The Dickinson press. (Dickinson, Stark County, D.T. [i.e. N.D.]) 1883-1927, 1909-03-20
Plan FOR new
HIGH SCHOOL
State School Inspector Suggests
New Building In School Block
inlPlace e, Of Ward School
u; Arguments in Favor.

lnPlace OF Ward School
/, 4 Arguments in Favor.
Dickinson is face to face with seri-
GUS educal ional problem. one upon
which the efficiency Of it's schools and
the proper training Of its boys and sirls
depends.
We all believe in Dickinson and we
boost for our psoepeaons Little city
early and late but 1t seems diRcult for
us tolsrasp tie rate Of increase IA the
school population or to adequately fRe-
cast the situation . few years hence This
is shown by the past. In 1891 the old
hiah school building was erected and
it was thought ample for all l- time.
Then came one, two and three room
building on the south side and in 1904
the capacity of the north side school
was more than doubled by building the
south wing, and the patrons and tax
payers felt that nothing further would
be needed for long time.
But Dickinson has not stood still
Dozens of new families have come in
and children have grown up and the
school buildings ane crowded. Every
room is occupied and one grade has
since Christmas been placed in the base
ment.
The superintendent and teachers are
not complaining and. like the house
wife who does not tell the visitor
all the makeshifts to make her small
rooms appear ample, they are doing the
best they can with what they have and
doing it very well. But the parents
and patrons in their visits cannot fail
to see how the building is already
crowded to its utmost capacity and that
the work. even now. could " done more
satisfactorily to parents, teachers and
pupils alike were there q little more
elbow room. ~.
The. high school assembly room is
already filled and the. recitation rooms
are inadequate. there being in reality
but two rooms for three teachers, one
of these far too small. This year the
library has been pressed into service as
a third recitation room which necessarily
impairs to quite an extent its efficiency
as library. The science department
is in the basement down two fights
of stairs and lack of space there handi-
caps the individual work. 50 essential
in chemistry, physics and botany. The
music and art teacher the visitor finds
in room scarcely large enough for q
good sized cloak room. Several of the
grades are overcrowded and It can be
easily seen thet., if the teacher. can in
struct the extra number. the. sanitary
conditions cannot be the best, when
sixty children occupy q room ,desisned
for thirty o., forty. @a as f.,t !,
So much for things a. they exist to-
day ...8, =. ,... ,r,. =. ,,,,t.,,., :.
The, school board, and back Of them,
the people of the city. are nov forced to
consider additional rooms for next year.
A second teacher has already beea en-
gagged for the third grade which must
be divided. Like conditions prevail
in the fourth and fifth grades where
already there is one extra teacher.
There must be another. making two
more rooms than at present for the
grades. Then the state has made it
compulsory in 1909 that courses be
offered in manual training and domestic
science if classified high school re-
tains its rank. This means two more
teachers and two more rooms. or four
in all Ei s5'fss@'
AS conservative estimate, based on
the census Of 1905 and 1908, the popula-
tion Of Dickinson has increased in the
past three years at the rate Of 900 per
year. an increase of 100 school chill
dren per year. At this rate. there will
be three years from nova school popu-
lation of 1000. Assuming that the in
crease IN the next three years be only
one-half as great as in the past three
years, there will be in 1912 at least $50
school children. 100 in the high school
and 750 in the grades requiring q teach
ing force of 20 GRADE teachers where IA
are now employed. including both the
north and south side schools. From these
figures it will be seem that to preserve
the efficiency Of the grade work it is
necessary to increase the school capacity