St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1916-03-25
Increase in School Expenses
and Decrease in State
Appropriation and
Assessments.
CANNOT KEEP HIGH
SCHOOL FULL TERN
General Fund of $S1, 200 In
adequate to Meet Ex-
penses of This or
Coming Year.
Covington, La. March %, 1916

COvingtOn, La. March %, 1915.
Editor st. Tammany Farmer:
In two of your recent issues of
The Farmer you have mentioned the
critical condition OF the school finan-
ces of the parish, and especially here
in the third ward With the idea OF
bearing out what you have stated
and to shed light upon the reasons
for this shortage, beg to submit
the following:
Four years ago the monthly pay
roll ofothe white teachers OF the par
ish was $500, and We were able
to run from the general fund seven
months. At that time over half 0
the teachers had second or thirt
grade certificates with small sala-
'ries.
Since that time we have had mos
of our teachers secure first grade GER
tificates which carried with it an in
crease in salary. The board has
voted to give five dollars month
extra to those who have taught in
the parish for as much as ten years.
They have voted to pay for 3 days
of sickness provided they could fur
nish a Doctors certificate.
We have been obliged to engage
more teachers because of an increase
in attendance, as follows
Central. L; Covfngtoa, :; Pilgrim
Rest, /; Union Grove. L; SlileN. d;
Ramsay, q; Maud. i; Todd. l; Gallo
way, l.; Talisheek, 2. This increase
Of sixteen teachers together with the
other reasons above mentioned has
caused the white teachers salaries
one month to increase $1,000, or TO:
term Of six months, to increase
S4SCC; DLt our incom: for the gen
eral fund has not increased any.
Any one can see from the above
that we must necessarily run into
trouble il we contiue under these
lconditions. Z.
I In l911-12 it cost for white teach
ers for six months $4,000. IN
1856 it cost for white teachers
$29,SO5. Paying for three sick
days for teachers, $138.88 for 1919
lis. Driving school transfers six
months, $1OO5.0O for 1856. Pur-
chase Of transfers (three new ones)
$4l2.76, bought this year. Making
a total Of $31,361.63.
When we consider the fact that
the entire income for the general
fund for last year was about $3l 900
we can see how we run short when
we include the colored teachers, for
one year, $31O0, cost OF school board
meetings, insurance, repairs for
buildings In wards where we have
|no special taxes, floor oil and disin-
lfectant and the cost OF running the
)superintendent's Office.
The above will show the reader
that the school board will be obliged
to reduce the number Of months o1
school next year that will be run BY
the general fund, at least one month
or employ only third and second
grade teachers.
/ In regard to the Covington high
school finances l desire to state tha'
three years ago we voted specia
Itax of one and half mill for main
Itenance, and with this we expected
to supplement the general fund tern
enough to guarantee nine months.
At that time the general funt
was giving us seven months, and oul
high school appropriation was $500
We had an assessment in this ware
LOT $1,35O,788, and the salaries o
our teachers was $685. month.
Now we have two more teachers
the general fund runs this year 81,
months (next year not over fve)
and the assessment has dropped t
|$1,170.419. In other words, tn
conditions of the two different time
may be tabulated something like tn
following:
Year 191f.12.
Teachers salaries for 2
+. n