The consolidation of rural schools in the United States has been a controversial topic for policy-makers, school administrators, and rural communities since the 1800s. At issue in the consolidation movement have been concerns of efficiency, economics, student achievement, school size, and community identity. Throughout the history of schooling in…

Describes how, after a decade of recession and years of declining college enrollments, Japan--the country with the world's third-largest economy--is asking its universities to merge. (EV)

Discusses the for-profit education sector's rush to consolidate. Large, publicly traded schools are looking to expand their businesses, while smaller schools are finding it hard to maintain growth or expand on their own. (EV)

Examines the factors that motivate colleges and universities to merge and the extent to which these factors are unique to merger or also motivate other forms of inter-institutional cooperation. Develops a taxonomy of inter-institutional combination and of the factors that induce institutional behavior towards cooperation. (EV)

The Tongue River Elementary School in Ranchester, Wyoming, has faced the friction of bringing in students from other schools, school district consolidation with no written curriculum, and low test scores. How the school survived and prospered is described. (MT)

Case studies of multipurpose schools built in two school districts after a consolidation. (NI)

Six small Arkansas school districts consolidated to improve the quality of education and to give citizens more value for their taxes. Citizens in all six communities approved construction under the same roof of a new elementary school and a new high school. Students' tests scores have improved, the dropout rate has declined, and more graduates are…

Describes the recent trend toward collegiate mergers. Six mergers of higher education institutions were announced between November 200 and March 2001, with another three in negotiations. Mergers represent the last effort by an institution to salvage some of its identity before having to close completely, and many small schools are seeing the…

Discusses the growing trend of small colleges merging with larger ones and details successful behavior in four steps of the merging process: agreeing to agree, investigating, negotiating "at the table," and signing the deal. (EV)

This volume presents the 2008 Yearbook of the National Council of Professors of Educational Administration (National Council of Professors of Educational Administration). The theme for this year's address, yearbook and convention is "Leadership on the Frontlines: Changes in Preparation and Practice." This Yearbook contains six parts. Part 1,…

The use of mergers in Australia's higher education to tackle systemwide as well as local institutional problems is discussed. Complications arising from the situation in which some sectors of higher education are controlled at one government level and funded at another are examined. (MSE)

While metropolitan school systems are moving toward decentralization and personalized instruction, rural America is still being coerced into consolidations and district mergers. The Annenburg Rural Challenge, a force for nontraditional reform, is sponsoring bold, community-based initiatives aimed at transforming teaching and learning in genuinely…

Investigated faculty perceptions of possible mergers with other institutions at three higher education institutions in South Africa. Found that they are not opposed to the idea of institutional combinations or mergers, but that their personal issues and fears should be addressed to ensure an effective merger. (EV)

Illustrates the Byzantine complexities of implementing policy by analyzing a merger affecting three British primary schools in a local government reorganization scheme. Summarizes the policy context, highlights effects of other policies, tabulates factors relating to other externally initiated policies, discusses implications, and suggests…

Trinity University education majors visited rural mountain schools in North Carolina, finding evidence that countered their stereotypes of the conditions of, family involvement in, and attitudes about education in rural communities. Ways to improve the educational environment through distance education and reduction of inequities were suggested.…