A just-introduced bipartisan Senate bill would create a $60 million pilot program to help rural students attain their higher education goals and connect with local job opportunities.
The Success for Rural Students and Communities Act, introduced January 8 by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Maggie Hassan (D-New Hampshire), would encourage rural schools — including community colleges — businesses and other stakeholders to partner and develop new strategies to guide more students into postsecondary education and to prepare them for available jobs.
“Far too many young people in rural communities struggle to find higher education opportunities that align with the needs of businesses in their local communities,” Hassan said in a statement.
Rural students typically graduate from high school at higher rates than urban students, and at about the same rate as students in suburbs, according to the lawmakers. However, only 59 percent of rural graduates go directly to college, compared to 62 percent of urban graduates and 67 percent of suburban graduates.