Carr and kefalass hollowing out the middlethe rural brain drain and what it means for america is a scientific yet heart felt look at the demise of small town rural america setting up in a renamed iowa town the authors ask why the best and the brightest often leave their heartland roots behind and then ask what can be done to reverse the trend. Hollowing out the middle is a book that explores the plight of the small towns in americas heartland written by patrick j carr and maria j kefalas hollowing out the middle discusses a phenomenon called rural brain drain where the achievers the best and brightest of a given class are groomed by their teachers to leave home never to return. Hollowing out the middle does an excellent job identifying tangible reasons for this phenomenon and how to address them in the start of the new millennium two sociologists the husband and wife team of patrick carr and maria kefalas moved to a rural iowa town to study the experiences of youth coming of age. In 2001 with funding from the macarthur foundation sociologists patrick j carr and maria j kefalas moved to iowa to understand the rural brain drain and the exodus of young people from americas countryside. Hollowing out the middle the rural brain drain and what it means for america request this author carr patrick j title hollowing out the middle the rural brain drain and what it means for america patrick j carr maria j kefalas format book published boston mass beacon press c2009