Deputy education secretary for rural outreach cites rural upbringing in Education Week interview

In October, amid criticism that the Department of Education was out of touch with rural schools, the department created a deputy secretary for rural outreach. Former department press secretary John White, right, was appointed to the position and recently was interviewed by Mary Schulken of Education Week for the Rural Education blog. White said his position was created to "ensure communication and coordination regarding the needs of rural schools across programs within the department and to engage in mutually beneficial external communications with rural states and schools." (Education Department photo)

Prior to joining the department, White was chief communications officer for Prince George's County Public Schools, which serves approximately 130,000 students in more than 200 schools in Maryland just outside of Washington. Thay may seem to be an odd stepping stone for a rural school position, but White said he brings a rural background to the table. "I grew up in Calvert County, Maryland, when the area had two high schools and many more farms and tobacco fields than schools," he told Schulken. "The experience of growing up in 'the country' was very different than my last job."

White said his top concerns for rural schools are "access and opportunity for students to pursue and create new careers in their communities" and "the expectations of adults for rural students, and the students' expectations for building a career where they grow up. In extremely poor rural places, I have visited elementary and middle school classrooms where children can name the college they want to attend and the career they want to pursue. In some of these same places, school leaders say expectations change in high school because of factors outside of school."

What has the administration done for rural schools since his appointment? "So far, the administration has included priority points for proposals that would address the needs of rural schools in competitive grants," he said. "Technical assistance and outreach are being provided, and we plan to make changes to the department's 21 Comprehensive Technical Assistance Centers to provide expertise and capacity building for states and school districts throughout the country." You can read the entire interview, in which White talks about complaints from rural districts, the Title 1 funding formula and the rural role in the "Blueprint for Reform" among other topics, here.