m E «?«533i : &£•£# >**MSSa«M*SB^tf/fc< W^jffinM mSbSwSssk^ "^^y^^^*??!^! HHHHH COPYRIGHT 1918 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Their CONSTRUCTION, HEATING, VENTILATION, SANITATION, LIGHTING and EQUIPMENT By G. L. LOCKHART Architect Published by H. W. KINGSTON COMPANY 527-533 MINNESOTA STREET ST. PAUL, MINN. m if in - ,, , T| !T ™_ rryirmmi—BB^j m i j^nM»ipij [ i|^^Bi Preface VARIOUS articles have been written by Architects familiar with School Planning, dealing with the several departments of School Work, some describing at length the requirements of Domestic Science departments, others, Manual Training or Science equipment. Still, others, describing in detail, the ventilation or sanitation. How- ever, it would require considerable time for a busy School Board Member, Superintendent or Principal to correllate all the facts essen- tial to the planning of a School Building in the length of time usually at their command, so the writer will endeavor to supply this informa- tion in condensed form to cover all departments of a building, wheth- er it be a Grade, Junior or High School, or all combined, giving in plain language, devoid of technicalities, the main essentials, so that some Standard of Construction, Heating, Ventilation, Sanitation, Light- ing and Equipment may be adopted. The majority of books on School planning have been written by eminent educators who have written from the educational standpoint more than from the Architectural and it is hoped that this book will so combine both as to prove of value to the busy man who must of ne- cessity secure authentic information on the subject of schools before entering a School Building program, for the erection and equipemnt of a new building, or the modernizing of an old building, to make it fit for continued use as a school building. 4eies3 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter One The Need of Improved School Building THE free public school system of this country is one of the greatest institutions in the world and has probably, more than any other, been the means of placing the United States on the high plane of civilization it now enjoys. It enables all chil- dren, regardless of the financial circumstances of their parents, to obtain a practical education and there is little excuse for any pupil physically able to attend the public school being unfitted to enter into any occupation that he may see fit to pursue. The people of this country are waking up to the realization, that education is the fundamental need of the growing generation, that our country can be sustained in its upward progress only by the proper development of the intellectual, moral and physical, in the growing child. More and more, we realize that our greatest debt and most sacred obligation is to our children, and that no expense is too great, no tax too heavy to bear, if it means their betterment; and in order to obtain this result, it is necessary to have modern improved facilities in keeping with the advancement of the age in which we live. A glance backward over the wonderful progress made in all lines of endeavor dur- ing the past twenty years should convince any right thinking person that the schools of twenty years ago are inadequate for the needs of today. As we discard the scythe for the modern mowing machine, or the old fashioned cradle for the new improved binder and reaper, so, in like manner, we must discard the old methods of teaching for the improved, broadened and more adequate methods in keeping with the needs of the pupils. We must also discard the old wornout, unsanitary, unventilated, poorly lighted school buildings, which have more than served their purpose. We must carefully examine our newer buildings, as we become acquainted with our needs, and improve them as they lack the essentials, and build new, if need be, to provide sanitary, well lighted, well heated, well ventilated, well equipped modern school buildings if our young people are to do the best they are capable of. The average business man of today would no more think of running his business in the fashion of a hundred years ago than he would think of discarding the automobile for the antiquated ox cart, yet many intelligent people are still blind to the fact that a school house as erected twenty years ago, is as totally inadequate for present school purposes, as the ox cart is inadequate compared to the automobile for present day travel. It therefore becomes necessary to draw some comparison as a means of enlightenment for the average taxpayer and as an assistant to the School Boards in their endeavor to provide the essential features of an efficient economically operated school. We will therefore illustrate some of the conditions that prevail to a greater or less degree in all parts of our country, these are not extreme cases but the average condition in buildings erected for fifteen to twenty years. It is just as essential to improve and modernize existing buildings as it is to build additional new buildings, in fact, more essential in many cases, as it is a crime against childhood, to permit small growing children to be cooped up in poorly ventilated, dark, indifferently lighted buildings, whose sanitary arrangements usually are the grief of the Health Departments. PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Two Lighting, Ventilating and Rearrangement of Old School Buildings for Their Continued Use THE busy School Board member when approached by the superintendent with a re- quest for improved equipment, or improvements of any kind, invariably demands why? — Why do you need this? Why do you need that? The School Board is usually made up of the best men of the community; men chosen for their good judgment and business ability, who entertain no thought of compensation other than the good of the community which they serve so unselfishly. Because of this trust they are most careful that their duty be well done, consequently, they are cautious about expenditures, and the improvements of buildings, addition to equipment, etc., usually mean large ex- penditures, and large expenditures are the bane of the tax payer. So the question, why do we need improved conditions in our school buildings must be convincingly answered to call forth the needed expenditure. There are numerous needs for improvement in most of the old buildings which we will enumerate. First— Lighting Lighting from two to three sides, causes cross lights and shadows. Invariably, the windows are small, wide apart, furnishing but a small percentage of the necessary light, and that so poorly distributed that a majority of pupils are compelled to strain their eyes all the time while studying. We find many buildings with 10 to 15% of the total floor area in light, while 20% is the minimum amount. With dark, poorly lighted rooms for study purposes, it is not to be wondered at that pu- pils complain of headaches, become nervous and irrita- ble and fall behind in their work. Abnormalities pre- sent themselves on every side; enlarged tonsils, tonsi- litis, adenoids, frequent colds, rheumatic pains, etc., caused by dry air and poor ventilation are very much augmented by poor light and this trouble sets in very quickly where bad light ex- ists, and will continue so long as the condition caus- ing it, continues to exist. The pupils become dull and listless, their eyes lose their snap and sparkle becoming dull and colorless, astigma- tism and near-sightedness is soon contracted. You may ask any specialist why so many glasses are worn and he will tell you that it is mainly due to poor light in school rooms. It is estimated that 15 to 25% of all eye troubles could be eliminated by proper light properly diffused and regulated. This condition should be carefully investigated and corrected. The window open- ings enlarged on one side to admit adequate light for the entire room; piers between windows removed; the old openings bricked up on the other sides of the rooms; Fig. No. 1 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 2 if the rooms are deep, provide sheet prisms in the upper half of the top sash to deflect the light, throwing it to the back part of the room. Provide adjustable curtains for all windows so prisms may be covered, and the light regulated during very bright days. The two cuts, figures 1 and 2 illustrate a condition tak- en from an old building at Waverly, Iowa, showing how totally inadequate the light was in the school rooms. Notice the shape of the room (Fig. 2). Of course this was an impro- vised school room, due to crowded conditions in the school buildings, and when this was written a bond is- sue for a new school had just been defeated by the mis- guided tax payers, which goes to show that vigorous campaign methods must be resorted to by the School Boards to educate the peo- ple to their needs and the needs of the children. Second— Ventilation When we approach the subject of ventilation we are brought up against a problem that twenty years ago was comparatively unknown except in the larger cities, and then only in a crude way; consequently, school buildings in small towns and country districts were either poorly ventilated or not at all. The old system of hot air heat came very near being a ventilation system, owing to the circulation of air it created, yet its in- adequacy under extreme cold temperatures, its lack of regulation, and general uncer- tainty coupled with dry air and the continued recirculation of foul dusty air, made it a menace to health. Where ventilation was tried by means of vents to the roof they proved only of partial benefit, as many such vents worked downward permitting quan- tities of cold air to come into the room via the vent which was supposed to draw out the foul air from the room, and in consequence little or no benefit was derived and in many instances positive harm resulted. Various schemes have been tried out during the past twenty years as the needs of ventilation in school buildings became more apparent and numerous; discarded ventilating plants may be found in old school buildings through- out the country as evidence of their ineffectiveness, and still many others may be found in operation, where thousands of dollars have been spent and little or no results are being secured. In many old buildings systems of heat ducts have been installed, where small steam coils have been located at the foot of the stacks to warm the air entering the room through the stacks, the stacks having been built of brick with rough mortar-joints projecting into the ducts, seriously retarding the free travel of the air and to make the matter worse, heavy cast iron register faces cover the opening into the room from the duct cutting off fully 25% of the air which reaches the register. Go into your own build- ing and see if such a condition exists there, if it does, rip off the heavy old cast register faces, line the flues with metal or some other smooth hard surface to reduce the friction, provide splitters and diffusers as herein-elsewhere mentioned and illustrated in Chapter Twenty-two, and you will double the efficiency of your old system, so far as it delivers the air to the rooms. However, this system is still deficient as the vent flues are usually like the first vents mentioned, they do not draw the air out of the rooms properly. So, to overcome this, aspirating coils, — that is, heating coils to start the air moving upward, — are placed in these ducts to heat the air coming out of the rooms at the floor level, 8 PUBLIC SCHOOLS by this means creating a circulation. This system of indirect coils and vents with as- pirating coils works quite well during moderately cold weather but under extreme tem- peratures it becomes difficult to heat the building, and again, in moderate weather, when the heat is turned off, circulation practically stops and there is little or no travel of air and stagnation results. To create forced circulation of air, fans have been installed in many of our old buildings, creating a rapid circulation of air, and a few years past, this was considered the last word in ventilation. Cold outside air was taken in over huge stacks of "vento" heating coils heated to 80 degrees, then forced by a fan through heat ducts into the room arriving at a supposed temperature of 70 degrees; where it was circulated through the room from one heat register, usually about eight feet above the floor then taken out by a vent situated at the floor level which runs to a ventilator on the roof and is there exhausted. The foregoing systems are only indifferently success- ful as all of them endeavor only to move the air and they lack some of the most essential requirements of perfect ventilation, — that is, uniform distribution of air through the rooms in sufficient quantities, cleaning of the air from dust, smoke and foul odors, also the humidification of the air which is most essential to the health of pupils. Perhaps your school is equipped with fan ventilation and you are resting easy, believing you have perfect ventilation in your school building, if so, it might be well to investigate the actual condition and where you find a need for improve- ment, use your efforts to see that your children are pro- vided with proper ventila- tion which means improve- ment in health, elimination, to a large extent, of colds, coughs, bronchitis, tonsili- tis, and kindred ills. Ob- serve the condition of the blades of the fan shown in (Fig. 3) covered with dust and dirt. The ordinary types of ventilation permits of dust, smoke, dirt and odors passing through into the rooms from the intake. Dry dust is one of the worst disease germ carriers and some means should be adopted to overcome this condition, adding to the present system what is nec- essary to provide clean, fresh, humidified air which will add to the efficiency of the pupils from 15 to 25% and correspondingly im- prove their health. A com- plete description of the rem- edy will be found in Chap- ters 4, 22 and 24. Third— Arrangement The planning of a school building twenty years ago, did not contemplate manual training, domestic science, or agricultural departments, physical training was scarcely thought of. Gymnasiums were for only the large city schools and for grade schools not at all, consequently, as these departments were added one by one, more space was needed Fig 3. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 9 in the school buildings and dark, damp basements have been fitted up to serve this pur- pose and at best, have been but poorly equipped. In a majority of the schools the attic space (in schools having a pitched roof) has been floored, plastered and made to serve. In one school building at Sheldon, Iowa, the attic space included a science laboratory, a sewing room, a kitchen and a class room, each lighted with a single dormer window and a small improvised gymnasium whose total equipment consisted of two baskets for basket ball, this room having light only from the windows over the stairway, about 12% of the light necessary. These rooms had no ventilation and of necessity, located where they were, had low ceilings. All the toilets were in the basement, which location compelled all pupils to travel many flights of stairs daily. Most of the old buildings are in just such a condition at the present time, they are crowded with pupils and poorly equipped. Addition of departments has filled every available space, teaching has be- come difficult and pupils do not receive the attention and consideration they deserve owing to the inability of their teachers to overcome the handicap of an old, inadequate school. There is only one solution to crowded conditions and that is more adequate facil- ities. A careful survey of existing conditions should be made as there may be several solutions to the problem. Entirely new buildings may be necessary and most economical. A sub-division of the school, dividing it into two or more units, or if the present building is sufficiently large for class work if the industrial departments are moved, a separate building may be erected for this purpose and the old building improved to meet modern conditions. Where all departments have been contained in one large building it is quite often feasible to erect one new building for High School, accommodating all the depart- mental work, gymnasium and auditorium. If the town is small, this arrangement is good, especially if the grade buildings are not far away, as it enables grade pupils to take advantage of departmental work and physical training. The younger children by all means should have this training as they need it more than the older pupils. Now, after you have relieved the congested condition you should give careful thought to the rearrangement of the old building. Too often, a new building is erected providing older pupils with all the improved facilities, and nothing is done to the old building more than to divide a few rooms, providing such repairs as may be obviously necessary. This, usually, leaves the younger children, who are in the formative period, needing the best possible facilities, to contend with the poor light, poor ventilation and sanitation, of the old building; while the older pupils, who are more hardened and less liable to be affected by conditions, have the best possible facilities. This is an injustice and calls for thorough improvement in the old buildings to make them as fit for use as the new structure. If you have a building program jn front of you that contemplates the con- tinued use of your old building, be sure your funds are ample to remodel the old building until conditions there are on a par with the new structure. (See cuts Chapter Four) as to final arrangement of an old high and grade building for grade purposes. When this building was finished, lighting and ventilation improved, it was so sweet and fresh inside that you would be unable to detect any appreciable difference between it and the new building which was erected at the same time this building was remodeled. To prop- erly remodel an old building is always expensive and there is always a question as to whether it might not be more economical to completely wreck the old building, use the salvage and apply that in the construction of a new building, and in the building illus- trated in Chapter Four it would have been more economical to do this, but the School District had voted $9,000.00 to remodel the old building and $80,000.00 for a new build- ing, consequently, there was no choice but to remodel This work actually cost $10,500.00 when bids were taken. Estimating the salvage at $2,000.00 which might have gone into the new building as unimportant retaining walls, wall backing and form lumber, together with slate, radiation, etc., the actual value would have been $12,500.00 to be added to the new building, another $5,000 added, this would have supplied the same room space in the new building and the cost of continued up-keep would have been materially reduced, principally the heating and janitor service. The fuel bill alone would amount to a saving of $200 a year; interest at 5% on $5,000 would be $250 per annum, so the saving in fuel alone 10 PUBLIC SCHOOLS would almost pay the interest on the increased investment of $5,000. The ground occupied by the old building could have been turned into play ground space or otherwise used to advantage. In many instances in order to continue the use of old buildings, new sites are acquired at considerable expense which might have been added to the building fund for a new building on the same site. The School Board who remodeled the building just referred to, were unanimously agreed that an entire new plant should be provided and a bond issue for this purpose failed owing to the taxpayers unfamiliarity with the subject and they voted against their own best interests; immediately afterward they proposed that the old building be remodeled and a new High School built, and the vote carried which clearly indicates that the voter does not alway get what he should have, and also shows conclu- sively that a School Board is many times seriously handicapped in securing the best results from their efforts. Figures 1 and 2 previously mentioned in this chapter and figure 4 here shown, gives some idea of the desperate need of rearrangement if they are to be continued in use as school rooms. No comment is necessary to convince the reader of their total unsuita- bility for school purposes, yet there are many such rooms being used all over the country at the present time, and in consequence many pupils are falling be- hind in their work, their teachers are criticised by the public because of the pupils poor showing and many otherwise intelligent students become tired and lazy and make poor head- way when compelled to work under such conditions, and usually the pupil is criticised when the blame should be placed on an indifferent public who of times have been quoted as saying: "It was good enough for me when I attended school and it is plenty good enough for my children." It is time that a sleepy public be awakened to modern progress and be made acquainted with existing conditions so that the force of its vote will secure the necessary improvements for the greatest good to our student population. Fig. 4 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 11 Chapter Three Make the Old School Sanitary BUILDINGS built some few years past either had outside closets built over a vault, dry closets built into the building in the basement, or the ordinary water flushing type of toilets which also were built into the basement. The only thing that maybe said about the old outside closets is that they should be dis- posed of, banished forever from a civilized community with the earliest possible dispatch. Dry closets are used in a number of localities with varied results; if constantly watched theyare indifferently successful, but they can scarcelybe recommended for a modern improv- ed school, and thewriterwill not take space to explain their use, as itwouldbe a waste of time. A typical example of the old water flushing type of closet is shown by Figure 5, located in a basement where concrete block foundation walls and a porous concrete floor permits foul odors and am- monia fumes to be absorbed until one is almost choked when entering the room. Notice the room is provided with three small windows which come at the grade line of the building admit- ting very little light, in fact less than one-half the re- quired amount. Notice the pool of water standing on the floor around the toilet fixture shown under the first stall, this was caused by choking of the fixture and flooding, there being no floor drain this condition was hard to overcome, or eliminate. Again the old type of tank closet having a chain pull is very unsatisfactory in a school building as the float flushing device soon gets out of order and the toilets do not flush, thus causing a very unsanitary condition. These closets being located in the basement with porous walls, floors and ceilings, with no ventilation are most unsanitary and should be re- moved. Toilet facilities should be provided on each floor with abundance of outside light; a positive circulation of air should be provided through the rooms; walls, floors and ceilings should be impervious to absorption; fixtures shouldbe clean and sanitary, of the ventilated automatic seat action, direct flushing type. Stall partitions also should be of a washable ma- terial, impervious to absorption and of such a nature that any writings, markings, etc., of an immoral or objectionable nature may be readily erased. Vents must be installed opening di- rect to the outside with no connection to any other part of the ventilation system, these must be arranged with aspirating heat coils for winter and a positive exhaust ventilator on the roof to operate during warm weather aided by an exhaust fan if the condition warrants it. While the toilet and shower rooms are the main source of poor sanitation in the building, yet the common type of drinking fountain is usually of an unsanitary nature. Laboratory and science room sinks quite often become unsanitary and need renovation, so the whole problem should be carefully looked into and remedied. Chapter 24 will explain the various satisfactory materials to be used in securing clean, sanitary toilet rooms, and Chapter 23, the best means of sewage disposal. Fig. 5 12 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Four How An Old School Building May Be Ventilated Economically IT SHOULD always be the aim of a new building program to include sufficient funds to provide complete ventilation in the old buildings while erecting the new, but as a usual thing funds are so nearly exhausted when the new buidling has been pro- vided for that little or no funds are available for the old building and it suffers in con- Fh) 7 - fitoT FloojtPlak - "TiStKiirKSC 1 mm± — * ^H$$HiZ sequence. However, the following method may be employed in an old building quite suc- cessfully at a minimum cost. This method can best be illustrated by reference to the plans of the Old Perham, Minnesota High and Grade School Building, Figures 6, 7, 8 and 9, which has been re- modeled to be used as a grade school and where they had no ventilation or toilet facilities all have been provided at a reasonable expense. As the fan, air washer, heating coils and humidity control would cost just as much as in a new building, nothing need be said about them here, as the economy depends entirely upon the installation of the heat and vent flues, these will be described fully. Figure 6 illustrates the location of the fan connected to a large heat duct on the basement ceiling which car- ries the air from the fan to the vertical heat risers, this PtTAiL/VALLl)OACDPLt^iyi(RAn5tR usually is made of galvanized iron or of black iron yu/PE/iDtD fRon (tiu/iq (fVjio) painted, but in this old building in order to install a Jo. 3* Ov<-r i 1* F y.ii iwj V < * . « - i * O C PUBLIC SCHOOLS 13 system at all it was necessary to use something that would serve the purpose and reduce the cost, so it was decided to use a good grade of wall board with one surface sized to make a hard smooth surface to eliminate friction. This was built and suspended as indicated by detail (see figure 10), connected at ceiling with vertical heat ducts which were lined in same manner. The vents in the room were lined with wall board running up to the attic and these connected with a wall board return air chamber (figure 9), which draws 75% of the air back through a return air duct, which is indicated on Figure 9 directly under the 42-inch fresh air ventilator. This return air duct drops down and connects with the Air Washer in basement, thus creating a recirculation of 75% of the air under extreme «-j?rr " Attic ~ 'Plan'' rij a ".SrcoMrFLooiL-PLAJf^ cold temperatures. Note on Figure 9 that a 42-inch exhaust ventilator is also situated near the center of the roof both of these ventilators are controlled by automatic dampers and as the outside temperature rises the dampers open permitting more outside air to enter, re-circulating less of the inside air until all outside air is used. The wall board ducts are light, easily built, and serviceable as they form a smooth lining to assist the velocity of the air, creating but a slight static pressure against the fan. The inside surface should be painted two coats of "Elaterite," "Insulite," or other similar paint. The wall board is furnished in lengths up to 16 feet and can be run the full length of a floor without joints, thus forming a tight duct that will not permit of air leakage. The only cutting necessary in the old building is through the floors, as the wall board ducts are built up against the plastered walls of the rooms as shown by detail (Figure 11). After the size of ducts is 01 j PU>tereJ Vail determined, strips (A) are secured to the old plastered wall, and studding (B) are set up; the wall board (C) is securely fastened in place, then the entire surface of the ducts is covered with wall board (D) ; then strips (E) are nailed on to form grounds for lath and plaster and the DETAIL/ VALL BOARD DUCT work is then finished in the regular way with splitters and f '3 " diffusers located in the heat ducts 8'-0" above the floor Cj= ~ M 14 PUBLIC SCHOOLS h H r i o IA <0 ■M < |U § i s pi 9 \ o > d"> «- * 1 A « 1 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 15 and vent ducts at the floor line on the same side of the room as the heat ducts and adja- cent to them. The entire installation of the work in this building was accomplished at an expense of $786. The wall board used was an ordinary wood fibre board, but a wall board composed of two layers of paper filled with Gypsum plaster might have been used and the furring strips (E) and the lath over it, might have been omitted, plaster being applied to the Gypsum filled board at (D). This type of installation adds nothing to the fire risk in an old building, of non- fireproof construction, and is to be recommended as an economical means of modernizing an old structure for continued use. The writer has taken several old buildings, where funds were limited, supplying this type of construction at small cost, cleaning up the old building, freshening the foul stagnant air until the odors so prevalent in old buildings were entirely removed. As we have mentioned here, the building of the flues only, owing to the mechanical apparatus being similar to that in new buildings, you are referred to Chapter Twenty-two for complete illustration and explanation of the Ventilating System. The two cuts on page 13, illustrate a building at Nevada, Iowa before remodeling and after. Cut No. 12 shows the building before remodeling, when the building was used as a combined High and Grade school and Cut No. 13 shows the building after remodeling into a grade building with the small grade addition, remodeled into domestic science and manual training departments. 16 PUBLIC SCHOOLS S -. Jk -1 vlw' A . t ^ m i Gtf* p U #*■'*£* ail;-'* ■fej^^^^ - ■ ^^iHiah Ss^oot. A/Ulouco;;AA^LTvn.i iii ■rrg1ifiiT'lfllW**iW^^STtiflftHW l ilW< . .-*» Chapter Five Fire Trap Construction and Its Menace TATISTICS show that one out of every ten school buildings burn every year, some taking toll of human life, but fortunately few have taken such fearful toll as the Collingswood School, Cleveland, Ohio, where 273 children and teachers were burned, aspyxiated, or trampled to death in panic and the flames and smoke of the burning structure. A great Provi- dence seems to have pro- tected many from just such a holocaust, as numerous in- stances are on record where buildings have burned short- ly after large crowds of people had left the building, either after school or enter- tainments. We illustrate one of these (Figures 14, 15, 16), a school building of Milaca, Minnesota, where at 10:30 P. M. one night a large crowd having attend- ed a class play quietly passed from the assembly room on the second floor down open, unprotected wood stairways to the exits and out. Within one-half hour after, the building was one mass of flames and two hours later, ruins. Fire was presumed to start in the basement and it spread so quickly that it was impossible to save anything from the building. With smoke and flames spreading rapidly, what chance would a packed crowd in a second floor assembly have had, when the open corridors would have been filled with smoke before they could have possibly gotten away? I am afraid their chances would be very small and yet there are thousands of just such school buildings all over the coun- try with little or no provi- sion made for escape from fire, and such as have been provided are of little prac- tical use. Some states have laws and regulations which require fire escapes, and a certain number of exits of a given width for a specified number of pupils. Some have requirements that doors be made to open out and be provided with a lock which will open the door when pressure is exerted a- gainst a bar which crosses the door, 28" to 32" above Fig. is the floor, these are called Fig. 14 'Jk/YWIT till .kotm 80HOOL. mm.«wa today »uin« fKOTO BY PALMQUKT, MILACA. WW*. «*** '• «•'«• PUBLIC SCHOOLS 17 Fig. 16 fire exit locks. All old buildings regardless of ex- pense should be fitted with ample exits supplied with these fire exit locks and where old buildings were built with few exits, ample fire escapes should be ad- ded. Special precaution should be taken to see that no open stair fire escape is erected which cross win- dows of the floor or floors below, as they become fire- traps if used when fire breaks out through lower windows, cutting off the escape. Be sure they are built on a blank wall. The best possible escape is an inclosed stairway opening to the building with metal doors whose panels may be filled with wired glass if light is desired. The inclosed stair should be of fireproof construction and doors to buildings should be kept closed at all times with high grade door checks to prevent smoke from lower corridors entering stair well. Add such a stairway to your old building and you need have little fear of fire. As a guide to the width and number of stairways and fire exits the following is quoted from the Chicago Building Ordinance, which will be found good practice anywhere. "497. STAIRWAYS— WIDTH OF. (a) Stairways in buildings used for the purpose of Class VIII (School Buildings) shall be equivalent in width to fifteen inches for every hundred of seating capacity in such building as measured by the aggregate seating capacity of the auditorium, assembly rooms and school rooms; provided, however, that the number of persons allowed in such buildings at any one time shall be limited by the width of stair- ways available as exits therefrom. (b) No stairway shall be less than five feet in the clear, except where more than two stairways lead down from any floor, in which case stairways four feet in width in the clear may be counted in the total width of stairs required. (c) Where two or more stairways are used, they shall be placed at opposite ends of the building or as far apart as practicable, and all such buildings hereafter erected shall have at least two separate and distinct stairways from the ground floor to the top floor, and all existing buildings shall have two such separate and distinct stairways, or one stairway and one sliding or stairway fire escape. (d) All stairways shall have railings on each side thereof. No stairway shall ascend a greater height than thirteen feet six inches without a level landing, the dimensions of which, in the direction of the run of the stairs, shall be not less than four feet, or which, if at a turn of the stairs shall be of not less width than the width of the stairs. No window shall be permitted in any stairs. Stairways which are over nine feet wide shall have double intermediate handrails with end newel posts at least five and one-half feet high. All stairways shall discharge at the bottom directly to a public thoroughfare or open ground. 498. STAIRWAYS IN BUILDINGS HEREAFTER ERECTED— FIREPROOF. In buildings hereafter erected more than two stories and basement in height, the stairways and their enclosing walls shall be of fireproof construction. 499. WIDTH OF CORRIDORS, PASSAGEWAYS, HALLWAYS AND DOOR- WAYS. The width of corridors, passageways, hallways and doorways shall be equivalent in width to eighteen inches for every one hundred of seating capacity of such portions of building as will be required to use same for exit. No corridor, passageway or hallway shall be less than five feet in width, and no doorway less than three feet in width except where two or more doors, each two feet eight inches or more in width, are grouped together. 18 PUBLIC SCHOOLS i *?«&■■ -tfm £** i * 3 '*^J '••st : HJ / •**- ^l w z3 (k~ n S'lfU ; JL*| 1 • '! i< \i mm ill lit iir m rtf v ». Fig. 18 500. DOORS TO OPEN OUTWARD— COVERING OF. All doors in such buildings shall open outward, and all entrance and exit doors shall be unlocked at all times when the building is occupied for school purposes, or open to the public." After you have read the above, go and investi- gate the conditions of your old building, weigh every possibility there and remedy the defects, do not wait un- til it is too late. Fires are usually start- ed in the fuel room of the average school, or around the boiler room somewhere (Figures 18-19 and 20 show a building which caught from an overheated furnace firing the soot in smoke flue) , so it is well to shut off this part of the building with metal doors kept closed with door checks from the rest of the building and the doors to coal bins if possible, should be fire underwriters metal doors sliding on tracks that will close automatically by the heat melting or burn- ing fusible links that hold the door open. Chimneys should be built with every precaution. No flue should be built with- out a flue lining, and old flues should be examined where they pass through floors to see that they are tight. Settling in old build- ings of wood construction or wood floor joists often break a chimney apart at the floor line, opening up cracks that become danger- ous, especially if the fram- ing of the floor joists is tight against the chimney. Investigate the air in- take of your fan if you have one in your old school building, many fans have been installed, with no di- rect connection to the out- side opening, in a room often adjoining the boiler room, with an open intake, and in two instances the writer Fig. 20 Fig. 19 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 19 found these rooms being used by the janitor for stor- age purposes, one of them had a waste paper chute from the floors above open- ing into it and by some means the waste paper piled in one corner of the room (fortunately against brick walls) caught fire, filling the building in ten minutes full of smoke through the fan intake and the ducts. For- tunately this happened dur- ing recess period and no damage was done, still a panic might have resulted as there were no fire escapes on this building and only two narrow stairways in a school that accommodated four hundred pupils. There are many buildings a daily menace to the pupils and teachers and no amount of proficiency in fire drill could overcome some of the existing conditions, and to those who are in authority over the schools I would say, investigate carefully, do not let ignorance of con- ditions cause you to neglect necessary precautions. Dynamiting'the Ruins. Pipestone, Minn., School. Destroyed by Fire. 20 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Six The Essentials of School Architecture THE definition of the word "Architecture" has a two-fold meaning: First, that of building well, for convenience, strength of materials, stability of structure; second, designing as an art, so to arrange plan, elevation and detail as to impart interest with beauty of detail, grandeur of mass, unity of parts, and a blending of all so that strength and power is evident in the completed whole. The foregoing applies to any and all examples of Architecture, yet, each different type of building has some attributes not found in others and the Architect who designs a bank must know the departments of a banking system to properly design a bank and arrange its floor space; of a hospital he must know the minute details of room, ward, diet kitchen, sterilizing, anesthetizing and operating departments, etc.; likewise when planning a school the Architect must know the essentials of school architecture, and there is perhaps no other class of buildings which requires so much intelligent and careful planning and arrangement as a school building; upon it depends the health and efficiency of the pupils to a large extent. Also the economical, efficient operation of the school as a whole. The following brief outline of requirements may rightly be classed among the essentials of school architecture. First: The Site. This should always be on a high, dry location, and of ample size to furnish adequate play ground space. See Chapter 26. Second: Perfect drainage and sewerage. Third: A dry, light basement, no damp walls or floors. Fourth: Ample exits, conveniently arranged to street, play grounds and athletic field. Sepa- rate exits should be made in all cases to the Gymnasium. Fifth: Wide, light corridors, conven- iently connecting all rooms through- out the building. Arrange your plan so it will not be necessary to pass through one room to another. Sixth: Wide, easy stairways provided with handrails, permitting two chil- dren to walk abreast. Stairs to be erected at opposite sides or ends of the building. Inclose them if possible Fig. 21 and use as fire escapes. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 21 Seventh: Well lighted rooms, 20% of the floor area should be the minimum glass area, and this should be from the left side, or from skylights. Daylight should be augmented by artifical light on dark days. This should be diffused equally over the room eliminating glare and shadows. Compare figures 2, Chapter One, and 21 shown on page 19. Eighth: Ventilation should be carefully planned to furnish at least thirty cubic feet of air to each person per minute, kept in constant motion, equally distributed to all parts of the various rooms, and supplied with proper humidity under automatic control. Ninth: Drinking fountains and toilet facilities should be placed on each floor for both sexes, to eliminate stair travel. In Kindergarten and small grades, individual toilets adjacent to the room are a great convenience, but cannot be recommended for pupils who have grown to the age where the close proximity of the toilet to the room in which they study, the noise of the toilet operating, together with the knowledge of all pupils in the room that they are going to a toilet room, might lead to the pupils embarrassment, and where the necessity for its continued use might lead to the blunting of the innate modesty of the pupil, or where excessive modesty might cause the pupil to refrain from the toilets use causing physical discomfort and positive harm to the system. Tenth: A quiet building should be provided by using every sound deadening material avail- able in walls, floors, floor coverings and ceilings. A building should be so planned as to eliminate all possible distractions. Arrangement of rooms, doors, corridors, etc., should be made with this in view. Doors should open at rear of room rather than in front, cor- ridor doors, if of glass should be ribbed or figured glass, so passing back and forth through corridors will not attract pupils attention, likewise the lower half of ground floor windows should be ribbed or figured glass so moving objects outside will not annoy. Hard or resonant floor surfaces, creating noise, annoy likewise and should be avoided. Over- speeded fans and metallic ducts distribute noises that irritate and must be avoided. In fact the essentials of School Architecture demands that the Architect know and overcome all troubles that affect the mind, will and nervous systems of the school population, according to the various ages of the students, so far as any combination of materials, plan and design can accomplish this, thereby lending his valuable aid to increased efficiency. Elimination of distractions, permits concentration, and concentraction is one-half of efficiency. Eleventh: Upon the Architect's intimate knowledge of every changing school condition, from the teachers or superintendent's standpoint, depends the proper arrangement of a school, and upon the proper arrangement depends the ease and economy of operation. The school program should be carefully studied and departments placed to permit of easy access with a minimum of traveling through corridors or on stairways. A thorough knowledge as above will also acquaint the Architect with a full knowledge of the equipment needed, and to plan intelligently this is absolutely essential. Twelfth: As the office building in the city is planned with light movable plastered partitions built of light tile, so they can be torn down and rebuilt easily without injury to the build- ing, thus permitting enlargement and rearrangement of offices for convenience of tenants, so in like manner a school building should be so built that rearrangement of departments, and enlargement of rooms can be accomplished without damage to the building or without 22 PUBLIC SCHOOLS excessive cost. This applies especially to the larger fire-proof permanently built struc- tures and it is very essential that the Architect so plan and design the structure with this in view. Finally, while there are many other items, such as the designing, planning for econom- ical, efficient construction, specification for materials and finish, yet in the main the above are the main essentials of school architecture and a careful study of the problem should be made before an Architect is selected, and only those who can qualify as having a thorough knowledge of Heating, Ventilating, Sanitation, Lighting and Equipment should be con- sidered. Modern two-story type of school building with no basement. Entrance to Gymnasium and Auditorium both on the grade level. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 23 Chapter Seven The Fireproof Construction of a Building State departments all over the country have passed laws and made regulations covering light, arrangement, number and kind of stairways, fire escapes, exits and the like, also controlling in a measure the sanitation, heating and ventilation, except in rare in- stances, however, almost no regulation has been made as to the construction of the build- ing. Consequently buildings of good, bad and indifferent construction may be found all over the country, due largely to the inadequate appropriation of funds for building purpo- ses. Too often a school board will inspect some building erected two or three years, find what it cost, then vote a like sum for their building. Then as plans are prepared they find the building must be larger than the building they had seen, totally overlooking the rise in cost of materials and labor, hence it becomes necessary to provide additional funds or trim the building, and it is usually trimmed. Quite often an architect is selected whose limited experience in the planning of schools, provides an expensive building, without adequate results for the money expended. When the bids are in, unwise cuts are made to the detriment of the school, and in almost every instance, the first alternate is to cut out the fireproof construction, and it is usually done, but to all who are building a large school building we urge, don't do it. The fireproof construction has a larger meaning than pro- tection alone from fire. The permanency of the structure, elimination of shrinkage and cracks, threefold reduction in repair bills, elimination of objectionable noise and the fact that it is much warmer and easily kept so, all add weight to the argument for fireproof construction, and last but not least, the comparative safety from conflagration should convince any school board of the need of fireproof buildings, erected for safety and per- manency. The word fireproof has a relative meaning and should not be taken literally as that would mean a building erect- ed wholely of non-combusti- ble materials with equip- ment of a similar nature but should be taken to mean, a building erected of non- combustible walls, floor con- struction, ceilings and parti- tions, with boiler and fuel rooms isolated from the rest of the building, with solid concrete or brick walls inter- vening and all openings to same enclosed with Fire Underwriters Metal Doors, and metal windows with wire glass. The exposed outside walls of the building, if adjoining other buildings which might create a fire menace should also have all openings enclosed with metal frames and wire glass. Inside finish, floors, doors and equipment may be of wood. A building so erected is fire- proof in the sense that it will not burn down and it affords absolute safety to the students as no matter where a fire should start the smoke would be unable to penetrate through the building if properly planned with door checks on every door to keep them closed at all times and no transoms. (Transoms are not needed where a proper ventilating system is installed), as an illustration of this, a school building built with concrete and tile floors with gypsum tile partitions in one of the Country Consolidated School buildings caught fire in the manual training bench room where a large quantity of shavings had been piled Fig. 22 24 PUBLIC SCHO L S in one corner. The windows in this room faced an open field and the fire was not dis- covered until morning when the janitor arrived at the building. The fire had burned itself out, by that time having burned the benches and materials in the room, broken out the windows, charring the frames and burning out the mullions. Also burning out the door to the corridor causing at least one-third of the plaster to fall, but owing to the tile partitions and concrete floor system the entire fire was confined to the one room. School continued without delay and thousands of dollars was saved to the taxpayers because of the construction of the building. Figure 22 shows the skeleton frame of a fireproof building erected at Nevada, Iowa, where a combination of reinforced concrete and steel frame construction was used. Concrete being used for the short spans and steel over the long spans. Note the two columns at the cor- ner in the foreground, then note the view of corner, Fig- ure 23. The chimney is built in this corner 105 feet tall and does not show at the corner until above the roof. Fig. 23 B8 BE B§ Bfl 15" Wall Fig. 24 Fig. 25 The chimney is round inside to facilitate draft and is built up for 20 feet above the boiler breeching with fire brick. Note closely in Figure 23 how the windows fit under concrete beams. The outside walls carry nothing more than their own weight and are built of 4-inch brick facing and 8-inch tile backing, as indicated by detail Figure 25, the brick being bonded to the tile every sixth course with full headers as shown, or by clipped headers. There are various shapes of tile backing but the shapes recommended are those which have a non-continuous nortar joint through the wall. With this form of tile (which can be had from several sources), frost cannot penetrate the wall through the mortar joints and a better wall results. Figure 26 shows the method of laying clay tile on wood forms for a light and satisfactory method of long or short span reinforced concrete construction in which the size of tile is changed according to the length of the span and the necessary PUBLIC SCHOOLS 25 depth of the concrete beam between them. Clay tile marked 63 in Figure 26 are spaced 4 inches apart and are 12 inches wide thus spacing the rein- forced concrete beam 16 inches center to center. The tile varies in depth from 4 inches to 12 inches and are economic- al to use for spans up to 22 feet — above that span gypsum tile (Pyrobar) be- comes more economical as its lighter weight eliminates surplus concrete and lightens up the entire building without in any way reducing its strength or durability. Figure 28 shows a typical school building construction where this material was used, showing the tile in place on the wood forms ready for the placing of reinforcing steel. Some bent steel rods for beams are shown on the right side of the picture with some elec- tric conduit lying in front of it. The con- duit will be laid in place before any con- crete is poured and will be firmly embed- ded in the concrete, consequently special precaution must be taken at all times to accurately locate all fixture outlets in place. Figure 29 shows the underside of the same floor showing rough form work in place with tile already laid. This is the underside of the floor shown in Fig. 26 Pyrobar Floor Tile. 19" . 