Rural school communities are raising our voices about the urgent need for funding reform.
Thank you for your help with the Rural Schools Storyboard Project!
We are glad you are here. Sharing your story makes you a champion for our kids and those who support them in their learning.
If you are reading this you are a part of a Massachusetts Rural School community that has been impacted by chronic underfunding. Maybe it’s hit staffing, school transportation, enrichment programs, resources - or maybe it’s just continually on your radar because of the yearly town appeal for overrides to keep your school and other town resources going.. However you have been impacted- we want to hear your story!
Your story is an important and valued contribution in our mission to secure equitable funding for not only YOUR school district but all 71 Rural Aid school districts throughout the Commonwealth.
Over the next two months our volunteer organizing team will be working to put together an inclusive whole picture view of WHY equitable funding for Rural Schools is SO important and the impact underfunding has on our individual rural communities and kids. These stories will become shareable media including a printed book to be given to legislators and Commission members as they prepare for public hearings. Some stories may be published on our website, and others used in appeals leading into the Foundation Budget Review Commission hearings in 2027, all will create impact.
Our goal is to have as many unique viewpoints as we can from all 71 Rural Aid Districts by December 18, 2026. Please pass this message along to those who can help!
Sharing your experience will make a difference and will be a part of what helps shape the future funding of our schools, and how the state allocates funding to the rural school communities of Massachusetts.
We appreciate your time in sharing your story with us, and value your help! Please feel free to reach out to us if we can help as you consider how to best share your stories of impact with us!
All the best,
the Rural Schools Storyboard Project organizing team: Martha Thurber, Jessica Corwin, Kevin Fish, Amanda Wygant, Ashley Sparks & Stephanie Costigan
A few tips on how your story can have the most impact:
Local and personal stories are best!
Tell us how funding cuts have directly impacted you, your school, your community. Specific examples and unique individual experiences to your town or region is of greatest help. Please keep each submission to one or two topics and please avoid broad appeals.
Thought starters:
How has chronic underfunding affected you or your kids? Have programs been cut?
What challenges or losses, negative impacts or lacking resources have been the result of lack of funding?
What impact has this had on your school/you individually/your child?
Has something at school changed because there just aren't funds to support it? How has this change impacted you? How does it impact your student(s)?
Unique rural stories about public education past and present are welcome.
Some topics are helpful to focus on (please feel free to include others too!):
Program cuts ▪ Staffing issues & gaps ▪ Transportation ▪ Special Education resource challenges ▪ Contrasts between districts ▪ Relationships within the district being impacted ▪ Enrichment program changes/losses ▪ Town related budgetary issues ▪ Unique-to-your-area issues ▪ Tough choices in improvements impacting learning
Need help getting started or sharing your story? Our team can help with setting up a live conversation, help write your story or experience or help with editing. Writing quality is not graded in this assignment; rural town unique experiences and real life examples of impact is our goal.
How to submit your story and any media:
Email your story to Jessica Corwin at Jessica.corwin@frsu38.org by December 18, 2026. Photos and videos are welcomed. Please ensure everyone who is included in photos or videos has given permission to have their image used.
Alternately, use our online submission form.
Rural Storyboard Project FAQ’s
Q: What is the Rural Storyboard Project?
The Rural Storyboard Project is a collective effort by volunteers representing some of the 71 Rural Aid school districts in the Commonwealth. This project is designed to share YOUR stories about how chronic underfunding has impacted our rural schools with The Massachusetts Foundation Budget Review Commission, which will begin work in early 2027 to review the state’s K-12 school funding formulas and make recommendations for future improvements. Our goal is to ensure Rural Schools are adequately represented in future formula adjustments and provide REAL LIFE examples of WHY this funding is so important for our schools.
Q: Who is submitting stories in the Rural Schools Storyboard Project?
We are thankful to have a long list of supporters in our effort, including: Superintendents, School Committee members, Selectboard members, Finance Committee members, Town Administrators, teachers, staff, parents, union leaders, students, alumni, community members, taxpayers, and more.
Q: What do you mean by telling a story and what kind of story do you want to know about?
Local and personal stories are best! We want to know how chronic underfunding has impacted you, your staff, your community and your kids. Specific examples hold more impact than broad appeals.
No need to sugar coat it - this is your opportunity to highlight challenges and loss as a result of chronic underfunding; all uniquely rural stories about public education past and present have a place on the storyboard.
Q: What are some examples of topics to cover?
Staffing changes/issues, cuts in programs, enrichments, transportation, Special Education, contrasts between districts, relationships within the district being impacted by funding shortages, anything meaningful that was cut (especially under local protest), continued strain on community due to town overrides, and any other individual experience challenges that underfunding has caused for you.
Q: I don’t know how to start, or I need help sharing or writing my story:
Our team is happy to help! You can set up a time to have a live conversation with a member of our team who will help transcribe your story into an impactful statement. Email Jessica.corwin@frsu38.org for assistance.
Q: Can I submit pictures or media with my story?
Yes! We gladly will include any pictures as long as you have received permission to use images from everyone identifiable in the picture or video.
Q: What will happen with my story once I submit it?
Our team will work with you to help edit the story if needed, and include it with many others in a public website and a printed book for members of the Foundation Budget Review Commission, plus other key policymakers. We may also encourage and support you to adapt your stories into written or live testimony for the Foundation Budget Review Commission should we deem it of benefit (you will of course be asked for permission first).
Q: Do I have to include my full name and information?
No - If you would prefer to redact your name for privacy we are happy to accommodate.
Q: How many stories are you looking for from each area?
We are looking for as many as possible. Our goal is to compile multiple stories from each of the 71 school districts that received Rural Aid in the last three years in order to paint a full picture of the unique challenges rural schools face.
Q: I am happy to help! How do I submit my story and when do you need it by?
Please send in your story by December 18, 2026 (the earlier the better!). Stories can be submitted via a shared Google Doc, submitted through our fillable form, or emailed to Jessica Corwin at jessica.corwin@frsu38.org
Is there a way I can stay up to date with this project?
Yes! Sign up at the bottom of the page for our newsletter with updates on progress and upcoming hearings!