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EDWARDS 



COUNTY 



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Supt. of Schools Virgil Judge (left) and Lyman Bunting. 



A SOUTHERN county was first in 

 Illinois to vote on a school sur- 

 vey. The date — Aug. 9, 1945; 

 the county- — Edwards; the vote 

 — strongly favorable. Now, 

 nearly three years later, what has 

 happened ? 



Has anything of value been accom- 

 plished.' Are the citizens of Edwards 

 county satisfied with progress on their 

 school program thus far.' What will 

 be the outcome of this move to unify 

 the 12 -grades in the county under one 

 school board.' 



As things stand today a great deal 

 has been accomplished, thanks to the 

 unselfish devotion of the men who 

 served on the school survey committee 

 and the encouragement of the county 

 superintendent of schools, Virgil Judge. 

 A great deal, of course, remains to 

 be done, but Edwards county does 

 have a 12-grade district except for 18 

 sections at Grayville. It also includes 

 20 sections in adjoining Wayne county. 

 The first board of directors for the new 

 unit district was elected April 24. The 

 seven-man board replaces about 150 

 men who served on school boards 

 throughout the county. Although Al- 

 bion has one-fifth of the county's popu- 

 lation, it has no representative on the 

 new school board. 



The changeover to the 12-grade unit 

 district hasn't been easy. Edwards coun- 

 ty has had about the average Illinois 

 county's share of troubles. 



That includes dealing with people 

 imbued with fierce local pride, others 

 reluctant to give up their small costly 

 high schools, and some opposed to 

 change of any kind. 



Edwards county, however, was 

 blessed with some unusually good lead- 

 ership. Leadership which steered the 

 county past obstacles that wrecked the 

 best laid plans of other counties. 



Reading part of the foreword to 

 the survey committee's report you get 

 a glimpse at the thinking of these men : 



"Children are Edwards County's 

 greatest asset. The general welfare of 

 all depends upon how well they are pre- 

 pared in our public schools to meet 

 society's demand for them. With our 

 social and economic life becoming more 

 complex, it becomes more important 

 that our children, our grandchildren 

 and our great grandchildren be better 

 prepared in our schools to meet these 

 ever-changing and complicated condi- 

 tions. 



"Education in Illinois stands today at 

 the threshold of a great opportunity. 

 Future generations will judge whether 

 or not we, who are now on the scene 



of action, have exhibited vision, cour- 

 age, ability and energy . . . ." 



The State School Commision con- 

 sidered the Edwards school report "one 

 of the most unprejudiced in the state." 



Edwards county is a rural community 

 of slightly less than 10,000. It lies in 

 southeastern Illinois near the Wabash 

 river. Its economy is dependent chief- 

 ly on agriculture. Urban areas include 

 Albion, the county seat with a popula- 

 tion of 2,000, and some scattered vil- 

 lages. 



Educators say that to operate effi- 

 ciently an administrative school district 

 must have 1200 to 1600 pupils as a 

 minimum. 



If this is so then Edwards county, 

 with 1472 in both grade and high 

 schools has sufficient students to oper- 

 ate efficiently and economically as a 12- 

 grade district. 



One of the most outspoken champi- 

 ons of school reorganization is Lyman 

 Bunting, charter member of the Ed- 

 wards County Farm Bureau, chairman 

 of the Edwards County School Survey 

 Committee, and a member of the Illi- 

 nois Agricultural Association board of 

 directors since 1940. 



As a farmer, Bunting was concerned 

 with the rapidly deteriorating state of 

 rural education. Assessed valuations 



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L A. A. RECORD 



