Evening star., 1942-04-20
District Schools Share
In National Defense
Writer Tells How War
Hos Enlisted officioIs,
1eochers and Pupils
By John W. Thompson, Jr.

By John W. Thompson, Jr.
History win some day record and give
due credit to the District public school
system for its contribution to the de-
tense and war effort OF the Nation.
Even IN uneventful peacetime. the
education Of 10000 children In full
time Job for the 5000 or more teachers.
the hundreds Of custodians who heat
and clean buildings. and the school ofn-
cials who administer sl3 900 900 budget.
Yet from the very moment that the
national emergency was proclaimed,
when Bundles for Britain" was the
slogan instead of Remember Pearl
Harbor." this great organization placed
both its $50. 900 900 plant and Its highly
trained personnel at the service Of its
country and community.
When the call went out for trained
Industrial workers for vital defense
industries, the Districts vocational
schools began TO hum night and day
teaching the vital crafts to new students
and refreshing others with some pre-
vious experience. Increased offerings in
Spanish and Portuguese were made
available to the Army and others as
events overseas forced closer welding OF
inter-American ties.
It was Asst Supt Of Schools Chester
W. Holmes who organized the Districts
historic first registration Of man power
since the First World War on October
the bulk Of the volunteer registrars and
high school cadets served as messengers
In the school buildings turned over to
the project.
For the next two registrations selec-
tive service called for DR. Holmes and
his teacher registrars and he is once
again readying for the signing up of the
45-65-year-old age group April 27.
When the rs District draft boards were
first set up 1t was in school buildings
that many had their Offices School Gus
todians, many already working II to IA
hours \ day during the normal school
day, supplied overtime service to these
boards for which they have not as yet
been paid.
School teachers In school buildings
will register the thousands OF city sugar
consumers for rationing cards the end
OF this month and the early part Of May.
Many night school classes were forced
into the Easter week holiday to make up
for the lost time
AS for the District civilian defense
o1y ia cofd hat
revolves about the school system. School
buildings were used for the mass meet
ings which set up the area civilian de-
fense committees. They provided class
room space for instruction of afraid
wardens. In some cases they are warden
In the emergency medical scheme as
nrst-aid stations and temporary hos
pitfalls. School yards form the base Of
operations of the demolition squads
which have been organized.
Not q night goes by but brilliantly
lighted school buildings in all sections
Of the city bear witness to the place of
the schools in the national and local
war program over and above the regu-
lar night school classes and recreational
programs usually carried on. Plans are
now under way to keep in operation un-
til June 30 some SO school buildings in
which night activities normally termi-
nate about that date. The need Is too
heavy to be ignored.
Hundreds of school teachers stood
watch in cold, gloomy school buildings
during last Christmas season in that
famous and to this day fully unexplained
''boner" by civilian defense officials who
ordered q secret 24-hour vigil for school
switchboards, without ever explaining
why. Many protested, but they and
others who did not protest served until
the project finally was liquidated weeks
later.
When the need for hrst-aid instructors
became acute, a few trained teachers
volunteered their time to train other
volunteer teachers Even meetings Of
the Board OF Education at the Franklin
School gave way at 80 pm. to instruc-
ton Of employees in first aid
A special committee has been set up
under Principal May Bradshaw of Roose-
velt High School TO promote the sale Of
Defense bonds among teachers and
pupils.
To contribute to the need for trained
airplane pilots ground school course
was instituted last year at Wilson and
Miner Teachers Colleges. Last February
aviation courses were introduced to the
senior high schools and plans are under
consideration to make it full-year pro-
gram. Only last week a special six-week
summer refresher course for would-be
pilots was approved by the board.
In the wood shops of the junior and
senior high schools pupils are doing
their bit for Uncle Sam producing pre-
cision-made airplane models to be used
by the Navy for pilot training and ci-
william spoilers. The District quota is
$500 to be made before schools close in
June and only perfect models will be
accepted Previously they had manufac-
tured splints for Red Cross classes and
civilian defense.
Impressed With the need OF greater
physical fitness among the students, from
what the draft rejection figures have
shown, school officials now are moving
to step up the physical education pro-
gram and have given it first place in
their plans for curriculum revision.
In these and countless other ways the