State and county educational reorganization; the revised constitution and school code of the state of Osceola

Front matter

I iV;

STATE AND COUNTY EDUCATIONAL REORGANIZATION

TEXT-BOOK SERIES IN EDUCATION

Preface

The revision of the Article on Education of the Constitution and the Revised School Code which follows it, for the hypothetical state of Osceola, which is presented in the following pages, is an expression, in concrete form, of certain fundamental principles relating to the administration of public education in the United States which the author of this Constitution and Code, in collaboration with Professor Edward C. Elliott, of the University of Wisconsin, expects to set forth, a little later, in a book to be entitled Principles of State and County School AdTninistration. It was originally intended that this Constitution and Code should form a part of a companion volume of Sources^ — a volume of illustrative supreme court decisions, laws, extracts from public documents, etc., — but the size of the material here presented made it seem desirable that this be issued as a separate volume, as will also be done in the case of the Legal Decisions.

Osceola is, of course, a hypothetical state, supposed to be located somewhere in the upper Mississippi Valley, and to contain a few large manufacturing and commercial cities, a number of smaller cities, and large and important rural and agricultural interests. The state is not supposed to be one of more than average size or wealth, but it is supposed to be one which has recently become clearly conscious of the need and purpose of public education, and to have resolutely set to work to perfect an administrative organization for its schools capable of meeting the educational needs of the future. It has accordingly made education an important state interest in its new constitution, organized a strong and helpful state department of education, and abolished the vi Preface

district system of school administration for a county-unit system, under which rapid and substantial educational progress may now be made.

To give greater concreteness to the material here presented the supposed comments and explanations of the Constitutional Convention and the subsequent Educational Code Commission are appended as footnotes, and a few illustrative forms are added in an Appendix. The analytical table of contents of the Constitution and Code will display the plan of educational reorganization adopted, while the Index will serve to locate material in the Constitution or the Code.

It cannot be hoped that all of the material here presented will meet with general approval. Some of the features look clearly to the future, and their importance may not at first be recognized. There may also be some important omissions in the Code. Many minor details, contained in present-day School Codes, have been omitted purposely, as unnecessary under the new form of educational organization and administration here presented. In its larger outlines, though, it is felt that this hypothetical Constitution and Code embody the main lines along which we must travel in the future if substantial educational progress is to be made by our American states.

The essential features of this Constitution and Code are a strong and useful state administrative educational organization, possessed of power where power ought to be centralized, but with little power in matters of essentially local concern ; the county-unit of school organization and administration, with a business and professional organization capable of securing important educational results ; the abolition of the outworn and obstructive district system ; the elimination of party politics from the selection of expert educational officers, election to and retention of these positions being based on merit and efficiency ; the concentration of authority with and responsibility on these experts, both in the cities

Preface vii

and in the county-districts ; the uniting of library and school, and provision for making the schools community centers ; the provision for industrial and agricultural education ; the pooling of costs on a large scale, with a view to equalizing largely the burdens of maintenance ; a perfectly definite yet somewhat complicated scheme for the apportionment of funds, designed to stimulate and reward effort, and to penalize inactivity ; large local freedom, so that each local supervisory unit may make independent progress, as it desires, instead of being tied to a uniform state system ; a strong state system for the certification of teachers and supervisory officers, calculated to stimulate professional growth, and under which each new certificate means added knowledge and professional insight ; a follow-up system which will tend to keep teachers in service professionally alive ; what is believed to be good principles governing compulsory attendance ; and a clear statement of the relation of state to non-state educational effort.

It is hoped that this Constitution and Code for Osceola may prove useful as a basis for discussion to students of educational administration in colleges and universities, and suggestive of lines of reform to members of Educational Code Commissions and legislatures, and to students of educational administration.

ELLWOOD P. CUBBERLEY.

Stanford University, Cal., February lo, 19 14.

L REVISED CONSTITUTION OF OSCEOLA,

Article IX. Education

1. Mandate 3

2. Scope of the S3^stem ......... 4

3. A state school-system ........ 4

4. Administration of the system .5

5. Powers and duties of the state board 5

6. The commissioner of education ...... 7

7. The state school-fund . 8

8. Taxation for education ........ 9

9. County educational organization 10

10. School corporations and taxation . . . . . .11

11. Sectarian schools . .11

12. Exemption from taxation . . . . . . . .12

13. Courses of study ; text-books .12

14. Term ; extension education . 12

15. The University of Osceola 13

II. REVISED SCHOOL CODE TITLE I. ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANIZATION

Chapter I. State Educational Organization

Article i. The State ]

I. A state school-system 17

2 Scope of the system ' . . . .18

3. Oversight and control 18

Article 2. The State Board of Education

4. Appointment and term ........ 19

5. Organization and meetings ....... 19

ix

X Analytical Table of Contents

6. Executive officers . . . . . . . . . 20

7. General powers and duties 2o

8. New legislation .......... 24

9. Administration of oaths ........ 24

Article j. The State Educational Department

10. Organization of the department

1 1 . State commissioner of education

12. Divisions of the state department

(i) Business division

(2) Legal division

(3) Statistical division

(4) Library and extension division

(5) Museum and science-extension division

(6) Schoolhouse-construction and sanitation division

(7) Child-welfare division ....

