Okay, here's a pop quiz.
How many rural schools
in Wisconsin do you think have
closed over the last 20 years?
Is it 30?
Is it more than that?
Do you think 60 rural schools
have closed forever?
Is it 100?
Nope.
It's a lot more than that.
Over the last two decades
more than 250 schools
in small and rural counties
across Wisconsin have
closed their doors permanently.
I'm Steven Potter, a reporter
with PBS Wisconsin News.
So why are these
rural schools closing?
Well, school boards and school
district administrators say
they have no choice
and that it's
purely for budgetary reasons
and that is
something that's going on
all over the state.
But when it does happen
when a school in a rural part
of the state does have
to shut down
it hurts nearly everyone
in the community.
A rural school is the heart
and soul and the identity
of a community.
Experts say that declining
enrollment leads to a
decrease in state funding
and that's what leads to
these schools closing.
On the political side of this
state lawmakers say
they're willing to look at the
school funding formula
to find a fix.
But given that compromise
isn't easy to
come by in the capitol
we may just see more
and more schools in small and
rural counties around the state
closing in years to come.
For more on this
and to see my story about it
make your way to
pbswisconsin.org
and click on the news tab.