Evening star., 1932-02-16
Danger Pointed Out if Policy
on Other Supply Bills
Is Applied.
INSTRUCTORS AT PRESENT
ARE BARELY SUFFICIENT
Officials Silent Pending Appearance
Today Before House District Ap-
preparation Subcommittee.
BY CHARLES B. DEGGES.

With annual turnovers of As Der
cent in its teaching staff and 6.5 per
cent IN its custodial force, the District
OF columbia public school system would
De virtually crippled if Congress applied
10 1t the pending legislative proviso
that no vacancies in Government po-
sltlons shall be filled for the remainder
OF the current fiscal year and for the
fiscal year 1893.
This was revealed today in a study
By The Star of public school records
anc administrative set-up.
The Appropriations Committee of the
House has adopted the policy in other
supply bills, in the interest of Fed
eral economy. that vacancies which
occur during the specified period be not
nl!eo. Thus, work performed by per-
sons now IN service would be thrown
upon persons remaining in the event of
resignatlons. retirements or dismissals,
WITH the resultant saving of salary.
II applied to the public school system,
however, the policy would work havoc
oy virtue OF the economical set-up
under Which the schools operate.
Barely Enough Teachers.
There are barely enough teachers now
on the payroll to care for the numper
OF pupils enrolled in the schools. This
is vividly demonstrated periodically
throughout the school year by the clos
ing out OF classes in which the enroll
ment begins to drop and the shifting
OF the thus released teachers to more
congested sections Of the city The pu-
pllS OF the closed-out class are trans
1erred to nelghboring schools, sometimes
necesSltatlng longer trips to school for
the children and always bringing about
heavier enrollmentS in the classes to
which they are sent.
II the proposed ban on vacancy filling
IS enforced serious problems would be
imminent at all times For instance: A
teacner in a class of 40 children, the
maximum number which should belong
10 any class under School Board rules,
oles. With no surplus teachers in the
system. the school administrators would
be confronted with the necessity of pro-
Vlolng Tor those pupils. If the class be
OF the maximum size it is likely that it
would be located in a congested school
area and consequently the other classes
OF the same grade would be equally
! crowded. If situated in a section less
/ congested the orphaned" pupils might
De transferred to other buildings which,
| concelVably, would be even longer dis
tances from the pupils homes.
High School Situation.
In the case Of high school teachers
the probelm might be even more serious.
A drawing teacher died last week. She
was instructing 1872 children If the
school administrators had been pre-
vented from filling her position. the
principal OF the school in which she
taught would be confronted with the
necessity of apportioning those l32
children to other drawing classes in the
| building. And with the extremely
scant staff allowed that school even
under normal conditions, the burden
would be practically impossible for the
remaining teachers to carry. Certainly.
1t would be impractical.
Inc chanceS Of such problems are not
remote. According to official fiugures
on nle In the school statistical office.
eie average turnover among teachers
lor oeath, retirement and resignation.
over 2 slx-year period, is As per cent,
IN 1926 the turnover was per cent
IN 1927 1t was 5 per cent, in 1928 and
1879 1t dropped to As per cent. in 1880
IL rose again to 5 per cent, and last wear
1t dropped to per cent.
numerically. the figures show that
last year, there were 48 designations
! II retirements, 9 deaths and / dis
mlssal. making total of rs permanent
Withdrawals from service. On other
years the number of persons leaving
the service was proportionately greater,
with SO going out in 1880, lot in 1929.
90 IN 1928, and 1o1 in 1927 and 1926.
Custodial Difficulties.
The problems would be equally
serious among the custodians. MANY
OF the Districts public schools have
one man whose duties embrace those
of janitor engineer and fireman. If
forbidden to replace one of these men
who would have left the service, the
administrators would be called upon
to transfer man from larger build
ing. which thus would be deprived of
some sorely needed service Because
every man now in the larger schools
has had his need for being there de-
Tended by the school administrators
before the Commissioners, the Bureau
of the Budget and the committees of
Congress themselves, another void
rivalling that in the one-man school
would be created.
The only alternative-in view Of the
absence of relief staff of custodians-
would be to permit the school building
principals and teachers themselves to
, tend their furnace and sweep their
floors.
With 632 custodians in service last
year, there was turnover Of AZ posi-
tions. Six of these vacancies which
| were filled resulted from deaths, IA
| from retirement and % from resig-
| nations.
School officials would make no COM
ment on the possibilities of the applica-
tion of the ban on vacancy-filling to
| the school system today. They ex-
plained that they expected to go before
the House Subcommittee on Appropria-
tions and that they were of the opinion
that comment from them at this time
would be "unwise." They indicated,
however, that they were giving the
question serious consideration, and, as
a matter of fact, were concerned over
the possibilities.
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