El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1920-11-17
Mayor Davis Is Criticised
By School Board Member
In Teachers Bonus Debate

dressed TO the board. was as tolloWs'
The Teachers association desires TO
call your attention TO certain matters
connected with the letter presented
by them at the last regular meeting
OF the school board
"As you viii remember. at a joint
meeting Of the board with the teach-
ersf executive committee last spring a
verbal promise was made that, should
money be appropriated by the state
for that purpose, IL would be given TO
Since the bill was passed. in June,
appropriating a special fund for
teachers salaries. the teachers OF FL
Paso fully expected that the board
would attend TO distributing this as
soon as possible. They have been at
alEtlmes loyal 70 the school board ana
have had fun confidence that the
promise would be kept. should this
confidence be shaken, II viii result in
such general dissatisfaction as viii
be almost a calamity The feeling OF
good VIII and cooperation between
trustees and teachers viii .unques-
tionably be broken This VIII prove
a distincr detrimeut TO the schools
40 New Teachers.
This is especially true in view OF
the fact that, Of $50 teachers in the
schools this year, 120 are new, show
ing that one-thitd OF our teachers Of
last year have gone 10 other places
80 % =aA-AHAA-H--A 80 AAAa-@ $1,000
tory.
"As you are aware, mayor Davis has
stated his conviction that s58,102 Of
the state appropriation belongs TO the
teachers ana that ne has no intention
or claiming any part OF II The as
ISOLATION appreciates this action on
the part OF The mayor, and hopes that
the school board VIII accept his de-
cision-
Trusting that some decisive action
will ken HHn nrnnnHHmnr nH the
board tonight concerning the dispose
ton OF the fund"
Clayf0n's Reply.
To this Walter s. Clayton. president
Of the board, made the following re-
ply:
II acknowledge receipt Of your COM
munication and in reply desire 10 cal
your attention to the following facts:
NO promise, verbal or otherwise,
was made at the joint meeting OF the
board with some teachers last spring.
Nor was such promise as is stated in
the second paragraph OF your letter
made at any other time By the board.
The fourth paragraph OF your let
ter contains serisus miscellaneous, as
our records show that Of the 300
teachers OF last year IS failed TO re-
turn their contracts chis year. and Of
this 75, 10 were dropped, 81 were mar
ried and only 20 saw fit 70 change
HuA44AlLAlN 70 lLLeE LEalAllE POSI-
lions, instead OF IS Ia percent. OF 20
in number.
y am Of the opinion that the school
board OF the Independent school dis
trict Of FL Paso Is the body 70 decide
about the application OF the finances
of public schools here and that de-
cision in such matters does not rest
with any one else.
Claim Generosity.
Permit me 10 remind you that the
ordinary course Of procedure last Nay
would have been TO close the schools
for the summer without reelection OF
teachers or the fixing Of salaries. The
state superintendent urged teachers
and school boards = leave the month
Of June an open month without en-
terinE into contracts II We had done
this the legislature would have added
by its appropriation about $50 70 the
pay Of teachers for the previous year,
and this would probably represent
your salary Increase nof over that Of
last year.
Instead OF fouowiuk this course
the school board. wirzinE in the
teachers interest. set II the end Of