Posts Tagged ‘education’

School lunch programs gone “local”

January 4th, 2010

While grocery shopping for Christmas, I picked up some delicious looking strawberries.  It’s difficult to grow fresh strawberries during South Dakota’s harsh winter, and I suspected these strawberries had been grown on a hydroponic farm in some distant land. Unfortunately, their flavor fell far short of my already low expectations, and I suspect their nutritional value wasn’t far behind. 

With this disappointment fresh in my mind, I caught a tweet from Deb Brown at DebWorks.  She shared an interesting article describing how the Independence (IA) School District has embraced the local foods movement in an effort to both improve the nutritional value of their school lunches and to education young people about healthy living.    (Source:  “School lunch goes local,” Iowa Farmer Today, 12-23-09)

The school district is a part of the Iowa Farm to School Initiative.  They purchase locally grown produce, and prepare it at their kitchen.  In an effort to help young people understand what healthy eating is all about and where their food comes from, the school has also developed an educational component. 

Not only am I impressed with the efforts because it should lead to healthier eating for young people, but also because it stimulates the local economy.  Granted it must take a little extra effort to prepare the fruits and vegetables, but I’m sure the school’s kitchen workers appreciate the extra hours and accompanying wages.

There’s been a growing movement lately to discredit local foods initiatives.  The theory goes that mass producing foods and shipping them across the country leads to greater economic efficiencies.  But as a recent Business Week article titled “Entrepreneurs Keep the Local Food Movement Hot” reports, local foods initiatives play a more critical role in economic development than most people realize. 

After conducting a quick internet search for the Farm to School Initiative, I’ve concluded there’s not much happening in South Dakota’s schools.  If true, that’s disappointing. 

Good nutrition and a little economic development.  That’s something that could benefit all of our rural communities. 

Photo credit:  back_garage - Flickr

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Posted in Economic Development, Rural, education | Comments (5)

Mistakes of a first-year Teacher

November 17th, 2009

I have a confession to make.  When I started my teaching career at Tripp High School in 1990, I had no idea what it meant to teach in a small rural school.  Having grown up in Hartford, SD, a small town just outside of Sioux Falls, I always thought of myself as a rural kid.  But in reality, my high school experience was closer to that of a suburban school than a rural school.  And more importantly, nothing in my college teacher preparation courses suggested that teaching in rural schools was any different than teaching in urban settings.

Case in point:  During my first year of teaching, I introduced a personal finance unit into my micro economics class.  Hoping to show my students how they could be “smart shoppers,” I demonstrated how they could save money by switching from buying individual cans of pop from the school’s pop machine to buying pop in bulk. And if they were really smart, I suggested, they would drive to Sioux Falls to buy at a discounter like Sam’s Club — because that’s where the real savings could be realized. 

If you’ve lived in a rural community, you recognize the stupidity of my example.  But for those who don’t, let me explain:

First, I did not factor in the cost of driving the 90 miles to Sioux Falls.  (Boy would my green friends today have a problem with this.)

Second, it did not consider the importance of patronizing a business in one’s community.  Our local grocery story displayed good community citizenship, while Sam’s Club didn’t know (or care) that Tripp, SD even existed. 

And finally, the model for saving money I shared didn’t factor in how the city council would need to ask residents to pay more in property taxes to make up for the declining sales tax revenues resulting from out-of-town purchasing.   

I’ve been thinking about examples like this a lot lately as I work on the South Dakota Partnership for Teacher Quality.  One of the roles the Rural Learning Center will play in the grant is to help first year teachers learn how to live and teach in rural communities.  In some ways, this will involve similar concepts offered by Kyle Ezell in Get Urban.  (see post for more info.)

Teaching and living in rural communities is different from teaching in urban communities. I learned that the hard way.  I wonder how many teacher education programs acknowledge these differences as they prepare teachers?  If they did, we might see young teachers become life-long rural educators.

Photo Credit:  FXR - Flickr

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ReImagine Rural Education

November 6th, 2009

Lately we’ve been calling on rural communities to “reimagine” their futures by focusing on transformational strategies rather than those of revitalization.  In a recent post on the Daily Yonder, Timothy Collins reminded me that this can’t take place without “reimaging” the future of education in our rural communities.

