Education in the Great Depression

With all the recent talks about another great depression in the US, I was curious as to what education organizations did to survive the 1930's? They did exactly what I thought they would by cutting services and salaries as was noted by the following author:

The 1930's were a perilous time for public education. With cash money in short supply parents were unable to provide their children with the necessary clothes, supplies, and textbooks (which were not furnished in some states) to attend school. Taxes, especially in rural areas, went unpaid. With the loss of revenue, school boards were forced to try numerous strategies to keep their districts operating. School terms were shortened. Teachers' salaries were cut. One new teacher was paid $40 a month for a five month school year - and was very glad for the job! When a rural county in Arkansas was forced to charge tuition one year in order to keep the schools open, some children were forced to drop out for that year. One farmer was able to barter wood to fuel the classrooms' potbellied stoves for his four children's tuition, thus enabling them to continue their education. The famous Dick and Jane books that taught millions of children to read were first published in 1931. These primers introduced the students to reading with only one new word per page and a limited vocabulary per book. All who learned to read with these books still recall the "Look. See Dick. See Dick run."

There is already some areas that have cut services because of costs without a recession or depression. For example, in Stafford County Public Schools, summer school has been reduced to less than 15 days from 30 days from about 5 years ago. Some districts are experimenting with this 4 day option as a regular week of school from the traditional 5 day while others are experimenting running schools without administrators.

ARe schools ready for a huge economic change if such an event were to happen? My guess is yes; however, the communities that have depended on schools for watching and caring for their children are not prepared which makes me worried.