Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-04-26
CITY TEACHERS
BELIEVE COUNCIL
WILL PAY MORE
Plea for Increased Salaries Fell
on Receptive Ears Last
Evening.
THE NEED is URGENT

appeared before (1ty Council, liIst IuEpe
petitioning that body to allow the Boaro
of Education S25,0OO additional ior 'he
fiscal year beginning July |, Tor inc pui-
pose of increasing the teachers SALARIES
The delegation was led 10y committee
Somposed Of Misses Elizabeth ID. Hopes,
ELLEN Samworth, Nellie l.. Sawin, Sallc
| Reid Shaw and Florence Ramo. AZ a
| meeting of the teachers about month
ago this committee WAS appointed rs
| their representatives and first took the
plea To the Board of Education, which
| body told the representatives that thcy
| had no funds with which To make the
| increase and il was result OF thus meet
| ing that brought the teachers out In n
| body last night. Never before has the
| Council chamber held such q large dclega-
| tion. The teachers picked out AN excel
| lent night on which to appear, rs every
| member of Council WAS present, rs we'll rs
| President George r. Miller of the Board
| of Education. George Rommcl, ono Of
| tho oldest members of the board, and
| Clifford J. Scott. superintendent of
| schools. who acted rs spokesman for the
teachers and introduced the other speak
| crs.
The teachers were gratlhcd with the
! result of the meeting, as they received the
| assurance of every member ot Council,
with the exception of James w Robert
son, chairman of the finance committee.
that they would receive their support for
the increase asked, Mir Robertson SAID
he would like To sec the teachers get the
amount they had asked for, but that II
they did not receive the full amount they
should not be disappointed
The teachers are of the opinion that the
small ,.-bpu IE
considered that there are 500 teachers
who will have to be brought III on II and
then comparing the local salaries with
those paid teachers IN other cities. II
was pointed out by the teachers that IN
Atlantic CITY. n j.. much smaller than
Wilmington, the assistant of the head OF
| English department is paid 5000 more .
wear than the head Of the local department
| That the time IS coming when something
| will have to be done, il the citizens expect
| 10 maintain the high grade of teaching
now afforded the children of Wilmington,
| is also brought out in the fact that last
week alone eight teachers left the teaching
| force to take up clerical work III offices.
while 40 teachers have recently taken the
| civil service examination oi the govern
mcnt and 45 are al the present time taking
| business courses AZ night school. Should
| :.ll these teachers leave the schools II IS
| evident that hole would be caused that
| would be hard TO FIJI.
TEACHERS NEEDS MADE rLAIN.
| Miss Ellen Samworth. one Of the cold
| guard" OF the local teaching force, laId
| before Council. in a very PLAIN manner,
| lust why the teachers had come to the
meeting and Whist they wanted. She
| said every teacher present thought their
| cause lust and right She pointed out
| that the increased cost Of every living
| force had greatly reduced the value Of the
wages and salaries Of the teachers Miss
| SaInworth told Council that the teachers
| had come 70 the point whore they think II
| essential that their salaries bc increased.
/ She told of how the teaching force of the
| CITY w..s becoming dlSlnteCrated because
! teachers were unable to meet demands on
| them and tn..t the teachers were being
/! lured awav from he schools by the high
| salaries paid in other establishments and
/ schools Of other cities The speaker
pointed out that the teachers had first
/ taken their plea to the Board Of Education
| but there had met with the old answer
| that that body was without funds tC
| meet the increase asked by the teachers
| and II was this answer that caused the
| teachers to come before the city fathers
/ and express their interest IN the Board OF
| Education budget for the coming fisca
year. or at least that part referring to th'
salary of the teachers.
PAY SCALE SUGGESTED.
Miss Samworth said the request wa.
that no salary less than $500 year b,
| paid to a school teacher Of this city II
| the elementary schools. She said that il
| was not right TO ask anyone 70 teach TO
less than this, when II was taken int
| consideration the amount OF training
necessary before q person IS qualified 4
| take up q position OF teaching. She
| pointed out that most Of Wilmington
| teaching force is made up of women, bu
this was no reason to believe that teach
ing did not appeal 10 men; she said it dIt
appeal to men, but the local salaries re
Dellcd them and that was why there Wer
50 many women teaching in the schools
She said some OF the older teachers ar
now beginning TO leave the force and IL
order that the city can continue on ITS lngl
plane OF education 1t Is necessary tina
some step be taken 10 hold the right kln'
of teachers and in order To do 50 the re
quest Of the teachers Is that the maximum
salary in the elementary schools b
! Si,DDU. II tiilS Llai h II llhtly cItc HsAl
that the young teachers had something
10 work for.
In speaking Of the High School salaries
Miss Samworth said the teachers woul
like TO have the maximum salary at TIN
institution fixed at 81 200 and asked tina
heads Of the various departments b
paid 81 800. This last mentioned hgur
appears to be absolutely necessary 1
hold the heads Of the departments a
it was pointed out that the last three head
Of the English department have all LEI
in less than a term it Is the request {
the teachers, said Miss Namworth, tina
the minimum salary Of the principals Of th
elementary schools be fixed at 81 ,lO0
and the maximum be $50, for cacl
teacher over SIX under the principal
In closing, Miss Samworth spoke {
how the teachers had on previous %
casions asked for increase and wer
always told that Council would have t
raise the tax rate TO meet the demand
and she said that il was duty Of COunc
10 fix the city's tax rate 1T figure &
retain its city departments on high lev'
and that it looked ~ though propert
owners were already looking for an il
crease in taxes in face Of the fact that rent
had almost been doubled, The hoo
viii have to be baited little more heav
~, she said IF the sharp point Is NJ
hidden it viii be impossible TO get teaci
ers here and the force will be inadequate,
TEACHERS ARE LOYAL.
Miss Sallie Reid Shaw, another men
Der Of the teachers committee emphasize