Evening star., 1911-01-06
Board of Education May Fix
Pay of Substitute Teachers.
VIEWS OF ATTORNEY PERRY
At Issue With Recent Ruling Of
Controller of the Treasury.
LAW AND DECISIONS QUOTED
Question of Farming" Positions by
Employees" Under the District
Government Discussed.

Taking issue with the recent decision
OF the controller OF the Treasury that
the board Of education of the District OF
Columbia has no right to fix the pay OF
substitute school teachers, Frank Spriga
Perry, former assistant United States ate
torney for the District. who was assigned
during his term of office as counsel to
the board Of education, today made q
statement of the position taken by the
board Of education in regard to substi-
tute teachers pay. Mr.. Perry said to
a reporter for The Star:
Upon an examination of the decision
Of the controller OF the Treasury upon
the question OF the substitute teachers
1t appears that the board of education
has secured recognition of a very inn
portant principle. Under the decision
they have the right to employ substi-
tutc teachers in the absence of a rcgu-
lar teacher.
What the Controller Held.
1.-THE usefulness of the recognition OF
this power OF the board is very seri ,usy
controller has placed on IL I'm holding
that the board has no authority to fx
the pay OF such substitutes The con-
troiler held that even. without a specific
provision of the statute the board OF
education can employ a substitute teach.
er. Granted this power to employ sub
stitutes. which is derived by Implication
from the statute. there would seem to
be almost automatically right. in the
absence of statute. for the bard to fix
the salaries OF these substitutes. The
power to employ was grained: the cor
relative right to fix salaries was denied
by the controller.
From this statement of the case IL
would seem that the power to employ
| terwoven that the one naturally follows
the other. There Is also a strong line
OF authorities In support of this prop0si-
ton.
Status Of the Teachers.
I'm the first place. what position legal
~ does a teacher in the public schools
Of the District Of Columbia occupyr
They are not Officers OF the United
States. The controller himself has held
this In No. Is. Decisions Controller OF the
Treasury In this decision there were
quoted twenty-five opinions of the Attor-
ney General. in which 1t was held that q
clerk In the employ OF the District OF
Columbia was not an officer OF the
United States.
1.-The board Of education lis a body sep.
arate from the Commissioners of the Dis
trict of Columbia and not under their
control This board. however. is a part
Of the municipal government of the city.
part of the municipal organization.
| and its status Is no higher than that OF
| the city organization. Hence. its officers
and clerks have no further right to claim
that they are Officers of the United
States than have the clerks of the Dis
trict government.
There seems little doubt but what tho
teachers are employees Of the board OF ed
ucation, and not public officials. II, then,
they are employed by the board there
| must be some contract or agreement to
pay them. The board has this right to
fix the salaries of teachers within the
limits allowed by statute. This limit
irg statute is found in section OF the
O.ganic act creating the school board.
approved June 20. 1906. The wording
of this section makes plain that Con-
gress considered teachers as employees.
for by it the salaries OF teachers, school
officers and other employees of the board
of education are given. This act thus
refers to the teachers employees of the
board and recognizes them as such.
Maryland Decision Quoted.
1.-THE status OF public school teachers
courts. In Baltimore city q question
arose whether the superintendent of pub
lie instruction was q municipal Official.
The court OF appeals Of Maryland held
that the superintendent was a mere en-
ploye or agent OF the school board by
which he had been appointd. The same
question was decided in Hertigan agt.
Board, 40 West Va. %. and the court
holA fhaf
public officer, but an employe OF the
school board of regents.
The board of education has ample au-
thority to provide rules for the govern.
ment of the public schools and the pay
of teachers within the limits provided
by statute. The organic act of June 81.
1908, gives the board authority to de-
termine all questions OF general policy
relating to schools and direct ex.
penditures.
relative to teachers and schools alike
has been fully considered and upheld in
the cases OF Wall agt. Oyster, decided by
the Court Of Appeals December s 1910.
and Nalle agt. Hoover.
Authority Of the Board.
''The board has the authority to make
rules governing the pay OF teachers where
the law is silent. These rules are public
anu Lc6CUcT ID CiuployC0 uaoCI laCSo
rules and enters into q contract with the
board with knowledge Of and subject to
these rules.
''In the rule book of the board for 1910
1911, the pay which regular teacher
must allow q substitute Is found In
rule 48. This is substantially q re-en-
actment OF the rule AZ of the rule and
by-laws OF the board, printed In 1907.
In each case the substitute teacher re-
selves q Ter diem compensation less
than the salary Of the regular teacher
for the first thirty days. For any period
over thirty days the substitute teacher
receives the fun pay Of the regular teach
er. No hardship Is worked upon either
the regular teacher or the substitute by
this employment. The regular teacher
understands that she is to pay a certain
proportion OF her salary, to q substitute
when such substitute is necessary. The
substitute teacher understands when she
IS employed that she Is to receive only
a certain proportion Of the salary of the
regular teacher. Hence both the regular
and the substitute teacher make this CON.
tract with the board with full knowledge
Of the regulations. The teachers. as EN-.
ployes, have the right to make any con.
tract with the board for their pay SO
long as such contract Is within the limits
provided by statute:
Earning Positions.
ucor,. o,,astion wa. raisad r.l.t,x,> a.