TECHNICAL COLLEGE BOARD

Evening Star, Issue 23376, 20 September 1939, Page 3

TECHNICAL COLLEGE BOARD

“ SUPERIORITY COMPLEX TO WORKERS" NO LABOUR REPRESENTATIVE AT CONCERT Accusation was levelled against the Technical College Board of Governors that it “ had adopted. a superiority complex as regards the ordinary working people of this city ” by Mrs W. Herbert at the meeting yesterday afternoon, when the jubilee celebrations were being discussed. Information that the sum of £125 6s 2d had been carried over as a credit from the jubilee accounts was given by Dr R. Gardner (chairman of the committee), and that it was now ayailable for the library fund, together with £lB 15s for the jubilee booklet. He asked that the board should take over the administration of these funds, also that the booklet should be incorporated in the school magazine to save expense. His suggestions were confirmed. “ I am aggrieved that there was no workers’ representative invited to speak at the jubilee concert,” said Mrs Herbert. “ I understood that there was to be a Labour, movement representative invited, such as Air P. G. Connolly.” She thought that the hoard “ was adopting a superior attitude to the working people of the city,” and assured Dr Gardner that the Labour movement had in its ranks men from all walks of life. She understood, she continued, that Mr Connolly was to have been asked to speak, but he was invited only to the banquet. ” I object to party politics *in these board matters,” said Mr Marlow. “It had been decided by the Jubilee Committee that only absolute speakers and descendants of the founders of the college should be on the platform. The Minister of Education was invited, but could not be present. He sent in his ?lace the Director of Education (Mr /ambourne), while the Hon. M. Connelly was also invited. We sought to appease every section of the community,” he said. Mr Marlow then moved that the Jubilee Committee’s accounts he passed for payment. Other members present at the meeting wore Mrs M. E. Morris and Messrs W. G. Cocking, O. J. Hayward, H. H. Johnson, L. Sanderson, W. D. Sutherland, and J. M. Patrick. GENERAL. Mrs Morris was elected to the Appointments Committee, while other committees for the year were unchanged. It was decided to grant £l2O towards the jubilee booklet cost. PRINCIPAL’S REPORT. The report submitted by the principal (Mr J. G. Aldridge) stated:— Day and evening classes reopened on September 4, but for the first few days attendance was not high even in the day school, and in the evening school it was seriously impaired. From the beginning of the second week a great improvement was noticeable. A number of boys and girls left for employment during vacation, while in evening classes overtime work in the constructive trades was still causing considerable absence. Under Air M'lver’s leadership an attempt was being made to form an ex-students’ association. the first meeting being set down for September 21, in the Burt Hall, at 8 p.m. The successful work already undertaken by the Parents’ Auxiliary since he had been secretary had already been of assistance to the college in arousing interest amongst ex-students; if, on the one hand, its work could be extended by the formation of social and sporting clubs amongst younger people, and on the other practical goodwill towards the public functions arranged by the college could be centred in an association of the friends of the school, the college would have linked itself much more completely with the general life of the community than it had ever been able to do in the past. A most successful commercial conference was held in the Art School for three days during the vacation. Most members of the board were present at the opening function, hut they would not be aware how valuable a work was done during the three days immediately following. It was the first conference ever called in New Zealand to discuss aims and methods of teaching commercial subjects; but so well was it arranged, and so keen was the discussion aroused by it, that it might well serve as a model for future meetings of specialist teachers. The 70 delegates present took a very lively interest in the explanations of methods that had been tried in this college under Mr M'lver’s headship, and there was reason to believe that much benefit would result from the encouragement received to make still further progress. From time to time in the last few years the asphalt had been broken hero and there in the college, mostly for plumbing jobs. Wear and. tear was also in evidence in various places, gnd on two areas—namely, the laundry yard and the flat between the Burt Hall and York Place—the asphalt was completely gone. The board’s experience in having asphalting done under contract had been most unfortunate. He asked authority to engage an asphalter by the day to do the necessary work and to incur an expenditure up to £SO. A plumbing job that was urgently necessary was that the earthenware trough which was laid as an experiment about nine years ago in one of the laboratory benches should bo dismantled and replaced by a lead trough. The report was adopted.