An In-depth Look at Missouri's Rural Schools

AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT MISSOURI’S RURAL HIGH SCHOOLS Susan Pendergrass

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INTRODUCTION

But is love enough? Rural children need the same opportunities to be doctors, engineers, We are nearly a quarter of the way through lawyers, or artists as their urban and suburban the 21st century. High school graduates are counterparts. If rural schools are not providing expected to leave school prepared for jobs that those opportunities, something must change. didn’t exist when they started. Technology is moving at a staggering pace, and low-skill jobs This report presents a detailed look into are dwindling. Like it or not, this is reality.

Missouri’s rural high schools.1 Missouri is a predominantly rural state. It is also a state with There is undoubtedly a lot of love for rural a stagnant gross domestic product (GDP). The schools in Missouri. In rural communities, percentage of Missouri adults with a bachelor’s many Missourians see their schools— degree or higher (30 percent)2 is less than especially their high schools—as local the national average, and more people with institutions. They are community centers. Their college degrees leave Missouri than enter it.3 weight rooms serve as the town health club.

Missouri’s standing in the National Assessment Their auditoriums may be used by churches. of Education Progress (NAEP), also known Loyalty to the school colors and sports teams is as the Nation’s Report Card, has been flat or strong and lifelong. Some of these schools may declining for several decades.4 be small and understaffed, but they’re plucky and the students and teachers are family. They Missouri is no longer in a position to say that may have changed very little since the previous its beloved rural high schools are “fine.” It’s generation or even the generation before, but important to know what these schools actually that’s exactly how many people want it to be. look like, who they are serving and how well, which classes are being offered and taken, and where students go after they leave high school.

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Figure 1: Missouri High Schools by Locale, 2018–19 Of the 514 high schools (as defined by schools with a 12th grade) in Missouri in 2018–19, nearly 60 percent are categorized by the U.S. Census Bureau as being rural.5

3

Table 1: Distribution of Missouri High Schools by Locale, 2018–19 Rural high schools enrolled nearly 88,000 students in grades 9–12 in the 2018–19 school year.

Locale

Number of Percent of Total Enrollment Percent of Total Schools Schools Grades 9–12 Enrollment

Rural

308

59.9%

87,593

32.2%

City

51

9.9%

40,335

14.8%

Suburb

68

13.2%

89,304

32.8%

Town

87

16.9%

54,650

20.1%

Total

514

271,882

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Common Core of Data (CCD), Nonfiscal survey 2018–19, nces.ed.gov/ccd

4

Table 2: Distribution of Missouri High Schools by Average School Size

by Locale, 2018–19 Missouri’s 308 rural high schools have many distinguishing characteristics. They are often substantially smaller than other high schools in the state; their average size is less than one quarter that of a typical suburban high school. There is a nearly even split between rural high schools that serve grades 7–12 (157) and those that serve grades 9–12 (121). By comparison, nearly all (92 percent) urban, suburban, and town high schools serve grades 9–12.

Locale

Average School Size

Rural

284

City

807

Suburb

1,313

Town

628

Overall Average

530

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Common Core of Data (CCD), Non-fiscal survey 2018–19. nces.ed.gov/ ccd

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Table 3: Student Demographics in Missouri’s High Schools by Locale, 2018–19 Of the four community types, Missouri’s rural high schools enroll the second-highest percentage of low-income students (45 percent), as defined by eligibility for free or reducedprice lunch (FRPL) in the National School Lunch Program.6 By contrast, just 34 percent of suburban Missouri high school students are identified as low income. Students in Missouri’s rural high schools are also much more likely to be White than their urban or suburban counterparts.

Enrollment

Low-income Students

% Low Income

White Enrollment

% White

Rural

87,593

39,593

45.2%

75,632

86.3%

City

40,335

25,334

62.8%

20,570

51.0%

Suburb

89,304

30,396

34.0%

58,458

65.5%

Town

54,650

24,338

44.5%

46,931

85.9%

Total

271,882

119,661

44.0%

201,591

74.1%

Locale

Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Common Core of Data (CCD), Non-fiscal survey 2018–19. nces.ed.gov/ccd.