5" „ 19" - Wn&K'wt 'SToL-rt-Soocer-MvMz'^rt. Slit of fhar Tic- A'DeptoctJtei 6' e~ IO~ /2" B-fc&tcrn/e 7" 9' //" /3- Weiahfperf?. 24/bs. 27/is JO/bs. 33/ii. Each Tile 24' long. A// rre/gMs shown are per lineal ibof. Fig. 27 Fig. 28 26 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 29 Figure 28. When the wood forms have remained three weeks after concrete has been poured, giving concrete ample time to set, they are easily removed and plaster is applied direct to the under surface of either clay or gypsum tile. For long span construction there are several makes of steel forms which fill the space occupied by the tile illustrated, Figure 28 — these, however, are open at the bottom and wire lath has to be applied on the under side of the forms upon which to plaster. This method is equally as good as the systems illustrated and, if they can be secured as cheaply as the tile, may be used just as satisfac- torily. For short spans, flat reinforced concrete slab construction may be used satisfac- torily. In fact the prime object to be kept in view with any or all of the vari- ous types of reinforced con- crete construction is to see that the correct percentage of steel to concrete is always constant, and that the steel and the materials compos- ing the concrete are of first quality, properly mixed, well distributed and tamped in place. All rods must be an- chored in proper position with concrete well worked in around them. Concrete must always be used while fresh and no partly set mix- ture should be allowed. Use only the best dry powdered cement, and that should be PUBLIC SCHOOLS 27 given laboratory tests before using. Reinforced concrete should be allowed to remain in the forms for 21 days before removal in moderate or warm weather and in the event that concrete is poured in freezing weather forms should remain until all concrete has had time to thaw out and properly set. Do not be in too much of a hurry to complete this part of your work. Most of the failures have resulted from rushing through with construction, building additional floors over green concrete until the overload was more than forms could hold up, or from removing forms before concrete had set properly, or from removing forms from under frozen concrete which had frozen before properly setting up and fell through after thawing out. Figure 30 shows a floor panel being loaded to double its estimated carrying capacity as a test of its strength. Tests like this give a sense of security to the owner and should be made on all work. The floor system should be estimated to carry at least four times the load it will ever be called upon to carry, which is called a safety factor of four, and a test of half that should not damage the floor in any way. Many school buildings are being erected with a non-fireproof roof, see Figure 24. This is quite a saving in cost as it enables the contractor to utilize the wood form material for roof construction. Where this is done the beams and columns supporting the roof construction are all of fireproof construction and all wall partitions are fireproof up to the ceiling under the roof. Few fires have started in the attic space of such a building, and the danger to pupils is negligible and where the interest on the investment for all fireproof construction naturally exceeds the increased insurance rate, school boards are usually inclined to accept the saving, and where a building appropriation is limited, the writer has found it more profitable to invest the difference in equipment. On the building illustrated, Figure 24, the difference in cost of the roof framing between the wood used and all fireproof was $2,100. The interest on this sum at 5% is $105, while the insurance rate was only increased about $47. Thus the saving was quite attractive to the school board, and was accepted. Where the fireproof roof is used, there are several methods that are very satisfactory. One is to build the ceiling like the floors below, of lighter material, however, to carry the roof and snow load only, then building up the slope of the roof with the wood rafters set on plates, with wood sheathing, and any surface desired. This is allowable by the insurance companies, under the class of fireproof construction, and'allows the samejnsurance rate. Fig. 31 Figure 31 illustrates a gypsum slab roof laid on steel beams and Figure 32, the under side of the slab. The gypsum is reinforced with wire mesh and being a light material, provides an economical roof construction which may be covered with any desired surface. For schools, any of the built up roofs or five-ply tar and gravel furnishes the most satisfac- tory covering. A roof will last no longer than the flashings, without leakage, consequently, particular care should be exercised to have flashings of best quality, properly applied. Partitions should be erected of light partitions, either gypsum tile or hollow clay tile, Figure 33 illustrates the gypsum tile in course of erection. The clay tile comes in the same 28 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 32 thickness and either may be used, as there are arguments in favor of both and the writer usually leaves it optional with the contractor as to which he uses. Another form of fireproof partition is illustrated in Figure 34, where light steel studding are used, covered with a plaster board, then plastered. Similar steel studs are used with wire lath and plaster to a great extent; however, the one which can be erected the most economically 'is generally used, as they are all efficient. Where gypsum or clay tile are used the false frames or "bucks," for window or door openings are usually made similar to Figure 35. The section showing steel channel is used where par- titions are high to stiffen the opening, as the channel runs up to the ceiling while the wood frame runs only to the top of the opening. Partitions are seldom high enough to require this extra stiffening around openings and the steel channels are seldom used. Figure 36 shows the method adopted where an all fireproof metal trim is used throughout the build- ing. The wood brick is similar to those used in other instances, and all wood is entirely covered and protected by the Fig. 33 metal. The numerous different methods of handling construction need not be men- tioned here as each Architect has methods which he prefers or has found best adapted to his work or the locality in which he is building. The illustrations so far are all of a type of building where the total weight of the structure is carried on columns and beams, this method has proved itself to be the most satisfactory and most economical in the majority of recent buildings where a building of three story or more in height is erected. Some Architects still adhere to the old type of construction where the outside walls and all inside bearing partitions are of solid brick or thick heavy walls of hollow tile. This may in some instances, be the more economical. For many reasons elsewhere mentioned, the one story type of school or the two story type with the first floor just above grade with no basement is becoming popular and is being generally adopted all over the country. These types eliminate much of the column and beam construction, the floor and roof loads are carried on bearing walls in the usual manner and the problems of construction become much simplified, permitting the use of skylighting in the one story buildings as illustrated in Figure 20, eliminating stairways and other inconveniences. But whether the building be one or more stories in height, too much cannot be said for its being of fireproof materials. As stated in the first of chapter 5 one PUBLIC SCHOOLS 29 out of ten schools burns every year, this with its resultant loss of life and property, together with the disarrangement of the school makes the problem of teaching a difficult one for at least a year; furthermore the comparison between wood construction at its best and fireproof is very marked. The one can be only a temporary structure while the other has stability, permanency, and a freedom from repair bills, that makes all arguments against Fig. 34 Section of Door Jamb shcmina Wood Buck Reinforced with Steel Channel Section of Door Jamb shomna RabbeHed Buck Note- This Buck ma y be either Plain or Robbetted Fig. 35 AbiTff> Wood door buck may b* tiftut plain or rabbattwt titfai #rchitra*w Fig. 36 30 PUBLIC SCHOOLS it void, and while first cost may run 5% to 15% more according to locality, yet it is soon overcome by the small expenditures for upkeep. Europe has examples of buildings which have stood for hundreds of years, and if unmolested should stand for as many more, and while some arguments are brought forth that we do not want permanent structures owing to changing conditions and improvements in the schools, yet the fact that we can change partitions easily, in our newer methods of construction without much expenditure, overcomes any argument that might be made on this account. The history of every new country has shown that the pioneer goes to the wilderness and builds his log hut, stores are erected of the flimsiest material, towns are built and fire comes sweeping all before it. Then as new structures take their place, some are of brick, but many again are frame. Then more fires and more experience and permanent brick or stone structures are erected, with floors and partitions still inflammable, dangerous from within but with a certain measure of protection from adjoining structures; and finally we see great masses of fire- proof buildings safe from within, and usually from without. However, there is always a danger from without in congested districts where a fireproof building is erected adjoining some old firetrap. This country is in all stages of construction and as buildings are erected we should profit by the experience of the generations before us and build for the future with the best of the knowledge we have at hand. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 31 Chapter Eight _S — I,- ».r«- PlAN The Specifications, Problems of Materials, Freight Rates, Etc. A school board from Tennessee, made an extended trip inspecting new buildings with a view to educating themselves before entering into a school building campaign, and while visiting schools they made numerous notes, each one making memoranda of the things interesting to himself. They selected an Architect from the North whose buildings appealed to them and he was instructed to prepare plans for the type of building they wanted. From their numerous notes they mentioned many of the things they found interesting about the build- ings they had seen and he was instructed to include them. This Architect, with- out making himself familiar with their local conditions, wrote the specifications as in- structed, with the result that bids on the structure exceeded their estimate almost 100%. The building was trimmed down and a second attempt was made to let the contract but bids again were 75% high. So the school board became disgusted with the Architect they had employed and he was paid and discharged. A second Architect was employed with the hope that better results might be obtained, and this man with due regard to the suggestion made by the school board, decided to use his own judgment, and in consequence an entirely different design of building was erected. Archi- tect No. 1 had specified hol- low tile for the walls and this product, while very popular in the North, was not availa- ble in Tennessee. Local brick being much cheaper, Architect No. 2 specified brick. Hollow tile would have to be shipped from Indiana, over the Ohio river which meant bridge tolls in addition to freight rates. Architect No. 1 specified storm sash on his windows, an item of necessity in the North. Architect No. 2 found they were seldom or never needed, so omitted them from specifications and a less expensive frame detailed for the windows. Architect No. 1 specified concrete for his walls and footings which ran $6.50 a cubic yard, while random rubble stone could have been used to grade line at $3.50 and coursed rubble or ashlar Proper planning of the building depends largely on the local conditions. The plan of building here illustrated was made necessary owing to the budd- ing site being a sloping hillside, in consequence, you will note two entrances on the sub-basement plan which open to the west on the grade line. Note the basement plan with two main entrances on the upper grade line to the East. A rise in grade of ll'O" in the 62'0" width of the building. The heavy black lines between corridor and Domestic Science Depart- ment is 2'0" in depth and indicates the space reserved for ventilation ducts. Note the stage at end of gymnasium for use of this room as assembly or au- ditorium. 32 PUBLIC SCHOOLS above that for $5. Architect No. 2 specified stone. In the North, stone would have cost more than concrete. * Architect No. 1 placed his footings 5'-0" below grade line, a necessity in the North, owing^to frost. This was 3'-0" more than was needed in Tennessee. Architect No. 2 placedjhem 2'-0" below grade. I might continue, but suffice to say that No. 2 let the contract without difficulty. The moral is, study your local conditions, use that material which will give the most economical results, when there is no particular preference between them. Architects are prone to lazi- ness in the writing of speci- fications and too often copy one specification from some other one, with little or no regard to the specific needs of the locality in which they build. The difference in cost on specific items may be only a few cents or a few dollars per foot or yard, yet a combination of expensive materials soon boosts the price of a build- ing to the prohibitive amount. Alternate figures should be taken on materi- als about which there is doubt (especially if there is an equality in value) and the school board can then have their choice of ma- terials. Specifications can be written for both without much difficulty. Freight rates enter largely into the cost and should be careful- ly investigated as specifica- tions are written, and local materials should be consid- ered in development of the building, and the Architect who can design, and design well, using the materials most readily at hand, securing pleasing and satisfactory results is much more valuable to a school board than the man who specifies regardless of conditions, even though the care- ful Architects' commission be double that of the other. Tirst Tiooc Plan Note that all rooms are given east and west light entirely along one side ] of the room with cloak rooms also well lighted. Toilet rooms and stairs at 1 opposite ends of the building with enclosed stairways cut off from halls by J wire glass and metal doors. Note superintendent's office in center of build- 1 ing,[convenient[to eachlfloor. fcJ - Seco/id Floor. PL.n/1 - This floor is used as exclusive high school with the exception of one upper grade room. Ample light is secured for high school study room by use of sky lights. This building erected at Lanesboro, Minn. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 33 Chapter Nine Selecting the Finish, Its Completeness A school building may be erected of strong durable materials, of lasting qualities, and at the same time not be pleasing, either in design or finish. A bad combination of materials or a poor color combination, can destroy all the design and leave a very dis- appointing result. No hard or fast rule as to design can be given here as this is the province of the Architect and the design should be governed according to plan, location, local materials, etc. However, care should be taken that all finish be of a permanent lasting nature. Walls should be faced with stucco (on brick or tile), brick, stone or terra cotta, and the trim should be of some combination of these materials. If stucco is used a fine artistic effect can be had by using a white Portland cement in the finishing coat. The Fig. 38 Kenyon, Minnesota, High and Grade School Building. stucco surface may be finished with a smooth trowelled surface, or by a rough cast where the finishing coat is thrown on before the previous coat has thoroughly dried or by a pebble dash, where small particles of crushed rock, pebbles, or marble chips, are thrown on the last coat before it is set. The rocks, pebbles or marble chips are graded in size, usually those that would pass through a \" screen and be retained on a \" screen. A marble dash stucco is quite attractive, especially where colored effects are desired in the wall, as marble chips from black to pure white can be secured, by specification, with almost any color in between. Brick, "the old reliable," is becoming more and more the standard of building material and quite recently has taken on wonderful improvement in design. Architects have been experimenting with brick combinations, and the results are quite wonderful. Figures have been designed and interesting patterns developed in the brick surfaces until the entire trim of the building is obtained without recourse to any other material, and by 34 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ' <>mm&M%!?gh~~+*£BB& Fig. 39 Belmond, Iowa, High Junior and Grade School Building. ■ ■ Fig. 40 Grundy Center, Iowa, High and Grade School Building.— Detail of Main Entrance. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 35 careful designing a very interesting treatment can be secured with considerable economy over the ordinary combination of brick and stone. The Belmond, Iowa School building here illustrated, Figure 39, shows an inexpensive type of building where all of the trim throughout was brick. The entire base up to the lower window sills was a cream tinted hydraulic brick in three projecting courses, each twelve inches high, projecting one-half inch. Above the lower windows a 4" and 8" header and soldier course formed a band entirely around the building and a similar band was placed above the windows. Vertical courses were built in at the front entrance and the mass of the central feature was also of the same brick. The body brick was a mat surface light tan color with the first story a somewhat darker shade. This combination cost $3,500 less than the same amount of stone trimming for the same design. This example is illustrated to show what can be done with a very small expenditure. As this book is dealing with the moderate cost school, the larger and more expensive buildings are not illustrated herein, as there are several books which do illustrate them and we want to bring out the best in design with the least expenditure. There are some localities where stone trim is economical, especially where quarries and factories are close, so by judicious use of cut stone and brick, or in some cases all stone, using a thin ashlar bonded to the tile or brick backing, a rich and interesting treatment can be secured. See Figure 40. In certain portions of this country terra cotta can be used for trim without unnecessary expense and it makes one of the most interesting treatments that can be had. Interesting mouldings, symbolical figures, statues and elaborate ornamentation can be brought out with less cost in this material than in any other. The interior finish should be of a nature to withstand hard usage. Oak, birch or hard pine trim has proven to be the most satisfactory in a majority of cases. Oak the most expensive, pine, cheapest. The finish for rooms should be of materials that will not reflect light. Toilet rooms should have a hard finish for walls, floors, stall partitions and ceilings, that will not absorb odors or ammonia fumes, and is easily washable. Gymnasiums should not be finished with hard, unyielding surfaces around walls near the floor. A wood wainscot 7'-0" high that will spring easily when hit by players overcomes to a great extent the hard knocks basket ball players sometimes get in gym work. Many gymnasiums have been finished with a high brick wainscot with projecting cap three to four feet above the floor, this is a mistake and should be avoided. Keep out projecting sharp corners throughout the building, avoid square newel posts with their square projecting caps. Use rounded stair railings and rounded corners throughout. Color and decoration will be taken up later. 36 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Ten Sound Deadening Twelve well known school superintendents were asked these questions: First. "Do you consider a quiet school essential to study?" Second. "What noise in a building annoys the most?" Third. " In what manner does the noise in a building affect the student and teacher? " To the first question twelve replies unanimously agreed that quiet in the building was essential to effective work. To the second question, eight replies mentioned the noise of the fan in operation. All twelve mentioned the noise of students walking about the halls and the sound of recita- tions heard through partitions from one room to another. Five mentioned the noise of manual training machinery in operation, as being very objectionable. Three mentioned the gymnasium work as being heard quite distinctly from recitation rooms two floors above. One mentioned the noise of a vacuum cleaner in operation as causing annoyance, explaining that a fourth grade teacher, whose room was on the floor directly above the room in which the cleaner was located, threatened to resign if some means were not taken to eliminate the noise of the cleaner in operation. Street and factory noises were also mentioned. One superintendent stated that while noise was objectionable to a certain extent, yet he was teaching concentration to his pupils, and that he believed it was good for pupils to learn to study regardless of surroundings and that they should become accustomed to all noise and confusion in order to be efficient under any and all conditions. Piano practice and elocution practice which could be heard distinctly through parti- tions, also came in for criticism. Slamming of doors was mentioned by several. Answer to the third question would indicate that a loss of efficiency was the principal objection to noise in the school while some nervous irritation resulted. From the foregoing, it can readily be seen that superintendents believe noise to be objectionable, there being but one plausible excuse for a noisy building, and that based on a theory that students should be taught to concentrate, regardless of noise, and while we realize the absolute need of concentration, yet we believe in providing every facility for accomplishing this with the minimum of effort on the part of the student, as a student who is required to shut out of mind all distractions must do so at the expense of will power, and few students (especially those in the primary grades) have learned to concentrate their will to the necessary extent. Consequently, the subject of sound deadening in a school building to eliminate noise is a vital one in the planning of the building. Between floors a serviceable sound deadener is obtained by the use of "Linofelt," "Flaxlinum," "Fiberfelt" or other makes of felt strips. These are placed between floors and are very effective. The dead air space, in the hollow tile filling in concrete floor beam construction materially aid the muffling of sound, in fact many school buildings are built with no other precaution against sound travel between floors. All pipes between floors should be insulated as they are sound conductors. Where partitions between rooms are built of hollow clay or Gypsum tile they muffle sound without further insulation, but transoms over doors in partitions should be omitted and if too much sound is transmitted through the door, felt strips around the edges will overcome the objection. A noisy fan is so because of improper installation and over speeding. A fan should always be set on a 2" cork foundation and should never be connected direct to a metal duct, as the fan if set on a solid concrete base and connected direct to a metal duct, will PUBLIC SCHOOLS 37 MACHIHC .&OLT.J Mujt Not ■PcrttT«ATt Cock. Imsulatioi » « 9 ^op'poWrrtid TlooR^LXir .*■'*•. " ^ *„*'-""' • Hqati rw • ConGRtTt.-£iAOE • Oh • Cork.- • MtTOD Or tLIMIMATIMG MtRATIOH Or MACHIMtttY- •WHICH <3tXs3 OM riOOa OF RUlLDlMO, .ALSO FORM IMG • • .^OUND DeAPEMCR.' Fl4 4 J. transmit all sound direct to the room through the duct. If the fan is set on cork the vibrations set up by the fan in motion are taken up by the cork and if the fan is connected to the ducts or ple- num chamber by a canvas connection all vibration is lost. An over-speeded fan causes a rapid movement of air through the ducts creating a volume of sound through the movement of the fan blades that can be heard distinctly in every room. The trouble is in the use of too small a fan. The fan should be sufficiently large to run at a moderate speed and move the necessary volume of air at a minimum velocity around 1,600 feet per minute. With these precau- tions a properly oiled and well balanced fan should cause no annoyance. A vacuum cleaner should be set on a cork base and should have its exhaust run into a muffling chamber or, if convenient, it may be run into the base of the smoke flue. Of necessity, a vacuum cleaner must run at a high rate of speed, in consequence, smooth running, well oiled, nicely adjusted bearings are absolutely essential to quiet operation. In small buildings or country schools where motive power is secured by the use of gasoline engines, care should be exercised in locating these in a remote locality in the building with large exhaust run entirely outside of the building into a specially prepared muffling chamber, and where other machinery is run by these engines by means of line shafting, the shafting in all cases should be set on piers or ran in tunnels below floors, where all vibration can be transmitted to the foundation. Shafting should never be hung from ceilings as this permits vibration and sound to travel throughout the building. For the same reason manual training machinery should always be set on concrete foundation over a cork base and on the ground floor, kept well oiled with smooth running bearings. It is perhaps proper to state here that efficient janitor service and a capable engineer are absolutely essential to quiet, economical operation of mechanical equipment, and a school board can much better afford to spend more in the janitor's remuneration than in the upkeep of the plant, which invariably, is increased in direct ratio to the inefficiency of the janitor or engineer. Furthermore, a capable engineer or janitor takes pride in the quiet operation of his machinery and a quiet school plant results. As it is impossible to entirely eliminate the noise of machinery in operation, it is essential that the location of this department be arranged on a ground floor location re- mote from the study hall and class rooms with door edges provided with felt strips. The gymnasium should have a ground floor location and be closed off with felt pro- tected doors with no open transoms and connected to no enclosed courts through which the sound might be conveyed upward to other parts of the building. Where study halls are located directly above a gymnasium floor, the best of floor deadening quilt should be used between floor and gymnasium ceiling, no matter what kind of a floor system has been used. The smaller grade children of a combined high and grade school (where the high school assembly was directly above the gymnasium) used the gymnasium for a play room in winter and on rainy days. A giant stride had been installed in this building and the ceiling joint persisted in screeching when used. Oil was used copiously but without effect and the annoyance to the high school was so great that use of the stride was pro- hibited as its being attached to the ceiling, the sound was more noticeable above than in the gymnasium. To overcome this, a new ball joint was secured and a deadening quilt laid under a new floor and the annoyance stopped. An eastern college president was inspecting plans for a new addition to his school buildings and the architect asked: "Where shall I locate the music room?" The eminent professor replied: "There are some very large caves in Arizona and New Mexico. Im- agine," said he, "a lusty voiced embryo quartet shouting, 'The bulldog on the bank,' next 38 PUBLIC SCHOOLS to my office or a study hall, or a sharp voiced would-be-soprano singing do-ra-me up to high C." Perhaps that is a little far fetched, yet many such objections are very real to some people, hence the necessity of giving careful attention to the location of music and elocution rooms, and their sound deadening. Some state laws prohibit the location of school buildings close to factories, railroad tracks or noisy streets. However, if necessity compels the location of a building in such a location, then plan the building in such a way that study halls and class rooms are on opposite sides from the noisy street or factory. Keep your windows closed and supply the needed ventilation, through your fan and reduce the annoyance to a minimum. By proper precaution in planning, almost every objectionable feature can be over- come and a quiet building secured, while the student efficiency is correspondingly raised. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 39 Chapter Eleven The Relative Merits of Finished Floors AT various times in the planning and constructing of school buildings, architects have /A experimented with numerous finished floor coverings, among which are wood, con- crete, tile, terrazzo, marble, magnesia composition, linoleum, cork, rock-asphalt mastic, "insulate" mastic, and others. Each have merits in different locations and have various purposes. Each have defects as well. WOOD FLOORS: Wood finished floors are perhaps, after all consideration of various floor coverings, the most satisfactory under any and all conditions for class rooms and study rooms. A great many architects still prefer wood floors for corridors but they cannot be advised for use in toilet or shower rooms. Among the various types of wood floors, edge grain yellow pine and maple are the most satisfactory, as they give a hard, long wearing service, easily kept clean and they do not splinter up, in all cases they should be sand-papered, scraped, oiled and waxed. They should be laid with narrow boards, \\" to 2\" preferred, blind nailed and well driven up tight. The material should be clear, end matched and in lengths from \\ foot up. The only question that might be brought up with reference to the use of wood floors for corridors, is their liability of transmitting fire from one room to an- other through the corridors and their noisy nature which no amount of sound deadening can entirely eliminate. They are also objected to by some architects who prefer a more attractive floor covering in corridor spaces. CONCRETE: Many of the modern fire-proof constructed school buildings have had their finished floor coverings of concrete but after careful trial and ex- perimenting with different types of sur- facings, the concrete has proven to be rather an objectionable floor covering. It is cold and hard, and gives forth a metalic sound when walked upon, and is very uninteresting in appearance. Aside from this it is also objectionable owing to its being liable to crack. The expan- sion and contraction in such a floor causes fine surface cracks which mars the appearance of the floor. Various paint products and floor hardners have been used to good advantage to eliminate the gritting and dusting which occurs in concrete floors and is quite effective, but owing to the expense necessary to put a concrete floor in first class condition, makes it more desirable to use some other more satisfactory floor finish. In cheaply constructed buildings, however, concrete floors may be used in the toilet and shower rooms to good advantage if floor hardner is included in the top surface of the floor. The hardner should also be a water-proofing compound as concrete untreated, is not sanitary as it will absorb odors, ammonia fumes, etc. TILE FLOORS. Tile floors make the most satisfactory floors for shower, lockers and toilet rooms as they are sanitary, easily kept clean and are impervious to stains, odors or unsanitary conditions generally. Tile also makes an attractive corridor floor and especially good for vestibules and entrances where open doorways might permit 40 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 43 Note the interesting patterns which can be had with the use of tile. rain to blow in. Various pattern tiles can be had from which an interesting selection can be made and such a floor adds much to the appearance of the interior of a building. A tile floor, however, is hard, cold and somewhat noisy and expensive, and not conducive to a quiet building. TARRAZZO FLOORS. Terrazzo floors are quite popular in school buildings, used in the same manner as tile floors and in the same places. Very interesting terrazzo floors may be built up, using vari colored material and also any color scheme can be matched in a terrazzo floor and by making selection of marble chips. The floor is laid with cement and marble, ground down to a smooth, level surface, making an attractive appearance. Owing to the cement mixture composing the floor, however, the same difficulty of cracking is experienced with terrazzo as is experienced with cement floors. To obviate this difficulty, the terrazzo is usually laid up in moderate sized panels with a small strip of marble between to allow the expansion and contraction to take place at these joints. This in a great measure eliminates the difficulty terrazzo usually causes. Very much the same as tile, they are considerably more expensive than wood or concrete floors. MARBLE FLOORS. Various corridors > vestibules, toilet and shower room floors are in the more expensive buildings laid with slabs of marble. Such floors are very attrac- tive but are suitable only for large monumental school work where unlimited funds are available. There is never any trouble from expansion and contraction and when well bedded, the marble floors should last indefinitely. The same objection to noise is made against marble as against the other floor materials and in consequence, marble floor surfaces are usually limited to vestibules, stair treads, toilet and shower rooms, if used at all. MAGNESIA COMPOSITION. Within the past few years, magnesia composition floors under various names such as "Fama Stonewood," "Velvet Tile," "Torgomont," "Atlas" floors and others have been used with varying success as a finished floor used in corridors, stairs, landings, vestibules and in some instances toilet and shower rooms. These floors are composed of a magnesia cement, mixed with various coloring pigments, usually an orange or dark red, and are trowelled onto the floor to a smooth level, even surface. Magnesia Composition floors are impervious to oils, acid stains, etc., but will PUBLIC SCHOOLS 41 disintegrate when exposed to the constant use of water. For this reason it has not been successful when used in toilet and shower rooms. This material requires careful attention when laying and only pure water, free from lime can be used in its composition. Careful tests of the material should be made before laying if a successful floor is to be secured. When properly laid with good material, a very quiet, attractive and sanitary floor covering is secured. The base running up six or more inches on the wall is made of the same material but to be successful, must have good workmanship. It makes an especially fine tread for stairs as it does not become slippery and where stair treads have an effective metal nosing built into the cement, a neat finish is secured and satisfactory results are obtained. LINOLEUM AND CORK FLOORS. Linoleum and cork floors are perhaps the most quiet and noiseless floor covering on the market and are especially valuable in cor- ridors and halls and the cork is absolutely essential for the curved surface in a running track. A cork or linoleum carpet should be cemented down tight and have a metal edge protector to hold the open seams of the linoleum tight to the floor, otherwise if the cement becomes loose, the linoleum or cork carpet curls up and becomes objectionable. Special care should be taken that the surface upon which the linoleum or cork is laid, be perfectly smooth and level, and in clean condition before finished floor is placed upon it. MASTIC FLOORS. Within the past few years, mastic has been used in consider- able quantities for corridor floors in school buildings and in some instances for the floors of vocational departments. A rock-asphalt mastic has been quite successfully used and is laid approximately one inch in thickness, brought to a smooth, level surface. This floor is not attractive in appearance as it retains the black asphalt color when completed and leaves a rather gloomy appearance in the corridors or rooms unless a large amount of window space is put in the buildings. This floor is tough and has great wearing qualities, is impervious to acid and chemical stains, water and alkalies, but is soluble and will soften by continual application of petroleum oils, gasoline, etc. INSULATE MASTIC FLOORS. Insulate mastic is composed of elaterite gum and asbestos fibre, and is applied in thickness from ^ to 3^ of an inch as a surface coat on concrete or wood floors. This material has been used for only a few years but has proven itself to be a very quiet, noiseless and inexpensive floor covering, over concrete, especially, as it covers all concrete cracks and becomes harder and tougher with age. The color is better with insulate mastic than with Rock Asphalt as mineral pigments are used with it and a deep red or dark brown color can be had. When first laid, it is rather soft and dents are easily made in floor. Shoe marks, however, soon disappear after the floor is used and in the event any cracks should appear, an application of liquid mastic can be poured in, allowed to harden and no patches are seen as it adheres to the rest of the floor and the cracks disappear. The mastic is waxed for a finished surface and all dust and dirt can be easily removed. This material is the cheapest and in many respects the most satisfactory of the newer types of finish floor covering and is being used quite extensively for corridor, toilet and shower room floors in many of the best and most expensive buildings. 42 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twelve Windows, Sky Lights and Light Problems PERHAPS of all the various problems an architect has to contend with, that of light- ing a building and developing the exterior design of the structure in harmony with the necessary light is the most difficult. A general ruling has been made by various school departments, requiring one-fifth of the total floor area to be glass area in either window or sky lights. Also in connection with the lighting of a room, a general depth of room not to exceed twice the height has been adopted, and where this is done, the win- dows are placed as near to ceiling line as possible, only enough space above the window is left for the casing or trim. Windows should be so placed that all light will come in from the left side of the pupil or from overhead. There has been various rulings made by different state departments with reference to the light coming into the building from north, east, south or west. Some of the more progressive states have made rulings that grade rooms or study rooms where pupils were required to sit constantly during the day, must have east or west light with the object of securing a moderate percentage of sun light in the rooms, and in some states north light for this purpose has been prohibited except where buildings were extremely large and where it was not possible to secure this result without undue expense. North light has been ruled against principally, on account of there being no sun light in the room at any time. Corresponding south light has been ruled against owing to the excess of sun light, and the north and south lights have been generally approved for vocational departments or recitation rooms. However, no serious difficulties are encountered in planning a building using light from any side under present conditions of modern ventilation and with an adjustable curtain. Where the curtain pole can be raised or lowered at will, study rooms may be arranged for with light from any side. As a well operated ventilation system will over- come the principal objection to north lighted rooms by supplying fresh air, it purifies the room possibly as much as the sun light would. In other rooms not ventilated, even with east and west lighted rooms, sun light becomes so intense as to be objectionable under cer- tain conditions and the windows must be carefully curtained to eliminate the objection. On south lighted exposures, the sun light should be curtained off with double curtains to relieve the intensity of the light rather than to use the opaque curtain which permits no light to penetrate. The light tan or Holland cloth shade which permits the passage of sun light through and distributes the light evenly over the room should be used. The upper part of the sash should have ribbed glass for diffusion of sun light or in extreme deep rooms, prism glass may be used to deflect the light and throw it across to the farther side of the rooms. The adjustable curtains shade these prisms when light is too intense, otherwise the intense brilliancy of the sun light passing through the prisms becomes quite objectionable. Teachers should be taught the vital necessity of adjusting the shades in their rooms according to varying intensity of outside light these shades should be adjusted daily so that at all times the pupils may work under the best possible light conditions. The writer has seen a splendid lighting system absolutely ruined so far as the pupil's efficiency was concerned by lack of adjustment in the curtains. This is due, usually to the ignorance of the teacher or to carelessness. They should have the lighting problem explained to them and they should see that adjustment is made when needed. The windows should be placed with their sills high above the floors (about 3£ to 4 feet) so that the pupils are not attracted by objects from the outside. The sash should be arranged so that they can be easily cleaned and adjusted to permit outside ventilation when the fan is not in operation during mild weather. A convenient method is, to have PUBLIC SCHOOLS 43 the sash counter-balanced so that when the lower sash is raised, the upper sash will be correspondingly lowered. This permits the warm air at the top passing out and cold air entering at the bottom. In northern climates either storm sash or double glass in the regular sash are needed, the double glass being the most convenient and easiest handled. Double glass eliminates frost on the panes of glass and the dead air space between the panes of glass is a non-conductor of heat and cold, and a warm building is secured. The inside pane of glass should be put in with stops so that periodically, this pane of glass can be taken out and cleaned. This becomes necessary every three or four years, depending on the tight- ness with which the glass is stopped in. The original ex- pense on installation and future handling, is considerable less than storm sashes. The windows in the room should be placed close together with narrow mullions between. This eliminates cross lights and shadows. Windows should not have transoms above as the win- dow transom bar throws a shadow across the room and is objectionable. The most satisfactory window for school room is but one large plate glass without cross bar or ob- struction. The writer has used such windows very satisfac- torily but owing to the excessive cost, does not feel like re- commending the expenditure. However, these windows were used on a two story build- ing where all window cleaning could be accomplished from a step ladder on the outside. The windows were stationary with all ventilation obtained through a fan system. A great many of our new buildings are being planned with all overhead light secured through sky lights in the ceiling and roof. The light can be very satisfactorily se- cured in this way, especially if the sky lights are built with a saw-tooth construction which permits the light coming in from the north or east so that strong sun light does not come into the room. Sky lights give the most uniform distribution of light during all hours of the day, and can be planned with adjust- able curtains to cut down extreme intensity of light when de- sired. The sky light construction is more expensive than side lighting through windows and can only be used for all rooms to advantage in one story buildings. ■Jill- fig 44 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Thirteen Doors and Their Hardware, Fire Exits NO other one item in the construction of a building can cause as much annoyance and expense as poor hardware. Inadequate provision for proper exits with locked doors has been the cause of many a tragedy. The Collingswood School fire at Cleveland, Ohio, and the Iroquois Theatre fire at Chicago, with their terrible toll of human lives might have been materially lessened, if not entirely avoided if proper doors opening of ample width had been provided with these doors unlocked or provided with automatic unlocking devices. In fact it was as a result of these disasters that serious attention was given to the designing of a protective lock that would keep all doors locked from the outside and so arranged that any slight pressure upon a cross bar running the entire width of the door on the inside approximately thirty inches above the floor, would immediately open the door outward, thus eliminating the danger of congestion at exits. Mr. Harry Dupont, a prominent architect of Indianapolis, Ind., succeeded in perfecting such a device, known as the Von-Duprin fire exit lock, and no school building should be erected without this device or some other equally effective means of opening locked doors. Do not make the mistake of buying cheap hardware. A well balanced estimate of hardware cost to the complete cost of a build- ing including the general construction, heat, light and plumbing is 2 per cent of the whole. Set a high standard for all locks, foot bolts, hinges or other movable parts, no matter how much you economize on finish or design of plates escutcheons, etc., if you ex- pect to economize in the up-keep of your building. Master key all doors to rooms, corridors and exits, for convenience of janitor, en- gineer and teaching force. Provide locks to all grade, class or study rooms which may be locked from the corridors but remain constant- ly unlocked from the room side. The school is not a prison and there is no need for locking a room from the room side. The per- fect and continued operation of a lock depends on four things. First, a substantially built building that will not settle unevenly and warp the door frames. Second, a solid, rigidly built door, well mortised and tenoned together which will not sag. Third, heavy door jambs, securely fastened in position with sufficient thickness of jamb to securely hold screws, and large well proportioned hinges securely screwed in place, preferably three hinges to the door if the door is large and heavy. Fourth, a well made nicely adjusted lock with the best of material in its working parts. Combine the above with good workmanship in the fitting and hanging of the door and you will have very little trouble to keep it in continual operation. All corridor door and doors to rooms should be fitted with foot bolts to hold the doors open, with rubber bumpers to stop the doors from bumping against the walls and door checks to stop them from slamming shut. Precaution should be taken to avoid the use of too strong a check on doors to kindergarten or grade rooms for small children. Strong door checks are needed on outside doors to close them in windy weather, in conse- quence young children are unable to open the door and have been compelled to stand outside, often in snow or rain, as this cannot be avoided without losing the efficiency of the closing device. The difficulty has been overcome by stationing an older pupil at the door during stated periods to open the door. A push button should always be con- veniently located at entrances connected to a bell in the janitor's room so young children may call for the door to be opened. