More than 60 percent of respondents to the teacher survey noted
that curriculum is individually adapted in the alternative setting.
In general, career counseling and career curriculum appear to
be of only modest priority.
Discipline and behavior change are cited most often as important
processes for these programs though more than two-thirds of respondents
also indicated the importance of therapeutic programming.
The researchers also noted specific findings related to students,
personnel, and the AE curriculum, and offered recommendations
on further developing and maintaining alternative education programs.
E-commerce
While rural Pennsylvania had been a leader in the steel and coal
industries of the 20th Century, many rural areas have been slow
in adapting to the 21st Century industry of e-commerce and high
technology. To assess the awareness of e-commerce issues in the
commonwealth and develop strategies to enhance e-commerce activity
in rural Pennsylvania, the Center for Rural Pennsylvania awarded
a research grant to Prashanth B. Nagendra and Ramesh G. Soni of
Indiana University.
The researchers' goals were to assess the level and type of e-commerce
used by small businesses in rural Pennsylvania; understand the
perception or readiness of small business owners pertaining to
e-commerce; assess the communication infrastructure needs of small
businesses, along with staffing, hiring, training and government
support incentives; and offer policy recommendations.
According to the research results, which are offered in the report
Assessment of and Strategies for Enhancing E-commerce in Rural
Pennsylvania, there is a clear indication that urban counties
experience more e-commerce activity than rural counties. E-commerce
also seems to be more prevalent in manufacturing, service, and
finance, insurance and real estate than in other business sectors.
The agriculture sector is far behind all other sectors in engaging
in e-commerce.
Businesses are engaging in mostly the marketing aspects of e-commerce,
such as advertising, selling and customer service, and very little
in the supply chain management aspects of e-commerce.
Overall, the researchers concluded that there does not seem to
be any real barriers in the state to getting started in e-commerce.
Service costs, however, can be extremely prohibitive in remote
areas and two major technological deficiencies were inadequate
bandwidth and the lack of redundancy to assure uninterrupted service.
While businesses expressed a favorable perception of the business
climate in Pennsylvania, they did not believe that venture capital,
a skilled workforce, collaboration between public and private
sectors and a high-tech image were adequate. Businesses also believe
that e-commerce should not be taxed since state revenues will
be lost.
To promote e-commerce among small, rural businesses in Pennsylvania,
the researchers provided the following recommendations:
Reports now available
For a copy of the alternative education report, Survey and
Analysis of Alternative Education Programs, or the e-commerce
report, Assessment of and Strategies for Enhancing E-commerce
in Rural Pennsylvania, call the Center for Rural Pennsylvania
at (717) 787-9555 or email info@ruralpa.org.
Chairman's Message
What a year we've experienced to date. Mother Nature kept us wondering
when spring's rain spigot would be turned off and her cloudy skies
replaced with warm summer sun. Now, many areas in our commonwealth
are wondering where all the water has gone as the ground begins
to crack and harden, bringing back unwelcome memories of last
year's drought. While some of our farmland has been blessed with
corn that lived up to a "knee-high by the Fourth of July"
measuring stick, other areas see crop fields that are at least
a month behind in maturity. All of us in rural Pennsylvania who
are linked to the agricultural land are holding our breath and
hoping that this year's harvest brings better yields for our farm
community than has been experienced during the past several cycles.
Pennsylvania's students look forward to summer months when they
can vacate the classroom to play, work, and prepare for another
school year. For some of our students, the classroom is not the
traditional one because of behavior issues. Dr. Nathaniel Hosley
of Lock Haven University surveyed rural and urban school officials
and found 463 alternative education programs were funded by the
Department of Education during the 2001-2002 school year. His
report, which was recently accepted by the Center's Board of Directors,
provides details on enrollment, curriculum offerings, and personnel,
and is featured in this edition of Rural Perspectives.
We also highlight Indiana University faculty members Prashanth
B. Nagendra and Ramesh G. Soni's work on the Assessment of
and Strategies for Enhancing E-commerce in Rural Pennsylvania.
