Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1902-05-15
STATE SUPT. HARVEY
FOrcibly Tells of the Need of a
New School Building for
Mineral Point.
RERORT OF THE INSPECTOR
Conditions Which Should BE Rem.
cdicd Without Delay.
MADISON. MaY lO- ION.

MADISON, May 10, 1902
TO Mr.. j. w. Hutchicon, President of
School Board, Mineral Point, Wis.
DEAR SIR have just received a
letter from State School Inspector f.
NJ. Jack, and herewith his report up
on the condition observed while in
spccting your high school last Tues
day: and ! desire at this time to cX-
press to your board my opinion rela-
tive to some of the facts contained in
this report.
Your high school building is abso-
lutely unfit for school purposes note
the following:
la) Inadequate provision for the
ventilation Of the several rooms.
lb) The heating plant two furnac-
cs is insufficient to properly heat the
building, and the conditions in the
furnace rooms and about the furnaces
make it very dangerous. Fire might
very easily originate there,
lc) The sagging, from six to eight
inches, Of several square yards of the
ceiling pIastcring in the assembly
hall, ten or twelve feet above the
heads Of many pupils, PROFESSIONALLY
renders it dangerous to occupy that
Jiib VI bllt lNlVIl' Guy NIOItIlU ldIE-
ing Of the building may result in the
falling Of many pounds Of plastering,
and the serious, if not fatal, injury of
a great many students.
(d) The rooms in the basement arc
damp, cold, poorly lighted and unin-
wiling. They should be used as
STORE ROOMS only.
(c) The walls in many parts of the
building are cracked, stained, spotted
and very distasteful in appearance.
~ The building is too small and
not properly arranged for high school
work.
lg) There are no rooms for expert
mental and demonstration work in the
sciences, physics and botany; and
your equipment therefore along these
lines is incomplete and unsatisfac-
tory.
lhD The laboratory facilities, not
only in the high school department,
but in the grades, are wholly made
quatc and unsatisfactory. Each rect-
tatiOn room should be provided with
case Of reference books for ready
use in the class room. At present
there are none. The pupils in your
high school are deprived of the adj
vantagcs of even IL general library
rO ON.
li From basement to garnet your
building does not present Il commend
able feature. 1t Is lacking in all re-
spccts that have to do with satislac-
tory high school work,
A few words regarding the charac-
ter of the work Of your teachers and
pupils:
|, In management and discipline
Principal Bergen receives high com
mendatiOn.
,, Interest and spirit of study
manifested by the pupils are reported
excellent in class rooms, assembly
hall and during intcrmissiOns.
3. The class room work of your
teachers, and the preparation of the
pupils, with few exceptions, upon
assigned lessons, receive very favor
able comments from the inspector.
1. The program of recitatiOns
shows that your teachers have too
many classes. Seven periods u day
i'm different subjects are too many for
any teacher to do himself or the work
Justice.
s. Principal Bergen has only one
of supervision. This is not right
The work of supervision throughout
the grades and in the high school is
too important to be thus neglected. |
know Of but one way to remedy this,
and that Is to employ another assist
ant teacher for high school work aud
thus allow MIR. Bergen more time to
look after the details of the work of
all the grades.
am glad to learn from MIR Jacks
letter that he met with your board
and talked over, frankly and freely,
the conditions and needs of your
school.
From the conditions found to exist
relative to your building, | must say
that deem it imperative that your
people take Immediate steps toward
providing for the construction of
new building to accommodate your
pupils the ensuing year.
The need of modern, we'll equipp-
ed and commodious school building
in Mineral Point cannot be disputed
10y any fair minded citizen.
1t is expected that your board will
give careful consideration to the mat
ters herein mentioned, and further, do
all in your power to provide new
building
II can bc of any service to you in
any way, and time permits, shall
gladly render IT, | feel confident that
you win receive the hearty co-opera-
ton Of your citizens in this much
needed work.
Wishing YOU we'll, remain,
Yours truly,
l., ID. Harvey,
State superintendent.