Evening star., 1935-06-10
TEXTBOOK REPAIR
ACTION DELAYED
Board Not Expected to De-
eide on 1t as Work.
Relief Project.

The Board Of Education's action on
the proposal to set up work relief
project in the District schools for re-
pair and storage systematization of the
thousands of publicly owned text
books, including the sorting out for
Use in rural adult education of out
worn volumes. will be delayed past
Wednesdays meeting, 1t was learned
today
Suggested oy Robert S. Roberts, who
as relief worker has reorganized the
Mckinley High School supply of
books. the plan has been held in abey-
snce since May l. although the Com
mittee on Buildings. Grounds and
Equipment approved it June and
then apparently reconsidered its ap-
proval in favor of further study
At last Wednesdays meeting the
Equipment Committee reported 1t still
had the matter under consideration.
Roberts. who was present. manifested
considerable surprise that the COM
mittees approval had been withdrawn,
since no explanation of the withdrawal
was made.
Need for Work Emphasized.
II is proposed 10 have the Board Of
Education recommend the plan as an
official work relief project. suitable
particularly for giving employment to
women and the physically handi-
capped.
Need for the work is emphasized in
a report made by Roberts on condi-
tions he found at Mckinley. He
wrote:
In one of the newest. largest and
finest high schools in America, we
found a $4,000 stock of publicly
owned text books stored in about $50
large bins without any coordination
and with no system Of locating the
specific volumes that might be
wanted . And so the stock had
gotten into such shape that a cor
rect inventory was not possible until
it was co-ordinated.
This was due in this SPECIFIC school
to the fact that the approprlatlng
authorities had rejected the request
for sufficient funds 10 employ compe-
tent caretakerS.
Allotment Is Inadequate.
Imagine allotting only $3.50
week. and only part of the weeks of
the school term. 70 take care OF
$4,000 worth of property. Included
in this we're also many thousands Of
dollars worth of still usable books
that we're no longer used in this
school and should have been trans
ferred to some other school
While. as before stated. We do not
believe that this can be blamed upon
any individual officials. We then and
now make the emphatic statement
that no one can be proud Of the facts.
We also firmly believe that like con-
ditions are common"
Assistant Superintendent of Schools
Stephen z. Kramer, who was desig-
mated to investigate the proposal. re-
ported that Mr.. Roberts has done at
the Mckinley High School very
good piece Of work in organizing the
free text books in that school. I be-
lieve he is capable Of accomplishing
a very satisfactory piece Of work in
our other schools, but it Will be neceS-
sarv for the Board of Education 10
formally ask for the approval of this
as a work project"
Rural Districts Need Books.
Need for text books such AS might
be discarded in the Washington schools
ie acute in the rural districts where
the adult education work of the Fed
eral Emergency Relief Administration
is being carried on, according to l.. B.
Alderman. chief Of that work
At present outworn text books in
the Washington schools are submitted
to the District Government for con-
demnation and then sold for waste
paper
Under the proposed work relief
project they would be rehabiltated
and either continued in use mere or
sent To rural communities where any
text book. no matter what its condi-
tion. is at premium.
Or. Kramer reported that Roberts
plan called for making minor repairs
in each school and the major repairs
In central work shop.