Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1914-05-27

The law creating the Commission
specifies that the duties shall be Ito
make careful study and investigation
Of conditions in this state with respect
to public education, including the pub
lie school system and public educational
institutions, and the relation of the
educational institutions one to another
and to the public school system; to re-
wise, collate, and make a digest of all
laws and decisions relating to or touch
ing upon public education in this state;
to recommend a general plan for the
organization and administration Of pub
lie education and public educational in
situations. The general purpose of the
Commission shall be to effect economy
and efficiency with respect to the sew
eral branches of public education in this
state, and to devise plans and make rec
concentrations for the teaching Of voca-
tional and industrial education in the
high schools of the state"
The constructive work of the Com
mission is directed particularly then to-
ward the two large fields of
First: The organization and adminis-
tration of education in the public
schools and in all the public educational
institutions of the state.
Second: The state aid of public
schools.
The program as thus outlined in the
law Is not radical, but seeks rather to
make more specific, and more real GER
tain general tendencies in education
which are already present in the state.
The Commission in following out this
nr0pr9m haC 30
study and consideration Of facts gath
cred from the field, reached certain con-
illusions which are here outlined
These conclusions are not necessarily
final. The purpose of submitting them
at this time is to give everyone a
chance to say what he thinks of these
proposals and to make such suggestions
as he wishes. The Commission urgent
ly invites such discussion.
These conclusions apply only to the
organization and administration Of the
public schools of the state The Com
mission expects soon to be able to make
a statement of it's proposals concerning
the state aid of public schools. Later
IN the year, before it's final report is
submitted, the Commission proposes to
hold in different parts of the state a
series Of public hearings. 1t hopes
thus to give the fullest publicity pos
sible to it's plans and to know the opin-
ion of the state upon them before they
are submitted in final form.
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION.
In public school administration the
Commission has in mind the following:
I. A State Board of Education to be
composed of five or seven members ap-
pointed by the governor for terms of
three or five years each, a part of the
membership retiring each year. The
members shall receive their personal
and travelling expenses and ten dollars
$50 per day for attendance at regular
and special meetings and when serving
on behalf of the board. This board
would
A. Replace and exercise all the pow
ers of
I. The state high school board.
2. The normal school board.
B. The state library commission.
4. The board for the special schools
for the deaf and blind.
B. Supervise the educational work OF
the correctional and penal insti.
tutions of the state
The board of regents of the state
| university shall remain but shall have
| no ex-officio members, and wheneye,
questions arise which affect institutions
over which the state board of educa.
ton has supervision, and the university
then the law shall compel conferences
between these two boards to determine
| the policies to be adopted
The administrative agent of the state
| board of education shall be the State
Superintendent of Education, who shall
be elected by them and serve at thei,
pleasure.
II. School Districts shall be of three
classes:
!. Special-All cities over $4,000
population. This would limit
these to St. Paul, Minneapolis
and Duluth.
2. Independent-An districts not
special and containing a high
or graded school.
3. Common-One district for each
county, which district woulG
include all the territory of g
county not in special or in.
dependent district. In effect
this means that all rura
schools in each county would
comprise one school district.
III. Local Boards of Education shall
continue as now in the distri It's desis.
| mated above as special, and in the ones
designated as independent except that
in the latter the board would have five
instead of six members. Common
school districts shall be administered
by a board of five members, each mem
Der serving for three years and elected
| at large from that part of the county
| included in the common district.
The powers Of the special and indie.
pendent district boards shall remain as
| they now are except that boards of in
dependent districts shall be authorized
to contract with superintendent and
teachers for number of years.
The board Of the common district of
each county shall have power:
l. To sub-divide the district for pur-
poses of school attendance and school
administration and for voting on school
questions.
2. To levy taxes for the maintenance
of all schools in the district.
g. To make levies for school buildings
and sites. ~ .--
4. With the approval of the state
board of education to issue bonds up to
two per cent Of the assessed realty val
uation Of the district. Any issue of
bonds beyond this amount must first be
f11r