The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1915-12-17
STATE SUPERVISOR RURAL
SCHOOLS VISITS NEWBERRl
Mr.. LuceO Gunter Spends Three Days
in NeWberTy and Writes About
School Conditions.
Columbia, S. c., Dec. IS, 1915

To the Editor:
1t was my pleasure the past week
to spend three days in Newberry coun-
ty visiting schools in company with
the superintendent of education.
recall with pleasure weeks work
last session on the western side OF
the county and had been looking for
ward to an opportunity to visit some
of the schools on the other side.
Al some of the schools the county
superintendent and found some in
terestng situations and hope that |
may have the pleasure Of reasonably
early return to Newberry to do some
work in furthering the interests OF
these schools. The first school We Wis
ited was the Mt. Pleasant. l was much
pleased with everything we found at
This school with the exception of the
building itself. 1t is to be hoped that
this school will at an early date be
more comfortably housed. Broad River
and Mt. Pleasant make two one-teach-
er schools in rather close proximity,
nut Broad River is now passing
through a crisis due to the unsettled
condition of the farmers Of that sec
fion with reference to the Parr Shoals
backwater.
We visited the Maybinton community
but owing to mishap on the way ar
rived at the school house after the
closing hour. We were, therefore, un-
able TO see anything of the school
work.
The second day of our visit took US
10 Mt. Bethel, Garmany and tNciCrary.
I was greatly pleased with the charac'
ter of the work that is being done in
all three of these schools. Unfortu-
nately there is not modern, comfort
able house for any one OF these
schools. Garmany is without building
entirely, on account Of the cyclone OF
last year. Mt. Bethel and McCrary
are in one-room houses of the old type
without modern arrangements Oh
liebting and hat and cloak rooms
HRre again, l was Impressed with the
inability of the pubis to secure the
nublic school education that they are
entitled to because oflthe natural han
d;cans of the one-teacher school.
Seven grades give as much work as
anv teacher can do effectively, and
L.. nare grades are attempted the
work is necessarily superficial, Tns
result in these communities; therefore,
is that the large boys and girls stop
school before they receive the training
that they ought to receive in the pub
lie school Where it is possible, there
fore, one=teacher schools Ought to be
consolidated so as to give the children
better opportunities of graduation and
classification. These matters should
he considered we'll before any building
improvements are undertaken in these
three communities.
We visited the St. Phillips school,
but arrived after school had been dis
missed. This is an excellent building
and is a distinct credit to the people
of the st. Phillips community,
Thursday morning We visited the
Union and Johnstone schools. The at
tendance at Union is small and the
term is short. This means that the
children of the Union community are
not receiving the many school adVan-
4ages which they should receive. 1t
the school is to be continued more
comforts ought to be provided for the
children and the teacher, and more
funds secured by special taxation for q
longer school term. Without such
provision the boys and girls of this
community will be handicapped in life
because of the meager school oppor-
itunities they are now receiving.
Returning to Newberry, we had only
40 short time to visit the Johnstone
school, but was greatly pleased with
the organization, the spirit and Uhe
character of the work that is being
done. On the,af8eEnoon train we wen:
to Kinards in the interest of new
building at that school. There is
hardly a community in the county
more in need of a new school build
ing than Kinards. l was Impressed
with this condition during, my visit to
Newberry last session, but owing to
the hard times school building enter
nrises could not be urged. The time
1,nTo q