They conclude that most rural businesses engage in e-commerce
for advertising, selling, and customer service. Few businesses
participate in the supply chain management aspects of e-commerce.
The researchers offer recommendations to help increase the use
and effectiveness of e-commerce for rural entrepreneurs who want
to be players in this ever-evolving global economy.
And, in a research report that builds on some earlier work looking
at the effectiveness of economic development programs for rural
Pennsylvania, Penn State's Martin Shields and Stephen Smith provide
us with an evaluation of the Customized Job Training Program,
Pennsylvania Industrial Development Authority Program, and the
Machinery and Equipment Loan Fund. Their information was based
on personal interviews with participants of these three specific
programs.
We continue our Trends in Rural Pennsylvania series with
a progress report on education. This review, which covers the
time period 1990 to 2000, looks at enrollment, finances, personnel,
and outcomes. A more detailed fact sheet on this issue is available
by contacting the Center.
Don't forget to send us your ideas for "Rural Works."
We are compiling information on unique programs, efforts, and
partnerships that have made a difference in rural Pennsylvania.
The submission deadline is October 31, 2003, and since we all
know how fast time goes, why not complete the information form
now before you head out to enjoy our commonwealth's great outdoors.
I hope all of you have a tremendous summer. Be sure to purchase
some of Pennsylvania's great direct-from-the-farm fruits and vegetables
as your travels take you through the Keystone State's bountiful
and beautiful rural areas.
Representative Sheila Miller
Trends in Rural Pennsylvania: Education Progress
Report
Of the state's 501 school districts, 243 are rural: that's about
49 percent of the state's total. Between them, rural districts
have about 1,080 school buildings, or an average of four buildings
per school district. Within rural areas, there are seven charter
schools and 36 vo-tech schools.
Geographically, rural school districts encompass an average of
150 square miles each, but there are 35 rural districts that stretch
more than 250 square miles each.
In 2000, the average rural school district served a population
of 13,600. Between 1990 and 2000, the population in Pennsylvania's
rural school districts increased nearly 6 percent.
According to data from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and
Industry, school districts are among the top five largest employers
in 54 percent of the state's 48 rural counties.
Enrollment
During the 2000 school year, there were nearly 2.2 million school
students in Pennsylvania. About 27 percent of these students,
or 584,000, were enrolled in a rural school. Among these rural
students, 8 percent were enrolled in a private or non-public school,
2 percent were home schooled, and the remaining 90 percent were
enrolled in public schools. In urban areas, 18 percent of students
were enrolled in private and non-public schools, 1 percent was
home schooled, and the remaining 81 percent attended public schools.
Since public schools have the largest statewide enrollment, the
information presented here focuses exclusively on public education
data.
Among the 243 rural school districts in Pennsylvania, the average
enrollment in 2000 was 2,166; 53 per-cent of these students were
enrolled in elementary schools (K-6), and 47 per-cent were in
secondary schools (7-12).
Between 1990 and 2000, the number of students attending rural
schools increased 2 percent. This growth was not consistent statewide.
Nearly 60 percent of rural school districts, primarily located
in western Pennsylvania, had a decline in enrollment.
Only about 8 percent of rural school districts, generally located
in eastern Pennsylvania, had enrollment increases greater than
20 percent.
Teachers
In 2000, there were 32,300 rural classroom teachers, or an average
of one teacher for every 16.3 students. In 1990, the average was
one teacher for every 17.9 students. In general, rural schools
have slightly lower student-teacher ratios than urban schools.
Between 1990 and 2000, the number of teachers in rural schools
increased nearly 13 percent, or more than six times the enrollment
rate change. Among the 142 rural districts that lost enrollment
during this period, 72 percent had gained classroom teachers.
School Finances
Revenues
In 2000, the average rural school district received more than
$17 million in revenues. About 48 percent of revenues came from
local sources, primarily real estate taxes, 48 percent came from
state government and 4 percent came from the federal government
and other miscellaneous sources.