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Table 4: Missouri High School Teachers By Locale, 2018–19 Because of the smaller-than-average size, Missouri’s rural high schools have the lowest number of students per teacher (13.1). Rural high schools in Missouri have teachers with the second-lowest average years of experience of the four community types. Rural high school teachers are the least likely to have a master’s degree and have the lowest average salaries.

Locale

Number of Teachers

Average of Average of Pupil/ Average of Percentage of Teacher Ratios Teachers' Years of Teachers with Average of 2018–19 Experience Master's Degrees Teacher Salaries

Rural

6,697

13.1

12.6

52.6%

$45,496

City

2,856

14.1

11.3

61.6%

$53,017

Suburb

5,509

16.2

14.3

76.8%

$63,149

Town

3,605

15.2

13.0

56.7%

$49,114

Total

18,668

14.6

13.0

61.9%

$52,555

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System (MCDS), Building Faculty Information (2012–2020).

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Table 5: Missouri High School Spending per Student and Total Spending by Locale, 2018–19 Overall, spending per pupil in rural high schools in Missouri is lower than in city and suburban high schools. Because there are so many small rural school districts in Missouri, the per-pupil spending for district administrative expenses is in line with large suburban high schools, which drives up total per-student spending somewhat.

Locale

Average Average Building-level District-level Average Total Expenditures per Expenditures per Expenditures per Pupil 2018–19 Pupil 2018–19 Pupil 2018–19

Total Expenditures

Rural

$7,835

$2,814

$10,619

$930,133,851

City

$8,786

$4,008

$12,794

$516,035,088

Suburb

$8,299

$2,836

$11,135

$994,398,778

Town

$7,614

$2,597

$10,211

$558,010,238

Total

$8,002

$3,027

$11,029

$2,988,577,956

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System (MCDS), Building Faculty Information (2012–2020).

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ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE Missouri schools are required to administer annual tests in English/language arts (ELA) and math under the Missouri Assessment Program (MAP).7 MAP scores are distributed across four achievement levels—Below Basic, Basic, Proficient, and Advanced. A student is deemed to be “Below Basic” if they have only a minimal understanding of the material. A student is deemed to be “Basic” if they have a partial understanding of the material. A student is deemed to be “Proficient” if they have an “adequate” understanding and can apply subject matter, as defined by the Missouri Learning Standards. A student is deemed to be “advanced” if they demonstrate a “thorough” understanding and ability to apply subject matter. For the purposes of this analysis, these last two categories are combined into the “percent proficient or above.”

points. Using these five intervals, schools with between 0 and 18 percent of students scoring proficient or higher in ELA would receive an “F,” and schools with between 72 and 90 percent of students scoring proficient or higher would receive an “A.” The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) releases MAP scores for some subgroups of students, including low-income students as determined by eligibility for FRPL. As a reminder, almost half of Missouri high school students qualify for this program, including 45 percent of rural high school students. Thus, it is important to understand how these students are faring.

For this analysis, grades were also assigned to schools for ELA and math, both for all students and for low-income students.

Another way of comparing schools is to categorize their performance into grades.

To do that, the full range of scores—in this case from a minimum score of 0 percent of students scoring proficient or higher to a maximum score of 90 percent of students scoring proficient or higher—was broken into five equal intervals of 18 percentage 9

Table 6: Missouri High School Performance in ELA by Locale, 2018–19 In 2018–19, Missouri’s rural high schools performed just below the state average for percent proficient or above in ELA, with just 54 percent of students achieving at that level. Suburban high schools, by contrast, performed well above the state average, with two thirds of students scoring at the proficient level or higher.

ELA Total % Below Basic

ELA Total % Basic

ELA Total % Proficient

ELA Total % Advanced

ELA Total % Prof +

Rural

11%

34%

41%

12%

54%

City

17%

31%

40%

12%

51%

Suburb

9%

25%

51%

14%

56%

Town

12%

31%

48%

10%

58%

Total

11%

31%

45%

12%

58%

Locale

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System (MCDS), Building Level Per Pupil Expenditures 2020.

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Figure 2: Missouri High School Performance Grades in ELA by Locale, 2018–19 Rural high schools had the lowest percentage of A’s— seven percent of schools, or just 21 out of 305 schools with grades. Most of rural high schools (47 percent) received C’s. Over 80 Distribution Performance Grades percent of suburban high schools received A’s or B’s.

