Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1915-10-20

rate and distinct buildings, with a view
to beginning earlier than at present,
under the most favorable conditions,
courses of study that most nearly con-
form to the various vocational prefer
ences and adapta bilities of pupils An
excellent report on the general sub
ject of junior high schools was pre-
sented to you several weeks ago by
the chairman of your educational
committee. and In the main received
my hearty endorsement.
But in spite of all this, l do not
believe the organization of junior
high schools at this time will solve
our present problem. If we should
remove to-day all the freshmen from
both high schools and place them in
junior high schools, we should still
hardly be able to accommodate in
our present high schools all the high
school students that would be lett,
to say nothing of any margin Tor
future growth. In other words, we
should still be face to face with the
same problem that has confronted
us for several years.
MY personal conviction is that
junior high schools a me will not
suffice to meet our p. sent educa-
tional needs, and that the supplying
of increased general high school ac-
commodations and facilities as before
outlined alone will meet them.
Plan For Junior Highs
But going back to our ori-
ginal proposition that in our planning
we should plan for the future. how
does the junior high school question
affect the problem? Very greatly, In
my judgment. If junior high schools
have come to stay, as is no doubt the
case, Harrisburg is bound to have
them in the near future and ought TO
begin to plan for them. A part OF
this planning would include the erec-
ton of smaller general high schools
now than 1t would otherwise be nee
essary to provide. A high school large
enough to accommodate 1,2OO girls
and a high school for boys with equal
accommodations would doubtless be
adequate for the needs of the city for
at least fifteen years, even without
junior high schools, and If we in
clude in our plans the adoption in
the meantime of the Junior high school
idea. whereby the freshmen would
eventually be removed from the high
schools, we should then have sutf1-
cient accommodations for many years
to come.
THE continuous growth of the city
would also warrant very careful con-
sideration of the junior high school
question, in our plans for the fu-
ture. for such schools properly To-
Gated would be more accessible TO
pupils and would postpone for a year
the walking of long distances to
school The matter of reducing the
immediate expense, by the erection OF
smaller buildings now than would
otherwise be necessary, VIII also
doubtless appeal to the public in the
consideration of the problem.
Matter of Sites
I'VE shall turn now to the third
of the vital questions we have sug-
gested for discussion-the matter OF
sites. A number of sites have been
advocated during the past few years
of high school agitation. OF course
if the Technical High school is enlarg-
ed to take care of all the boys, there
is no alternative as to the location
of the proposed addition. With ref
erence to sites proposed for the new
school not all in my judgment are
sufficiently central, particularly if it
should finally be decided to erect a
girls school ! think we shall all
agree that wherever the school is To-
Gated 1t should be both central and
easily accessible with reference to all
parts of the city. One proposition
that has been advanced is that the
present Central High school be en-
larged by an extension to Briggs
street. Personally l should regret to
see this done, for two reasons: First,
no addition could be made to the
present building that would harmonlze
architecturally, either externally or IN
ternally. with the old building, and
we should have school partly old
and partly new of which we should
never be proud and with which we
should never be satisfied; and, Sec
ond, were an entirely new building
erected, the present building might be
used to advantage in solving the junior
high school problem.
Park Extension Facing Site
Another site that has been ad-
vocated by many is in North street,
with the new building facing Capitol
Park extension. Such a site would be
both central and accessible and would
be in harmony with the views of
many of our citizens relative to the
grouping of our public and semi
public buildings about the new park
extension. The outlook also would be
all that could be desired.
mo small number of our people
have raised objection to this location,
however on the ground of the expense
which would be involved. Probably
the best way to settle the question of
this particular site would be to in
clude an amount sufficient for its pur-
chase as a separate loan item when
the high school question again comes
before the people for approval. If
majority of the voters are willing
to incur the expense, they will vote
affirmatively on such an item and the
matter will be settled If they should
vote negatively, the whole question OF
site might well be left to the school
board for settlement. This seems to
me the fairest way of disposing of
this particular location, especially be-
cause of the particularly large expen-
diture that is involved.
THE matter of sites for junior high
schools is a matter that need not be
decided at this time. The present
Central High school would serve the
purposes of the junior high school
admirably, with some remodeling,
-. nam high SChnnl erect ed