The Power of Competing Narratives: A New Interpretation of Rural School-Community Relations

McHenry‐Sorber, Erin

doi:10.1080/0161956x.2014.956520

Cited by 21 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…The use of comparative study is particularly warranted by the variation of collective impact efforts and their contexts (Cooper, 2017;Gillam et al, 2016). Likewise, further research in this area needs to engage more deeply in questions of inequities between rural and urban places, as well as within rural places (McHenry-Sorber, 2014).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Why can’t this work here?”: social innovation and collective impact in a micropolitan community

Zuckerman

2020

Community Development

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Cross-sector partnerships, and collective impact, in particular, have gained increased attention as community-level strategies for tackling wicked, complex, social challenges such as child maltreatment. To date, there has been limited independent research on collective impact, especially in non-metropolitan areas with limited capacity. This case study examines the conditions that supported the development of a collective impact effort in a non-metropolitan community to address child wellbeing. It finds that small communities offer strengths that support collective impact as a social innovation as well as challenges that create vulnerabilities to outside influence that may stymie the development of locally developed social innovations.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Why can’t this work here?”: social innovation and collective impact in a micropolitan community

Zuckerman

2020

Community Development

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“…Rural communities and school districts, as proxies for communities, can be spaces of contestation and social exclusion rather than tight-knit homogenous spaces (McHenry-Sorber & Schafft, 2014;Sherman, 2009). Rural leaders are challenged to navigate divergent school and community values about the purpose of schooling, the work of educators, or the future of their communities (Budge, 2010;McHenry-Sorber, 2014). At times, rural superintendents may find themselves unable to meet community expectations for educational leaders (Gammill & Vaughn, 2011), at odds with dominant community values (Corbett, 2010;McHenry-Sorber, 2014), or struggling to promote change in a small community (Lamkin, 2006).…”

Section: Rural Regional and Multi-district Superintendentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rural leaders are challenged to navigate divergent school and community values about the purpose of schooling, the work of educators, or the future of their communities (Budge, 2010;McHenry-Sorber, 2014). At times, rural superintendents may find themselves unable to meet community expectations for educational leaders (Gammill & Vaughn, 2011), at odds with dominant community values (Corbett, 2010;McHenry-Sorber, 2014), or struggling to promote change in a small community (Lamkin, 2006). As the educational leader of the district, rural superintendents must balance complex and divergent community needs and interests with external pressures to ensure high student outcomes, educational equity, and college and career readiness.…”

Section: Rural Regional and Multi-district Superintendentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to contestation within communities (McHenry-Sorber, 2014), rural superintendents may face the political challenges of divergent and critical beliefs between neighboring communities. Recent studies on regionalization in Vermont (Hall, 2016;Rogers, Glesner, & Meyers, 2014) and Maine (Fairman & Donis-Keller, 2012) found geographically proximal communities retained opposing beliefs about the goals, objectives, and outcomes of public education.…”

Section: Rural Regional and Multi-district Superintendentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Politics first: Examining the practices of the multi-district superintendent

Hall

McHenry‐Sorber

2017

EPAA

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Over the past decade, multiple states have implemented a form of regional school district consolidation referred to as multi-district unions. Their organizational structure enables districts to retain individual school boards within regional local education agencies, all of which are overseen by a superintendent and a central board. However, no empirical research has been conducted to date on the ensuing work of multi-district superintendents. In our exemplary case study, we analyze time records, interviews, and observations to understand the role allocations and work of one multidistrict superintendent. We find the division of time and ensuing responsibilities of the multi-district superintendent is predominantly political to the organizational structure of the union, and we conclude with implications for policy and practice. Keywords: multi-district superintendent; superintendent; school board; multi-district union; joint union; regionalization; consolidation; rural schools; local control; case study Iniciativas políticas: Examinando las prácticas de múltiples distritos superintendentesResumen: A lo largo de la última década, varios estados han implementado una forma de consolidación regional del distrito escolar referida como sindicatos multi-distritales. Su estructura organizativa permite que los distritos regulen consejos escolares individuales en las agencias regionales de educación local, todos supervisados por un superintendente y un consejo central. Sin embargo, ninguna investigación empírica se ha realizado hasta el momento sobre el trabajo posterior de los superintendentes de múltiples distritos. En nuestro estudio de caso ejemplar, analizamos registros de tiempo, entrevistas y observaciones para entender las asignaciones de funciones y el trabajo de un superintendente de múltiples distritos. Creemos que la división del tiempo y las responsabilidades subsiguientes del superintendente de múltiples distritos es predominantemente política para la estructura organizativa de la unión y concluimos con implicaciones para políticas y prácticas. Palabras clave: múltiple distrito superintendente; superintendente; unión de múltiples distritos; unión común; regionalización; consolidación; escuelas rurales; control local; estudio de caso Iniciativas políticas: Examinando as práticas de múltiplos distritos superintendentes Resumo: Ao longo da última década, vários estados implementaram uma forma de consolidação regional do distrito escolar referida como sindicatos multi-distritais. A sua estrutura organizacional permite que os distritos regulem conselhos escolares individuais nas agências regionais de educação local, todos supervisionados por um superintendente e um conselho central. No entanto, nenhuma pesquisa empírica foi realizada até o momento sobre o trabalho subsequente dos superintendentes de múltiplos distritos. Em nosso estudo de caso exemplar, analisamos registros de tempo, entrevistas e observações para entender as alocações de funções e o trabalho de um superintendente de múltiplos distritos...

