h———
THE POST, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1950
Kingston Township School Board Is Only One.
In Area That Has Asked For An
School Board's Attempt To Improve
Eval uation
Standards Started With 1944 Survey
No. 2 in a series of articles on schools
Kingston Township~ Schools, in-
cluding both Elementary Schools,
the Junior High and the Senior
High Scheol, are fully recognized,
fully accredited, standard schools,
operating under the jurisdiction of
the Pennsylvania State Department
of Education, under the guidance
of the Office of County Superinten-
dent of Schools for Luzerne County,
and managed and directed by a
duly elected Board of School Direc-
tors whose specific duties, respon-
sibilities and powers are fully set
forth in the School Code of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Because of the great amount of
misinformation which has appeared
in one of the Wilkes-Barre news-
papers in recent months regarding
the status of Kingston Township
schools the Post feels called upon
to give the facts regarding the
status of Kingston Township schools
and to give a comprehensive report
on the progress that has been made
in improving these schools, This in-
formation should be of value and
interest to students, and to par-
ents, who are interested in their
education welfare. It should also be
of considerable interest to the other
taxpayers of the Township, who
pay about one-half of the total
cost of operating and maintaining
these schools. The other half of the
money necessary to pay the cost
comes from State Appropriations,
which are based on teachers’ sal-
aries and operation cost of trans-
portation for those students who
travel by school busses.
Comparison of schools, one with
another, is -a difficult task; they
may vary in size, type, wealth
available for operating them, and
objectives. In a community that is
primarily industrial, or agricultur-
al the emphasis might be placed
on Vocational Education, while an-
other community might feel that
preparation for college is of pri-
mary importance. :
The Board of Education has con-
sistently tried to bring to Kings-
ton Township the type of schools
and the quality of schools that its
members feel are desired by the
community, and in an honest effort
to accomplish this have had these
schools evaluated by Educational
leaders from outside the district.
In 1944 the Board of Education
employed three outstanding edu-
cators from the University of Penn-
sylvania to make a survey of the
two grade schools and the high
school, and to report on the stand-
ing of Kingston Township schools,
when compared with AVERAGE
schools throughout the country.
The report of this survey, a copy of
which is available in the office of
the high school, showed that King-
ston Township schools, at that time
were considerably below the aver-
age school. This was true of both
the Elementary and the High
School. The report of the survey
included many criticisms and num-
erous recommendations, which, if
carried through, would enable these
schools to compare favorably with
average schools of the country. This
report was carried in the Dallas
Post.
In 1948, four years after this in-
itial survey, the Board of Education
authorized membership in the
Middle States Association of Sec-
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Tomatoes ~ Mcintosh Apples
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hse rime: 29¢
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~
ondary Schools and Colleges, and
requested an Evaluation to be made
of the High School by a committee
from that Association. This com-
mittee, comprising nine educators
representing the numerous phases
of High School education, from Ac-
credited Schools of the Middle
States Association, visited Kingston
Township and spent three days in
an intensive survey to determine
the status of the high school when
compared with other accredited
schools of the association.
Relatively few schools in Penn-
sylvania are members of the Middle
States Association. Kingston Town-
ship school is the only high school
in the Back Mountain Area to hold
such a membership. Such member-
ship does not imply any particular
outstanding quality, but it does in-
dicate that those responsible for
the management and direction of
the school are interested in having
comparisons on a high standard,
and are striving to bring about
the improvements necessary to
have these schools fully accredited
by this organization, which is rec-
ognized as representing THE BEST
in Secondary and College Educa-
tion.
There are only SEVEN high
schools in all of Luzerne County
that have met the high standards
of the Middle States Association
and are accredited by that Associa-
tion. These schools are: the three
Wilkes-Barre Schools, G.A.R., Mey-
ers, and Coughlin; Forty-Fort High
School; Kingston Borough High
School; Hazleton City High School,
and Newport Township High School.
The Evaluating Report of the
Committee which made the Survey
of Kingston Township High School
in February, 1948, for the Middle
States Association contains many
criticisms, numerous recommenda-
tions for improvement, and a set of
comprehensive Charts which show
at a glance the Status of the school
when compared with other schools
of the country, and when com-
pared with Accredited Schools of
the Association. This complete re-
port is available to any student of
Kingston Township High School,
any interested parent or taxpayer
of the Township, in the High
School Office.
The following tabulation, com-
piled from information on the Chart
showing the Summary of Evalua-
tive Criteria in this Report indi-
cates Kingston Township's stand-
ing in various areas compared with
Accredited Schools of the Associa-
tion. This chart shows where they
are above the average of accredited
schools—in staff, plant and instruc-
tion. It also shows that they are
considerably below the accredited
schools in six important areas of
educational effort — curriculum,
pupil activities, library, guidance,
"| outcomes and administration.
