Evening star., 1951-10-18
Board Rescinds
Shift Of Pupils
From Lafayette
Reverses Cornine's
Order, Sets Nov. |
For Re-trunsfer


today was under orders to trans
fer back to the Lafayette Ele.
mentary School 90 pupils hi
shifted to Murch School wher
the fall term began last month
The Board of Education, in 6
surprise reversal of DR.. Corning
yesterday ordered the shift made
by November /.
DR.. Corning had transferred
the pupils from Lafayette by thu
device of changing the boundary
lines between the two schools. HI
said the change was necessary tt
avoid diversified classes at tn,
Lafayette School.
Parents of the transferred chill.
dren put up a dogged fight, ap.
pearing before the Board of Edu.
cation on numerous occasions ir
the last two months. 1t all ap.
peared to no avail when last week
the Buildings and Grounds Com.
u1ittee of, the board voted unan.
imously to support DR.. Corning.
action.
Yesterday, however, DR.. Phillip
T. johnson started the stampede
In the other direction by with
drawing his approval of the COM
mittee report. He said investiga-
ton had revealed that a room
designated a classroom at Lafay-
cite was being used as a teacher
room.
C. Melvin Sharpe, board presi-
dent. then Withdrew his sanction
also.
Adelbert w. Lee. board vice
president, contended that use oi
the classroom at Lafayette for q
teachers room was a deviation
from original plans of the build
ing. He declared that such devia-
tions should come through the
Buildings and Grounds Commit
tee for approval
At one point DR.. Corning pro-
tested that the matter should &c
back to him for further study
The board members ignored his
request.
When DR.. Carl F. Hansen, as
sociate superintendent in charge
of elementary schools, tried to
speak to the subject, Mr.. Lee said
he did not have the right to do so,
that DR.. Corning was able to de-
fend his own position. DR.. Cannon
called Mr.. Lee out of order in
stopping DR.. Hansen from speak
ing but DR.. Hansen didn't con-
tinue after the exchange.
The four members voting to re-
verse DR.. Corning were Mr.. Lee,
Wesley Williams, Mrs. James w.
Williams and DR.. johnson.
DR.. James A. Cannon alone sup
ported DR.. Corning.
Three Not Voting.
Absent and not voting on the
matter were Albert E. Steinem,
Mrs. E. c. Magdeburger and Mrs.
Arcadia Near Philips.
Before starting the debate on
the Lafayette question, the board
heard from Isador w. Mendelsohn,
a parent whose child was trans
ferred to Murch. He repeated the
arguments of the protesting par
ents that the move was not justi-
fed by the enrolment figures.
Ralph S. Roberts. president of
the Lafayette Home and School
Association, and speaking for that
group, later termed the move "an
arbitrary decision not supported
by the facts"
In addition to ordering DR..
Corning to shift the pupils back,
the School Board told him to con-
vert the teachers room into a
classroom and to install a teach
ers' room in the room adjacent
to the principals Office, now used
as part of that Office.
DR.. Hansen said the pupils
will be moved back by the re-
quired date. He said he was
unable to say how soon the trans
fers will be undertaken. He and
DIR. Corning appeared unhappy
over the reversal.
The present teachers room,
that now will be converted back
to classroom, is on the first floor
of the building next to the girls
toilet. 1t measures % feet by "a
feet. the size of the average class
room.
Was Home Arts Room.
When the school was built in
1881, it was designated as home
arts classroom. Equipment at that
time included one toilet and a
bathtub, sink, range and laundry
tray. 1t was used for home eco
nomics classes for the girls.
The principals Office was in an
other room, measuring 80 by %
feet. This had been petitioned
into two sections, one of which
had toilet. This was the only
toilet facility for the teachers
then.
The school was expanded by an
addition in 1887 and it was de-
cided later that one toilet was
not sufficient for the more than
20 teachers. So, the home arts
room was converted in 1943 by
adding three additional toilets
and another washbasin. The
principal moved her office into the
old teachers room and used the
other half of that set-up as a
conference room and working
space for the clerk.
Furnished as Sitting Room.
The teachers room now has
been decorated by the Home and
School Association. It is comfort
ably furnished with sofas, chairs,
tables.
Under the orders. of the School
Board, the teachers room will be
dismantled, the toilets removed
and the teachers will go back to
the original setup, using half OF