Because of the rural nature of the five northwest states, rural education was established as an NWREL priority area in 1965. Two-thirds (64%) of the school districts in the region are rural (serving unincorporated areas and towns of less than 2, 500) and three-fourths of them are small (enrolling less than 2, 500 students). Nearly two in five (38%) of the 4, 544 school buildings in the region serve ...