School rezoning is the process of drawing and redrawing school attendance boundaries (SABs). However, studies explicitly focused on changing SABs through rezoning or other mechanisms are spread across multiple bodies of literature. Rezoning is also a politically contentious issue governed by local school boards, tying it to conceptual work on the…

Despite decades of critiques and scores of innovations designed to abolish or weaken it, the school district remains a central institution of the American educational system. Yet, although the district remains the primary agent of local democratic control and serves as the main unit for educational decisions, relatively little attention has been…

This Education Policy Brief examines the research regarding the efforts occurring in the United States to consolidate school corporations or form cooperative agreements for shared services. The brief also examines those policy levers which are contributing to the elevated discussion concerning consolidation and shared services in Indiana. Based…

Reviews findings from a state report which assessed Milwaukee (Wisconsin) area public schools. Focuses on data pertaining to the relationship between students' academic achievement and socioeconomic status. Argues for the reorganization of suburban and urban school districts to end disparities between affluent and less affluent schools. (KH)

This book presents a theoretical and practical portrayal of how, when, and why public school districts build new schools. Based on extensive data analysis and a comprehensive review of the literature, the book specifies school district reorganization and the subsequent steps necessary to implement plans. It discusses how school districts relate to…

With the purpose of supplying information on school district reorganization to school districts in Minnesota, this report begins with an overview of reorganization, including a definition of terms, an investigation of the impetus for reorganization, and a discussion of the manner in which school district reorganization legislation is usually…

The impetus for more school closures lies in declining school enrollments in many rural areas and promises of cost efficiency, more academic options for students, and higher test scores. The latter benefits remain a matter of debate. Busing is controversial result of school consolidation, both in terms of expense and time. Rural school advocates…

The relationship between school district size and measures of educational quality such as the training and experience of teachers, teacher turnover, and breadth and depth of program offerings is examined. Literature on the subject and results of a Colorado study support larger schools. (PP)

Argues that removing children from their rural sphere is detrimental to students and the community. The largest obstacle among many is a "second best" attitude toward rural education. Schools and policymakers should change this attitude and work for realizing potentials of rural education. (ALL/GGH)

Traditional separation of politics and education creates two distinct bodies of literature neither of which is adequate for an understanding of the dilemmas school administrators face. Political realities should be recognized and a school commissioner should be responsible to the mayor. (Author/LHW)

This digest looks at school district size and its possible relationship to school performance, defined here as aggregate achievement of a school's students on state-mandated tests. An overview of size issues briefly discusses class size, school size, district size, and organizational "scaling" or coordination of various levels of size.…

This overview of the literature on school district reorganization: (1) cites four reasons for reorganization; (2) gives two statistics on projected declines in student enrollment; (3) presents factors to be considered during the process of closing a school; (4) lists six administrative leadership skills needed during the school closure process;…

A general look at rural and/or small schools is the focus of this state of the art review. The historical perspective of the report begins in 1918, when the trend toward consolidation of one-room schools was first indicated and continues into and well beyond the depression. It is reported that the number of school districts decreased from 127,000…

Economies of scale frequently have been advanced as a rationale for rural school consolidation. This article defines the economies of scale principle; describes its application to public education; and reviews selected studies, 1959-86, from a rural education perspective. Notes the possible overstatement of economics of scale in some studies.…

Examines research and trends related to equitable financing of rural schools, problems common to rural school districts, and an emerging "technology of individualization" that may negate any relationship between school effectiveness and school size. Commentaries discuss the value of district consolidation without school consolidation, and…