The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1921-01-14
THE HISTORY OF COUNTY
UNIT FOR THE SCHOOLS

In the early history of the colonies
there could be little communication.
little exchange of commodities and
ideas. Every settlement was almost
an independent republic and its law
making body was the town meeting.
Under those pioneer conditions the
district school, sprang up, serving
the people of those times as no other
system could. Gradually the trails
became roads, Indians were subdued
and civilization spread.
1t became apparent to those wise
old patriots who We're fired with zeal
for democratic school system that
all children were not getting equal
educational oppo"tun'tie. r.;s he
came even more evident after rail
roads were built and other corpora
tons came in to develop the country.
The children who happened to live
away from the railroad often had the
most meagre advantages while those
near the railroad, or other corpora
ton property, received the benefit
OF the big tax which such corpora
tons contributed. Under the district
such system inequality in education
al opportunities, as we'll as in the
tax paid by individuals for the sup
port of schools, was Inevitable. There
fore the states that first started the
district system were the first to
abandon it when it had outworn its
usefulness.
Several OF the Atlantic coast
states adopted the township as
unit for the support OF schools in
place Of the district system. This
was the natural unit as the town
ship organization of government in
eastern ctates is much more promi-
nent than is the county organization.
In fact, Rhode Island at least has
no county government, no county Of
ficers. Southern and some middle
western and western states gradu-
ally changed from the district to the
county unit system. Maryland schools
were organized under the county
unit plan when the state was Gre
ated and this one state has lad
county unit for over hundred
years.
Ten states have the pure county
unit system, i. e.. supported finan-
cially by a tax on county-,,nit ya,ua-
ton and managed and controlled by
a county board of education. These
states are Utah, New Mexico. Louis
lana, Alabama. Georgia, Tennessee.
Kentucky. North Carolina. Maryland
and Florida.
Ten states. Delaware. Ohio. Viz
ginia. South Carolina. Mississippi,
Texas. Arizona, California, Washing
ton and Arkansas have the sem
county-unit system, i. e., supported
financially by the unit but LARGELY
controlled aud managed by local
school boards. 1t is this system
that is made optional with tho yot-
ers OF third class districts in Mon
tana. Nebraska has an optional
county unit law. Oregon has one
county organized undercounty init,
and Minnesota has two.
A year ago only sixteen states in
the Union were left under the dis
trict system. In many states county
unit was first introduced as an OPP
tional measure. Then after the most
progressive counties introduced it
and proved it's success the legisla-
ture passed a law making the sys-
tenn required. AS far as can re found
no state or county that has adol ted
the county unit plan has ever eone
back to the old system. It is doubt
full II any effort even has ever been
made to return to the district sys-
tenn after trying out the county unit
system.
The county and township unit sys-
TENS are the only democratic plans
that have ever been devised to equal
Ice the educational opportunities for
children and the burden of TAXATION