The Twin City star., 1914-05-29
IMPROVING THE
COUNTRY SCHOOLS
Value Of a Cooperative Edu.
CatIOnaI Experiment.
RAW MATERIAL MADE USEFUL
How the "Schools In the Background"
Are Contributing Toward the Races
Representatives. Made Useful
and Attractive Under Most Diseour-
aging Conditions.

Prosress-Institutions Made Useful
aging Conditions.
DR.. James Hardy billiard, president
Of the Jeanes board, often refers to the
one room Negro rural schools in the
southern states as schools in the back
ground" His description is as accu-
rate as it is vivid. From the little
rural schools come some of the best
raw material to be trained at Hamp-
ton, Tuskegee and other industrial
schools for useful and safe race lead
ership. To the rural districts of the
south the graduates Of Hampton and
Tuskegee return as progressive teach
ers, mechanics and farmers for lives of
willing sacrifice.
Recently party of forty-eight
thoughtful northern pilgrims" to
Hampton visited as part of the ami
versary program some Of the rural Ne
gro schools lying near the edge of
Hampton's home county and saw-evi-
dently with thrills of surprise and de-
light-what colored women. trained and
inspired by Hampton, have been doing
to make the one room, overcrowded Ne.
gro schools useful and attractive. even
under most 'discouraging conditions
the inertia and Indifference of the par
ents, the lack of public school money
and the irregular attendance Of pupils,
which is due to bad roads.
That there are some modern heroines,
not all Of whom are white. da WINS upon
those who visit these out of the way
rural schools.
The gradual improvement Of many
schools in the background" in Vir-
ginia, for example. is the result of
happy and well planned experiment in
cooperative educational association.
The Jeanes board. the Virginia state
department Of education, Hampton in
shtute and the local school boards have
pulled together and have demonstrated
clearly that white people and black
people, northerners and southerners.
can work together on a common plat
form at social service for the education
of country boys and girls who need for
their life work good rural schools and.
above all, capable and faithful teach
ers.
Jackson Davis. a we'll trained young
southern white man of charming per-
sonality. has served most efficiently for
four years as the state supervisor Of
negro schools in Virginia. He reports
that last year the twenty-five colored
industrial supervising teachers, work.
ing in twenty-seven Virginia counties.
helped the rural colored teachers OF the
state in introducing cooking, sewing.
home making and manual training in
their schools and put new life into
many Negro communities.
The result was that the Negroes
themselves raised in twenty-five coun-
ties nearly $4,000 in cash for the i'm
provement Of their school buildings,
lengthening Of the school term and the
improvement Of physical equipment.
Such evidences as well made dresses,
aprons and underwear. attractive jars
Of canned vegetables and fruits, useful
baskets Of raffia and white oak. fresh
garden vegetables and neat papers in
arithmetic. spelling and composition in
dicate that the Negro race, with the
help Of young Negro men and women
who are properly trained for teaching
and are disciplined for service. is max
ing progress and that the schools in
the background" are making their con-
tributions to the races progress in spite
of neglect. isolation and the lack of
general public interest.