Collins, the assistant director of the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs at Western Illinois University, wrote his post titled “Speak your peace: Longer School Year, and Better,” in response to President Obama’s call for lengthening the number of days in the school year.  While recognizing that lengthening the school year should improve education, Collins sees a bigger opportunity: 

If we’re going to lengthen the school year, let’s talk about real changes that will not only improve student achievement, but also build rural communities capable of participating effectively in the new green economy.

Schools and communities getting better together?  Yes!

 

The Roots of the Miner County story are in education

In Miner County, SD we view the Miner County Cash Flow Study, conducted in 1996 by high school students, as the start of our transformational activities.  In this project, the students sought to reverse a decline in local purchasing by (1) studying local spending habits through a community survey, (2) sharing what they learned with community residents, and (3) challenging everyone to spend 10% more of their income locally in the upcoming year. 

It was the type of learning that doesn’t come from a textbook and definitely can’t be measured on a standardized test.  But equally important, it met two of the community needs:  it helped strengthen local businesses and increased tax revenues for the City of Howard.  In following year, residents increased local spending by approximately 40%. 

These and other place-based learning activities conducted in the school over the next few years strengthened the connection between the school and community. The work also played a key role in the Northwest Area Foundation selecting Miner County as their first partner in the Community Ventures program.

 

How can this be done?

Collins answers his call for change by producing a litany of outstanding ideas for connecting schools and communities.  It’s good stuff!  Not only do his ideas provide value to rural communities, but they also help build a bridge to the green economy and youth entrepreneurship. 

But how does one initiate the types of changes Collins advocates?  The following are a few thoughts I’d like to share. 

First, realize that no single person is going to accomplish change on this level by him or herself.  A superintendent or mayor can help lead the change.  But I think it requires deep conversation with the entire community. 

Second, find ways to prime the pump for conversation by making sure people are exposed to new ideas.  A good place to start would be with Collin’s ideas. Ask people to read and react to them.

Third, make sure young people are a part of the process.  Young people’s voices can produce powerful insights when adults treat them as partners. 

Whatever process is used, however, I think it’s important to remember that the essential question to focus on is “How do rural schools and communities get better together?” 

That’s Reimagining Rural Education. 

 

 Note:  The RLC is currently in the process of developing some free resources that help explain the Miner County Cash Flow Study.  Anyone interested in receiving the first one, titled the Miner County Cash Flow Study Resource Guide should sign up for it at the top of the sidebar.  Individuals who sign up will be notified as other resources are developed.

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If you’ve been in one rural community…

October 23rd, 2009

Distinguished sociologist Daryl Hobbs frequently told me and fellow Miner County (SD) residents, “If you’ve been in one rural community, you’ve only been in one rural community.”  Hobbs issued that warning to remind us that each small town held its own distinguishing features.  Just because we heard of one community’s problems on the TV news, didn’t mean we should assume those same problems existed in our community.  For that reason, he challenged us (and other rural community leaders) to dig in and understand the nuances of what made our community unique. 

I was reminded of Hobb’s exhortation today while reading a book review of Hollowing out the Middle, a book I highly recommend.  Published in the Wall Street Journal, the reviewer offered a lukewarm assessment of the book’s value to rural leaders.

In the review, he also leveled one scathing criticism over the authors’ claims that small town schools in the Heartland are divided along socio-economic lines.  The reviewer writes: 

The authors are on shakier ground discussing Ellis itself. You cannot drop into a town for a year and come away with deep understandings. Their claim that “there is probably no other place in American society where the rules of class and status play out with a more brutal efficiency than in the world of a country high school” is so howlingly inaccurate that only displaced urban academics could believe it.

 The reviewer’s statement drew my attention because I too struggled with veracity of the author’s claims on this subject.  As a former teacher, I feel comfortable saying the divide was not as severe (as the authors maintain) in the two rural South Dakota schools where I taught.  I can site numerous examples of quite the opposite, where students rise above the challenges presented by the status of their birth. 

So how can the authors, claim be so far off from my personal experiences?  Perhaps it’s because they base their analysis of the rural Heartland largely from interviews in one rural community. And if you’ve been to one rural community, you’ve only been to one rural community. 