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“…Problematizing rural community-school relations, other research suggests the existence of bifurcations between rural teachers and community members during labor-related political disputes (McHenry-Sorber, 2014). A teacher strike in rural Pennsylvania led to the district's whole teacher corps being labeled as outsiders by community members (McHenry-Sorber, 2014). The teachers, even long-term residents, faced attacks, ridicule, and negative media attention because of their desire for higher benefits and pay.…”

Section: Experiences Of Rural Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of rural contexts on citizenship education

Moffa¹

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For this reason, scholars call for better contextual understandings of teachers' curricularinstructional gatekeeping (Thornton, 1989; Vinson, 1998). Rural-specific examples of this phenomenon remain largely unexamined (Martin & Chiodo, 2007; Pattison-Meek, 2012), though rural schools make up 32.9% of all schools in the United States (Johnson, Showalter, Klein, & Lester, 2014) and rural communities offer distinct socio-geographic and socio-cultural contexts (Brown & Schafft, 2011). To address this research deficit, the current study sampled five government teachers in rural schools to examine their conceptualizations of citizenship education, perceptions of place, and the influences that affect their curricular-instructional gatekeeping. This study adopted a social constructionist perspective to explore the values and meanings participants placed on citizenship within their rural contexts. It utilized a grounded theory research design to sample government teachers from four "distant-rural" schools and collect data from three sources: interviews, classroom observations, and teaching artifacts. A constant comparison method of data analysis produced a theory to describe citizenship education in rural contexts. The theory consists of three themes that emerged from the data: (1) citizenship education as practical knowledge; (2) place-based learning for future (dis)placements; and (3) the gatekeeping triad. Descriptions of these themes and their relationships with one another illuminate the practices of citizenship education in rural areas and provide knowledge of the rural conditions that influence it. Findings suggest government teachers in rural areas need to become more critical of their treatment of place and citizenship to encourage place-conscious civic life. iii IN DEDICATION To my wife Hope You are a constant source of love, support, and inspiration. Without you, this dissertation would not have been possible. You encouraged me to pursue my doctorate. You supported me while I completed this research. No one knows my journey more intimately. You celebrated the highs with me and alleviated the lows. Most importantly, you believe in me like no one ever has before and it makes me a better man. Thank you. I love you. To my daughter Rosaline This journey started before you were born, but you showed up in time to help daddy finish. In the last month of writing, I cradled you in my arms while I typed. I hope this dissertation inspires you to discover the joys of learning and to pursue your dreams. I want you to live life passionately, learn deeply, love endlessly, and work to improve our world. Daddy loves you. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thank you Dr. Robert Waterson for your advice and scholarly insights throughout my doctoral journey. From my first day on campus, you took serious my desires to become a scholar and offered me candid conversations about higher education and the research process. You were always selfless with your time. Thank you for involving me with the many programs and projects of the Center for Democracy ...

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The Power of Competing Narratives: A New Interpretation of Rural School-Community Relations

Cited by 21 publications

References 6 publications

“Why can’t this work here?”: social innovation and collective impact in a micropolitan community

“Why can’t this work here?”: social innovation and collective impact in a micropolitan community

Politics first: Examining the practices of the multi-district superintendent

The impact of rural contexts on citizenship education

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