Where school choice isn't an option, rural public schools worry they'll be left behind

“If you shut down schools, you destroy a town.” Washington has long designed education policy to deal with urban and suburban challenges, often overlooking the unique problems that face rural schools.. With a new administration that prefers “school-choice” approaches — favoring charter schools and private-school vouchers so parents can opt out of public schools and bring taxpayer dollars with them — the nation’s rural schools are left to wonder about their fate. Education Sec'y  ­DeVos’s emphasis on school choice means very little out here in the wilds of Maine, where the closest “good” schools are all impossibly far away.. Some rural communities do have a private school, but they are often deeply religious, & online learning sn’t always an option as rural areas often struggle with poor access to the Internet, making online learning difficult.' School Choice, Betsy, is NO choice.'