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 45 Planning of exits, should take into consideration the convenience of pupils. Pro- vision should be made to shelter those who come early before the doors are opened, espec- ially during extremely cold weather in northern climates where a few minutes exposure might mean great discomfort. This may be accomplished by vestibules, heated, whose outside doors may be unlocked early in the morning and where the regulation of the school does not permit of children entering the building until a given time, the inside vestibule doors may remain locked until the appointed time for opening. The number and arrangement of exits should be governed by. the size and kind of school building whether grade, high or combined, division of playground space, etc., width of exit door ways should be governed by the width of stairways. The following proportion has been found good. Multiply the width of stairways by one and one-fifth, the resultant being the proper width of doorway. See page (16) for width of stair- ways in proportion to number of pupils. Exits should be arranged so younger pupils will not be compelled to mingle with older pupils, thus aiding the management of the school to control the pupils. With this convenience and playgrounds properly divided and supervised, there should be little or no conflict between the older and younger pupils. Where a high, grade and junior school is combined in one building, separate entrances should be provided for each. All doors throughout the building opening to corridors or vestibules should be of glass to assist with the lighting of corridors. Where double vestibule doors are used the usual method of joining the two doors is by means of a wood astra gal, but where the fire exit locks are used, the astragal is objection able as it becomes necessary to open both doors at once, further more the astragal does not form a very tight stop in cold climates so a better means of closing the space between double doors is w v )eeTiM-*7- The clamp cabinet or closet should be large enough to contain large seven foot and eight foot clamps and a large number of small wood screw clamps. The supply cabinet should be made to hold all varieties of hardware, screws, brads, nails, etc. Various size drawers should be put in three to four inches wide and as deep, similar to cut No. (47) shown on this page. These drawers and bins for nails may be indexed and num- bered for convenience. The machine room should be located adjacent to both lumber and bench room with open arch or folding doors between bench room and machine room. The machine room should have a cut-off and rip saw, emery stone and band saw if nothing else, then a joiner, several turning lathes and a mortiser if funds are available. Such an equipment will permit of doing a large variety of work. Other equipment such as spindle shaper, sticker and machine sander, all aid in turning out exceptional work and a complete vocational school should include all of them but small schools can accom- plish much with a small equipment if a proper selection of lumber is made as to thickness, shape and size so excessive labor can be avoided in the working up of material to shape. There has been a wide difference of opinion among manual training teachers with reference to the use of machines in manual training work, some condemning the use of machines on the grounds that students should be taught the use of hand tools exclusively, as it would make better workmen of them, and it is surprising how many teachers actively engaged in the work, will use this argument. The facts are different, however, as no manual training instructor who has once used machinery in connection with his class work is willing to plod along without them if it can be avoided. Students should be taught the use of cut-off and rip saw and should be required to handle them successfully before being permitted the use of machines, also the age of the student and his disposition to be careful or reckless, should enter into the decision of the instructor to permit the students to use the machines. In fact there are a good many instructors who do all the machine work for the students, keeping them busy at the bench. For the younger pupils this is undoubtedly the best. Machinery in the manual training work lightens the drudgery and keeps up the students' interest in the work as they do the work quickly, avoiding the natural tendency of young pupils to tire of the problem before completion. The finishing room should be placed near the shop with connecting doors if possible. This room should be dry and light with the paint vault adjoining. All staining and var- nishing being done here all dust should be kept out. A cabinet should be provided in this room for finishing hardware and one side of the room should have shelves thirty inches wide, thirty-six inches apart, to support finished work. These shelves should extend to the ceiling so the floor space can be left free for finishing work. With shelf space a room of 200 square feet makes a large finishing room. The paint vault should be built fireproof with tile or brick walls, floor and ceiling, with a metal fire door enclosing it so no danger need be feared from spontaneous combustion in the oils or paints. Sufficient depth and shelf space should be provided in this vault to contain all supplies and have room also to mix all paints, stains, etc., sixty square feet of floor space is ample for a large department. The drafting room should accommodate a class of twenty in the school of 400 pupils. With larger schools the work can be divided into more periods without enlarging the class. The room should be figured for thirty square feet per pupil with a drawing table thirty inches by forty-two inches, with at least five drawers thirty inches in length, twelve inches in width, four inches to five inches deep, down one side, for each pupil to have an individual drawer for inks, instruments, etc. One large detail table at least three feet six inches by eight feet should be included for special work, perspective drawings, etc. 50 PUBLIC SCHOOLS A supply cabinet should be included large enough for detail paper, tracing paper and cloth, thirty-six inches in length, with special drawers for inks, pencils, T squares, tri- angles, etc. The space for T squares and triangles should be large enough for the entire class. A dark room or closet for blue prints is a great convenience and in any case a blue print frame thirty inches by forty-two inches, six inches deep, should be provided. A sink made of hardwood and zinc or lead lined with cold water connection and drain should be provided in dark room or in a convenient corner of the room for washing prints. The pattern room should be supplied with similar equipment to the bench shop and in small schools the same room will serve. The core room may be small or if a separate room is not available this work may be handled in the foundry. One large bench three feet by eight feet with drawers eight inches deep extending to floor with a bake oven will serve for this work. The foundry and moulding room should have 1,000 square feet of floor space for a class of 25 and should have a vitrous brick, or hard packed clay floor that can be kept dry. A continuous long bench thirty inches high, thirty inches wide, along one side of the room with drawers for each student should be provided, also low benches for the flasks and a sand box to hold two yards of moulding sand. For the average school a small furnace capable of melting soft metals is ample but where all kinds of metal work is attempted a cupalo furnace will be necessary. A swinging crane to handle melting pots may be pro- vided with direct outside vents and an exhaust fan. The forge room should be equipped to accommodate a class of twenty to twenty-five pupils estimating forty square feet per pupil. The floor should be of concrete brick or hard clay but in any event forges should be of the down draft type set 6n a concrete base and be supplied with underground piping. The fan and blower should be in a separate room if convenient. A complete equipment should consist of individual forges and anvils for each pupil and for each two pupils, a drill press, power hammer, wet grinder, punch and shears and filing bench. However, schools who wish to teach rudimentary work may supply hand power forges and anvils with benches for each two pupils and hand tools for a general line of small work. All forges should be connected with an exhaust fan to take out smoke and fumes. The machine shop should have at least eighty square feet per pupil in order to accom- modate lathes, drills, planes, punches, and emery grinders and benches. While individual machines are desirable yet the expense of such equipment usually prohibits a small school from making a complete selection. A class of twelve to sixteen pupils may do good work with four lathes, three drills, two planers, individual benches and emery grinder, one or more elaborate machines may be installed for special work where funds will permit. Where electrical subjects are taught a room for this purpose should have power wire connections brought up to a switch cabinet and several floor and baseboard outlets should be provided. Note what is said about these departments in chapters on "Sound Deadening" and "Planning the School." PUBLIC SCHOOLS 51 Chapter Sixteen Arrangement and Equipment of Domestic Science Department A COMPLETE Domestic Science department may include a kitchen, store room, but- ler's pantry or both combined, a model dining room, model bed chamber, sewing L rooms and fitting rooms, cafeteria or lunch room, and laundry. Too much cannot be said in favor of a thoroughly complete department for the teaching of domestic science, and it is encouraging to note the rapid progress that is being made in this study where a few years ago two rooms housed the whole subject (kitchen and sewing room), and that in many instances installed, because of state regula- tion, against the wishes of school boards and quite often without much enthusiasm on the part of the superintendent or teaching force. Now it would be hard to find a school of any consequence which does not include this subject, as the school building of today becomes more and more useful to the masses as a whole rather than a study room for children where perhaps once a year at commencement time the grown-up population renewed their acquaintance with the school building. The well planned building of today becomes the civic center for community gather- ings where the citizens of the ward or district may gather at lectures, literary programs, class plays, political meetings and where enthusiastic lovers of athletic games may attend the class meetings staged on the gymnasium floor. Because of such meetings the domestic science department has grown and expanded until the refreshment feature has become one of the drawing attractions to bring out the people. Who was the author of the state- ment that, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach?" as the people are drawn into the life of the school they are brought that much closer to the intimate life of their children. As the consolidated school has more and more drawn the students from a distance, the cold unpalatable lunch, because of the cafeteria, has quickly been replaced by the warm, wholesome, strengthening lunch that amply repays its cost in better health, vitality and increased efficiency of the student. So do not begrudge the cost or the space occupied by this depart- ment and above all do not be miserly with its equip- ment. The successful manu- facturer never hesitates when better machinery means success and the school board should view the success of the school in exactly the same way. The kitchen should be planned to accommodate a class of twenty pupils esti- mating thirty square feet per pupil. Table space should be arranged for each pupil two feet by two feet six inches, with single burn- er hot plates for each stud- ent and an oven for each two pupils. A separate demon- stration table two feet by _.. , . _, , , „. , |»f- * 8 _ , , , . , , . . j2 /. i ill • i i Ritchen in Sheldon. Iowa, High School Teachers demonstration table in fore- rive feet should be provided ground. 52 PUBLIC SCHOOLS for the instructor with single hot plate. A large four to six-burner range with large baking oven should be installed and at least two large sinks having double drain boards and a large ice box that may be iced from the outside of the building. The store room should be placed back of the instructor's desk and be fitted with metal lined flour, sugar and meal bins, drawers for linen and silver ware, dish and supply cupboards, and utensil closets. If a butler's pantry can be installed the store room will, of course, be fitted for supplies only. Many small schools, where space is not available, build supply cupboards in the kitchen across one end or side of the room, without inconvenience. Special attention should be given to the ventilation of the kitchen as a hot plate will consume as much oxygen as two pupils and a range as much as three or four. With this in mind the quantity of fresh air delivered to this room should be three times the amount delivered to other rooms in the building. There has been much discussion given to the selection of the fuel for cooking purposes, opinion varying as to the relative merits of coal, coal gas, Blau-gas, acetylene, kerosene, gasoline or electricity as to cost and desirability. Coal and kerosene because of the smoke and dirt is seldom used and there is a very active rivalry between "Blau-gas, "acetylene and gasoline, with honors about even. Gasoline when piped in from a generator outside of the building is an economical type of gas and used extensively, but if ventilation is at all poor, the excessive amount of carbon monoxide thrown off, causes headaches and smarting of the eyes. "Blau-gas" which is delivered in bottles in compressed form, is successfully used at a moderate expense and while some carbon monoxide is thrown off, it is not so bad as from gasoline. Acetylene is practically free from carbon monoxide and is a non-poisonous gas and is used extensively. At one time this form of gas was considered quite dangerous because of its high explosive nature, but recent improvements in the manufacture of generators has overcome their objection and the National Board of Fire Underwriters are approving certain type machines which are placed outside of the building in pits very much on the same order as the gasoline outfits are located. Coal gas is used in a majority of schools where city gas plants are in operation and while this is a good fuel it throws off the largest amount of carbon monoxide of any gas and students have been known to become sick and dizzy from too much of it and where used special exhaust hoods, connected to under floor piping and an exhaust fan should be installed to eliminate this annoyance. Electricity while more expensive than any other fuel makes the cleanest, most even and in many ways most satisfactory fuel there is. As the cost of other fuels advance, there is a likelihood of electric current being more generally adopted as modern improvements in generating apparatus and the installation of giant water power plants all tend to keep electric current from increasing in cost. Some school boards object to using electric fuel in schools, basing their reason on the assumption that it will never be used by the pupils in their homes. This argument is groundless as the teaching in a domestic science kitchen is not devoted to the teaching of fuels, further than to regulate the heat. It is devoted to the teaching of cooking and any heat whether at home or school must be regulated to secure satisfactory results, consequently any fuel may be used if its requirements are arranged for and its ill effects guarded against. The model dining room need not be large but should be well appointed and be as its name implies, a model such as any well appointed home might have. One or two large extension tables to seat ten each with servicable chairs should be furnished, also a buffet. Two or three small serving tables for tray rests may be added to the equipment. Paneled or wainscot walls up to a plate rail with paneled ceilings add to the effect. A model bedroom should be provided for in a large school but may be small where room will not permit of a separate model bedroom. The fitting room may be used for this with a wall closet and wall bed attached. The art of bed making is an interesting one that few girls are acquainted with. The proper folding of bed coverings, adds much to the appearance of a bed and the high class hotel chamber maid is an adept at this. A young lady graduate of an eastern college who had studied the method of bed making, PUBLIC SCHOOLS 53 was enabled to earn over $100.00 per month in a large hotel, training bedroom girls to arrange the bedroom linens to best present an attractive appearance. Girls should be trained to neatness and the model bedroom offers some interesting problems for the future housekeeper to solve. The cafeteria or lunch room should be planned with seats to accommodate one-fifth of the entire school at one time. If more can. be provided do so but not less. This will enable the entire school to have lunch in five twenty-minute pe- riods. The cafeteria should be equipped with a large range, sink with double drain boards, milk, hot water and coffee urns, ice water cooler or connections to regulate water supply with water goblet rack, steam table having vegeta- ble and gravy bowls, and at least two covered meat platters. The steam table should be built into the center of a larger counter which should be at least Fig. 49 Cafeteria in basement of old grade school building at Sheldon, Iowa. Two rooms were thrown together to make this large room. Note the complete equip- ment at rear of room. thirty inches wide, the entire length across one end of the room. Under this counter on the back side should be placed shelving with sliding glass doors to cover, where all pastries, bread and supplies may be stored. A pipe railing should be placed three feet from counter, requiring all students to follow in line, passing out, after lunching, past a cashier's table. The lunch table should be thirty inches wide and any length that will permit of spacing stools twenty-six inches center to center. Tables should be spaced forty-two inches apart. A laundry well fitted out with three-section laundry tub, electric washer, dryer and electric ironer and ironing boards, makes a very useful and instructive addition to the domestic science department. While few of the students in this department will be looking for a diploma in the art of "washer woman," yet a complete knowledge of soaps, alkalies, washing, bleaching, blueing, starching, drying and ironing of cloths and fine fabrics will be of great value to any student. In fact there is no department of Home Economics that should be left untouched by the future housekeeper. The school board who invests a few hundred dollars in the completing of these departments may be making for the lasting good of their children. The thorough training of a young wife may mean the difference between a happy home with a husband's salary wisely spent and a few dollars saved and an unhappy home where salary and expenditure do not meet, while debt comes in at the door to drive love and happiness out of the window. Train your girls to be expert housekeepers and the job will appeal to them. Leave them to grow up without such training, where possibly their home environments are not of the best and a distaste for housekeeping is almost sure to result. With a distaste for housekeeping emplanted in the girl's mind, almost any other occupation appears more attractive. 54 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Seventeen Arrangement and Equipment of Science Department THE work of this department may be contained in one large room in the small consoli- dated school where the same equipment may be used by all classes or expanded into individual rooms for chemistry, physics, agriculture, physiography, biology, botany, zoology, etc., these to be arranged in suite with one lecture room between each two lab- oratories. The. elaboration of these departments will be governed largely by the com- pleteness of courses taught and the funds available. For a combined high and grade school one laboratory for each two hundred students will conveniently handle the work. In the small school of 200 students an equipment for twelve to sixteen students will be large enough. The laboratory tables may be combination tables, equipped with apparatus for chemistry, physics, biology, etc., including sinks, gas connection, electric plugs, hot and cold water reagent racks, etc. Cabinets and cases for the single laboratory should be of large size accommo- dating agricultural, seed drawers and binds, chem- istry supplies, botanical and mineralogical speci- mens, and large deep re- ceptacles for the unwield- ly physics apparatus. Where a single laboratory must suffice, this room must be large enough to contain at least six- teen table arm chairs and the instructor's desk in addition to the sink tables. Back of the instructor's desk suspended from the ceiling a white stereopti- con curtain eight feet square should be hung on a coil spring curtain rod ready to pull down at a moment's notice for slide lectures on physical phenomena, chemical change, etc., that can be most thoroughly and interestingly shown by means of micro- scopic projection through the continued use of the microscope and stereopticon lantern. A dry uninteresting study may be made interesting and attractive to otherwise indifferent students by this means. To enlarge the tongue of an ordinary house fly until it appears to be eight feet in length on the canvas, or to examine the tiny polen of a red clover blossom which might be held on the point of a needle, it appears too large to fill the head of a barrel, or to watch the growth of crystals from a drop of bicloride of mercury, carbinate of soda or pomegranate of potash in solution as the heat from the lantern drys the drop on the slide, is an education in itself that holds the undivided attention of the pupil as nothing else can do. To accomplish the darkening of the room, black curtains are provided, in addition to the regular window shades, and these are pulled down tight and the edges covered by a hinged flap that excludes all light. No matter whether your science depart- ment is confined to one room or a dozen, be sure that it is complete. The progress of the age compels the schools of today to add much in the way of equipment that was unheard of when our parents attended school, and we who secured our education twenty years ago, are prone to overlook the necessity of adding equipment beyond that of our own knowledge, in consequence many schools are losing efficiency and pupils are not getting the advantages they are entitled to. We are living in an age of progress where every thing moves quickly and to have successful students our schools must keep in the fore- T4<5«icuLTyeAL Cawmet P-IG. SO. ■ Oectiom • PUBLIC SCHOOLS 55 front of the race. While this is being written in February, 1917, the technical magazines are publishing numerous articles, telling of the marvelous development of the chemical plants, the dye industry, etc., in the United States brought about by the European War. This has created a great demand for scientifically trained men which reverts back to the schools with a demand that our school system make better provision for the training of students to fit them for their places in these vast industries where greater skill and thorough- ness will be more and more in demand. Shall our schools be found wanting because school boards have failed in their duty and opportunity to fully equip their science depart- ments with proper equipment and teaching force? Most of the trouble has been due to lack of investigation by school boards, and I cannot urge too strongly that you get out and compare your school facilities with those of larger cities, known to be progressive and abreast of the times, but to continue with the equipment of the science department. I have mentioned the work contained in the single room in the small school. For the school of four to five hundred students, the science work can be satisfactorily handled in a suite of three rooms, two laboratories and a large lecture room between them with raised seats. With this arrangement the lecture room should have the dark curtains and stereopticon equipment. All chairs should be fitted with tablet arms and the lecture room should be quite large for a double class recitation of fifty to sixty students. The chemistry room should be fitted with sink tables, two students to each sink and all sink table tops should be water and acid proof. Also in like manner the floors and wall decorations should be protected from acid fumes by means of an acid proof paint or floor covering. The mastic floors have proven quite satisfactory in chemistry labora- tories, owing to the nature of the mastic composition which is acid, alkali and water proof. The physics laboratory should be equipped with tables for two students each with rods and cross bars, electrical connections and gas plugs. The instructor's desk should be fitted with a sink in addition to cross bars, electrical connection and gas plugs. Adjoin- ing the physics laboratory, a dark room should be provided for photographic development and the storage of sensitive chemicals. The dark room should have a large stone sink with hot and cold water, also white and colored electric light bulb attachments, together with ample shelf and cupboard space. Owing to the corrosive action of chemicals used in laboratory work, the plumbing should be of the best. All waste connection should be fitted with lead pipe, lead non-syphon traps and the soil pipes should be lead lined to a dilution chamber where connection is made to sewer, otherwise the connection will be soon eaten away and destroyed. The agricultural laboratory should be equipped much the same as chemistry or may use the same room and equipment if the size of the school does not warrant two laboratories. Where possible, a separate room should be equipped for the study of physiography, botany, geology and mineralogy with a delta table for physical geography complete with clay bed and rain spray. Where convenient a glass conservatory should be located adjacent to this room and the agricultural laboratory equipped with growing beds and room for plant culture. The room for geology and minerology should be well equipped with speci- men cases and cabinets well indexed and catalogued. The stereopticon with microscopic projection is of great advantage here, especially in the study of botany. 56 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Eighteen The Commercial Department THIS should be housed in three or more rooms if the size of the school will justify. A bookkeeping room, shorthand room and typewriting room, preferably with clear glass partitions between them. The bookkeeping room should be the most elaborately equipped with one or more banks, and business houses fitted up in realistic shape to handle business transactions. The bank screen and counters should be designed as a bank in actual prac- tice, with cash drawers, supply cab- inets, and book shelves. The busi- ness nouses with counters and railing, bookkeeper and cashier's windows and desks as in actual office prac- tice. By building such screens and counters, all supplies can be conveni- ently stored in them, reducing the need for cupboard and storage space to a minimum. The shorthand room should be fitted up with ordinary desks hav- ing writing tops. The pedestal type being the most suitable, owing to the ease of cleaning the floors around the desk. The typewriting room should be fitted with regular office typewriter desks having disappearing tops and drawers at least on one side. A great many schools provide the ordinary typewriter stand but the desk is by far the best. Machines can be kept in better shape, cleaner and more easily operated where rigidly secured to the disappearing top table which can be closed down over the ma- chine, locking it in where machines can not be tampered with when they are not in use. The Commercial department should not contain less than 1,000 square feet of floor space for less Fig. 5i-A than 20 pupils. Fig. 51 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 57 Chapter Nineteen The Gymnasium and Auditorium NO modern equipped school can be without a gymnasium or some adequate room for assembly yet there is much discussion as to the relative merits of each by various school boards and to have or not to have a gymnasium has caused the failure or success of many a bond issue for new schools, (usually the failure of the issue), owing to the belief of many fossilized tax payers that a gymnasium is an unnecessary expense and a useless appendage to the school. A well-to-do citizen of Belmond, Iowa, (a town of 1,200 inhabitants) while speaking to the writer about a new building recently erected there, criticized the building, on the grounds that there was too much play and not enough study, why, said he, "You couldn't keep the kids away from that school with log chains." I told him that in place of a criticism, he had spoken the highest recommendation for the school I had heard from any citizen in the town. We will admit without argument that our modern schools, if successful, are fitted with some very interest creating features that our old schools of 20 years ago lacked. We are making them attractive to the pupils, we are learning the art of the salesman to make our schools appeal to the student as the salesman at- tracts interest to his wares. We want every boy and girl, young man and woman, to like the school and become so interested in the work that there will be no inducement more appealing to their inclination. We want to banish forever the street loafer and we are in a fair way to succeed when we are told that "You can't keep the kids away from the school with log chains," and if the gymnasium with its various games will keep one boy off the streets and develop a man that one man is good interest on the invest- ment no matter what the cost. The cost problem, however, is the one thing that is usu- ally given the most consideration and various alternatives may be considered. There are three Alternatives. First, a separate auditorium, separate study hall and separate gymnasium. Second, a combination of auditorium with the study hall and a separate gymna- sium. Third, a combina- tion of auditorium and gym- nasium with separate study halls. The first arrangement is by far the best and most satisfactory as any combi- nation of departments leads to confliction and while con- fliction can be avoided, it results in the activities of the school being limited. Many times a literary pro- gram will be under way when the practice work of a class play requires the full use of the stage and audi- torium while the athletic in- structor is using the gymna- , , .° , ™\., - Stage curtain showing courier announcing the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Slum, developing drills lor the siege of Yorktown. A street scene in Richmond, Ky. Fig. 52 58 P1UBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 63 some character or folk dance at the same time. Figures 52 and 53 show two stage settings ready for practice work. Figures 52 and 53 show interesting scenes for a small school and represents the successful efforts of the students in the equipment of the stage by the giving of an entertainment to de- fray the cost. The pride of achievement was well worth the efforts expended and the school board who does not feel like spending money for such equipment need not hesitate to leave this part of the equipment to the stu- dents as they will soon sup- ply it and take pleasure in the work of doing it. Figure 54 shows a gymnasium in the same school, photographed one evening as the Basket Ball teams of that and a neighboring school were ready to begin play. Note the absence of equipment. Note also that all bolts and connections were fastened in proper location in the ceiling beams, ready for installation of the com- plete equipment at a later date. The students in this instance are paying for the equip- ment. Figure 55 illustrates a large completely equipped gymnasium with a running track. The gymnaisum should have every consideration from the school board as fully as any part of the school program and no half-way measure should be countenanced if the ultimate good of the students is taken into consideration. Build one gymnasium for each 500 pupils if possible; where funds will permit, build two separate gymnasiums for boys and girls. If this is not possible, then build one large gymnasium that may be divided by a sliding or rolling partition so there will be a practice space for boys and girls with a large playing space for class games, etc. The double gymnasium is more and more seen to be an absolute necessity as we see the need of active athletic training to assist with the physical de- velopment of the children. The children of the lower grades, heretofore have scarcely been allowed the use of the gymnasium and they are the ones who need it the most. We will grant that a strong, healthy ath- letic football or basket ball player will derive much Fig. 64 pleasure from the use of the PUBLIC SCHOOLS 59 ■ • 'LWL J o il HP^*" ,! ™^ p ™" ■ - Fig. 55 gymnasium and grow healthier but the weak, an- aemic child, who lacks phy- sical development, who is stoop shouldered and thin chested, perhaps with tuber- cular tendencies, is the one we want to take into the gymnasium and give him a chance for development to overcome his anaemic and weakened condition, turning him out into a strong, vigor- ous student, strengthened in body and mind. Better far, that a few dollars be spent in a gymnasium than many dollars at the corner drug store and family doc- tors office, or perhaps, at the undertakers. Scientific investigation has led to the unanimous agreement that mental training depends largely on physical health, that a normal development of the mind accompanies a normal development of the body. This being true, the gymnasium has just as much right and place in the school building as the study hall or class room, and many healthy men and women, owe their present health and vigor to the physical development in the school gymnasium. Those who object to the gymnasium, do so from ignorance, or from selfish indifference. No more pitiable or discouraging sight can be imagined than to see an old, retired wealthy tax payer going to the polls to vote down a bond issue for badly needed schools, and a great many of them voting against an issue because the gymnasium or some modern feature has been added that they knew nothing about 20 years ago when they attended the one room school back on the farm. They do not know nor will they believe that student mortality has decreased 50% in 30 years because of improved conditions, training and physical de- velopment, to meet the needs of the physically weak and backward stu- dent. The old shop worn argument that children can get exercise enough at home, is a tiresome ar- gument to answer. Yes, they may get exercise at home, and it may be a type of exercise that is harmful to their growth. The writer at the age of 12, cut, split and sawed wood, for exercise, and the stooped shoulders that resulted, took sev- eral months in a gymna- sium to iron out. Hoe- ing garden, or other sim- ilar form of exercise ac- Fig. 55-a 60 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 56 quired at home, all tend to develop the muscles of the arms, back and legs, in fact, they tend toward abnormal development, (unless varied by other totally different forms of exercise) the worst crime against childhood. Many a boy has been thrashed for taking exercise that did him lots of good. The writer remembers climbing a cherry tree once, a fine healthy exercise, but, of course, the thrashing was not for climbing the tree. The average small town or country boy will secure lots of exercise if given the opportunity and he would grow to manhood without ever seeing a gym- nasium, but what about the boy who lives in the congested city, who must roam the streets and tramp the sidewalks, selling papers for exercise, who hasn't the freedom of 20 years ago. How about the little fellow who most needs the exercise, who is anaemic, listless and / too tired to properly exercise. These must be provided for and as this country of ours becomes more and more crowded, we will be compelled to provide more and more space in our schools for physical training. School hours are short and attendance large and there must be room for all, so let us provide an adequate space to keep in line with the broad educational policy of the present age, and let us equip the gymnasium with all the apparatus needed for full normal exercise and development of every muscle in the child's body and you will be abundantly repaid in the decreasing percentage of sickness and the corresponding increase in your student efficiency. As to the equipment, size and shape of gymnasium, we might fill several pages on this subject but would rather refer you to A. G. Spalding & Bros, catalogue, "Effi- cient apparatus for the Gymnasium," which so thoroughly covers the sub- ject, that no comment is necessary. Figures 56-57 and 58 il- lustrate three views in Aud- itoriums seated with opera chairs for regularly assem- bly but not as study halls. However, 15% of the opera chairs should be fitted with adjustable tablet arms for students in taking notes on lectures, debates, etc. If the school is a combined Grade and High School the assembly should be large enough to seat the entire Fig. 67 school. This will be ample PUBLIC SCHOOLS 61 Jig. 68 for the average community as the varied activities of such a school will not require the Grades and High School work to be carried on at the same time, consequently there will be ample room for the public in ad- dition to the student attendance. If the building is exclusively a High School the assembly should seat one and one-half times the High School capacity, if the general public are to be seated at class plays, entertain- ments, commencement exercises, etc. Country and City Schools alike, need the assembly room to better consolidate the community, district, or city ward. As the school should properly be a civic center, the meeting place for the people, it must have the assembly, and one that is adequate for any and all public gatherings. The cafeteria has filled one place in the social side of the school; the assembly must fill another to complete the work, with adequate equipment the social center will grow in popularity, and our children will correspondingly receive more attention as we visit the school and get better acquainted with them. We may in some instances combine the study hall and assembly with a view to econ- omizing. However, it is not a practice to be recommended except in small schools of 300 students or less. A study hall when fitted up with stage and adequate seating for assembly purposes, is of necessity much larger than need be as a study hall and as an auditorium, the room size is wasted owing to the study desks which will not permit of close seating as can be secured with opera chairs. For better that you build a small over- flow study hall and separate assembly where lectures may be carried on without inter- ference with the study periods. This arrangement may entail a somewhat larger expendi- ture but the advantage gained will be of inestimable value for the efficiency of the school work and the elimination of the confusion, incident to the special seating of the study room to prepare for lectures combined with the fact that all students in the study hall will be stopped from work while a lecture is in progress, regardless of its application to their work. True, they may be benefited by it but it may be ap- plicable to advanced work and be beyond them, thus their time is lost. The assembly seat- ed with opera chairs is always ready for use without confusion or loss of time and makes for better regulation of the school work. The oft suggested combination of assem- bly room and gymna- sium while it is better than none is a compro- mise and cannot be rec- Fig. 68-a 62 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ommended, except as a last resort. The ideal gymnasium is equipped with all manner of apparatus, suspended from ceilings and walls and cannot be made attractive or con- venient for assembly purposes. Each time the gymnasium is used for assembly purposes the floor must be cleared, collapsible chairs brought out on the floor and all gymnasium apparatus cleared off, and all work stopped in the gymnasium during this period. While this objection may not be serious owing to the fact that changes of this kind can be made quickly, yet the fact remains that a well appointed gymnasium cannot be suitable for as- sembly room purposes even if a stage is built in (as quite often is done) . The school may have a class play in prospect where the stage should be in use at a time when practice games are in progress on the gym floor, this means conflict and resultant confusion in the school work. In an active school organization there is scarcely a period in the day that the gymnasium is idle and the assembly is in use three to four periods a day by elecution and music classes, practice work, etc. In the school, lacking the separate features, students must be kept longer hours, practice when it does not conflict with other regular periods and there is not the flexi- bility in the school organization that could be desired. It means that your school ma- chinery is inadequate for the proper work, that your teacher's and student's tasks are harder ones and the efficiency of your school is that much reduced. So, after consider- ing the combinations that may be made they do not appear attractive or feasible for economic work and the school board will best serve the interests of the community by building each department for its particular work and avoid the confusion resulting from combinations. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 63 Chapter Twenty The Administration Department YE old time school" sometimes contained an office for the master, more often a desk with a tough hickory switch as additional administration? — today, however, the administration department of a school when properly expanded contains many features that make for the discipline, health and mental welfare of the pupil. In years gone by when "Readin, writin and rithmetic" was taught to the tune of a hickory stick, it was a case of the survival of the fittest, and the strong healthy student who bad the stamina to overcome conditions derived the most benefit from his school work; others, whose determination and strength of will forced them through regardless of conditions, secured their education ofttimes at the expense of health and physical well being. The balance were either dubbed lazy, stupid or dull, and still others were said to be mentally defective or imbicile. In consequence, the percentage of those who were properly edu- cated was low compared to present day opportunities. Science and medical skill has stepped in and taken a hand in the administration of our modern schools, informing "Ye old schools master" that yon stupid child needs medi- cal examination, more than he needs the hickory stick. Perhaps it is a mere trifle — like near sightedness or compound astigmatism that an oculist can overcome in a week's time and by his magic turn the stupid child into the class leader. The writer knows of an instance twenty-two years ago when a little girl of twelve, one day put on her grand- mother's glasses and looked out at the trees in a woods some sixty feet distant from the door where she was standing, why mother! said she, I can see the dogwood blossoms and the leaves on the trees distinctly through grandmother's glasses. Why can't you see them without glasses, her mother asked. No, said the little girl, they look like a big blur. The little girl was taken to an oculist and fitted with glasses and it was found that her grandmother's glasses exactly fitted her, and that little girl became a leader in college, valedictorian of her class, and a speaker who could sway crowds, and bring tears to the eyes of her hearers. All because of a $7.50 pair of glasses. If, by accident, she had not found her need of glasses her school life might have been quite different. However, it is just accidents such as this that has taught us the need of enlarged admin- istration departments where the oculist the dentist and the physician may have their room set apart for examination of every pupil, where the little ones in the kindergarten class may be examined and prescribed for, their defects corrected and their chance in the competition of life made equal with their schoolmates. You, gentlemen of the school board may be responsible, by neglect of this important part of your school, for a mental defective becoming a criminal, whose whole life and habits might be changed by a medical examination locating the necessity for an opera- tion that would remove the trouble, leaving a healthy mind freed from disease. Wake up to your duty, gentlemen, and if you think the writer is visionary, go to your nearest specialist for verification and he will tell you what to do. By all means make your ad- ministrative department an institution in the school that will search out and remedy conditions and causes, until every pupil in the school has every opportunity possible for him to have. The modern school administrative department should include the Superintendent's office, Reception and Board rooms, Secretary's office, a large vault for records, and ade- quate space and fittings for medical examiner, Oculist, Dentist, Nurse and Teachers, also pupils rest rooms, these should be separate rooms with special equipment if the school is large and may have several in one room if the school is small. The Superintendent's office should be large well lighted, with private toilet and cloak room adjoining. This room should be equipped with either electric bell signal system 64 PUBLIC SCHOOLS to all rooms in the building or intercommunicating telephone system, the latter pre- ferred. The master clock and program instrument should be located here as should also the record vault. C O 42, 42. r D O 42- I_ I t> «_-A 42. Y oa o a 00 00 00 00 00 00 o o o o o o 'OAVALLOGHOOL-ADMIrilvSTOATIOM- D&FACTMtriT- FlGURfc 59 Where possible, the library should be adjacent to the office on one side with the board room and secretary's room on the other. The average school may combine the superintendent's reception room and board room in one with a secretary's desk and file cabinet included ; however, this room should be quite large, if this is done. The board room should be fitted up with table, not less than four foot by eight foot, at least twelve chairs and secretary's desk and chair. The secretary's need for an office depends largely on the service rendered. In the small school there is little need for a separate office, but the city of 8,000 or more inhabitants having several schools to look after needs a paid secretary whose entire time is devoted to the school work and a separate room becomes necessary. This room should be adjacent to superintendent's office, board room and record vault, and be equipped as necessity demands. The Medical Examiner's room may be a small, cheerful room, with abundance of light. It should be equipped with a regular physician's examination table, a small dress- ing room and dark room. The dark room should have a vitreous china sink, hot and cold water connection and drain board. This dark room should be equipped with an emer- gency drug supply, a first aid outfit, and be fitted with a lock with keys, only in the hands of the physicians, nurse and superintendent. The medical examiner's room may also serve as the oculists, dentists and nurses room in the small school by the addition of a dentist's chair, and the oculist's apparatus in the dark room which must be larger if this is done than would be necessary if used for the medical examiner alone. The oculist's room must be at least twenty feet long and the windows must have dark curtains, fitted to exclude all light. Baseboard outlets for electrical apparatus connection should be provided for both dentist and oculist and a one and one-half inch drain connection must be run to dentist's chair. The nurses room, rest room and teachers room should each be provided with couch, easy chair, writing table, lavatory (and where possible) , separate toilet facilities. These rooms should be decorated in a cheerful manner, windows sup- plied with lace curtains, walls with good pictures, and floor covered with rugs. These rooms must present a cheerful, quiet, restful, appearance, to fulfill their purpose. