News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1890-12-18
The New School Law.
SUPERINTENDENT PALMER CALLS AT
TENTTON To SOME IMPORTANT
EEATI-RES

TENTION TO SOME IMPORTANT
FEATURES.
One change in the school law de-
mands the immediate attention of
the people in nearly all of the small
districts of the state. OF the 227O
districts, 1175 support schools of
only "A weeks in the year The sta
tisties do mot show the months in
which these schools are taught, but
in many towns they are in the spring
and fall. In fact some complaint
was made because the school houses
were not open in July. The law just
passed shortens the present school
year three months, and it ends the
last day of next March. But no
change has been made in the method
of dividing the public money, or in
the conditions ON which a district
can receive it. The only change in
this respect relates to the time when
the public money is to- be divided
and distributed by the selectmen.
BY section $50 of the act of 1888,
"nopublic money shall be distributed
to a school district unless such school
district has supported a school "a
weeks during the school year" That
is the law to-day. No attempt was
made to change or modify it, but, as
i have said, the school year under
the present law ends on the last dav
of March, instead of the last day of
June, as under the law of 1888. The
school year is not determined by the
calender, but is a creature of legisla-
-@ 81,
teen months. 1t is not quite clear
when the public money is to be di-
vided. By section 2 of the new law,
it would seem that it must be divided
''On the Friday next preceding the
last Tuesday of March" But by
section Is of the same law, the duties
OF the town and district school Off
GERS, having relation to the begin
ming and close of the school wear,
and the maintenance of schools and
the statistics thereof shall be per
formed three months earlier than
now required by law" BY section
233 of the act of 1888, the public
money was divided between the third
and sixth days of next April But
the result is, that no school district
will be entitled to any public money
next spring unless it has supported a
legal school for tWenty-f0urWeek be
fgeen the first day of last July and
the first day Ofnext ApIH.
Again, it is certain that no district
in town in which is a graded school
and there are 40 of thesis en-
titled to any part of the money de-
rived from the five per cent state
school tax, unless such district has
supported a school for "a weeks be-
tween the first of last July and the
first eft next April; because section 6
of the act imposing the state tax ex-
prsssly states that in towns having
3. a graded school district such funds
shall be divided as now provided by
law for the division of school
moneys" Again, it is extremely
doubtful whether any district in the
state will be entitled to any part of
the state-tax money unless it has
supported a school for a weeks dur
ing the same uime-between the first
of last July and the first of next
April Section 6 of the act provides
"The treasurer of the state shall an
nually on or before the 10th day of
July divide the money in the treasury
of the state received on such tax
among the towns, cities and unor-
ganized towns orgores in proportion
to the number of legal schools sus-
tanned the previous school year"
The term illegal school" means
schools of "a weeks, and, the term
the preceding school year" means
the time between the first of last July
and the first of next April. This tax
law as understand it, was drawn to
harmonic with the act of 1888, and
was introduced into the house sew
eral weeks before the present school