USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Somerville > Report of the city of Somerville 1950 > Part 7
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In view of the evident indecisions of the general public, it seems justifiable to leave the problem of what should be done in the hands of the administrators of the schools and those elected representatives who formulate the policies.
The public school system is a community institution which has been created and operates within the framework of community life. What that school system is and what it ac- complishes is determined by the public itself. Since it is impossible for all the citizens of a community the size of Som- erville to meet in typical town meeting fashion to discuss the problems of the community, there are chosen representative agencies, known as school committees or boards of education to study and to discuss thoroughly the problems of the schools and to formulate proper policies for their solution. Through these agencies the people themselves construct and equip buildings, select and employ teachers, fix the length of the school day, and decide the age at which the children shall enter school. Community action is easily responsive to such matters as budgets, salaries, or any other factors involving money. The public schools are what the people make them, for they can
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change their representatives, if they wish, at regular stated in- tervals. Good educational programs are not bought like ready- to-wear clothing, but rather they must be tailored to fit the particular community.
In the light of the previous statements, let us review the activities of our local school committee during its encumbency of the fiscal year 1950. The School Committee of 1950 is. composed of nine members, five of whom - Mrs. Morrissey and Messrs. Leahy, Brown, Shea, and John Fitzgerald - had previous experience as members, ranging from two to nine years, Mayor Lynch who had previously served as a school com- mittee member by virtue of his office as President of the Board of Aldermen for two years and as Mayor for four and one-half years, Paul I. McCarthy, who had been elected to serve as President of the Board of Aldermen, Mrs. Coyne, who replaced Arthur Fitzgerald who did not seek reelection as the represent- ative of Ward 3, and Mrs. McLaughlin, who replaced Earl W. Landry, who did not seek reelection as the representative of Ward 4.
This Committee organized for the year by the selection of Francis H. Brown as Chairman, and William J. Shea as Vice Chairman, men who not only had experience as members, but who had ably and well served the Committee previously as both Vice Chairman and Chairman. The effects of the cooperative endeavors of the School Committee for 1950, under the leadership and guidance of Messrs. Brown and Shea, will be shown in the succeeding pages to be the result of the indivi- dual and collective endeavors of the members in the interests of the welfare of the children, the educational program, and the community.
As usual, during the month of January, the School Com- mittee gave considerable attention to legislation in the form of bills concerning education which had been presented to the General Court for consideration. In view of the Governor's par- ticular interest in state aid for education, it appeared that S-87, a bill to increase state aid for education, had a good chance of receiving favorable consideration by the legislature. The School Committee endorsed the bill and submitted its favor- able views in writing, but the bill was defeated in the Legis- lature.
The School Committee also gave its approval to H-656, which was submitted to the General Court by Representative and School Committeeman Leahy. This bill would place the
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jurisdiction over the care and maintenance of school buildings in the hands of the School Committee, where logically such control belongs. As has been stated in previous reports several times in recent years, situations have arisen in the schools that made it necessary to call the attention of the public to that very obsolete provision of the Somerville City Charter which places all matters pertaining to school buildings in the hands of departments of the City Government other than the School Committee where the responsibilities logically belong. When it is known that the responsibility of a school building and its grounds is divided among four different departments (School, Public Building, Engineering, and Highway), it can readily be seen that efficiency of operation is impossible of attainment. The School Committee's responsibility is limited to the instruc- tional organization within the building, but with no authority over such items as choice of site, proper architecture and con- struction for the modern school program, and care and main- tenance thereof, including such items as proper heating, light- ing, ventilation, and safety.
At the hearing of a similar bill (H-288) submitted by Rep- resentative Leahy in 1949, where members of the School Committee, representatives of the administrative and instruc- tional forces of the schools, representatives of the Parent- Teacher Associations, Taxpayers' Association, and the Cham- ber of Commerce presented sound arguments in favor of such a change in the City Charter to place the care and maintenance of school buildings under the jurisdiction of the School Com- mittee, the opponents could offer only two points in opposi- tion, first, that the School Committee was playing politics, and second, that the Civil Service employees of the Public Build- ings Department would lose their rights if transferred to the School Committee. Of course, these two arguments were ridiculous and only used to befog the issue. The opponents were successful at that time in defeating the bill, but H-656 was written in such a manner that no such charges could be made in 1950.
School buildings throughout the country are looked upon as tools of instruction and expressions of educational functions and purposes. Schoolhouse planning is so closely related to the processes of instruction that the school committees of the country are almost everywhere deemed to be the logical agency to plan for, construct, care for, and maintain school buildings. In fact, 90% of the city school systems of the country are set up on this basis. In only 5% of the cities is the chief responsi- bility carried by some other agency with the School Committee
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serving in an advisory capacity. Only four or five communities in Massachusetts, including Somerville, function in this obso- lete manner.