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 65 Education is not alone the cramming of the mind with facts and figures and the school by its equipment, its decoration, its library and pictures should be an educational object lesson, setting an ideal for the student that would benefit him all through life, consequently care and attention must be given to each individual department. The administration, because of its nature, must be thoughtfully planned to avoid setting up a fear and dread in the minds of young pupils, and those in charge should be selected carefully for their intimate knowledge of children and child life. OtcoND- -rL.oo.a_- -Plam- Before closing we should mention the large City Administration Department which will be an elaboration of the different departments mentioned before. If the school is to operate successfully without friction and with efficiency, the City Administration Department should be installed in a building separate from the schools and from the other City management and with a systematically organized business organization well equipped to handle all the various branches of the school work. Practically all large cities have erected a large administration building in which all the various departments can be housed in order to reduce to a minimum the operating expense incident to the various school activities. See cuts (Fig. 60 and 61) which illustrates a plan for a City Administration Department. Note the difference between that and figure 59 which shows an Administration Department housed in a scoool building accommodating 1,000 pupils. 66 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twenty-one Planning a School Building FIRST— THE GRADE SCHOOL SOME few years ago architects assumed the planning of a Grade School building to be a very simple thing and included only such grade rooms as were needed with an additional room for the principal and superintendent. Toilets were known by an entirely different name and were reached via the back door of the school somewhere near the rear of the school grounds. The more progressive schools usually had a dark, gloomy basement for play room space, and that about covered the grade school requirements. Today more attention is being given to the grade school than to the other departments of the public schools, and rightly so, as the pupils who attend the grade school are in the formative period of life when outside influences most seriously effect their mental and physical well being. Knowing this it is the imperative duty of school boards and architects to provide every improvement in the grade school that will conserve the health, eyesight, and mentality of the young pupils. The kindergarten should be a large, well lighted room with a small raised platform at one end, individual toilets built in and cloak rooms adjoining for boys and girls. A large wood burning fireplace built in on the long side of the room is an added feature to be rec- ommended. Owing to the inability of kindergarten pupils to concentrate their attention for any length of time, it is most essential that a large variety of equipment be secured to enable the teacher to keep the children constantly occupied. The writer recently visited a kindergarten and first grade department where the equipment included a piano, phonograph, a cabinet containing drawers filled with fifty different games, colored charts and maps galore, a moving picture machine with curtain, sand tables, a slide, giant stride PUBLIC SCHOOLS 67 a complete electric railroad with 125 feet of double track, five depots, two passenger trains, three freight trains, switches, side tracks, two tunnels and a wrecking car, also a doll cabinet and fifty dolls, and the usual equipment of chairs, painted circles and dia- monds on the floor, teacher's desk with chair and three visitors chairs. The writer was present when the embryo railroaders were busily engaged in the operation of their miniature railroad and it surely was an interesting sight and an instructive one as well. The teacher of this particular class, with a thorough knowledge of the psychology of child life, had organized the class into a complete railroad organization from railroad president on down the line to the humble switchman, and the organization of five, six and seven-year-olds exhibited all the importance their seniors might have affected. This was play with the advantage of education; supervised play, where each pupil had his place subservient to the authority of the official just over him and the seven-year-old railroad president trans- acted his business with the gravity of a sage as he sat at his desk in one end of the room at the termi- nal headquarters. There was alert- ness and animation depicted in the faces of every one of these young kindergartners, and I thought, "What a wonderful difference in our treatment of children and the educational problem over the methods of our forefathers." There was no quarreling among these youngsters, no fretful squalling, no sulky child. Truly this is advanced education. FIRST AND SECOND GRADES These grades being just a step above the kindergarten should contain some of the inter- esting features of the kindergarten in order that the change from much play to study will not be too marked. In fact, play should form a part of every grade and the high school, changed to meet the ever quickening intelligence of the student. Sand tables and some play apparatus should be included in the first and second grade rooms, movable chairs should be used, the floor should be marked off with figures for drill and play. Con- siderable blackboard space should be provided, with space above 15" or more in width, covered with burlap or cork carpet, capped with a wide plate rail upon which various articles may be placed. Individual toilets and cloak rooms, separate for boys and girls, should be included. UPPER GRADES From the third grade up to the junior department, the rooms should be similar, planned not to exceed forty pupils with wardrobes, lockers or cloak rooms as preferred. (See chapter 24.) The third and fourth grades may have individual toilets or they may use the general toilets. There has been much discussion as to the use of the individual toilet for grades and it has resolved itself into a question of individual opinion about child modesty and the mingling of young children with older students in a general toilet room. In consequence, it may be necessary for the teacher to use her discretion as to which pupils in the room should be permitted to pass out and go to the general toilet room, or which should use the individual toilet in connection with the room, as it should always be the aim of every school to preserve the fine sensibilities and clean, wholesome modesty of all pupils. 68 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Above the sixth grade the burlap strip need not be included over the black board space, but as hereinbefore mentioned every -available inch of blackboard space should be utilized in the grade rooms as there are times when every inch of space may be needed. In planning a building the upper grade rooms should be placed convenient to such vocational departments as the size of the school will warrant, as manual training and domestic science can be taught to great advantage, even as early as the fourth and fifth grades. Many fourth grade pupils adapt themselves quickly to manual training, or domestic science work and enjoy it. A school board should carefully consider the advisability of including a physical training department in connection with the grade building, providing there the opportu- nities for physical development which usually have been denied the younger pupils. At least a large play room space with equipment should be included for boys and girls, even if a gymnasium is found to be too expensive. JUNIOR SCHOOL There has been so much discussion of the six and six plan, seventh and eighth grade combinations and the junior high school, that I will not take up the discussion further than to urge that provision be made in the school program to accommodate an intermediate assembly and class room between the grades and the high school to divide the work and the pupils. This division may be made to suit the requirements of the individual city or town and may differ widely according to conditions. As a means of relieving a con- gested condition in an over-crowded high school or grade school, a separate junior school building or buildings will satisfactorily relieve conditions and improve the school system. Conditions may arise requiring the erection of a combined grade and junior school in towns where adequate high school facilities have already been provided. In this event plans should be carefully studied with a view to the vocational studies and their access- ability for use by the upper grade and junior pupils. Available funds and the size of the school may prohibit the installation of separate departmental rooms and equipment; teachers and students may be required to go from the grade and junior school to the high school building where these studies are taught. In this event the distance pupils will be required to travel must be carefully considered And the building located accordingly. AftC-ftn'ft.CT St.- Pa ol, -Minn PUBLIC SCHOOLS 69 Where possible, however, it pays to install departmental work for the upper grades and junior school, separate from the high school and adjacent to the grade and junior building, even if it is found necessary for the same teachers to handle the work as would be neces- sary in the smaller schools. Where a new building can combine the junior department with a high school or where the entire school is housed in one building including grades, junior and high school, the departmental problem is simplified. A city of 6,000 inhabitants erected a high school building a few years ago which proved to be inadequate, after a few years' use, to accommodate the four years of high school work, and one of the grade school buildings being condemned, it was proposed to build a new building. The architect found the following conditions existing: A high school building inadequate for the work ; a domestic science department in the high school building adequate for the whole school; a manual training department only half large enough. No auditorium for assembly purposes; no gymnasium, and a cramped and unbalanced condition generally. The problem was solved by planning a large grade and junior school building on a site one block removed from the high school grounds, the new building accommodating kindergarten, grades and junior assembly with class rooms averaging one for every thirty pupils, a double gymnasium for boys and girls, a swimming pool, a shower and locker room to accommodate the complete grades, junior and high school, and an auditorium seating 2,000 or one-third the total population of the entire city; this building being planned with wings for future extension, having in view the growth of the school. The freshman class was taken from the high school to the grade and junior building, relieving conjestion in the high school building. Departmental work of the high school was enlarged to accommodate the work of the upper grades and junior school and a well balanced and more workable system resulted. The division of the school work into grades, junior school and senior high school is becoming quite popular and this arrangement is shown in most of the plans illustrated. THE HIGH SCHOOL This problem is one that cannot be standardized to any such an extent as the grade schools and each individual problem must be carefully studied and developed. It is not a problem of a certain number of classes, but a complex problem of intermediate education covering literature, fine arts, vocational subjects, and the training necessary to the progress of the present age, and the city high school must be designed with a much different course of study than would be fitting for the country school; this is especially so if we attempt to use the schools as a means to encourage certain lines of endeavor. Serious consideration must be given to the planning of the modern high school, owing to the broad field of education it has entered. The wide range of subjects taught, and the need of equipment and space for teaching each course, makes the planning of the high school a very interesting subject; in fact, each new building becomes a separate and distinct problem requiring special planning and consideration. It is gratifying to note that architects are awakening to the possibilities presented by the modern high school plant, and are developing more interesting buildings as they study the problem carefully, giving it the thought and attention it deserves. The planning of the modern high school takes into consideration many things that were some years ago either unknown or considered as non-essential, and while there is still a wide difference of opinion as to the absolute essentials of a complete high school, yet there are enough fundamental requirements to make it possible to plan with reason- able certainty as to the results. These schools have been for years, and will be for years to come, in a transitional stage and the successful plan is one which is designed with a prophetic insight into the future growth of the school and provides for a logical expansion of the school plant. Some few years ago the high school was generally understood to mean one building housing study hall, class rooms, manual training, domestic science, literature, art, sciences, agriculture, etc., under one roof. Now with a broad educational program which includes all these departments and a department for physical development, supervised play and 70 PUBLIC SCHOOLS athletics, together with other new and interesting features all designed to improve the mental, moral, and physical nature of the student, the old plan becomes unwieldly and inadequate. The close juxtaposition of totally unlike departments, as for instance the forge and machine shop in the basement directly below a class room, one unavoidably noisy and annoying to the other, causes confliction and much objection. In fact all the manual training and gymnasium work is of a nature that should be isolated. With ath- letics as a permanent part of the high school problem, and the introduction of inter- scholastic games as a means of developing school spirit and student enthusiasm, the athletic field with grand stand and bleachers becomes a necessity, also large observation space becomes necessary in the gymnasium for the benefit of the public; in consequence more acreage is necessary to provide for this expansion and the trend of opinion is growing in favor of ten, twelve and fifteen-acre tracts for the modern high school of 1000 to 1500 pupils, and more in proportion to the expansion of the school, so with their growing condition planning must change to meet it. As manual training takes on the nature of full grown shops, this department should be isolated in a separate unit or wing, gym- nasium, natatorium, showers, etc., may be disposed of in the same way, preferably adja- cent to the athletic field. The high school auditorium should be situated convenient for the public, on a ground floor location with few entrance steps. Heating plant and administration department should be centrally located and the rest of the school should be situated to eliminate all unnecessary travel for pupils and teachers. The conservatory, agricultural department and the agricultural experimental grounds should have a sunny exposure, and should be planned in connection with the complete scheme to secure a beautiful landscape effect. With such a development as above it at once becomes apparent that the housing of the entire school in the old compact form is a mistake and should be rectified in existing plants where possible and avoided in the preparation for future expansion. School boards must be educated up to the necessity of planning well for the future, and the burden of educating the public and assisting the school boards, lies with the architects and I believe they will rise to their opportunity. The small high school is a different problem and cannot economically spread out to such an extent as would be possible with the larger plant, yet such a school can isolate departments and be so planned that conflict is unnecessary. The vital problem that confronts the architect is always limited funds and as a usual thing the ingenuity of the architect is taxed to the utmost to keep building requirements within the funds available. "That, which is worth doing at all, is worth doing well," and school boards should adopt this as their motto when planning a building even if that means the omission of some portion of the building until more funds are available. A poorly built, cheaply finished structure made so by the desire to secure space is a mistake that can never be wholly remedied, while a well built, well finished structure, planned with extensions or additional units in view, can readily be added to and completed in sections as may be desired. v The several plans illustrated elsewhere in this book show the various types of school plans of recent buildings from the single building to the group plan and from one story on up. THE CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL The consolidated school first put in its appearance over one hundred years ago in the United States and has slowly developed as a necessary part of the growth of education along with the increase in population. I say "slowly developed" owing to the fact that it has only quite recently attracted the attention it merits, and at the present time con- solidation of school districts is being urged and popularized as a means of bringing ad- vanced education to the country districts where the one room school has so long held sway. The consolidated school is the grouping together of several school districts into a consolidation where a large number of pupils may be taught by two or more teachers in a large, well equipped building having facilities for teaching thorough and more advanced work than could possibly be taught in the one-room school. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 71 There are one hundred good arguments for, to one against, the consolidated school, but with every splendid reason brought forth, the country districts are still slow to grasp the advantages of it for two reasons; one is the fear of increased taxation, and the other is the average farmer's indifference to educational advantages. It has only been within the past fifteen or twenty years that the farmer has begun to realize the need of education and its application to farming. Government statistics show that the average productiveness in the United States today is no greater than it was fifty years ago. There are still those farmers who laugh at scientific farming; "Book farming," as they call it. The southern negro still plants potatoes, or other root crops, in the dark of the moon, and corn, cotton, etc., in the light of the moon, and there are others who believe like him. Many a sturdy farmer worked and saved to send his children to the city school, believing in education for the other fellow's business but not for his own. If Tom wanted to get an education and leave the farm the old' man would see that he got it, but if John or Tim decided to stay on the farm, they got what little "Readin', Writin' and 'Rithmetic" they could absorb at the little one-room log school, and the old man believed that was all they needed. Farming was a matter of tradition, not science, the son's instructor was his father, and the father's farming methods were handed down to him by his father before him ; in consequence the rural communities looked upon education as of value only to children who were not content to remain on the farm, but preferred to go to the town or city. Is it any wonder, with such a belief handed down from genera- tion to generation that the enlarged country school idea has developed slowly? State and county fairs, farm journals and agricultural schools have all lead the fight for educa- tion, and now as the present generation of younger farmers grows up, they are more and more progressive in their ideas and they grasp the advantages of the consolidated chools and by their vote make it possible. The ideal consolidated school building should be designed to accommodate individ- ual grade rooms in which not more than two grades would be housed in any one room; a high school room, with science, manual training, domestic science and agricultural departments, a gymnasium with shower baths, an assembly room, library, teachers' room; superintendent's office, reception room and boys' and girls' toilet rooms, and a cafeteria or lunch room. If the school is not planned for over two hundred pupils the above list of rooms should be ample; as the school enlarges additional facilities will differ but little from the town or city school. The building should be planned to give the pupils the same advantages and con-" venicnces as the town or city school gives. There is the same equality of birth in town or country and there should be the same educational privileges. The problem of keeping the boy or girl on the farm has never been solved before, and if it is ever to be solved, it will be through the doors of the consolidated community center school, and through equal opportunities with the city boy or girl. For many years there has been a steady stream of young manhood and womanhood from country to city, and a very, very small number going the other way. GOOD DERIVED FROM CONSOLIDATED SCHOOLS First — Better Teaching. The consolidated school invariably improves the teach- ing staff. There being two or more teachers, a principal, or superintendent (who is either a normal school or college graduate) is employed to teach the advanced work and normal school graduates are more often found as teachers in the consolidated schools than eighth grade graduates, who usually teach the one room country school, as a result far better teaching brings a decided advantage to the pupils. Second — Improved Attendance. Owing to the advantages offered by a well equipped school and good teaching force, a much improved attendance is found in the consolidated schools. Pupils are more regular in attendance and continue through the full nine months course. Literary societies are organized; foot ball, basket ball and base ball teams attract the students. Indoor games in the gymnasium have their drawing power and the varied activities keep up the pupils' interest so that eighty-five to ninety 72 PUBLIC SCHOOLS percent attendance is not at all unusual as against forty to fifty per cent in the one-room school. Third — Organization and Improved Work. There can be but little organiza- tion, if any, in the one-room school, and that little will depend on the executive ability of one teacher. With the large consolidated school, having a capable instructor at its head, and several teachers to assist, a successful working organization can be built up. The one-room teacher has such a wide variety of classes with short periods that it is almost impossible to do justice to any class. The writer attended a country school where there were sixty-four pupils, and the teacher, in order to devote necessary time to advanced pupils, had delegated a couple of her older pupils to teach first and second grade classes. In the consolidated schools, the work is divided up into longer periods and the teachers are enabled to give more time to the individual. In the one-room school the teacher must teach everything regardless of adaptability. In the consolidated school the teacher does not have such a wide range of subjects to teach and can concentrate on a few subjects and do them justice. This results in marked improvement in the pupils and a much larger percentage complete their work. Fourth — High School Advantages. With the old rural one-room school teaching, up to and including, the eighth grade, the majority of country students' education stopped at that point; with the consolidated school, teaching high school, there are from fifteen to twenty times the number of students who complete high school work and at a much reduced cost to the parents. In fact, the consolidated school makes it possible for many students to obtain a high school education whose parents otherwise would be unable to afford the expenses incident to sending their children away to high school in some neigh- boring town. It costs from $150.00 to $200.00 more to send a boy or girl to a city school than to keep them at home; furthermore, they are taken away from the home influence where they should be during the adolescent period when they are so apt to be influenced for evil if they were out from under the parental restraint. Again, if they are kept away from the city school during this period, they are not so apt to want to leave the farm for the attractions of the city and its varied industries. Fifth — Community Center Features. There is no known method of solidifying the thought and actions of a community that is equal to the community center activities that can best be housed in the consolidated school building, — where the auditorium or assembly room provides a place for lecture courses, literary society meetings, farmers' 'clubs, class plays, political gatherings and assemblies of every nature — where the library or domestic science department furnishes a meeting place for teachers' and mothers' club activities — where the whole community may gather in the gymnasium to attend athletic sports of every description, and where the older people may organize for athletic work and needed exercise. The cafeteria and domestic science kitchen and dining room offers every opportunity for socials and help to promote a better acquaintance and good fellow- ship among the people of the district. All these departments should be open to the school and the public for every day in the year if there is call for them, and the superintendent or principal should co-operate and encourage the use of the school, moreover, be assured that the district whose principal or superintendent succeeds in keeping the school departments continually occupied in this way is going to see a wide awake progressive community as the result, and also see a marked falling off in student migration from home to the cities, as home stagnation and "nothin' to do 'till tomorrow" has sent many a boy or girl to the bright lights of the city to escape the hum-drum existence of a sleeping community. There is a wonderful opportunity awaiting each superintendent of a consolidated school if he will but grasp it, and be assured that the awakening of a community can be accomplished by the live superintendent if he wills it; the same may also be said for the school board and great things can be accomplished if they co-operate. The writer planned a consolidated school located in a little village of sixty people, and a year after this building was in operation the school board made a complaint to the writer on a visit he made to the school that the auditorium and gymnasium were too expensive for the good derived; that the Gym. was used but one night a week and the PUBLIC SCHOOLS 73 auditorium about the same. Upon investigation it was found that the superintendent had prohibited the use of the gymnasium for more than one nights' use because the janitor would not clean up afterwards and because the light was too expensive, and last but not least, he would be required to supervise the Gym. if it were in use as the school board had made his contract that way. Laziness, pure and unadulterated, was the trouble with this superintendent; laziness and indifference on the part of superintendents and school boards accounts for most of the indifferent results obtained in a majority of the schools where such complaints arise. To the school board I would say, "If you are not operating a successful school, do not kick, but investigate why, then act, and the result will be a broader educational system, a successful consolidated school, and a progressive community alive to the issues of the day. Sixth -Costs. To the hard headed, conservative tax payer who wants to econo- mize in the cost of education in the rural community I would unhesitatingly say that dollar for dollar the consolidated school building is the least expensive building for the district compared with the one-room country school. Four teachers in the consolidated school (one of which should be a well paid principal) will do the work of six teachers in as many one-room schools and do it better. Fuel costs less to heat one large building, proportionate to the space, than to heat six small buildings. Transportation charges will of course offset many other reductions, but the advan- tages gained far outweigh every other objection, and the saving to parents who would have to send their children away to high school more than over balances the transportation charges of the school wagon and driver's expenses. One old farmer that I know of, sent eight children away to high school for an average of four years each at an average cost of $173.00 a year more than to have kept them at home, or a total of $5,536.00, which would have covered a period of seventy-nine years of taxes at $70.00 a year, the amount this man was actually taxed on 160 acres when his district consolidated, and he was the most bitter antagonist that consolidation had in the district. When a consolidation takes place the non-resident land owner, the man without a family, all corporations and others who derive their profits out of the district are taxed and pay their pro rata expense of educating the children of the district, thus reducing the burden the man of large family must of necessity bear. You, Mr. Taxpayer, without a family owe it to the state to do your share toward uplifting the standard of education, health and morality of the growing generation as we are educating the child for the common good of all and the perpetuity of the state, and if it costs you something you should be glad to pay the expense. 74 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twenty-two Heating and Ventilating THE heating and ventilation of school buildings has been responsible for much of the modern progress in the perfection of heating apparatus and mechanical ven- tilating systems and their being brought up to the high standard of efficiency they now represent. During the past twenty years there has been a very marked improvement in heating and ventilating apparatus and, while we have not yet reached perfection, we believe the field has been well covered and the fundamentals of heating and ventilation are now well known; so well known, in fact, that improvement must of necessity come from the perfecting of small specialties which make for the elimination of annoyance in the opera- tion of the plant, and in the increased efficiency of the system and economy of its operation. If we consider the health and efficiency of teachers and pupils of primary importance, then there can be no question that the heating and ventilating of a school building is a vitally essential part of the building, equally if not more important than light and sanita- tion. The question will arise in the mind of a school board, "what system shall we use then to secure the most efficient system and at the same time secure maximum economy?" To that I would say, "Climatic conditions largely control the answer, and must be care- fully considered when a system is installed, for the economical and most satisfactory system in extremely cold climates would have to be designed differently for a mild climate where a moderate amount of heat is needed. In cold, extremely dry atmospheres a humidi- fying apparatus is needed to moisten the air. In extremely humid climates the exact reverse may be necessary and dehumidification of the air may be resorted to. It is not the writer's intention to write a complete analysis of heating and ventilating systems, but to call attention to some of the problems that should be brought to the attention of the school board who are -preparing to erect a school. Regardless of climatic conditions the fundamental principles of a successful heaitng and ventilating system are as follows: First. A heating system of adequate size to furnish sufficient heat to raise the tem- perature in the building to seventy-two degrees Fahrenheit during the coldest weather. Second. The heating system must be automatically regulated to keep the heat constant at a given temperature to overcome overheating certain rooms caused by varying winds and varying temperatures and likewise to insure the adequacy of heat supply in rooms exposed to cold winds on northern exposures. Third. The heating system must be planned to conserve every ounce of steam or heat unit and to consume every pound of fuel without waste and the installation must be economical. Fourth. The ventilation of the building must be planned to deliver thirty cubic feet of air per minute, for each person in the building, uniformly distributed. Fifth. The air must be warmed to the proper temperature to be distributed to the rooms at sixty-five degrees to sixty-eight degrees Fahrenheit and be kept in constant motion, in order that the maximum benefits may be derived from it. Sixth. The air should be properly humidified and kept at thirty-five to fifty per cent of saturation by means of a humidifying or dehumidifying apparatus. Seventh. Automatic damper control must be provided for the fresh air intakes, vent dampers and dampers controlling the heating coils which warm the air to the desired temperature, also automatic control of the valves which supply the steam to heating coils. When all the above are provided in a well balanced system there can be no question about the results. It will mean perfect heating and ventilation, an end we are striving PUBLIC SCHOOLS 75 for and each year finds the goal nearer; each year of experience brings forth some improve- ment in the existing types of apparatus that makes for efficiency and economy. The experimental stage of mechanical heating and ventilating systems is about over and results may be confidently expected by the school board when a capable architect and heating engineer have together worked out the problem of heating and ventilation to be installed. It is not uncommon to hear about the expensive ventilating systems that do not ventilate, or the heating system which does not heat. Most of these troubles are due to improper installation of the plant or a transgression of fundamental laws of heating and ventilating. Heating systems may be classified as: No. 1 — Hot air — gravity furnace systems, No. 2 — Hot air — blast systems, No. 3 — Hot water systems, No. 4 — Vapor systems, No. 5 — Steam heating systems, and the different systems may again be sub-divided into the various types of hot air, vapor, and steam systems; however, I shall not attempt to describe all of the different sub-divisions of the five systems mentioned. Suffice to say that each has its place and will be more or less successful, according to how well the plant has been planned and installed. No. 1 — Hot Air, Gravity Furnaces. The one, two or three-room school may be heated with the ordinary type of cast iron or steel furnaces, which may be either bricked in or enclosed with a galvanized iron casing. The only argument for this kind of an instal- lation is the economy of first cost. The air is passed in over the furnaces, is heated and expanded and passed up to the rooms through flues, thus creating a gravity blast system that works indifferently well, and does provide a circulation of air in the rooms during cold weather when the furnace is in operation, but leaves the school totally without ven- tilation when there is no heat in the furnace to move the air. This type of furnace heat should never be used, unless in connection with automatic regulation of heat and humidity. Damper regulation of the heat is accomplished by having two air supplies; one the cold or tempered air from outside, the other heated from over the furnace. A graduated thermostat is placed in each room connected direct to the air motor which operates the opening and closing of the damper (see cut of mixing damper with attached motor, Fig, 62) , which damper auto- matically opens the cold air supply and closes the heat supply or the opposite, as the room temperature is raised or lowered. These dampers operate to within one degree of the temperature the ther- mostat is set for. For instance, the room thermostat may be set for a constant sixty-eight degrees and the heat rises one degree above that in the room, immediately acting on the sensitive thermostat which operates the damper motor supplying sufficient cold or tem- pered air in the flue to lower the temperature, as soon as the quan- Fig- 62 tity of cold or tempered air in the flue reduces thetemperature in the room the thermostat closes the cold or tempered air supply by shutting the damper, continuing the operation so long as there is heat in the furnace. While cold air may be used to operate the dampers and regulate the heat in the room, yet the too sudden change will keep the room thermostats from operating evenly as the opening of the dampers to a cold air supply will make a quick drop in temperature that will result in cooling the room below the desired temperature so it is very desirable that a tempered air chamber be pro- vided where part of the heated air is mixed with the cold outside air, and this air (which can be maintained at a few degrees below the room temperature) is then mixed with the hot air from over the furnace to regulate the temperature in the rooms. A graduated thermostat is placed in this tempered air chamber to keep the air mixture at a constant temperature. Note the cut shown under title of 'Hot Air Blast Systems, figure number sixty-three.' 76 PUBLIC SCHOOLS "tHh^ ^ f i q. 63 The automatic regulation of humidity is accomplished by placing a humidostat in the room where the air is to be humidified, this operates a valve on the water line by opening and closing the valve, as the air becomes dry or moist. The water line runs to a spray nozzle in the heating chamber and as the air in the room loses humidity the dry condition affects the humidostat which opens the valve on the water line starting a fine water spray from the nozzle and this spray evaporating adds humidity to the air until the needed amount closes the valve on the water line through the action of the humidostat. Hot air furnaces equipped thus with regulation on both heat and humidity work successfully as heating plants, but at best they fall away below the standard that should be set for ventilation, as dust will collect in the flues and the continual expansion and con- traction, in the furnace castings, opens up the seams, permitting smoke and gases to escape into the room. The evidence of this can be seen at the outlet of almost any heat duct as smoked and blackened ceilings are usually in evidence if a furnace of any kind is used. The furnace when used must be centrally located to secure a circulation of air as there will be but little movement of air in horizontal flues and on windy days the rooms exposed will be very hard to heat and there will be a corresponding fuel loss where the fireman attempts to overcome this trouble by an excessive use of fuel. A school board should take all this into consideration and pay the additional first cost for a more efficient apparatus, rather than to hazard the childrens' health. In the small school in mild cli- mates where windows can be opened most . of the year this type of installation may be used where a little heat is needed during short, cold periods. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 77 No. 2 — Hot Air, Blast Systems. The only practical difference between a hot air gravity system and a hot air blast system is the forced circulation by means of a fan. This system can be made quite effective in small buildings where the complete system in- cludes fan, air washer, humidity control and automatic damper control. The air washer overcomes the objection to dust being driven through the system, and the humidity is sec- ured through the air washer spray or over the furnaces as explained previously under ' Hot Air, Gravity Furnaces.' However, when all the necessary appliances are added to the hot blast system there still remains the objection to the system that cold, outside variable winds make the system hard to control, and with the necessary apparatus added to secure effici- ency at all times the plant becomes as expensive as a steam plant and not so easy to operate, nor so economical. The principal reason for using this type of heating is the saving in installation cost. When this cost almost equals the cost of steam, school boards should never hesitate in their selection of the better system. The cost of operating a hot air blast system will be found more expensive than to heat by steam. The repair bills for a cast furnace far exceed the repair charges for any other type of heating; cracked sections and parts are the rule rather than the exception due to expansion and contraction caused from the varying temperatures in the furnace. Experience has proven that after a few years' use the furnace installation becomes a 'Jonah' and the misguided school board, who suf- fered its installation, wish the whale would come along and swallow it. Cut No. 3, page 7, shows a fan which operated a blast system in a school building at Sheldon, Iowa. This fan was taken out in 1916, together with the entire battery of five furnaces, after nine years' use, and replaced with two down draft boilers, and a new school building was erected on the lot adjacent to the old building equally as large, and the fuel used during the extremely cold winter of 1916-17 was no more heating the two buildings than was consumed by the old cast furnaces the year before in the one old building. No. 3 — Hot Water Systems. Hot water heating consists of a boiler, or boilers, filled with water which circulates through pipes and radiators. A tank is placed above the highest radiator with an overflow connection. This tank takes care of the expansion which takes place when the water is heated. Expansion also creates the circulation as the hot water rises in exactly the same way as hot air rises. Hot water heating is unsuitable for school heating for the following reasons : First, and principal reason has to do with the ventilation as the radiation is at too low a temperature to permit of passing cold outside air over the vento radiation that is needed with a fan system as the slow circulation and low temperature of the water circu- lating through the pipes would cause freezing in contact with cold air. Second, hot water heating is not suitable for large buildings owing to its slow cir- culation, there being so many long horizontal pipes, high efficiency cannot be secured as hot water will be sluggish and run slow where the mains have long horizontal runs, resulting in cooling the water to such an extent that circulation is almost, if not altogether, stopped and its heating efficiency lost. Third, there is too much danger of freezing the system in extremely cold climates if heat is not kept up constantly, resulting in cracked and broken radiation, a contingency that could not arise with a steam plant. The first cost of a hot water plant is higher than for an equally efficient steam equipment, and as efficiency and economy are both essential, the argument is in favor of steam. No. 4 — Vapor Systems. The small school building can be most economically heated with a vapor system of steam heat. The theory of the vapor system is based on the fact that water will vaporize at a lower temperature when under a partial vacuum, in which the vapor system varies from a vacuum system only in the amount of vacuum carried and in the method of producing the vacuum. The economy of the system is in the low fire needed to produce a complete distribution of vapor through the building which is accomplished by increasing the vacuum; this causes the vapor to circulate quickly through the plant. The usual layout of the vapor system consists of a large main starting at the boiler and reducing as radiation branches off, and a second line starting at the first radiator and increasing in size as returns from the raidators are added on as it goes back 78 PjUBLIC SCHOOLS to the vacuum producing pump or trap. Each patented vapor system supplies its own special inlet valves, some of which are called modulation valves and these control the amount of steam admitted to the radiator. However, these are operated by hand and they do not give the positive regulation needed in a school building, which feature is objectionable, as the amount of heat in each radiator should be absolutely controlled if maximum fuel economy is to result. However, the system has many good features that commend it for small installations where hand regulation must be resorted to. The patented specialties which make up any of the vapor systems are expensive and they all have more or less trouble with the vacuum producing pump or apparatus which is some disadvantage, so unless the school is quite small, say, two to six rooms, the best results will be obtained by installing a positive vacuum system where there will be absolute certainty of results. No. 5 — Steam Heating Systems. The steam heating systems are numerous, all quite efficient as heating mediums, but when combined with the need for perfect ventila- tion most of the steam systems must be discarded, leaving only a limited choice. Steam systems are classified as: (a) Direct steam, which consists of radiators placed in the various rooms having no other means of supplying heat. With this system there is no ventilation except such as may be brought in through the opening of the windows. In a school building this is very bad for the childrens' health. When the room becomes overheated the teacher opens the windows to secure ventilation and the cold air comes in forming draughts which are conducive to colds, coughs, etc., owing to the dry atmospheric condition due to lack of humidity. (b) Direct, indirect steam — which consists of direct steam with all the disadvantages of (a) except that a wall register is set into the outside wall back of the radiators permitting outside air to enter the room. The air is then taken out through vent ducts, either ex- hausted by ventilators on the roof or by an exhaust fan in the attic which connects all the vents together and exhausts the air out through a large ventilator on the roof. This system is a little better than (a) but cannot be recommended as the fuel cost is excessive, since the cold air coming in from the outside cools the radiators, condensing the steam quickly and wasting heat units. Furthermore, the dry, dusty air from outside comes in, lacking in humidity, leaving practically the same objections to the system as in (a). (c) Indirect and Blast Systems — These all contain the same objections as (a) and (b) with the further objection that was advanced against the furnace systems, that out- side, strong winds, acting against the building, made it impossible to adequately heat the exposed rooms. The indirect system usually consists of pin radiation placed at the foot of heat flues which, by heating and expanding the air in the flues, starts the warm air upward into the room to be heated. The blast system provides the heating stack in a large mass and by driving the air over the radiation it becomes heated and is delivered to the rooms. The humidity control may be added to this system by either using humidostats and a spray in the heat ducts, or by the use of the air washer and steam jet which is injected into the washer spray, this latter being the more positive method, and will be more fully described later. (d) Split System — This last combines the good features of heating the rooms ade- quately by direct steam and secures the ventilation by a forced fan system of air circula- tion disregarding the windows as a means of ventilation, depending entirely upon the fan for all fresh air in the rooms. By combining a complete positive vacuum system of direct steam heat in each room, each radiator regulated with a quick acting thermostat with a forced fan system of ventila- tion delivering humidified washed air to each room in adequate quantities, the most satisfactory system of heat and ventilation known at the present time is secured. As this system of heat and ventilation is now in successful operation all over the country in the most successfully operated schools, it deserves complete explanation. The writer planned and built, among others, two school buildings during the year 1916 within 100 miles of each other; one having 18,800 square feet of radiation, and the PUBLIC SCHOOLS 79 other having 19,200 square feet. Each had identically the same equipment throughout consisting of two down draft steel boilers; a one-pipe gravity wet return system of steam with automatic regulation on the radiators, an air line attached to a positive acting power driven vacuum pump; the air a partial recirculation system controlled by automatic dampers operated by diaphram valves; the air passing through an air washer, being humidified by the insertion of steam into the air washer sprays, and regulated by a humido- stat placed in one of the rooms centrally located in the building. From the air washer the air passed through reheating coils and the temperature raised to sixty-eight degrees as it was forced into the rooms through the fan and a large plenum chamber and indi- vidual ducts. From the rooms the air was drawn out by an exhaust fan and either recir- culated or exhausted from the building, arrangement being made so that seventy-five per cent would recirculate and twenty-five per cent outside air come in at all times when the temperature was below zero, using more outside air as the temperature outside raised, until at thirty to fifty degrees above zero, all outside air was used, the damper regulation in all cases being automatic with an electric driven air compressor located in the fan room operated by an automatic switch to keep the air pressure constant at fifteen pounds for operating the diaphram valves. Now the idea I wish to bring out is this: The school having 19,200 square feet of radiation burned 167 tons of coal, the other burned 238 tons; mine run in both cases. The school burning 167 tons of coal employed an engineer at $85.00 a month, the other school employed a janitor at $65.00 a month. The buildings being located in the same relative climate, both heated continuously through the entire heating season, should have burned approximately the same amount of fuel, however, there was a difference of seventy-one tons less in the larger school. Assuming this fuel to be a clear saving, due to proper and intelligent operation of the plant (which was actually the case), we find the saving in dollars and cents amounting to $340.80 for coal. However, the engineer was paid $20.00 a month more for nine months, so deducting $180.00 from $340.80 we find the more expensive man to be the cheaper of the two. In addition to making the saving the engineer had a much smaller electric current expense for the school year, due largely to proper oiling and taking care of motors and equipment. This whole argument is a prelude to my description of the most efficient type of heating and ventilating system and is an argument for efficiency on the part of the man you expect to employ to operate the plant. Read page thirty-six, paragraphs five and six. It is absolute folly to install a system of automatic dampers, valves, and motors, with fans, air washers, down draft boilers, etc., unless you employ some brains to run it. It took brains to invent this equipment, brains to design it, ability to install it, and do you think a dub can run it? Last winter the writer received a long distance call from a town in Iowa to come at once as the heating plant was a failure and would not work. After spending a half hour looking over the system it was found that the vacuum pump would not operate, conse- quently there was no vacuum on the radiation which was full of air, and with fifteen pounds of steam on the boiler some of the radiators remained cold except for one or two of the first sections. Having found the trouble to be with the vacuum pump the writer investigated that. The pump was one that operated with two automatic valves; one a steam line to the boiler, and one a cold water line from the water supply working on the principle of quick condensation to cause a vacuum, steam first filling the tank which filled the body of the pump, which operation opened the cold water valve releasing a spray of cold water in the steam which, condensing quickly, caused a vacuum in the tank this in turn releasing the air pressure in the radiators throughout the building, however, the pump was not operating; five minutes investigation proved that there was no trouble with the steam line as the tank was hot, obviously the trouble must be with the cold water side ;. investigation of the cold water line disclosed the fact that the shut-off valve cutting off the cold water line from the pump was closed, opening the valve started the pump and in forty minutes the radiators all over the building were hot. The engineer said 'Well, I'll be dog-gonned if I saw that.' 80 PUBLIC SCHOOLS The foregoing is a fair sample of what a school board may expect if a cheap (or should I say expensive) janitor or engineer is employed to operate a mechanical heating and ventilating plant, a cheap man is expensive at any price. You may say that this dis- cussion of engineers is getting away from the subject but I consider the engineer the most important installation in the system, and after completely describing his requirements I will pass on to the stationary parts of the apparatus. First, his description is as follows: Efficiency combined with a reasonable salary, ample to attract the man with ability. Second — Boilers. These should be with the down draft principle to conserve heat, utilize all the fuel value by full combustion of all the smoke and gases which make for fuel economy and a smokeless boiler. The smokeless principle is now manufactured in practically all types of boilers and I will illustrate only one of them as the principle is the same in all. Fig. 64 shows the standard type of portable up draft boil- ers showing the blaze passing up and through the tubes to the back of the boiler, return- ing through the upper tubes to the front of the boiler and out through the stack. Figure 65 shows the operation of the down draft clearly. You will note that coal is thrown in through the two upper doors in the boiler front on top of water grates, that is, hollow grates filled with water. There is a fire brick bridge wall directly back of these water grates with the only opening through the water grates downward forc- ing the gases and smoke to pass down through the grates. As fire gains headway live coals drop through on the lower grate and an extremely hot fire results, so that all smoke and gases which are drawn downward and through the water grates must of necessity be consumed owing to the in- tensity of the heat at this point ; the live coals which fall through the water grates are all devoid of gas and smoke before they break up and fall through, hence all the heat units in the coal are consumed and the black smoke so often seen belching forth from the chimney dwindles down to a pale, thin, wisp of light gray vapor that soon loses itself in _,_. . , . . „ , Fi f- 66 .... ... , , the atmosphere, while the .hmcient down draft, gas and smoke consuming boilers, a positive fuel sav- , , » j.i.