Evening star., 1953-04-09
Virginia Group
Seeks 10 Attract
More Teachers
Organization Formed
To Try to Alleviate
Shortage in Stute

Residents of seven Northern
Virginia communities yesterday
enlisted in a mushrooming move
ment to solve the States teacher
shortage problem.
Local units of the Virginia
Citizens Committee for Teacher
Recruitment were formed during
a meeting at the George Mason
Hotel, in Alexandria. The steer
ing committee of the State wide
organization sponsored the meet
ing.
1T is not a problem that will
be solved by hocus-pocus trick, :"
DR.. Lindley j. Stiles, dean of the
School Of Education of the Uni
Versity of Virginia told about so
business, civic and educational
leaders of the area.
1T is matter of reconstruct
ing our concept of what the
teaching profession ought to be, +"
he declared.
Dean Stiles was a founder of
the Statewide movement which
began about eight months ago.
He was then chairman of a COM
mittee of the Virginia Education
Association which expressed
alarm at the teacher shortage
in the State.
$500 Needed Yearly.
More than 2,50O teachers are
needed each year in Virginia to
keep pace with present and po-
tential school enrollmentS. About
$500 of these are needed to re-
place teachers who each year
leave Virginia's school systems
for more lucrative positions.
But higher teacher salaries are
not the only change needed to
solve the shortage, Dean Stiles
said. He declared that over
crowded classrooms and poor per-
Sonnel policies as well as the
social standing accorded teach
erS are equally important factors
In the overall problem.
Not enough young people are
preparing themselves for teach
ing careers to fill the antici-
pated vacancies, the educator
said. Virginia must add $4,000
teachers to the present $4,000
in the next 10 years in order
to maintain the status quo, he
added.
Prestige Decline.
Frank j. Loutham. executive
secretary of the Virginia Manu-
facturer's Association, who pre-
sided at the meeting, said the
attitude of the public and teach
erS themselves has caused a de-
cline in the prestige of the
teaching profession in recent
years.
The public has come to con-
slider teachers as people without
ambition and without social
standing" he declared. Teachers
themselves, unhappy over low
salary scales and heavy work.
loads, have not encouraged young
people to enter the teaching
field, he added.
Local committees should at
tempt to instill new sense of
pride in teachers and seek to
elevate the profession in the
minds of the citizens, Mr.. LOU
than said.
T. c. Williams, Alexandria
school superintendent, agreed
that higher salaries alone will
not alleviate the teacher shortage
but said improved salary scales
would help tremendously in cas-
ing the situation.
Temporary Chairmen.
Temporary chairmen of the
seven local committees formed
at the conclusion of yesterdays
meeting are: Pat H. Butler, jr.,
400 Woodland terrace, Alexan-
dria committee; Mrs. Alice
Campbell, 1914 South Arlington
Ridge road, Arlington committee;
Mrs. Jane Wellemeyer, president
of the Fairfax Federation of Par
ent-Teacher Associations, Fair
fax committee.
Also, c. E. Gnadt, Prince Will
liam County Commissioner of
Revenue, Prince William Com
mittee; Newman Bailey. secre-
tary of the Culpeper Chamber
of Commerce, Culpeper County
committee; Caleb j. Gibson, di-
rector of instruction of Loudoun
County schools, Loudoun COM
mittee, and Mrs. James F. Aus
tin of Warrenton, Fauquier COM
mittee.