The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-06-14
Bills for Overtime

: BiliS for Overtime
High School teachers, were put on
tc teaching day, about two thirds
OF the full day. yet sent in considera-
bic bills for overtime. Though many
hours Of teaching might properly be
Claimed for the city, retarded pupils
and failures were neglected, and par
ents were compelled to pay fees for
private tuition.
In the grammar school Is rooms
We're found in which instruction was
given but three hours a day for full
pay. Full pay was given, but in many
schools fIfll time instruction was noCS
given, and the $4,000 children of the
city have been sadly neglected. These
facts were developed in a MONDAY
talk which was given by School Com
missioner Lynn w. Wilson, to Bridge
port Rotary club yesterday
Quarrel Growing.
Mr.. Wilson said that the difficulties
came from two reasons. In the be
ginning, a quarrel which had been
growing for years between the execu-
tive of the system and the board, and
the decrease in school plant, caused
by lack of sufficient appropriations.
For remedy the board will employ
a new superintendent, is installing
the platoon system, which increases
plant use by 20 per cent, is requiring
high school teachers to teach a full
day, at a saving of 100000 a year to
this single school; and is trying to in
stall the LOO hour year, instead of
the 800 hour year, which the children
theoretically Were getting, but prac-
dcally We're not getting Mr.. Will
sons talk follows:
'<Mr. Cortright is the leading aide
of the Board of Education, and the
Bridgeport schools are in excellent
hands. Mr. Went took a position last
night that L think Will soon land him
in a privileged position. All of these
gentlemen are of what call the
new administration of the board. Mr..
Went has been placed in charge of
physical education. a. matter that
wasn't at all cO-ordinated. We put
Mr.. Went in, and we already begin to
see better results in that area.
Il went into the Board of Educa-
ton primarily because L was interest
ed in making more intensive use of
tartan. The public schools are of
exceptional interest to Rotary. The
Bridgeport school system is made up
of about 1000 pretty good people.
They use about one-fourth of the
revenue of the city. They are a
nice. average lot of men and women
IN the teaching profession. They are
average of their kind.
Just because it is said some diff
ferent things are being considered, it
should not be considered that that is
women in the system The troubles
with the system are comparatively
small and grow out of comparatively
simple things. First there was a
long difference of opinion growing
up between a former executive of the
board and members of board and
that was settled. by the termination
of the relationship. 1t was long be-
fore my time on the board, and long
before DIR. McLaughlins time We
had nothing to do with it, with the
trouble.
A Cause of Trouble.
All of you gentlemen know what it
means to any organization of a nu-
mer0us personnel when there is
M hef
tive and administrative heads of
system.
When Mr. cortright was made as
any farther than that, not for any
reason connected with his compe-
tence- I think the board believes
he is as com petent to be a superin-
-endent of schools perhaps as any 9TH
sr man. He had been connected with
the system for many years, he had
been a part of the things that,
he system into factional groups and
he himself, of his own accord. told
is he thought it would not be wise
Tor him to attempt to take the reins
1t this time and it was his suggestion
hat We ought to go out into the
world and pick the very biggest man
We could find, entirely aloof from
differences that have exist
I'd here.
To that end the board has consult
ID Secretary Meredith and Dean With
lumber of other prominent and lead
ng educators, and we have obtained
rom them a list of names. There
ire six or seven names contained on
LII these lists. We are going over
hese names and presently we expect
o have a frst-cIass man in Bridge
BORT. 4 We have made an innovation,
md that was also due to the sugges-
ion of Mr. CortrigIt. We have TAX
N from the teachers body COM
nittee of three representing the yari-
,us depa rtnlelnts to aid us in the Sc
ection of a superintend dent
Waste in High School.
The schools had lacked the neces-
aryr funds with which to build. We
lad gotten into "a crowded condition
When the schoolhouse itself is.1't spa
ious enough. there arc several ways
4 meeting the condition. more in
ensiye use of the spree. or Won can