PROTEST MEETING

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 100, 22 January 1919, Page 4

PROTEST MEETING

A WAIPTJKTJRAU GRIEVANCE.

'• -Thepubiio meeting held raii to express indignation at-the action of' the Hawke's":Bay Education. ~ Board in disestablishing Standard VII at the Waipukurau School was largely attended at th-e.^Town--Hall, Waipukurau, oil/ Wednesday night. The !. meeting throughout was most'enthusiastic. The Mayor. (Mr. J. Winlove) •presided),-and said' the..meeting, :.uad ' beeri : convened -'at, the, request-:of. a deputation of ladiee to protest against the Education Board's action in doing away with •'■ tho> Seventh" Standard at. the Waipuakurait School. The question of secondary.;-education'facilities , at Waipukurau was an old and vexed one. The speaker did not know if the -Education_lSoard.jmd-_the -Department , were tired of the question or not, but ■ most certainly the people of -Waipukurau- were tired of the treatment meted but to them. The' system- of transporting over forty children to Wavpawa by ■ motor-lorry was' ridiculous. That sys- . tan was not in the interests of education;' had the oualinca- i tions necessary for the. establishment of a 'district' high school,- and it only • remained for the people to demand their rights. The Minister of Educatioiv lTadacceptefl aii invitation-to visit Waipukiirau-darly. in;Februaryuto dis-,-cuss\tbe:- questioir of' secondary sduca- . tion, and the speaker trusted that the result: of-,the"Jlinistcrls visit would mean a high school for Waipukurau. 'Mr-Goodger-(chairman. Waipukurau •School Committee) said he had to i congratulate the'ladies who comprised the .deputation that waited on. the Mayor to request indignation meeting be hold. It showed that the mothers had their' children's-.welfare at heart. The ladies had made.out a strong and truo case.-- r The numbers of pupils now offering 'at" Waipukurau justified the establishment of a district high school. Tlio'transport System was most tinsatis- . factory..' Tho children, often, had, to rido'iii'motor-lorries, which had been used for.carting: artificial..manures, •beer, sheepskins,, etc.. vThat state, of , affairs-had'been tolerated for a. long -the. householders- decided ; , that steps should be taken.to establish : a : - Seventh - Standard at' 1 the" Waipuku- : mi School.- -Biat-' was •decided an April'; 1917, and tho, Education .Board . 'and'the-Department, j-ere advised- that the i l ew"cla'sswbuld"he'-establishedon . the expiration of tho transportation contraf in February .1913. The. board and Department had ha!j eight -months 'notice: of. : the"intention, of ;.the com- ; mittee; had •objected. The new. standard .had ~been .established , twelve Vhibhths, had saved the board , £350 in transport' charges, and without, anv additidnal ;cost in ;the teaching at> , the Waipukurau- School, Now the board \ had decidod.to.disestablish-.tlie Seventh ; -Standard. To pay £350 per annum for transportingrchildrcn,to Waipawa was _ \simply public money, thrown, away . when they could receive asrgofld tuition ; in their W>wn,, The Education ; Act specified - - that.if twenty. : pupils were'offering, .a district-high,- school could-be' established -.Fifty pup.l.s were offering, in'Waipukurau,- yet a high school was denied them. He moved "That this meeting, of .parents and householders protests against the. action in disestablishing Standard VII at .the Waipukurau School,..without'first endeavouring to provide reasonable facilities for secondary,-education,- especially seeing thatvtlje board when given ample notice of the intention to, estab J Hsh this class by their ■■ silence practically consented to its, establishment. ; Further, this meeting respectfully .requests the Education Board to-wee & e .Minister of Education to establish a district high school in Waipukurau at the earliest opportunity; and, further, this meeting requests tho Education Board to allow the continuation of Standard VII at the school and to ' strengthen it by permitting, its ltiner- ; arv teachers to assist m teaching until . such time as.a district high school is , cstablishsd." . _ The motion was carried, and it was also resolved: "That,with a view to ■■ preventing tho dangerous congestion at | present existing in the school ; play- ■ ground, and to enable tho recently- ■-, purchased playground, to bo «sed to , the best this meeting requests tho Education Board-to renune the schoolhouse. from its present-site. as soon as possible." ■ '■. '