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■..■*."■-■ 'T " ^-V ... ■ ; . ■ 



Country Schools 



Par Excellence 



The Granger and Crosier Schools in Du Page County 

 Demonstrate the Possibilities in Better Rural Education 



/T"^ MIGHT have been a small 



(Ji boy's dream when taxpayers in 



V_y districts 76, 77, 84 and 85 in 



Naf>erville township, DuPage county, 

 voted to tear down their schoolhouses. 

 Really, it was a taxpayer's dream. 



In 1919, the four old buildings were 

 almost ruins. Hundreds of dollars were 

 needed at once to repair them. Only a 

 few pupils attended the schools regularly. 

 Taxpayers decided it would be cheaper 

 to combine the districts, build one good 

 building, hire two teachers, and cut ex- 

 penses all around than it would be to 

 build four new buildings. 



That was done. School tax rate in 

 district 90, formed by the combination, 

 dropped. District 90, called the Granger 

 school, is supported on a tax valuation 

 of $388,473. Tax rate for educational 

 purposes is now 79 cents per $100 of 

 valpe. Rate for building fund is 27 cents. 



F. M. Winkler, a farm owner whose 

 three children attended the school, said, 

 "It has always filled our needs. We pay 

 taxes in two districts, 90 and 75. Until 

 just recently the rate in the Granger dis- 

 trict has been less than in 75 where only 

 a one-room school is supported." 



District 75 has an assessed valuation of 

 $131,590. Tax rates are 78 cents for 

 educational funds, 20 cents for building. 



"The Granger has become such a com- 

 munity center that our operating expenses 

 have been running a little high," Winkler 



continued. "I understand, though, that 

 directors are charging now for the use of 

 the school basement. The Farm Bureau, 

 the soil conservation committee, rural 

 youth, 4-H Clubs and churches all hold 

 meetings there." 



According to Lewis V. Morgan, Du- 



important features of the consolidation. 



Mrs. Winkler who attended one of the 

 old one-room schools makes this con- 

 structive criticism: 



"When the school was built, part of 

 it should have been made for community 

 meetings. The basement, which was 

 made for the children to play in on cold 

 or rainy days, is not a suitable place to 

 hold large meetings. A new floor was 

 put in sometime ago for dancing and 

 now the children must be careful when 

 they play lest they scratch it. 



"I think my children received a better 

 elementary education than I did. The 

 school I attended was like a family. Most 

 of the time there were only three pupils. 

 We had little fun and no competition in 

 our work. I think competition is im- 

 portant in creating interest." 



THE GRANGER SCHOOL 

 Taxpayers save money, children get education in lull measure. Located at the in- 

 tersection of two state roads, the school ground is sturdily fenced and readily accessibl*. 



Page county superintendent of schools, 

 parents attended more school programs 

 and take more interest in school affairs 

 at the Granger school than they would if 

 their children went to town school. Creat- 

 ing a community center was one of the 



ORGANIZED PLAY 

 "The mark oi d good teacher," says County Supt. Morgan, 

 play with the children." Here Miss Houbolt ploys "teakettle" 



"is her willingness to 

 with primary pupils. 



Frank Fraley, secretary of the Granger 

 board, estimates the cost of running the 

 school averages around $4,000 a year 

 with an additional $650 set aside in the 

 building fund for repairs and upkeep of 

 the $22,000 plant. With 28 pupils in 

 average daily attendance, the lowest num- 

 ber in its 20-year history, the cost per 

 pupil runs less than $170. 



Compare this cost with figures recently 

 published by the Federal Advisory Com- 

 mittee on Education. "In 193 5-' 36 al- 

 most equal numbers of children were at- 

 tending city and rural schools. City 

 school systems spent an average of $108 

 that year for each child in attendance; 

 rural schools spent an average of $67." 

 Compare this, too, with the average cur- 

 rent expense per pupil of more than $80 

 in Illinois. 



The expenditure of nearly $170 per 

 pupil in the Granger district indicates 

 that the 28 youngsters attending the 

 school are not being short-changed in 

 education. 



"We feel that farm boys and girls need 

 a rural education. That's why we favor 

 a good country school. Combining the 

 old districts made it possible for us to 



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L A. A. RECORD 



