The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1901-02-28
BETTER COUNTRY SCHOOLS!
How This Desired Result May be
Easily Obtained by
Consolidation.
Consolidate the Numerous Sub
Districts Into One Township
District for School Purposes.

Consolidate the Numerous Sub
Districts Into One Township
District for School Purposes.
Such Act Will Simplify Matters.
Make Less Officers and Better
Officers and Teachers Pos
sible.
Richard G. Barrett, superintendent Of
public instruction, and the advisory
board, consisting of l.. G. Lille. county
superintendent of Buchannan county;
II. Neneman, county superintendent OF
Boone county; q. J. McManus, county
Superintendent of Pottawattamie county
have assailed the present plan of country
schools. A pamphlet signed by these
gentlemen has just been issued, which
contains the following:
Permit us to call your attention at
this time to the need of having some de.
sirable changes in our plan of school or.
g%aniAation.
We recognize that better conditions
may be produced by such agencies AS IT,
braries, better teachers, free books,
courses of study, ETC., but wi would call
your special notice to the Importance Of
consolidating weak districts by making
the township the unit organization.
Under this plan, the entire township
is regarded ms a single district with three
or five directors chosen from the town
ship. at large by the electors on the sec
ond Monday in March, one secretary
and one treasurer. The arbitrary lines
which now divide communities into sub
! districts and rural independent districts
are abolished and the power to establish
schools, employ teachers, adopt text
books, prescribe courses OF study, and
determine where children snail attend
school is vested in a single board charged
with the supervision of all schools and
property belonging to the corporation.
Instead of nine different sets of officers
each composed of three directors, a sec
rotary and a treasurer, as is now the
case in congressional townships divided
in rural independent districts, there
would be but one. The simplicity of an
organization of this kind is apparent.
There are in the state 1852 independ-
ent and ralindependent districts, and
l,l75 school townships, or more than
forty nine districts to each county.
Thus, on the average, the county super
intendents must annually obtain reports
from nearly 100 school officers before
they can submit their reports to the SUI
perintendent of public instruction, while
in some counties as high as 225 are re-
Quired. The county treasurer and the
county auditor are also each required to
keep a separate account with each dis
trict, thus materially increasing the
work and the EXPENSE of their respect
i've Offices.
The multiplicity of school officers
makes possible many mistakes. Almost
an innumerable number of these officers
make no pretense o fhaving a knowledge
of book keeping, and often their reports
are lacking in important parts, or fail to
balance. Not infreauently districts
have lost public funds owing to the lack
of competency of those charged with
their safe keeping.
Some years ago the superintendent of
public instruction stated in his biennial
report that the records of the treasurer
of school districts showed a deficit OF
more than $26, 600. .'HoM much of this
deficit is caused by bad mistakes in tran
scribing and how much by actual defal.
cation,' he said, sit is impossible to de.
termine. since we have no means to in
vestigate."
To reduce the number Of school officers
means to correspondingly increase the
chances Of securing more competent per.
sons and diminish the chances Of loss OF
funds through errors.
In every system of public schools two
leading purposes should be to provide
equal school privileges for all children,
and to distribute justly and equitably
the burdens of taxation. That the pres.
ent system does not do this is our belief
Often, under present conditions, the
railroad tax in a township is distributed
for the benefit of one or two rural indie
pendent districts and to the detriment
of taxpayers and children in other part!
of the same township.
The plan of having the township the
unit does away with n man power nov
exercised to some extent by the directo
Of the sub.district, and places all schoo
districts under the supervision and con
troll Of a board chosen from among thu
very best citizens of the entire township
Under this system teachers properl,
certified would file their applications TO
positions with the secretary, and, j
elected, would be assigned by the boart
to a position for which they seem to b
fitted. AS a consequence there woul,
be fewer mistits, better teaching, increas
ed attendance, and better returns fo
the money expended. The plan no,
too often followed insome townships q
electing to Office men who are pledge
to favor as teachers one neighbor'
daughterfor the spring. another for fal
and still another for winter, cannot h
too severely criticised.
The township high school is CROWN
in public favor, but its establishment
not possible unless the township b.
n comes the unit. Thirteen of thes
schools are now in existence, and othel
q must be provided if we are to lift tt
rural school to the place now demande
by the progressive citizens %throughor
. the state. In all cases township hig
schools are managed by the same boar
that is charged with the care of 9TH
public schools of the corporation. I
put them under a separate board woul
be as unreasonable as it is to have fro
two to nine boards managing the schoo
of a township divided into rural ind
a pendent districts.
III The establishment Of township his
y! schools is for advanced pupils only al
k{not intended tt interfere with rur
= schools now provided, but to Incl
: pupils in them to remain longer tn
S they may complete a prescribed cour
of study. These schools will serve
high purpose connecting the countl
cnbool wit !, tho bi,rkor nStif,fiopp