The central record. (Lancaster, Ky.) 18??-current, 1911-07-21
The Great Importance OF The Office OF
Sub-District School Trustee.

VI Tie SuD-ulSIIlClS VI every equity III /,
the State. The number in jefferson
son County will exceed one hundred
and the total in all the counties will
probably exceed ten thousand, quite an
army this. Before the Sullivan Law
enacted about three years ago, there
were trustees chosen in each of these
districts, say around thirty thousand;
of this number. it was said, five thous-
and of them could not read or write.
Do we need to go further to find cause
for the languid prosperity of the State?
Each trustee has in charge from forty
to one hundred pupils. He is charged
with their proper and comfortably
healthful housing, the selection of their
teacher and the general oversight of
the school. 1t is reliably stated that
many of these acting trustees do not
enter their schools more than once or
twice a year. So low has this office
fallen in the estimation of the people
in some sections of the State, that 1t
is difficult to get anyone to serve. l
was present at the first meeting of one
of the district boards of Jefferson
County under the Sullivan Law. When
we were talking over the improvement
of school conditions. one of the sub
district trustees arose and said, Gen
tlemen, for Gods sake, come and help
me. l am here, elected by one vote
and l had to go out and bring that man
in to vote for me, so little interest do
the people take in their school affairs. "
1t seems as if the management of
our educational matters might be liken-
ed to the building of house wherein
the builders gave all attention to the
roof and upper part, ignoring complete
Iy the foundation upon which the sec
urity and well being of the structure
depends.
These sub-district trustees are the
very foundation stones of our common
school system. If these stones are rot
ten or faulty, you cannot have safe
and satisfactory structure. Such eX-
actly is our condition, just as effect
follows cause. Now follow Kentucky
Fatherl Mother! Patrons! of the school,
all, it is readily within your power to
remedy many of the ills which affiict
our school system, and you can do it
with little trouble and no expense.
How? By getting together in each sub
district and resolving to put into the
office Of trustee the broadcast minded,
most level headed, most active and in
corruptible man in the entire district
You will not, as rule. find him asking
for the place. He will, if suspecting
what you want, more likely be taking
to the woods" but no matter, select
him and then make him serve. Such a
man will be busy man ane will have
many excuses, bat by persistence and
insistent persuasion, you will get
| through his ''hard pan" and down
where he really lives, and there you
will find patriot, who seeing his duty,
will do it. In addition to each one of
the duties devolving on this sub-district
| trustee, concerning his individual school
and which no one else can do, and which
must and will go undOne if he fails,
these trustees have in their hands the
makeup of the County Boards of Edu-
cation and these boards having large
discretionary, powere are necessarily
important factors in school government.
| AS the stream cannot rise higher than
its source, so the ability and usefulness
of the County Board cannot rise above
the calibre of the average of the trus-
tees who make them. Be careful and
do not let any man be put in as trus-
| tee because he has sister, brother,
aunt or cousin who wishes to become a
teacte r. Such teachers are almost in
variably employed at the expense of
the children's interests and this | am
fully satisfied has been one of the
fruitful causes of present conditions.
Do not let sympathy, charity or friend
ship come in between the children and
| their rights; to do so is to prostitute
those noble qualities to an ignoble end.
Let merit alone be the measure of the
teacher and trustee. Once you get
this kind of men in office throughout
the State, they will find way out of
all our maze of difficulty. Now here is
plain duty, easy of accomplishment
and absolutely with no money cost.
Will you get up and do it, or will you
sit idly by and let it go undone? Will
you allow another year of Indifference
to the plainest and most pressing of
duties to pass, thus cheating several
hundreds Of thousands of children out
of their birthright, which is time and
opportunity to get an education where
by they may meet more successfully
the rough and hard battle with the
world, which so inevitably awaits them?
What shall the answer be? and con-
sequently what shall the Harvest be?'
You may say you have no interest in
the selection Of a trustee because you
have no children to send to school.
This does not lessen the responsibility,
except in temporary and selfish way,
because your neighbours children in the
next generation, or in very few years
will become men and women who take
up the responsibility of citizenship.
Some of them will be in office, and
when you educate your neighbours child