The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1919-05-29
N 9TH ING MUST
PREVENT EDUCATION

or to permit them to 90 to work, as
they may desire. 1t is the right of
America that it's citizens Of tomorrow
shall be intelligent voters. And it is
for the State to insist that every child
must be given its full educational OPP
portunity.
The question of regular school at
tendance is local one. It is q state
wide problem. It affects the country
at large. And the only solution is q
community atmosphere such that no
parent or. guardian will be acceptable
In = community who seeks to defraud
any child Of his educational birthright,
and who seeks thereby to defraud his
government of q better trained citi-
zen.
A Back-to-the-School drive will be
inaugurated in the city schools next
fall. Your support is earnestly re-
quested for that work. In the country
at large thousands of boys and girls
are permitted to leave the schools for
labor, sometimes under pressure of
supposed war time need, sometimes
without evident reason. It is of eco
nomic and patriotic Importance that
these coming citizens be made TO re-
ceive their full allotment of educa-
Of America.
A movement towards larger rec
ignition of the value of education is
found in the Towner Educational Bill
which proposes the establishment of
secretaryship of education, to be
represented in the Presidents cabinet.
This is in keeping with the action Of
Italy and England 1t would do much
to place educational interests on a !
more stable basis, for at the present
time, some 70 little bureaus under
take, without closely correlated &C.
ton, to care for the educational in !,
terests of the United States. Educa-
ton has far outgrown the bureau" j
stage. A further point of interest in
the bill is an appropriation of hun !
dred million dollars for encourage
ment of education in the several
states. l propose that the Rotary
Club support this measure before our
congressman.
In our own state, there is an edu-
cational bill of some moment, that
we believe has some serious errors
in it. Senate Bill 1874 provides for a
state board of education. Thus far
it is all right, for such board is
desirable. But it is not desirable to
link together all the public institu-
tions of the state, for there is nothing
in common between the penitentiary
and the normal schools, or between
other penal institutions and the uni
versities. Further the appointment,
without even ratification by the SEN
ate, of three salaried members of the
board makes it very open to political
intrigue. There should be no salaried
board. It is the experience of othe.
states, that patriotic and broad mind
ed men can always be found to as
sumo such responsibilities without a
salary, and the fixing of salary
furthers the candidates. of politicians.
It is further Objectionable on the
ground that the state superintendent
becomes merely one of the five mem :
bers of the board, and is practically
shorn of his power; he is not ex-
officio chairman of the board; he has
no specific standing with the board;
he has no responsibilities, nor initiative,
no powers other than those enjoyed in
common by all the members of the
board. This places the only elective
member in a position to be readily
outweighed by the three appointive
members. If it meets with your
judgment, l feel the influence of this
organization should be thrown toward
the defeat of this bill at the coming
referendum.