Missouri’s Rural Schools Can Benefit from Open Enrollment

Education | March 7, 2025

By Susan Pendergrass | Read Time 1 minute minutes

Many believe that rural districts and students can’t benefit from open enrollment, but the reality is quite the opposite. Rural students often have few school options, and open enrollment can provide them with greater access to educational opportunities—particularly as the four-day school week expands. In states with open enrollment, rural districts have gained students, with many seeing it as a way to sustain their budgets. In Missouri, over 80% of rural high schools are within a 20-mile drive of at least one other high school, making open enrollment a viable option for many families. Instead of focusing on preventing student loss, rural districts can use open enrollment to attract students and strengthen their schools.

Learn more about the need for Missouri to adopt strong open enrollment policies here.

About the Author

Susan Pendergrass

Before joining the Show-Me Institute, Susan Pendergrass was Vice President of Research and Evaluation for the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, where she oversaw data collection and analysis and carried out a rigorous research program. Susan earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business, with a concentration in Finance, at the University of Colorado in 1983. She earned her Masters in Business Administration at George Washington University, with a concentration in Finance (1992) and a doctorate in public policy from George Mason University, with a concentration in social policy (2002). Susan began researching charter schools with her dissertation on the competitive effects of Massachusetts charter schools. Since then, she has conducted numerous studies on the fiscal impact of school choice legislation. Susan has also taught quantitative methods courses at the Paul H. Nitze School for Advanced International Studies, at Johns Hopkins University, and at the School of Public Policy at George Mason University. Prior to coming to the National Alliance, Susan was a senior policy advisor at the U.S. Department of Education during the Bush administration and a senior research scientist at the National Center for Education Statistics during the Obama administration.

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