Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-05-18
A FURTHER WORD CONCERNING
THE ERALEDUCATION BOARD
By Bishop Warren A. Gambler

initiating conditions, may L inquire which
most truly expressed the real mind of the
Rockefeller Board, the old conditions
made from their own judgement before
they had sounded public opinion, or the
new conditions made to conciliate public
opinion? If the real aim of this Board
is not what 1 have argued why were
these confessedly hard and Illuminating
conditions imposed at the outset?
1t is worse than idle to juggle with
words and interpose special pleadings in
this case. This Board and it's allies pro-
pose nothing less than to control. If they
can, enough of the colleges of the county
Ito determine the character of American
education, just as DIR. Lyman said in
the Outlook.
If any further evidence OF TINS lact
were wanting, it may be supplied from
certain resolutions adopted in a meeting
over which DR.. Buttrick, the secretary
of the Rockefeller Board, presided, and
composed of the so called professors of
secondary education" whose salaries are
Paid by this Board and who are attached
| to the State Universities not for purposes
OF classroom instruction at all. That
meeting was held during the recent edu-
cational conference in Atlanta, and the
following resolutions were adopted by
these agents and employees of the Board,
sitting under DR.. Buttrick's presidency:
the public the fact that the elementary school,
the high school, the college and the universe
ty. whether supported by taxation or in other
ways are parts Of one system of public in
structiOn. not unrelated and independent
schools. state can secure educational eff
cheney only when these different. parts OF Its
educational system articulate and cooperate.
-. To secure such co-oneration and CO.
ordination some effective form Of organization
and supervision must be adoDted by each
state.
Is THIS fern of organization would include
/ expert suDerintendeneo over Duhlic instruction.
; both in state and county,.
- Such officers should he chosen from
the best educational experts and their places
should be made equal in dignity. responsible
Nv. remuneration and freedom from political
interference to those of the hest paid Officers
in colleges and universities.
% Such supervisors of education should
work IN effective co-oDeration with the insti-
buttons of higher learning. All colleges and
universities. whether uDon nuhlic or private
foundation. are public institutions, ard owe
II to themselves and to the canse OF education
! to take an INTELLIGENT and svmapthettc inter
est in the upbuilding Of secondary and ele-
mentary schools; not simply as feeders 10
themselves. but factors In the economic
and social Advancement Of the state
80 In virtue of their duties as public inAti-
tuticns, all colleges. whether connected with
] the state or with a denomination or not, oughL
| to give free access To their records ana
! full information to the cublic concerning all
details OF their academic and financial adj
/ ministration The honest college has every
thing 20 gain and nothing TO lose by taking
| the public into it's confidence.
Il WhilN the elevation OF standards In the
| colleges and professional schools is greatly
needed. the honest enforcement OF the stand
ards already adopted will an far toward the
! proper differentiation between the functions OF
| the college and the high schools, and would
! tend toward their articulation rather than the
/ overlapping. now so common
50 More generous provision for the train
1 ing of teachers is a pressing need IN tne ecu
/ cational systems of manv states. IL Will re-
quite the most effective work on the part
! Of normal schools and the denart ments OF eon-
cation of the universities to meet the extra
oTdTnary demand for tenchers during the nexs
Z two decades Such work Rhould, however,
| only be undertaken bv institutions with ada-
quate resources in ineme. equipment ana In
Artfully mingled with these verbose and
pretentious resolutions are some aStiomat~
! fc generalities which nobody would deny,
put in with other things, doubtless to d.
vert attention from the grave proposals
which nobody ought TO accept. Let US
note what is really proposed:
% The fusing of all schools OF every
grade. from primary TO university, and OF
| all sorts, whether public, private or
church schools, into one huge system I'M
der expert supervision, whatever that may
mean.
CD These universal supervisors of all
schools are to be made by law equal In
dignity responsibility, remuneration and
freedom from political in colleges and
universities" There is one word most
carefully omitted from this list of attrib-
| utes with which these supervisors are TO
be clothed: it is the word authority.
But II is the real word to describe what
is intended. Authority must go with re-
spOnsibility."
90 A demand is made that every
school whether connected with the
State or with denomination or not, shall
give free access to its records and full
information to the public concerning all
details of its academic and financial ad-
ministration."
With an air of great superiority 1t is OBJ
served in connection with this demand
that 1.-THE honest college has everything
to gain and nothing to lose by taking the
public into its confidence" This is in the
nature of a gentle threat, and the word
public Is used where these men really
ought to have used the word ''us." They
want interior information, to which they
have no right, in order to carry out their
Interior ends. If l were at the head of an
institution to which one of these men
came with this inquistorial demand 1
would promptly request the coloured Jani-
tor to show him to the door of my office,
and both the honesty and the self-respect
of the institution would be maintained by
that positive method of dealing with the
impertinent intruder
These resolutions shed light on the con-
dition found in the contracts first made
with colleges seeking gifts, in which con-
tracts there was a condition inserted
which read on this wise: 'the accredited
representatives of this Board shall at all
reasonable times have the right to in
spect the books. accounts and securities
said college" That item is no longer
expressed in the form of contract now
used. although this right of inspection
follows by inevitable implication from
other things which are expressed. and
now 1t appears that it is proposed TO
further enforce it by denouncing any coli
lege which refuses such inspection as
dishonest institution.
No ingenuity can conceal the purpose OF
this Board to construct and then control
a huge system of education for the whole
country. especially for the South, and
thereby to determine the character OF
American education" Such a scheme |
regard as fraught with untold evil to the
country. The fifteen men who, as the
members of this Board, now aspire to
WELD such an enormous power, however
good they may be. can not be trusted
with such extraordinary authority. And
il must be remembered that they may
have successors not trustworthy as
they are. I question no motives in saying
this. I do not cast reflection on Mr..