-l r< ing type of boiler of high efficiency. SCnOOl board takes the profit Fig. 64 Fig. 64 ilustrates the old style portable up draft boiler, — the type of boiler that permits smoke and gases to escape in clouds of thick black smoke up the chimney. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 81 from their investment in reduced fuel bills. The average increased cost for down draft boilers in a $100,000.00 school building will not exceed $300.00 and they pay for them- selves in a couple of years' time. Third — Vacuum Apparatus. To be efficient the steam circulation must be accom- plished quickly without requiring a high steam pressure on the boiler, in fact, the steam should be circulated at, or near, atmospheric pressure, and only during extremely low temperatures should it be necessary to run the steam pressure up over three or four pounds, where a low pressure vacuum system is installed with a pump. There are a number of efficient vacuum pumps on the market different only in their method of operation. The ' Sparks ' automatic steam pump consists of a large tank with a steam connection and a cold water supply, each supply having an automatic valve to open and close the line. This is one of the most economical of pumps and extremely simple in operation. When the vacuum is set for a certain number of pounds and the vacuum drops below this, the reduced vacuum releases the valve, opening the steam line and steam enters the tank, the heat from the steam expands the valve on the cold water line releasing a fine spray of cold water which condenses the steam quickly, producing the required vacuum, and this vacuum immediately acts on the valve to the steam line closing it until the vacuum again drops. The pump operates in this way automatically and keeps the vacuum constant at little expense. The electric pumps are operated by a small electric motor which is started and stopped automatically by the simple method of opening and closing a circuit. The vacuum drops below the pressure set and the switch closes the circuit starting the pump motor, which runs until the vacuum is again up to the required amount when the pressure of the vacuum forces the circuit open continuing the operation as the vacuum drops. The electric pumps are certain of operation and give very little trouble unless the steam system gets to leaking; if this happens the pump runs almost continuously and becomes quite expensive, much more than the steam pump. Their only advantage over the steam pump is at night when the steam in the boiler gets quite low, down below atmospheric pressure, the electric pump will continue to operate when the steam pump would not, as the steam pump requires from one-half to one pound of steam to operate successfully. However, the usual system of steam works most successfully when continually fired, so the question of pumps is a matter of choice. The vacuum pump is connected by an air line to each radiator in the building with an air line valve at the radiator outlet. The function of this valve is to automatically open and close as needed to let the air out of the radiator into the air line and keep the steam in the radiator and out of the air line. This is accomplished in the valve by expan- sion and contraction. When the radiator cools off the sensitive plate in the valve con- tracts opening the air valve releasing the air in the radiator which passes quickly out of the radiator to fill the vacuum in the air line and as the steam follows the air it strikes the sensitive plate in the valve, expanding and closing it. This automatically continues so long as there is steam in the system. Fourth — Temperature Control. With down draft boilers and a positive vacuum on the radiation, there lacks but one further adjunct to complete the economical efficient operation of the steam system and that is the addition of auto- matic regulation and temperature control, which, like a general in the field deploying his army, always placing reinforcements in front of each attack, so the automatic regulation on the steam system throws its army of heat units from side to side of a building to confront the attack of cold biting winds, cutting down the supply of steam to radiators on the warm side and increasing the supply on the cold side by the simple operation of closing and opening the radiator valves to adjust the room temperature, doing away with over heated rooms, conserving the heat supply for the bene- fit of the colder exposures, thus eliminating the possibility of un- derheating some rooms. Fig. 69 82 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 70 This adjustment is accomplished by placing a sensitive quick ac- tion thermostat (see Fig. 69) in each room set at a given temperature of sixty to seventy degrees as preferred ; these thermostats will then op- erate to within one degree, keeping the room at that temperature. As the rooms heat up the thermostat keeps the radiator valve open until the room heat slightly passes the point set on the thermostat which ac- tion expands the sensitive apparatus in the thermostat and closes the radiator valve which remains closed until the room cools slightly below the point set on the thermostat which contracts the sensitive part of the thermostat opening the air line that con trolls the opening of the radiator valve (Fig. 70), which opens and permits more steam to enter the radiator, continuing this operation all through the heating season without interference from pupil or teacher, as near fool proof as a sys- tem can be, economizing and doling out steam like a stingy miser, but unlike the miser always exercising absolute justice by furnishing exact- ly enough, which represents the highest efficiency and truest economy. The entire system of radiator valves, diaphram valves, operating by-pass and mixing dampers, etc., are op- erated by air pressure at approximately twelve to fifteen pounds pressure. This pressure is kept up by an air pump, operated by hydraulic, electric or belt power. See Figure 71 which illustrates the electric compressor. The hydraulic and electric compressors work automatic- ally with a switch device to start and stop as the pressure drops below the required amount or exceeds it. The belted compressor works automatically so long as the shaft and pulley from which the power is taken, continues in motion, the compressor being supplied with tight and loose pulley and an automatic belt shifting device to start and stop the compressor. The usual method of operation is to attach a pulley to an extended fan shaft, operating the Fig. 71 IMP COILS "H" L. F!C 7a PUBLIC SCHOOLS 83 compressor while the fan is in motion. The belted compressor should be used when the electric or hydraulic power is not available or as a last choice, as it controls the heat only while the fan runs, and if by chance the fan is not operating the heat regulation is lost, and the efficiency of the plant reduced. The automatic regulation of all dampers on the ventilation system hereinafter described is controlled from this same air com- pressor and the compressor 'D' with tank ( E' in Figure No. 82 will not be needed if automatic regulation is used on the entire system of heat, ventilation, and hu lidity control. Fifth — Ventilation. The system of ventilation here described is a forced fan system on the heat ducts and an exhaust fan on the vents providing for automatic damper regulation on the fresh air intakes, foul air exhausts, recirculating dampers, by-pass and individual duct dampers as may be found necessary. Positive regulation of the air tem- perature entering the room can be secured by having a double duct system leading to an automatic mixing damper in each vertical duct leading to the room if this is considered necessary, however, with the air temperature regulated as it leaves the fan and tempering coils, there will be very little variation in temperature when it reaches the rooms and this variation will be taken up by the regulation on the direct steam radiation, and balanced, so that no objectionable change in temperature will be noticed. Figure 72 shows a typical installation with a vent damper on the roof 'A' at the top of a stack 'B' cut off from the vent 'C by return air damper 'D'. A fresh air damper 'E' is shown in the stack below the damper 'D'. Dampers 'A,' 'D' and 'E' are operated together so that fresh air 'E' and vent 'A' opens as the other closes so that any desired percentage of fresh or return air can be delivered from all return air to all fresh air accord- ing to the temperature of the mixture when it arrives at the thermostat located at the bottom of the stack at (F). From the fresh air stack (B) the air is passed through the air washer at any desired temperature above freezing regulated by thermostat (F). The air passes through the sprays in the air washer and is humidified, and is reheated to the desired temperature, for return to the rooms, by coils (H). A by-pass damper is placed under the coils and a thermostat in the tempered air chamber or heat ducts beyond the fan operates the by-pass damper regulating the heat that passes into the rooms. The air is driven into the rooms as indicated in Figure 72 and the exhaust vents are aided in the discharge of the foul air by an exhaust fan (J) which guarantees the positive operation of the ventilating plant. The exhaust fan is omitted in a majority of the small school buildings, but is a necessary part of the system in a large building. The general arrangement of the plant should be such that long heat or vent flues with abrupt or numerous turns in direction can be avoided. All flues should be provided with volume dampers and where the flues are taken off of a plenum chamber or large duct, there should be adjustable sweeps placed in the ducts to deflect the air turn- ing it into the ducts to secure the necess- ary volume and equal distribution by ad- justment of the dampers. The air should be delivered to the room in a manner that will permit of equal distribution all over the room; if the room is a large one several registers should be placed in it. Register faces should be much larger than the flue to re- duce the velocity of the air as it is forced into the room; deflected blades or diffusers should be set vertically in the opening to the flue to deflect the current of air in the /)e7a// ofdiffujerJ /or near open//zq Of>e f/Q 73 "V P. f J>iffas*rs/X JAov/c>/v-> /f,V0 POfOUS JO/J.S Doueit Systim 3/rPaw or Pitch PUBLIC SCHOOLS 91 Chapter Twenty-four Toilet and Special Room Ventilation WHEN the manner of sewage disposal is satisfactorily disposed of, then attention must be given to the toilet rooms, their fixtures, ventilation, and lighting. Fixtures in a school toilet room should be of the very best and most simple operating type obtainable. Much might be said for and against the various makes of fixtures. There are some things especially worth while to consider however, when selecting fixtures for the school. The toilet fixtures should be selected for their quiet economical operation, the durable quality of their valves and operating parts, under varying water conditions, their adapta- bility to varying water pressure and their certainty of continued operation when water is full of alkali, iron, lime and other deposits which form scale and sediment in the valve parts. A school toilet fixture should be of vit- reous china with a strong well-made " whale- ■ bonite" (a hard sanitary rubber covered seat, non-absorbent) seat open at the front so that continual use of the seat will not soil it. Figure 87 shows a very real contrast between the style of closet that should be * used and the ordinary type that should not be used. The closet should be seat operat- ing, that is, one which starts the flow of water when the seat is forced down and flush- es the closet when the weight is removed permitting the seat to raise. With a seat operating closet of this type there is no dan- ger of the closet remaining unflushed owing to a childs forgetfulness, which often occurs with the hand flushing arrangement. The ju- venile height closet should be used through- out the school except for the "Kindergar- ten," first and second grades, where baby closets should be installed. The juvenile closet is thirteen inches high while the baby closets are only ten inches. These latter should be hand operated as the seat action is not suitable for use on a baby closet. Urinals should be of standing type made of vitreous china if expense does not prohibit, otherwise of best quality porcelain. The vitreous china is preferable owing to the impervi- ous nature of the ware, as it is non-absorbent, while the porcelain is ordinary earthen ware enameled. Enameled iron is sometimes used but owing to the danger of the enamel flaking off is not so desirable. Lavatories should be of vitreous china with a pop-up waste, rather than to have a chain plug with rubber stopper, as the stopper often breaks loose from the chain and is lost, while the pop-up waste operates with a lever and can be opened without wetting the hands, as is so often the case where the plug is not attached to the chain with the ordinary chain pull. Faucets throughout the building should be self-closing, as they soon pay for themselves in the water saved. Drinking fountains should be continuous flowing with a regulated flow causing a slow movement of water through the valve when it is closed, just enough to keep the water from becoming stagnant or warm, the children open the valve (which is self closing) Fig. 87 92 PUBLIC SCHOOLS increasing the flow when drinking. The drain from these fountains may be connected to the automatic flushing tanks on the urinals of the floor below, thus reducing the water waste. Toilet stalls and toilet room walls should be specially treated, to protect them against absorption of ammonia fumes and foul odors, and to protect them from the poetic instinct of the degenerate. To do this a hard substance must be used which can be readily washed off and cleaned. Where economy is the first consideration, we use a "Keenes" cement for walls and toilet stall partitions, trowelled to a smooth, hard, polished surface. This surface may then be enameled with four or five coats of washable enamel. If funds are available, a glazed tile for the floors and walls, and "Vitrolite" or marble stall partitions and doors, makes the most satisfactory toilet room finish possible. (Note: "Vitrolite" is a pure white substance impervious to moisture, acid stains or fumes of any kind, very much like glass.) With a clean toilet room where writing is made difficult and easily removed it becomes easy to keep the toilet rooms sanitary, both physically and morally. A toilet room may be ever so well planned, equipped and finished, but if it lacks proper ventilation it soon becomes odorous, so by all means make provision for this most essential feature in toilets, showers and locker rooms. When planning the ventilation system for the entire school, this portion should be provided with exhaust fans and the bottom portion of doors opening to corridor should be fitted with an open lattice work to permit the air from the corridors to pass into the toilet rooms and out through the toilet room vents, then by keeping the static pressure of the air heavier in the corridors than in toilet rooms, and by exhausting the air from the toilet rooms by means of a fan in the duct it becomes possible to maintain a constant circulation of air from the corridors, through the toilet rooms and out. Air should never be forced into a toilet room, lest it should result in increasing the static pressure of the air to such an extent that it would pass out through the doors into the corridors carrying odors with it. The ordinary method of venting the toilet rooms is to place a large exhaust ventilator on the roof, it can not be recommended as positive enough to give satisfactory results as there will be times during the year when the vent will not operate, hence the need of a positive exhaust fan. The main vent should have several openings in each toilet room if maximum results are to be obtained. Each toilet fixture should have a vent opening in the wall directly back of the fixture fifteen inches above the floor. There are some toilet fixtures which have a vent attached and while these may be used there is some question as to their desirability, a majority of architects preferring the wall vent back of the fixture. In addition to these vents the room should be vented with a large opening at floor and ceiling. Urinals may be locally vented or have a hood over each urinal through which ammonia fumes may escape. With such a system of vents carefully worked out and installed no difficulty will be ex- perienced in keeping the toilet rooms clean and free from odors. Next to the toilet room ventilation, the shower rooms need the most attention, as students come in from active exercise, heated and perspiring, with damp sweaters, base ball and foot ball suits, etc., which are hastily removed and jammed into lockers, anyway at all to dispose of them quickly. Consequent- ly the lockers and locker rooms soon become foul smelling. To obviate this difficulty each individual locker should be provided with a separate vent and the rooms should be vent- ed with two or more vents at opposite sides of the room, all connected to an exhaust fan to insure positive circulation. The outside doors to corridor, gymnasium or swimming pool should be provided with slat vent open- ings to permit air entering and circulating through the shower rooms. Air should not be forced into shower rooms any more than through toilets. Shower room walls and ceil- ings should be treated as toilet rooms are treat- 4Wr*AU>k F&U fiGUDE-ss. LocKEsna A^/zi-Z-o" PUBLIC SCHOOLS 93 ed for the same reason. Figure 88 shows a detail of ventilated locker system which is quite effective. The vents to locker and toilet rooms may be all drawn together in the attic and attached to one exhaust fan if distance is not too great. Usually a building is so planned that two small exhaust fans for this purpose are found to be sufficient. Every laboratory should be provided with exhaust fan connection and'every chem- istry table should have an exhaust hood for every two students working over the table so that all fumes from experiments will be quickly exhausted out of the room. Special fume cabinets should be provided in the chemistry laboratory for experiments where strong fumes are given off. Such cabinets should have an air-tight glass door, through which the experiment may be studied. Precaution must be taken with the vent duct and exhaust fan lining and exposed parts of the fan to protect them from the corrosive action of the chemistry experiments, consequently an acid proof paint must be applied to all exposed parts. For this reason the exhaust blower from chemistry laboratory should be used for this department only and have no connection with other vents. There are various types of wardrobes used in school buildings all of which should have complete exhaust ventilation. The wardrobe system is quite extensively used, but its only recommendation is its economy. The wraps of all the children in a room must be hung up in one of these wardrobes together with overshoes and umbrellas, so on wet days they seldom dry out and the wardrobe soon becomes odorous, this together with the absence of sunlight makes their desirability questionable. Much better that a cloak room be provided with a large window and plenty of sunlight, for light and sunshine still remain our greatest purifying influence. Finally I would say, place toilet, shower, locker and cloak rooms on a sunny exposure with abundance of light. The minimum being one-tenth of the total floor area in glass. 94 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twenty-five Seating, Decoration and Artificial Lighting FOR many years we have been seating our school rooms with stiff formal rows of desks whose general form and character have changed but little. We are still doing this to a considerable extent, yet there is some question in the minds of educators as to the advisability of continuing this formal system or to change to the less formal and more pliable system with movable chair desks, of which there are several styles on the market. We find among young pupils the inability to concentrate their attention for any long period of time so we design our Kindergarten and first grades with movable chairs and a variety of apparatus to keep the children occupied with a varied change in activity. Now, if this argument holds good for very young children, and if change is good for them, it will be still good for those who are only a little older, so we are inclined to believe the movable chair type of study desk will find its place in the growing school system. The regular style of formal seats in regular rows, is so well known that no comment is necessary, but movable chairs being a comparatively recent addition to the school seating problem makes it worth while to mention a few of the arguments advanced for their use. Flexibility seems to be the keynote of the argument. Pupils may sit in the form- al arrangement with light from the left side, while those who are left handed may turn their seats entirely around, re- ceiving light from their right side. Recitations are made easy, for those pupils in the room who have a recitation may move their chairs close to the teacher, leaving the remainder to study. Blackboard recita- tions are made easy by facing the chairs toward the blackboards that may be on front, rear, or sides of the room. When dark, wintry days arrive with leaden skies and the rooms have poor light, desks may be moved over close to windows to secure light without the use of artificial illumination. Chairs may be removed entirely or placed around the walls to facilitate class drills, exercise, or play. Furthermore, the janitors job of sweeping the rooms is very much lessened and the work can be done more thoroughly with less expense. Chairs may be moved from room to room to care for fluctuating classes. There are many other advantages claimed for the movable chair desk but these are the principal, and most logical ones. However, since we do away with formal ar- rangements in our homes, and study more the comforts and conveniences, we are lead to believe that the informal chair desk may supercede the old formal type. As we study the psychology of child life and the effect that conditions, mode of life, etc., have on the Fig. 89 PUBLIC SCIHOOLS 95 Fig. 90 growing child, we learn many things that tend to change the old formal methodical methods, and so it may be with our old formal school rooms. This same argument ap- plies to decoration and color in the school rooms, as many pshyiologists hold that the emotions are influenced by color to quite a large extent and some maintain that this is due to the varying luminosity of the different colors, and we have every day some ex- ample of its truth in the dull gray day and the warm bright sunshiny day, which acts in a marked degree on our emotions. We usually speak of the dark and cloudy day as cheerless and the day of sunshine as cheerful and we feel accordingly. This being true the same holds good with the decoration of the school. That architect whose finer per- ceptions will aid him to see and feel this can do wonders with the design of his school buildings, if he will design with this thought in mind. In fact, the true spirit of archi- tectural design of a school building is best brought out in the warmth and cheer con- veyed in the design of the structure and its decoration. The best in human nature is always brought out by the bright and cheerful, hence, the architect may convey this aid through the architecture of the building and by so doing lend his co-operation for the good of the growing generation. No school should be completed and left with its dull plastered wall surface and yet the item of decoration is one of the first to be cut off when the cost of the proposed school plant runs beyond the appropriation. However, we must give serious consideration to the problem of decoration as it is so closely allied to the problem of light. Light is absorbed or reflected according to the surface on which it falls, so of necessity, we must take our lighting scheme into consideration as we provide the decoration. Pure white reflects approximately 90% of all light falling upon it. Light cream 66%; light pink, 60%; light yellow, 58% light blue, 55%; light green, 21%; solid Fig. 91 96 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Fig. 92 chrome green, 11%. Now, with this in view, we have the means of judging the char- acter of decoration we may use in the school and at the same time provide for our light supply. Assuming that you value the eyesight of your children of primary importance, and that you are desirous of placing their best interests ahead of every other considera- tion, then you will not hesitate at a little extra expense in the cost of decoration and lighting. Then with this in view you will prepare the ceiling as your main reflecting sur- face to distribute and diffuse the rays of light that will be thrown upon it from indirect, or partially indirect, light fixtures, which you will use throughout the building in study and class rooms as the most effective means of distributing light for study purposes, as it most nearly diffuses the light and distributes it with equal intensity throughout the room without glare. Furthermore, this light may be turned on when the outside light is inadequate, adding to the light in the room without causing injurious cross lights and shadows. We would scarcely think of sitting out in the direct glare of the sunlight to read owing to the glare, and proportionately this same glare from the ordinary direct light acts injuriously. By using the indirect fixture which is diffused on the ceiling, the children are able to see the figures on blackboards without difficulty, figures that would be invisible at the same distance if direct light were used. Using the ceiling with a clear white surface as our reflecting medium, we base the estimate of light needed by the percentage of light reflected which we are safe in as- suming as 90%. However, as the light from indirect fixtures is also partly reflected, from a brilliant specially prepared surface, there is some loss from this surface, possibly 10%. So basing our estimate on this fact, we can assume that a total of 80% of the light will be reflected and only 20% lost. With this definite knowledge we can well af- ford to pay the expense in electric current to obtain a 25% decrease in eye troubles and the resultant increased efficiency of the pupils. Now, continuing with the decoration. The wall surfaces should be decorated with some of the lighter more cheerful colors whose absorption of light will be small. These should be especially cheerful to counteract the effect of solid black blackboard space which usually covers three of the school room walls and because of its blackness absorbs practically all of the light that falls upon it. So a very light tan or cream tint above the blackboard space is desirable and a somewhat darker shade below it works well. I would not recommend that one color be used throughout the building. Each part of the school should be considered as to its function and be decorated or left plain, accordingly. Aside for the question of color, that of special decoration should be considered. Figure 89 shows a school corrider lined with warm colored tiles and symbolic panels in relief covering the upper portion of the walls, these of themselves are good, note however, the bareness of the corridor and the severely cold, lonesome effect conveyed. How much more cheerful this hall would be if a little color had been added to the walls above the PUBLIC SCHOOL S 97 tile wainscot, with numerous pictures hung upon the walls, with a few busts and trophies added. Figures 90, 91, 92, all were photographed from a new school building erected at Hibbing, Minnesota, a town located on the "Messaba" iron range, where the largest mines in the world are. located. These mural scenes depict the industries of the town and mines, being actual views of the great iron industry from the mine to the smelter and on to the great steamships which convey the iron away to the great iron industries of the world. What more fitting means could be found to inspire the children of that great iron country with the dignity and worth of that great industry. For the country school what more fitting than the reproduction in painting of the vast fields of waving grain as it falls before the reaper, or the scenes of its planting to the final views of the towering grain elevators and vast flour mills that store the supply and turn it into flour to feed the world. You can in fact, educate your children by silent word pictures quite as much as by spoken lecture, so let me urge you that do not be miserly with the decora- tion of your building. Encourage the teachers to fill their rooms with flowers and see that the walls are hung with educational views and warm tinted pictures and I can assure you that it will help mightily to keep your children interested in the school and create a liking for it in their minds. 98 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twenty-six Play Grounds and Landscape Gardening A BEAUTIFULLY designed building with poor surroundings and cheerless grounds will not appear as attractive as a medicore building that has attractive grounds well laid out and planted with proper shrubs and trees, placed to enhance the architectural effect of the building and to lend beauty to the surroundings. Think, if you will, of the numerous towns and cities you have visited, bring to mind the dingy, dirty streets, with the unkept yards, squalid out-houses and filthy alleys of some, and the clean, wholesome appearance of others with their paved streets, beautiful parks, well kept lawns, and school grounds large and spacious, beautifully kept. Almost anyone can call to mind many such comparisons and these conditions are largely due to an indifferently educated public. We of times hear the excuse of poverty given as the reason for squalid, dirty conditions. This, however, is not entirely the reason, for this condition can only exist where the city government is too indifferent to clean it up. Given a city government, fully educated to the moral effect of a clean, wholesome city, plus a little energy and judicious expenditure and add these together and a moral, phy- sical, and mental uplift will be the result, while the whole community will respond to a civic pride that will do much for the city or town. This task is one that requires education, and the education can best be given by example; so the place to begin is at the school and with the growing generation; once enthuse the school children with a love for the beautiful, clean wholesome things of life, and they will do more with their parents and home to improve conditions than any other means that can be devised. Set the example by making the school grounds the most attractive spot in town and then, with this example always in front of your students, it becomes easy to urge improvement. There is no more practical test of a superin- tendent's, principal's, or teacher's worth than the example they set for the pupils to follow. The visitor, who passes from room to room of a well appointed school build- ing, where attractive pictures and pots full of blooming flowers are tastefuly arranged, Forest City, Iowa High School, showing the grading terracing and sidewalks admirably arranged. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 99 Two city blocks devoted to school buildings and playgrounds. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. where walls are clean and furniture and desks are not all scratched and battered up, will quickly appreciate the intelligent thought and care expended to secure the result. Visit another school where the rooms are bare and cheerless, where walls are covered with smudges and finger marks, where desks are battered and scratched and carved by the restless student, and listen to the excuse, that follows your criticism, that "boys will be boys" and it can't be helped, and you begin to realize by the comparison that something is fundamentally wrong, and that in the latter example the students are not receiving the proper guidance in their education. The most eloquent preacher can preach no greater sermon than the quiet, thoughtful teacher who, in her every day work in school, teaches the love of the beautiful, the liking for cleanliness, and the protection of property to her students, so that they take pride in, and appreciate, the attractive appearance of their school rooms; when such a condition is secured in the minds of the students, the teacher has done much to direct her students in the upward path. There is no half way course between good and evil ; we cannot stand still and we either improve or degenerate, so the up- lifting influence of the school that has beautiful grounds, artistic build- ings, clean, well decora- ted rooms, from whose walls inspiring pictures and historical scenes look down upon the student, cannot be overestimated. Children are at the most susceptible age when they first begin, their school life and the beauty of the school grounds which have been well landscaped, whose Terracing a sloping site on a'corner[lotjwhere playground space will be admirably velvety lawns beautiful arranged at the far end of the building with a park at the rear of the building which fl nwar Ur>A a on'rl ar-rioti^ is located on a corner occupying one-quarter of the block. One of three grade schools, ™ wtr ueub ^ nu *" llbllC- Iowa City, Iowa. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. . ally bordered Walks be- 100 PUBLIC SCHOOLS «ij£ f '.95B" Iff- ^-6 in H ■ t .^^ j *~^?SfC •••- tgj"- !!*I2~*s ^^tii^^^^^^^ : - 1 -ffi iiji Landscaping a city school grounds where the building occupies one-half a block. A city park at the rear of the building furnishes the playground space. One of three grade schools, Iowa City, Iowa. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. ing ever before the eyes of the growing child, un- consciously exert a great influence, and the beauty of it becomes fixed in the child's mind as an example that is to be desired for the home sur- roundings, and many a child going home to squal- id surroundings becomes dissatisfied with home conditions and improve- ment soon appears, or as the children grow they become dissatisfied with such home environments, and leave to better their condition elsewhere. By all means give the growing generation the example that will lead to the civic improvement of the next generation. For if the youth of today is ed- ucated properly they will clean up your dirty cities when they come into power in their mature years. Dr. Frank Crane's article, "Morality of Beauty," is a truism that should be taken as the motto of every filthy city, and if it were, landscape architects would soon be in popular demand. He says in part, "In its very core and heart morality is beauty. Some day or other society will decree that all unloveliness must cease, all ugliness must be destroyed. If this city were suddenly to be invaded by angels and dwelt in there- after by beings perfectly good, the first thing they would do would be to tear down all the unsightly structures and build both dwellings and office buildings of exquisite archi- tecture; the streets likewise would be made bowers of beauty, every vacant lot would be a flowered park and they would not rest until the town of men was a gem and not a scar upon the breast of nature." There can be no question of the truth of Dr. Crane's statements, and this ideal can best be realized by inoculating the growing generation with a love for such conditions by the examples we set in our schools. The second consid- eration of the school grounds should be the play grounds. Play grounds and play ground apparatus should be giv- en equal consideration with all other parts of the school and should never be slighted or dis- regarded. We often crit- icise the children for their noisy exuberance and try to curb this nervous en- ergy, however, we might as well try to curb the expansion of steam in a heated boiler, for both the steam and the boy's energy will burst its bounds if curbed too much; better far to direct this energy into profitable One of three Iowa City, Iowa Grade Schools. This building covers eight acres, having one street running right across the property in front of the building, this is closed to all but pleasure vehicles and has a large flower bed and fountain pro- vided in the center. Large tennis courts are provided for boys and girls. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 101 channels than to curb or let misdirected energy find its own outlet. Through the means of the supervised play grounds, covered with a variety of apparatus, and the assistance of play rooms or gymnasium, the energy that might find its outlet in carved up desks, etc., will be profitably expended in the physical development and healthy expansion of the grow- ing child. Do not stint your play ground space, give your children plenty of room. Pro- vide an athletic instructor and see that your anaemic, weak and sickly pupils are properly directed in their play, too violent exercise may do them more harm than good, find what they need and see that they get it. Some need abundance of certain kinds of exercise, others need an entirely different form of play or physical development, so the play ground appa ratus should be provided to fit all needs and conditions. Be careful as to the selection of a site; see that it is high and dry, and if a low spot cannot be avoided, be sure that it is well drained. Keep your buildings away from swampy land, such soils give off large quantities of carbon dioxide, and organic matter from the rotting swamp or marsh lands is conducive to fevers, rheumatism, tuberculosis and other diseases, and why invite sickness in your schools? The congestion incident to a large school population housed daily in a big building is sufficient reason for the quick spread of contagion, so do not aggravate the con- dition by a careless selection of the school grounds. The photographs here illustrated show the landscaping of the small city lot to the beautifying of grounds covering several acres. It may cost you something to se- cure the necessary ground but it will be cheap at any price if you will but measure the good you will have accomplished in the improved health and physical well being of the whole school. From the cheapest to the most expensive apparatus with equal results. Regardless of your condition and finances, give the children a chance. 102 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Chapter Twenty-seven Selection of an Architect— His Duties and Responsibilities WHEN a new building is contemplated or an old one remodeled, the first con- sideration of the School Board should be the selection of an Architect and this selection should not be made hastily, in fact, of all the factors entering into the erection of a building, the Architect is the most important. When you are seriously ill you carefully investigate the merits of the specialist and you trust your life in the hands of the man your investigation convinces you can best treat your disease. You investigate his reputation, you visit your friends and you listen to their reports of his treatment of them, and you thoroughly satisfy your own mind that he is capable and well qualified before you approach him and place your treatment in his hands, and after you have employed him you put your entire confidence in him, take his medicine for ill or good trusting his skill for the final cure. You also leave the matter of fee to him and accept its amount after treatment more or less gracefully. When you employ an attorney you go to the man who is winning cases, who has a reputation for efficiency in his profession and if it is a criminal case you employ a criminal lawyer as you would select a specialist in the treatment of tuberculosis if you had that disease. If you were the head of a large corporation with a case that involved millions you most certainly would select a corporation attorney of recognized ability to handle your case, and after you had employed your attorney you would give him all the information he asked for and you would not attempt to write his brief for him, you would trust to his judgment and ability and hope for the best, then pay whatever fee he saw fit to charge. You would never select him without first making careful investigation and in like manner you should as carefully select the Architect for a school building as you would select a medical or surgical specialist or your attorney. Unfortunately many Architects are posing as spec- ialists in school work and perhaps they may be specializing in this work from choice and inclination, but many are doing so without sufficient knowledge of the work or ability to handle it and in consequence it becomes necessary for School Boards in all justice to themselves to visit buildings planned by various Architects, with a view to seeing for themselves the results obtained by other School Boards who had employed the Architect or Architects they have under consideration. Such inspection of buildings will be a liberal education to a School Board as well as an aid to the selection of the Architect, as there is a big difference in buildings according to the amount of study put into the plan and a School Board visiting buildings will learn much that will be of value to them and they will avoid the selection of a poor Architect at least. However, if after investigation of the work of several Architects, it is found that the completed buildings show an equality of plan, design and arrangement, then a careful investigation of the several Architects should be made and that one selected whose reputation for honesty, prompt attention to business and knowledge of the economy of construction and equipment is the best. Many Architects are capable along certain lines, perhaps brilliant in design and yet total failures in the planning and arranging of schools. If you have an Architect in your locality who deserves the work and if you have a doubt as to his ability to handle your school building program, you should employ a consulting Architect (whose knowledge of school work is unquestionable) to assist you in developing your plans and the balance of this work can be handled by your local Architect with the addition of consultation service, and you will, many times, save the consultation fee. Unfortunately, both for the School Boards and the Architects, when it becomes known that a school is to be erected at a certain place, the School Board there is immediately bombarded with a mass of letters from various Architects who want the job. The School Board is placed in much the same position as the gallant 600, with Architects to the right of them, Archi- PUBLIC SCHOOLS 103 tects to the left of them, Architects in front of them volleying and thundering their lauda- tory -verbiage, extolling the virtues of their particular school plans and the wonderfully fine schools they have built. Now what can be expected of a School Board when they are so importuned by letters and personal visits from those of the Architectural profession who are most anxious to secure the work. They meet again and again with various good, bad and indifferently qualified Architects, and they soon get their fill of so many meetings, become tired out in fact and award the work oft times to the most plausible talker and they are indeed fortunate if they select a capable man among the lot, as the most capable Architect many times is a poor conversationalist and his chance would be poor indeed if pitted in a game of wits with an expert salesman. However, there is much of chance in the selection of an Architect by listening to what he has to say of himself. Better for you that you see for yourself what he has erected and compare it with others. Almost any man can secure recommendations but nothing speaks for itself more than final results in the completed work. Many times School Boards conclude to hold a competition for the selection of an Architect from a competition based on competitive sketches and if such a competition is held according to the recognized program as adopted and recommended by the Ameri- can Institute of Architects, there can be no question about the School Board securing satisfactory results and as a means of enlightenment, that a School Board may see all sides of the question before arriving at a decision as to the means of selection they wish to adopt, the following Professional Practice of Architects and Schedule of Proper Mini- mum charges of the American Institute of Architects is herewith printed ; also the Illinois Society of Architects, Canons of Professional Ethics, and the Program of Competitions as recommended by the American Institute of Architects: AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS Professional Practice of Architects and Schedule of Proper Minimum Charges 1. The architect's professional services consist of the necessary conferences, the preparation of preliminary studies, working drawings, specifications, large scale and full size detail drawings, and of the general direction and supervision of the work, for which, except" as hereinafter mentioned, the minimum charge, based upon the total cost of the work complete, is six per cent. 2. On residential work, on alterations to existing buildings, on monuments, fur- niture, decorative and cabinet work and landscape architecture, it is proper to make a higher charge than above indicated. 