The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-07-08
HIGHER TAX LEVY
Topeka Board of Education
Needs More Money.
Warrants Now Outstanding
Amount to Nearly $4,000.
BONDED DEBT is $500, 900
Much of the Money Collected
Goes for Interest.
Pencil Sharpeners Are Ordered
for All the Schools.

L
levy for school purposes in Topeka
this year. With outstanding warrants
aggregating nearly $50, 000-$62,-
22O94 in the general fund and $25,-
1876 in the building fund-a bonded
Indebtedness of 1929. 900. and thous-
ands of dollars worth of improve
ments that should be undertaken, the
board of education is realizing the
gravity of the situation.
Several members of the board have
expressed themselves as favoring the
making of a levy sufficiently large to
make it possible to cut off fifty thous-
and dollars. more or less, from the
Indebtedness.
At the regular July meeting of the
board Monday night L: NJ PenweI.
the president, said: 1.-The only way
you can get out of debt is to make an
adequate levy. have been asking the
board to do it for two years, but they
have refused" w. E. Atchison ex-
pressed himself as favoring taking
steps to wipe out a small part of the
debt. Thousands of dollars are being
paid out annually in interest which if
there were no heavy bonded indebt-
edness could be put into permanent
improvements.
Last Years Levy.
The tax levy last year was go
mills. Before c. c. Starr, former SUI
perintendent of city schools left the
city, he and the clerk of the board got
next tax levy should be. To cover the
outstanding warrants and provide a
small amount of money for perma-
nent improvements they fixed the levy
at 6.25 mills, an increase of is of a
mill over the levy of last year. This
did not provide for the reduction of
the bonded indebtedness of the board.
They placed the levy for the general
fund at the maximum figure allowed
by 1aw-five mills. In the building
fund 10 of a mill was allowed; last
year it was one mill In the interest
fund an even half mill was the levy
suggested as against As of mill last
year. The levy for the sinking fund
was left the same as last year-.o5 of
a mill.
Final action relative to the tax levy
will be taken in August
In speaking of the warrants out
standing, Mr.. Holman stated that
there will be available funds to pay
off all but s37,60O of these warrants.
The school board is now proposing to
undertake several extensive improve
ments that will cost thousands of
dollars.
Order Pencil Sharpeners.
The members of the board spent
much time at the meeting Monday
night squibbling over the question of
the purchase of pencil sharpeners for
tho schools, costing four dollars each
1t seems that the pencils are fur
nished the pupils free of charge and
annoyance the janitors have in recent
years been asked to keep the pencils
sharpened-
w. e. Atchison said: az declare
we'll have to furnish autos yet to take
the children to school-let them shar-
pen their own pencils"
L. NJ. Penwell: when 1t comes right
down to the point, it is just a custom
that has been started by the teachers
they have showed the work on the
janitors.''
DR.. VanHorn: 1--WE are clubbing over
the little amount of S4S-more quibbling
than over $4,000 building. Let's get
down to business" The board did get
down to business and decided to order
enough sharpeners to supply the en-
tire school system.
The resignation of c: H. Peterson,
principal of the Harrison school. who
came from California last September
and who was considered one of the
brightest school men in Topeka, was
accepted by the board He stated in a
communication that he had accepted
a position at a better salary at Pasa-
dena, Cal.
Contracts Awarded.
The Hall Stationary company, NJ. L.
Zercher Book company, Central-Topeka
Paper company. and the Capital Broom
company were Topeka firms awarded
contracts for supplies.
Report on the Schools.
In an exhaustive report on the To-
peka schools prepared before he left
the city and read at the meeting G. c.
Starr, the former superintendent, rec
commended that the board should adopt
the plan of dividing the high school
into two divisions SO that one set of
students could attend classes in the
forenoon and the other in the after
noon. This would probably require two
or three additional teachers according
to the report, but would be more eco
nomical than to enlarge the high school
building. The crowded condition of the
high school last term was a serious
one, but the board took no action at
the meeting Monday night.