The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1909-07-25
Where Do the School Days Go !?
Ten thousand employers Of the United States looking TO
the trade schools for the skilled w0rknen Of the future
What the WI1ond Trade Schools do for young men.

The school authorities and employ.
ers of skilled workmen have been look.
ing into the results of schooling in tho
United States, with some startling re-
suits They have found that there
are about 1S,00O.0 900 pupils in the pub
lie schools, and not more than 5000, 900
of them get beyond the fifth grade.
OF this 5000, 900 not more than $780,.
900 get through the eighth grade. Only
$4,000 get through high school. and
not over 100000 60 on to college. The
particular point searched for has been
to learn what becomes Of those who
leave the public schools before their
education there is finished and who do
not get into the high schools and col
leges. The seekers after this fact
have found that half the number is
boys who go into the world to work as
day laborers or to gather up smat-
tering Of some trade.
The results of this investigation
has brought grave concern to the large
employers of skilled workmen, who
say that while on the face of the re-
turns many thousands OF boys every
year begin to learn trades, there is a
shortage Of from 10 to so per cent OF
skilled workmen in the workshops OF
the United States. The employers
have found that for all the hue and
cry they make for more and better
workmen, their forces cannot be re-
cruited by employers teaching the boys
trades in their own shops, as has been
done heretofore. The strenuous COM
petition, the unceasing demand for
greater and better output of shop and
factory, has resulted in such tre-
mendous pace in the industries of this
country that there is no time to train
an apprentice and give him an all
round knowledge of some trade, as
was done back in early times. In q
printing Office, for instance, q boy be-
comes a feeder Of a press at a few
dollars week. So long as he is con-
tent to remain a press-feeder at low
wages he will stay at a machine year
after year, and this is as far along
the road to becoming a printer as he
will get. Some feeders, Of course, get
by this point and become pressmen at
better wages. But taking the work
shops of the country as whole and
Tot nd 80
cid not finish the public schools ard
who are tiled to post" by perform
ing one particular task in a shop, or
factory, until they become as much
Of machine as the one they operate.
It was this condition as found by the
employers which has prompted six ma
tional associations Of employers to go
into the effort of training boys to be-
come skilled workmen, to give them
complete knowledge of trade, as was
once done by the apprenticeship meth
cd. These six associations have con-
centrated their efforts in the trade
schools Of Winona Technical Institute,
at Indianapolis, and they are making
Of the institute "the school that gives
IuC UOy q CAouSC ACoC SlA oSSUCtd'
lions represent 10000 industrial con-
Germs Of the United States, which have
on their payrolls the great bulk of
skilled Observation-Disclosures of thou
sands Of them. The United Typothe
tae. made up Of employing printers.
las given $4,000 to the institutes
School of Printing to be used as
scholarship fund, and has helped in
gathering up $4,000 worth OF equip.
ment for the school. The National
Founders Association has given $l2.-
900 in scholarships to the School for
Iron Moulders and has gathered equip
ment worth many thousands for the
use Of the school.
The Metal Trades Association has
given $4,000 for scholarships in the
School for Machinists and is gath
ering up many thousands Of dollars
worth of material for the school, which
National Lithographers' Association
has given $4,000 in scholarships and
equipment to the School Of Lithogra-
ply. The tilemakers of the United
States have given $1,000 for scholar
ships in the School of Tile-Setting.
The bricklayers have given $1,000 for
the School Of Bricklaying at the in
stitute.
These gifts Of money are followed up
by close scrutiny on the part of the
associations to see that boys in these
schools get practical instruction. The
associations do this through commit
tees, each of which has one or more
Indianapolis members, who are in con-
slant touch with each schools affairs.
These committees select the instruct
ors. and the men chosen are known to
possess two qualifications: They know
thoroughly the trade they are to teach,
and they also know how to impart
their knowledge to boys learning the
trade.
The boy who goes to Winona Tech