The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1920-03-22
Monday, March %, 1920.
NEW SCHOOL LEGISLATION

iourned Saturday afternoon after
two days session in the office of the
governor. This was the first regular
quarterly meeting Of the board for
1920. The principal business was the
discussion of new school legislation.
We shall quote and comment on some
of the new laws which apply general
" to all schools in the state.
l. An act providing minimum high
school salary of 500 per month in
districts where trustees agree to ac-
cept this schedule.
The Abbeville city school board
has agreed to pay this amount to the
high school teachers next session.
2. An act to relieve the over
crowding in the elementary grades
of high schools Fourth, fifth, sixth
and seventh grades) and to provide
an adequate corps for such grades.
This law prescribes a maximum en-
rollment of 25 pupils per teacher with
a minimum salary of $50 per month
for those holding first grade certifi-
cate In order to benefit by the pro-
visions of this act the salary schedule
must be accepted by district trustees
before state aid can be paid out.
The local board of trustees has
voted to pay all graded school teach
ers, who have had previous successful
experience, a minimum of $50 a
month. An extra teacher is be to al
lowed in the seventh grade next ses-
sion which will enable every child in
the schools to have individual atten-
ton. This grade was the only over
crowded one in the city schools with
the exception of the primary grades
at the cotton mill school, which condl-
ton was relieved this year by having
the double session day and an eNten-
sion of teaching hours.
8. The equalizing law guaranteeing
adequate salaries and seven months
school term for rural districts voting
an eight mill tax. Under the pro-
visions of this act the principal of a
one teacher or two teacher school
may be paid a salary of 500
month, the principal of three
teacher school S110 per month, the
principal of four teacher school
S12O per month, of school employ
ing five or more teachers $3.50 per
month. An assistant in any of these
schools holding a first grade certlfi-
cate license will be paid $50 per
month. Since the constitution of the
state provides that trustees must EN-
ploy teachers and fix their salaries,
the acceptance of this wage schedule
is contingent upon the cooperation
and approval of the local boards.
Quite recently writing in these
columns of some of the lessons
brought to our attention by Mr..
Luceo Gunter supervisor of rural and
elementary schools, in his address to
the Abbeville County teachers, we
remarked that only one district in the
county was at present eligible to
benefit from this legislation.
In Sundays State t ere appeared
list of the counties in which school
districts had been mailed checks for
their proportionate part of state
money for extending terms, increasing
teachers salaries and in giving better
educational opportunities in general.
The total amount paid out to schools
last week was 10000. Of this
quarter of million dollars schools in
Abbeville county received the hand
some sum of $4,000. And only four
schools in the county shared this S2,-
800. Anderson county schools, some
of them in sight Of some Abbeville
county schools, received seven times
as much state aid, or $14 600. Why
this partiality you say? The answer
is simple. Because while only four
school districts in this county have
voted special tax of as much as four
mills for school purposes, forty-seven
districts in Anderson county have
four mills and over special tax.
Even little Mccormick, not yet old