TE AROHA SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 314, 7 November 1888, Page 2

TE AROHA SCHOOL COMMITTEE.

The ordinary monthly meeting of the above Committee was held ou Monday evening. Present : Rev. S. Lawry, Messrs Ilott, Heathcote, Menzies, and Ma^kie. Mr Ilott was voted to the chair. Minutes of the previous monthly meeting were read and confirmed. The usual monthly certificate was read and received. The number on the roll for the past month was 154, average attendance 120.4. Correspondence : Circular from the Board of Education as follows :—: — " The Board desires to draw the attention of Committees to the pressing necessity of making provision for maintaining the school buildings, teachers' dwellings, and outhouses in a state of efficient repair. The money which ha** been expended upon school buildings in the Auckland Education District already amounts to the large sum of £150,000; and the Board confidently invites the co-operation of Committees in the effective cure of this valuable public property for the benefit of the children of their districts. It is necessary for the preservation of the buildings, that they should be painted (with two coats of paint) once in every five years ; and the Board proposes that they shall be painted accordingl}', the work being let by public tender according to approved specification. As the funds now at the disposal of the Board are insufficient to defray the whole cost of painting, it has been resolved (in pursuance of section 75 of the Act) that one-half of the contiact price shall in each ! caso be defiayed by the Committee of the District, as a charge upon the School Fund. I am directed to ask your Committee to join with the Board in giving effect to this proposal, and to endeavour to increase the School Fund by means of voluntary con« tributions, by entertainments, oi in any other suitable way, in order to defray their share of the cost of painting. The Board is glad to say that already, within the last two years, 47 buildings have been painted at a cost of £570, and that the Committees have willingly contributed their share towards this expen liture." Considerable discussion took place with respect to this communication. The desirability of having the Te Aroha School building (which has now been built about five years) painted was conceded, but the question of how half the cost was to be raised by the Committee appeared a more difficult matter. Rev. Mr Lawry contended that according to the reading of Section 75 of the Education Act, 1877, it was the Committee who were to take the initiative in the matter, not the Board. The Committee were, however, unanimously of opinion the work required to be done. Ultimately it was resolved to defer the further consideration of the matter till a future meeting. • [Clause7s of the Education Act, 1877, referred to, reads as follows :—: — \ " Every Committee may, with the sanction of the Board of the district within which the school district is, previously obtained, provide by building or otherwise schoolhouses, and may improve, enlarge, and fit up any such schoolhouses, and supply school apparatus and everything necessary for the efficiency of the schools provided by them) - t and such proportion of the cost of providing, fitting up, improving, and keeping in repair such schoolhouses as may be prescribed by such Board shall be defrayed by* the Committee out of the School Fund, ami the remainder (if any) of such cost shall he defrayed by the Board of the district within which the school is situated by and'outof any moneys at their disposal."] Some discussion took place with respect to the number oi panes of glass that had to be replaced each year ; and the opinion was expressed that it was desirable that an effort slioald be made to obtain the names of children causing j'damage in this way, in order that their parents might bo charged with the cost !of replacing same ; there- being little I doubt many ©I the breakages were attributable to carelessness-. Several small accounts were passed for payment. Rev. S . , Lawry and Mr Ilotfc were uppointed a visiting Committee for the ensuing month.