Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1911-01-09
90 There were no school lib

Iraries.
Q0) There was no interest il
schools among the people. OF course
there was but little interest among
the teachers and pupils.
In 1906 the beginning of reform
was made when the General Assem-.
bly, voted an annual appropriation OF
100000 each for two state normal
schools, one at Richmond and one al
Bowling Green. But the school
forces and their friends were mar
Ishaling for desperate struggle On
the firing line were the Kentucky Ed
EDUCATIONAL Association, the Kentucky
Development Association, and, best
of all the Federation of Women S
Clubs. On January 6, 1908 President
Crabbe became head of the state de-
Ipartment of education. On the same
day the General Assembly met in BIZ.
ennial session. The enactments made
were momentous and this Assembly
will doubtless be called "The Edu-
cational Legislature"
| Cd 1t passed the county school
district law, or the Sullivan bill,
which called for complete reorgan-
ization of the school system and for
the establishment within two years of
a high school within every county in
Kentucky.
(2) 1t made. the State college a
State university and enlarged the
Iscope of its usefulness.
CD 1t appropriated 100000 for
higher education and another $4,000
ANNUALLY for additional maintenance
for the state university and the nor
lmals.
(4) 1t passed a bill creating an ed
ucational commission and instructed
lit to make thorough investigation
of the whole school system and re-
port to the next General Assembly.
90 1t passed bill appropriating
100000 for additional improvements
at the Kentucky Normal and Indus
trial Institute for Coored Persons.
co 1t passed a law regulating
child labor.
CD 1t passed compulsory at
tendance and truancy law in cities of
the first, second, third and fourth
classes.
Here is found the remedy-under
the new school law"-for previous
defects and failures in the schools.
There are 5000 trustees properly
elected and qualified There is fair
amount of money for buildings, equip
ment and repairs. High schools are
in full operation. Teachers salaries
ARE increased. Teachers have the in
SEPARATION land money! to attend pro-
lfessonal schools. Public sentiment
lis demanding superintendent who
Twill devote their entire time to the
Ischool business, and as a result the
lpresent mere pittances called SAL
aries will be commensurate with the
duties of the uperintendency and
with the demands of the schools.
| Libraries are being established More
than all, all the people are intensely
interested In the welfare of the
schools since the vigorous campaign
ing of the last two years.
Practically all the counties have
made a liberal school levy A con-
lservative estimate of the amount to
! be realized from the county school
tax is nearly $4,000. A new school
house is building every day in the
year Nearly all the counties have
established at least one county high
school,; while some have opened two,
three and even five such schools
When this "whirlwind campaign"
for better education in Kentucky was
|inaugurated, the movement was but
an untried experiment, The leading
school men of the country looked
|askance at the scheme and scant fav-
Ior was accorded it. But the "whirl-
wind campaign" of 1908 was cy-
clone in Kentucky. The entire state
was intelligently covered by earnest
speakers during a period of nine days
Sixty thousand people heard a new
gospel of education, of inspiration, of
|helpfulness, of common sense among
the plain people. 1t was revelation
that amounted to revolution. Today
"a dozen states have inaugurated
whirlwind campaigns for better ed
Iucation, and these campaigns bid fair
to become as popular and successful
as, the original movement of Ken