All Students ELA % Proficient or Above

21

5

112

15

8 24 42

11 142

31

12

30

6

Rural

City

7 Suburb F

D

C

B

32 5 1

5

Town

A

Source: Grades calculated by the author using 2018–19 MAP data for Missouri high schools.

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Table 7: Missouri High School Performance in ELA for Low-income Students by Locale, 2018–19 In 2018–19, low-income high school students in rural schools performed similarly to the state average, with 42 percent of low-income rural students scoring proficient or higher in ELA. Low-income students in rural high schools did better than their peers in urban high schools, but not as well as those in suburban or town high schools.

ELA FRPL % Below Basic

ELA FRPL % Basic

ELA FRPL % Proficient

ELA FRPL % Advanced

ELA FRPL % Prof +

Rural

16%

41%

34%

8%

42%

City

23%

35%

32%

8%

41%

Suburb

16%

37%

41%

6%

46%

Town

17%

36%

40%

6%

46%

Total

18%

38%

36%

7%

43%

Locale

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, School - Content Area All and Disag 2019.

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Figure 3: Missouri High School Performance Grades in ELA for Lowincome Students by Locale, 2018–19 Using the same grading methodology above,Grades just 3 percent of rural high schools in Distribution of discussed Performance Missouri received an A for the 2018–19 math performance and nearly half received D’s or F’s.

All Students Math % Proficient or Above

9

2

3 35

5

115

15

14

13

19

34

7 114

21 32

21

8 6

6

Suburb

Town

34 Rural

City F

D

C

B

A

Source: Grades calculated by the author using 2018–19 MAP data for Missouri high schools.

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Table 8: Missouri High School Performance in Math by Locale, 2018–19 In math, overall rural high schools performed below the state average, with just 37 percent of students scoring proficient or better.

Math Total % Below Basic

Math Total % Basic

Math Total % Proficient

Math Total % Advanced

Math Total % Prof +

Rural

25%

38%

23%

14%

37%

City

34%

33%

21%

12%

33%

Suburb

18%

31%

29%

23%

52%

Town

24%

38%

26%

12%

38%

Total

24%

35%

25%

16%

41%

Locale

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, School - Content Area All and Disag 2019.

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Figure 4: Missouri High School Performance Grades in Math for All Students by Locale, 2018–19 Overall, the performance of low-income students in math in Missouri high schools is troubling.

In 2018–19, nearly three in four low-income students scored below the proficient level in math. Small, rural high schools oftenofare unable to offer advanced math courses, and this Distribution Performance Grades may be a factor in their low performance in math.

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Low-income Students ELA % Proficient or Above 5

78

6

4

8

30

31

15 122

74 Rural

3

15

27

6

6

City

Suburb F

D

C

B

40

1

10 Town

A

Source: Grades calculated by the author using 2018–19 MAP data for Missouri high schools.

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Table 9: Missouri High School Performance in Math for Low-income Students by Locale, 2018–19 In Missouri's rural high schools, just 26 percent of low-income students scored at the proficient or higher level in math.

Math FRPL % Below Basic

Math FRPL % Basic

Math FRPL % Proficient

Math FRPL % Advanced

Math FRPL % Prof +

Rural

33%

40%

17%

8%

26%

City

41%

33%

16%

9%

25%

Suburb

31%

37%

22%

11%

32%

Town

33%

38%

20%

8%

29%

Total

34%

38%

18%

9%

27%

Locale

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, School - Content Area All and Disag 2019.

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Figure 5: Missouri High School Performance Grades in Math for Lowincome Students by Locale, 2018–19 In terms of grade distribution for low-income student math performance, nearly 70 percent Distribution of Perfromance Grades received D’s or F’s.

1

Low-income Students Math % Proficient or Above

22 70

4

1 3 8

27 23

16 143

57 Rural

7

15

19

20 City F

D

C

B

39

10

13

Suburb

Town

A

Source: Grades calculated by the author using 2018–19 MAP data for Missouri high schools.

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COLLEGE READINESS AND HIGH SCHOOL FOLLOW-UP IN MISSOURI HIGH SCHOOLS The performance of Missouri’s rural high schools, particularly in math and particularly for low-income students, suggests that they may not be graduating students who are college- or career-ready.

