Evening star., 1951-10-19
Our FumbIing School Board

Our leaderless Board of Education possesses
the right to overrue an administrative decision
OF the Superintendent of Schools and his pro-
fessional advisers
But when it does so, the Board of Educa-
ton assumes responsibility for its own action in
the matter. The board has now made itself
responsible for overcrowded conditions In the
Lafayette School, in Northwest Washington and
1t Will be interesting to observe from now on
what other inept methods it will choose to ex-
nlblt the misplaced authority in its possession
1t has been evident for SOME years that the
Lafayette School was becoming crowded beyond
stated capacity, whereas the Murch School, which
serves the same general community, was under
capacity. One OF the recommendations of the
neglected Strayer report made at cost of about
100000, was that some pupils be transferred
from the Lafayette School to the Murch School,
The method chosen by school authorities to
erect such transfers Is to adjust school bounda-
res. That is the only feasible and fair method It
Is reSorted to whenever school facilities, as be-
tween neighborhoods, are thrown out OF balance
by population changes. Last spring the Lafayette
Murch boundaries were adjusted, along with
those OF several other Washington school areas.
The change meant that about 30 children, pre-
viously living within the Lafayette area, were
forced to go to the Murch School. The result, in
enrolment and capacity. was as follows on
October /:
Enrolment Capacity
Lafayette 844 1872
Murch 705 756
With the transfer of 90 children from La
fayette to Murch, Lafayette was still So over
capacity; Murch was still II under capacity. The
ratio of pupils to teachers was $50 at Lafayette
and 1915 at Murch.
Some Of the parents of children transferred
to the Murch School protested the change of
boundaries. The Board of Education, very prop
erly, heard their protests Twice 1t asked the
Superintendent of Schools to reconsider his de-
cision. Twice the Superintendent of Schools re-
considered and came up with the same answer.
Last week the Buildings and Grounds Committee
OF the board, going over all the evidence, pro and
con, decided the school officials were right and
approved what had been done.
But on Wednesday the board reversed its
committee by vote of to /, with three mem
bers absent The school boundaries win be
changed back to where they were before. The
90 children transferred to Murch will be trans
ferred back to Lafayette The decision seems to
have hinged on the fact that at the Lafayette
School room originally designated as a class
room when the building was constructed in 1881
had been converted in 1887 to teachers room,
with lavatory facilities installed The school had
been enlarged that year by an addition, and
existing lavatory facilities were inadequate for
the % teachers. So in providing that the teach
ers' room be reconverted to classroom use, the
board has deprived the teachers of facilities con-
sidered necessary Is years ago. The school will
remain above capacity even with the additional
classroom, and the conditions will become worse
next year. And the boundaries will be fixed,
until the Board of Education chooses to change
them.
Relatively, the whole business is trivial in
the Districts public school system. But the
Board of Edueation's behavior in the matter is
characteristic of its pettifoggng policy OF OBJ
structing the superintendent by its weighty pre-
occupation with administrative detail. 1t seems,
under present leadership, incapable Of anything
else.