New-York tribune., 1912-03-31
THE SOUTHERN EDUCATIONAL
CONFERENCE.

The remarkable progress recently
made by the Southern states in the de-
velopment of their school systems IS
brought to attention by the announce
ment of the meeting Of the fifteenth
Conference for Educat ton in the South
at Nashville this week. The conference,
which this year. as for several years
past, will be presided over by Mr.
Robert c. Ogden, Of this city, Is a popu-
lar gathering Of persons Interested ~
Southern education from all over the
country, including many state superln-
tendents Of education and college presi-
dents. It does not attempt 10 prescribe
specific programmes or itself to carry
on educational work. 1t is rather the
forum for discussion and interchange OF
ideas and information, and has been
wonderfully successful in arOuSing en-
thuslasm and securing cooperation OF
public authorities. taXpAying communi-
ties and private philanthropists for the
educational progress Of the South.
Only in recent years have the South
ern states turned their attention TO the
building up Of an efficient public common
school system. Throughout vast eX-
tent Of rural territory no local taxes for
schools were imposed, and such schools
as existed were largely in inadequate
buildings. conducted by teachers incom-
petent through lack Of training and III
supported by voluntary contributions for
only a small part Of the year. All this
is rapidly changing, and though the
problem is vast one for 50 large
region. thinly populated and compare
lively poor, the ever widening popular
interest in giving the boys and girls of
the South q thorough equipment for the
worlds work is one Of the most promis-
Ing signs Of the time. In the six years
from 1904 to 1910 the eleven Southern
states. excluding Texas, increased their
taxation for school purposes more than
going on at the rate Of about S1s,O0O,oOH
a wear And this is not q burden inr
posed on the communities by central
authorities but IS almost entirely the re-
suit Of the aroused interest Of the COM
munities which vote the taxes on them
selves for their own schools. Along with
this development has gone a widespread
movement for the expert supervision or
rural elementary schools and the edu-
cation and employment of better teach
ers. This work has had the aid Of the
Southern Education Board which in
many cases partly supported supervisors
for convenient districts until the peo-
ple saw their usefulness and took over
responsibility for them. Great attention
is also being paid to adapting the school
training to the industrial needs Of the
South and the opportunities of its chill
dren particularly in the direction Of
improved methods Of agriculture.
These Conferences for Education and
the affiliated organizations, such as
the Southern Education Board and the
Peabody, Slater and Jeanes funds, have
been powerful agencies in this improve
ment At first they were met with some
suspicion as foreign intrusion, al
though from the beginning they were
largely composed Of Southern men, but
that prejudice seems now to have COM
pletely passed away and given place to
a united popular support Of the confer
ences and the educational progress for
which they stand.