The San Francisco call., 1896-02-13
ARRAGNED JOE O'CONNOR
School Director Henderson's
Charges Against a
Principal.
HIS METHODS ARE QUESTIONED
The Reduction of Janitors' Salaries
Laid Over-Committee
Reports.

School Director Henderson exploded a
bombshell at the meeting of the Board OF
Education last evening when resolutions
were called for. He made strong charges
against one of the oldest principals in the
department and tried TO the best OF his
ability to have the matter considered with
out delay instead of having it sent to a
committee for investigation.
His charges were in printed form and
are as follows:
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL, Feb. IL. 1896.
To the Honorable Board of Education Of the City
| and County of San Francisco: l. H. C. Hender-
| son, School Director for the City and County
! of San Francisco do hereby charge Joseph
0'Connor, the principal teacher OF the Horace
| Mann Grammar School, with violation of the
| rules of the Board of Education and with un-
| professional conduct as O teacher in this de-
partment.
| First-I charge the said Joseph O'Connor
with violation of the following rule of the
Board of Education, to wit, rule No. 81, which
reads as follows:
.Sec. 81 All modes of punishment calcu-
/ lated 10 degrade pupil, and the use on the
| part of any teacher of diseourteous language
bidden."
| The said rule was violated and disobeyed by
| the said Joseph O'Connor on the 4th day of
| February, 1896, in the schoolyard of the Hor-
| ace Mann Grammar School under the follow
| ing circumstances
Certain of the pupils of said school were as
| sem bled for the purpose OF receiving instruc-
ton in physical culture from and under
charge of the special teacher employed for that
purpose.
| factory to the principal said, Joseph O'Cannor,
! who witnessed the same from g. school window,
| and in my hearing. although my presence in
the yard was unknown to him, he repioved
the pupils sharply, and IN the course OF his re-
| marks to them used the following language:
| You have no better sense than Digger In
dlanS. You are q disgrace to the parents that
| raised you." He then in boisterous and un-
| dignitied manner ordered the pupils to their
rooms in the following words, "Git yez to yer
rooms,'' and while they were proceeding to
obey his instructions he stopped them with
the word halt and then addressed to them
the following a6d For cents I'd
All of said language was discourteous in the
extreme, tending to degrade the pupils to
| whom it was addressed, and was of the charac-
ter prohibited by rule 81 of this board.
| Second-I further, upon information and be-
lief charge and allege that the said Joseph
| OConnor is habitually just and arbitrary
| in his methods OF discipline, coarse in his
| language and boisterous and undigniied in
| his demeanor to his pupils, as q result OF
| which he fails to secure their respect, and has
thereby rendered himself liza BILE to be dis
missed from the School Department for un-
| professional conduct
School Director for the City and County of
San Francisco.
A motion was made by Director Clinton
that the charges be referred to the Com
| mittee on Rules, Director Henderson OBJ
jecting strongly. He thought that the
charges should be considered at once.
Director Scott, who presided, ruled the
| immediate consideration of the charges
out of order and Director Olinron's mo-
tion prevailed, the committee being H.
structed to report at the next meeting.
The report of the Committee on Ciassifi-
cation recommending that Miss M. M.
Wood. probationary teacher, be elected
a regular teacher, was adopted.
The Committee on Rules recommended
that the following teachers be granted
leave of absence: Miss Harriet E. Worden,
from February IA, 1896, to March IA, 1896; !;
| Miss Emelia Calisher. from February II,
1896, to February II, 1898.
The Committee on Judiciary recon-
mended that the rent of the Post-street
school property, now occupied by Max
Pepper and ]. ]. Flynn, be continued at
$500 per month for the ensuing year.
The Committee on Classification re-
Miss M. A. Doughty, relieved by reason of
consolidation of classes, was assigned to a
vacant place in the Emerson Primary
School.
new receiving class was created in the
Columbia school, with Miss Agnes M.
Quinn as teacher.
Director Henderson presented reso-
luton that was adopted, instructing the
contractors who built the concrete retain
| ing bulkhead at the North Cosmopolitan
School TO rebuild the same and do the work
in manner satisfactory to the board. The
bulkhead was found after the late storm to
be giving way, and threatening to fall on
the pupils of the school.
The Committee on Rules recommended
that the resolution offered by Director
Murdoch at the last meeting be amended
as follows:
"Whenever it becomes necessary to tenn
| porarily retire teacher from any school
on account of consolidation of classes
the teacher to be retired shall be the one
of said school last elected into the depart
| ment."
The committee also recommended that
the number of substitutes carried on the
payroll at any one time be limited to
thirty. The report was adopted.
Miss Catherine f. Riordan was elected
principal of the new school at Sunnyside
at salary of 800 per month.
The sum Of $50 was appropriated to bring
the exhibit of school drawing now at the
Atlanta Exposition to this City.
A vote of thanks was rendered Professor
Thomas p. Baily Jr. of the State Univer-
sity for his kindness in lecturing to the pu-
pills and teachers of the public schools on
! recent occasion, and a like vote was
passed to the principal, teachers and pu-
pills OF the Mission Grammar Scnool for
the music furnished on that occasion.
The report OF the Committee on Salaries
reducing the pay of the janitors in the de-
partment was laid on the table.
w. w. Bausman was appointed School
Census Marshal for the ensuing year, his
election TO take effect on March 10 next,
when the work of taking the annual GEN.
sus begins.