Evening star., 1942-01-22
Night Watches
For Women al
Schools Hit
Board Unanimously
Votes Disopprovul
Of Practice

Unanimous disapproval OF use OF
woman teachers to watch school
buildings after $3.50 pm. was voted
yesterday by the Board of Educa-
ton.
Action followed reports of an
alleged attempted assault on
teacher on watch in colored
school. At the present time 24-hour
vigil is being maintained in 18 Sc
lected school buildings on orders
from District civilian defense Off
CialS.
At the same time Supt. Frank w.
Ballou told the members defense
officials had rejected his proposals
to abandon the watch in all schools
and study the situation, or to turn
the whole after school watch over to
afraid wardens. They accepted
instead, he said, the plan to man
strategically located buildings.
Plans for manning some OF the
schools with auxiliary police or
wardens went afoul, DR.. Ballou in
dicated, when numbers Of both
SIOupS llldlIdVCu eiiSy AAbaAA SAoAA>~
up to serve in schools.
Principals Advised.
School principals have already
been advised not to use woman
teachers after $3.50 pm, DR.. Ballou
said, but under questions from board
members. he added that he could
not promise that some were not be-
ing used where man teachers
weren't available.
Referring to the alleged attempted
assault, C. Melvin Sharpe observed,
lone little incident like that and
we'll all be sorry" His query as to
whether there was not some way III
which the vigil could be stopped,
brought from Dr.. Ballou the opinion
that maintenance of the vigil should
not be placed on the teachers as a
professional group. Rather he said
it was the responsibility of the COM
munity in which the school was
located.
In some instances. it was stated,
communities have already put up
money to hire watchmen to relieve
the teachers of the work.
Answering a criticism of the Girl
Reserve Mothers Council, the MEM
bers declared activities and social
functions in connection with mid
winter graduations shuld not be cam
celled merely because the board had
decided earlier to move as many
graduations as possible into daylight
hours to avoid night gatherings.
Board Member Charles D. Drayton
said he thought the transfer OF the
exercises to daytime was premature.
The members voted to seek S45,-
900 deficiency appropriation to COM
plete six classrooms at the Lafayette
School and $500 for seven addi-
tional clerks from March / to June
80, the end of the fiscal year. The
completion of the classrooms at La
fayette was sought in Lanham Act
funds but disallowed. 1t will permit
abandonment of the old E. v. Brown
School, at least by next September,
1t was stated.
Personnel Changes Approved.
A number of personnel changes
were approved by the board as was
abandonment for school purposes of
the Weightman, Hubbard and Blake
Schools.
Mrs. F. L. Toms, principal of the
Randall Night School, is resigning as
of February 2 when she will be sue
ceeded by Miss c. E. Lewis.
With the closing of Hubbard, the
teacher training program carried on
there and at the Powell School will
be transferred to the Truesdell
School as will Mrs. Ruth K. Webb,
former administrative principal at
Hubbard Powell. Powell will be
combined with the Raymond School
under Miss Lou E. Ballenger
Mrs. I. I. Ruediger was made
permanent supervising principal OF
the seventh division.
Miss Nell F.. Hiscox, principal of
Truesdell, will move to the prin-
cipalship of the Janney School made
vacant by the death of Mrs. Eliza
beth K. Peoples.
Mrs. Frances S. Haas, principal of
the Addison -Curtis-Hyde combina-
ton, will surrender Addison to Mrs.
Beulah D. Aldridge, teaching prin-
cipal at Corcoran, and Corcoran will
be combined with Grant under Miss
Uiolo nH,,tt