R-700 

September 3, 1947 

Hon. L. A. Woods 

State Superintendent of Public,Instruction 

Department of Education 

Austin, Texas 

Attn: Hon. T. M. Trlmble Opinion No. V-363 

First Assistant 

Re: Application of Sec. 2 

of Art. III, of 5. B. 

167, 49th Leg., as 

amended bg Acts 1947, 

Dear Sir: 

50th Leg., R.S., S. B. 

21, where teachers 

were willing to teach 

eight months but were 

allowed to teach but 

seven. 

We refer to your letter of recent date wherein 

you request to be advised conclernlng the proper application of th,e Equalization Law, Section 2, of Article III, 

S. B. 167, Acts 1945, 49th Legislature, as amended by Acts 

1947, 50th Legislature, R. S., 5. B. 21, to a'situation 

submitted in said letter, in substance, as follows: 

Eleven negro teachers in Falls County 

have qualified under the provisions of the 

Rural Aid OP Equalization Law, S. B. 167, 

49th Legislature, for salary aid for a period of eight months. The applications for 

State aid under this bill submitted by the 

school districts involved were approved by 

the Director of .Equalization and also by 

the Joint Legislative Accountant to cover 

a period of eight months. It has come to 

our attention that the teachers were allowed 

to teach only seven months; they would have 

taught the full eight months, if they bad 

been requested to do so. 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 2 b-363) 

By Acts 1947, 50th Legislature, R. S., 

S. B. 21, 'the salaries of teachers in State 

aid schools were raised $75.00 per month for 

the last four school months of the school 

year 1946-1947. The eleven negro teachers, 

teachers in unaccredited schools, received 

no part of the $300.00 additional salary 

allowance which was approved and granted 

them by this Department, and said money Is 

now on deposit in the county depository. 

Question: Are the eleven teachers 

entitled to any of the $300.00 additional 

salary which was granted for the last four 

months of the school term to teachers in 

Equalization Aid schools, or should the entire amount of $300.00 per teacher be refunded, along with the salaries for the 

eighth month which has been sent to the 

county? 

flee for 

of Falls 

1.8, 

In response to the written request of this ofadditional Information, the County Superintendent 

County wrote as follows: 

"In answer to your letter of August 

concerning the eleven negro teachers 

did not teach for months during 

school year of I submit the 

wno 

the 

following: Some of these teachers brought 

their term reports in at the end of the 

seventh month without asking anything about 

the length of term. I then checked the 

files left in this office by the preceding 

administration and found that of these 

eleven teachers, one had a contract for 

six months; four for seven months; three 

with no specified length of term on the 

contract; and for three, no contract for 

the year.l946-47 is on file. All the 

teachers who held an eight month contract 

taught the full length term. So far as I 

know, none of the above teachers.were dismissed from teaching the last month of the 

term; and as to an appeal from any possible 

dismissal that I know nothing about, there 

has been none made to this office. 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 3 (V-363) 

Section 2 of Article III, of S. B. 167, supra, 

as amended, in so far as the same is pertinent to the 

question submitted herein, provides: 

"The base pay for classroom teachers 

in unaccredited schools shall be One Hundred 

Thirty-five ($135) Dollars per month for 

eight (8) months. 

rt 

. . . 

I, 

. . . The annual salary of teachers in 

unaccredited schools shall be the monthly 

salary multiplied by eight (8). 

11 

. . . It is further provided as a temporary method to more adequately compensate 

teachers . . . in State aid schools for the 

school year 1946-47, that in addition to the 

base salary, increment, and allowances authorized in this Section, there shall be paid to 

teachers teaching in State aid schools, 

an amount'not'to exceed Seventy-five ($75) 

Dollars at the end of each of the last.four 

(4) school months of the school year 1946- 

i947:” 

Article 2900, V.C.S., 

lows : 

provides in part 

"All available public school funds of 

this State shall be appropriated in each 

county for the education alike of white and 

colored children, and impartial provisions 

shall be made for both races. . ." 

as folArticle 2906, V.C.S., provides in part: 

9, 

. . . A school month shall consist of 

not less than twenty school days Inclusive 

of holidays, and shall be taught for not less 

than seven hours each Gay, including intermissions and recesses. 

Article 2750, V.C.S., provides that school trustees of a district shall make contracts with teachers to 

teach the public schools of their district, but the cornpensatlon to a teacher, under a written contract so made, 

shall be approved by the county superintendent before the 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 4 (V-363) 

school Is taught, stating that the teacher will teach 

such school for the time and money specified in the 

contract. See also Articles 2693, 2781, V.C.S. Said 

school trustees, under Article 2749, have the power to 

employ and dismiss teachers, but in case of dismissal, 

teachers shall have the right of appeal to the county 

and state superintendent. Moore C.S.D. No. 2 v. Frio 

County Board, 90 S.W. (2d) 288. 

The facts submitted advise that the eleven 

teachers in question were employed by the proper school 

authorities, that they did teach for a period of seven 

school months in the school year 1946-1947, and that 

they would have taught the eighth or last school month 

in the school tear if they had been requested to do so. 

