The St. Cloud journal. [volume] (St. Cloud, Minn.) 1866-1876, 1869-01-28
REPORT OF THE sUPERINTENDENr
OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.

Duune11, covering almoSt Two hum
dred pages, is quite interesting, showing
in full the present condition of our
school system, including besides the
common schools, the State University
and the Normal Schools. We can but
refer to such matters as are specially
interesting to our own locality.
Concerning the Normal School the
Superintendent says: r..
The city Of St. Cloud has complied
with the conditions precedent to the
opening of the Third School at that
place. A site for the school will be Sc
lected within tho coming month.
The report Of Hon. N. +. Barnes,
Superintendent Of stearns County, is as
follows: 49,, ......
Herewith please receive an abstract
Of the reports of the school district
clerks in this county. There are sixty
nine districts, sixty-three Of which
made their annual report to the county
auditor. These reports are very defcc-
tive, and exhibit but little: if any i'm
provement upon last year. Five Of the
districts failing to report, were created
last June, and have not yet gone into
successful operation.
Nine new school.houses have been
erected during the year, and appropria-
tons made for others. Districts /, 2,
and A, have been merged in the "St.
Cloud School District" and the citi-
zens Of that place, at a meeting called
for the purpose, voted the sum of thir-
teen thousand dollars, wherewith to
purchase site and erect a suitable
school building thereon and the pros
poets now are, that St. Cloud will soon
be alongside Of her sister cities, in ed.
ucational progress and improvement.
l have examined and licensed, since
my last report, forty-nine teachers, six
of the first grade, eight Of the second,
aud thirty five Of the third. "
I am grati6ed in being able to report
= very marked improvement in most
Of the schools in the county, during the
past year. The people are evidently
awakening to the necessity and lmpor-
lance of having good schools: aud are
not inclined to. much longer tolerate
Indifferent ones. -: -: .
Ieonsider it highly important that
the duties Of county superintehdents Of
schools be enlarged :; and I trust your
recommendation of last year, giving
them authority to create, alter, sor dis:
continue school districts, as in: their
judgment should ssem proper, will be
made law by the incoming Legislature.
As it now stands, Il at discretion is left
exclusively with the board. Of county
commissioners, and their action, in most
cases, is BASED wholly upon the petition
that may BE- presented to them, and the
result is, continual changes without
any corresponding benefits. x:...-
I would further recommend that
the term for which county superintead-
euts are appointed, BE- heightened.
One year is entirely too short q period
for their services to be effective. It the
duties e. that Office are to be performed
as they should be, you must place the
incumbent in a position where he
will be more independent than he is
under tho present law. He must not
be annually subject to the whims, ca
prices and changes Of the appointing
board as. now constituted. He should
be in position to inauguratc reforms,
and have time to demonstrate their
utility, before he is liable to be removed
by beard: Of county commissioner,
who are entirely ignorant Of .he, duties
office. - - 4 = ''' ''- !:
:; T.: Il ..!f:::: j. l.*45
i" the following II table the first 8! sol:
umn shows the number Of scholars in
the different Counties, the second