Evening star., 1953-01-05
Corning. Offers
Fund Plan for
School Work
Official Repeats
Call for Building
Borrowing Program

school Supt. Hobart M. Cor
ming today yreiaterated his call for
a borrowing program to build
schoolhouses and urged two
other budgetary changes to re-
lieve the teacher and space
shortages.
In a memorandum relating
the physical handicaps Of the
school system to the limitations
of the Districts financing proc
esses, he said he would recon-
mend to the Board of Educa-
ton:
Provision for transfers Of ap-
propriated funds within the
school budget to take advantage
Of surpluSes in some funds and
shortages in others.
A plan to permite budget re-
quests, especially for teachers,
to be based on anticipated needs,
rather than on the previous
years enrollments.
To, Offer Recommendation.
DIR. Corning said he expected
to present to the School Board
recommendations looking toward
enactment Of legislation to cover
the three points.
His statement said that the
problem of coping with increased
enrollments and shifting popu-
lationS is particularly difficult to
solve here because of the
uniquely complicated, and rigid
requirements of governmental
financing"
Current problems will con-
tinue, he said, unless the School
Board, is permitted to carry out
the recently-approved six-year
building program.
Recognizing that the educa-
ton of children is not a type of
public service that can be post
poned, 1t seems evident that
| school buildings which are ur-
gently needed in a growing city
cannot be provided so long as
they are to be financed only
from annual appropriations" he
wrote,
Crises Could Be Averted.
"The long-range program can
be followed and extreme crises
in the community can be avoid
ed only If a method of borrow
ing is approved so that build
ings can be provided when the
needs become apparent" he
added.
DR.. Corning said that If trans
fers Of appropriations had been
possible this year, enough teach
ers could have been supplied for
Negro schools by switching
funds from capital outlay which
will revert to the Federal Treas
ury at the end of the budget
year.
He said also that although en-
rollments for a coming year can
be predicted with reasonable ac-
curacy, the school board may
not request teachers salaries on
the basis of anticipated enroll
mentS
"It follows naturally that the
number of teachers requested Is
always one year behind the
needs" he said, adding that as
long as enrollments continue to
grow, there always will be an
insufficient number of teachers.
Requests Always Reduced.
Besides. he said, the Commits
sioners or congressional COM
mittees historically have reduced
the boards requests for teach
ers. He cited figures showing that
from 1947 through 1853, teacher
requests totaling 629 have been
. cut to 1893.
In recent years, because of
diminishing enrollments in the
white schools, and rapidly in
creasing population in the COL
ored schools. he said the prob
lem of providing adequate teach
ers has been confined to the
latter.
Various devices have been
used in meeting the problem, he
explained, but the 1853 budget
was unusually rigid. About Is
per cent of the cost of manda-
tory pay increases usually ap-
propriated had to be absorbed
from previously appropriated
funds, he explained.
Thus, all possible savings al
ready are obligated and the
former practice of transferring
vacancies to colored schools
cotfld not be followed.
/ m capital outlay, DR.. Corning
pointed out, requests have been
consistently cut or limited since
1947. For 1858, the request of
$12 million was cut to a little
more than 81 million.
This has resulted in serious
crises" he said, including the
hardships from the long delay
in building the Payne School
addition.
- s~
Baltimore Foursome Wins