None of the said teachers employed were under a written 

contract for a period of eight months. The facts submitted further show that one teacher had a contract for 

six months, four for seven months, three had a contract 

providing no specific length of term, and as to the remaining three teachers no contract for the school year 

1946-1947 can be found. We are informed also that the 

schools taught by these teachers are unaccredited schools 

and that the school districts involved made application 

and qualified for State salary aid under S. B. 167 for a 

period of eight months in the school year 1946-1947. 

It is clear that the unaccredited school dlstricts in question have made application and received 

State aid under the provisions of S. B. 167 as amended 

for a period of eight school months, and that the schools 

in question were operated only for a period of seven 

months. It Is clear also from the facts that the school 

districts Involved have not conformed to the statutes above quoted governing teacher contracts and the employment of teachers by school districts. 

Section 2 of Article III, 5. B. 167, as amended, 

fixes the length of term during which an unaccredited 

school qualifying for State aid shall operate its schools 

at eight months, provides that the base pay for teachers 

in unaccredited schools shall be $135.00 per month for 

eight months, and provides further that the annual salary 

of teachers in unaccredited schools shall be the monthly 

salary multiplied by eight. 

Article VII of 9. B. 167 provides in part: 

"Each Deputy State Superintendent shall 

advise with school officials concerning proper 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 5 (v-363) 

budgeting of their school fund and assist the 

district in making their application for aid, 

and each Deputy State Su erintendent shall 

spend not less than two P 2) days in the County 

Superintendent’s office of each county of his 

supervisory districts. During the second semester of the year the Deputy State Superintendent shall check to ascertain whether the 

standards are being maintained and th 

used as approve&. . .I’ (Elnphasis our:) 

funds 

Article VI of S. B. 167 provides:’ 

It shall be the duty of the State 

Super&&dent of Public Instruction to appoint 

the number of Deputy State Superintendents hereinafter authorized to make a thorough investigation, in person, of the teaching staff and 

financial condition of each school applying for 

aid through the Superintendent’s office and the 

depository bank; and no aid shall be given unless It can be shown that all provisions of this 

Act have been complied with, and that such amounts of aid actually needed as shown by the 

approved budget and actual expenditures, and 

that the funds are being used as approved: .” 

(Emphasis ours.) 

Article XIV of S. B. 167 provides further: 

‘Any district violating any of the provlsions of this Act shall forfeit all rights to 

such al& and shall be disqualified to receive 

any aid of any nature under any Article of this 

Act for the current year. Should any school 

district which would otherwise be eligible tb 

receive aid fall to use the funds for the exact 

purpose for which they were allocated in the 

approved budget such school district becomes 

Ineligible for further aid until such offense 

is corrected. The amount of money granted for 

each type of aid except tuition shall be set up 

as a separate account and shall be made only 

for the specified purposes for which such money 

was granted. . . ” 

Thus, under Artlclgs VI, VII, and XIV of the State 

Aid Law, it is the duty of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction acting through his Deputy State Superlntendents to see that all provisions of the Act were being com- 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 6 (V-363) 

plied with, to ascertain that the districts In question 

which qualified for State salary aid were maintaining 

the standards, salary and term schedule set out in the 

Act, and to determine whether the State aid funds were 

being used as approved by the Department of Education 

and the Legislative Accountant. Any districts which 

may have been reported as violating the provisions of 

the Act would have become subject to the penalties set 

out in Artiole XIV unless and until it had corrected 

its offense. 

By virtue of the provisions of S. B. 167 above 

quoted, we are of the opinion that the unaccredited 

schools in question, not having been continue& or operated during the last or eighth school month of the school 

year 1946-1947, were~ entitled to no State salary aid for 

the last school month of the said school year. Further, 

that the State aid funds approved and forwarded by the 

Department of Education to the proper school authorities 

in Falls Count to cover the eighth school month of the 

school year 19 1 6-1947 in the unaccredited schools in 

question, and to cover the additional salaries authorized said eleven teachers under S. B. 21 for the last or 

eighth school month of said school year should be refunded. Further, that the eleven teachers in question 

having served during three of the last school months 

when the school districts were entitled to the additlonal State salary aid authorized, are each entitled to a 

payment of $225.00 out of State aid funds forwarded to 

the county in accordance with the provisions of S. B. 21, 

50th Legislature. 

SUMMARY 

Where certain school districts in Falls 

Count 

167, t 

qualified for schoolaid under S. B. 

9th Leg., and S. B. 21, 50th Leg., for 

a period of eight school months In the school 

year 1946-1947, and operated only seven school 

months of said year, the eleven school teachers in question not having contracts for an 

eighth month term are entitled to State aid 

salary payments authorized and approved under 

5. B. 21 for three of the last four school 

months of the said school year, but State aid 
Hon. L. A. Woods - Page 7 (W-363) 

funds for the last or eighth school month 

of said school year should be refunded. 

Very truly yours 

ATTORNEYGENERAL OF TEXAS 

CEO:djm 

Chester E. Ollison 

Assistant 

APPROVED: 

ATTORNEY GEl'iERAL