Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1923-03-28
President Morse
Clears the. Air on
School Situation
Lancaster, Wis,
March %, 1923.

| my attention concerning the building
| Of a new high school for this district
make it apparent to me that briet
statement concerning the high school
| situation here and the plans prepare
for the new building may be he4I
| to a better understanding.
First, as to the present school situa-
| ton: l think there is little difference
| of opinion concerning the need of a
new building for the high school. The
present enrolment is 260, an increase
of about thirty over the previous year,
and the big increase in attendance
therein has come in the last five years.
| am informed the increase for next
year is, for various reasons, likely to
be more than 80. 300 is the expected
enrolment for next fall. The causes
of this increased attendance are, in
my opinion, but two, the longer school
life of the average child and the in
creased number from the country dis
tricts coming into the cities and viii
lagos to take advantage of few years
of high school work they cannot get
in their home districts. We are now
charging $72 per year tuition in the
high school, the maximum legal
CHARGE, duu nave dDOuI 1UU
pupils AS to the heightened school
life of the average child, that is
matter for honest elf-congratulation
and no one will object to furnishing
place to see the children of this dis
trict through the high school years.
Most of us get all the school work we
ever are to get right in the grades
and high school. Small indeed is the
nf thncn ohio fn afford tho
advantages of college or university.
The north school is sadly over
crowded, and this congestion can only
be relieved by removing thence the
7th and Sth grades to what is now the
high school building. The frame
primary has caught fire within the
past few days again, the third time
within the last four years. And its
children are sent home repeatedly
when the coal gas and the stencil from
the privies make it untenable. 1t was
temporarily" erected in 1887. We
are renting a manual training room
from E. H. Hyde at $40 per month and
furnishing fuel and janitor therefor
We are renting the Guild HALF TO"
$35 per month for the 9Th and 9Th
grades, south side, and furnishing
fuel and janitor therefor. The chill
dren TO the high school Cat their own
expense) have rented the Trentsch
building in which to hold their inter-
class basket ball contests and to use
in preparation for Oratoricals and de-
clamatory contests. Most of the reel
tation rooms at the high school build
ing have been made into two each,
and every inch Of space in the build
ing and basement is crowded. A year
ago the school board was petitioned
to establish a kindergarten by enough
petitioners to make it legally COM
pulsory for this district to establish
such a department A small appro-
priation was made therefore at the
last annual meeting, but having been
unable TO find space for such cour0
it has never been established. The
state department of education has
overlooked our deficiencies and lack
of school Accommodations, knowing
that we were endeavoring to provide
increased facilities. But there should
be no further delay in making such
provision, or state aid will be cut off
and we will lose our accredited stand
ing. The moment a new high school
building is available there will be
greatly increased enrolment, as has
been the case with every new building
erected in surrounding communities.
1t would be penny wise and pound
foolish to erect building that wo"
be barely adequate to our present
needs and be too soon overcrowded. I
believe the people desire building
that will properly take care of the
needs of this district now and for a
reasonable time in the future.
Second, as to the building for which
plans have been prepared: The plans
were prepared to meet the needs of
this particular district, after months
of study by the ablest school men OF
the state and a competent architect.
The building consists of an assembly
room wing and a gymnasium wing,
connected with class rooms on either
side of a connecting corridor, with
space for manual training and COM
mercial departments in the gymnas
ium wing, and for the domestic
scienc department in the assembly
wing. The district has many times
expressed itself as favorable to the re-
tention of these courses, and their
needs are not more than adequately
provided for. Like the city hall build
ing committee, we have had to pro-
vide for heating and ventilating sys-
tenn to comply with the requirements
of the State Industrial Commission,
larger and more costly than we think
requisite, but in this matter we al
powerless. Despite rumor, there is
no swimming pool in the building,
and the boiler room is not lined with
face brick. There is no marble work
on stairways or corridors, the only
marble work being in toilet rooms
(slate being no longer permissible
therefor). Plate glass in outside win
dows in place of double strength glass
is optional.
Third, as to the alternatives fol
consideration: For $165,000.00 the
amount now available under the bond
issue of three and a half years ago,
the district may erect building that
will barely house the pupils enrolled
it's first year, with an assembly room
that it will be almost impossible to
enlarge, with gymnasium that will
be too small for its purposes. No one