Shrinking classes shrinking small schools' hopes
Portland Press Herald, May 4, 2008
(excerpt) Statewide enrollment has been dropping for decades. Steeper declines in rural areas underscore another problem: a lack of jobs for families.
"There is nothing here for them anymore. There is nothing to hold them here," said Chris Ingersoll, 26, of Moscow, a graduate of Upper Kennebec Valley Memorial High School in SAD 13.
Ingersoll said he has been all over the country, but he came back to Moscow because he loves the area. He doesn't want schools to close, but he also doesn't see the local economy giving young families a reason to move to the area or giving graduates a reason to stay.
It is a daunting problem, said town officials.
Without young families, school enrollments will drop, driving down state subsidies under the Essential Programs and Services formula and potentially causing school closures. Without schools, it will be harder for towns to attract young families, exacerbating the downward economic spiral.
(excerpt) Statewide enrollment has been dropping for decades. Steeper declines in rural areas underscore another problem: a lack of jobs for families.
"There is nothing here for them anymore. There is nothing to hold them here," said Chris Ingersoll, 26, of Moscow, a graduate of Upper Kennebec Valley Memorial High School in SAD 13.
Ingersoll said he has been all over the country, but he came back to Moscow because he loves the area. He doesn't want schools to close, but he also doesn't see the local economy giving young families a reason to move to the area or giving graduates a reason to stay.
It is a daunting problem, said town officials.
Without young families, school enrollments will drop, driving down state subsidies under the Essential Programs and Services formula and potentially causing school closures. Without schools, it will be harder for towns to attract young families, exacerbating the downward economic spiral.
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