Farm Theme Boosts Enrollment in Rural Kansas School.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. Turning this school into a charter gave this town the opportunity to keep its only school open

All over Kansas and other largely rural states, the death of a school often leads to the death of a town. The state is top heavy with school districts because of its geography and the desire (in every town) to keep schools open and avoid the dreaded merger of rural school districts.

Kansas is looking at serious economic issues, a drastic drop in school funding (thank you Sam Brownback) and a drop in the tax base that supports schools. The inevitable solution will result in fewer schools and school districts.

Thanks to a federal grant, this town was able to save its school. As long as the money keeps coming, the school will remain open. But the future for public education in Kansas - for both traditional and charter schools - is bleak. The current state legislature will not support the level of funding that this school in Walton requires to stay open. That's the reality. Unless we can change the legislature, this one school will remain one success story in a state that has a long history of successfully educating its children.