Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1914-05-08
KENT COUNTY
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Annual Report Of the Kent County
School Commissioners. Year
Ending June, 1914.
To the State Board of Education,
Dover, Delaware.

To the State Board of Education,
Dover, Delaware.
Gentlemen-We have the honor to sub
nit our annual report of the work don,
by the Kent County School Commission
for the fiscal year which ends with Jun,
1914, and call attention to the annual in
spection of the school property which wa.
made By us in the month of April 1914.
Il will be noticed that while there is a
general improvement in the school prop
erty and a general growing interest in the
schools By those who have been chosen
10 look after them, yet there is a chance
for much more to be accomplished by
closer supervision of the public schools
by the commissioners Of the individual
districts.
In our opinion it would be well for the
schools were women chosen on some Of
the school boards especially is this true
where sanitary conditions, and repairs
are needed to school properties.
We were accompanied in making this
inspection by Superintendent James Z.
Carroll, who gave much valuable infor-
nation to the Commission which enabled
us to understand several problems which
would have been otherwise sources for
further action, but which have been since
Strengthened out to the satisfaction of the
Kent County School Commission.
In making this spring inspection the
members have Travelled by automobile and
railroad trains. 694H miles and have
given practically seven days to the work
and as we serve without pay in doing this,
we respectfully submit the statement that
the people owe it to themselves to at least
make the Improvements to their schools /
which have appeared to the County School |
Commission to be necessary for the COM |
Tort of their children, as well as for the
general health of all.
We have condemned during the past
school year, three school buildings, and .
one Of these has been replaced bv a new
structure which we have inspected and
approved. and it is a credit to the district.
The others have voted to rebuild during
the coming summer vacation. In each
of these cases. the County School Com
mission has hired automobiles and made
one or two visits to each of these districts
while the matter was being discussed BY
the school taxables of the districts in
yolved, and there is no provision for the
ofthese expenses to the County {
School Commission, so they are doing this 1
work as labor of love for the schools. (
We have been petitioned to make trans I
fers in several districts, which required {
hat the members of the Kent County /
school Commission should go upon the a
grounds and over the lines of the property {
n question, so as to be able to act intelli- i
gently and. in several Of these cases the
were so necessary that the petit h
ions were granted at once, wilhelm others $
he conditions did not warrant the changes o
II the lines of the school districts. The L
nilage travelled in these cases exceeded in
II 200 miles. The results of the action
AIKEN have been noticed in the subsequent b
Tendance Of pupils at school in these b
istricts. v
One of the most important things for il
ural schools to now consider, IS the 81
of heating and vsnlilating the r.
chool room. In fully ainety-fve per cent
fthe publicr.aai schoolsin Kent County, Il
1ere is no attention given to ventilation, n
T for that matter, properly heating the t.
pom. In most schools the stoves are S
urge and actually heat the room but, the Il
lildren who are seated near these huge n
owes, simply roast during the school il
our period. No provision is made for d
the children from the direct p
ldiation Of heat from the stoves. We e,