The Washington herald., 1922-06-10
COLORED SCHOOLS
WORST In CAPITAL,
SURVEY REVEALS
Examination Shows Sew
eral Fit Only for
Scrapping.
FILTHY FIRE TRAPS
Repair Item of 100000 Re-
quested Was Cut by Con-
gress to 100000.
FILTHY FIRE TRAPS

system of the District of Columbia
The physical needs of nine colorea
school buildings Investigated re-
Gently by The Herald reveal condi-
tions, which. it is believed, should
condemn a number OF them for use
as educational institutions. In each
case principals OF the schools say
they have made repeated efforts To
secure repairs or to have new
buildings erected. Traced further.
the applications for remedies are
one of the four bodies that reviews
the District school budget.
Nine Schools Surveyed.
The survey completed yesterday
includes the Bruce school. the John
F. Cook. Slater-Langston group.
Smothers, stevens. Sumner. Wilson,
Military Road and Chain Bridge
schools.
While some of the buildings are
strong and apparently will last for
another generation, there is not a
modern school in the group. Every
building visited is in need Of exten-
sive repairs. without exception
the schools are crowded. the roomso
averaging over forty pupils. with
. sometimes as manv as forty-eight.
There are three 3-story schools.
Clocks silent Six Years.
The Sumner is one of the three
story type. Built more than half
a century ago this school stands
on a terrace twenty feet above
street level at the corner of Seven
teenth and NJ streets northwest.
After climbing to the first floor
children have to go up three other
flights Of steps to reach the top
floor. The school is lighted with
gas Inferior designing accounts
for dark halls and passageways.
The playground at Sumner School
is shared with the MaEruder School
in the same block. Nearly 500
for less than half that number.
There are eighteen rooms in the
two buildings. or an average Of
forty-three children per room.
Large cracks in the walls of the
T2STuder have been cemented and
painted. As an instance Of eNpedi-
tiOn in repairs. the electric clocks
IN these buildings have not run for
Six years
In this connection It is recalled
tion asked Congress for a 100000
repair item. only $4,000 was
granted last year.
Wilson school Crowded
The Wilson building is a typical
Washington school-437 children
Lsre housed in eight. rooms The
a-erage Of ffty-seven children per
room is avoided by running part
t'-'e classes. The building Is the
0Id type red brick structure popu-
lar fifty years ago. If the play
space at this school was divided
equally among the children. each
would have a plot the size OF a
coffin.
One Of the best schools in this
group is the Bruce. located on
Kenyon street near Georgia ave-
nue.. Beautifully situated and kept.
this building is in contrast with
others visited. The use of one
portable building reduces the aver
age number of children per room
to Orty-eight. As thirty children
are considered an average class,
and forty a maximum. double shift
classes are employed Heating and
ventilation are satisfactory, al
though gas lights are used.
This school n Joke.
Chain Bridge School is a two
room. frame building. situated or
a high elevation. 1t was built dur
ing the civil war and has been used
rs a school ever since. The condi-
tion of this school is regarded as =
joke by neiEhbOrs. As it is In the
suburbs il has a large playground.
Congress s expected to appropriate
Z ffunds for a new fOur-rOom building.
Conditions Of Stevens School are
among the worst found. over 500
children are crowded into fifteen
rooms. No portables can be built
because the playground is too small.
In violation OF the law. six classes
are run on hah time schedule to
provide instruction for extra pupfi-
Congestion in thu -rr=rr-- - Uue of
the most acut- problems revealed
by the surv,s.
building a Fre-rap.
The worst looking bVilding en-
countered in a survey of eight
school divisions Is the JOHN F. Cook
School. o street near Foarth north
west. 1t is three stories. Appar-
emily II was painted a bright red
years ago; now. however. the pain,
is scaling off and the building has
an appearance of dilipidatiOn. Upon
entering the school a combined odor
of decaying wood and had toilets Is
detachable. Opposite the boys toilet
in the basement are two kindergar-
ten rooms. This building is the
worst example of a fire-trap so far
discovered. The only exits are
through the basement, in which are
located two furnaces. Woodwork
and masonry apparently are in the
last stages of repair. Only a new
building will lqeet the need in this
instance.
In the Slat sr-Langston School
group the outS landing defects are
tpoor construction in the Langston,
nonfireproof stairs on the first floor,
pCor drainage for playground. in
adequate play space, and a base
ment in the Slater School that floods
with every heavy rain.
Basement Always Foul.
Following heavy rains on Satur-
Cay the janitor of the Slater School
was forced to bale the water out of
the basement. On other occasions
the school boys have waded into the
flooded basement rooms and carried
the water in buckets. Backing up
through the sewers and seepin-
through the walls the water keeps
the basement of this building damp
from year to year. II is believed
also that the foundation is being
weakened.
Sagging ceilings and falling plas-
Ter in the basement Of the Ian1stop