At the hearing before the Committee on Cities of the General Court in 1950, the proponents of the bill, representing the same groups as in 1949, submitted such sound arguments that that Committee gave a favorable report to the bill. Inas- much as H-656 involved expenditures of money, by rules of the Legislature, the bill had to be referred to the Committee on Municipal Finance for consideration. When the hearing, which was unduly delayed, was finally held, the same groups that had registered approval before the Committee on Cities recorded their endorsement of the bill, and by undeniable arguments left no doubt of the soundness of the provisions and the benefits which would be derived from its passage.
To the amazement of all in attendance at the hearing, not one person appeared to oppose the bill, not even a repre- sentative of the few who had opposed the bill so feebly at pre- vious hearings. To the great surprise of the community, the Committee delayed presenting an unfavorable report until the closing days of the Legislative session.
Debate on the floor of the House failed to deny the value of such a change in the charter, but the vote was against the passage of the bill. It is unfortunate that possible legislative practices prevent the agency elected by the public-the School Committee-from performing its fundamental duties and responsibilities of establishing and maintaining an ade- quate school system for the furtherance of the welfare of all the children of all the people of the community. It is hoped that soon the demands of right thinking, sensible people will be recognized.
Each year, for a period of several years, attention has been called to the repeated attempts of those who would by legislative act encroach upon the powers and jurisdictions of the school committees of our Commonwealth by making pro- vision for veto power for mayors in cities, and selectmen in towns, over the action of school committees, which would re- sult in very definite detriment to the schools and the educa- tional welfare of the children. In each case, the attempts were made by direct bills to place the school committees under the provisions of Chapter 44 of the General Laws, commonly known and referred to as the Municipal Finance Act. Failing in these direct bills to accomplish their purpose, because the
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motives were so evident, the next move would naturally be to attempt to accomplish the purpose by concealing the real issue by cleverly hiding the intent through bills which would appear to be in no way, even remotely, associated with the real pur- pose. Two or three such bills were submitted to the Legislature of 1950, but the constant vigilance of our local legislators with respect to the issue resulted in causing further defeat of the attempts.
Early in the spring of 1950 it was evident that serious thought and action would be required of the School Committee to alleviate the conditions which were still causing much con- cern among the parents of the children of the closed Charles G. Pope School, for no decision had yet been made by the Mayor and the Building Commissioner as to the disposition of this building. Shortly thereafter a decision was made to raze the building, and as a result His Honor, Mayor Lynch, re- quested the School Committee to appoint a special committee to make a complete study of the situation. The Chairman ap- pointed a special committee of three members of the School Committee to make this study of the situation and report as soon as possible with recommendations which could be re- ferred to the proper agencies of the City Government, which have the power to take the actions necessary to bring about a proper and adequate solution.
As a result of the serious study and expenditure of much time and effort on the part of the members of the special com- mittee, and the individual attentions given to the situation by their School Committee colleagues, the School Committee gave unanimous approval to the report and adopted its recom- mendations as set forth in the following resolution:
WHEREAS, early in August of 1949 the administrative officer of the School Committee was informed by the Commissioner of Public Buildings that the Charles G. Pope School, a twelve-room building built in the year 1891 and situated on Washington Street at Boston Street on a lot containing ap- proximately 27,236 square feet, was unsafe for use and could not be used for school purposes in September 1949 on account of conditions which had previously been reported by the School Committee with relation to structural defects, and
WHEREAS, because of this decree it was necessary to dissipate the membership of the said public school to other buildings, namely the Bennett at Maple and Poplar Streets, the Han- scom at Pearl and Rush Streets, and the Prescott at Pearl and Myrtle Streets, and
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WHEREAS, due to the very hazardous crossing at the Northern Artery which would be required by nearly 90% of the total enrollment of the Pope School to reach these other schools, it has been necessary to spend for transportation by bus an amount of between twelve and fourteen thousand dollars per school year to insure the safety of the pupils, whose ages range from five to fourteen years, and
WHEREAS, such a situation has caused much inconvenience to the parents of the pupils through mental anguish and other emotional disturbances, and without question has to some degree affected the efficiency of the educational process of the children involved, it seems imperative to give serious thought and speedy action to the elimination of such condi- tions by making provision for the housing of the children in a building replacing the Pope School building on the former site, or one in the same district which would meet the re- quirements of the school population, and
