MACOMB, IL –The National Rural Education Association (NREA) recently launched the 2025 Why Rural Matters report, a project with a more than 20-year history of shaping the conversation about rural education. First conceptualized by the Rural Schools and Community Trust, the report has evolved into a vital resource for policymakers, educators, and communities.
Why Rural Matters 2025, the 11th in the series, is being released during a period of significant change across the nation and the world. Many of these shifts influence rural education in the United States. The 2025 report highlights key trends and conditions as a foundation for discussion and action on issues affecting nearly 10 million students across the U.S.
“Rural schools educate nearly one in five students in the United States,” said Jerry Johnson, EdD, researcher and co-author of Why Rural Matters 2025. “Our findings show both extraordinary strengths and persistent inequities that demand immediate policy attention.”
The report provides a state-by-state look at a range of factors that affect rural students’ education. Then, each state is assigned priority ranking reflecting their need for support, with #1 being the highest priority and #50 being the lowest.
While Illinois overall ranks #32 with “Significant” priority, the educational policy context is the most crucial in the nation, ranking #1. The “Educational Policy Context” gauge “reflects how federal and state policies are shaping educational opportunities in rural communities,” with #1 indicating the highest “importance for policymakers to address rural educational issues.”
The report justifies this ranking by highlighting how “rural Illinois teachers are paid, on average, $13,000 less than rural teachers in other states.” Additionally, “transportation expenditures are high relative to instructional spending,” and “state funding per local dollar is low.” Through these points, the Report paints a dark picture of the policy insufficiencies in Illinois to sustain rural education.
The Association of Illinois Rural and Small Schools considers this an existential crisis, and definitive proof of the deep inequities in our state policy apparatus toward small, rural, and economically disadvantaged districts. AIRSS has voiced these concerns across our four decades of advocacy. To now have these barriers identified and published nationally is a watershed moment that serves as a rallying-cry for action.
In addition, Illinois’ access to supports for well-being is also a major concern, ranking #26 overall with a “critical” rating. This second gauge measures “access to non-academic supports that contribute to students’ learning and overall development and well-being.” Together, these two gauges indicate that Illinois rural schools and rural students are critically undersupported in state policy.
AIRSS and our partners stand the best chance now of bringing resolution to these issues with the Rural Education Advisory Council. The findings in this newest report will add fuel to our existing efforts of building a stronger, more equitable education system for all Illinois public schools.
The 2025 Why Rural Matters Report was released at the 2025 National Forum to Advance Rural Education (NFARE), and the digital version is now available on NREA’s website. We encourage you to read the full report and review our state ranking to understand the whole picture of how Illinois fits into this national research.
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The National Rural Education Association (NREA) was originally founded as the Department of Rural Education in 1907. It is the oldest established national organization in the United States. Through the years, it has evolved as a strong and respected organization of rural school administrators, teachers, board members, regional service agency personnel, researchers, business and industry representatives, and others interested in maintaining the vitality of rural school systems across the country.