Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1913-01-17
MISSISSIPPI RANKS
45TH IN EDUCATION
STATE SUPERINTENDENT POWERS
TELLS WHY.
MAKES APPEAL TO PEOPLE
People Spend Millions on Good Roads
and Neglect SchOOls.-Teachers Pay
Averages $210 Per Year.

Jackson. State Superintendent Of Ed
ucation Powers has issued a statement
in regard to educational conditions in
Mississippi, after he read a report Of
the Russell Sage Foundation, Of New
York, which put Mississippi in forty
fifth place of the states Of the Union
in general educational efficiency.
The superintendent showed that the
number of negro children in school ex-
ceeded the whites by more than 100000,
and assigns this as one reason. In his
statement he urges the people to take
more interest in matters educational, and
appeals to the press to assist in build
ing up the state educational system.
He urges the need of better schools and
better school buildings, gives valuable
and interesting figures which he recently
compiled, and says he hopes the people
will take note Of the educational stand
ing OF the state.
The statement of Superintendent of
Education Powers, in full, is as follows:
81 have seen the full educational re-
port of the Sage Foundation, but have
not found time to verify the figures in
the report. ] am, therefore, not sure
that the figures are correct.
"This report seems to be based on the
length of the school year and the at
tendance of the children of school age.
On such a basis our standard is natural
ly low by comparison. | note hat the
three other states given by the report a
lower standard than Mississippi \are
states which have a large negro popu.
lation. 1t must be remembered that in
the states where we have a large negro
population the educational efficiency
based as above is much lower than in
those states where such a population is
small. We have done pretty well when
we take into consideration the great bur
den we are bearing. The negro pays but
little tax and it ia no little burden upon
the state to educate him. Why, this
state has today 1886 educable chill
dren and Of this number 425 ,067 arc ne
groes. This gives the state 114,5TS more
negro children than whites. Forty-ont
counties in Mississippi have a larger
negro population than white. Is it any
wonder that we have had and are hav
ing a struggle to maintain a high stand
ard on the basis given in this report
81 note that Mississippi stands forty
eighth in value of school buildings ant
property. / believe this is largely true.
have reports received recently from coun
ty superintendent in which I find thai
the average value of rural school prop
erty per county is less than $4,000
The court houses in the various counties
cost more money than all the rura
school property combined. In the towns
and cities we issue bonds to build ant
equip school houses and buy school prop
erty. In the rural districts we hav'
never had such authority until very re
Gently. While l am a firm advocate O
good roads, l would like to call the at
fention of the people of Mississippi t,
the fact that while hundreds of thou
sands Of dollars in bonds are being is
sued in the various counties to built
good roads, we have not yet had
county to take advantage of the recen
law giving authority to issue bonds t,
build and equip good rural schools. Is i
not time for progressive leaders lik'
those promoting good roads to give thei
Influence to the issuing of bonds for bet
ter school buildings in the rural dis
tricts? In most of the rural districts o
the state the little crude, one-story, poor
ly equipped school houses are a disgrac,
to the state, but we certainly cannot ex
pcct the people to build better one
without bond issues. If the school build
ings in this city were to burn down tc
night you could not raise $4,000 by sui
scription to rebuild them, but ther
would not be ten votes against Q bon,
issue to rebuild every one on a bette
plan than before.
"The department of education want
the people to take note of our educa
tional standard. 1t wants the laity t,
take more interest in the needs of tn
rural schools. 1t wants the leader
throughout the state to awake to a rea'
i%zation of the work, in this regard, tina
lies before us"