An estimated 13 million acres of New York State have been taken out of production agriculture since the early 1900s. While most of this land has remained idle and returned to its natural growth, that part that is being rapidly converted to urban uses is of immediate concern. These changes inevitably affect the quality of life in rural areas,…

According to the results of an in-depth study of the process of population change in New York State, the less densely settled an area, the more likely it is to grow in the 1970's. This is more evidence of the recent major U.S. demographic phenomenon of a revival of population growth in non-metropolitan areas. Population data for the sixty-two…

Case study describes a depressed rural New York community that became a migration destination for urban poor people, causing dramatic increases in poverty rate, welfare rolls, and service needs. In-migrants were attracted by low-income housing and, because of their limited job skills, were not deterred by lack of jobs. Discusses community impacts…

Study objectives were to: compare in-migrants with non-migrants in order to ascertain the migrants' demographic and socioeconomic contributions to rural areas; analyze the patterns of this in-migration to determine the presence and extent of return migration; contrast returned migrants with in-migrants who had no prior residence in the rural area;…

The First Statewide Legislative Symposium on Rural Development reported that, while community facilities and housing are vital to the successful growth and renewal of New York's rural areas, these requirements are not being met for many rural communities. Rural population influxes have caused escalating costs for maintenance and improvement of…

Demographic changes between 1970 and 1980 will affect New York rural schools in the 1980's. In the 1970's overall New York state population declined nearly 4% (about 700,000 persons), but rural areas gained about 100,000. Rural New York school districts now serve a population of about 2.5 million, a 5% increase since 1970. During the 1980's,…

Explores the economic and demographic factors fueling rural homelessness, based on field research in scattered rural communities. Data were collected by interviewing low-income families and local service providers and from community agency and school records. Suggests strategies for preventing and responding to homelessness that would be…