The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-04-07
PLAN DOESN'TSUIT
scheme of Supporting State In.
stitutiOns Unsatisfactory.
commission Suggests That Di-
rect Tax Be Levied.
WORK OUT THE PLAN.
Details Will Be Submitted at a
Later Date.
Also Make Effort to Stop Dupli-
cation of Work.
WORK OUT THE PLAN.

One of the most important PROPOSE
tions which will be submitted to the
next legislature will be the question of
permanent tax for the support of
the three state educational institu-
lions. The Kansas commission for
higher education. organized yesterday
by the regents of the state university,
agricultural college and normal school
appointed a committee to investigate
q plan to give the schools a perman-
ent fund for maintenance and i'm
movements.
Under the present plan the three
schools are supported by the. appro-
priations made by the legislature.
This necessitates appeals and trades
and dickering by the different schools
and their friends to persuade the
eeonOmy-loving legislators to give sut-
ficient funds to keep the schools go
ing. The schools have to play poll
tics to a considers BILE extent.
An effort is to be made to remove
these schools from the political field
as far as appropriations are concerned
at least. 1t is planned to order a de-
finite tax to be LEVIED each year. I'm
der the present valuations of Kansas
property levy of one-half a mill will
raise $2,752,00O for two years. The
legislature appropriated $2,620,0O0 for
the coming two fiscal years. This
small levy would raise $4,000 more
for the two coming years than is at
present appropriated for these schools.
II is planned to work out a scheme e
Whereby the legislature will designate
that certain tax be levied each year,
the same as is now levied for state
Purposes and the money received from
this levy is to be set aside for the use
or the three schools exclusively. The
schools are to divide the money in GER
41,r rfrgfn
more money would be needed and
more would be available. If new
bIildings were needed the regents
would have to work out a plan to
save enough money from the amount
ailotted to it in one or two years to
pay for that building and equipment.
The question was thoroughly dis
cussed at the conference of the regents
and Governor Stubbs, chairman of the
new commission, appointed Rodney e.
ward of the university. W. E. Black
burn of the Agricultural college and }.
p. Boyer of the normal school as d
speciaI committee to work out the de-
tails of the plan. When the plan is
finished it will be presented to the
Commission and then the board of the
three institutions will endorse it and all
go before the next legislature to secure
its enactment into law. This will stop
all the pickering and criticism of the
political activities of the schools in
legislative matters.
The regents of the three schools were
in conference four hours yesterday
afternoon and organized themselves
into an educational commission to
handle the business and administrative
matters of the three schools. This
commission is to adopt plans for the
unification of the schools in generals
but still leave each school its own in
ftiative. The acts of the commission
are not binding unless the boards of
regents of each school adopt them.
Three committees were named, be-
sides the tax committee. These COM
mittees are to have charge of certain
features of the work of the three
schools. The committee on business
management is composed of L. s. Cam
bern, university; NJ. NJ. Sherman, Agri-
cultural college; J. E. Junkin, normal
school. The committee is to have COM
plete charge of the financial affairs of
the three schools. 1t will see how the
money is expended. where there is
waste and develop plans to get the
most good out of the cash available.
The committee on efficiency is COM
posed of w. A. White. university; A.
L. Sponsler, Agricultural college, and
Sheffield Ingalls,, Normal school. This
committee is to see that the three
schools do the best possible work all
the time. 1t is to determine whether
or not all the departments and all the
teachers are doing the best work pos
sible for the students and if the ex-
periments carried on are bringing the
greatest good possible to the state
The committee on co-ordina ton is
composed of Scott Hopkins, university;
Arthur Capper, Agricultural college,
and George E. Tucker, Normal school
This committee is to try to stop the
duplication of work in the three
schools as much as possible. it is to
develop the plans for making the
school work and experimental plans of
the three schools dovetail as much as
possible to prevent duplication and
competition and have the courses OF
study uniform and equal as far as
possible.