But divisions along socio-economic lines did, and I suspect still do, exist in the schools and communities where I taught.  And Hollowing out the Middle helped me see those relationships in a new light.  For instance, I know that one of the greatest advantages that rural education offers over an urban one is that teachers are able to get to know the parents of their students on a much deeper level.  After reading the book, however, I can’t help but wonder how I and other fellow teachers might have imposed conditions of the parents onto their children. 

Some readers will undoubtedly be offended by the author’s claims.  But I don’t think they intend the claim as a condemnation.  Rather, they intended it as a tool for helping us examine what lies beneath the surface of our behaviors. 

Therein lays the value offered by the book.  While I can’t agree that “the rules of class and status play out with a more brutal efficiency” in the rural towns and schools that I’ve experienced, I know that elements of it exist in all of our rural schools in the Heartland. And I think that every community could develop a richer understanding of itself by holding a conversation on the subject. 

So let me conclude by asking, “Do you think socio-economic divisions are as pervasive in your rural school as the authors suggest?”  Is that a conversation you are willing to have? 

 

Photo Credit: Alexandraless - Flickr    (Let’s hope young people don’t jump for joy at the prospect of leaving rural communities after graduation.)

 

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Getting the Right Start in Pepin, WI

October 15th, 2009

Early this week, I had the opportunity to pack my suitcase and head to Pepin, Wisconsin.  Lydia Gnos, the elementary school principal in Pepin, and I met at a conference almost 2 ½ years ago where I shared the story of Miner County’s transformation.  The story resonated with her, as it does with many people, and she had kept Miner County’s story in her back pocket as she explored starting a community dialogue project in Pepin. 

Monday was the official launch of the Pepin-Stockholm Community Dialogue Project, and I was privileged to be a part of that start.  Sharing how dialogue transformed our community is just one of the ways we can help rural communities as they begin to reimagine their rural places. 

I am excited for Pepin.  The people there care deeply about their community (as evidenced by a great turnout of the “Key Communicators”) and realize that talking and listening to each other about their future is the first step. 

The presentation slides from the presentation, in addition to narrative about key concepts, are below.

Building Community Through Dialogue
View more documents from Rural Learning Center.

I think there are a few concepts that stand out as I think about starting the hard work of a community dialogue project in Pepin.  They include:

Handprints.  As communities look to change their future, recognizing the individual and collective role of our actions is key.  Our actions got us where we are.  The good news?  If you can see how you impacted the current state of your community, you have the agency to change it!

Community Capitals.  Cornelia Flora and Jan Flora have described our communities are a series of buckets, or capitals.  If we just fill one, our boat will capsize.  We need to pay attention to each area, and make sure we measure how our decisions impact our whole community.  Strengthening social capital (through projects like the dialogue project in Pepin) is a necessary first step.  Learn more about the community capitals here.

Involve young people.  Youth are vital in the process of transforming a community for several reasons: they can say what needs to be said (and question why things are the way they are) and they are typically not hindered by the prospect change.  In addition, it is important to involve youth in meaningful work in the community before they leave if you hope they will return someday (creating attachment starts with giving them a purpose in the community). 

As for the folks in Pepin, keep me posted on how your dialogue is evolving.  These are the days that will define your future!

See more photos of my trip on Flickr here!

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Are polar bears more important than rural communities?

September 18th, 2009

Let me begin by saying that I love polar bears and believe Americans need to alter their daily lives to help combat the global warming that is destroying the polar bear’s environment.

But it also seems to me that most Americans care little about the future of rural communities.  And apparently, I’m not alone. 

 

Hollowing out the Middle agrees

I’m still working my way through the recently released Hollowing out the Middle:  The Rural Brain Drain and What it Means for America, but I’m far enough along to offer a few thoughts.  (I also wrote about it back in April, before it was released.)

The authors open by asking the question that often troubles me:  “Why should we care about the future of small towns in the Heartland?”(p. ix)  They then offer a statement that inspired the above headline:

Though the small town claims an iconic place in the American psyche, we are considerably less alarmed by the emptying out of the prairie and plains towns than by the endangered status of the polar bear, an altogether more universally vulnerable symbol and one that our kids can easily comprehend and mourn the loss of.  (p. ix)

Unlike most books that begin with “whoa onto us” statements like the above, the authors quickly redirect the direct the energy of the book from blaming others to that of self-reflection. 