One measure of college preparedness is the number of students taking advanced courses in high school. In fact, applying to the University of Missouri requires high school coursework that includes at least four years of math (Algebra I or higher). The courses required are generally Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and Calculus. In addition, students must take three years of science that are either Earth Science, Biology, Chemistry or Physics.8 Unfortunately, only about half of Missouri’s high schools offer Calculus or Physics. This makes it difficult for students to meet the application requirements, let alone prepare for a career in a STEM field.

It is true that rural high schools tend to be smaller and often span grades 7–12, making it more challenging to offer a wider array of courses. However, there are certainly aspiring engineers, scientists, and mathematicians in Missouri’s rural communities. Access to 18

advanced coursework can make a difference in whether they are able to pursue their dreams or not.

Advanced placement (AP) is a program offered by the College Board. AP courses are intended to be the equivalent of a freshman college course. At the end of the course, students have the option of taking a College Board exam on the subject that is scored from 1 to 5. Students who score a 3 or higher are considered to have “passed” the exam, and most colleges and universities offer credit for the equivalent freshman course for scores of 3 or higher. Not only does taking AP courses in high school provide the experience of learning college-level material, but students are also able to avoid paying tuition for those intro-level courses that they complete in high school. According to the College Board, 322 Missouri high schools offered AP courses in 2018–19.

The ACT is a college entrance exam that also measures college readiness.9 While high school students are no longer required to take the ACT under Missouri’s state assessment program, 82 percent of students from the 2019 graduating class took the ACT.10

Table 10: Mathematics Coursework and Participation in Missouri High Schools by Locale, 2017–18 Overall, about 3.1 percent of high school students in Missouri took a Calculus course in 2017– 18, the latest year for which data are available. In rural high schools, that number was 2.5 percent.

Students Enrolled in Algebra II

Percentage of High School Students Enrolled in Calculus

Grades 9–12 Students 2017–18

Number of High Schools

Rural

74,629

281

838

12,811

17.2%

184

1,856

2.5%

City

39,057

50

371

7,581

19.4%

69

830

2.1%

Suburb

87,385

68

891

15,662

17.9%

253

4,154

4.8%

Town

53,728

85

608

8,805

16.4%

137

1,113

2.1%

Total

254,799

484

2,708

44,859

17.6%

643

7,953

3.1%

Locale

Number of Algebra II Classes

Percentage of High School Students Students Number of Enrolled in Enrolled in Algebra II Calculus Classes Calculus

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2017–18.

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Table 11: Science Coursework and Participation in Missouri High Schools by Locale, 2017–18 Students in Missouri’s rural high schools were much less likely to take either Chemistry or Physics than their city or suburban counterparts. Overall, 17.2 percent of high school students took Chemistry in 2017–18, compared to just 12.9 percent for rural high school students. Similarly, just 7.3 percent of rural high school students took a Physics class that year, compared to a statewide average of 9.8 percent.

Locale

Grades 9–12 Students 2017–18

Number of High Schools

Number of Chemistry Classes

Students Enrolled in Chemistry

Percentage of High School Students Number of Enrolled in Chemistry Physics Classes

Students Enrolled in Physics

Percentage of High School Students Enrolled in Physics

Rural

74,629

281

644

9,656

12.9%

350

5,463

7.3%

City

39,057

50

457

10,230

26.2%

387

8,605

22.0%

Suburb

87,385

68

913

17,513

20.0%

502

8,630

9.9%

Town

53,728

85

421

6,342

11.8%

142

2,398

4.5%

Total

254,799

484

2,435

43,741

17.2%

1,381

25,096

9.8%

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2017–18.

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Table 12: Advanced Placement Coursework and Participation in Missouri High Schools by Locale, 2017–2018 Overall, rural high schools offered fewer AP courses, with an average of just 5 offered, compared to 13 in suburban high schools. Participation was similarly lower. In 2017–18 (the latest year for which data were available), just 9 percent of rural high school students enrolled in any AP course. The percentage of rural high school students enrolled in an AP math course was also lower than the overall average (2 percent vs. 2.8 percent), as was AP science course enrollment (2.5 percent vs. 3.8 percent).

