The Pickens sentinel. (Pickens, S.C.) 1911-2016, 1914-08-27
School Letter from
State superintendent

State Superintendent, J. E.
Swearingen visited several Of
the schools in this county dur
ing August and upon his return
to Columbia wrote the following
letter to Professor Rallum:
Dear Mr.. Hallum: Ny visit
to your rural schools on Wednes-
dav and Thursday of this week
brought me much pleasure and
information.
My first duty is to thank you
for the many courtesies, un-
stinted hospitality so kindly
shown me by yourself and your
co-workers. A stranger has
only to cross the threshold of a
Pickens' home, or to mingle
with your patrons, in order to
enjoy a hearty welcome.
In the next place. I congratu-
late you most cordially on the
progress and cooperation you
have secured. School spirit in
Pickens county is strong, and
growing stronger each year.
At Martin the trustees are
erecting model building with
two. classrooms. This will be
needed before it can be COM
pleted. The 100 pupils already
enrolled this summer for work
in the single classroom Of the
old building are merely waiting
for the finishing touches to be
given to the new house. You
were certainly right in retain
ing the old building, because
every indication points to a de
mand for three teachers and
three classrooms in this district
in the near future.
I am frank to say that I was
agreeably surprised to find IS
children in attendance the after
noon of our visit. A finer lot
of bows and girls can be found
nowhere in South Carolina.
Your plan to give these pupils a
model schoolhouse and a six
months term woke a respon-
sive chord in the heart of each
patron, contributing money or
work for the new building.
I have long wished to visit
Mile Creek because of it's his
toric and romantic associations.
After talking with the trustees
of this district and other splen-
did citizens like Mr.. L. R. Dal-
ton, I appreciate the new force
which is helping to create under
your leadership the fine educa-
tional enthusiasm of the county.
It is pleasure to give every form
of State aid to- the schools of
these districts. I only regret
that the appropriation for build
ings and for needy schools will
not admit Of even greater as
sistance.
Ruhamah has taken a place
among the foremost special tax
districts Of the county. The
eight mill levy voted by the
people of this community will
insure their children a modern
building with two class rooms,
two teachers and term of six
months. If possible, [ hope the
house can be made ready for
occupancy this fall,
At Bethlehem I found one
teacher with a full classroom
and a second teacher hard at
work in the adjoining grove.
An open air schools luxury.
But it should be a thing of
preference rather than necessity:
NV observations convinced
me that summer term in the
Is schools now in operation can
be used to advantage, if two
precautions are observed.
Teachers should be employed for
the full year. One set of in
structors for the summer term
of two months and another set of
instructors for the winter term
of four or five months will cause
a useless waste of school funds
already too small.
The boys and girls Of Pickens
county should not be made the
whittlingsticks either of sum-
mer swallows, anxious to spend
two months in your delightful
climate, or of winter weaklings
willing to teach short term
schools at beggarly salaries un-
attractive to more competent
instructors. Every board of
trustees should establish the
policy of holding teachers two.
three, or even four years. The
ruinous practice of making two
shifts a session not only costs
money but actually Injuries the
children.
My second impression is that
the classification of pupils might
be greatly improved in many
classrooms. The traveling e
teacher working in Oconee
under the direction Of the
County Superintendent has Sc
cured prompt cooperation from