Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1905-03-16
WHO ARE NECESSARY
FOR SCHOOL BOARDS !?
Professor Eliot Writes on Men desired
and their QuaIifiCatiOn----FaVOFS
Staff for Principals.

important SUBJECT IN euucdIiOn HUW uuueI
discussion before the American people. be-
cause the people are coming to live in the
cities, and the urban schools will hence
forth educate a large proportion of Ameri-
ran children.
Let us start with the question of how
many persons should the board of educa-
tion consist? To my thinking the perfect
number is seven. 1t is better to have an
odd number of members, because as a rule
the deciding number is larger by one when
the number of members is odd. Seven is
ideal, because seven men can sit around a
small table and talk business in a CONVEX
sational manner A small board can talk
together in quick, simple, direct way,
with absolutely no speeches. and no talking
TO the gallery or reporters-iust plain busi-
ness talk, with specific proposals in view, and
under the guidance of chairman who
knows the business and urges it on.
There may be cities in which appoints
ment would be safer than election, because
the method of election has long been used
with bad results; but / should say in
general, slow replacement by election at
large had proved to be the safest and most
acceptable method We have had various
experiences on this subject in our country,
but ont of them all has emerged this best
way election at large, one member at a
time, and each member re-eligible once,
but not more If we imagine board of
seven men, in a city where municipal
elections take place every year, one man
1ill be chosen every year, and each one
will serve seven years, and re-eligible for
another term of seven years, making four
teen wears of continuous service. Then
should come break in the member s ser
vice. The break is expedient, however
much the city wishes to re-elect man
whose services have been very valuable.
The men should be, on the average, men
Of experience in the particular business of
the board; and that result will be secured
by long term of service 1t may be de-
sirable to elect man for third term, but
there should be break of at least year
before be is SO reelected.
What sort of men should be members Of
this board There should be no salary paid
The time and labor Of the members are to
be given freely to the children and to the
city Clearly. then, only men of public
spirit should be chosen. Public spirit is
the very first qualification for membership
IN a board of education; and the next is
Judgment or good sense. How can this
quality be secured 1t can be secured by
selecting only men who have been distinct
ly successful each in his own walk of life.
Success in whatever honorable business a
man has undertaken is evidence that there
is good quality in the man. Next, he
must have some appreciation OF the i'm
portance of the Office to which he has been
elected, some conception of the magnitude
OF the task, and of the far-reaching effects
of the service he can render. This ordin-
arily means-there will of course be excep-
tions-that he must have children or grand
children of his own, and love for chill
dren: and that he must have some vision
of the splendor of the work. This is the
Kind of man the school board needs. His
quality is obvious What chance has a
city of getting one or two of such men
year by election at large? That will depend
on the good sense and feeling Of the voters,
and on the existence of some disinterested
nominating body.
The next question in regard to the urban
school system is that of resourses-how
much money shall it have, and on what
plan shall its money be raised Next to
the quality of the school board this is the
most important question of all There is a
best way, namely, to appropriate by law
10 the use Of the board certain percentage
OF the city's total valuation for purposes OF
taxation. 10 some Of our cities, taxes are
levied on real and personal property; in
others orly on real property; in either case
the Legislature must fix the percentage.
How adequate the results win be of course
depend upon the discreation Of the Legis-
Iature
As the valuation OF the city increases, the
board can predict its annual increase with
great deal Of exactness
can look ahead and say, Next year
we shall have SO much, the year after, 50
much, and so on. When in one of our
great cities sixty thousand children were
unable to find room one September, ex-
cept to attend partial sessions at abnormal
hours, the board could only say We did