They close their preface by stating, “It is people’s actions that ultimately determine whether a place hollows out.” (p. xiv)

Yes! I agree.

 

We are responsible

Rural residents have as much responsibility for the future of their communities as free market economics or government policies.  We choose where we buy our groceries.  We choose how trashy or vibrant our communities look.  And we choose how our young people feel about their communities by what we tell them and how we invest in them. 

Unfortunately, little attention is ever directed at this last statement.  And that’s why this book is so important.

 

Just Do it!

So why do Americans today care so much for the polar bear and so little about rural communities?  I suspect it’s because some passionate individuals took notice of the polar bear’s plight and have attempted to do something about it.

I know that’s an oversimplification, but I’m confident our actions will speak loader than our words alone. 

Where should you begin?  I’d recommend purchasing Hollowing out the Middle and learning more about why young people are leaving the American Heartland.  And then, if you think it’s worthy, recommend it to a friend, and spark a conversation on the subject. (I’ve already purchased a copy for a friend at the Souuth Dakota Department of Education.)

It seems to me that as we take action (like Iroquois, SD is doing) and build a conversation, we will be successful at raising the awareness of the importance of Rural America.  Not only will our communities be stronger, but others will finally “get it” and understand our passion for rural. 

And who knows, maybe someday we’ll be as important as the polar bear.

 

Photo credit (top):  Oxfam International - Flickr.  (Let me be clear that I am in no way attempting to belittle those who seek to save the polar bear.  On the contrary, we can learn much from their passion.)

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Posted in Community Development, Gen Y, In the News, Rural, Youth | Comments (2)

A millennial chooses rural

June 10th, 2009

Growing up in a rural community has deeply contributed to who I am today. So, to begin my blogging adventure, I have compiled a list of why I choose rural. I do not know how much I fit the mold of a stereotypical GenY, but I feel strongly drawn towards rural communities. As an aspiring rural educator, I am excited about rural schools and communities because of the unique opportunities for providing an exceptional education.

  1. Family. I grew up in Corsica, SD, (pop. 650). I will admit, I did not always have my heart set on returning to a small community; however, after living and going to school in Sioux Falls, I miss the atmosphere of a small town - where I knew my neighbors and where I could feel comfortable raising a family. Small towns center on families and community, an environment that is warm and inviting for me. I like being around family, even if it is not my own family.
  2. Safety. Rural communities generally have lower crime rates. Children are often seen riding bikes and walking around town without adults, especially in the summer. As a future parent, this is where I would want to raise a family.
  3. More than a job. In a rural community, a teacher is more than just a teacher. I can look forward to being an engaged community member, teacher, mentor, coach, etc. all in one.
  4. More than a school. Rural schools are the ideal setting to implement place-based education, which engages the often-disconnected youth and makes learning more meaningful and relevant. Teachers and students can investigate where they are from, how they got there, what living in their community means, and what their community could be.
  5. Collaboration. Rural teaching lends itself more towards collaboration, and teachers collaborate more often with other teachers and community resources, which creates meaningful learning experiences for students.
  6. Connectivity. In a rural place, the relationships between school and community are strong. As a teacher, I will be connected to my students’ families, local merchants, local events, etc. I will not be the only person teaching my students. They can and should learn from community members, parents, and other students as often as possible. Students can also teach their peers, teachers, parents, and others in the community.
  7. Belonging. I will have opportunities to affect the community in which I live. As a community member, I matter.

As an educator, I will be valuable and connected to the community; maybe that is why I want to live in a rural setting. As Barley & Beesley’s study published in the Journal of Research in Rural Education (2007) found, “smaller rural schools capitalize on the closer relationships among smaller faculties and the teachers’ connectedness to the community and personal investment in the school.” Having grown up in the rural school setting, I wholeheartedly agree.

As a rural teacher, I am excited about facilitating this type of community connection. Forming connections and relationships, especially between schools and community is an important aspect of rural life. Forming connections with others and having others reaching out to connect with me are two main elements I want from my surroundings (as do most Millennials). We desire a connection and a sense of purpose in our surroundings. I want and need to feel connected, engaged, and important to the community.

 Rural life is attractive to me, knowing I will be connected and needed. The issue, however, is how do communities attract others like me - GenY’s with post-secondary educations who are looking to contribute. It has to start with actively recruiting them with more than just “we have jobs.” It has to be “we need you!”

