The Twin City star. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1910-19??, 1916-10-14
RURAL TRAINING
SCHOOLS SOUTH:
Necessity For Better Prepared
Teachers Clearly Shown.
MANY AGENCIES At WORK.

MANI HOEUUIIO NJ WUulNs
Elsht Southern States Are co-operat-
Ina With the General Education
Board For the improvement Of coun-
try School Faeilities-Attitude Of su-
psrvisors 10 Friendly. K
!. There is being developed in the south
new type Of school for Negro youth
Snown as the county training school.
This development is being fostered by
I've Slater board, cooperating with
tublic school authorities in the cOun
lee, says James l. Sibley in the South
i'm Workman. Any system Of publicly
Imported education in the south is
based upon the county as the unit.
This is as true of the Negro as of the
white public schools. The fostering of
q county system adequately supported
and adequately supervised occupies the
efforts Of educational forces at work In
the field at the present time.
A number Of agencies are helping In
this development Eight southern
states, through cooperation with the
general education board. employ super
visors Of their rural elementary Negro
schools, who devote their time to the
Improvement of these schools in the
several counties and also help to bring
about better supervision on the part of
tho public school authorities. The
Jeanes fund assists in this develop
ment by bearing portion of the ex,
pense necessary to employ the super
vtaing Industrial teachers.
Their effort has been not only TO
teach elementary industries to boys
and girls, but TO stimulate general i'm,
provement in the physical condition of
school buildings and grounds and to
reach the homes Of the children, thus
developing a spirit Of community co
operation. There Is also the Rosen
wald fund, which has brought about
directly the erection Of new rural
school buildings properly equipped by
securing the cooperation of all the
forces in the community, both public
and private, Of both races.
An the forces involved In the estab
ushment Of q public system of elemen-
tary education seem therefore to have
been set In motion.
Il IL true that the higher institutions
for the training Of Negro youth, such
% Hampton and Tuskegee, the state
normals and the agricultural schools.
arc turning out graduates who are able
70 cope with conditions as they find
them. Many Of these graduates be-
come teachers in the better schools for
their race. 10 -.
' There remains, however, the prob
lem of obtaining adequately prepared
teachers for the average rural com
munities in the south, and this prob
lem Is a difficult one, for 1t is beyond
the means Of the majority of Negro
teachers to attend these higher and
distant institutions of learning. The
need for some sensible, practical schoo
In each county to help meet this de
mand has long been evident Such
school should offer training little
more advanced than the average rura
school and should be a part Of thu
public school system Of the county
This conclusion was reached by DR.
James n. Dilard, president Of thu
Slater board, after years Of expert
anra and Investigation
In many counties there are strug
cling Negro schools which offer some
advanced training to students. blu
these are generally poorly equipped
lack adequate funds and are oftel
pretentious in name as well as In tn
course of study. To have these schools
turned over TO the public school au
thorities. to have funds appropriate'
for their maintenance and to secur
properly prepared teachers for then
have been some Of the problems to b
solved ..
The south has to support dual sys
TEN of schools, which makes II all tn
more difficult to secure sufficient fund
for either race. yet the response o.
the part of the southern county super
intendents has been cordial Applica
lions from the counties have bee
greater than the funds could supply
and in the case Of number Of school
the general education board has al
sisted in providing equipment for adj
quate work
There In much In the traditions
course of study to be avoided Tn
very name-county training school
indicates that II Is Of new typ
These schools cover from eight to tie
grades of work. Three courses are o.
fered-namely. agriculture for boy
household arts for girls and teache
training during the last year for thoi
Who dessre 70 teach In the rural schso'