Locale

Percentage of High School Percentage of Students Number of Students High School Student Enrolled Different Enrolled in at Students Enrollment in an AP Student Grades 9–12 Number of AP Courses Least One AP Enrolled in an in AP Mathematics Enrollment in Students High Schools Provided Course AP course Mathematics Course AP Science

Percentage of High School Students Enrolled in an AP Science Course

Rural

74,629

281

5

6,691

9.0%

1,483

2.0%

1,777

2.4%

City

39,057

50

9

6,364

16.3%

1,108

2.8%

1,328

3.4%

Suburb

87,385

68

13

18,376

21.0%

3,681

4.2%

5,528

6.3%

Town

53,728

85

5

4,347

8.1%

756

1.4%

1,046

1.9%

Total

254,799

484

8

35,778

14.0%

7,028

2.8%

9,679

3.8%

Source: U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2017–18.

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Table 13: Missouri High School ACT Scores by Locale, 2018–2019 Missouri’s rural high schools performed below the state average for total ACT scores and for each of the four subject tests—English, reading, math and science.

ACT Tests Administered

Average ACT Composite Score

Average ACT English Score

Average ACT Reading Score

Average ACT Math Score

Average ACT Science Score

Rural

13,267

20.3

19.6

20.9

19.7

20.4

City

7,258

19.2

18.6

19.6

18.9

19.4

Suburb

17,551

21.4

21.0

21.9

20.9

21.5

Town

8,471

20.6

20.0

21.2

19.9

20.7

Total

46,547

20.6

20.0

21.1

20.0

20.7

Locale

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, Building ACT Results.

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Table 14: Missouri High School Graduate Follow-up by Locale, 2018– 2019 Rural high schools had the lowest percentage of respondents who reported enrolling in a four-year college in the fall after graduation, at just 32 percent. However, they had a slightly higher than average percentage who enrolled in a two-year college. They also had a slightly higher percentage who went directly into employment, with one in four graduates choosing this path.

Locale

No. Grads Prior Year

Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage of Grads of Grads 4-yr of Grads 2-yr of Grads of Grads of Grads College College College Employed Non-college Military

Percentage of Grads Other

Percentage of Grads Unknown

Rural

16,938

61%

32%

28%

25%

2%

1%

3%

2%

City

8,655

63%

39%

23%

24%

2%

2%

4%

4%

Suburb

21,233

72%

46%

26%

18%

2%

2%

3%

2%

Town

12,584

58%

34%

25%

29%

2%

3%

4%

1%

Total

59,410

65%

38%

26%

23%

2%

2%

3%

2%

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, Building Graduate Follow-up.

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Table 15: Missouri High School Graduate Postsecondary Degree Completion by Locale, 2018–2019 The bachelor’s degree completion rate for Missouri’s rural high schools was the lowest of any community type. That, coupled with the lowest rate of enrollment in a four-year college after high school, suggests that bachelor’s degree attainment may be as low as 10 percent for Missouri’s rural high school students.

Of those students who went on to enroll in either a two-year or four-year college, not all finished. According to data from DESE, of rural students who responded that they had enrolled, just 22 percent had completed an associate degree and 34 percent had completed a bachelor’s degree within six years.

Locale

First-Time Freshmen Fall 2014

Completed Assoc.

Degree F2014

% Completed Assoc.

Degree w/in 6 years

Completed Bachelor's Degree F2014

% Completed Bach.

Degree w/in 6 years

Rural

6,363

1,431

22%

2,172

34%

City

2,774

362

13%

1,136

41%

Suburb

8,260

1,209

15%

3,483

42%

Town

4,508

978

22%

1,663

37%

Total

21,905

3,980

18%

8,454

39%

Source: Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE), Missouri Comprehensive Data System, Building Graduate Follow-up.

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POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND CONCLUSION Based on the above data, the following can be said about Missouri’s rural high schools: There are a lot of them. They’re small, with relatively small class sizes. Their students are more likely to be low-income and to be white.

With the exception of urban schools, their teachers have fewer years of experience and less education, with correspondingly lower average salaries. Per-student spending is driven up by the need for more administrators for small schools and districts. Their students underperform in math and take fewer highlevel math and science courses. Graduates of Missouri’s rural high schools are more likely to go to a two-year college or straight into employment. Degree completion rates are troublingly low.

