The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1921-08-29
EDUCATIONAL AMENDMENTS,

an even chance.
Promote, as an object of primary
Importance, institutions for the gen.
eral diffusion Of knowledge. In pro-
portion as the structure of a govern
ment gives force to public opinion, 1t
Is essential that public opinion should
be enlightened" George Washing
ton.
Amendment No. 2. What is means.
Why 1t is proposed.
The law provides that every Ken
lucky child between the ages Of six
and eighteen shall be privileged to at
tend school for not less than six
months each year; that the school
house, including the site, furniture
and apparatus, shall have a property
value of not less than one hundred
and fifty dollars; that each school,
house shall have a certain floor space
one or more fire places or stoves, a
teachers desk and chair, seats with
backs TO rthe children, blackboard,
water stand, map Of the world, map
Of the United States, and county map
Of Kentucky; and that for each school
building there shall be provided two
suitable sanitary outhouses for the
two sexes; and that for each school
there shall be employed one or more
competent teachers at minimum sal
airy Of $500 per month. These items
constitute legal school in Kentucky.
Is the building too costly? Is the
equipment too elaborate? Is the term
too long? Is the salary of the teacher
too high? Is there a child in all Ken
lucky that is not entitled to school
Of even these poor pretensions? Yet,
thousands of our children do not have
even such school as this.
How the schools are supported and
maintained.
The entire revenue for our schools
come from the state school fund and
the funds raised by county taxation,
sometimes, but seldom, supplemented
by subdistrict tax. The amount Of
the school fund is divided by the num-
Der of children. of school age in the
entire state, and the quotient Is the
per capita. The number of children in
each county is multiplied by this per
capita, and this determines the amount
that each county receives from the
state school fund. Each county must
levy school taN of not less than %
cents and of not more than so cents
upon each one-hundred dollars worth
of taxable property. All the money
derived from the 25 cent levy must be
used in supplementing teachers sal
aries until the minimum salary Of
SIS per month has been reached. These
two sums, the sum received from the
state and the sum raised by county
taxation, constitute for each county
the school fund.
In more than one-third of the coun-
ties of the state the county school fund
is not sufficient to maintain for all the
vchildren in the county legal school
as described above. In these counties
the school fund must be increased ap-
proximately 100000 before a legal
school can be provided for every child.
In all these counties already the max
imum school tax is levied.
Where can we find the money to en-
able these counties to provide for their
children legal school?
ta) We could increase the county
tax rate. To raise the needed funds It
would be necessary to levy prohibi-
tive tax In these counties. The burden
of taxation would thus become so on
erous as to defeat its very purpose. To
increase the school tax rate in these
counties would be the worst possible
way to raise the money.
(b) We could raise the state tax
rate and provide that the increase
should be devoted to schools. This Is
both unwise in policy and unneces-
sary.
(c) We must adopt the second
amendment that will release ten per
cent. Of the state school fund that we
can use in helping these counties to
maintain legal school.
Will the adoption Of this amendment
injure any county in the state by de-
creasing the state aid that that coun-
ty receives?
1t will not. Next years per capita
ought not to be less than the per cap
tia of this year, even though ten per
cent. of the school fund be distributed
on some other than per capita basis.
The assessed valuation of property in
Kentucky has been increased. This
will increase the state school fund.
Ninety per cent. of this increased fund
will easily equal 100 per cent. Of the
fund for the years that are just back
o fus. 80 that the per capita need not