Evening star., 1949-02-03
Corning Named
To Second Tern,
As School Head
80 Buildings Locking
Adequate Fire Boxes
Listed by Boord
By Colt HendIey. Jr.


The Board of Education has re-
appointed DR. Hobart M. Corning as
superintendent of the public schools
here for his second three-year term.
Meeting yesterday. the school
board unanimously renamed DR..
Corning to head the biggest single
branch of the District Government
His annual salary will be $4,000.
His present term expires on March !.
The board also:
Forwarded to the Commissioners
q list of 80 schools which 1t con-
siders inadequately protected by
fire-alarm boxes.
Closed the Smallwood Elementary
School and transferred the children
to the Bowen Elementary School,
now empty since it is no longer
needed as an annex to Randall
Junior High School.
Appointed Mrs. Gladys T. Peter
son, principal of Randall Junior
High School, as administrative as
sistant to DR.. Garnet c. Wilkinson,
first assistant superintendent in
charge of colored schools.
Fire Box Data Asked.
The Commissioners had asked the
School Board for the list of schools
1t considers poorly protected by
fire alarm boxes SO program of
placing boxes could be planned. All
of the schools named have no fire
boxes in the buildings, and in some
instances the nearest fire box is
more than three blocks away.
Recently the Commissioners de-
cided to install interior master
control" type boxes in all schools
against the recommendation of Fire
Chief Clement Murphy. who wanteS
standard fire alarm boxes installed
outside The schools. The interior
type was advocated by District Supt.
of Communications Herbert Friede.
The board reiterated its stand
that it wanted the best protection
possible" for the children, but was
leaving the choice of what type box
would furnish this up to the Eek
perts."
DR.. Corning told the board the
80 schools were listed in order of
priority with the most serious cases
coming first. The priority is based
on the distance from the street fire
alarm boxes and the condition and
age of the buildings. The list is:
Key, Wormley, Bruce, Reno. Blair,
Smallwood, Phillips, Henry Wilson,
S. J. Bowen, Emery, Fillmore, H. D.
Cooke, Webster, Pierce, Military
Road, Cleveland, Morgan, Syphax,
Petworth, Wheatley, Ludlow, Hyde,
Carver. TruesdelI Raymond, Barn
ard, Richardson, Ross and Barrett.
Pupil Shift Requested. =
The move of the Smallwood pupils
10 the S. j. Bowen School was re-
quested by the Southwest Civic As
sociation, DR.. Corning explained.
Bowen, which until last month was
used as an annex to the Randall
Junior High School, is better
building and is in the same neigh
borhood, he added.
The board adopted a list Of text
books for school use, including the
revised edition of the controversial
civics text book, Building Citizen
ship" by r. o. Hughes.
The civics text was placed in dead
storage last year after attacks on
it by Adelbert w. Lee, board men,
ber, and after a Congressional sub
committee decided it needed some
revisions before it would be suit
able text for use in the schools here.
Gone was picture Of Stain and
O. number Of adverse comments on
various phases of American life.
Mr.. Lee refrained from voting
yesterday, saying he might have
something to say he had looked the
book over.
The board also approved a bill
pending in the House and calling for
admissions to school entertainments
to be exempt from the Federal
amusement taxes. Athletic events
would not be exempt under the
ruling.
New Aide a ID. C. Native.
Mrs. Peterson, the new admin
fstrative assistant to DR.. Wilkinson,
has been In the school system here
for 81 years. She is a native of the
District and lives at 1902 Kenyon
street NV. She was graduated
from Miner Normal School in 1918
and received her law degree from
Howard University in 1922, a bache-
lor Of arts degree in education in
1880 and her masters, degree in
education in 1884.
Other personnel changes approved
/. by the school board included ap-
pointment Mrs. Helen H. Bolton, a
8 teacher at Truesdell Laboratory
School, to the temporary position
of professor in charge. She will fill
In for Mrs. Roberta 8. Barnes, who
has been granted maternity leave by
the board.
Miss Annie E. Duncan, a teacher
ut CardoZo High School, was named
principal of Cardozo Night School.
Retired were: Miss Lillian Dickett
of "a o street NV, an instructor at
the Monroe Laboratory School after
Is years of service and Mrs. Alice
w. Tucker, 2025 street NV, a
teacher at the Noyes Elementary
School, after Is years of service.