New-York tribune., 1921-01-26
Survey Shows
City Violating
School Laws
Many Old Buildings Are
Falling to Pieces, Rooms
Are Overcrowded and
+. the Sanitation Is Bad
Light Is at a Premium
Fire Traps Abound and
Life and Health of the
Children Are Menaced

Violation Of tho state law requiring
sufficient air space for school children;
dingy rooms, where crowded classes
Of plaster, In some cases hidden with
dusty crepe tissue paper; children sit
ting on the floor Of ar unfurnished
room waiting for others to vacate a
classroom; aged wood-fniahed school
buildings in which Are hazards are
great-these were only some Of the
conditions noted by Tribune reporters
yesterday in a survey Of some OF New
York's older schools.
The state Of disrepair Of New York
schools and the unprecedented conges-
tion-there are more than $4,000 chill
dren on less than a normal days
schooling-will remain permanent for
1921 80 far as the Hylan administra-
tion is concerned. No appropriation
FOR repairs has been voted by the Board
Of Estimate for the current year. The
board fell 27,o0o0 900 short Of appro-
priating actual operating expenses for
1921. This deficit includes about 81
100000 asked for repairs.
Calls Conditions Scandalous
According to Howard w. Nudd, d.
ractor of the Public Education Associa-
i;on' whose organization has made a
cornplete survey of the schools, inter
allv thousands of New York chlldren
work in dark classrooms until thelf
ewes are sufficiently damaged to seno
them along to sight conservation
classes in other and lighter schools
.,hcre an effort is made to repair the
damage.
"The state of unrepair OF scores OF
schools is scandalous," says the d.
rector. "Many of these are verltable
i7rstrans Sanitation and ventilation
sre extremely had, and insteadeof beng
arnel;orated the situation is becoming
worse. Funds promised by the city for
ordinary repair work have not been
furnished. For 1921 there is no money
at all for this purpose.
: School principals and teachers IN
huffed when they asked for vital re-
1airs that now they decline to request
any. The Tribune is informed: Here
md there. throughout the city the
Parents and Teachers associations,
meeting monthly, have donated money
from their own pockets for necessary
repairs.
At Public School recently children
sold tickets to a moving picture sno"
TO earn money for much needed shelves
n their classroom.
In Public School 130, at 143 Baxter
Street. 750 pupils we're found crowded
INTO the ancient structure Of sixteen
cIassrooms. Bad sanitation, ventl's-
lion and lighting were notlccaDie
everywhere. Two classrooms have pu!
nne window each A COM et surrey OF
al pupils in this room elected, not long
..ro. that 331 we're subject to detective
y;sion and 172 were suffering from NAL
nutrition. the latter malady being not
entirely due to lack of proper food at
nome, but a condition aris nE' ron ''lc
lack Of wholesome school surroundlngss
sanitation. light, ventilation ana
olay facilities. A new school puiloil'S
..d;ojnine the seventy -nve-yeal .o.d
.rrc+ura ia in course of construction.
RE city has owned the building site
fcr ten years.
In Condemned Building
Public School LOG, at 253 Lafayette
Street, was condemned for school pur-
poses man; years ago. here on cne
sour floors of the ramshacs'e she'll SIT
300 pupils each day-twenty-five classes
overcrowded to the limit into twenty
sAree rooms. Several Of these rooms,
entered yesterday by Tribune re-
vorter, are badly illuminated, box-like
fis.le chambers with the legal air space
requirement for eighteen or nineteen
children. One of them contained forty
one children, another thirty eight, an
other thirty-two and others about
thirty. Tenements and tall factory
building flank this school on three
sides, cutting off the light and permeat-
ing the rooms with odors. There is no
sun -bathed playground, unless it is
Che noisy, traffic laden street in front.
The most recent surve. OF pupils
showed that 7o per cent were under
normal vision. Five months ago CD per
cent we're suffering from malnutrition.
Pi,e Tribune reporter found inadequate
lighting in almost every room, though
electricity was employed with the sun
shining outside. Plaster was pee irg
from the walls in many rooms and ore
displayed haked laths. Man teachers
had camoufaged the ravages of time
and repair neglect as best they could
with tissue paper.
In one unturnsned room more than
score OF small boys were sitting in
COWS on the bare floor waiting for q
class room. A kindergarten class sat
IN a circle in small chairs borrowed
ny the teacher from another school.
They had no table but the wooden
aoor. The Tribune found more than
zo0 small children on the fourth floor
oI this school. Their exits in case of
Nre were two fire escapes and three
I.errow stairways-two front and one
rear-of three flights each. The roof
Of the building was almost worn out
n 1917, when the Mitchell adninistra-
sion reroofed it and condemned Il to
oe used only for school shops. The
interior remains the same to-day
WOODEN floors and casings-and it CON
ssnues TO house nine hundred ch;ldren
Ane principal is allowed s25 q wear for
ordinary repairs.
sss In Fifteen Rooms
Public School i08, at so Mott strect
vas found yesterday to house 800 nm,
piis In nfteen rooms. Teachers yariouglv
described sanitation as "as good az pos-
slo!e under the circumstances" Toilet
rachitles were outside the building
The outside playground Is a well-like.
mene noored Areaway where childrca
l.ay pay while others are using thcir
c;sssfooms. Often teachers take their
charSes for walk, or into Columbu.
Fark, nearby, when classrooms are not
sysiiable. Lighting facilities here gen
ssss'y anorded natures light, such Of
- - can hlteY through the classrooms
on bright or cloudy days. Two room
seen'sed artificial light throughout tho
osy. The building is os the aoc;sn+