Accessing resources. Many groups worry that, without grants or other kinds of outside funding, they will be unable to accomplish anything of significance. In fact, most guides to collaborative work urge groups to function as much as possible with existing resources; some even note that "too much" as well as "too little" funding can be a deterrent to effectiveness (Wolff, 1995, p. 4-46). Grant requirements can diffuse the group’s purposes and activities, and lead to turf issues or inequalities in the power and authority of group members. Grant-funded projects, which generally have very tight timelines, also may have to develop more quickly and on a larger scale than the community is prepared for. And when the funds dry up, so does the program.

SEDL staff, as well as others, recommend that groups begin with modest goals and plans. If you’re interested in establishing a school-based parent center, for example, it’s not necessary to start with a building filled with staff and equipment. Instead, arrange to use a classroom or the teachers’ lounge after school, and staff the center with a combination of student and community volunteers. As SEDL’s Cathy Jordan observes, "the first step can be as small as plugging in the coffee pot."

Particularly with entrepreneurial projects, which may require the purchase of raw materials or equipment with which to operate a business enterprise, groups may need to generate some start-up funds. Again, however, it helps to start small, and to be creative. Many entrepreneurial projects raise money by selling "stock" in the business, with provisions for "investors" to recoup their funds if and when the enterprise begins turning a profit. Several SEDL-sponsored collaborative sites have generated funds by designing and selling t-shirts, holding raffles, or using other traditional community fundraising strategies.

Collaborative school-community projects require effort, patience, and, above all, new perspectives about what’s important in teaching and learning. But rural schools and their home towns cannot afford to continue with business as usual. To survive – and more, to thrive, for mere subsistence is an inadequate goal – it is necessary to draw on the creativity and resourcefulness that helped to create these communities in the first place. The challenge before you may be great, but there are resources to help, in your own back yard and within the greater educational community. So take the first step; plug in that coffee pot, and let’s get going!