WHEREAS, His Honor the Mayor, believing that it is the proper function of the School Committee to specify the site and the capacity of the proposed replacement, requested the School Committee to study the matter and make suggestions to the proper authorities which have the necessary power to erect, the Chairman of the School Committee appointed a special committee, consisting of Mrs. Coyne, Chairman, Mrs. Mc- Laughlin, and Mr. Shea, for the purpose of making a study which would result in the fulfillment of the Mayor's request, and
WHEREAS, the aforementioned committee has, by hearings, per- sonal visitations to the district, conferences and meetings with His Honor the Mayor, the Chairman of the School Com- mittee, and the administrative officers of the School Com- mittee, discovered that the solution to the problem would be only in a very small way effective if the immediate emer- gency of the Pope School were considered alone because of the many coordinated problems, such as the necessity for consideration of (1) the broad educational needs of the com- munity, (2) the anticipated growth of the school population due to the recent sky-rocketing birth rate, and shifting of the school population due to the expansion of the industrial and manufacturing areas of the city, (3) the resultant effect of the building of the proposed overpass on the Northern Artery at Washington Street, (4) the extension and revision of edu- cational standards, and (5) the desire and obligation of the School Committee to provide the most adequate, modern school accommodations for the education of the future citi- zens of this community, and
WHEREAS, the School Committee is fully cognizant of the facts (1) that any new building or addition to an existing structure is an "educational tool" which should be designed to fit the teaching program rather than to force the program to fit the building, (2) that patching and remodeling an old building does not provide modern housing accommodations for the pursuit of the educational process, and (3) that each step taken in any short-term planning program produces, through
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the unpreventable effects upon adjacent districts, other prob- lems needing attention, and the continuing accumulation of such problems prohibits any successful solution of the major issues, and
WHEREAS, the preceding statements make it obvious that it would be advisable to study and survey thoroughly the com- plete school building equipment of the city with a resultant long-term building program to the end that Somerville will continue to maintain its high standards of education, taught in adequately modern and suitable housings, properly de- signed, heated, lighted, and ventilated, and
WHEREAS, there is available for the use for partial payment of such a survey looking toward the establishment of a long- term building program, funds which may be obtained from the Massachusetts School House Assistance Commission, established under the provisions of Chapter 645 of the Acts of 1948, and
WHEREAS, Public Law 352, enacted by the 81st Congress, pro- vides for advance loans to be made to communities to en- courage States and other nonfederal public agencies to maintain a continuing and adequate reserve of fully planned public works, and further provides for the advancing of funds to communities without interest charges for the preliminary plans and specifications for necessary projects, and
WHEREAS, it is possible under proper circumstances to obtain financial assistance of approximately one third of construc- tion costs from the aforementioned State agency, the Massa- chusetts School House Assistance Commission, it is therefore
RESOLVED: that the School Committee make provisions to take the necessary steps to provide a survey of the elementary school buildings of Somerville for the purpose of creating a long-term building program for the next twenty to thirty years by authorizing the request for an appropriation or a transfer of moneys not to exceed $5,000 ($1,000 of which, it will be understood, will be obtained from the Massachu- setts School House Assistance Commission), and by further authorizing the employment of a competent and experienced school building expert to conduct such survey, and be it further
RESOLVED: that the School Committee authorize the Superin- tendent of Schools to make the necessary applications for advance moneys for plans and specifications under Public Law 352, in accordance with the recommendations of the survey consultants or of such portions of the said recom- mendations as the School Committee deems advisable at the time, and giving priority to the Pope School problem, and be it further
RESOLVED: that the School Committee authorize the Superin- tendent to notify all the parties involved of the plans and proposals contained herein, to the end that as speedy as pos- sible progress will result and the educational system and its educational tools will be the best, most modern, and ade- quately necessary equipment for a school system such as Somerville should maintain.
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Steps were immediately taken to provide for the Survey recommended in the resolution, by obtaining the necessary money through transfer of funds within School Committee ac- counts. The proper contract was entered into with expert educational consultants to conduct the survey which would bring about a well formulated twenty to thirty year building program, giving priority to the emergency situation created by the closing and subsequent demolition of the Pope School. The survey group expects that the task will be completed and the recommendations available for full consideration and action during February 1951.
While, of course, it is impossible at the present time to anticipate what the result of the survey will bring forth in the way of recommendations, it would be well to think of some of the factors that will no doubt have considerable effect upon the ultimate long-term building program.