3. The architect is entitled to compensation for articles purchased under his direc- tion, even though not designed by him. 4. If an operation is conducted under separate contracts, rather than under a gen- eral contract, it is proper to charge a special fee in addition to the charges mentioned elsewhere in this schedule. 5. Where the architect is not otherwise retained, consultation fees for professional advice are to be paid in proportion to the importance of the questions involved and ser- vices rendered. 6. Where heating, ventilation, mechanical, structural, electrical and sanitary problems are of such a nature as to require the services of a specialist, the owner is to pay for such services. Chemical and mechanical tests and surveys, when required, are to be paid for by the owner. 7. Necessary traveling expenses are to be paid by the owner. 8. If, after a definite scheme has been approved, changes in drawings, specifications or other documents are required by the owner; or if the architect be put to extra labor or expense by the delinquency or insolvency of a contractor, the architect shall be paid for such additional services and expense. 104 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 9. Payments to the architect are due as his work progresses in the following order: Upon completion of the preliminary studies, one-fifth of the entire fee; upon completion of specifications and general working drawings (exclusive of details), two-fifths addi- tional, the remainder being due from time to time in proportion to the amount of service rendered. Until an actual estimate is received charges are based upon the proposed cost of the work and payments received are on account of the entire fee. 10. In the case of the abandonment or suspension of the work, the basis of settle- ment is to be as follows: For preliminary studies, a fee in accordance with the character and magnitude of the work; for preliminary studies, specifications and general working drawings (exclusive of details),. three-fifths of the fee for complete services. 11. The supervision of an architect (as distinguished from the continuous personal superintendence which may be secured by the employment of a clerk-of-the-works or superintendent of construction) means such inspection by the architect or his deputy, of work in studios and shops or a building or other work in process of erection, com- pletion or alteration, as he finds necessary to ascertain whether it is being executed in general conformity with his drawings and specifications or directions. He has authority to reject any part of the work which does not so conform and to order its removal and reconstruction. He has authority to act in emergencies that may arise in the course of construction, to order necessary changes, and to define the intent and meaning of the drawings and specifications. On operations where a clerk-of-the-works or superintendent of construction is required, the architect shall employ such assistance at the owner's expense. 12. Drawings and specifications, as instruments of service, are the property of the architect. As revised at the Washington Convention, December 15-17, 1908. Glenn Brown, Secretary, The Octagon, Washington, D. C. AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS A Circular of Advice Relative to Principles of Professional Practice and Canons of Ethics. The American Institute of Architects, seeking to maintain a high standard of prac- tice and conduct on the part of its members as a safeguard of the important financial, technical and esthetic interests entrusted to them, offers the following advice relative to professional practice: The professional architect calls for men of the highest integrity, business capacity and artistic ability. The architect is entrusted with financial undertakings in which his honesty of purpose must be above suspicion; he acts as professional adviser to his client and his advice must be absolutely disinterested; he is charged with the exercise of judicial functions as between client and contractors and must act with entire impar- tiality; he has moral responsibilities to his professional associates and subordinates; finally, he is engaged in a profession which carries with it grave responsibility to the public. These duties and responsibilities cannot be properly discharged unless his motives, conduct and ability are such as to command respect and confidence. No set of rules can be framed which will particularize all the duties of the architect in his various relations to his clients, to contractors, to his professional bretheren and to the public. The following principles should, however, govern the conduct of members of the profession and should serve as a guide in circumstances other than those enumerated : 1. On the Architect's Status. The architect's relation to his client is primarily that of professional adviser; this relation continues throughout the entire course of his service. When, however, a contract has been executed between his client and a contractor by the terms of which the archi- tect becomes the official interpreter of its conditions and the judge of its performance, PUBLIC SCHOOLS 105 an additional relation is created under which it is incumbent upon the architect to side neither with client nor contractor, but to use his powers under the contract to enforce its faithful performance by both parties. The fact that the architect's payment comes from the client does not invalidate his obligation to act with impartiality to both parties. 2. On Preliminary Drawings and Estimates. The architect at the outset should impress upon the client the importance of suffi- cient time for the preparation of drawings and specifications. It is the duty of the archi- tect to make or secure preliminary estimates when requested, but he should acquaint the client with their conditional character and inform him that complete and final figures can be had only from complete and final drawings and specifications. If an unconditional limit of cost be imposed before such drawings are made and estimated, the architect must be free to make such adjustments as seem to him necessary. Since the architect should assume no responsibility that may prevent him from giving his client disinter- ested advice, he should not, by bond or otherwise, guarantee any estimate or contract. 3. On Superintendence and Expert Services. On all work except the simplest, it is to the interest of the owner to employ a super- intendent or clerk-of-the-works. In many engineering problems and in certain special- ized esthetic problems, it is to his interest to have the services of special experts and the architect should so inform him. The experience and special knowledge of the archi- tect make it to the advantage of the owner that these persons, although paid by the owner, should be selected by the architect under whose direction they are to work. 4. On the Architect's Charges. The Schedule of Charges of the American Institute of Architects is recognized as a proper minimum of payment. The locality or the nature of the work, the quality of services to be rendered, the skill of the practitioner or other circumstances frequently justify a higher charge than that indicated by the Schedule. 5. On Payment for Expert Service. The architect when retained as an expert, whether in connection with competitions or otherwise, should receive a compensation proportionate to the responsibility and difficulty of the service. No duty of the architect is more exacting than such service, and the honor of the profession is involved in it. Under no circumstances should experts knowingly name prices in competition with each other. 6. On Selection of Bidders or Contractors. The architect should advise the client in the selection of bidders and in the award of the contract. In advising that none but trustworthy bidders be invited and that the award be made only to contractors who are reliable and competent, the architect protects the interests of his client. 7. On Duties to the Contractor. As the architect decides whether or not the intent of his plans and specifications is properly carried out, he should take special care to see that these drawings and speci- fications are complete and accurate, and he should never call upon the contractor to make good oversights or errors in them nor attempt to shirk responsibility by indefinite clauses in the contract or specifications. 8. On Engaging in the Building Trades. The architect should not directly or indirectly engage in any of the building trades. If he has any financial interest in any building material or device, he should not specify or use it without the knowledge and approval of his client. 9. On Accepting Commissions or Favors. The architect should not receive any commission or any substantial service from a contractor or from any interested person other than his client. 10. On Encouraging Good Workmanship. The large powers with which the architect is invested should be used with judgment. While he must condemn bad work, he should commend good work. Intelligent initiative 106 PUBLIC SCHOOLS on the part of craftsmen and workmen should be recognized and encouraged and the architect should make evident his appreciation of the dignity of the artisan's function. 11. On Offering Services Gratuitously. The seeking out of a possible client and the offering to him of professional services on approval and without compensation, unless warranted by personal or previous busi- ness relations, tends to lower the dignity and standing of the profession and is to be condemned. 12. On Advertising. Advertising tends to lower the dignity of the profession and is therefore conde mned 13. On Signing Building and Use of Tiles. The display of the architect's name upon a building under construction is condemned, but the unobtrusive signature of buildings after completion has the approval of the Institute. The use of initials designating membership in the Institute is proper in con- nection with any professional service and is to be encouraged as helping to make known the nature of the honor they imply. 14. On Competitions. An architect should not take part in a competition as a competitor or juror unless the competition is to be conducted according to the best practice and usage of the profession, as evidenced by its having received the approval of the Institute, nor should he continue to act as professional adviser after it has been determined that the program cannot be so drawn as to receive such approval. When an architect has been authorized to submit sketches for a given project, no other architect should submit sketches for it until the owner has taken definite action on the first sketches since, as far as the second architect is concerned, a competition is thus established. Except as an authorized competitor, an architect may not attempt to secure work for which a competition has been instituted. He may not attempt to influence the award in a competition in which he has submitted drawings. He may not accept the commission to do the work for which a competition has been instituted if he has acted in an advisory capacity either in drawing the program or in making the award. 15. On Undertaking the Work of Others. An architect should not undertake a commission while the claim for compensation or damages or both, of an architect previously employed and whose employment has been terminated remains unsatisfied, unless such claim has been referred to arbitration or issue has been joined at law; or unless the architect previously employed neglects to press his claim legally; nor should he attempt to supplant a fellow architect after definite steps have been taken toward his employment. 17. On Duties to Students and Draughtsmen. The architect should advise and assist those who intend making architecture their career. If the beginner must get his training solely in the office of an architect, the latter should urge his draughtsmen to avail themselves of educational opportunities. He should, as far as practicable, give encouragement to all worthy agencies and institutions for architectural education. While a thorough technical preparation is essential for the practice of architecture, architects cannot too strongly insist that it should rest upon a broad foundation of general culture. 18. On Duties to the Public and to Building Authorities. An architect should be mindful of the public welfare and should participate in those movements for public betterment in which his special training and experience qualify him to act. He should not, even under his client's instructions, engage in or encourage any practices contrary to law or hostile to the public interest; for as he is not obliged to accept a given piece of work, he cannot, by urging that he has but followed his client's . instructions, escape the condemnation attaching to his acts. An architect should sup- port all public officials who have charge of building in the rightful performance of their legal duties. He should carefully comply with all building laws and regulations, and if any such appear to him unwise or unfair, he should endeavor to have them altered. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 107 19. On Professional Qualifications. The public has the right to expect that he who bears the title of architecth as the knowledge and ability needed for the proper invention, illustration and supervision of all building operations which he may undertake. Such qualifications alone justify the assumption of the title of architect. THE ILLINOIS SOCIETY OF ARCHITECTS CANONS OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS Preamble. The architect is engaged in a profession which carries with it grave responsibilities to the public. These duties and responsibilities cannot be met unless the motives, conduct an ability of the members of the profession are such as to command respect and confidence. The profession of architecture calls for men of the highest integrity, and executive and artistic ability. The architect is entrusted with financial undertakings where his honesty of purpose must be above suspicion; he acts as professional adviser to his client, and his advice must be absolutely disinterested; he is charged with the exercise of judicial functions as between client and contractor, and must act with entire impartiality, and he has moral responsibilities toward his professional associates and subordinates. The people of the State of Illinois have a right to expect a high standard of practice and conduct on the part of the architects whom they have licensed to practice. Because an architect is a quasi public official it is imperative that he assume no obligations which shall place official duty and self-interest in conflict. The Canon of Ethics No set of rules can be framed which particularize all the duties of the architect in his various relations to the public, to his client, to the building trades and to his pro- fessional brother. The following canons of ethics cover certain broad principles which should govern the conduct of members of the profession and should serve as a guide in circumstances other than those enumerated : I. On Certain Duties to the Public. The architect's more important work is of a character so permanent and enduring that he owes it to the public to use his best efforts to make it such as may raise the stand- ard of taste in the community and be in itself a public ornament. He should design with due regard to surroundings and should endeavor to check any individualism, whether in himself or his client, that is opposed to the public good. He should take part in those movements for public betterment in which his training and experience enable him to give useful service. He should insist on safe and sanitary construction and he should at all times hold the safe guarding of human life and health as of paramount importance to the interests of client, contractor or self. II. On the Architect's Status. The architect's relation to his client is primarily that of professional adviser. This relation maintains throughout the period of his service. When, however, a contract is executed between his client and a builder or other person by the terms of which the archi- tect becomes the official interpreter of its conditions and the judge of its performance, a new relation is created. In respect to the matters under contract, it is incumbent upon the architect to side neither with the client nor contractor, but to endeavor, in so far as his action may determine, that the contract be faithfully carried out according to its true spirit and intent. It is not proper for the architect to assume to act as the owner's agent unless he has been specifically empowered so to act: by so doing he becomes a party to the contract and in a sense disqualified in his judicial capacity. 108 PUBLIC SCHOOLS The fact that the architect's payment comes through the client does not invalidate his professional obligation to act with impartiality to both parties to the contract. It is essential, however, in order to eliminate the influence of self-interest, that the architect shall not enter into any contract with the client which shall condition his payment upon his decisions or advice. III. On Preliminary Drawings and Estimates. The architect should impress upon his client at the outset the importance of suffi- cient time for the study and preparation of drawings and specifications. If, on the basis of approved preliminary sketches, the approximate cost of the work has been mutually considered, the architect should endeavor to bring his working drawings to meet such approximate cost, provided that his client has requested no departure from the original basis or estimate. But at the same time he should acquaint his client with the condi- tional character of preliminary estimates. Complete and final figures can be had only from complete and final drawings and specifications. If an unconditional limit of cost is imposed before such drawings are made and estimated, the architect must be free to make such adjustments as seem necessary to that end. IV. On Superintendence and Expert Service. On all work except the simplest, it is to the interest of the client to employ an inspec- tor or clerk-of-the-works; in many engineering problems and in certain esthetic problems such as sculpture, decorative painting, gardening and the like, it is to the interest of the client to have specialized expert service. The architect should so inform the client and assist him in obtaining such service. In order to secure unified and harmonious working organizations, only such persons should be selected by the owner for consulting experts as shall work in harmony with the architect and shall be approved by him. V. On the Architect's Charges. The schedule of charges of the Chicago Architect's Business Association is recognized as a proper minimum of payment, but where no other architect is affected it is allowable for an architect to make such an arrangement with his client as is mutually satisfactory. He may not reduce his fee below the schedule of charges in an attempt to supplant another architect; it is reasonable and proper to charge higher rates than those of the schedule when his special skill and the quality of his service justify the increase. A system of compensation based on the actual cost to the architect on a given piece of work plus an agreed professional fee, has much to commend it. VI. On Needless Expenditure. The architect should scrupulously guard cost, and refrain from introducing needless expense or any extravagance in material or construction that may add to cost of building, without compensating gain to the client. VII. On Payments for Expert Service. When retained as an expert, whether in connection with competitions or other- wise, the architect should receive a compensation proportionate to the responsibility and difficulty of the service. No duty of the architect is more exacting than such service, and the honor of the profession is involved in it. Under no circumstances should experts, knowingly, name prices in competition with each other for a given employment. Where governmental regulations prohibit adequate compensation for expert service, it is better to render such service without emolument than to accept a payment out of proportion to the importance of the service rendered. VIII. On the Selection of Bidders or Contractors. The architect should advise his client in the selection of bidders and in the award of contract. In selecting none but worthy bidders and in advising the award only to contractors who are honest and competent, the architect protects the interests of his client and helps to raise the ethical standard in building. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 109 IX. On Duties to the Contractor. On the signing of a contract between owner and builder, the architect is placed in a judicial position and is bound to act with absolute fairness; he is also judge in his own right, deciding whether or not the intent of his plans or specifications is properly carried out, and exercising his judgment as to the true meaning thereof. He should, therefore, take special care to see that these drawings and specifications are complete and accurate, and he should never call upon the contractor to make good his own oversights or errors, or attempt to shirk responsibility by ''blanket" clauses. X. On Engaging in the Building Trades. The architect should not engage in any of the building trades, nor should he form any trade partnership or agreement with any person or firm connected therewith; nor should he have any financial interests in any building material or device of such a nature as to render his professional action liable to suspicion of self-interest : if he have any interest in building material or device he should not specify or use the same without the full knowledge and approval of his client. XI. On Accepting Commission or Favors. The Architect may not receive any commission or any substantial service or favor from a dealer, a contractor, or from any interested person other than his client. XII. On Encouraging Good Workmanship. In his authority to interpret and enforce the provisions of the contract, the archi- tect is vested with large powers which he should use with unbiased judgemnt. While he must condemn bad work, he should also make a point of commending that which is good. Intelligent initiative, artistic or mechanical, on the part of craftsmen and workmen, should be promptly recognized and encouraged, and the architect should make evident his appreciation of the dignity and importance of their work. XIII. On Offering Service Gratuitously. The offering of professional service on approval unless warranted by personal or previous business relations, tends to lower the dignity and standing of the profession: also to provide motive for dishonest representation and is to be condemned. XIV. On Advertising. Advertising in any form is to be discouraged as tending to lower the standing of the profession. The presentation of ordinary business cards is a matter of individual taste and not per se improper; but the solicitation of work by circulars or advertisements and the inspiring or inserting of self-laudatory notice in the press are unprofessional. The best recommendation of an architect is a well-merited reputation for professional capacity and fidelity to trust. XV. On Signing Buildings and Use of Titles. The signing of buildings has the indorsement of the Chicago Architect's Business Association. The use of the initials designing degrees or technical society membership is proper in connection with any professional service and is encouraged as helping to make known the nature of the honor they imply. XVI. On Competitions. In no way does the architect come more conspicuously before the public than through competitions. It is especially desirable that in such circumstances he should conduct himself with self-respect and dignity. To undervalue and cheapen his service or to com- pete where a just award is not safeguarded is inconsistent with this position. Compe- titions are undesirable from the standpoint of both the client and the architect and a member of the Association should discourage holding of same. If a competition becomes inevitable, because of government regulations, he should not enter either as a competitor or a professional advisor unless the competition is to be conducted according to the best practice and usage of the profession as formulated from time to time by the American 110 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Institute of Architects. Except as an authorized competitor he may not attempt to secure work for which competition has been instituted. He may not present drawings to secure work for which competition has been closed but not decided. He may not attempt to influence the award in any competition. XVII. On the Expert's Future Status. An architect may not undertake a further commission on any building or work after having acted in an expert capacity in formulating a program which later is put into effect, or after having acted in an advisory capacity in the matter of awards in com- petition. Having acted in either or both of such capacities should bar an architect from eligibility to execute commissions upon the work in question. XVIII. On Criticising the Work of Others. An architect may not criticise publicly in the press the work of a fellow architect except over his own signature, or editorially; and he may not intentionally injure, directly or indirectly, the reputation, prospects or business of a fellow architect. XIX. On Undertaking the Work of Another. An architect may not undertake a commission while the just claim of a fellow archi- tect, who had previously undertaken it, remains unsatisfied; nor may he attempt to sup- plant a fellow architect or to obtain a commission after steps have been taken toward the appointment of another architect. XX. On Duties Toward the Student Draughtsman. It is the duty of the architect to advise and assist those who intend making architec- ture their career. The intending student should be urged to secure a preparation of broad general culture equivalent to that required for the degree of A. B., concurrently with or followed by a thorough course in a well organized school of architecture. In cases where such preparation is out of the question and the beginner must get his training in the office of an architect, the latter should assist him to the best of his ability by instruction and advice. An architect, should, as far as possible, urge his draughtsmen to avail themselves of educational opportunities. To this end he should give encourage- ment to all worthy schemes and institutions for architectural education. Members of the association cannot too strongly insist that a thorough technical preparation for the practice of architecture should rest upon a foundation of general culture. XXI. On Duties Toward Building Authorities. The architect should support all federal, state and municipal officials who have charge of matters relating to building and endeavor to maintain or improve the standards of their departments. His quasi public official capacity requires him to show respect for law by careful and conscientious compliance with all building regulations, and if any such appear to him unwise or unfair, he should endeavor to have such regulations altered, but until so altered he should comply with them. An architect because of his official relation to the state and of his moral obligation should not even under his client's instruc- tions encourage any practices contrary to law or hostile to public interest; for he is not obliged to accept a given piece of work, hence he cannot urge in extenuation and to escape the condemnation attaching to his acts that he has but followed his client's instruc- tions. XXII. On Professional Qualifications. The assumption of the title of architect should be held to mean that the bearer has the professional knowledge, both theoretical and practical, and the natural ability needed for the proper invention, illustration and supervision of all building operations which he may undertake. XXIII. On Matter Adjudged Unprofessional. The following code, based on a report of a special committee of the American Insti- tute of Architects, is adopted by the Chicago Architect's Business Association as a general PUBLIC SCHOOLS 111 guide, yet the enumeration of particular duties should not be construed as the denial of the existence of others equally imperative though not specifically mentioned. It should also be noted that these sections indicate offenses of greatly varying degrees of gravity: It is unprofessional for an architect — 1. To engage in any of the building trades or to form any trade partnership or agreement with any person or firm engaged therein. 2. To guarantee an estimate or contract by bond or otherwise. 3. To accept a commission or any substantial service or favor from a contractor, or anyone connected with the building trades. 4. To advertise in any form. 5. To enter any competition the terms of which are not in harmony with principles approved by the American Institute, especially if such terms have been specifically con- demned by the American Institute or a local chapter thereof. 6. To attempt in any way except as a duly authorized competitor to secure work for which a competition has been instituted. 7. To attempt to influence the award of a competition. 8. To injure intentionally the fair reputation, prospects or business of another architect. 9. To criticise anonymously in the public prints, except editorially, the professional conduct or work of a fellow architect. 10. To undertake a commission while the just claim of another architect who has previously undertaken it remains unsatisfied. 11. To attempt to supplant a fellow architect after definite steps have been taken toward his employment. 12. To offer or perform services at rates lower than those approved as minimum by the Chicago Architects' Business Association in an attempt to supplant or underbid another architect. 13. To act in a manner detrimental to the best interests of the profession. Just as we go to press the Western Architect publishes the following letters and discussions on the question of ethics which, we believe, will be of interest to those who may have an interest in this subject. A QUESTION OF ETHICS Being a discussion of the subject of competitions, regulated and otherwise, and the questions of business-getting policy which has created great interest among the members of the Illinois Society of Architects, and is open to the consideration of all readers of the Western Architect. When a member of the Illinois Society of Architects last fall wrote to President F. E. Davidson, raising a question of professional ethics, he started a discussion which has been of intense interest to the profession in the state. A wide divergence of opinion has developed, involving the question of competitions and the proper procedure of seeking business. Originally the question involved that of taking part in an "unregulated" competition in which an owner desired competitive plans for which he proposed to pay and from which he would make his selection. President Davidson submitted the letter to a number of the prominent practitioners in Illinois, and a most interesting discussion resulted. Some of these letters are reprinted because of the interest they have aroused in Illinois as a result of their publication in the Bulletin of the Illinois Society of Architects. The question is now open to discussion among the readers of The Western Architect. H2 P U B L I C S C H L S Addressed to President Davidson, the first letter written by Irving K. Pond, past president of the American institute of Architects, Chicago, is .is follows: By his flippant and mildly contemptuous reference to his ethical architectural friends, I judge; thai the writer of the Idler published under the caption, A Question of Ethics, in the November Bulletin, and on which you desire comment by me, is not himself at heart inclined to be more than relatively ethical; otherwise he would know how to act under given conditions and would have no need to seek light in the Bulletin. If he is a member of an Architectural Society which has pronounced upon the subject he will follow the mandates of that Society. If he is outside such a Society he will, perhaps, act as his conscience dictates. In either ease lie will do well to be wary of any Owner (with a big O) who "realizes" that his proposed action is not in accord with the Architects' idea of his professional practice and suggests that, to do business, or to be allowed an uneven chance to do business, the Architect "reconcile his ideas of ethics with the Owner's wishes and ideas of service." The Architect may well avoid business relations with a client who is not willing to guarantee conditions of fair play in a competition unto which he invites architects; but who invites them, rather, on the basis that they are to reconcile their ideas of ethics with his personal whims and desires, — and who will not head his personal whims and desires to recognized standards of right as between man and man. The American Institute of Architects has formulated from long years of practice and experience, a standard, which, if followed, will protect the client against the unworthy Architect and the Architect against the selfish and tricky, not to say dishonorable, client. The Institute cannot set any standard "once and for all" which "all architects" will live up to all the time or any of the time, until all architects entertain convictions and hold principles for which they are willing to sacrifice something. My advice to the young and inexperienced writer of the letter in question is to follow Institute Standards until something better is devised. Yours sincerely, Irving K. Pond, Past President A. I. A. Robert C. Spencer, Jr., F. A. I. A., in a letter published later, had this to say: To F. E. Davidson, President, Illinois Society of Architects: My Dear Mr. Davidson: Sometine ago I promised you that I would write a letter for publication in the Bulle- tin, apropos of the question raised by a member of the Illinois Society of Architects who wanted light on the subject of unregulated competition. It is safe to say that there is a decided lack of unanimous opinion among members of the American Institute of Architects concerning those of its Canon of Ethics which have to do with questions of business-getting policy, rather than with morality and integrity of professional conduct. According to Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, a code of ethics may not necessa- rily prescribe a right course of action. Quoting from Dr. John Dewey in "The Americana," "In its historical development, ethics has been regarded as a branch of philosophy, as a science, and as an art, — often as a composite of two or all of these in varying proportions." And again, "Ethics as an art is concerned with discovering and formulating rules of acting in accordance with which men may attain their end. These rules may be con- sidered as of a nature either of injunctions or commands, which prescribe as well as instruct; or as technical formulae which indicate to the individual the best way of proceeding toward a desired result, thus not differing in kind from rules of painting or of carpentry." And again, "As may be readily inferred, some of the most serious problems of ethics at present arc concerned with defining and delimiting its own scope, bases and aims." The long article by this eminent philosopher and writer from which these paragraphs are quoted, closes as follows: "But as ethical writers become more habituated to evolutionary ideas, they will cease setting up ideals of an Utopian millennium, with only one end and law; and will PUBLIC SCHOOLS 113 devote themselves to studying the conditions and effects of the changing situations under which men actually live." Right here I say frankly that I have never believed that certain injunctions of the so-called "Code of Ethics" of the American Institute wore particularly ethical from the moral viewpoint; that they were any more ethical than certain working rules of the organized building trades. But, when, without any expressed dissent or reservation, we join the body which has adopted this code, we tacitly agree as a condition of our newly acquired status, that we will abide by the rules of the organization. And the breaking of an implied agreement is unquestionably a moral question; and there's the rub. Yet it is plain, that, insofar as it hampers them in their methods of seeking to obtain new business in ways, that, however undesirable, are at least in their nature not necessa- rily unfair or dishonorable, the "Code" does not trouble a lot of our very competent, efficient and successful fellow menbers — not very noticeably. There are also some very talented, competent and efficient gentlemen in our pro- fession who will not join, each preferring to act as his own censor, in matters of professional practice and conduct. The code "condemns" doing work gratis in order to obtain commissions. Further on, it sanctions competitions of a certain prescribed form (we may call them "regulated" or "regular" competition) and condemns all others, making it very, very umprofessional to enter them except unwittingly, when of course, the sin may be forgiven. Yet entering any regulated competition, except as one of those rare ones in which each competitor is fully paid, certainly involves doing work gratis in the hope of obtaining a commission as most of us can testify. Brother Pond, Brother Jensen and Brother Hall, I do not question that in an ideal community, the ideal architect would sit in his atelier and calmly welcome each new and excellent client as he came in, with never a thought of the morrow, as to prospective clients. In Utopia the job will always seek the Architect, but Utopia is a long ways from Michigan Boulevard. It is just because so many talented architects are such poor salesmen or so afraid to try salesmanship, that mediocre, but more pushing and less scrupulous men, also a lot of " art-shitccks " are building up our city in all the ugliness of its prevailing half- baked architecture, and riding in super-sixes. The salesman today is a bigger man than the producer, bigger at least, according to popular standards. Some one has said- that an architect is a draftsman with a "job." "What is an architect without a job?" Probably a member of the Institute trying to live up to the Code during a period of dullness instead of going out and starting some- thing. Now, let us hear from Brother Maher and some of the others who are not quite sure, either. Hoping that I may have the privilege of saying a word about competitions in a later issue, I am, Yours very truly, ROBERT C. SPENCER, JR., F. A. I. A. The latest contribution is that of George W. Maher, F. A. T. A., who writes in part as follows: It is gratifying to note that the Monthly Bulletin of the Illinois Society of Architects is performing a real service in obtaining various opinions and viewpoints of members of the Institute in respect to the query propounded by a member of the Society. The question seemed a frank statement on the part of the member who wished to be informed on the general professional opinion regarding unregulated competitions. The gentleman certainly "started something" and we owe him thanks and especially the President of the Illinois Society, for obtaining and publishing opinions from members of the A. I. A. on this vital issue. The inquiry in question has already been answered, but 114 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Brother Spencer in his excellent article suggests that there should be more general discus- sion of the principles involved, and in this idea I fully accord with him. The subject is certainly a vexatious one, since it presents broad issues of a debatable nature and each viewpoint, is subject to a constant change as methods and conditions alter in the business world of action. I shall attempt to present briefly, the issues as I understand them. In my judgment the subject is too involved and far reaching in results to formulate any decisive opinion until discussed by the profession at large. Without question of doubt the purpose of the code of ethics of the Institute and also the Illinois Society, as related to unregulated competitions originated in the desire to assist the architect in obtaining from the client and public, intelligent and proper recognition, also a commensurate competence for professional work performed of a technical nature. It is of general opinion that the architect has not always been treated properly or paid adequately for skilled services rendered as compared with other professions or other types of business. Therefore, the lack of knowledge or seeming ignorance on the part of the public in regard to what really constitutes the qualities of an architect had to be valiently met, and it seemed necessary and wise for the Institute, after careful delibera- tion to bring into force stringent rules and codes of professional conduct in order to guide the members in their general practice. In addition to this, the observance of an accepted code by architects affiliated with the Institute would tend to enlighten the public to a realization of the difference in standing, character and ability between certain types of architectural practitioners. There are men posing as architects who are totally devoid of the training or quali- fications of an architect. This type of "free booter" roams about at will, preying on the ignorant and credulous building public. They are a menace to society, as their work and actions usually attest. They are members of no organized society of architects. In contrast to this class is the strictly professional architect, who is recognized by his fellows as being a man of principle and education and who is, therefore, eligible to membership in organized societies of architects. It certainly should be the desire of all members of the American Institute and the Illinois Society to practice according to the code until something better has been evolved from the heart and mind of these associations and properly indorsed by them. Such an observance will differentiate the real professional architect from the pretender and will assist in elevating the standing of the profession, and thus be of general benefit to the public at large. The problem we are really facing today is how to continually pursue this policy, which we must admit has its splendid qualities for good, and yet not place too much hardship on the struggling architect, and especially the young man at the commencement of his professional career. It certainly should not be the purpose of any code of ethics to discourage an architect who is a member from obtaining legitimate work by employing his genius as he considers it best to meet the conditions presented. It is not right totally to ignore new and progressive business situations as they continually arise. Many a man has been brought into a life a real service, by some single chance or opportunity which might have been denied him if curtailed by stringent professional ethics or dogma which governed and controlled his actions. There is a psychological moment in all phases of human phenomena which must be taken strictly into account at a certain prescribed time in order to arrive at the definite constructive conclusion desired. It therefore is a dangerous policy for any organization to discourage the competitive habit. Such a procedure, if carried to its ultimate conclusion, dulls the wits, strangles creative impulses and makes "laggards" in the world of action. Competition and De- mocracy go hand in hand and a sane competition, in order to obtain opportunity for work, should be encouraged by the profession. The same is true of proper advertising. I may hold an advanced view on this mooted subject, but I am inclined to think that a great profession actually engaged in the service of mankind should not nor has it a right to be compelled to hide its light under a bushel. Advertising is a permanent institution, a great and legitimate profession, and therefore the PUBLIC SCHOOLS 115 American Institute of Architects and the Illinois Association should avail itself of oppor- tunities presented in order to be in tune and in step with progressive America. We are organized together primarily to assist in the right upbuilding and beautifying of our communities and cities. In order to do this as professional men, we agree to accept certain responsibilities which must be adhered to in order to best achieve the results desired. Let us, therefore, approach any discussion of the problem with an open mind and hold only to those canons of ethics which will advance the opportunity and usefulness of the trained architect. In the spirit of this method of procedure will the profession perform its services best for the ultimate good of the public, I am, Yours very truly, GEORGE W. MAHER, F. A. I. A. ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITIONS A Circular of Advice and Information Issued by the American Institute of Architects. Authorized by the 43d Annual Convention at Washington, D. C, December 14-16, 1909. Issued March 30, 1910. Amended June 10, 1910, and January 3, 1911. Ratified by the 44th Annual Convention at San Francisco, January 16-21, 1911. Reaffirmed by the 45th Annual Convention at Washington, D. C., December 12-14, 1911. Amended January 3, 1912, as authorized by the Convention. Amended December 9, 1912, and ratified by the 46th Annual Convention at Washington, D. C, December 10-12, 1912. Fourth Edition, January First, 1913. This circular furnishes information as to the best methods of conducting architectural competitions and states the conditions which are prerequisite to participation in them by members of the American Institute of Architects. THE ATTITUDE OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTS TO COMPETITIONS Since its foundation more than fifty years ago, the American Institute of Architects has given much attention to the conduct of architectural competitions. These contests, generally needless and always too numerous, were for many years conducted without proper regulation and often in disregard of the interests both of the owner and of the competitors. The owner, totally unfamiliar with the intricacies of the subject, assumed, without skilled assistance, to prepare the program, laying down, or more frequently ignoring, rules to govern procedure. Architects were led by many reasons to enter such competitions. Some needed work and were compelled to take any chance to obtain it. Many enjoyed the contest, some the exercise of solving an interesting problem. Architects have, however, learned that the outcome of a competition is largely a matter of chance and that the method rarely produces results in the building better than those obtained by direct selection. The owner has, to be sure, a choice of designs, but he is no more likely to make the wisest selection or to obtain the best building than if he selects his architect directly, guided by the results previously achieved by the men he is considering. For certain work, expecially that of a public nature, there may, however, be reasons for holding a competition. When a competition is necessary, it should be of such form as to establish equitable relations between the owner and the competitors. To insure this: (1). The requirements should be clear and definite, and the statement of them, since it must be in technical terms, should be drawn by one familiar with such terms. (2). The competency of all competing should be assured. The drawings submitted in a competition are evidence, only in part, of the ability of the architect to execute the building. The owner, for his own protection, should admit to the competition only those to whom he would be willing to entrust the work; that is, to men of known honesty and competence. 