Optimal School Location in Rural Nevada. Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin, B-35, February 1975.

In order to investigate the interaction of cost, quality, and efficiency in the provision of educational services in rural Nevada, synthetic cost functions were developed using a linear programming transportation model to identify optimal school district organization. Optimal school district organization was defined for specific levels of educational quality (breadth of curriculum), student-teacher ratios, cost of transportation, and maximum bussing distances for students in the region. Alternative district organizations were considered by varying these parameters and observing sensitivity of optimal solutions. It was found that by increasing the student-teacher ratio from 20:1 to 30:1, operating costs would be reduced by 17% and that transportation costs would have to increase by over 200% before they became a critical factor in the definition of optimal district organization. Changing the assumed bussing mileage limits did have a significant effect on the location and size of schools in the region. Assuming that no student could be bussed more than 50 miles (one way) resulted in three schools in solution. Assuming a 75-100 mile limit resulted in only two schools in solution. The versatility of the linear programming transportation model was demonstrated in terms of its ability to provide cost comparisons for changes in program sizes, student-teacher ratios, permitted school locations patterns, bussing costs, and changes in permitted bussing distances by students. (Author/JC)