The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-05-29
Commencement Frills Abolished
in Lincoln County.
No Money Spent for Invitations
and Clothes.
AXES AN EXCURSION.
Class Comes to Topeka to Visit
State Capitol.
Superintendent Fairchild APP
proves Of the Reform.

The charge is often made nowadays
that school men in authority are too
full of new tangled notions and theor-
les; that the plain days of the little
red school house and the common sense
teachings of our fathers have been
abandoned; that the new way is not
so conducive to the practical equipment
OF the student for the battle of life as
the old way. But these pessimists will
have to take back seat in Kansas
hereafter. State Superintendent Fair
child, head of the schools of the state,
was moved by an incident the other
day in connection with the commence
ment exercises of a country school to
relieve his mind about some of the no
tions of the present day school system.
1t came about through the newspa-
per mans eternal query for news. The
superintendent, after the grind of a
state school board meeting, mad re-
treated to his private office to seek rest
On solitude. But the reporter has a way
of penetrating the privacy of inner Of
fees and no portal is sacred when news
is scarce. The harassed superintendent
greeted his visitor cordially and tried
in vain to think of a good piece of news.
Finally he said: II have no news worth
while, but 1 can tell you good story. ."
A good story is sometimes better
superintendent to go ahead.
''Well.' began the superintendent, in
the manner of all good story tellers,
yesterday L had a pleasant call from
the graduating class of the Lincoln
county high school. Superintendent R.
u. Long and wife accompanied their
pupils and they told me that they had
adopted the plan in their school this
year of doing away with costly invi-
tations and programs and fine clothes
bni m
Eiverting the money usually spent for
these luxuries to general fund to be
used in defraying the expenses of a
trip by the class to the state capital
and the university city
''They were the happiest, best looking
delegation of visitors 1 had received
for a long time and their plan of max
ing a sight seeing tour of the capitol
building and the university instead of
spending their money for fine feathers
and engraved invitations struck me in
a moment as being a good one. They
were having good time, these young
folks from a country town, and, they
were gaining practical information ana
experience that would prove of as much
benefit as the entire school year they
had just finished. Fresh from the grind
of school and books and theories to the
places of interest in their state.
enjoyed the hour I spent with them as
much as they could have possibly en-
1oyed their visit in Topeka, and that
is saying a BOOQ zeal, know. Thew
went from here to Lawrence where they
proposed to spend day inspecting the
university. t&
IT thought about the matter after
they had gone away, and was more
deeply impressed than ever with the
fact that our plan of conducting com
mencement exercises is all wrong.
This idea of turning a graduation of
boys and girls into a dress parade So
ciety event is not in keeping with
practical school al oil
of school where cap and gown are
used for commencement regalia and
all the graduates, rich and Door
must wear this dress each year, and
the paraphernalia is kept by the
school and laid away for another
year.
The washerwoman's girl may be
the brightest pupil in the school and
she Is placed on the program for an
essay. This girls graduation, instead
OF being joy and pride to the moth
er is often barely short of a calam-
tty. The woman must save and work
overtime and deny the necessities to
that little home in order to get a
graduation gown for her girl.
There is no use to argue that she
does not have to do IT. What moth
er, or father will not go to any length
to see that their child was as well
dressed as the others on commence
ment day?
1.-The formality of a commence
ment is a tne thing; the flowers and
the diplomas and the crowd of peo-
pie in the big hall. But the present
day plan of calling upon the class to
furnish invitations and programs and
appear on the platform dressed to the
limit has its other side. We have no
way of knowing how many cases
there are every year in the towns of
this state where these exercises are
q hardship upon the parents or cause
embarrassments and heartaches
among the young folks.
TT is very often the poor bows and
girls who win the honors in school
and an average of sixty per cent is
not high to place against the rich
mans children in the makeup of a
graduation class. I think the Lin
coin county high school plan of do
ing away with every expense in con-
nection with the commencement,
making a rule that the graduates
should be plainly and simply dressed
and then taking the class on a de-
lightful and instructive trip at the
close of their school term is a splen-
did one and there is not high school
in the state that could do better than
to try the plan one year at least"