The Marietta journal. (Marietta, Ga.) 1918-1944, 1920-09-03
Our Public School System
and Board of Education.

lions from both the present law and the proposed
charter relative to our public schools and the City
Board of Education. We earnestly urge our read
ers to acquaint themselves fully with the changes
which proposed to be brought about in our school
system, II the new charter be ratified on September
22nG next
" bile casual reading of the new charter which
ostenslbly appears to provide for the continued
maintenance of the Board of Education might lead
one to believe that the present school system is not
materially affected, in reality the most radical
changes in the same are embodied in the new charter
under which changes the Board of Education is to
becoming merely subsidiary branch of the city gov
eminent, almost wholly subservent to the mayor
and council AND THE CITY MANAGER and alb
solutely dependent upon the mayor and council for
It's creation and continued existence These con-
clusions here expressed we propose to demonstrate
by reference to the plain language of the new
charter
Ia the first place the proposed charter does not
ITSELF CREATE the Board of Education Read
the hrSt sentence of Section 16, as follows ''That
the mayor and council shall by ordinance CREATE
and define the duties of the following officers and
boards, among which is the Board of Education
so, II we are to have under the new charter Board
OF Education at all, we must depend upon the mayor
and council to first create it.
Now, read down further in this same Section 16
where this language appears The foregoing officers
and board shall be subject to any and all provisions
OF TINS charter pertaining to same" What are some
OF these provisions? Look at the last paragraph of
Section Is, where we find this s'The Board of Edu
cauon snail perform such duties as may be re-
CURED OF them by the mayor and council" If this
doesn t make the board subservient to the mavor
and council, then, what does it mean? But this is
INIT no ,I,,t II ccD+ A., IL,
at Section 81, which defines the duties of the city
manager and read the fourth paragraph where we
md this language the city manager shall exercise
CONTROL AND SUPERVISION over ALL DE
PAYMENTS AND OFFICES THAT MAY BE
CREATED BY THE MAYOR AND COUNCIL"]
Could language be palmer? If there is going to be-
under the new charter, any Board of Education at
ALL 1t must first be created by the mayor and council
and, II created it then becomes subject to the con
troll and supervision and orders of both the mayor
and council aud the city manager. What kind Of
board do YOU think that would be?
But even that ism t all Look at Section 3S
where the mayor and council are specifically author
lied to discontinue any such office or department
AT THEIR DISCRETION except Department of
Finance which shall include City Clerk and THE
OFFICE OF CITY MANAGER" The same section
which creates ostensibly the Board of Education,
creates the Office Of City Manager. The mayor and
council may AT THEIR DISCRETION abolish the
Board Of Education, but the pay department and
the pay-maser shall go on forever
However, granting that the mayor and council,
under the charter will be gracious enough to
allow us to have Board of Education. let S look and
how such a board. III the scope of its powers and
duties, will compare with present board. AS
will be from the existing law, which is quoted
on the front page, our present Board of Education
is a separate corporation, created BY LAW, not by
the mayor and council; its powers and duties are
clearly defined BY LAW, not by the mayor and
council it has exclusive management of and control
over the CityS public schools and all school pro-
perty; it has its own organization, elects its own
officers, Chairman Secretary and Treasurer; it has
set apart to it, BY LAW not by the mayor and coun-
c and for it's alone, certain specifically desg-
mated sources of income it is absolutely independent
of the mayor and council in both its organization
and its operations.
How Will It Be Under The New Charter?
IF created,sit will be by the mayor and council
IF created its duties will be defined by the mayor
and council VI created, it will have limited author
ty over the Schools themselves and none school
pToperty It viii not be able to control even its owr