments…

MANY FACTORS ARE RELATED TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN OPTIMUM SIZE FOR SCHOOL ORGANIZATION. BEFORE A STATE CAN ANSWER THE QUESTION OF SIZE, IT SHOULD PERHAPS FIRST ANSWER THE QUESTIONS--WHAT DO WE WANT THE STATE SCHOOL SYSTEM TO ACCOMPLISH, AND WHAT ARE THE STRUCTURAL ALTERNATIVES THAT WILL BE BEST FOR OUR STATE. WHEN THESE ARE ANSWERED, SIZE THEN…

The impact of recent technological, social, and economic change has necessitated a re-examination of educational structure, and has resulted in school district reorganization projects in many states. The purposes of this paper are to review the various legislative techniques employed by 33 states in their attempts to merge or reorganize school…

There is mounting evidence that the programs and services essential to provide adequately for the educational needs of the nation will necessitate a broader and more demanding education structure than ever before. Specialists in many educational areas were asked to identify the characteristics of educational structure in relation to the…