Expenditures
In 2000, the average rural school district spent $7,777 per student.
Between 1990 and 2000, spending per student, adjusted for inflation,
increased 28 percent. During the 1990s, the per student expenditure
gap between rural and urban school districts narrowed.
Free and Reduced Lunches
In 2000, about 140,000 rural students, or 28 percent, were eligible
for the free or reduced school lunch pro-gram, which provides
a hot lunch to students from low-income families. In urban school
districts in 2000, 33 percent of students qualified for this program.
Outcomes
PSSA Scores
Scores on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA)
tests vary in rural Pennsylvania. In 2000, fifth graders in more
than 52 percent of rural school districts scored above the statewide
average. By the eighth grade, less than 40 percent scored above
the statewide score, and in the eleventh grade, less than 33 percent
scored above the statewide average.
Dropout Rates
In 2000, more than 4,900 secondary students dropped out of school,
or 2 percent. Throughout the 1990s, the dropout rate in both rural
and urban schools remained fairly constant, about 2 to 3 percent
of secondary students.
Postsecondary Plans
In 2000, 68 percent of rural high school seniors planned to continue
their education after graduation. This rate represents a 5 percentage
point increase from 1993, when the post-secondary participation
rate was 63 percent.
Educational Attainment
According to Census Bureau data, in 1990, 25 percent of rural
Pennsylvanians age 25 and older had less than a high school education.
Through the decade, this figure fell to 19 percent in 2000.
Although rural educational attainment is rising, it has far to
go to reach urban figures. In urban counties, 18 percent of those
age 25 and older had not completed high school while 25 percent
had obtained at least a bachelor's degree.
Want more info?
For a copy of the complete Trends in Rural Pennsylvania: Education
Progress Report, call the Center for Rural Pennsylvania at (717)
787-9555 or email info@ruralpa.org.
Definitions and Sources
Rural: Residents of school districts whose Census
2000 population density is less than the statewide figure of 274
persons per square mile. In the section, "Educational Attainment,"
rural is counties whose 2000 Census population density is less
than the statewide figure of 274 persons per square mile.
Charter schools, vocational-technical schools, and private/non-public
schools were not included in the data.
Unless otherwise noted, all statistics reflect the year 2000
and come from the state Department of Education.
Pennsylvania's Byways Program
"Everything good is on the highway." Ralph Waldo Emerson,
essayist, poet and philosopher used this saying in his essay "Experience,"
which expresses the idea that the experience of getting to a destination
is probably more important than the final destination.
Many can probably understand what Emerson was talking about as
they travel through rural Pennsylvania and experience some of
the most scenic and historically significant highways in the nation.
To support local planning and funding efforts to maintain and
promote the natural resources and intrinsic qualities of such
highways, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT)
established the Pennsylvania Byways Program in 2002.
The program is designed to further promote the qualities that
make highway corridors special and unique. Specifically, the program's
goals are to enhance and improve the visual impact of specific
routes; maintain the natural resources and intrinsic qualities
along specific routes; educate residents and visitors on the history
and culture of the commonwealth; and provide more opportunities
for funding in such programs as PennDOT's Transportation Enhancements
Program.
The Byways Program also allows designated routes to qualify for
federal funds to pay for such improvements as paved shoulders
to accommodate bicycles, interpretative signs and scenic plantings.
One requirement, however, is that new billboards be prohibited
along the designated route if the route is part of the Federal-aid
Primary or National Highway Systems.
Any government unit may nominate a federal, state or local highway
corridor or portion of a corridor that has one or more of the
following characteristics: scenic, archeological, cultural, historic,
natural, or recreational. PennDOT will evaluate the nomination
and select those highways that best meet the program's goals.
State designation makes a highway eligible for National Scenic
Byway Designation.
Routes that are designated as a Pennsylvania Byway may be identified
with special signs and promoted on PennDOT maps and other publications.
