Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-06-13
HALF HOUR ADDED
TOH|GH SCHOOL DAY
Board of Education Adopts
Longer Class Periods
for Seniors.

Beginning next Fall, the school day in
the eight senior high schools OF the Dis
trict of Columbia will extend from 9
o'clock in the morning until 8 o'clock
in the afternoon by virtue OF the de-
cision of the Board of Education
reached at its meeting yesterday to m
crease the present class day by half an
hour The board took its action at the
recommendation of DR.. Frank w. Bal
lou, superintendent of schools, who ex-
planned the increase was advocated by
the eight school principals.
In the same meeting DR.. Ballou was
instructed by the board to circulate a
request for applications for the posi-
tons of president of the two teachers
colleges which are to the established
in the present normal schools among
the persons already in the District
school system.
The board approved DR.. Ballous rec
ommendation TO the reorganization OF
the white schools in which the second,
fourth and eighth divisions were dis
banded and the schools within them al
lotted to other divisions. The same &C
ton transferred Miss Janet McWilliam,
supervising principal of the three dis
organized divisions, to the principalshlp
of the third division, where she will be-
come the successor of DR.. E. G. Kim
ball who Is to be retired at the con-
clusion of the current year.
No Burden on Teachers.
The lengthening of the senior high
school day, Dr. Ballou explained, will
not place an additional teaching bur-
den upon any teacher, since the ap-
portionment Of the additional 80 min
utes among the five recitation periods
would mean only few additional min
utes' contact with any one class of STU
dents. The agitation for the longer
day, he explained, began early this year
when seven of the eight principals urged
the increase. Only one principal OPP
posed the increase, DR.. Ballou explained
to the board.
Following the meeting it was learned
that Allan Davis, principal of Business,
was the sole dissenting official. Mr..
Davis failed to accede to the proposal
the times in which the five-day week Is
proposed is away from increased work.
ing hours. He did not object to the
increase on any educational ground.
Stephen e. Kramer, first as
sistant superintendent In charge
Of white high schools, declared
that the chief value Of the ad-
ditional 80 minutes lies in the addi-
tional time it will permit students to be
in contact with their section teachers"
These are the teachers who are charg-
ed with the responsibility of keeping the
students records and with advising
them In their courses. At present all
this work must be done in a Six-minute
period in the morning or during the
afternoon hours at the close of school.
DR.. Ballou told the board that many
schools throughout the country operated
on full five-hour basis and in response
4 n M hn IHOo Y1 ak,ays
explained that the half hour addition
would not handicap cadet or athletic
activities.
Schools Are Transferred.
When a communication from the
Teachers Union was presented to the
board asking that woman teachers be
not placed in a prejudiced position be-
cause of their sex when the presidencies
Of the two teachers colleges were
chosen, Mrs. Mary Mcneil asked the
superintendent If he planned to circu-
larize the schools for local applicants.
DR.. Ballou answered with the query:
do you e-obviously-there is
any teacher in the system suited for the
position whose abilities have not al
ready been recognized by promotion?"
Mrs. MCNEIL said she was unable to
answer that question, but that she be-
lieved every member of the teaching
staff should be given an opportunity to
apply for higher positions when they
are available.
In recognizing the white schools by
transferring the buildings OF the Sec
ond. fourth and eighth divisions to
other divisions, the board acted on the
recommendation Of DR.. Ballou, who
contended that population changes,
previously permitting the grouping of
those three units under a single super
vising principal, now made their total
abandonment feasible In brief, the
buildings affected by the reorganization
are:
The Force, Adams, Morgan and Berret
Schools now enter the third division:
the Thomson Henry and Polk Schonls