The Oakes times. [volume] (Oakes, N.D.) 1906-current, 1921-01-20
Says State Teachers Hope for Favor
able Action

attending meeting of this
committee called for the purpose of
formulating several laws concerning
the public school system of the state,
most of which have now been intro
duced into the legislature with appar-
emily good chance of passage.
The particular bill that most con-
Germs the Oakes schools is bill pro-
viding for tuition fee to be paid our
high school for the education of pupils
from outside the district. 1t has been
previously mentioned in the Times
that some So Of the total 120 pupils
enrolled in the Oakes high school this
year come from outside the, Oakes
special district. Disregarding all in
terest or sinking fund payments in
connection with providing buildings,
it costs the district in running ex-
penses this year something over 500
per pupil to maintain the high school
department. That is, the tax payers
of Oakes are digging up about $4,000
this year to educate these high school
pupils from outside the district.
We are glad to have these pupils
here, for some Of them are among our
best students, and it is an asset to
our city to have them here during at
least nine months Of the year. Recks
oned merely as advertising for our
city, we cannot think of any way in
which this money might be more eff
fectively and benefcially spent. We
do not begrudge single one of these
young people the chance to take ad-
vantage of our educational facilities.
In fact, we compliment them upon
their good judgment in coming to the
best little city in North Dakota for
their education.
The cold fact remains, however,
that under the present circumstances
our high school, like most of the high
schools in the state, is "up against
it" financially. The board of educa-
tion levied tax of $4,000 for the
current year, the amount required to
run our schools. When the county
auditor came to spread this tax, he
found it to be above the legal limit,
and cut it to less than $4,000. We
are taxing ourselves all that the law
will allow us this year, and it lacks
about $4,000 Of being enough to pay
school expenses.
The measure proposed by the State
Teachers association would give us
some badly needed relief. It appears
to be so fair and just that one won-
ders why it has not always been the
law. In brief, it is as follows:
At the end of the school year, each
high school in North Dakota having
had enrolled during the year .pupil
from some other district in the )ate
not maintaining high school, is to
send to the county superintendent of
schools of each county concerned a
report, stating the name, school dis
trict and number of months in at
tendance of each such pupil. The
county superintendent and county aud
itor will constitute a board, whose
duty it shall be to compute the total
tuition fees due these high schools for
such pupils, and levy upon all the
non-high school districts of the county
an additional school tax, added to the
district levy in each case, an amount
sufficient to pay this tuition. This
tax will, when paid, be turned over
directly by the county treasurer to
the high school district to which it is
due. The tuition being asked is about
500 per year, which is somewhat less
than the average running expense Of
the high schools of the state per
pupil.
This scheme has the backing of the
organized educational experts of the
state. It is just, putting a part of
the burden Of high school maintenance
upon the districts which maintain no
high schools, yet have always had the
privilege of educating their young
people without cost in the high schools
maintained at comparatively great
cost by few districts. It is easy to
administer, requiring no additional Of
ficers, and only minimum of ma
chinery. 1t is democratic, spreading
the tuition expense for these pupils
over the entire territory in the coun-
ty not maintaining a high school de-
partment. It puts a heavy load on no
tax payer. In Dickey county this tut
ton tax on non-high school territory
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