116 PUBLIC SCHOOLS (3). The agreement between the owner and the competitors should be definite, as becomes a plain statement of business relations. (4). The judgment should be based on knowledge and, since ideas presented in the form of drawings are intelligible only to a trained mind, judgment should not be rendered until the owner has received competent technical advice as to the merits of those ideas. To sum up: To insure the best results a competition should have (1) a clear program (2) competent competitors, (3) a business agreement, (4) a fair judgment. Fifteen years ago many competitions had none of these provisions and few had all of them. The commonest form of competition was one that was open to all, had a pro- gram prepared by a layman, was judged by the owner without professional assistance, contained no agreement, and made no provision to eliminate the incompetent. The Institute, realizing that such affairs were of no value to the owner and were injurious to the profession, stated the principles which should govern the conduct of competitions. This statement, corrected and improved from time to time, was an excel- lent academic treatise to which all readily subscribed, but to which no one paid any attention if, for any reason, he wished to enter a competition. In fact, although all believed in it, few were willing to put it into practice unsupported. To make the prin- ciples operative it was necessary to make them obligatory. With the growth of the country, the increase in expenditures for public and private buildings, and the increase in the number of architects, all the evils of ill regulated com- petitions became more marked and more burdensome. Programs varied from loose and careless forms difficult to understand and often open to the suspicion that only the initi- ated knew what they meant, to over-elaborate ones necessitating useless study of details and needless drawings. Those instituting the competition often had no legal authority to pay any competitors, still less to employ the winner. There was great economic waste, the total cost of participation exceeding the total net profit accruing to the profession from work secured through competitions. All this demanded correction. The Institute, seeking a means of reform, preceived at once that its relation to the owner could be. only an advisory one. It might urge him not to hold a competition or it might advise how to hold one, but it could go no further. To architects in general the Institute could scarcely presume to offer even its advice, but being a professional body charged with maintaining ethical standards among its own members its duty was to see that they did not take part in competitions that fell below a reasonable standard. The Institute, therefore, as a first step put itself squarely on record as opposed to competitions on the ground that they were uncertain in their results and wasteful of time and money; but since they are sometimes necessary, it was voted in convention that members should be free to take part in them when their terms had received the approval of the Institute. Thereupon, the Institute fully stated the principles which should govern competitions and defined the conditions prerequisite to the giving of its approval. These are contained in the Circular of Advice here following, which is intended as a guide to all who are interested in competitions. Committees of the Institute throughout the the country are authorized to give its approval to competitions when properly conducted, but unless a program has received such approval, members of the Institute do not accept a position as competitor or juror, nor does a member continue to act as professional adviser after it becomes evident that the owner will not permit his program to be brought into harmony with the principles approved by the Institute. The position thus taken by the Institute is by no means an arbitrary one since it governs the action of none but its own members. To the owner, its service has been of great value in giving him information and useful advice and in saving him from the delays, cost and disappointment incident to the amateur conduct of a competition. The owner who disregards the standard set by the Institute finds it increasingly difficult to get men of standing in the profession to enter. He who raises his program to that standard has no difficulty in securing the services of architects of the greatest ability. Even in the few years since the Institute first made its firm stand against the abuses of competitions the effect of that action has been far greater than could have been fore- PUBLIC SCHOOLS 117 seen. It has not altogether eliminated ill-regulated competitions, but it has greatly reduced their number, and it is safe to say that no competition of prime importance is now conducted except in accordance with the principles stated n the following Circular of Advice. A CIRCULAR OF ADVICE AND INFORMATION RELATIVE TO THE CONDUCT OF ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITIONS Competitions are instituted to enable the owner to choose an architect through comparison of the designs submitted. The American Institute of Architects, believing that the interests of both owner and competitors are best served by fair and equitable agreements between them, issues this circular as a statement of the principles which should underlie such agreements. The Institute does not assume to dictate the owner's course in conducting competi- tions, but aims to assist him by advising the adoption of such methods as experience has proved to be just and wise. So important, however, does the adoption of such methods appear to architects that members of the Institute do not take part in competitions except under conditions based on this circular and specifically set forth in Article 16 and 18. 1. On Competitions in General. * A competition exists when two or more architects prepare sketches at the same time for the same project. A competition when properly conducted, is a means for the selection of an architect. As an incident, a good preliminary scheme may sometimes be obtained, but the institute is of the opinion that competitions are in the main of no advantage to the owner. It therefore recommends that, except in cases in which competition is unavoidable, an architect be employed by direct selection upon the sole basis of his fitness for work. 2. On the Employment of a Professional Adviser. No competition should be instituted without the aid of a competent adviser. He should be an architect of the highest standing and his selection should be the owner's first step. He should be chosen with the greatest care, as the success of the competition will depend largely upon his experience and ability. The expert's advice is of great value to the owner, for example, in so drawing the program as to safeguard him against the employment of an architect who submits a design largely exceeding in cost of execution the sum at his disposal, and in helping him to avoid the disappointment, embarrassment and litigation which so often result from competitions conducted without expert technical advice. The duties of the expert are to advise those who hold the competition as to its form and terms, to draw up the program, to advise in choosing the competitors, to answer their questions, and to conduct the competition. Competitions are at best a slow and expensive method of choosing an architect, and it is unwise to attempt to save either time or money by not having an expert adviser. 3. On the Forms of Competition. The following forms of competition are recognized: Limited. — In this form, participation is limited to a certain number of architects whose names should be stated in the program and to any one of whom the owner is willing to entrust the work. In a limited competition, the competitors may be chosen (a) from among architects whose ability is so evident that no formal inquiry into their qualifications is needed, or (b) from among architects who make application accompanied by evidence of their education and experience. The limited form has the advantage that the owner and the professional adviser may meet competitors and discuss the terms of the competition with them before the issuance of the program. Form (a) is the simplest and most direct form of competition. Open. — The Institute believes that a competition open to all who wish to participate without regard to their qualifications is detrimental to the interests alike of owner and of 118 PUBLIC SCHOOLS architects. It will therefore give its approval to that form only when conducted in two stages, since by that means alone is it possible to insure anonymity of submission while safeguarding the owner's interests against the selection as winner of a person lacking the qualifications set forth in Article 4 hereof. In this form, there is a first stage open to all, in which the competitive drawings are of the slightest nature, involving only the fundamental ideas of the solution. These drawings are accompanied by evidence of the competitor's education and experience. From the first stage, a small number who have thus demonstrated their competence to design the work and to carry it successfully into execution, are chosen to take part in a final and strictly anonymous stage involving competitive drawings of the type indicated in Article 8 hereof. This form of competition is very cumbersome and should be adopted only when the law requires that the competition shall be open to all who choose to take part in it. 4. On the Qualification of Competitors. The interests of the owner may be seriously prejudiced by admitting to a limited competition or to the second stage of an open competition any architect who has not established to the satisfaction of the owner his competence to design and execute the work. It is sometimes urged that, by admitting all who wish to take part, some unknown but brilliant designer may be found. If the object of a competition were a set of sketches, such reasoning might be valid. But sketches give no evidence that their author has the matured artictic ability to fulfil their promise, or that he has the technical knowledge necessary to control the design of the highly complex structure and equipment of a modern building, or that he has executive ability for large affairs or the force to compel the proper execution of contracts. Attempts have often been made to defend the owner's interests by associating an architect of ability with one lacking in experience. These have generally resulted in failure. As the owner should feel bound, not only legally, but in point of honor, to retain as his architect the competitor to whom the award is made, it is essential that the com- petitors in a limited competition or in the second stage of an open competition should be selected with the greatest care in consultation with the professional adviser, and that there should be included among them only architects in whose ability and integrity the owner has absolute confidence, and to any one of whom he is willing to entrust the work. 5. On the Number of Competitors. Experience has demonstrated that the admission of many competitors is detrimental to the success of a competition. When there are many, each knows that he has but a slight chance of success, and he is. therefore less aroused to his best effort than when there are but few. As the owner is interested only in the best result, he is ill advised to sacrifice quality for quantity. 6. On Anonymity of Competitors. Absolute and effective anonymity is, except in rare cases, a necessary condition of a fair and unbiased competition. Except in such cases, the signing of drawings should not be permitted nor should they bear any motto, device or distinguishing mark. Drawings and the accompanying sealed envelopes containing their authors' names should be num- bered upon receipt, the envelopes remaining unopened until after the award. 7. On the Cost of the Proposed Work. No statement of the intended cost of the work should be made unless it has been ascertained that the work as described in the program can be properly executed within the sum named. In general it is wiser to limit the cubic contents of the building than to state a limit of cost. The program should neither require nor permit competitors to furnish their own or builders' estimates of the cost of executing the work in accordance with their design. Such estimates are singularly unreliable. If the cubage be properly limited they are unnecessary. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 119 8. On the Jury of Award. . To insure a wise and just award and to protect the interests of both the owner and the competitors, the competitive drawings should be submitted to a jury so chosen as to secure expert knowledge and freedom from personal bias. Such a jury thoroughly understands and can explain the intent of the drawings. It discovers from them their authors' skill in design, arrangement and construction. Because of its trained judgment its advice as to the merits of the designs submitted is of the highest value to the owner. The jury should consist of at least three members. A majority of the jury should be architects, one or more of whom may be chosen by the competitors. It is the duty of the jury to study carefully the program and all conditions relating to the problem and the competition before examining the designs submitted; to refuse to make or recommend an award in favor of the author of any design that does not fulfil the conditions distinctly stated as mandatory in the program; to give ample time to the careful study of the designs; and to render a decision only after mature consideration. The jury should see to it that a copy of its report reaches every competitor. The professional adviser should not be a member of the jury as his judgment is apt to be influenced by his previous study of the problem. 9. On the Competitive Drawings. The purpose of an architectural competition is not to secure fully developed plans, but such evidence of skill in treating the essential elements of the problems as will assist in the selection of an architect. The drawings should, therefore, be as few in number and as simple in character as will express the general design of the building. A jury of experts does not need elaborate drawings. 10. On the Program. The program should contain rules for the conduct of the competition, instructions for competitors and the jury, and the agreement between the owner and the competitors. Uniform conditions for all competitors are fundamental to the proper conduct of com- petitions. Lengthy programs and detailed instructions as to the desired accommodations should be avoided, as they confuse the problem and hamper the competitors. The prob- lem should be stated broadly. Its solutions should be left to the competitors. A distinction should be clearly drawn between the mandatory and the advisory provisions of the program, i. e., between those which if not met preclude an award in favor of the author of a design so failing, and those which are merely optional or of a suggestive character. The mandatory requirements should be set forth in such a way that they cannot fail to be recognized as such. They should be as few as possible, and should relate only to matters which cannot be left to the discretion of the competitors. It is difficult to summarize briefly the program, but it should at least : (a) Name the owner of the structure forming the subject of the competition, and state whether the owner institutes the competition personally or through representatives. If the latter, name the representatives, state how their authority is derived, and define its scope. (b) State the kind of competition to be instituted, and in limited competitions name the competitors; or in open competitions, if the competition is limited geographically or otherwise, state the limits. (c) Fix a time and place for the receipt of the designs. The time should not be altered except with the unanimous consent of the competitors. (d) Furnish exact information as to the site. (e) State the desired accommodation, avoiding detail. (f) State the cost if it be fixed or, better, limit the cubic contents. (g) Fix uniform requirements for the drawings, giving the number, the scale or scales, and the method of rendering. (h) Forbid the submission of more than one design by any one competitor. 120 PUBLIC SCHOOLS (i) Provide a method for insuring anonymity of submission unless the drawings are to be signed. (j) Name the members of the jury or provide for their selection. Define their powers and duties. If for legal reasons the jury may not make the final award, state such reasons and in whom such power is vested. (k) Provide that no award shall be made in favor of any design until the jury shall have certified that it does not violate any mandatory requirement of the program. (1) Provide that during the competition there shall be no communication relative to it between any competitor and the owner, his representatives or any member of the jury, and that any communication with the professional adviser shall be in writing. Provide also that any information, whether in answer to such communications or not, shall be given in writing simultaneously to all competitors. Set a date after which no questions will be answered. (m) State the number and amount of payments to competitors. (n) Provide that the professional adviser shall send a report of the competition to each competitor, including therein the report of the jury. (o) Provide that no drawing shall be exhibited or made public until after the award of the jury and not then without the consent of the author. (p) Provide for the return of unsuccessful drawings to their respective authors within a reasonable time. (q) Provide that nothing original in any of the unsuccessful designs shall be used without consent of, and compensation to, the author of the design in which it appears. (r) Include the contract between the owner and the competitors. (s) Include the contract between the owner and the architect receiving the award. 11. On the Agreement. An owner who institutes a competition assumes a moral obligation to retain one of the competitors as his architect. In order that architects invited to compete may deter- mine whether they will take part it is essential that they should know the terms upon which the winner will be employed; and it is of the utmost importance to the owner that those terms should be so clearly defined that no disagreement as to their meaning can arise after the award is made. Unless they be so defined, delay is likely to occur and disagreements to arise at a time when a complete understanding between owner and architect is most important for the welfare of the work. Therefore there must be included in the program, a form which guarantees the appointment of one of the competitors as architect and provides an agreement operative upon that appointment defining his employment in terms consonant with the best practice. This must conform in all fundamental respects to the following: TYPICAL FORM OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN OWNER AND COMPETITORS In consideration of the submission of drawings in this competition (here insert the name of the owner or of the body duly authorized to enter into contracts on behalf of the owner), hereinafter called the owner, agrees with the competitors jointly and severally that the owner will, within 5 days of the date set for the submission of drawings, make an award of the commission to design and supervise the work forming the subject of this competition to one of those competitors who submit drawings in consonance with the mandatory requirements of this program, and will thereupon pay him, on account of his services as architect, one-tenth of his total estimated fee as stated below. And further, in consideration of the submission of drawings as aforesaid, and the mutual promises enumerated in the subjoined "Conditions of' Contract between Architect and Owner," the owner agrees and each competitor agrees, if the award be made in his favor, immedi- ately to enter into a contract containing all the "Conditions" here following, and until such contract is executed, to be bound by the said "Conditions." P U B L I C S C H O O L S 121 ARTICLE I. CONDITIONS OF CONTRACT BETWEEN ARCHITECT AND OWNER Duties of the Architect. 1. Design. The architect is to design the entire building and its immediate surroundings and is to design or direct the design of its constructive, engineering and decorative work and its fixed equipment and, if further retained, its movable furniture and the treatment of the remainder of its grounds. 2. Drawings and Specifications. The architect is to make such revision of his competitive scheme as may be necessary to complete the preliminary studies; and he is to provide drawings and specifications necessary for the conduct of the work. All such instruments of service are and remain the property of the architect. 3. Administration. The architect is to prepare or advise as to all forms connected with the making of proposals and contracts, to issue all certificates of payment, to keep proper accounts and generally to discharge the necessary administrative duties connected with the work. 4. Supervision. The architect is to supervise the execution of all the work committed to his control. ARTICLE II. 1. Payments. The owner is to pay the architect for his services a sum equal to six per cent upon the cost of the work. (The times and amounts of payments should be here stated.) 2. Reimbursements. The owner is to reimburse the architect, from time to time, the amount of expense necessarily incurred by him or his deputies while traveling in the discharge of duties connected with the work. 3. Services of Engineers. The owner is to reimburse the architect the cost of the services of engineers for heating, mechanical and electrical work. The selection of such engineers and their compensation shall be subject to the approval of the owner. 4. Information, Clerk-of-the-Works, etc. The owner is to give all information as to his requirements; to pay for all necessary surveys, borings and tests, and for the continuous services of a clerk-of-the-works whose competence is approved by the architect. 12. On Payments to Unsuccessful Competitors. In a limited competition and in the second stage of an open competition each com- petitor, except the winner, should be paid for his services. 13. On Legality of Procedure. It is highly important that each step taken in connection with a competition and every provision of the program should be in consonance with law. Those charged with holding the competition should know and state their authority. If they are not empow- ered to bind their principal by contracts with the competitors, they should seek and receive such authority before issuing an invitation. If authority cannot legally be granted to the jury to make the award, that fact should be stated, and the body named in which such authority is vested. 14. On the Conduct of the Owner. In order to maintain absolute impartiality toward all competitors, the owner, his representatives and all connected with the enterprise should, as soon as a professional adviser has been appointed, refrain from holding any communication in regard to the 122 PUBLIC SCHO O L S matter with any architect except the adviser or the jurors. The meeting with com- petitors described in Article 3 is of course an exception. 15. On the Conduct of Architects. An architect should not attempt in any way, except as a duly authorized competitor, to secure work for which a competition is in progress, nor should he attempt to influence, either directly or indirectly, the award in a competition in which he is a competitor. An architect should not accept the commission to do the work for which a competition has been instituted if he has acted in an advisory capacity, either in drawing the program or making the award. An architect should not submit in competition a design which has not been pro- duced in his own office or under his own direction. No competitor should enter into association with another architect, except with the consent of the owner. If such associates should win the competition, their association should continue until the completion of the work thus won. During a competition, no competitor should hold any communication relative to it with the owner, his representatives or any member of the jury, nor should he hold any communication with the professional adviser, except it be in writing. When an architect has been authorized to submit sketches for a given project, no other architect should submit sketches for it until the owner has taken definite action on the first sketches, since, as far as the second architect is concerned, a competition is thus established. 1G. On the Participation of Members of the Institute. Members of the American Institute of Architects do not take part as competitors or jurors in any competition, the program of which has not received the formal approval of the Institute, nor does a member continue to act as professional adviser after it has been determined that the program cannot be so drawn as to receive such approval. 17. Committees. In order that the advice of the Institute may be given to those who seek it and that its approval may be given to programs in consonance with its principles, the Institute maintains the following committees: (a) The Standing Committee on Competitions, representing the Institute in its relation to competitions generally. This committee advises the subcommittees and directs their work and they report to it. (b) A subcommittee for the territory of each Chapter, representing the Institute in its relation to competitions for work to be erected within such territory. The President of the Chapter is ex-officio chairman of the subcommittee, the other members of which he appoints. The subcommittees derive their authority from the Institute and not from the Chapters. An appeal from the decision of a subcommittee may be made to the Standing Com- mittee and thence to the Board of Directors. The Standing Committee may approve, modify or annul the decision of a sub-committee, and the Board has like powers over the decisions of the Standing Committee. 18. The Institute's Approval of the Program. The approval of the Institute is not given to a program unless it meet the following essential conditions: (a) That there be a professional adviser as called for in Article 2 of this circular. (b) That the competition be of one of the forms described in Article 3. (c) That the program contain an Agreement and Conditions of Contract between Architect and Owner in conformity with those printed in Article 1 1 of this circular, that it include no provision at variance therewith and that it contain terms of payments in accord with good practice. (d) That the program make provision for a jury of at least three persons as described in Article 8. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 123 (e) That the program conform in all particulars to the spirit of this circular. When the program meets the above essential conditions, the approval of the Institute may be given to it by the sub-committee for the territory in which the work is to be erected, or if there be no sub-committee for that territory, then by the Standing Com- mittee on Competitions. If for legal or other reasons, the Standing Committee deem that deviations from the essential conditions are justified, it may recommend to the Board of Directors the appro- val of a program containing such deviations. Power to give approval in such cases is, however, vested only in the Board. The Professional Adviser, when duly authorized in writing by the proper com- mittee, may print the Institute's approval as a part of the program or otherwise com- municate it to those invited to compete. 19. Definitions and Exceptions. A competition exists when two or more architects prepare sketches at the same time for the same project. This circular does not apply to competitions for work to be erected elsewhere than in the United States, its territories and possessions. If in a limited competition all competitors who are members of the Institute sign a statement that the program is in accord with the "Essential Conditions" of Article 18 of this circular, and an acceptance of all responsibility, and send, before entering the competition, such statement and acceptance, together with a copy of the program, to the Standing Committee on Competitions and to the proper sub-committee, no other action is required. Xo architect who is employed to make sketches at the rate named in Article 9 of the schedule of charges shall be held as having taken part in a competition. The foregoing gives a fair idea of the Architects opinion of competitions and the proper method of procedure if a competition is deemed necessary, however, School Boards will find it much more satisfactory to quietly investigate the work of various Architects and from their investigation make the selection without calling in many Architects in competition. There own time will not be taken up to such an extent and the various Architects who might be called in will not only have their time saved but their expenses as well. The following is an average description of what happens when it becomes known that a school building is contemplated. Architect Brown writes to the Secretary of the School Board and explains that he is a school specialist, having had more experience in the planning of school buildings than any other Architect in the country and he cites the various schools he has planned, some perhaps twenty-five years before, but they make a showing. Mr. Secretary writes back that they are not quite ready to select an Architect but when they do he will be given a chance. Maybe a dozen such letters arrive as the trade journals announce the fact that a school is to be built. The President and various members of the board receive letters and among them books of plans and views of buildings or proposed buildings and as letters arrive so also, Architect Jones drops in to introduce himself, quite by accident, of course, he was just going through that way on other business, and he gets a meeting of the board, ideas of their needs, etc., and he promises to return with sketches showing what he can do. Next day, also quite casually, Smith and maybe Brown arrive in town and have a meeting with the School Board, they too promise to return with sketches and depart after exhibiting a coat pocket full of recommendations given by well meaning individuals who perhaps were competent to judge of the Architects ability and perhaps not, anyway the School Board are well disposed toward Smith, or Brown, or Jones, and they are invited back with sketches; in the meantime others arrive and the School Boards time is pretty much occupied with such a variety of suggestions as to the proper method of planning a school as would confuse the intelligence of almost any School Board unless they were already experienced in the creation of school buildings. In consequence a beautifully colored water color picture with attractive sketches combined with a plausible argument for the plan and an attractive estimate of cost is liable to influence the School Board in 124 PUBLIC SCHOOLS favor of the particular Architect who presents the most plausible proposition, and the one selected may not be the best fitted for the work, and the School Board may be the losers for permitting themselves to be influenced before making careful investigation of the Architect's work before employing him. The old adage, "where ignorance is bliss, t'is folly to be wise," ofttimes is called to mind when a School Board visiting new buildings listens to the laudatory comment of the owners of the buildings who perhaps have built without investigation and are thoroughly satisfied with what they have, and the building they are so well pleased with may be the poorest excuse for a school the visiting School Board has seen in an inspection of several buildings, and the writer knows of one instance where a School Board making a visit of this kind were urged by the Superintendent of their school to employ their Architect as his work was thoroughly satisfactory, but the visiting School Board thought otherwise and as a result of their inspection trip they wrote for an Architect who had not visited them or offered his services and they are now the possessors of a school building which is a real credit to their judgment as a School Board in the selection of a man about whose qualifications they had assured themselves before selecting him for their work. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 125 T Chapter Twenty-eight The Duties and Functions of an Architect HE following form of agreement between client and architect has proven very satisfactory and the writer among other Architects has used it for several years quite successfully : FORM OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN ARCHITECT AND OWNER 1. This Agreement, made the day of in the year 191 . . by and between (herein- after designated the Architect) and (hereinafter designated the Owner). 2. Witnesseth: That the Architect and the Owner for the considerations here- inafter named, agree as follows: 3. For compensation of six (6) per cent upon the cost of the work contracted for upon the Architect's drawings and specifications, the Architect agrees to furnish pre- liminary sketches, contract working drawings and specifications, detail drawings and general superintendence of building operations, and also to audit all accounts for a school building, to be erected for the School District of County, at 4. The Architect's complete drawings and specifications are to include the follow- ing: Complete construction of building, heating and ventilating system, lighting, plumb- ing, seating, complete equipment, decorating, grading, landscape drawings, yard and sidewalks. 5. The Architect agrees to revise all preliminary sketches until satisfactory to the Owner and to make such revisions in the completed contract plans as may be necessary to bring the cost within the sum of Dollars, unless a larger expenditure, necessary to cover the cost of the construction as first planned, shall be authorized by the Owner. Terms of payment are to be as follows : 6. One per cent of the estimated cost of the work when preliminary drawings are completed (this to be equalized in second payment); two per cent of the contract price when the contracts are let, thereafter at the rate of three per cent upon each monthly certificate due to the contractors, until the entire six per cent is paid. The Architect's final payment to be due when the contractor's final certificates, accepting the work, are issued, and is based upon the total cost of the work including all extras. 7. If the work upon the building, is postponed or abandoned, the Architect is to be paid for the actual work done, in the office or at the building, such payments to be made in proportion to the terms of payment as specified above. 8. The Architect shall have general supervision and direction of the work as else- where mentioned. He is not the agent of the Owner except as provided in the contract documents (between Owner and Contractors) and when in special instances he is author- ized by the Owner so to act, and in such instances he shall, upon request, show the con- tractors written authority. He has authority to stop the work whenever such stoppage may be necessary to insure the proper execution of the contract. 126 t PUBLIC SCHOOLS 9. The Architect, or his authorized representative, will make visits to the building, for the purpose of general supervision of such frequency and duration as, in the Archi- tect's judgment, will suffice, or may be necessary to fully instruct contractors, pass upon the merits of material and workmanship, and maintain an effective working organization of the several contractors engaged upon the structure and in addition will make visits to the work upon special call of the Owner (reasonable notice being given). 10. The Architect will provide a Superintendent to remain constantly upon the work until the building is completed at an additional expense to the Owner of ( ) Dollars per month. 11. The Architect will demand of the contractors proper correction and remedy of all defects discovered in their work, and will assist the Owner in enforcing the terms of the contracts; but the Architect's superintendence shall not include liability or respon- sibility for any breach of contract by the contractors. 12. Drawings and specifications are instruments of service, and as such are to remain the property of the Architect. One set of the plans, details and specifications are to be filed permanently with the School Board. 13. The said parties for themselves, their heirs, successors, executors, adminis- trators and assigns, do hereby agree to the full performance of the covenants herein contained. 14. In Witness Whereof, the parties to these presents have hereunto affixed their signatures on the day and year first above written. In presence of Architect. By By NOTES ON AGREEMENT You will note that six per cent is mentioned in the form of agreement. This is the minimum charge as recommended by the American Institute of Architects and is a fair remuneration for school work where buildings and equipment exceed $25,000 in cost, for buildings costing less than that amount, the charge should be increased correspond- ingly as the size of the contract decreases. In Paragraph 4 of agreement you will note that the Architect is to include all equip- ment, this includes engineering service and landscape Architecture among other items. There is a tendency for heating engineers to prefer dealing direct with the owners, this part of the work being separated from the Architectural work. Better results, how- ever, will be obtained if this work is included as a part of the Architect's work, provided a competent heating engineer associated with him in the work and in any event the engineer should be under the Architect's direction to avoid connection in drawings which invariably occur where each works independently of the other. In Paragraph 5 you will note that the Architect agrees to revise all plans until they may be erected within a certain stipulated sum agreed upon. This while it is not a guar- antee of cost in a meansure protects the client from the prevailing custom of Architects to very much underestimate the cost of their buildings, and the writer has never found that it works any unnecessary hardship on the Architect as a competent Architect will be able to estimate the cost of his work within a reasonable amount and it certainly is a warning to the Architect who wilfully estimates low with the hope of securing work and in a measure protects the conscientious Architect who places his estimate of cost where it PUBLIC SCHOOLS 127 should be. The conscientious Architect will not make a guaranteed estimate of cost but, ofttimes is compelled to make an estimate by the client who is determined to build within certain limits and where this is done he should not agree to revise plans without remuneration unless the changes are minor ones entailing no particular expense to him. In Paragraph 10 arrangement is made for a superintendent to remain constantly upon the work, the client paying his salary but the superintendent to be provided by the Architect. This arrangement secures to the client a much better and closer supervision than to have the Architect's occasional visits alone to rely on. Where the building costs in excess of $100,000.00 the Architect assumes a part of the superintendents expense and on buildings costing $200,000.00 or more he assumes all of the expense of the super- intendent's salary. Some Architects demand that the owners pay all of the superin- tendent's salary on any size building, but school work is somewhat different from general work and the above arrangement will be a satisfactory one both for Architect and client, and will work no hardship on either. Some Architects propose for a smaller percentage to furnish plans and specifications only. However, this cannot be recommended as good practice either for the Architect or for the client. The management of building operations as outlined in Chapter 30 entails a special knowledge of building that the average member of a School Board lacks or if qualified in this capacity, the average member of a School Board cannot take the necessary time from his own business to properly or adequately supervise the erection of a school building and in consequence if the Architect is not employed for this purpose the building suffers and the completed structure will lack in finish and completeness many times the Architect's commission for supervision. Contractors take advantage of the board and suggested changes are often accepted to the detriment of the building and the contractor's profit. For instance an electrical contractor upon a school building proposed to a School Board that he install one large 400-watt lamp in the center of all their class rooms in place of 4-100 watt lamps specified in four outlets equally distributed, this reducing the current consumption in the room saving money on electric bills. This appealed to the School Board and they accepted the proposition, the contractor agreeing to make no additional charge for the change. The result was a large saving to the con- tractor as he had only one-fourth the outlet boxes and considerably less conduit and wire to install. The result was a further loss to the School Board as one brilliant light in the center of a class room of the size proposed would not furnish adequate light uni- formly distributed and the pupils farthest from the 1 ght suffered in consequence, and those nearest the light were annoyed by the excess, and blackboard space was not so well lighted. Had the Architect who wrote the specification been consulted and his advice taken, the School Board would have been protected and this change would not have been made. Without close supervision, contractors are prone to substitute cheap materials and material salesmen often influence School Boards to take their apparatus when a word of advice from the Architects experience might save hundreds of dollars and perhaps thousands. An instance of this occurred on a small school where there was 3,500 square feet of steam radiation and the Architect had specified one large cast iron boiler for the building and a salesman for a large supply house pursuaded the School Board to change from one to two boilers of the same capacity, so that one might operate while the other was being fixed in case some accident should occur to place one of the boilers out of commission. A plausible argument but not necessarily a good one, as one boiler while it might become damaged to the extent that repairs might become necessary, yet these could be made during vacation or at the weeks end when two days intervene between school. However the board was influenced to the extent that they bought both boilers and this required the enlarging of the boiler room, which increased the cost in excess of $2,000.00, and the School Board omitted all finish and equipment in the Gymnasium to pay for this unnec- essary expense, that might have been avoided if the Architect had been consulted and his advice taken. These examples may seem a little far fetched but they actually occurred and might occur again and they merely go to show the need for constant supervision of the trained Architect to continually advise and assist the School Board in the erection of their building. 128 PUBLIC SCHOOLS The Architect's duty is to prepare all preliminary plans, contract working, drawings and specifications, detail drawings and general superintendence of building operations as outlined in the form of Argeement herein before mentioned. The Architect should also assist the owner in awarding the contracts and as the work progresses should carefully supervise all contracts, audit all accounts, inspect all materials and workmanship. He should in every way possible assist the owner in the enforcement of contracts and in every other way possible, watch and protect the owners and contractors as an impartial judge seeing to it that no injustice be worked on either. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 129 Chapter Twenty-nine The Bond Issue WHEN a bond issue is contemplated, for the erection of a new school building, the first consideration of the School Board should be the selection of a careful, con- scientious and capable Architect to advise with the board, prepare tentative sketches, assist in establishing the amount to be expended and in many other ways lend his assistance and advice to help the School Board to avoid the mistake of appropriating too little for the building and equipment. City School Boards who are building con- stantly have a school Architect employed constantly for this purpose and the Board who only occasionally build can make good use of the Architect's service before bonds are voted. There are a number of very important things to be considered in the preparation for a bond issue and the campaign for it. First: A careful preparation and strict adherence to the law is necessary as any slight deviation from the prescribed method will result in the refusal of bonding compa- nies to buy the bonds. In fact, it is advisable that some reputable bonding company or bond attorney be called in and paid a nominal sum to prepare all proceeding in regular form, in order that no mistake be made. This relieves the Board from the necessary investigation of methods to be employed and enables them to proceed with assurance that every act of theirs will be in regular form. Second: A careful canvas of conditions and a survey of the school situation should be made by an expert school man in order that a well balanced program may be carried out. Third: An educational campaign must be entered into to educate the general public to the need of the school or schools. This many times is the most essential part of the program as many people are indifferent and hard to persuade that additional tax- ation is necessary for school purposes. Retired business men and retired farmers are usually a menace to school bonds as they usually are heavy tax payers and have no direct interest in the schools as their own children are beyond the school age and their lack of interest in the schools keeps them from realizing the need for improvement as they are not in touch with the schools growth and they are prone to believe that existing con- ditions are good enough, and they must be awakened to the real conditions. There are some who cannot be convinced no matter how much argument is brought to bear. There are some who are progressive and need no convincing and there is still another element who want enlightenment who will vote as their judgment is convinced and these last are the ones who can be reached by a well conducted campaign. They must be convinced that new school facilities are needed and when convinced, their votes can always be counted on. The opposition to a bond issue invariably have increased taxes until they frighten the average citizen into voting no, to much needed improvements and to combat this argument, facts should be presented in a clear, concise and logical manner by circulars, and through the medium of the newspapers and by mass meetings and lectures that will stir the people up to a sense of their duty, and be assured that once properly stirred up they will usually prove loyal to the improvement. However, the. School Board must be a live energetic Board and whole heartedly behind the movement or the people will not support it. There is nothing so discouraging to a live capable, energetic Superintendent of schools, as an indifferent School Board and if the Superintendent tries to force the issue it may result in his own head being chopped off, but if the School Board are back of him boosting for the schools, the majority of the people will also be back of him and the Board. 130 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Finally : Do not make the mistake of voting an inadequate amount to be expended as you will only regret it after it is too late. Fully three-fifths of all bond issues have been voted for an amount which was insufficient and the school and its equipment suffered in consequence as the majority of School Boards do not feel like asking for additional funds in a second bond issue, in consequence the building is trimmed to the everlasting detri- ment of the school. