The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1905-12-29
Endorses the Work Of the Public
Schools Of Bottinsau.
II EXPRESSES CONFIDENCE
In our Principal and the work of
the Teachers, in an Article
signed by members.
Editer r Bottineau Courant:-

WSOhS UA0 0u1IOI VI Ip0 oOCCAAoSu
County News has seen fit to make sew
eral attacks upon the schools in our
city. AS the directors for Bottineau
School District we believe it our duty
to officers, teachers, patrons and pup
lis Of our schools to state the following
facts relative to this matter
We wish it distinctly understood
that we are not interested in any per-
sonal quarrel which may exist between
the editor of the News and Mr.. White,
the principal Of our schools. It may
be that Mr.. White has incurred the
righteous displeasure of the News by
failing to give him suicfient amount
Of jobwork. by ceasing to patronize
the News or in some other manner
equally greivous. But in our judg
ment this does not justify the editor
in making such malicious and abso-
lutely unfounded statements regarding
the standing of our schools.
MI. White is graduate of the Nor
NAL College Of the University Of this
state, is the holder of state profess
ional certificate, has had eleven years
experience in teaching, and holds ex-
cellent recommendations from several
Of the leading educators of North Da
,kota, among whom might be mention
ed Webster Merrifeld president of the
University of this state and state ex-
aminer Of high schools; Prof. Joseph
Kennedy. dean of the normal college,
of the University.
u The other teachers of our schools
are we'll qualified for their work.
The assistant principal, Miss Hunter,
is a graduate of Carleton College and
held similar position in Minnesota
high school before coming here. No
teacher is employed in the city schools
unless he or she holds at least first
grade certificate, and most of them
are graduates of good normal schools
And we believe that their work is
as good as that done in any school in
the state.
The editor of the News thinks that
Bottineau should have a first class
high school. and appeals to the tax
payers to ''think it over. - A first
class high school is one that main
tains four years course after the
completion of the common school
work, and is classified as such by the
state high school board. Our high
school maintains three years course,
one year of which was added at the
beginning Of the present school year.
According to the classification OF the
state high school board, there are on
ly four high schools in the western
half of North Dakota which stand
higher than the Bottineau high school.
They are located in the cities of Bis
marck, Minot, Mandan and Dickin-
son. all of which are cities of much
larger population than Bottineau.
The state high school examiner in
spected our schools last May and re-
ported very faorvably of the work be-
ing done here. We fail to see the
necessity for increasing our course fas-
ter than students can be prepared to
pursue the advanced work. And it
has been increased one grade each
year for the last two years We do
not feel justified in maintaining cour-
ses simply for ornament. and we wish
the taxpayer to ''think it over. 7 just
as soon as circumstances admit of it
we intend having first class high
school. and with the progress which
our schools are now making that time
will probably not be far distant.
Practically speaking our high school
was established and placed upon the
state list during the school year end
ing June 3Oth, 1904. That year our
school secured three state credits for
high school work. During the next
year, the first Of Mr.. Whites prin-
cipalship, our school secured sixty
state high school credits, which will
be accepted by any educational insti
tuition in North Dakota These facts
may be verified BY consulting the high
school records, or by writing the state
examiner at the University Of this.
state.
Recognizing the superior advantages
offered BY our schools. parents are
sending their children from all over
the county to attend school here. We