(8) Rural- and agricultural-education division .

(9) Elementary-education division

(10) Secondary-education division

(11) Special-class-education division ...

(12) Examining, certificating, and pensioning division

(13) Training-of-teachers division

(14) Art and music division ....

(15) Industrial- and vocational-education division

(16) Information and extension division

(17) Editorial division

13. Publications .....

(i) Monthly circular of information

(2) Bulletins ....

(3) Annual Reports .

(4) The School Code

CHAPTER II. COUNTY EDUCATIONAL ORGANIZATION Article 4. County Boards of Education

14. County the unit of organization . • . . . . -38

15. County boards of education ....... 38

16. Vacancies, and removal from office ...... 39

17. Meetings of county boards . . . . . • • 39

18. Powers and duties . . -39

XI

Article ^. Cou7ity School Officers

SECTION J J JJ

19. County superintendents of education

20. Other officers of tlie board

21. Assistant superintendents and other officers

22. Advisory educational board

23. Superintendent's powers and duties .

24. Powers and duties of the secretary

25. Powers and duties of other county educational officers

Article 6. Comity Educational Reorganization

26. Control of existing school-districts

27. Reorganization commission

28. Survey to be made .....

29. Powers of the commission

30. Superintendent's approval of plan

31. Penalty for failure .....

PAGE

44 46

47 47 48

52 54

55 55 56 56 57 58

Chapter III. District Educational Organization

Article 7. Classification and Management of Districts

32. Classification of districts 59

33. County school-districts . 59

Second-class attendance-subdistricts ..... 59 First-class attendance-subdistricts . . . . -59 Joint subdistricts ........ 60

34. City school-districts ......... 60

Second-class city school-districts ..... 61

First-class city school-districts . . . . . .61

35. Existing districts 61

36. Attendance-subdistrict school officers . . . . .62

Second-class attendance-subdistricts ..... 62

First-class attendance-subdistricts ..... 62

37. City boards of education 64

38. Old boards may continue ........ 64

39. Creation of city school-districts ....... 65

Article 8.

40. June school elections

41. Notices of elections .

42. Nature of election notices

43. Electors and ballots .

44. Intent of this article .

The School Elections

68 69 69 xu

.Article g. Powers and Duties of School Boards

45. In county districts 70

In second-class attendance-subdistricts .... 70

In first-class attendance-subdistricts ..... 71

46. City school-districts of the second class 72

Article 10. Educational Organization in Cities of the First Class

47. 48.

49. 50.

SI-

S3' BA- SS'

Organization and committees

Executive officers

Division of powers and duties .

The superintendent of education

The business manager

The superintendent of properties

The superintendent of school attendance

General powers and duties of boards .

Combined city and county governments

76 76 76

77 78 78 79

79 80

TITLE II. THE SYSTEM OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION

57- 58.

59- 60.

63- 64. 65. 66. 67.

Chapter IV. Elementary And Secondary Instruction

Article 11

Extent

Classification of schools Intermediate schools .

Basis for classification Kindergartens .

Schools for special classes Special schools for negroes

General Definitions

Article 12. Attendance and Term

Age limits

Exclusion from school

Time and term .

School holidays

Definition of months and days

Article 13. Instruction

68. Elementary-school instruction .

69. Intermediate-school instruction .

81 81 82 82 83 83 83

84 85 85 85 86

86 87 xm

75- 76.

79- 80. 81. 82.

83. 84. 85.

95- 96.

Secondary-school instruction Language of instruction

Article 14. Secondary- school Advantages

Types of schools in cities .

