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National Trust for Historic Freservation: Protecting Neighborhood Schools <br />http://www.nationaltrust.org/main/abauttrust/schoolshon <br />~~~~~~~ ~'^~ C <br />More on <br />Neighborhood <br />Schools: <br />'T'heir listing in The <br />11 Most En.dan.gered <br />Historic Places 2000 <br />Enter the <br />Preservation Week <br />2001 Poster Contest <br />about schools <br />Law anal Public <br />Policy Home Page <br />Contact the Public <br />Policy Department: <br />pol.icy~n~,nthQorg <br />Why Johnny Can't Walk to School <br />An important part ofAmerica--the <br />small school you could walk to in a <br />neighborhood where you knew your <br />neighbors--is disappearing. It's being <br />replaced bymega-school <br />sprawl--giant education facilities in <br />remote locations that no child can <br />walk to. <br />Across the country, parents and <br />teachers aze clamoring for smaller, <br />community-centered schools on the <br />basis that they are better for kids and <br />better for learning. Many historic <br />neighborhood schools fit precisely that description and could be <br />renovated to meet state-of--the-art tec}inology, code, and education <br />programs if given the chance. <br />Instead, handsome buildings that once inspired civic pride are being <br />discarded for nondescript, "big box" schools. Acres of asphalt are <br />replacing close-knit, walkable neighborhoods as the typical school <br />setting. Increasingly, a stressful drive through traffic separates <br />parents and children from even more distant schools. Sprawl has <br />made our environment so inhospitable to pedestrians that only one in <br />eight children walks or bikes to school today. <br />This report looks at haw public policies are contributing to these <br />problems and at what citizens and public officials are doing to <br />change them. It ends with an Agenda for Change--recommendations <br />for policy reforms. <br />Download the Executive Surnmary or the Full Report. <br />This report was authored by Constance E. Beaumont with Elizabeth G. Pianca of <br />the National Trust for Historic Preservation's State and Local Policy Program. <br />The National Trust gratefully acknowledges support provided by the National <br />Center for Preservation Technology and Training for this project. <br />