The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1904-01-08
PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Suggestions For Improvement of
kentucky Schools May Be Act
ed Upon by Legislature.

NPNH ~ Us 'oiN ~ -
State Superintendent Of Public
INSTRUCTION IL. V. McChesney
makes some excellent and very
Timely suggestions for improving
! the public schools OF Kentucky.
In urging the Legislature TO adopt
IA law providing a uniform system
OF text books, with the maximum
price fixed therefor, he says:
ain addition to the excessive
price paid for books under the pres
ent system there is another diff.
Guilty. Under the present law each
county has its own adoption.
Where this condition exists, or
where the adoptions differ only in
part, persons moving from one
county to another must necessarily
lose such OF their books as are not
in use in the new county. 1t has
been urged by persons Interested
In the defeat Of these measure Ia
the past that to enact such law
would be an unwarrantcd intcrler-
ence with the copnty's right OF lO.
cal seli.government. IL this be-
true, then the state perpstuat'd d
an outrage on the rights Of the
Sovereign county" when It decreed
that the county authorities should
have not less than a iive-monthj
term OF school in each district as a
condition precedent TO receiving
the State school fend.
"The State has fixed the fees a
! County Clerk shall charge, the
commission a Sheriff shall receive
for collecting taxes, the times for
holding County and Quarterly
courts. Are these inirlngements
on the rights local government?
In his argument ln favor Of ex.
tending the school year from five
to ten months he says:
"a lew years ago Kentucky had
more teachers than schools. The
conditions have been reversed aud
there are now more schools than
teachers. Quite . number Of coun.
ties this year have shortage oi
teachers, many rural districts are
not having 4 fall term. Many oI
the best teachers have deserted thc
i profession, Even II the salary is
no better in the new held, 1t is fol
>. twelve months in the year, Instead
OF five. This means that teaching
at least in the rural districts, is be
coming less a profession and morC
makeshilt.
at is within the power Of tn,
General Assembly TO greatly i'm
prove these conditions without in
crcasing the taxes.
"The present 80 per cent. stat
! tax is apportioned as follows
. Twenty-Five and one-halt cents t
n general fund, % cents to sehoc
|. fund, 3 eents-tQ sinking fund an
-c cent 10 the State College. He e,
G. Inmates that . cents will be sufl
oi Client to keep the sinking fund II
. tact, This will enable the Gener,
Assembly to transfer cents irol
the sinking fund to the scho,
fund. The general fund is in sue
'u u condition that a transfer Of
~ cents could also be made to 4
school fund from the general fun
ed II these two transfers can be mad
M the 81 cents addition othe scho
fund viii Increase its revenues, /
ay GLIDING additional amounts
he would receive from mi>cellan, ol
nc sources as a result OF the new a
ol portlonment, about 100000 a
" nually.n
He urges the abolishment Of Il
Use present trustee system, and, /
~ stead, suggests that provisions
~ ~ made fora County Board o! n uy
- ton, elected by the pcoPlo, al
clothed with authority to bui
schoolhouses, purchase apparatI
=. y aud supplies aud employ all teac
.or ers.
N. The suggestion in reference
sh text books should at l,ast he act,
ug on and that favorably by thoLe
tic islature, aud thus relieve the pc
nd pie OF Kentucky from the grip
the ook trust.