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62 No. STATE STREET, WILKES-BARRE
Table Based On Chart
Summary of Evaluative Criteria—
Kingston Township High School
Accredited
Subject School KTHS
(*) *)
Curriculum 52 35
Pupil Activities 52 16
Library 52 22
Guidance 52 18
Instruction 53 63
Outcomes 52 39
Staff 52 56
Plant 52 59
Administration 52 36
(*) Numerical scale based on
“Thermometers” ranging from Zero
to 100 per cent.
Obviously, to obtain the Ac-
credited rating from the Middle
States Association it will be neces-
tary for the school to make con-
siderable progress in improving its
status in the six areas in which
the above tabulation shows it is
below the standing of the Ac-
«credited Schools of the Association.
The recommendations of the Evalu-
ating Committee have been, and
are being, given serious considera-
tion; many of them have already
been complied with, much progress
has been made toward achieving
the score the school board is aim-
ing at, but considerable progress
needs to be made in areas which
are beyond the scope of School
Directors duties, responsibilities or
powers.
Some of the improvements which
have been made in an effort to
improve the school and to bring it
into line with the high standards
of the Middle States Association
are quite obvious and apparent,
even to a casual visitor to the
school. Many of them may not
be quite so obvious, but they are
just as real.
A few of the more recent im-
provements are listed here to show
how the School Board has been
complying with some of these rec-
ommendations:
A SCHOOL CAFETERIA was rec-
ommended by this Committee;
while the idea of a cafeteria was
not new to this Board, an all-out
effort was made this past year, and
a modern, well equipped school
cafeteria, designed to serve at min-
imum cost, is now in operation.
While the cafeteria construction
and equipment cost several thous-
and dollars, student lunches are
costing less than one-half of their
actual cost because of participation
in the Federal School lunch pro-
gram, through which are received
large quantities of surplus food-
stuffs, in addition to a direct sub-
sidy on each pupil’s lunch served.
The Committee criticized the
PHYSICAL EDUCATION PRO-
GRAM, as it was conducted in
1948; this has been remedied by
employing a fully certified and high-
ly competent Physical Education
Instructor and through the pur-
chase of much ‘needed gymnasium
and physical education equipment,
including a Vaulting Horse, Parallel
Bars, Gym Mats, and thousands of
dollars worth of Athletic Equip-
ment. The Board has been look-
ing for a woman Physical Educa-
tion Instructor to conduct the girls’
classes, and will employ one as
soon as possible.
THE COMMERCIAL DEPART-
MENT has been greatly improved
in its new location in the building,
and through the purchase of sev-
eral pieces of new equipment. Ad-
NATIONAL
RABBIT WEEK
Feb. 12 to 18
offers you a chance to solve
your problem if you're on the
search for delicious and diff-
erent meat dishes to. place
before the family.
Not only does Domestic
Rabbit add variety to the
menu, it also offers advan-
tages in economy and food
«value. For example, only 8%
of a dressed Domestic Rab-
bit is bone, and there is very
little other waste.
Domestic Rabbit is also
high in calories—analysis by
the Bureau of Animal In-
dustry of the Dept. of Agri-
culture show an average of
855 calories per pound.
Your meat market and
rabbitry features rabbits al
ready cut up, ready to cook.
Many a family will be enjoy-
ing fried rabbit and any one
of the 300 and over recipes
this coming week.
Call Your Grocer or
Meat Market Today
SPONSORED BY
Northeastern
Pennsylvania Rabbit
and Cavy Breeder’s
Association
ditional pieces of modern office
equipment will be purchased as
the need for it arises and the
funds to pay for it are available.
THE HOME ECONOMICS DE-
PARTMENT has been completely
modernized, with new Napanee
kitchen cupboards, sinks and coun-
ters; modern electric kitchen ranges
have been installed on the school
purchase plan through which the
newest models of these will re-
place the older models each year,
so that girls taking Home Econ-
omics will be thoroughly familiar
with the latest and best in kitchen
equipment throughout their course
in this Department. The Home
Economics Instructor is fully qual-
ified in her work, and is considered
to be one of the best in this area.
A NEW MUSIC ROOM, including
storage space for all of the band
instruments, was provided in the
building; new band uniforms were
purchased to supplement older uni-
forms; new instruments were pur-
chased, and every opportunity for
music instruction is now available
in the school, under the direction
of a fully certified and highly com-
petent Music Director.
THE LIBRARY came in for con-
siderable criticism from the Com-
mittee; to correct this the Board
employed Miss Morris throughout
the summer months to carry out a
program of correcting some of the
faults in the Library. Miss Morris
was then given Sabbatical Leave to
enable her to attend Syracuse Uni-
versity to complete her Certifica-
tion as a Librarian. She will re-
turn this fall fully prepared to com-
plete the necessary alterations in
the Library. Much of the criticism
regarding the Library, however,
falls on the students and their lack
of use of the library, and on the
teachers for their failure to require
its use in the preparation of stu-
dents’ studies.
