Evening star., 1921-04-13
WILL HEARTILY SUPPORT FIGHT
FOR EFFICIENT SCHOOL SYSTEM
Senator Harrison and Representative
Focht Address Chamber of Commerce.
Committee Reports.

single child of school age should be de-
prived of the fuli-time instruction which
forms part of proper school curri-
cuium. But We are not asking that.
We are asking merely that the acute
shortage OF the last few years shall be
relieved. No new building has been
opened since 1916. In November. 1920,
the board of education and the super
intendent found that, ,deducting the
ciassrooms then under construction,
there remained 139 classrooms required
at once for elementary schools. While
the intervening months have largely in
creased the shortage, We think it best to
stand by the program as concrete cX-
preston OF our immediate needs. That
much we have a GEAR right to, and 1t is
impossible to believe that Congress will
give US less.
In connection with the building pro-
gram, it is the belief OF the committee
that thoroughly modern school buildings
for tubercuIar children should be con-
structed without delay
Better ngntlng OF classrooms Tor
work on dark and cloudy days is
strongly advocated by the committee,
which believes that Irreparable harm
will be done to the eyesight Of the
next generation unless conditions are
speedily improved.
that the new building progranf should
be supplemented by increased appro-
prIations for school maintenance. A
survey should be made, the report as
serts. to determine the condition of
the buildings. The whole school plant
should then be put in the best pos
sible condition and kept that way.
Assistance for Superintendent.
In connection with the personnel of
the school system the report says:
Your committee have not been able
to go into the subject of personnel
further than to satisfy themselves
that one of the principal defects OF
the present system is the lack of an
adequate administrative staff organ
lied upon functional lines.
Without such a staff we do not be-
lieve that the school system can ever
be brought up to a state of high
efficiency. In our judgment the
volume of central administrative
work is greater than the present force
equally, II not more, important is the
resulting illogical and unbusiness
like distribution of duties, the same
assistant superintendent, for ex
ample. being charged with such
wholly unrelated subjects as person
mel and the purchase of equipment
There has been much talk of the
need of business manager or other
such officer, who would relieve the
superintendent of the management of
the material, as distinguished from
the pedagogical, aspect of the busi-
ness. We think that the injection of
such an officer into our system would
only tend to increase and accentuate
the existing division of responsibility
from which the system is already suf-
fering.
In our judgment the solution lies
in the creation of headquarterx staff
consisting of a small number of as
sistants among whom the superintend-
ent with the approval of the board)
would distribute the various admins
tratlve duties. assigning to each, as
far as possible. functions of cognate
character. Each assistant would thus
have an opportunity to become a spe-
cialist in a recognized field, vet the
scheme of distribution would be modi-
fled in the light of experience. The
superintendent would be relieved of
much detail, but essential unity of ad-
ministrative control would not be de-
stroyed.
Your committee were naturally
led to give some thought to the
problem of the basic organization of
a public school system in a com
munity so peculiarly situated as our
own. They do not feel, however.