Evening star., 1934-01-30
COLD SENDS MURCH
PUPILS TO HOMES
Makeshift Quarters in Chevy
Chase School Proved
Impractical.

In the heart Of one Of the most
progressive public school communities
in the DistriCt-in the Rena section Of
Chevy Chase-children have been at
tending class in makeshift quarters
which have been proved Impractical in
severe weather.
Approximately 200 children were dis
missed from school yesterday when it
was found the highest temperature that
could be provided in the makeshift
rooms was 81 degrees while other rooms
were heated to only 56 degrees
Today. three of the rooms are being
used while the children normally oc-
cupying the remaining three are
tucked away in various corners of the
school buildings first floor Some are
in session in the auditorium, others
are assembled in the old kindergarten
room, and the third class is using the
room set aside for lunch purposes.
The 200 Alice Deal students assigned
to the Murch Building are the junior
high schools over flow" for whom
citizens associations, home and school
associations and the public school au-
thorities themselves have undertaken to
secure an addition. The Board of Edu-
cation included an item of Sl668 for
the addition to the Deal Building in its
1885 estimates. The District Commits
sioners approved the item and trans
Federal Budget Bureau eliminated the
item from the estimates it sent to Con-
greSs.
"Sheu" Finished.
Meanwhile, the Murch School, new
elementary building, was brought into
use in the emergency. When the Murch
to complete the buildings shell so
that from the outside it appears to be
a finished school. Without a sufficient
number of pupils to warrant the finish
ing of the second floor rooms, however,
the space beneath the roof in one wing
of the building was left barren.
This is the space into which the
Deal Junior High Schools overflow has
been diverted. Temporary partitions OF
tile were constructed to divide the
space into makeshift class rooms. The
space is devoid of toilet facilities and
for sometime was without heatlng
equipment. Radiators were installed.
however, and the whole temporary lay
out was made fairly usable.
But that didn't reckon with outside
Temperatures of 10 degrees. And yes
terday, two of these rooms registered
Sc degrees. two more So degrees, while
the highest temperature run in any OF
the rooms was "a degrees. This was
the condition resulting from the tenn
porary construction within the un..
finished second floor of the school and
the circumstance which deprived 200
children of a days schooling.
RenorfS of Relief
Today there are rumors and reports
of relief on the way Most encouraging
is the report that the supplemental esti-
mates now headed for Congress contain
the item for construction of the Deal
Junior High School annex. This would
provide the accommodation which the
Deal School has needed for more than
two years, and would assemble that
schools entire student body under one
roof where all the Junior high school
educational facilities are provided.
Another source of improvement OF the
whole situation lies in discussions this
afternoon among District and Federal
relief authorities to determine the pos
sibility of securing C. w. A. funds for
the finishing of the second floor space
in the Murch School. This would pro-
vide accommodations for additional
elementary school children who are
going to that school ultimately and
would provide more comfortable quar-
ters for the Deal students pending COM
pletion Of their own annex.