Secondary-schools in county districts Approved secondary-schools Reasonable advantages must be provided Commissioner to investigate Admission to the state university

89 89 89 90 90

Chapter V. Vocational And Supplemental Education

Article 15. Vocational Education

Work provided for . 92

Definitions of work ......... 92

Nature of instruction . . . . . . . . .92

County schools of agriculture . . . . . • • 93

Courses of instruction in ........ 94

City industrial and trade schools . . . . . -94

Courses of instruction in 95

Approval and certification 95

Article 16. Supplemental Education

86. County libraries

87. County librarians

88. Central and branch libraries

89. School libraries to be included

90. Cities may join .

91. State librarian the head

92. State library and museum to cooperate

95 96

97 97 98 98 99

Chapter VI. Higher And Professional Education

Article 17. The University of Osceola

Culmination of the state system

Government of .

Duties and powers of regents

Support ....

Instruction lOI

103 103

XIV

98. Scope of instruction . . .

99. State university the standard

TITLE III. SUPPORT OF THE SYSTEM

Chapter VII. Funds And Taxation

Article 18. State Aid

100. The state school-fund

loi. State school-tax

102. State board expenses

103. Average daily attendance defined

104. Local school-funds .

Article ig. County Taxation

105. County school-tax

PAGE

Article 20. District Taxation

Estimating the district tax

Subdistrict taxes

Certifying district taxes for levy

Levy, and tax limits

Fiscal year ....

106 106 107 107 107

109 no no III 112

Chapter VIII. Apportionment Of Funds

Article 21. Basis oj Grants

State school-fund income Apportionment of state school-tax Basis of apportionment .

I. Teacher grants .

II. Extra school grants .

III. Library grants .

IV. Consolidated-school grants V. Attendance grants

114. Division of the state apportionment

115. Apportionment of the county school-tax

116. Apportionment of the state school-fund income

117. County treasurer treasurer for all districts

118. Use of funds

119. County treasurer may anticipate revenue

120. Basis of state apportionment .

XV

TITLE IV. ENVIRONMENT AND EQUIPMENT

CHAPTER IX. SCHOOL BUILDINGS Article 22. Provision of Schools Required

121. Suitable accommodations required 125

122. Penalty for failure to provide such . . . . . .125

123. Use of school buildings . . . . . . . .126

Article 2j. Plans for School Buildings

124. State may provide plans . . . . . . . .126

126. Plumbing facilities ; outbuildings ...... 127

127. Sanitary surveys ; condemnation of buildings . . . .128

Article 24. Erection of Buildings; Bonding

128. Letting of contracts 128

129. Building by tax or by bonding 129

130. School-district bonds 129

131. Sale and redemption of bonds 130

132. Acquirement, sale, and title to school property . . . 131

133. State aid for consolidated buildings . . . . . . 131

134. State aid for county schools of agriculture .... 132

Article 25. Care of Buildings

135. Janitors' certificates . . 132

136. Insurance of buildings 133

137- 138.

139- 140.

143- 144. 145.

Chapter X. Health And Sanitary Control

Article 26. Health Inspections, and Purpose

Health supervision and instruction required . . . •134 State certification required ....... 134

Purposes of the work ........ 135

Clinical child-psychologist . . . . . . .136

Examinations of teachers and employees ..... 137

Article 27. Sanitary Control

Contagious diseases 137

Vaccination required . 138

Exclusion from school . . . . . . • .138

General sanitary control . 139

XVI

CHAPTER XI. TEXT-BOOKS AND SUPPLIES Article 28. Basis of Supply

146. Unit for adoptions . . . 140

147. State approved lists 140

148. Books to be furnished free . . . . . . .141

149. Free school supplies 142

TITLE V. THE TEACHING FORCE CHAPTER XII. THE TRAINING OF TEACHERS

Article 2g. The State Normal Schools

150. Schools and purpose

151. To whom open

152. The course of instruction

153. Government of each school

154. Pov^^ers of boards of trustees

155. Graduates entitled to certificates

Article jo. Local Training-schools

156. County training-classes ......

157. City normal schools

Article ji. The State Teachers College

158. Location

1 59. Purpose of the college

143 144

144 145

146 146

147 147

Chapter XIII. The Certification Of Teachers

Article J2. Examining and Certificating of Teachers

160. Teachers' certificates required .

161. Certificates in force continued .

162. A state system of certificating .

163. Commissioner to determine details

164. Interstate comity

165. Number of examinations, and fees

166. Registration of certificates required

167. Success schedules .

168. Yearly success-grades

169. Suspension and revocation of certificates

151 152 xvu

Article jj. Forms of Certificates Granted A. Kindergarten Certificates

I JO. Basis of granting

171. Permanent kindergarten certificate .

B. Elementary-school Certificates

172. Grades of and requirements for

I. Second-grade certificate II. First-grade certificate

173. Validity and renewals of .

174. Permanent elementary-school certificate

C. I nterjnediate- school Certificates

175. Requirements for ......

176. Validity; permanent form ....

D. Secondary- school Certificates

177. Requirements for

178. Validity and renewals .....

179. Permanent secondary-school certificates .

E. Supervisory Certificates

180. Grades and requirements for .

I. Second-grade certificate II. First-grade certificate .

181. Validity and renewals

182. Permanent supervisory certificates .

F. Vocational-education Certificates

183. For what work issued

184. Regular vocational certificates .

185. Certificates to state subjects

186. Validity of

187. Permanent vocational certificates

188. Special vocational certificates .

189. Issue and validity ....

190. 191.

