School division consolidation is a topic which elicits strong emotional responses about which there is considerable opinion but limited research data. The purpose of this study was to furnish data which would offer answers to specific questions concerning the merger of two school divisions. The context of the study was the merger which formed the Alleghany Highlands Public Schools, a rural division in Southwest Virginia. The research questions include the following: Did education improve following the merger? Were costs reduced? What happened to students in the process? How did teachers respond? How did patrons and the community interact? The methodology applied in this study consisted of a variety of research techniques including archival materials, surveys, interviews about the merger--what led to it, how it was achieved, and whether it worked. The following key findings emerged: • students and teachers felt positive about the merger and their relation to it, • the community believed that the merger was a success, • the educational program was enhanced with the addition of numerous courses, the revitalization of standing courses, and the assignment of teachers to maximize the use of their expertise, and • the rate of increases in the expenditures of local dollars for education has probably been slower than it might have been for each governmental unit to support separate systems. The study confirmed the problems inherent in evaluating school division consolidation. It also verified that merger can respond to concerns about economy and efficiency and the use of scare resources which must be exercised as schools attempt to meet student needs in a rapidly changing society. preparation to meet society's needs. Many of the problems, promises, and conditions following school division consolidation were revealed in the summaries of the interviews with the key actors. / Ed. D.

This dissertation is on the history of the development of schooling in Alleghany County, and the cities of Clifton Forge and Covington, Virginia. Studying the past can provide a clearer perspective of the present and suggest courses for the future. Rather than focus on a topic as broad as education, this paper concentrates on the principal method used by government to educate its citizens; schools. In relating the events affecting school development in this area, actions by local, state, and federal governments, as well as the influences of individuals and events, are studied and discussed. The efforts of education associations, societies, and philanthropic institutions are included where they had a direct bearing on local educational policies and practices. Secondary sources provide most of the historical information about trends in education and schooling on a state and national level. Primary documents and sources provide the specifics relating to this locality. Reports of school commissioners and government officials and records of school boards provide much of the information as well as newspapers of the period. Personal letters and interviews also provide a perspective on the topic. The purpose of the dissertation is to document one aspect of local heritage, the development of schooling, and preserve various facts of history in a readable form. There is also a desire to focus attention on education and the local public schools in the hopes that both awareness and support will increase, thus leading to a system of schools that are not only adequate but exemplary in all respects. The contribution of this study to the field of education in general and school administration in particular is a more in-depth understanding of schools and their development. / Ed. D.