The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-12-20
MONDAY, DECEMBER, 20, 1920.
SCHOOL SUPERVISION.

Valuable contributions to information
for the public regarding the educational
system of Vermont and its workings are
being given by educational authorities
and the press of the state. The Burling-
ton Free Press gives in quite condensed
form information regarding the present
system of school supervision. 1t says in
part:
One Of the most pronounced changes
made by the law of 1915 related to
school supervision. The law saws the
state board shall appoint a sufficient
number of trained educators as superin-
tendents to insure a reasonable supervi-
sion of all public schools within the state
and also designate the schools over
which each superintendent shall have
supervision, and fix the salary thereof,
except that a town having % or more
legal schools may hire its own superin-
tendent.
The act also provided that the COM
missioner of education subject to the ap-
prOval of the state board shall employ a
sufficient number of trained and capable
tate supervisors as the board might au-
thorize, whose work should not be con-
fined to any particular section.
Former State Commissioner Hillegas
in his first annual report following the
adoption of the new system, showed
that 30 of the 66 superintendent in the
tate were directly appointed by the state
board and paid by the state entirely.
The state was divided into supervision
districts of which Chittenden county,
for example. contained four beside the
Burlington district.
The Hillegas report shows that for
1915 the cost of school supervision was
800. 3S4.1G. For the school year ending
June 30, 1916. the state paid $110,993.1 IS
for supervision. including S17,950 as the
states share toward the salaries of II
superintendent in cities and towns hav-
ing % or more legal schools.
The Hillegas report shows the cost to
the state of supervision under the old
system ran as follows 1900, $15,537.73
1909, $@19299.G6; 1910, $62.055.70;
1871, $7td33.69; 1872, $7L00312;
After the passage of the new law the
cost of supervision was only about ST.
600 more despite the largely increased
service.
Chairman johnson of the state board
in his address to the superintendent in
Montpelier the other day, showed that
the salaries and expenses of su%perintend-
ents this year will approximate $780,
600, which covers the entire expense of
supervision except in the cities and
towns cited above. Mr.. Johnson showed
that there are now 2,349 legal element
airy schools in the state so that the av-
erage cost of supervision to the state is
about $50 per school each year. He
shows that the average contribution of
the rural towns to the school und is so
small that if the superintendent were
abolished it would pay for only the most
meager kind of supervision in other
form. -
The new commissioner of education,
Clarence A. Dempsey, is also discussing
the supervision system with the public.
In st. Johnsbury recently he said:
Much criticism is aimed at the exist
ing system of supervision, and it is very
easy to point out many manifest short
comings. The superintendent no doubt
admit and point out more defects than
outsiders would. Some dissatisfaction
is due to the men themselves, some to
the nature and extent of the districts.
some to the limitations of equipment
and support. some to the salaries paid
and some to the system. 1t is highly
probable that the present system with
its superintendent, teacher training
class. and state financial aid, prevented
the rural schools of Vermont from going
to the rocks during the last few years.
1 have received the strong impression
hat NermOnt's educational affairs have
received q tremendous and healthy impe-
tus during the last five years as a direct
result of the present system, and / be-
lieye our further progress will be most
certainly obtained through the develop
ment of the present sytem, rather than
through its abolition. Experience and
study viii reveal some required mOdifi-
cations, and we should be ready, even
anxious, to make them just as soon as
the value of such changes is clearly
But if any substitution or rad
zeal change is contemplated, is it not
wise to be first assured beyond any rea-
sonabIe doubt that the change we pro-
pose is unquestionably for the better, :