The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-12-07
High School Education Pays, supt
AIdrich Tells Unity Club Mem
bers in Talking New
Building.
FIGURES ARE GIVEN
Appeal Is Made to the Men to Give
Boys Chance to Have Best There
is in Educational
Lines.

Ing value OF nlSn school educa-
ton in dollars and cents was ex.
planned by Superintendent William
Aldrich Of the Keokuk schools in his
talk yesterday before the Unity club,
in asking for their Endorsement OF
the boards proposition to erect new
high school building for Keokuk. The
figures were from statistics compiled
by the United States bureau Of edu-
cation and were authentic
The boy who quits school at four
teen and goes to work earns on an
average, by the time he is twenty
five years old, s12.75 per week, while
the boy who went to high school for
four years earns on the average s31.
In forty years the man who as a boy
quits school at fourteen is earning
$4,000, while the high school gradu-
ate is earning $4,000, or the earning
capacity for the forty months spent
In high school is $4,000 more
At twenty-five the boy who has
completed high school education is
earning 5000 more than the boy who
quit school at fourteen. To equal
the earning capacity of the hoy who
stayed in school, the boy who quit
school must have bank account OF
$4,000 drawing five per cent interest
Superintendent Aldrich pointed out
that if by building a new, modern
high school thirty boys were kept in
school, the total would be $4,000.
or more than the cost of the school.
Hes asked the business men which
they would rather do-help make 1t
worth while to keep their boys in
school and know that they had the
ability to earn more than the man
who does not stay in school, or give
them bank accounts and let them quit
without the high school education.
Building and Times Change.
The present high school building.
Mr.. Aldrich said, was built at the
time when there was an old standard
for schools of providing classrooms
for the learning of textbook facts.
Judged even by the old standard, 1t
II not sufficient, and now, when the
tendency is for more laboratories and
equipment, it is most certainly in
adequate. He spoke Of the installa-
tion Of laboratories such as there are
in the Mckinley building, for manua!
training and domestic science, ana
of the crowded conditions Of the
chemical laboratories in the present
building.
The goal of the high school today
Is to help boys find themselves, the
superintendent said in answering
critics of education who say that the
graduates of schools today are not
snecialists. He challenged any one
of the men present to say whether
he was following the line OF work ne
thought no would when he was
bow in school He spoke OF the 90
nestic science work as preparation
by the girls for home making ana
the advantages Of the normal Train
ing courses in turning out teachers
The commercial side is helping turn
out business people.
The superintendent spoke OF the
physical side and how essential that
has come: how some schools are
building on entire blocks and accom-
modating their athletic fields along
with buildings. He spoke OF the an
vantage of a college education ana
paye some interesting, data on thls-
He said that in years past II was
rare thing for two or three out % %
class to 20 to college, while one'nal
of the class of 1920 are matr1cu'anus
in college this year.
Mr. Aldrich spoke Of the danger
that Keokuk may lose its stanalns
u;tb colleges. and asked that steps
no taken TO prevent this by favor
= Nc reenonse to the bond issue propo-