>> we have danny, this is a bummer: >> and henne henry makes an interesting point about homeschool, if you have a dial-up connection. what would you do if the only school in your town closed it's doors forever? that's the reality forever in

alaska, where schools are being forced to shut down. funding is restricted to smaller schools, and the state said it's too costally to keep them open. but it's not just for alaska. rural schools across the country face similar challenges. is this the end of rural education some and what happens to the communities left behind? joining us from rural alaska, ann taught at a school that closed in july, and darius is a parent and small business owner. they're both from teneky springs. they are able to join us because we use google plus and skype to reach out to people who wouldn't be able to join us in the show. we think it's worth the risk. and also, he's an alaskan and educator who is considered one of the leading voices on the shy. and on skype, hollowing out the middle.

the rural drain and america. ethan, why this law that closes schools? >> i think it's a response by the legislature and the government to deal with ever increasing costs in education in alaska. we had boarding schools up until the 1970s, in which the case went to the supreme court and it was decided that the state had the responsibility to educate every child in alaska, and so high schools popped up in all of our villages, and now the state has enabled it so that if the population drops under 10, your school goes into closure over a four-year period. and lessens the budget thing because oftentimes the money is spread out throughout the district. but i think it's a response to save money because the state is not increasing dollars for education, especially in alaska.

the costs keep rising consistently. our oil costs go up, and people need to put this all in perspective. they think we can go from one town to another and bus 50 minutes away. no, my community, i'm in average registerinanchorage. and the only way i can get there is to fly in an airplane, which costs me $1,008 round trip. >> it's tough, and there are a lot of issues that come into play here. and ethan just raised an interesting point. he was saying this is not like everyone where else, right? you can't just get bussed down the street in 20 minutes. give people the sense of what this number 10 means. because i think a lot of our viewers watching in the lower 48 are saying, are you kidding me? of course you close the school with just ten kids, but that's not that uncommon, is it? >> no, in fact, i was just

reading an article that stated in the last 15 years, 32 schools have closed down, and i can't give you the number, but there are many rural communities in alaska that have 10 to 15, and sometimes less than that students. >> you're right on the 32 schools, and that means 32 towns where people have nowhere to send their kids. there are 41 additional schools on the chopping block right now in alaska. ann, your school closed in july. do these kids in the small schools have a tendency to do more poorly on a test? is there evidence that they setting? >> we have a 100% graduation rate. and our students for many years are in the top 10% of the country, i believe. and they almost always pass the standardized tests, so our students are thriving in this situation. >>

the community is responding to this: >> and heidi is a teacher from alaska: a lot of people don't see the domino effect. the school closes, and lead us through what happens to the town when the school shuts down. >> when you're talking about school closures, you have to realize, the analogy that i have to make, when you're a doctor and you go to somebody on their deathbed for the first time and you say, what seems to be the problem?

and you're a little bit late in the game, right? so the death for a town is when you lose your school. because there's no real option then to entice people to live there. because you're not going to move to a place that doesn't have a school for your children. so really, in terms of towns that have lost their -- not just their institutional center, but their heart and soul, the school closure is the last nail in the coffin. so in terms of rural development, when we get to that point, you're really almost past the point of no return. so it's really important. >> let's get to that for a moment. the schools in alaska are very much like those in smaller communities in the lower 48. which means that they do much more in the community than just a place enter education. and talk about the wider impacts when they close. >> for us speaking

specifically, the school really is the center of the community in many ways. we have not only events around the school, and the students, which bring, in our case, the whole town will come see a student perform or the whole town will come to a child's birthday. so these are central events to the community. sometimes we have dancing contests, and open volleyball and basketball, this is our only gym facility. so it's a place for activities that strengthen our social bonds and our opportunities to be with one another, as well as support the citizens of our community. >> hey, ethan, when the schools close, is there a disproportional effect on the native communities in. >> when you look at rural alaska, it's predominantly native communities, but many are not.

and when your school closes, it's the heartbeat of your community, and it's where all of your social functions are held. and when that happens, it doesn't matter which culture you come from, it's a serious deterioration of the community. >> that's true, but where i was going with this, you think about the native communities in alaska, these are not folks who have been there for 10, 20 years, but you're asking folks to shut down their town that have been part of their culture and community. >> you're very right. and i'm a perfect example of that. my family's community is on an island, the oldest continuously inhabited community in all of north america. it's between 8 and 12,000 years old and now the school was shut down in 2009, and the community is shriveling up. the families are leaving because they need their kids in school,

and yes, it's the -- patrick is right. it's the death nell of the village. >> speaking of that, the communities make a parallel between school and urban: >> the geography plays a huge role. i spent three weeks up there with reporting and you have to understand the distance involved. >> and i think that people don't appreciate that. >> can i add to that distance issue? the community where i raised my children, in the allutian islands, the closest school is 100 miles away, but in order to

get there, you have to either charter a plane out of alaska, which costs between 5 and $6,000, or you hop on a plane and fly and hundred miles into anchorage and fly there, which costs $2,000. >> not a practical solution to commuting to school. coming up, the length that teachers and students try to go to to stay in the classroom. and how the state derailed their plans. >> an al jazeera america exclusive... former president jimmy carter reflects on the life and legacy of nelson mandela. >> that spirit of nelson mandela is embedded deeply in the heart and soul of the south africans... >> they worked side by side for

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i'm going to pay the last respect for my president. >> he was a global symbol of hope, courage and freedom. >> the world thanks you for sharing nelson mandela with us. >> today was declared a day of reflection and prayer. >> now al jazeera america commemorates nelson mandela from the people who knew him. >> i think all of those people who were inside that stadium were very lucky to be there. >> an emotional look at the life and legacy of nelson mandela. >> only on al jazeera america. >> al jazeera america is the only news channel that brings you live news at the top of every hour.

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>> welcome to the news hour. i'm darren jordan from al jazeera americnewsal jazeeraa and london. in south africa nelson mandela's body is headed to his home where he'll be buried on sunday. >> news from europe including uncertainty for germany and europe with