-52-
A
number of improvements were made in the
schools at the insistence of the school visitors. During the
next few
years the Center School was built, and major repairs were
undertaken at
other schools, including the move of the Quaker Farms School,
and the
opening of the Hawkins School in that area
During the year 1900 the change from a
district
system to a town system was made, and control of the schools
rested
with a Board of Education.
By 1911, a state superintendent who worked
for the
State Board of Education worked in Oxford.
The 1917 Report of the School Supervisor
indicates
that the consolidation of school powers under the town had
made some
economies possible:
"The greatest economy has
been
exercised by
the committee in the administration of the schools. Every
bill has had
the closest scrutiny, and wherever possible, without loss of
efficiency, expenses have been pared down to the minimum.
The result
has been a saving to the town of more $1,000.00 over the
costs of last
year; this too, in spite of the increased cost of getting
work done,
and of increased pay to teachers.
"Less repair work has been done than
that
necessary to meet the requirements and the needs of the
schools.
Deferred repair work is not a saving, and the committee is
advised to
consider the plan of building a new school at Shrub Oak, or
completely
remodeling the old one."
William Holmes was the state supervisor,
and
the Board of Education was listed as Thomas Schreiber,
chairman; Elijah
B. Treat, Secretary; Wallace Tomlinson, Glover W. Cable,
William E.
Conway and Charles Pope
The 1918 report of the school supervisor
was
the
first annual report of I. Burten Dunfield.
Teachers listed were Ophelia Dahinden,
Center;
Mrs.
Mary E. Prescott, Chestnut Hill: Justine E. Doolittle,
Christian
Street; Lillian Smith, Red Oak; Elizabeth M. Blodgett, Riggs
Street;
Margaret Burke and Margaret E. Owens, Shrub Oak; Carrie A.
Pratt,
Quaker Farms; Marguerite Maher, Riverside; Julia Bronson,
Belle.
The report is interesting in several
aspects --
showing the results felt in the community by the war and also
the
impact of the construction of Zoar Dam.
"War conditions have caused
a
scarcity of
teachers. Many have gone into the service, or into other
lines of work,
where higher salaries are paid. It has therefore been
necessary, in
order to retain old teachers and to secure new ones to pay
higher
salaries to teachers than has heretofore been expended. This
is only
just and to be expected. We are fortunate, however, in being
able to
retain the majority of last year's teaching force. This is
due to the
betterment of conditions throughout the system and
willingness to pay
worthy teachers enough to remain.
