Four out of ten public schools in Kansas are located in rural areas, and they serve more than one-third of all students in the state--with 64% of those students in school districts that are smaller than the national median. The state’s rural schools face relatively low levels of socioeconomic challenges, with high adult employment and educational attainment, as well as average poverty levels. The state has near average rural student diversity, but it is a student population that is changing rapidly. Rural instructional salaries are the 13th lowest in the nation. Schools and districts are small, and graduation rates are high. Kansas ranks 29th in the nation in need of rural education attention and improvement.