The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1911-08-10
The COST OF SCHOOLS TO CITY
Work of Supervision and Teaching
Children Makes Average of More
Than S21.o0 Per Pupil-Attendance
Shows Growth.

Mrs. Mary ID. Bradford, superinten,
dent of the schools Of the city in keep
ing with the provisions of the state
law, submitted to the board of educa-
tion on Tuesday evening her annual
report Of the schools for the year. The
report is the most exhaustive treatise
on the schools of the city ever pre-
sented and it takes up and covers in
detail every activity of school work
during the year just closed and planned
for the future. The report covers some
forty-fve pages of typewriter matter
and appended to it is large number
of statistical tables which will prove
of greatest interest to students of
figures in connection with school man,
agement.
The report shows that there are 1O1
people on the pay roll Of the schools,
that the equipment and running of the
schools requires an annual expenditure
of upwards of 100000 and that the
rapid growth of the city will demand
an increased expenditure at no far dis
tant date. The reports show the at
tendance at the various buildings dur
ing s. year period and the regularity
with which the children have attended
the school systems. It is shown that
a greater per cent of regularity in at
tendance as been secured since the sys-
tenn of telephoning all absences to the
truant officer was established Mrs.
Bradford declares that the amount Of
hardness in the schools is reproach
to the community as it is usually due
to the carelessness of the parents.
The report shows a total of 3,110
children enrolled in the grades during
the year of which 1,591 were boys and
/, $40 girls. The high school had an
enrolment of 131 boys and 172 girls.
The attendance at the private and paro-
chial schools in the city for the year
was 934, making the total number of
children. in school 4,347.
Extensive figures have been prepared
which show that the total cost per
pupil in the Kenosha schools for the
past year was $21-29. This includes
the cost of teaching and supervision
only. Mrs. Bradford discussed at
length the problems of educational
waste, Withdrawals from the schools,
the efficiency of the school system and
what goes to the making of it, causes
of r9tardation operating in Kenosha,
semi annual sfomotions, ungraded
schools. One interesting paragraph in
the report refers to a proposal to have
special schools for foreigners and Mrs
Bradford holds that until the number
of these children is large enough to
demand separate school they can be
cared for. in the regular graded schools.
Continuing she discussed the prob
lens Of schools for exceptional children
medical inspection, under which head
she took up the causes for the children
being out of school, This showed that
go days had been lost on account of
whooping cough, 102 ON account of
colds, SO on account of scarlet fever
and 20 from diphtheria. These stats
tics are taken from the report of a
single room during the year and give
some idea of the time being lost
through the various diseases. She dis
cu3scd interestingly the question of the
continuance of the open air school and
recommended that the opening Of the
school be deferred this year until after
the medical inspection Of the children
that all who are in need of the school
might be admitted. She told of the
work done in the meetings of the teach
ers during the year, of the necessity of,
kindergartens and the work being done
by them, and urged the board to take
steps to adopt better system of rec
ords and reports for the schools. She
recommended this especially for the
business of the board in the purchase
of supplies for the schools. In closing
her report Mrs. Bradford said:
cePuhIic education il the most i'm
portant concern Of this or any com
munity. BY having placed in their
hands the management of the public
school interests a body of men like
Yourself have been highly honored with
the most important public trust in the
gift Of the community. As your execu-
tive officer, ! have worked during the
past year to advance along as many
lines OF work as practicable the causes