Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 122, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 May 1920 — COUNTY EDUCATIONAL NOTES. [ARTICLE]

COUNTY EDUCATIONAL NOTES.

Licenses were issued from State Sopt. L. N.. Hines to the following teachers today: Mamie C. Seed, Remington; Helen Kissinger, Rensselaer; Nellie Johnstone, Remington; Jessie Rardin, Parr; Grace Knapp, Wheatfield; "Cecile Jordan, McCoysburg; Charles M. Blue. Rensselaer. Miss Hazel Lucas of Remington has made a state license provided she takes the required twelve weeks of professional training to get her “A” certificate. Miss Lucas and Lewis Hurley of Wheatfield are the snly two applicants in the county who have made grades entitling them to a state license as soon as their professional training is completed. There is much talk about the teacher shortage in Indiana and the country in general. The situation is acute in southern Indiana where trustees must employ teachers on the minimum salary basis to obtain their share of the state defi-ciency'-’money. Salaries- south of Indianapolis in the poorer counties will range about one dollar per day lower than teachers of the same qualifications receive in Jasper county. The result is that the southern Indiana teachers ate applying in the north for schools. Applications are very plentiful nowadays. But Jasper county will take care of her home teachers first before attention will be given to these outside applicants. It might be well to mention that Jasper county teachers have a preference in this matter of teacher selection; yet the school officials have a limited store of patience. Practically ’all of the Jasper county teachers are refusing to contract with the trustees for fear that they can get a few cents more per day by hmding off. A certain amount of this “bolding off” might be construed as business sagacity. Farmers often hold their grain or livestock for a better market. But there is a point where the wise farmer sells. Many farmers _ lament their losses after the high price tide is over. The teachers of* Jasper county should npt abuse the patience of these employing officials until they refuse to give preference to a Jasper county teaching product. The trustees know about what they can pay and the south state teacher would be glad to contract for the wage most of Jasper county trustees are offering. It is not intended that a teacher should hasten his contracting but it is becoming imperative that the Jasper county teachers give the Jasper county trustees assurance that they will teach in Jasper county before the trustees employ some of these out-of-county teachers. The trustees are pfiiying a fair and impartial game with home teachers and they are becoming uncomfortable for fear the fairness will not be reciprocated. What is more the trustee and teacher should have an approximate idea of the salary if it is not settled when this assurance of teaching in Jasper county is given. A trustee resents paying a forced raise a few days before the schools open on account of leniency or vague understandings prior to that time. Many queries have come to the office relative to the standing of the high schools in Jasper county. The high schools of Jasper county are all commissioned schools. , Remington, Rensselaer and Wheatfield high schools are not under, the supervision of the county superintendent. Fair Oaks, DeMotte and Kankakee Consolidated are under the jurisdiction of the county superintendent. The requirements of teachers in any commissioned school are the same. Grade teachers must have at least thirty-six weeks of professional training. The high school teachers must have at least seventy-two weeks professional training. Also every commissioned high school must have at least two college graduates in the high school faculty. The city schools at Rensselaer require all of their high school teachers to be college graduates except the vocational teachers. -Friends of education in Jasper county can point with pride to the efficiency of the high schools. This efficiency is recognized by the state department before a school is granted a commission. De Motte was the last school to receive its rating from the state department. It should not be overlooked that the student body of these high schools receive their fundamental training in the singleroomed and graded schools. In fact the high schools mirrorize the lower grade work. Thus it will be easily seen that state recognition of high schools reflects credit to the remotest one-roomed school in the, county. Teachers who have been and will continue the preparation of the boys and girls for high school will receive recognition for efficiency whenever the state authorities give the high schools honorable classification. The school system Of Jasper county, is one large school unit ranging from the most efficient high school to the most obscure singleroomed building in the most out-of-way place in the county. This homogeneous school mass is also the framework from which Jasper county’s efficient citizenry l