School: Granton - Proposed Union H.S. (7 Apr 1911)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon

Email: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: (None)

----Source: The Granton News (Granton, Clark Co., WI.) April 7, 1911

Proposed Union High School (7 April 1911)

The object of the following article is simply to offer as concisely as possible the reasons why it seems wise to establish a Union High School at Granton and to explain the general situation to those who have an interest in the movement.  Owing to the crowded condition of the school the state superintendent has made the following requirements.  Either a new teacher must be added and the unused room fitted, or the eleventh grade must be dropped from the school curricular unless a Union High School District is formed.  In other words one of the above three conditions must be met, or the school will lose its state aid for the coming year.  As to the first condition, this would mean a large added expense to the district without any added material gain, except to relieve the crowded condition of the school.  If the second d possible course were pursued - the dropping of the eleventh grade - it would mean that no less than 13 pupils will be thrown out of school in the midst of their school career, or else their parents must go to the expense of sending them to Neillsville or some other high school.  In order to understand the third condition - the establishment of the Union High School, a full explanation of the system seems necessary.

1. The Union High School, can be established on trial so that if not liked it may be discontinued.  It may be said however, that out of the eighteen such schools already established in Wisconsin, not one had been voted out after being established.

2. The Union High School district would be entirely independent of the present district already established.  It would not interfere in any way with the present school system outside of joint district No. four.

3. The union High School district would support only the work of the high school that is the present 9^th, 10^th, and 11^th grades and the 12^th grade that would be added.  The first eight grades would be supported as at present by the local joint district.

4. All of the districts, including the present joint district, within this territory, would receive the same amount of state aid as in the past.

5. The Union High School district would receive from the state one half the amount paid to its teachers.

6. All pupils qualified to enter the high school, will be admitted free of tuition. Thus a pupil could finish in one of the country schools within the high school district, and then enter and finish the four year high school course without paying any tuition.

7. The district itself would include the six sections of the four towns as stated in last week’s issue of this paper, and would include other sections if desired.

8. The added cost to the tax-payers has been very carefully estimated by taking the present valuation of the proposed district and figuring the rate of taxation necessary. A liberal allowance would fix the rate at 1 and three-tenth mills, and this means a very small tax for added good a high school would be to the community in and about Granton.