It should be borne in mind that our community, consist- ing of an over-all area of but four and twenty-two hundredths square miles, is the most densely populated city in the United States, with a population of approximately 26,000 persons per square mile of area. Within this small area there are twenty- three public school buildings used exclusively for elementary school purposes, and five parochial buildings used exclusively as elementary schools. The thousands of young children at- tending these schools face a very serious and hazardous safety problem because of the fact that six main traffic arteries run- ning lengthwise (east and west) in the city and so many streets crossing the city are used for traffic. It can readily be seen that these buildings call for the expenditure of an enormous overhead for operation, but when it is known that the newest public elementary school building in the city is practically twenty years old, and the other buildings have been in service for periods up to eighty-four years, it is quite evident that the cost of maintenance of at least the Civil War buildings is gi- gantic. It is a fact that the cost of maintenance is hardly justi- fiable in view of the unsuitability of the buildings for the con- duct of an adequate, modern school system.
These situations have been called to the attention of the public on frequent occasions by the Superintendent during recent years and have resulted in many recommendations for replacements to be made. It is pertinent, however, at the pres- ent time to think more seriously about suggestions inferred at least by the Superintendent in previous reports, with relation to the consolidation of school buildings which could, and with-
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out doubt would, have many beneficial effects. It is believed by many that the savings that could be effected in overhead charges and maintenance costs by such a procedure would make possible a new school building every four to five years without causing any increase in the tax rate, and if the anti- cipated assistance of state and federal grants becomes a reality a decrease in the tax rate could be an eventual possibility.
If we are to begin to anticipate providing for one or more new school buildings, with possible financial assistance from the state and the country, it is not out of order to think a bit about the type and kind of buildings which are wanted for the educational welfare of the children of Somerville. It has been demonstrated that the general public has serious interest in functionally efficient, healthful, and attractive homes and other buildings, especially those in which they work. Will the public ever, then, want less for their children when they think seriously of the relationship between educational purposes and a good environment for learning?
School buildings of the future will be quite different from those of the past. Monumental monstrosities with plenty of waste space are things of the past, for from now on buildings will be functional. Classrooms will be designed and equipped to encourage the pupils to learn to do by doing, and each child will have more space provided for him. There will be special purpose rooms which can be utilized to facilitate the operation of greatly extended and enriched curriculum programs. Health will not be forgotten, for rooms will be scientifically lighted and decorated, and the most modern and efficient heating and ventilating systems will be provided. The school site is con- sidered an integral part of the total learning environment and should be of sufficient size to provide for recreational activi- ties, and should be attractively planned, with maximum consideration given to safety provisions.
Many interesting and educationally necessary varieties of equipment could be mentioned here, such as provision for ra- dio and television broadcasting, conservatories for nature study, agricultural laboratories, as well as more textbooks, dictionaries, and encyclopedias. Such advantages would pro- vide the pupils with full opportunity to deal daily with life cen- tered needs and interests.
To the thoughtful and analyzing reader of this report, it may appear that the foregoing sketch is idealistic, and possibly fantastic, but it is urgently requested that it be realized that adequate school buildings must be provided for Somerville as
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speedily as possible. A unique opportunity is presented to the community to provide the necessary facilities to develop the community's educational opportunities and services. It should be noted that these new buildings may have to house the edu- cational equipment for periods of from sixty to eighty-five years as have those buildings to which attention has been called earlier in this report which were built between 1866 and 1890.
It is the belief of the School Committee that the survey of elementary school buildings now in progress is one of the most important, if not the most important, forward-looking actions taken by the Committee over a period of many years, and it is earnestly hoped by the Committee that the recom- mendations resulting from the survey will be accepted and en- thusiastically endorsed to the extent that our school system will be modernized to provide the adequacy which should be demanded for the welfare of the present and future pupils of the city.
A second very important indication of progress during the year is the encouraging development concerning the provision for the proper facilities at Dilboy Field for the pursuance of athletic contests.
By the passage of a bill by the 1950 Legislature, which was sponsored by the Representatives from Somerville, the Metropolitan District Commission has been authorized to con- struct, at an expense of approximately a quarter of a million dollars, a suitable athletic plant for outdoor games, to be owned by the M. D. C., but maintained by the City until such time as the expense of the project, without interest, has been equalled by rentals paid by the parties using the facilities, at which time the plant will be deeded to the City of Somerville.
In previous reports, it has been noted that the School Committee has been prevented from fulfilling its obligation of providing a complete and adequate educational system for all the children of the community because the lack of proper faci- lities at Dilboy Field has caused all football contests of the High School teams to be played away from home. Such a situ- ation has been a major factor in causing the athletic program to operate at a serious loss each year, resulting in a sizable deficit in the High School athletic account.
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