Evening star., 1933-04-02
Grave Menace to Efficiency
Feared-Shorter Term
Considered.
SHIFT TO SAVE MONTHS
SALARIES ALSO STUDIED
Retirements, Closing Of Kinder.
gartens and Transfer of Special
Teachers Among Proposals.

Drastic measures that bid fair to
shatter their educational efficiency and
personnel morale are to be invoked in
the administration of the District public
schools If the Board Of Education Is
called upon to operate the system under
Budget Director Douglas 1884 estimates
as they now are before the House.
The school authorities themselves
have not yet determined upon the exact
means they will adopt to keep within the
budget, but they have set up for con-
sideration and eventual choice a series
OF possible ways and means. The Star
learned yesterday that these suggested
means were submitted to Maj. Daniel
Donovan, District auditor. late Friday
when other municipal department heads
submitted similar information at the in
vitation Of the auditor.
Shorter Term Discussed.
Five of these proposals were under dis
cussion in District circles yesterday.
They are:
l. Shorten the school year by 10
school days.
g. Move the school year backward half
month in order to save full months
teachers pay.
g. Retire all teachers who have
reached the age Of 50 years and whose
ratings for efficiency are low.
4. Eliminate instruction Of children
under 6 years of age, thus closing out
virtually all of the kindergartens.
5. Transfer special teachers to class
room work.
DR.. Frank W. Ballou, superintendent
Of schools, declined last night to dis
cuss the possible solutions of the
slashed budget problem confronting him.
1t is definitely known, however. that
DR.. Ballou and his staff of officers
have been sitting In executive sessions
almost daily since the Budget Bureaus
estimates were made public. Every
conceivable avenue of solution has been
and Is being studied by the school au-
thorities and the report which Maj.
Donovan is purported to have received
Is simply statement OF the i4eas ad-
vanced for study.
Meanwhile, District Building heads
are studying the two proposals to alter
the school year. Under the existing
set-up, the teachers receive their SAL
azy In 10 monthly payments. Hence,
although school opens about the mid
die, or even after the middle Of Sep
tember, the teachers are paid for the
entire month. Similarly, while school
closes the middle of June, the teachers
receive the full pay for that month.
Could Cut Months Pay.
If, then, the opening of schools next
September Is delayed from September
18-the normal opening day-to Octo-
Der /. 1t is the thought Of the pro-
ponents of this scheme that q full
be saved" BY closing the school on
the regular date In June, the children
would lose 10 school days in Septem-
Der and the teachers would lose full
months pay.
Another method Of altering the
school year would open classes October
/ and extend the year from the mid
ole of June to the last Friday in June.
| This plan would give the school chill
dren practically the same number OF
actual school days and the same
amount of instruction as a normal
year, but 1t would place the entire bur-
den of solving the budget shortage
problem on the teachers.
Either Of these plans, however, 1t Is
estimated tentatively, would over
solve" the problem, because the amount
of money to be saved would be less
thar a full months teacher pay roll.
The proposal to retire all 62-year-old
teachers whose ratings are not high
would take advantage of the retirement
law which makes employees eligible for
retirement for cause at that age. An
employe who reaches 81 may ask for
retirement or he may be retired by his
administrative officers. This plan en-
tails study of all ratings Of teachers
who have reached 50 years OF age.
The saving under this plan would be
the difference between the maximum
salary which length of service has
merited for the retiring teacher, and
the minimum salary which newcomers
to the service would receive. The full
extent of this plans effect, however,
still is an uncertain quantity since the
number of persons affected by 1t Is
not yet known.
Kindergartens at Stake.
Should children of years of age be
denied entrance in the schools, just as
children under who formerly attended
the several "pre-school kindergartens"
were banned by action of Congress
two years ago, practically every kinder
garten class in the city would close.
Those teachers, then, would be avail
able for any vacancies in the grades.
or presumably, would be dropped from
the service Details of this plan were
not disclosed by The Stars source OF
information.
There still are in the school system
number of special teachers" Some of
these now do supervisory work. while
others teach special subjects. A pro-
posal is under consideration to close
out these positions and transfer as
many Of the present incumbents as
possible to actual class room jobs.
MnDrHAHC AMI TpIIcr