THE INDUSTRIAL ARTS SHOP
is now one of the best equipped,
and most modern shops of its type
in this Back Mountain area. It is
not a Vocational School Shop in
any sense of the word, but it is
a well rounded Industrial Arts
Shop, with good equipment, and
with a highly competent properly
certified instructor.
OTHER ITEMS
The district was commended on
the outside appearance of the High
School Building, its location and
ample grounds. The Board was se-
verely criticized for the dark, dingy,
appearance of the interior of class-
rooms and corridors. To correct
this condition the Board of School
Directors started an intensive pro-
gram of interior decoration this
past summer in which many of the
rooms in the building were painted.
In this program all of the rooms
in the two grade schools have been
completely redecorated. In this
program it is expected that all of
the rooms in the High School Build-
ing, and all of the corridors will
be completely redecorated during
the next few years.
Much new instructional material
has been purchased for class-room
and laboratory use; new text-books
bythe best authors are purchased
by the schcol board, and every ef-
fort is being made to improve the
standards of education in the high
school.
Every other recommendation
made. by the Evaluating Commit-
tee has been, and is being, given
the serious consideration of the
School Board. These Recommen-
dations will be adopted and carried
out as rapidly as it is physically
and financial possible to comply
with them.
It is the single minded purpose
of the School Board to make King-
ston Township Schools the best in
this area; to eventually have them
take their rightful place in the
ranks of those few schools that are
now Accredited by the ‘Middle
States Association, and to so equip
them that every educational re-
quirement can be fully met with-
in the limits of a good Secondary
School operating under the Laws
and Regulations of the Pennsyl-
vania Department of Education.
All of these Recommendations
have been followed out, improve-
ments made, cafeteria equipped,
shop improved, painting done, etc.,
during a time of exceptionally high
costs for labor, material and equip-
ment, involving thousands of dol-
lars in cost, without the School
Board adding one mill to the burd-
en of the home owner and tax-
payer. Tax millage on property in
Kingston Township has been for
years, and still is 35 mills. This
rate has not been increased despite
the terrific increase in cost of
every item that goes into the oper-
ation and maintenance of a school.
Much that goes into an Evalua-
tion Report of a school depends
on the students, teachers, prin-
cipals, parents and community. The
report given here is based primarly
on what the School Board has
done, and is doing, to improve the
schools. What are YOU doing to
help?
The Post
tribution—
will publish your con-
asking only that you
state facts, not opinions, and that
your letter is on the same high
plane as the two previous articles
which have appeared here on
Kingston Township School.—Editor
Veterans To Meet
Kingston Township Veterans
Association will meet at their home,
Veterans Memorial Drive, Tuesday
evening, February 8 at 8:30 p.m.
Important business will be taken
up and veterans will be asked to
sign up for the Red Cross Blood
Bank. Refreshments will be served.
Any one unable to call at the
veteran’s home for blood cards,
should contact George Turn and
they will be delivered.
Edward L. Reese
Funeral Today
Edward L. Reese, 77, father of
Mrs. Sheldon T. Evans, of Shaver-
town, and a brother of Mrs. Mary
Jane Simons, also of Shavertown,
died suddenly Tuesday morning at
his home 126 Storm Hill, Wilkes-
Barre following a heart attack.
Funeral services will be conduc-
ted this afternoon from the late
home with Rev. E. M. Greenfield of
Abbott Memorial Church officiating.
Mr. Reese was a life member of
Abbott Church and was a life-long
resident of the Storm Hill section.
Two years ago he retired after 68
years’ service with Hudson Coal
Company at Pine Ridge Colliery
where he started as a slate picker
at the age of seven.
Had he lived until May 20, he
and his wife, the former Lena
Ahouse of Nanticoke, would have
observed their 54th wedding anni-
versary. Surviving in addition to
his wife are these children: Wil-
liam, Clemens, Elmer, Mrs. Fred
Lancaster and Mrs. Edith Hunt of
WilkesBarre; John, Plymouth; Mrs.
Frank Evans, Frackville; Mrs. Shel-
don T. Evans, Shavertown.
United Sportsmen Meet
At Herman Kern's Inn
About sixty members of the Har-
veys Lake United Sportsmen at-
tended the meeting at Herman
Kern's Monday evening. Steve Em-
anuel showed wildlife movies and
reported on the meeting of Federa-
tion Sports Clubs of North Eastern
Pennsylvania.
Plans were made to chance off
two fly rods. Announcement was
made of a fox hunt to be held at
Alberts Corners in February.
Relax in
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