Does any of this matter? According to the National Center for Education Statistics, in 2018 just 29.6 percent of Missourians over the age of 25 had a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to the national average of 32.6 percent.12 Further, on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a bi-annual exam administered statewide to representative samples of students by the U.S. Department of Education, Missouri’s 8th graders are losing ground in math relative to students

in other states. In 2009, some 23 percent of Missouri 8th graders scored below Basic on the assessment. By 2019, that percentage had grown to 30 percent. In 2009, a slightly higher percentage of Missouri’s 8th graders scored at the Proficient level or higher on the same exam (35 percent), but by 2019 that had reversed (32 percent). The percentage of lowincome 8th graders who scored below the Basic level increased from 37 percent in 2009 to 44 percent in 2019.13 Missouri is falling behind, and it’s difficult to see how the state’s workforce will be satisfactory to prospective employers if the trajectory doesn’t change. Given that almost 60 percent of Missouri high schools are rural and over half of students in rural schools are low income, addressing the needs of this group may be a good place to start. The following are policy recommendations to improve outcomes at Missouri’s rural high schools.

Interdistrict Choice It can be challenging for small, rural school districts to find qualified teachers for higherlevel math and science courses. According to DESE, in the 2019–20 school year, 19 percent of high school math courses, 25 percent of 25

high school biology courses, and 36 percent of high school physics courses were taught by teachers who were not qualified (certified) to teach them.14 Missouri has over 60 high schools with 100 or fewer students. Most of them employed 10 or fewer teachers. Rather than trying to offer a full suite of high school classes from a very limited workforce, these schools could be coordinating across districts.

The Rural Schools Innovation Zone (RSIZ) in south Texas provides a good example.15 In RSIZ, students from three rural districts have a choice of four academies—Arts and Career Express Academy at Falfurrias Junior High School, Ignite Technical Institute Career and Technical Academy at Falfurrias High School, Next Generation Medical Academy Health and Science Academy at Freer High School, and STEM Discovery Zone Academy at Premont Collegiate High School. Students remain enrolled in their home district but can access a much broader array of courses.

Missouri could create a similar program, perhaps on a pilot basis. In rural areas with several small school districts, local community colleges could assist with creating unique programs at each high school. Grants to develop transportation solutions, including 26

paying students or families on a per-mile basis, could be offered to districts that agree to participate.

Interdistrict Charter Schools Another option would be to allow charter schools to open in rural areas and to enroll students across multiple districts. While similar to interdistrict choice, opening a charter school has the added benefits of an independent board and freedom to innovate. There are currently nearly 1,000 charter schools in rural communities in the United States. In some cases, traditional public schools converted to charter schools in order to tap additional federal funding and to broaden their geographic reach.

One example is Elkton Charter School, a high school in rural Oregon. Elkton High School was facing enrollment and funding declines, and school leaders decided to convert the school to a charter school. This created new funding streams and a broader geographical area for student enrollment. Because of its proximity to the Umpqua River, Elkton Charter School chose a natural resources-focused curriculum.16

Consolidation of School Districts High schools with dwindling enrollment should consider consolidation, despite the fact that it is currently unpopular. The administration and paperwork to keep a very small district open can become cost prohibitive. In addition, students from these small schools have access to a relatively narrow range of coursework.

After graduation, however, they will attend college or enter the workforce with peers who may have attended larger and betterresourced suburban high schools.

Parental Choice Parental choice is often seen as only being appropriate in urban or suburban areas, as it requires that multiple education options exist.

However, a 2017 analysis of school location data by the Brookings Institution found that an estimated 69 percent of rural families have access to a private school within 10 miles of their homes and over one third have access to one within five miles.17 Missouri has over 100 private schools that are in rural communities.18 Helping low-income rural families access these private schools would expand opportunities. In addition, through a parental choice program, families could use public funds to create an

individualized high school plan that includes virtual and in-person learning, community college coursework, or technical education.

In addition to providing access to private schools, school choice programs could broaden access to virtual resources for rural high school students. Currently, students are allowed to enroll in one of the eight providers of virtual education through the Missouri Course Access Program (MOCAP), provided that their district superintendents grant permission. School choice funds, however, could be used to access virtual programs outside the state, including college-level coursework.

