The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1909-04-22
new SCHOOL CODE.
Features Cleaned From the New School
Code Bill That Will Be OF Especial
Interest to This County.
IMPORTANT PIECE OF LEGISLATION.


additions have been made from
time to time to the laws govern
: ing the system. When business
was slack in the law factory down
at Harrisburg, some wise-acre
sprung a new school law, or pro-
posed the repeal OF one that had
been manufactured at a previous
session. The result has been,
that after three-quarters of a cen
tury of such cobbllng, we had a
mess of school laws that even
school directors were not always
able to apply satisfactorily. They
overlapped each other, they were
conflicting; IN many cases, they
were unreasonable, applying well
enough to some sections of the
state, while IN others they were
oppressive and, of course, very
unpopular.
In order to bring some kind of
order out of this chaos, a Com
mission, composed of able educat
ors-practical business men
was appointed to present a new
code-uslng what was good o.
the old, revising other parts, and
rejecting that which IN their judg
ment ought to be thrown out, and
to present the result of their
work to the legislature for it's
ratification or modification.
When 1t came before the legls-
lature at the session just closed,
each one of the two hundred and
fifty y-seven mem bers felt it his
bounden duty to show the Com
mission how little they knew.
Hence there were additions pro.
posed, and subtractions dGmand-
ed until the trainers of the orr.
glnal code would scarcely have
recognized their product. After
Jangling over 1T until the very end
OF the session, very much latter
ed and torn, it came from the
mill and was allowed to be taken
to the Governor for his signature
or veto. 1t is said by those
who are in close touch with the
executive that he will sign the
bill, and the "School Laws and
Decisions" that have so long
been carried in the school direc-
tors pocket, may now be sold to
the junk dealer.
The following paragraphs taken
from the bill are those that are of
most interest to our teachers.
directors, and patrons:
"ln the townships and bor-
oughs having population of less
than 1000, the school boards will
be composed of five memb bers
elected at large, one each year
Tor i've years. School directors
now in office continue to serve IN
conjunction with the new mem.
bers until their terms have ex-
pred.
In school buildings more than
one-story high, entrance doors
must all open outward, and all
present buildings must be made
to conform to this law before the
opening opening of the coming
school year.
"rhe provision IN the present
school law requiring a meeting of
school directors and teachers be-
fore the selection of textbooks
for the ensuing year, has been
omitted. The school boards by
a majority vote adopt school
books, as at present, but text
books cannot be changed oftener
than once in FIVE years. At pres.
ent they may be changed every
three years.
Townships or boroughs which
do not MAINTAIN high schools of
their own must pay the tuition OF
their pupils in nelghboring high
schools, and such pupils may, at
public expense, complete the
four-year high school courses In
larger high schools.
"School districts may trans
port children to the high or other
schools at the expense of the dis
trict, and if schools are closed IN
order to centrallze or grade the
schools Of the district, there is
no loss of state appropriation on
Continued on page eight