Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Many school districts across the country face declining enrollment, teacher shortages and funding uncertainties. For small island communities off the coast of Maine, these challenges can be even more daunting.
On an island with fewer than 100 year-round residents, declining enrollment can close a school down and force families to relocate.
Residents of Great Cranberry Island know this all too well because their school was closed for more than 15 years. When it reopened a decade ago, students from both Great Cranberry and Islesford began attending each other's school for two years at a time, connected by the island ferry.
Read the full story at mainepublic.org.
✍️: Madi Smith
📸: Tulley Hescock
Many school districts across the country face declining enrollment, teacher shortages and funding uncertainties. For small island communities off the coast of Maine, these challenges can be even more daunting.
On an island with fewer than 100 year-round residents, declining enrollment can close a school down and force families to relocate.
Residents of Great Cranberry Island know this all too well because their school was closed for more than 15 years. When it reopened a decade ago, students from both Great Cranberry and Islesford began attending each other's school for two years at a time, connected by the island ferry.
Read the full story at mainepublic.org.
✍️: Madi Smith
📸: Tulley Hescock
