Bridgeton pioneer., 1916-11-30
SCHOOL AT
WOODSTOWN
Central Idea Will Get Its
Test.
BIG STRUCTURE.
Woodstown and Pinegrove $780, :
600 Building Will Be Dedi-
Gated Friday.


ceived by the School Boards of Pine
grove Township and the borough of
WOodstown, in the erection of a $780,
900 central school building, a model
in construction and equipment, which
will be dedicated on Friday, Decem-
ber l.
Local patriotic organizati tions have
taken the lead in planning for the
dedication, which will be signalized
by the presence of State Commission
er of Education Calvin N. Kendall,
who will make the principal address.
Another speaker will be Rev. Samuel
A. Harker, former pastor of the Clay
ton Presbyterian Church, now State
Councilcr of the Junior Order of Unit
ed American Mechanics, Woodstown
council of this order will present
Bible to the school The presentation
will be made by Rev. G. W. Yard
Judge Edward G. Wadd.ngton, who
resides in Woodstown, will present a
nag, the gift of the local camp OF
the Patriotic Sons of America The
high school chorus will sing patriot
ic songs and there will be selections
by the school orchestra.
The completion of the large and
well-equipped school building, with
its twenty-one class rooms, large au-
ditorium, offices, laboratories, etc.,
will make it possible for school Off
Gals of the district to work out to the
most advanced degree the centralized
educational system, which has long
been recommended by leading educa-
tors as being the most practical and
efficient. All of the old schoolhouses
in the town and most of those in the
township have been closed, and the
pupils all gathered together in the
central school. Transportation facili-
ties have been provided for the chill
dren from the country districts where
the small one and two-room school
houses have been closed. 1t is pro-
posed to establish a system of school
lunches by which these country chill
dren will be able to get hot, nourish-
ing food at cost during the cold win
ter months
State and local officials expect the
central school to help them solve
some vexing problems as to the hold
ing and securing of efficient teachers.
One of the big problems of rural edu-
cation has been to get teachers who
really are efficient at the small salar-
les that most of the small township
school boards pay. By thus grouping
together all of the pupils from one or
two districts, the educators figure
that they can get along with fewer
) teachers and that they will thus be
able to pay better salaries and get
more efficient instructors Another
difficulty that has been overcome is
the securing of young women who are
willing to teach in the isolated coun-
cilities are poor and suitable board
ing places uncertain. School officials
say that they find that by far the
largest percentage of applicants for
places as teachers want town schools
rather than those Ia the country.
Boys can play ball and shiny at
will in the Woodstown schoolyard
without any danger of breaking win
dows in the schools or in neighbors'
houses and there still will be room
enough left outside of the Fairgrounds
for demonstra plots for classes
in agriculture, and alao for school
gardens. Steps have been taken for
laying out the grounds attractively
and many shade trees have been
planted
The school and grounds complete,
with all furnishing and equipment,
including heating and lighting. rep
resent an outlay of approximately
100000. The building alone, which
is 200 feet long and so feet wide, con-
structed of red brick with white ter
ia Gotta trimmings, cost about $72,000
and was built by Alexander Chambley
a Philadelphia contractor. 1t was
designed by Albert w. Dilks, also OF
Philadelphia.