I have a map of the state of Iowa’s school districts as they were in the 1996-97 school year. As with any district map, it doesn’t reflect what sharing arrangements were at the time, but counting up the numbers then and now is another way to gauge developments in rural districts.<\/p>\n
There were 24 districts in 1996 with a certified enrollment under 250.<\/strong> This fall, only four of that group \u2014 Diagonal, Luverne, Paton-Churdan, and Stratford \u2014 will be left standing. Only two, Diagonal and PC, have a high school. Thirteen were involved in mergers \u2014 including Prescott, which officially ceases to exist July 1 \u2014 and seven were dissolved.<\/p>\n There were 47 districts in 1996 with a certified enrollment between 250 and 400.<\/strong> Slightly more than half, 26, will still be around next fall, and 11 of those don’t have a high school.<\/p>\n Twenty years later, districts that formerly had much higher numbers have fallen down to take the place of the vanished. In fact, in 2015, there were 24<\/strong> districts with a certified enrollment under 250, and 47<\/strong> with a certified enrollment between 250 and 401. (Edgewood-Colesburg and Coon Rapids-Bayard flex the line a smidgeon.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I have a map of the state of Iowa’s school districts as they were in the 1996-97 school year. As with any district map, it doesn’t reflect what sharing arrangements were at the time, but counting up the numbers then … Continue reading