 

Further Reading:   “Saving a Community’s Heart: The Small Rural School” @ Education World 

Photo Credit:  Pick Sherbert Photography/Flickr

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It’s time to invest in people

May 1st, 2009

It is always a good time to invest in human capital. 

Today, we are reminded of the economic importance of this statement as South Dakota State University celebrates Theodore W. Schultz’s winning of the 1979 Nobel Prize for his work in elevating the importance of ”human capital theory” in economics. 

Schultz, a native of Arlington, South Dakota, believed that investing in the education of individuals in developing countries is key to economic growth.  His work elevated the importance of human capital to that of the other forms of capital (financial, land, and labor) within classical economics.  

Many people have recognized, however, that investing in the education of rural students across the U.S. is not paying dividends.  For instance, rural students in our part of the country typically perform very well on educational tests, but the economies of rural communities continue to decline.

No doubt part of the problem rests with rural parents and residents who encourage the “best and brightest” to move away.   (for more, click here)  But I think we need to look deeper into our educational system for answers. 

As I reflect on the issue, I begin with the question, “What responsibility does our educational system have to provide the skills and training necessary for young people to live successfully within the community where they grow up?” 

As a former educator, it appears to me that most educational efforts go into training young people to live successfully in other places - namely urban areas. And if there is a local responsibility then what needs to change in the educational system to make that a reality? 

Dr. Schultz recommended vocational and technical training within developing countries. Entrepreneurship might fit that category today as well.

Undoubtedly, both are part of the equation, but I suspect there’s a lot more.  It’s an issue I wish I more people would focus on.

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When I go to school I have to “Power Down”

January 5th, 2009

Tomorrow I’m visiting with Jim Parry, Julie Mathiesen and other folks at the Technology & Innovation in Education (TIE)  offices in Rapid City, SD.  In honor of our discussions, I wanted to post the following video about the use of technology in the classroom.


 

I found the list of evidence supporting technology’s use in the classroom to be pretty compelling.  For me, the top reason to use technology as teaching tool is that it will help ENGAGE young people.  As I’ve written previously (link), Gen Y is very much about “doing things” rather than sitting back and watching.  Using technology to create projects helps facilitate that engagement.      

As I reflect on the importance of technology’s inclusion in the classroom as a way of engaging young people, I wonder if its use is equally important to engage them in our rural communities.

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Are Homecomings Worthwhile?

October 6th, 2008

Taking a break from work Friday afternoon to watch the Howard (SD) H.S. homecoming parade caused me to think a little about why schools take the time for homecoming events. After all, in today high stakes testing environment, using class time to build a float could be considered time wasted.

As a first-year teacher at Tripp-Delmont (SD) H.S.  in the early 1990’s, I experience the community resident benefit first-hand. Friday mornings of homecoming week was reserved for a student produced variety show. Each class was responsible for its own skit, so each day of that week, teachers gave up class time for students to prepare for their performances.

The show was well-attended by community members and was hilarious. I must admit to being caught off guard when I — the new teacher — became the focal point of several well-produced lampoons. Although initially somewhat embarrassed, I soon learned that these skits served as a means of introducing me into the community. Not only were the kids, in their own way, welcoming me, but they also gave community members a chance to come up and ask me for the “real story” behind the skits. From this start, the conversation often deepened and friendships were initiated.

On the educational front, the variety show was an awesome student learning experience. It was one of the few times each year that students were challenged to develop their creativity.

While Tripp-Delmon H.S. invests effort in the variety show, Howard H.S. focuses on a parade. Students spent all of Friday morning building class floats. Then in the afternoon, most everyone in town shows up to watch the parade. Looking around Main Street after the parade last Friday, it was easy to recognize the importance of the event to the community. Residents lingered around, mingling and catching up with friends they haven’t seen in awhile. The scene was probably very similar to what main streets on Saturday evenings use to look like in most rural communities back in the 1950s and 1960s.

As for the students, not only did they work on creativity, but they also developed some project management skills. In fact, project management often trumps creativity in determining the best produced floats.

So are homecomings important? Absolutely! Building social capital is important for the overall health of a community. And in today’s economy, students need to develop their creativity and project management skills. It’s time well spent.

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