Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-09-09
{. 0. SCHOOL COST
MORE THAN ANY
OTHER IN STATE
Senate Probers Find Board of
Education Was Extravagant
in Use of Money.
$4,000 PER CLASSROOM
TWICE USUAL EXPENSE
Secretary Says He Was Too
Busy to Answer Commit
tees Written Questions.

Probing into the affairs of the East
members of the Senate investigating
committee discovered that the schools
of that city had been conducted more
extravagantly than those of any
municipality yet visited by the COM
mittee. In the erection of school build
ings alone it was found that the East
Orange Board of Education had spent
between $4,000 and $4,000 on a class
room, which is about twice the usual
cost of educational buildings, even IN
the large cities. Exceptionally large
prices, it was Drought out, had been
paid for land, architects were given
Jobs without competitive bidding, and
one member of the Board of Education
was forced to resign his office when 1t
was discovered that he was interested
in an electrical company which had
performed work on the addition to the
city High School.
Warren A. Clapp. secretary of the
Board of Education, was the first wit
ness called. When the investigating
committee first started it's labors the
district clerks were furnished with a
set of questions regarding educational
matters in their districts, the answers
to which they were supposed to mail to
the investigating committee.
Counsel Murray, of the committee,
asked Secretary Clapp regarding these
answers.
did you send us your answers to the
questions we asked?" inquired the
counsel.
Too Busy to Answer.
mo" replied Mr.. Clapp. II was too
busy to attend to them
Mr.. Murray then began systematic
quizzing regarding the prices paid for
school sites.
Secretary Clapp's answers showed
that the following were the amounts
paid for school property during the
PAST five years: Elmwood avenue, ST.
0O0 North Clinton street. $4,000; Ash
land Field, $S,000
Pressed by the counsel regarding the
possibility of persons having bought
these pieces of property to dispose OF
them to the Board of Education, Mr..
Clapp gave satisfactory answers and
showed that every transaction in which
school property was purchased was en-
tirely regular.
In the past five years these schools
and additions were erected: Stockton
School, IA class rooms, built in 1905.
cost $4,000; Ashland School, II class
rooms. built in 1907 cost $156,000; Lin
coin School, II class rooms, built in
1908, cost $101 900; High School addition,
class rooms, cost $1,000, and Nassau
School addition. class rooms. cost
$500.
On basis Of an average attendance
of 4,50O pupils the per capita annual
cost of conducting the schools was $4119
and on a basis of an enrolment of
$50 pupils the per capita cost was
S36e9
In addition to the cost of erecting
new buildings and additions to build
ings as given above, Secretary Clapp
informed the members of the commit
tee that $4,000 had been paid for the
ground on which the addition to the
high school had been built.
In erecting these buildings" asked
Counsel Murray, was there COM
petltive bidding by architects?"
yes replied Mr. Clapp, ''in one or
two instances"
On being further questioned, Mr..
Clapp said that the architect on the
Ashland School was w. B. Tubby, of
Continued ON Second Page.)