Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-01-28
UNIVERSITY SEEKS 70 CONTROL
PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM OF
ENTIRE STATE.
NASTY FIGHT DEVELOPING
OVER SUPERINTENDENT
"Highsr Education" Crowd Seeking to
Make Public Schools More Stepping
Stones to Colleges and University,
Opposition to Dsyos centsrs on Me-
ConnelI.
Special to Times Republican.


Des Moines. Jan. 2S--Another ele-
ment has been injected into the rivalry
for head of the common schools of the
state by entrance of j. J. Mcconnell,
Of Cedar Rapids, in the race this week.
Either State Superintendent A. NJ.
Deyoe, or some one in sympathy with
the general forward movement in ed
ucational matters, will be appointed to
head the department. of education, or
it will be Professor Mcconnell, the
present head of the Cedar Rapids
schools. The opposition to Deyoe
seems to have centered on Mcconnell.
Across the top OF big calendar is
ed this statement:
THE state university is the head Of
the public school system of Iowa"
Around that thought is built up the
fight that is in progress now for con-
troll of the department of public in
struction.
There are two schools Of thought in
regard to the educational work of the
state in regard to the common schools.
That which has been developed by the
department, under the administrat tons
Of Deyoe, Riggs and Barrett, and just
now coming to elimination, is that
the effort of the state in the direction
Of education should be to magnify the
Importance of the common schools, to
make them efficient in every way, to
effect consolidation wherever possible
an dto improve the work in the one
room schools, to always have it in
mind that so per cent of the boys and
girls never get beyond the eighth grade
and not over 2 or 8 per cent Of the en-
tire body of young folks ever go be-
You'd the high schools. Therefore it
is important that the educational sys-
tenn of the state be so administered as
to get the best possible results for the
great majority of pupils for whom
either the grades or the high schools
are finishing body. This was the
thought for which the state honors
Barrett and which is today the central
thought in the department as now adj
ministered.
Tho Narrower View.
The other school holds that the
common schools. the grades and the
high schools. should all lead directly
to the university or the colleges, that
everything should be bent to this END.
and that the original plan OF the state
educational work for Iowa was to have
the state university fact as we'll as
In name the very keystone of the edu-
cattonal system. Now it is claimed
that Superintendent Deyoe has OPP
posed this view and has not cooper
ated with the state board Of education
In bringing about harmony between
the opposing views. Another element
has also been introduced just now. 1t
Is the fight over teachers pensions. It
is claimed that Deyoe has not con-
scented to make the pension system a
part OF his program tho indorsing it
and not at any time opposing. So the
advocates of pensions want someone
else for head of the department.
The situation has already become
cidedly ugly and embarrassing. 1t can
be said for the present state superin-
tendent that he nor anyone of his force
nor his friends, have taken any hand
IN the fight, but he appears to be rest
ing on the thought that either the work
OF the department is a sufficient rec
ommendation or it ought to be con-
demned. This week flood of letters
have been in circulation for Mcconnell
and 1t is declared that strong political
forces have become active.