New Britain herald., 1915-10-18
EVENING SCHOOLS
 SELF SUPPORTING
Acting School Visitor Suggests That Pupils Pay For Tuition
TOWN FURNISH SCHOOL ROOM

Play "45"-Assembly Officers Here Advocating an evening school that
 will be practically self supporting.
 Rev H. T. Walsh in his annual re- port as acting school visitor, sug-
 gests that the pupils make voluntary
 contributions to cover the expense of
 tuition, the town providing the school
 room, heat, light and janftor service. Father Walsh believes that the night
 school experiment as made last year
 was sufficiently successful to warrant
 a continuation of the movement this
 year with the pupils paying part of the expense.
 The message was forwarded to
 First Selectman Johnson early in
 September but owing to a misunder-
 standing on the part of that official It was not made public until today.
 The statement should have been
 printed in the annual town report,
 following 8 precedent established
 more than quarter of a century ago
 but the selectman didr< understand
 that it was intended for the public
 owing to the fact that it was addressed
 to the school committee in conform
 ance with a custom with which he
 seemingly was not acquainted. Since the report was submitted the
 matter of continuing the evening school has been favorably acted on,
 the voters having appropriated $175 to cover the expense of forty-eight sessions. In competitor with the
 discussion incident to the passing of the resolution covering the appropria- | tion, one of the members of the school committee explained to the meeting | that a number of the prospective pu- | pills had expressed a willingness to | pay part of the cost of their instruc- l ton. He believed that contributions | will be made by the classes towards | the expense and the cost to the town 1 will be very small.
 Tn the acting school visitors report there are many practical suggestions. Father Walsh also calls attentiN to
 the high standard maintained in tine local schools
 The report follows:
 Members of the Plainville School Board:
 "In June of the current year we completed, in my opinion, one of the most successful years in the history of our Graded School and I believe
  ing the year and their standing at the end of the year will amply prove the correctness of the above state ment; this commendable condition was due not alone to the diligence of the children, and much appreciative credit is cheerfully given to the efficiency of our teachers and the stimulating and encouraging influences which they exercised over the pupils in their re- spective departments.
 "The personnel of our teachers for tie coming term, will be much changed from that of last year, as We have been obliged to secure five new incumbents for as many departments in our school. These changes are due in one instance to a resignation re- ceived, and in another to i'll health; in two instances we were obliged to allow two most excellent teachers to leave us for the reason that their qualifications made it possible for them to obtain positions elsewhere. at salaries considerably over and above the compensation they were receiving from us; these instances are only two of many other similar cases wherein we were obliged to part with super excellent teachers, who naturally were attracted by the higher saleries that had been offered to them by others; in the fifth case a new teacher was
 needed for a practically new grade,
 which Is now taught in the depart ment originally intended for kinder garten work.
 We have not as yet had an oppor tunity to observe the work and methods of our new instructresses, but we hope for their success, as of course the character of their work will regu- late the length of their engagement. "Our Plainville school stands high, in comparisons with others through-
 out the state of Connecticut, not only
 in those many features which provide
 for the accomm odation and comfort
 Of the children, but also in its relation
 to those facilities and opportunities
 which make for the intellectual ad- vancement of those in attendance
 "This fact is admitted by the com l potent representatives of the state board of education, and the conscious
 ness of such conditions obtaining is | very gratifying to us.
 T think it somewhat unfortunate 1 however, that the vast majority of our l townspeople must simply take my | word or that of some other individual, | regarding the indisputa ble truth of l the above declarations. In my opinion, | it is very little to the credit of Plain | vile people that they do not in much 1 larger numbers, realize and recognize | from actual observation and visitation to the school, the splendid work our
 institution is doing for their chill Gren; the record of the visitors to the school, if taken as an infallible indi- cation of the interest of parents in the school, would discredit very appre- | cldbly some of the fathers and l mothers under nllr suneryision. and I