Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-02-27
country, and am not in favor of running risks
oy attempting ne W things"

| NO QUESTION AS To THE BEST PLAN.
| II think the memorial sent to Congress GOV.
| ers the whole ground" said Mr.. w m. ]. Rhees
! formerly a member OF the school board. 81
| stand by that memorial. There see ms to me
| to be no question as to which is the best plan
OF school government. For my part, would
the judges of the District court, and removing
the control of the schools as far as possible from
| the District Commissioners. All of the troubles
that occurred In the schools during my service
| on the board were caused by the interference
of the Commissioners. The plan the Commits
and extremely hazardous. It would amount
| simply to this-that the schools would be man.
| aged by a number of clerks and subordinates.
| Now there can be no question as to whether
| it IL better to have q board Of intelligent rep
! resentative citizens to manage the schools, or a
corps OF clerks and subordinate officials in the
| District Offices"
THINKS THE BOARD SHOULD BE INpEPEN-
| DENT.
| 1.-THE Commissioners have as much on hand
as they can do justice to now" said Mr.. George
l.. Sheriff. 81 think there should be board OF
| lie schools, and that this board should not be
| subject TO the Commissioners, but to Congress.
/ don't care how the members of the board are
dent of the Commissioners and responsible only
| to the citizens OF Washington. The board
should be composed of good, substantial, re-
sponsible citizens, business men, without any
cranky ones. AS a citizen, i am proud of the
public schools of the District, and believe the
them up to their present standard"
THINKS CONGRESS SHOULD APPOINT TRUSTEES.
Col. w. w. Dudley said: al think the public
| schools should be governed by a school board,
but that 1t should be larger than the present
board, and that the appointments should be
made by Congress- The Commissioners should
of course exercise a supervising power. 1 think
| our school system should conform as nearly as
| the larger cities. The board of trustees should
| be greater in number in the first place. Con-
gress should take the place of the legislature in
making the appointments, and the District
Commissioners Of the common council with a
supervising power
DOESN'T SEE HOW THE COMMISSIONERS CAN
DO 1T.
Mr.. Jno w. Corson said: "The schools must
be governed by somebody, and don't see how
the Commissioners, with their numerous and
varied duties can possibly give the time and
attention that the public schools demand.
Under the management of the past few years
the schools have been highly satisfactory. The
teachers were excellent, and the results of their
teaching were most gratifying. My children
half day regularly for the past year. to be sure,
but the trustees were not responsible for the
lack of room or teachers. Give us plenty of
room ana sufflcient number OF teachers, and
am sure the management of the schools by the
board OF trustees will prove satisfactory to the
majority OF the citizens
THINKS AN INTELLIGENT BOARD SHOULD
HAVE SOME POWER.
Mr.. III. ID. Cooke thought that an intelligent
body of men, Who were willing to give their at
tention and time to school matters should be
permitted to exercise some power and the
Commissioners should be very judiciOus in
their Interference with them, but that they the
Commissioners should retain the power of cor
rect1ng any abuses that should arise.
BELIEVES IN GENERALIZATION.
Mr.. Charles j. Bell said: &" am in favor of the
Commissioners governing the schools. agree
perfectly with a school trustee with whom
va al L ha ther hat ha Iof
the schools should be vested in the Commits
sionerS exclusively: in other words, that the
power should be concentrated.
THINKS THE TRUSTEES SHOULD HAVE FULL
POWER.
Mr.. Fl. A. Willard expressed the opinion that
the schools should be run by the school trustees
He always supposed they were invested with
full power. Ifthey are not they should be. If
the Commissioners are to run the schools they
had better become school trustees and give up
their positions as Commissioners.
IN FAVOR OF BOARDS.
Gen. Peter +. Bacon said: "Yes believe in
school board and in a fire board and a police
board for the management of those branches of
the public service, and think they are just as
necessary as they ever were. We see the want
OF board in the police department and fire
service. There should be boards clothed with
full powers to act when necessary.
BELIEVES IN THE OLD FASHIONED WAY
Mr.. n. d. Larner said that he favored the old
arrangement-a superintendent with a princi-
pal and three trustees in each division, each
district to be independent Of the other and all
under control OF the Commissioners. by1which
means there will be spirit OF emulation between
the districts. de was opposed to the placing OF
all power in a board OF trustees. The COM
misstoners should supervise expenditures here
as in all other departments of the government,
for as the schools are now governed they cost
more than those of Baltimore, which has
double our population.
FAvoRS AN INDEPENDENT BOARD
a
school board entirely Independent OF the Conn
missioners and in full control of the schools from
the bottom TO the top-in other words he was
in accord with the bill prepared by Dr. Rey-
burn and his associates.
BELIEVES IN AN INDEPENDENT BOARD
81 have taken but little interest in school
affairs and have not availed OF the public
schools for my children" said Mr. John A.
Baker, but am convinced that a law providing
Tor school board, which shall have exclusive
control OF the curriculum Of the schools the
appointment OF teachers and supervisors of the
schools, the selection of sites for school build
1ngs and preparation OF the plar under which
they should be constructed, IS what is needed
The matter of salaries OF teachers and other
employees should he ii xed all the disbursements
made and all purchases contracted by the
commissioners. am led to this conclusion by
seeing, but recently, men of high character and
OF exceptional capacity TO manage school affairs
forced 10 resign because of their independence.
and for this reason believe in an independent,
board
THINKS GOOD ADVISORY BOARD COULD BE
SECURED.
Mr.. Thos. ]. Fisher said that he was not ac-
quainted with the merits of the question be-
tween the Commissioners and the school board.
but he thought that on general PRINCIPLES the
Commissioners ought not to delegate their DOW
ers to any great extent He was of the opinion
that good men could be obtained, who would
De willing 10 act as advisers of the Commits
sioners In the management OF the public schools
ana that, In relation to educational methods,
their advice would prove of great assistance
and value.
SIDES WITH THE SCHOOL BOARD
Mr.. Henry ID. Barr said he was opposed to the
District Commissioners gathering unto them
selves all the powers of the school trustees
making that board simply advisory. He thought
all matters relating TO the management of The
schools should be attended to by the school
board, and he sided with them In the present
controversy. The Commissioners authority
school matters were concerned.
TAKING ENTIRELY TOO MUCH Upon rHrw
II have no hesitancy in saying that think
the Commissioners have taken too much upon
themselves in this matter" said Mr. Samuel
Lewis. "They want to take all the power they
can get 1t is not proper that they should take
all the powers away from the school, and exer.
else the functions OF this board themselves. The
citizens OF the District should have the manage
ment OF the schools through their representa-
lives, the trustees. Only one OF the Commits
sioners is citizen. Edmonds and Lydecker
have no claim to citizenship"