The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-02-01
Plainfield Man Heads the
Winooski Valley Associa-
tion for Next Year
FIFTH CONVENTION
CONCLUDED TO-DAY
The Sessions We're Filled
With Instructive Con-
ferences

The visiting teachers who have 'been
attending the fifth annual conference of
the Winooski Valley Teachers associa-
tion, which has been in session at the
Spaulding high school in Barre for two
days, returned to their homes this after
noon after having had the benefit of at
tending a very instructive convention
The final session was concluded just be-
fore noon to-day, at which the following
officers were elected for the ensuing year
President, Supt. W. b. Lance of Plain
field; vice president, Supt w. F Glover
of Wiliiamstown; secretary, Ralph Mayo
Of Cabot; treasurer, Miss Rose Lucia OF
Montpelier; executive committee, Miss
Caroline NJ. Griswold of Montpelier, Supt
Martin Chaifee of Waterbury and Prin
Lyman Hunt of Barre. Although no an
nouncement was made, it is expected that
the next convention will be held in Mont
pelier.
The formal session this forenoon
opened shortly after o'clock with music
by the eighth grade chorus of the city
schools and the speakers of the day were
State Commissioner of Education NJ b
Hillegas, who talked on Educational
Conditions" and Prin, John G. Thompson
Of the Fitchburg, Mass, Normal school
who spoke on What Education Can
Do"
AT the outset of his talk, Commissioner
Hillegas, on request, outlined the teacher
pension bin which is going before the
present session of the Vermont legisla-
ture. The bills provisions are not obliga-
tory on anyone in the teaching profes-
sion and after six years a teacher can
get back what he or she has paid in
with the addition of compound interest
at the rate paid by the banks. There is
an equal amount of relief Forthcoming
from the state.
Turning to his topic, Commissioner
HilIegas said that before the present war
there were complaints against the public
school system, one complaint being that
too many women were employed as
teachers and that the boys were being
made "sisses" and untitled for life. He
said that prominent educators and the
president of the League to Enforce Peace
had made statements along that line
Since the war, however. nothing of that
nature had been charged, it having been
proven that the men and the women were
fitted for the harder things Of life.
Commissioner Hillegas said that for
merly there was wide gulf between vS
cational and cultural training but that
the two had been brought together re-
Gently. The war had proven, for in
tance, that vocational training was built
on cultural training and that those who
had the cultural training were very
often those who gained promotion The
speaker defended the American school
system by saying that three distinct Jap
anese commissions had been sent to the
United States to study the American
educational system, It being the purpose
to replace the system in Japan which
had been modelled after the German
Principal johnson Of Fitchburg gave a
splendid address and proved quite effec-
tually that education creates things, that
it makes efficient men and women. At
the close the new president, Supermtend
ent Lance, was called to the chair and he
declared the convention adjourned sine
die