As of June 2003, two highway corridors have been designated as
Pennsylvania Byways: State Route 3011 in McKean County and PA
Route 144, which runs through Sproul State Forest in Centre and
Clinton counties. In addition, four routes previously designated
by the PA General Assembly are part of the PA Byways Program.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Byways Program, call
PennDOT's PA Byways Coordinator in the Bureau of Planning and
Research at (717) 787-0782, or visit www.dot.state.pa.us/penndot/bureaus/PlanRes.nsf/HomePageByways.
Three State Economic Development Programs Get
Thumbs Up in Rural Areas
Three of the commonwealth's largest economic development programs
in rural areas have been given positive reviews by businesses
that use the programs, according to a recently released report
by the Center for Rural Pennsylvania.
The report, Retrospective of Economic Development Incentives:
An Evaluation of Participant Experiences in Rural Pennsylvania,
offers reviews of the Customized Job Training Program, the Pennsylvania
Industrial Development Authority and the Machinery and Equipment
Loan Fund. Researchers Martin Shields and Stephen M. Smith of
the Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology at
Penn State University conducted the study in 2001 and 2002. The
researchers chose the three programs for study since they provided
more than 50 percent of all economic development funds and about
60 percent of the spending in rural counties. The researchers
assessed the performance of the programs by interviewing state
agency officials, local program intermediaries and 19 participating
businesses. The analysis was based on the interviews by emphasizing
common perceptions and themes. Overall, the findings indicated
that:
Just the Facts: Historically Speaking
Pennsylvania is an historically significant state. According to
the U.S. Park Service, the commonwealth is home to more than 7,500
places on the National Register of Historic Places, or 10 percent
of the nation's total.
Rural Pennsylvania holds its own as well. In 2002, there were
more than 2,600 places that were either listed on the National
Register or eligible to be listed.
Typically, properties on the National Register are churches,
schools, homes, buildings, factories, streetscapes, historic districts,
and farms. These properties are deemed either architecturally,
historically, or culturally significant by the Park Service and
worthy of preservation. Benefits for places on the Register include
tax breaks, federal funds for historic preservation, and consideration
in federally run or assisted projects. A property can be either
listed on the National Register, which means that it is of local
or statewide significance; or eligible, which means that it meets
the criteria for listing, but has not yet been listed. In addition,
some properties are designated as National Historic Landmarks
(NHL). These properties are similar to listed properties, but
have national significance.
Of the 2,600 sites in rural Pennsylvania, 35 percent are listed
and 64 percent are eligible for listing. Approximately 1 percent,
or 27 rural sites, is National Historic Landmarks. Nearly 40 percent
of the rural sites listed are buildings, such as schools, churches,
and homes, 10 percent are farms, and 12 percent are historic districts
or streetscapes. More than half of the sites are in townships,
while the remainder is split between boroughs and small cities.
Although the National Register was created in the 1960s, more
than one third of the sites in rural Pennsylvania were listed
or became eligible within the last 15 years.
Tell Us How "Rural Works" for You
Is your rural community or organization acting on its idea of
building a better rural Pennsylvania? If so, the Center for Rural
Pennsylvania would like to hear your story to share it with others.
Over the next several months, the Center will collect information
about the work of rural Pennsylvania communities, organizations
and groups who, through innovative programs, projects or partnerships,
are improving their rural communities' conditions, and providing
opportunities to sustain the good works they have achieved. The
program should be currently running or should have started and
been completed between January 2000 and this year.
After the Center has received and compiled the information, it
will feature the stories in its newsletter and in a special publication.
The publication will provide details about the programs and projects
so that other rural communities may replicate the models to use
in their communities. The Center also plans to use the publication
to celebrate the success of the programs and applaud the commitment
of those involved.
To provide us with details of your project, program or partnership,
contact the Center for Rural Pennsylvania for an information form
at (717) 787-9555 or download the form, available in pdf format,
at www.ruralpa.org. The completed forms
should be returned to the Center by Friday, October 31, 2003.