G, Special Certificates

To whom issued

Validity of special certificates .

PAGE

155 155 156

157 158

159 160

161 162 162

163 163 164 164 165

169 170

XVlll

192. Health-officer's certificate . .

193. Librarian's certificate . . . .

194. School janitor's certificate ....

H. Provisional Certificates

195. County superintendents may issue .

/. City-district Certificates

196. State certificates valid in cities

197. City-district professional examinations

PAGE

171 171 171

172 172

Chapter XIV. Appointment, Tenure, Pay, And Pensions

Article 34. Appointment and Tenure

198. By whom appointed , . . 173

199. Preliminary appointments . . . . . . '173

20Q. Indefinite tenure . . . . , . . . -174

201. Termination of contract . . . . . . . -174

202. Causes for dismissal . -175

203. Appeal from decisions . . . . . . . -175

204. Tenure of superintendents . 175

Article jj. Pay of Teachers

205. A merit basis . . . . 176

Article j6.

206. Plan to be provided

207. Basis of the pensioning plan .

Pensions

176 177

Chapter XV. Training Of Teachers In Service

Article 57. Reading Circles

208. State reading-circle board

209. Work of this board .

210. Contracts for books .

211. State syllabus to be issued

212. Books to be studied

213. Reading-circle examinations

214. Success-grades on reading-circle work

XIX

215. 216.

217. 218. 219. 220.

Validation of certificates for teaching Exemptions from reading-circle work

Article j8. Teachers' Institutes

Local teachers' meetings and institutes Annual county and city institutes State department of education to assist .

State district-institutes

235- 236.

237- 238.

240. 241.

243- 244.

TITLE VI. STATE OVERSIGHT AND CONTROL

CHAPTER XVL THE STATE AND THE CHILD

Article jg. The School Census

New census to be taken 185

Tabulation of results 186

A continuing census 187

Maintaining the continuing census 187

Teachers and schools must cooperate . . . . .188 Census board in cities of the first class . . . . .189

Article 40. Compulsory Education

Age limits, and exemptions 190

Attendance at other than public schools 192

Duty of person in parental relation 192

All schools to report 193

Private and parochial schools to cooperate . . . •194

Attendance officers to enforce 195

Arrest of truants . . . 195

Definition of habitual-truant and school-offender . . .196

Parental-home schools 197

Commitment to a parental-home school 198

Paroled children 200

Poor-relief for 200

Blind, deaf, and dumb children .201

Article 41. Child Labor

When children must not work 202

Age-certificates and working-permits 203

Papers required for working-permits ..... 204

Nature and use of working-permits 205

Employers must exhibit permits 205

XX Analytical Table of Contents

245. Illiterate minors . . . . . • . . • 206

246. Penalty for not attending 206

Article 42. General Control

247. State board to make regulations 207

248. Commissioner of education may remove attendance officers . 207

249. Disposition of fines 207

Article 4^. Education of Defectives and Dependents

250. State and local provisions for 208

Chapter XVII . The State And Non-state Effort

Article 44. Private and Parochial Schools

251. Public education not exclusive .

252. Approval of schools for attendance .

253. Appeal from the decision ....

254. All private and parochial schools to report

255. State cooperation with ....

256. Exemption from taxation

Article 45. Degree-conferring Institutions

257. State supervision of . ........ 212

258. Exemption from taxation of . . . . . . .213

Article 46. Designation and Intent of Act

259. Official title 213

260. Intent of act; repealing clause 213

261. When to take effect ........ 214

262. Initial appropriation 214

APPENDICES

A. Statistics as to the State of Osceola ...... 216

B. Estimated cost for the State Department of Education, as required

by Chapter I 218

C. Estimated state grants, as required by Chapter VIII . . . 223

D. County educational reorganization, as required by Chapter II,

Article 6, illustrated by Chippewa County .... 225

E. The new state apportionment plan illustrated by the apportion-

ment sheet for Chippewa County ..... 239

F. Selected success-grades . . . . . . . . 242