The health of Missouri ultimately depends on the state providing an environment that’s attractive to businesses and families. It is critical that policymakers begin to address the growing needs of our rural high schools and change the sentimental perception of them. Far too many rural high school students are graduating with low-level math skills and limited prospects for college or careers. High school diplomas are no longer a ticket to the middle class. Until Missouri’s rural high schools do a better job of preparing their students for postsecondary life, our state will continue to fall further and further behind.

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NOTES 1. This analysis is limited to Missouri high schools with achievement data reported on the Missouri Annual Performance Report (APR).

High schools serving special populations (such as schools for students with disabilities or alternative high schools) are excluded, as are shared-time high schools.

2. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Digest of Education Statistics, Table 104.80 Percentage of persons 18–24 years old and age 25 and over, by educational attainment and state: 2000 and 2018, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/ tables/dt19_104.80.asp?current=yes 3. US Congress Joint Economic Committee, “Losing Our Minds: Brain Drain Across the United States,” April 24, 2019, https://www.jec.senate. gov/public/index.cfm/republicans/2019/4/ losing-our-minds-brain-drain-across-the-unitedstates 4. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), National Assessment of Educational Progress – Main, https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard 5. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), working with the U.S. Census Bureau, uses an “urban-centric” classification system to classify schools as city, suburban, town, and 28

rural—each of which is subdivided into three subcategories. The Census Bureau defines an area’s urbanicity as principal city, urbanized area, or urban cluster. A principal city is a city that contains the primary population and economic center of a metropolitan statistical area, which, in turn, is defined as one or more contiguous counties that have a “core” area with a large population nucleus and adjacent communities that are highly integrated economically or socially with the core.

Urbanized areas and urban clusters are densely settled “cores” of Census-defined blocks with adjacent densely settled surrounding areas.

Core areas with populations of 50,000 or more are designated as urbanized areas; those with populations between 2,500 and 50,000 are designated as urban clusters. Rural areas are designated by the Census Bureau as those areas that do not lie inside an urbanized area or urban cluster. For the purposes of this paper, the twelve categories have been collapsed into four. For more information, see https://nces. ed.gov/surveys/ruraled/definitions.asp.

6. For the purposes of this analysis, low-income students are defined as those who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch in the National School Lunch Program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To be eligible for free lunch, a student must be from a household with an income at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty guideline; to be eligible

for reduced-price lunch, a student must be from a household with an income between 130 percent and 185 percent of the federal poverty guideline. For more information, see https://dese.mo.gov/college-career-readiness/ assessment/guide-missouri-assessmentprogram 7. For more information, see https://dese.mo.gov/ college-career-readiness/assessment/guidemissouri-assessment-program 8. University of Missouri Freshman Admission Requirements, High School Coursework, https:// admissions.missouri.edu/apply-freshmen/ admission-requirements, accessed on June 22, 2021.

9. For more information, see https://www.act.org/ content/act/en.html 10. The Condition of College & Career Readiness 2019, Missouri Key Findings, https://www.act. org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/ cccr-2019/Missouri-CCCR-2019.pdf 11. ACT, The Condition of College and Career Readiness 2019 – National, https://www.act. org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/ National-CCCR-2019.pdf 12. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Digest of Education Statistics, table 104.80, Percentage of

persons 18 to 24 years old and age 25 and over, by educational attainment and state: 2000 and 2018, https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/ tables/dt19_104.80.asp?current=yes.

13. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Main NAEP Data Explorer, https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ ndecore/xplore/NDE 14. https://dese.mo.gov/media/pdf/teachershortage-report 15. https://dese.mo.gov/media/pdf/teachershortage-report 16. National Charter School Resource Center at Safal Partners, “Harvesting Success: Charter Schools in Rural America,” pp. 10-11, https:// charterschoolcenter.ed.gov/sites/default/files/ files/field_publication_attachment/NCSRC%20 Harvesting%20Success%20Charter%20 Schools%20in%20Rural%20America.pdf 17. https://www.brookings.edu/research/whocould-benefit-from-school-choice-mappingaccess-to-public-and-private-schools 18. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Private School Survey (PSS).

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