Evening star., 1937-08-09
.F|REPROOF SCHOOL
SPACE SOUGHT FOR
CRIPPLED PUPILS
Haycock and Crane Plan to
Discontinue Weightman
and Magruder Use.
TRANSPORT PROBLEM
STUDIED BY OFFICIALS
Crowding of Downtown Buildings
and Distance to Newer Edi.
fees Are Handicaps,

District school officials today we're
attempting to arrange to provide space
in fireproof building for crippled
pupils whose old quarters in tne
Weightman ard Magruder Schools
have been condemned by fire depart
ment inspectors as 'unsuited for tnis
class Of occupancy"
The problem is complicated by al.
ready over-crowded conditions in
close-in modern buildings and the
difficulties in transporting the Grip
pied children long distances to never
schools in suburban areas. First As
sistant Supt. of Schools Robert L.
Haycock said.
Haycock and Jere j. Crane, first
assistant superintendent directly II
charge of school building affairs, hope
to complete plans for submission tc
the Board of Education early next
month for carrying out the 'emer.
gency" recommendation in a fire de.
partment inspection report that use o.
the Weightman and Magruder schools
for crippled children be immediatel!
discontinued"
Length of Haul Important.
we are considering many angle,
OF the situation" Haycock salo.
studying particularly the problems
Of transportation to schools where
we might possibly find room for the
crippled pupils. The cost of trans
portation and the length of the haul
are important. We do not want to
have to keep the frail, crippled chill
dren too long on buses because this
would not be good for them"
The School Board charters buses
that take the crippled pupils to and
from their homes. Many Of the chill
dren are carry cases and cannot
walk
Haycock pointed out that practi-
cally all the downtown school build
ings are old and not entirely freproof
and so would not be any more suit
able than the Weightman and Ma
gruder Schools for the crippled pupils.
Most New Schools Overcrowded.
The newer schools are in the newer
sections of the city and most of them,
particularly those reasonably close in,
already are overcrowded," he added
However, We are studying every pos
sible solution to the problem and hope
to have an answer SOON
The Weightman School. at Twenty
third and M streets, and the Magruder
School for colored pupils. at 1919 M
street. originally were fitted out only
on a makeshift basis some six years
ago to care for crippled children
who previously had no opportunity for
public schooling.
The School Boards projected five-
year building program calls for con-
struction by 1912 of fireproof buildings
especially designed to accommodate te
crippled and other types of handi-
capped children, one for white pupils
near Children's Hospital and one for
colored pupils near Freedmen's Hos
pital. Appropriations have not been
approved so far, however.
May Provide Additional Ramps.
Al uliSuICVSSIu ul III lllluIllk Spdlb lDI
the crippled pupils temporarily in
more modern buildings, officials in
| dicated additional ramps may be pro-
Nded at the Weightman and Ma
gruder Schools to speed up evacuation
in possible emergency. Ramps are
necessary for getting children in
| wheelchairs in and out of the build
ings. Only one ramp is now avail
able at each building Although con-
vinced that additional ramps would
lessen the hazards, officials admitted
such makeshift Improvements could
not take the place for safety Of en-.
tirely flreproof structures.
Wooden floors, partitions and stair
ways are major fire hazards in the
Weightman and Magruder Schools,
! although they meet the Fire Depart
ment's safety standards for normal
children who can walk or run to
safety without assistance in an emer-
gency.