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 131 Chapter Thirty Management of a Building Contract AFTER the selection of an Architect, and the arrangement for necessary funds to erect your school building, there are some very essential problems which need L careful consideration in the management of a building program. First, the advertising for bids. After all details of plans and specifications have been gone through by the School Board and every detail approved, bids must be advertised for according to the law in the state where the building is erected. They must be adver- tised for publicly by calling for bids in the nearest local newspaper to the point where the school building is to be erected. This varies from one insertion to four insertions in the local paper, weekly, or at the most, twenty-eight days. The school board and the archi- tect should use every precaution to see that the exact terms of the law are complied with, as the opponents to the building program may take advantage of technicalities, to file an injunction stopping the erection of a building. This may entail quite a hardship on the district and should be avoided. It is always a good plan to consult a local attorney familiar with the law in the state, securing his assistance to see that no mistake is made. The school board is often limited by state laws in the awarding of contracts, and the writer knows of several instances where contracts were entered into illegally with the architect, before procedure had been taken, and in one instance, the architect lost his entire com- pensation on this account. He had been employed by a school board, a written contract entered into, and as both the board and the architect thought, strictly legal in every sense. Action was taken a short time before the annual school meeting in the state, and an opposition to the proposed building became very bitter, and members of the opposition, after carefully investigating the contract and the terms by which the board could legally enter into contract with an architect, found that the school board had no authority to employ an architect until after application had been made by a certain percentage of the voters for a new building, and this contract had been entered into three days before such a petition was circulated. This argument was used by the opposition to throw out the old school board and elect a new. As there were three vacancies to be filled at the annual school election, three new school board members were appointed whose votes being in a majority, the architect was thrown out, and as his plans were entirely completed at this time, he lost his entire compensation, as the three new members had been elected with the sole object of opposing the work of the old board, and the two remaining members being in the minority could do nothing. After advertisement and bids have been taken, special precaution should be used to see that the contracts between the contractors and the owners are equally binding, as the improper wording of an advertisement, or the re-estimating or re-figuring of any part of the work, after bids have been taken may void the contract with the contractor, and if the low bidder being responsible financially and reputable as a contractor, should be quite low when bids are opened, he may wish to be released from his bid, and if technicalities should arise, he might take advantage of same, and the district lose considerable by his failure to enter into the contract. The writer knows of several instances where bids have been taken, and the local contractors being unsuccessful in securing the work, have used every means possible to throw out the low bidder, and secure the work by re-advertisement wherein they might have the opportunity of refiguring, and several instances are on record where they have gone so far as to file injunctions. In more than one instance they have been successful in their endeavor to throw out bids. Hence the necessity of having a competent attorney to co-operate with the school district in the awarding and making of contracts. The writer knows of an instance where bids were taken and the low bidders were $12,000.00 lower than the next low bidder. The contracting company making the 132 PUBLIC SCHOOLS low bid were thoroughly reliable and financially responsible, yet their bid was some $15,000.00 more than the school district's appropriation of $250,000.00, and the school board were unwilling to spend more than the amount of their bond issue. Consequently certain revisions were necessary and they wished to take advantage of this low bid, so unit prices having been furnished by the contractor, they made the necessary revisions, and were about to award the contract at the lower price when it was found out that injunction proceedings were contemplated by the opposition to the school building pro- gram, whose attorney tried to throw out the contract on the basis that the school board were not awarding the contract according to law, claiming that the school board were not letting the contract according to the low bid, but were changing the low bid, and therefore the proceeding was illegal. However, as no definite action had been taken by the school board, they immediately awarded the contract according to the low bid, signed the contract at the original bid, and immediately made deduction orders which complied with their privilege of adding to or deducting from the face of the contract. If they had awarded the contract and signed a contract at the lower price, it would have been illegal and could have been thrown out, but as they signed the contract at the original bid, then there was no objection to their making changes from the original contract, which had been provided for in the contract document, general conditions, and specifi- cations. Merely a technicality, yet one which might have resulted in a serious loss to the district if the school board and their attorney had not found their error before signing the contract. These things do not happen often, yet the very fact that they do happen once in a while, should be a precaution to the school boards and architects and for this reason special precaution should be taken to overcome any possibility of error. The small expenditure necessary to secure the services of a capable attorney may be the means of saving several thousand dollars to the school district. The following form for advertisement for bids has proven to be quite satisfactory, as it is clear, concise, gives the bidder every information necessary, tells him how to secure drawings, what is required in the way of bond, or certified check, date and hour upon which bids are to be received, and the correct name and address of the school district, and to whom check and bid is to be made payable. NOTICE TO BIDDERS Bids on June 29, 1917, at 7:30 P. M. Article 1. Bids are desired on a high and grade school building to be erected at Traer, Iowa, by the board of directors of the Independent School District of Traer, in the county of Tama, Iowa. Bids are to be delivered to the secretary, T. F. Stoakes, at his office, Traer, Iowa, and will be received until 7:30 P. M., June 29, 1917, and will be opened immediately and read publicly. Bids are to be accompanied by bidders' bonds, or certified checks, in amounts as follows : General Construction Bond $3,000.00 Roofing and Sheet Metal Bond 600.00 Heating and Ventilating Bond 800.00 Plumbing Bond 500.00 Electrical Work Bond 300.00 No bonds required on equipment. Article 2. The bidders bonds must be made out payable unconditionally to the treasurer of the school district, K. P. Moore, as a guarantee that the bidder, if suc- cessful, will enter into contract with the said district and furnish a bond in the form out- lined in the specifications, guaranteeing the completion of the building. The bonding company furnishing the bidders bond must state in bid bond that they will furnish the contract bond at once if the bidder is awarded the work. Article 3. Certified checks in the above amounts will be accepted if accompanied by full contract bond in the amount of the contractor's bid No. one. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 133 Article 4. Plans will be on file at the office of the secretary at Traer, Iowa, and at the office of the architect, John Doe, St. Paul, Minnesota; also at the Builders' Ex- changes of Chicago, Illinois, St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Des Moines, Iowa on and after June 12, 1917. Article 5. Plans may be secured by contractors who wish to bid upon application to the office of the architect or upon application to the secretary without charge on all applications mailed before June 12th, on all applications mailed after that date should be accompanied by $5.00 to pay for the cost of making prints. Any material company desiring plans will be charged the exact cost of blue-printing plans they receive. All bids must be plainly marked on outside of envelopes indicating the kind of construction they represent and should be registered if mailed to the secretary. Article 6. A space for the bidders' signature is left on each sheet of the plans and specifications and the bidder must identify same by his full name or initials and must return plans and specifications with his bid. Article 7. The above advertisement for bids clearly states the terms upon which bids will be received. Contractors who fail to comply with the above or fail to bid ac- cording to the plans and specifications, or fail to bid upon the form of bid provided will receive no consideration and their bids will not be considered. The right is reserved to reject any or all bids. (Signed) Independent School District of Traer, Iowa, in the County of Tama, State of Iowa. By T. F. Stoakes, Secretary. Special attention is called in the above advertisement, in Article 1, which states' specifically the hour and minute when bids will be received. Note is also made that bids will be opened immediately and read publicly. If this practice is followed, contractors will undoubtedly be better satisfied and secure more honest and fair treatment, as the old method of opening bids privately, while it permits the school board to award the contract to any contractor they see fit, yet it is unsatisfactory as it permits of considerable lobbying but does not give the contractor the fair opportunity for open and honest bidding. Better far that the contractors be investigated carefully, and their record made known and that they be rejected openly rather than privately. An honest and open rejection never creates the amount of ill feeling or suspicion, as the secret bidding process where the contractors do not know exactly what the bids of their competitors are and they do not know whether they are receiving just consideration or not. Many times where bids are opened privately, some high bidder will be awarded the work upon his agreement to accept the work at the low bidder's price. You will also notice in Article 1 of advertisement, that the entire contract is divided into a general contract, which covers the entire construction of the building, with the exception of roofing and sheet metal work. The roofing and sheet metal work is put in one contract. Heretofore there has been a portion of the sheet metal work in connection with the heating contract and a portion of the metal work in connection with the general contract. By combining these two, a larger part of sheet metal work is put together and there is no confliction between the metal work done by the heating contractor and the metal work done by the general contractor. The heating work is in one contract and the plumb- ing in another. The heating or plumbing contractor being permitted to combine the two if he sees fit, as many heating contractors do plumbing, or vice versa. The electrical work is placed separate, and the amount of certified checks or bidders bonds are estimated from five to ten per cent of the face of the contract, but are stipulated in exact amount so that all bidders will have the exact amount of their check or bond, rather than to have a percentage of their bid which would make practically every check a different amount. In this way, the contractor can have his certified check or bid bond prepared several days in advance. If he waits to total up his bid in order to have a check equal to a certain percentage of his bid, it may mean a delay at the time when bids go in. Hence the method 134 PUBLIC SCHOOLS of establishing the exact amount of bid bond or check. No bonds are required on equip- ment or seating, as these are usually small amounts and can be bought in the open market from reliable concerns, but if in the opinion of the school board, a check is desired this can be arranged for easily. Note in Article 2 that where a bid bond is furnished, the bonding company must state in their bid bond that they will furnish contract bonds at once if the. bidder is awarded the work. This requirement is made in order to eliminate the bidder who might possibly be able to secure a bid bond but who might not be able to secure a contract bond, if he was extremely low. Bonding companies are often quite anxious for business and would run the risk of furnishing a bid bond, who might refuse the contract bond. If, however, the bid bond states that the bonding company will furnish the contract bond if the bidder is successful, this eliminates all questions and assures the school dis- trict that the low bidder will be able to furnish bond. Those contractors who are unable to furnish a bid bond of this nature are better off not to figure, and the school district are better off by knowing in advance who will be able to complete their contract and furnish bond if awarded the work. The writer has known of instances where the low bidder furnishing a certified check has been unable afterward to secure a bond. Usually this delays the awarding of the contract and works a hardship on the school district, as they would be required to re-advertise and the delay might cause a serious loss to them. You will note under Article 3 that if the contractor furnishes certified checks in the above amount, they must be accompanied by a full contract bond in the amount of the contractors bid number one. This is done with the same object in view, that the bidder will show his ability to furnish bond when submitting his bid. If this practice is followed out, irresponsible bidding will be practically eliminated, and the irresponsible bidder has been one of the great difficulties architects and owners have had to contend with. The law in the majority of states requires the school district to award a contract to the lowest responsible bidder. By this means the responsibility of the bidder is established to a great extent, and the school board is not called upon to discriminate among several low bidders as they might under the old system of bidding. Note in Article 4 that the place where plans can be seen are specifically mentioned, also the date upon which plans will be placed on file. This enables general contractors to request sub-bids from material concerns in the various parts of the country. These sub-contractors can then apply at the different builders' exchanges or elsewhere and secure drawings upon which to figure the work. You will note in Article 5 that practically no limit is placed on the contractors esti- mating and that no charge will be made for drawings on plans applied for up to a certain date. This encourages prompt application for drawings, and when drawings are applied for promptly, contractors will usually have ample time to figure, and it prohibits those who wish to call for drawings at the last minute unless they wish to pay for the privilege of figuring, and then only the cost- of making prints. Material concerns are charged for blueprints, otherwise there would be an enormous expense entailed in the making of plans for all material concerns who might wish to submit figures, and by placing draw- ings in the builders' exchanges of various cities, adjacent to the town wherein the building is to be erected will obviate a great deal of this trouble, and will require building companies and material concerns to go there to figure the plans. Special precaution should be taken to see that all bids be plainly marked on the outside of the envelope, indicating the kind of construction they represent, as many bids have been mailed in to the secretary in an envelope and addressed as any letter would be addressed. In consequence the secretary opens the bid thinking it is a letter, and exposes the bid to the contractor's possible detri- ment. This at least opens the bid up to observation and the contractor himself is best protected if his bid is plainly marked for the purpose it is intended, and there will be no danger of criticism by the bids being opened from this cause if plainly marked. Articles 6 and 7 should be specifically called to the attention of bidders by the architect or school board, as this will be a protection to both and will work no hardship upon either. Where the bidder initials or identifies the plans and specifications from which he has figured, he can not then come in afterward and claim that any substitution of plans and PUBLIC SCHOOLS 135 specifications has been made. He is also protected by this means from the specification or plans being changed or elaborated upon. After the contract is signed, the owners and contractors should identify at least three sets of the plans and specifications, one for the contractor's private file, one for the owners' private file, to be placed on record, also one for the architect so that at all times a correct record of plans and specifications can be had. The writer has a case on record where only one word had been changed in the specifications, and because of identification the school board was saved a considerable item. This change had been made in the signed record copy and filed away in a bank vault by the secretary of the school district. Several of the other copies of specifications used on the contract had not been changed as had their record copy, through an oversight, and a cheaper article was substituted by the contractor on this account, he claiming that his record copy did not show this change. The cheaper article was ordered out by the architect, and the specified article was demanded and refused by the contractor. After due notice by law, as called for in the contract, this specified article was bought by the board and deducted from the amount of the contractor's payment against his protest. The school board and architect, however, demanded that the contractor bring . forth his signed record copy, agreeing that if his record copy did not show the same change as their copy, then they would concede his point and pay him the difference between the better article specified and the cheaper article he had substituted. The contractor, however, refused to produce his record copy, and an examination of it afterwards was made by the architect after the contract was entirely completed and adjusted and the drawings returned to the office, and it was found that his record copy was identically the same as the board's record copy and the cheaper article had been marked out there. This clearly shows the advantage of signing drawings and specifications for the purpose of identification, and the school board and architect should insist upon this procedure, although it takes some little time, and may be construed as unnecessary red tape, but too much precaution cna not be taken to safeguard the interests of all parties concerned, and while in this instance the owners were safeguarded, it might have been in another instance that the contractor would be protected. Article 7 cautions the contractor to follow the terms of the bid bond or certified check, dates of bidding, hour and minute upon which bids are to be received, and also warns the bidder that any bid received which is not upon the correct form and upon the terms of the bid advertisement, will be rejected or not considered. School boards and architects should adhere rigidly to the terms of their bid form and the advertisement in order to avoid trouble. Bids should be thrown out and rejected if not put in properly or according to the terms of the advertisement. When all contractors live up strictly to the terms of the advertisement, and fill out their bids in exactly the same form, there can be no question of the legality of the bid, and no trouble will result from the award. Some states permit of the extending of the time for advertisement for bids, and others specifically forbid extending the time without re-advertising for the full length of time required by law. The school district and the architect should carefully investigate their rights and should stay well within them. Second. AWARDING THE CONTRACT, SELECTION OF CONTRACTORS. Many a school board and architect have regretted the awarding of a contract to a low bidder, whose bid may be so low that materials and labor can not be secured within the amount of the bid. It is not always possible to tell when a bidder should or should not be awarded the contract. A school board usually receives what they pay for if they select a low bidder whose responsibility is in question and he finds himself about to lose money by the transaction he most certainly would use every effort to save himself from loss, and in doing so, the school board will most certainly lose the difference between the low bid and some other bid where the contractor gets a reasonable margin of profit. Con- sequently a careful selection of the bids should be made, weighing the probabilities of the contractor being able to complete his work, and be able to do so without loss. The writer has often noticed several reliable contractors whose bids would vary but little, possibly three to five thousand dollars on seventy to seventy-five thousand dollar contracts, and 136 PUBLIC SCHOOLS then some one or two bidders would drop away below the average of all other bidders. In one instance $9,000.00 was the low bidder under the next low bid, and six other bidders were within one to three thousand dollars of the second low bidder. As competition had been quite keen and work rather scarce at the time, it was presumed that this bidder had put in a bid below actual cost, and this contractor, while he was financially responsible, and able to complete the contract, had the undesirable reputation of doing inferior work ; but the school board in this instance felt they could not afford to lose the difference between the bids, consequently they contracted with this low bidder and their building was erected with considerable difficulty as the contractor fought every technicality in the plans and specifications and used every effort to protect himself, and if it had not been for the close and careful supervision of the architect's superintendent constantly upon the work, the school board would certainly have been very much the losers. As it was, a fairly good building resulted, but the contractor lost in the neighborhood of $4,000.00 and the writer does not believe that any school district or any individual is entitled to have any- thing given to them in this way, nor that any school district wants to see a contractor lose money in this way. The usual result is the bankruptcy of the contractor and if the contractor is in a shakey condition, or his finances are not sufficiently good, his bid should be thrown out, and a responsible bid accepted. If this is always done, there will be no trouble in the erecting of buildings or the completion of contracts. If the contractor is unable to complete his work, it results in the bonding company being forced to com- plete it, or the owners will be compelled to complete the work themselves and then have recourse to law to force the bonding company to comply with their bond or contract. This usually results in additional expense any way the problem is handled and the extra expense will usually amount to as much or more than the difference between the low bidder and the next responsible bidder. As a means of ascertaining the reliability and the responsibility of the contractor, the following form of information sheet is filled out fully by the contractor, and replies received from all the references given will enable the architect or school board to judge the contractors ability or financial responsibility, provided a request for information is tactfully worded. The contractor of course, will give the reference he considers the most satisfactory to himself, and in requesting infor- mation, the architect or school board by properly wording their request for information can find out many things that will be of assistance. For instance, by requesting the bonding company to know if the contractor was able to furnish his own indemnity, or if some large material concern indemnifies the contractor to secure the bond, will some- times bring forth interesting replies, as many contractors are unable to personally furnish the bonding companies with sufficient assurances of their ability and quite often large material companies will indemnify the contractor to assist him in the securing of the necessary bond, thereby obligating the contractor to themselves to such an extent that the material company will be able to supply the contract with materials, leaving the contractor no choice as to the selection and no freedom of action. Banks will invariably give conscientious and reliable information with reference to their clients' standing and reliability. When requesting information from material companies, it is well to ask if they know of any other material concerns with whom the contractor is doing business. This will usually bring a much larger list of material concerns and will bring to light any unpleasant business dealings which the contractor may have had, and will throw additional light on his business that may prove of considerable value in judging the merits of the contractor. Request for information from the architect and owner on work which this particular contractor or contractors have handled will usually supply the information as to the success with which the contractor handles his work. You will note that the first question and second question refer to the correct name and address of the contractor, and to the worth of his company at the date of his last invoice. It is sometimes amusing to see the replies to this second question. For instance, one con- tractor stated the worth of his company at the date of his last invoice, $50,000.00. His bank stated that a conservative estimate of his worth would be $5,000.00. Another contractor stated at the date of his last invoice, his company estimated at $83,467.27. A reply from his bank brought forth the assurance that he was well worth over $100,000.00. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 137 Usually where a contractor states in round numbers the worth of his company, you can depend upon it, this worth represents his own estimate of value and is usually inflated. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION SHEET Before awarding a contract, we require certain reference from contractors. In order that we may not be required to postpone the awarding of our work, we ask con- tractors to supply the following information for our files which we agree to hold strictly confidential : 1. Correct title and address of your firm 2. Your estimated worth from last invoice 3. Name of bank or banks, and address, with whom you do business 4. Name of building company or companies and address who have carried your last five contract bonds 5. Give a list of ten material companies, with their addresses, with whom you are doing business. *•* 6. Give list of the five largest buildings you have built during the past five years and owner's name. 7. Give a list of buildings (and their cost) that you are erecting at the present time. Give owner's name. 8. Give a list of five architects and their addresses, you have done work under. 9. How are you supplied with equipment to handle work of this nature? 138 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Contractors who have not been in business long enough to answer above fully, should answer as completely as possible. Reply to tbe above should be mailed back immediately, in order to give. us time to do any investigating we consider necessary, as NO BID WILL BE ACCEPTED FROM ANY CONTRACTOR WHO REFUSES OR NEGLECTS TO SUPPLY THE ABOVE INFORMATION. Sincerely yours, John Doe, Architect. Third. SUPERVISION OF THE WORK. Perhaps of all the various important parts of a building program, that of the super- vision of the construction under way is the most important. No matter how thoroughly a set of drawings and specifications may be prepared, unless they are carried out to com- pletion with proper materials and efficient workmanship the best building material in the world can be spoiled and a thoroughly unsatisfactory building may result. No building of any consequence should be erected without the constant supervision of a clerk of the works who can see that all parts of the work is being carried out according to the true intent of the plans and specifications. He should watch all parts of the construction, see to it that all materials have been tested and approved, and at all times keep the architect posted as to the progress of the building, and insist in the maintaining of a thorough co-operation on the part of the contractors, for the various portions of the work. When plans and specifications are completed, and the work is under way, the architect is placed in the position of a judge on the bench, his duty being to see that all parties to the contract secure their rights. He must see that materials and work- manship are up to the standard specified. He must also see to it that all parts of the work are carried on in harmony, and he is to act as a mediator between client and con- tractor, and his decision as to the true intent of the plans, details, and specifications are binding on all parties concerned, with the exception that either party to the con- tract may dissent from his decision and resort to arbitration, if they are not satisfied with the justice of his decision. In consequence, the architect is many times placed in a rather difficult position, and it should be the aim of the superintendent or clerk of the work, to so manage his portion of the supervision of the work under way, as to avoid all disputes and difficulty between the contractor and the client, which in the case of school boards represents four or five and sometimes more members, all having individual and quite often, different opinions. To so handle work that all parties may be pleased and satisfied with results, requires considerable tact on the part of the architect's super- intendent, and also a good deal of fineness and strength of character to protect the interests of all parties without partiality to either'. During the progress of the building contract, many times the architect who is conscientious, may be criticised by the school board for favoring the contractor, and again criticised by the contractor for favoring the owners. Such a result is inevitable unless the school board takes a broad minded view of the architect's duties and liabilities, and they can only take such a view after having care- fully investigated the architect's reputation and integrity. If the architect has been selected on any other grounds than his known ability, reliability and reputation for strict honesty, trouble may arise through the school boards questioning his decisions unless the contractor is willing to do almost anything he is requested to do, to cover up defects, omissions and ambiguities which will sometimes appear in drawings. If the contractor stands up for his rights, in such a case, and the architect agrees with him, it is very difficult to persuade a school board that the architect is not favoring the con- tractor, rather than allowing him exact justice. And it takes an architect with con- siderable backbone to stand the criticism of his clients and maintain the contractor's rights. Again if the architect upholds the cause of his client the contractor will cry favor- itism, and in many instances will wilfully cause trouble and annoyance for the architect. Hence the need of a well organized architect's office with competent supervision on his part and on the part of the clerk of the works. Many school boards do not realize or appreciate the great value of the architect's supervision. In fact, many ill-advised school PUBLIC SCHOOLS 139 boards have preferred to handle their own supervision, buy plans and specifications and after plans were secured, having no further dealings with the architect. Many of these school boards do this with the whole idea that the architect is a grafter, obtaining commissions from all different material concerns whose wares are specified, or mentioned on the plans or specifications, having very serious suspicions of his honesty and integrity, and by this means seeking to avoid any opportunity on the part of the architect to be in collusion with these material men or contractors ; the school board honestly believing and expecting to get a much better building if the architect is eliminated after plans and specifications are completed. It is to be regretted that such a fallacy should be found in the minds of so many people. It is due largely to the few unprincipled men in the architectural profession who would stop at nothing to gain their own end, and whose reputations are so bad that a little investigation would persuade any school board to have nothing to do with them under any consideration. However, a large majority of architects are strictly honest and conscientious and are deserving of every confidence that may be placed in them by the school board or client. And the conscientious archi- tect can always be of invaluable assistance in the supervision of a contract, and I would urge that no building contract be entered into that did not contemplate the continual close supervision by the architect's office and its representatives. The difficulty of com- pleting a building of any consequence without continual architectural supervision through some representative of the architect's office remaining constantly upon the work, together with trips of supervision by the architect himself, or his special representative, has caused many architects to refuse to make plans or specifications without this continual super- vision, in order that their own reputation as architect may be protected, owing to the inefficiency of the average constructing organization to complete a building successfully without this supervision. Where the architect does not supervise the work, contractors take advantage of the owners quite often and the architect is many times unjustly blamed for troubles which are not the fault of plans or specifications but more likely the fault of the contractor through inefficient supervision. When a contract is first started the first duty of the superintendent should be the inspection of the soil upon which the footings are to be placed, before any concrete is poured, as many times it becomes necessary to spread footings over inferior bearing soil in order to secure a uniform settlement of the entire building which is absolutely essential if the structure is to remain intact without cracking. The cement should always be tested for fineness of quality and for proper condition before using. This should be accomplished by laboratory tests, made at the factory before cars are shipped, by reputable testing laboratories whose reputation is well known. In like manner all the reinforcing steel should be tested and inspected before shipment from the factory or yards of the steel company furnishing the material, to see that the quality of steel, whether hard or medium steel is being used, or whether re- rolled steel is being substituted for virgin steel. In like manner all of the various manu- factured material should be inspected and approved before shipment. This will do away with a great deal of lost time by reason of material rejected at delivery to the build- ing site. This precaution is one that many material concerns and contractors do not want, as they oft times gamble on the fact that the owners are in a hurry for the building, and may accept an inferior article rather than to wait for a shipment of the material specified. Where building stone is specified, this should be inspected at the quarries to see that all stone is taken from the same ledge in the quarry in order to secure uniformity of color, and uniform density of the stone. It should also be inspected for seams, sand holes and other imperfections. Where this inspection is carried out [conscientiously, the contractor and material man is really benefited rather than otherwise, as the reliable, conscientious manufacturer and material concern will never question this inspection as they intend to deliver satisfactory work anyway, while it does protect the owner from the irresponsible contractor or material men whose whole hope is that they will make a profit on a cheaper article by underbidding their more reliable competitors. If careful shop inspection is carried out, they will soon learn the uselessness of substitution and a more satisfactory form of bidding will result. The architect's inspection of millwork and finishing lumber at the mill has in many instances saved the mill contractor many hun- 140 PUBLIC SCHOOLS dreds of dollars in the correction of oversights and in the proper preparation of millwork before shipment. Furthermore, if this material is all approved before shipment and thoroughly satisfactory and up to the terms of the specifications, there will be little ground for argument on the part of the contractor or material concern, and little friction at the building proper, and the duty of the superintendent or clerk of the work at the building will be to see that materials are properly installed and that proper workmanship is secured as the work progresses. The architect's control of the work should include inspection of the heating and plumbing and other mechanical equipment from the office of the heating engineer, as this part of the work progresses, as very few superintendents or clerks of the work are thoroughly qualified to handle both the general construction and the mechanical equipment. The architect should also have a thoroughly capable structural engineer either employed or where his services could be secured to pass on the merits of the structural steel, reinforcing steel and other structural parts of the building, unless the architect himself is a capable structural engineer, and even so, it is well to have a check on the engineering by one or more persons to obviate structural weaknesses which might occur through the oversight of one party. The school board will do well to investigate the completeness of the architect's organization, especially if they con- template the erection of a very large and important structure, as the completeness of the architect's organization may mean the saving of many thousands of dollars to the client through the expert services of several men in the various departments of the architect's organization. The larger architect's offices invariably employ in addition to their regular drafting department, a structural engineer, heating, lighting and plumbing engineer, a managing superintendent or department and an accounting department. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 141 Chapter Thirty -one PHOTOGRAPHS and PLANS of SCHOOL BUILDINGS df Being the work of several architects who have planned schools in various parts of the country. ^f A large number of the illustrations are by courtesy of the West- ern Architect. 142 PUBLIC SCHOOLS OS 3 03 O O •a 02 c3 a P PUBLIC SCHOOLS 143 144 PUBLIC SCHOOLS -m^lKi* Pipestone, Minn., High, Grade and Junior School. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. CONSTRUCTION The exterior of the building is designed along the lines of a modern gothic and is symmetrical with a frontage of 230 feet and a depth of 169 feet in the greatest dimension with two wings projecting 120 feet back. The building will have a grade floor two feet and ten inches below the level of the finished grade line, and a first and second floor. The first floor will contain all of the grade rooms with short easy flights of steps up to them, causing no inconvenience to any pupil. There will be a separate entrance for the grades entering from the east, a separate entrance for the junior school entering from the south and a separate entrance for the high school entering from the north. This arrangement will permit of better regulation than to have departments entering from all entrances. The grade floor will contain all the manual training, domestic science, agriculture, chemistry, physics and commercial departments. The second floor will contain the junior and high school study halls and all class rooms. The auditorium will have its main entrance on the ground floor to avoid the climbing of stairs so that old people may visit the school auditorium and have only seven steps downward to reach the level of the auditorium floor. A gallery is placed above the auditorium, reached from the first floor with two inclines which furnish easy egress from the gallery levels. A stereop- ticon booth will be placed in the balcony with attachments for moving pictures which are becoming a very considerable part of the modern educational program. The gymnasium is placed directly in the rear of the auditorium and is built with ample bleacher space for a considerable crowd. Adja- cent to gynmasium and open- ing thereto are showers and lockers for boys and girls, plan- ned to enable all pupils to enjoy the benefits of physical training. A careful study of the growing youth has demon- strated the fact that a proper IlAJE/^AT tJ-OOB. Pl-AA I'll 1 . • uu'ifrifu i m. physical development is as PUBLIC S C H O L'S 145 fully essential as mental de- velopment and that the mental development depends largely on the physical development, so with careful physical train- ing, the anaemic, physically weak, stoop -shouldered child maybe developed into a strong, healthy, mentally developed student when given the bene- fits of the gymnasium under the careful supervision of an instructor. With a careful considera- tion of the pupil's welfare, toilet facilities are arranged for on each floor to eliminate the climbing of stairways by students, each floor having its proper quota of fixtures for boys and girls. The building will be erected of non-combustible materials so that Pipestone need never fear a repetition of the fire loss which makes this new building necessary. Thisbuild- ing is also being planned with a view to the future so that changing conditions in the school work can be made with- out excessive expense. The partition walls between rooms are built of light tile, easily re- movable as they carry no weight so that building in the future could be changed into an entire high school or an entire grade school without in any way affecting the struct- ural part of the building at a small expenditure which cov- ers the change. Also as the building becomes congested, additions can be erected upon a pre-arranged plan which takes into consideration the least possible expense, also while it is not the intention to place a swimming pool in the building at the present time, yet an arrangement has been made without increasing the cost in any way so that this additional convenience may be installed at a later date. jja.o u rt d ■ ]"jl o o a. • P i_ a t\ JCALt L <9 i > U » L ■flK-^T fLOOR. • pLAA W" I J ' " I . I I U t l )|. 3>VCOC\D [LOOft pLAPi «" ■> " ■ ■ - J M II I I. 146 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Entrance to Classics Building, University of Chicago, Chicago, 111. Shepley,'Rutan_&^Coolidge, Architects. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 147 WS^CY! DA r\CTL-To "CLASSICS • E>UIl_DIAG"- OOf*C? 148 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Riverside High School Building, Milwaukee, Wis. Van Ryan and De Gelleke, Architects. Washington High School, Milwaukee, Wis. Van Ryan and De Gelleke, Architects. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 149 A. M. Joyce School, Detroit, Mich. Malcomson and Higginbotham, Architects. Ik Ncrtlicrn High School, Detroit, Mich. Malcomson and Higginbotham, Architects. ^ if 150 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Original Perspective and Photo of Completed Sheldon, Iowa High School. Completed Building PUBLIC SCHOO L S 151 jLi >n ' ui i| i uii 4 g^ + UMtXCAVATEO " &Av5tMtNT , Plan + + ' t t * (JROUNP flOOR PLA/1 . fiR^' fLoop < Plan * /c<\!e '/ic". J. o" 152 PUBLIC SCHOOLS w/t CO/ID floop pLAfl ■/cale '/is": |- o" Belmond, Iowa School Building Erected in 1910. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 153 . Ef3^ C»AV ^" y£ o°c I m CjTHrtASlUM x^.fc«' B floT Hx<.A VAlt.jp ~- . ... r Gradc Tl.ocdj^ Plan tiR/ 1 ^LOOR. PlA^i /"tcor\r> fLCOl^ PlA/1 154 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ■ Two Views of The Bryan Mullanphy School. William B. Ittner, Architect. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 155 02 ■5 £ n ~ >— I *-— o n ■a s 9 .5 ° a c o 156 P.TU BLIC SCHOOLS ,9Ja 3 g o - o a j- a; ■ SPrS o m . J ■ i- ' • : " • ' ' . - - ■ PUBLIC SCHOOLS 157 >, |-3 3 ■a 158 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ..._..«.. m L"" l ''''' ,| 't ^ 1 JiL. i i I' i ' l I; i I 3 FPt^^SS ■ ..-. 4. .4.. i ■ . run > (ten school. •rook aid iiarcm IHI*OC II . j-c,\ri :ir.iiw-ARc:tiir.ci r n L,....! 3: | It; if: I Si Si i \ Id 4a ■ i - 1 ■ c^ I 3IXO/1D FLOOR PI A/1 - BM«Ml A.ll) BKMHI.lRIIKir 31 J TAR1. IIC.'IRY-ABCIIIICCT PUBLIC SCHOOLS 159 Entrance Detail, Hoys' High School, Louisville, Ky. 160 P U B LIC SCHOOLS >> -^ 60 a — «j< '> > . C3 S 3 -* a. ..2 13 3 Ml - 3 0> ■a a J5 '3 m o s C3 £ « m £ •"S i 1 =3 O 1-5 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 161 ^^^^MBHi 162 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Crest view School Building, Columbus, Ohio. Studer Ave. School, Columbus, Ohio. D. Ricbcl and Sons, Architects. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 163 164 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ru-ri_iti& SE.CO/VD PUXIH F'L.^.oS CLASS «5SE.OUTj^JZ> »>-S_.00«- JPI^A-Ai UOUISV 1 1_ v_ &. K.t/^-TUCK.V JEA.EU M&y'Me.X AECH1TECT PUBLIC SCHOOLS 165 Entrance Shawnee School, Louisville, Ky. 166 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 05 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 167 03 O c 03 03 "o o M 02 a o> a, p. ■a 03 H 168 PUBLIC SCHOOLS c3 = 03 03 O JS o 03 J3 SO a PUBLIC SCHOOLS 169 53 o go ~o o J3 J3 170 PUBLIC SCHOOLS o 31 1 ° a .a « e C fe PUBLIC SCHOOLS 171 OS o so 3 O o o J= o A S3 OP ffl C3 □ O s o 172 PUBLIC SCHOOLS =3 o 03 CO *3 o J3 s 03 * £ C O •a H PUBLIC SCHOOLS 173 174 PUBLIC SCHOOLS SEV1D&BD-OT00L H0USC/1OE TTPCC- BrWiLLl^AiSAPC/l/lA- v3WCWARD°rEDUCATin- 4^JI "OOOOOOOO OOOOOOOO ctHHMWOOO rWIlBS-AvSAKHlTDa Where it is necessary to build the one and two-room county school building in localities too sparsely settled to make it possible to build larger consolidated schools, the small buildings should be planned with ventilation humidified air, inside toilet facilities, unilateral light, play room space, etc., to enable these students to enjoy the same healthful and sanitary conditions made possible in the larger schools. Bates Union School, Court land, Cal. B. J. Herold, Architect, Sacramento, Cal. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 175 CL*ss rvn — n — r_j- ■ nova It Aupn-pno^ This school represents an interesting type of four-room grade school with an auditorium, teachers' room and library. The auditorium is provided with a stage, and with movable chairs may be cleared and used as a gymna- sium or exercise room if desired. This building designed with eight-inch hol- low tile walls and stucco as shown by photograph on preceding page presents a most interesting appearance and is economical to build. This type of building also departs from the stereotyped two-story plan so prevalent all country. nra Ci.as>a Dm IP s JET -n;mil over the This grade school building built at Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was planned by Patten, Holmes & Flynn, architects, and is a very interesting departure from the old two or three- story type of school building. The light is all taken from overhead as shown in photograph of auditorium, kindergarten and stage, also by Fig. 21, page 19. The rooms all have windows from one side, that may be curtained to exclude the light, permitting -only the skylighting for study purposes. On dark days the side lights may be exposed to furnish the extra light needed. This combination provides for an adjustment of light, making it possible to graduate the quantity of light to meet any and all conditions, furnishing an abundance of light on the darkest day. Compare the plan of this building with that of the "Hiawatha" school at Minne- apolis, Minnesota, next illustrated, and note the difference in the shape of the class rooms. In the Sioux Falls building the short side of the room is exposed while in the Hiawatha school the long side is exposed. This being made necessary by the fact that the Hiawatha 176 PftU BLIC SCHOOLS school has all side lighting and does not attempt to use the overhead light, this being the least expensive construction and generally considered equally as good. The same general scheme of kindergarten and assembly room is used. Note, however, that the " Hiawatha" school play and assembly room is fitted up as a gymnasium with both boys and girls lockers and shower rooms, with separate entrances at each end of the room and storage spaces at opposite sides for gymnasium equipment and collapsible chairs. Much may be said in favor of this type of building. Provision must be made, however, for ample grounds and a slightly increased cost of construction and operating expense for heating, over the more compact two or three-story building. Grade School Building, Sioux Falls, South Dakota Auditorium, Kindergarten and Stage, Grade School, Sioux Falls, South Dakota PUBLIC SCHOOLS 177 CLA// EOOI1 T t E R A C E. CLA/7 *OOM C LA// tkOOH :la/7 BOOM nzr o jp — Jr—-fl — "71 "? P L/jv -A//iMBLY at>OM * u F^p-4 Ip^ ,1 n CLA// COOh 'V^a SOY/ - L0CKL6/V J R iTCACHLt/ Looni>nqTo/i - /li/i/i - Cj. L. Lockhabt~ Aechitlct - ^/* El C O M D I_O0:R.-*>I-=AM PUBLIC SCHOOLS 179 The Bloomington Minnesota Consolidated School shown on the preceding page is a departure from the ordinary, in that it combines some of the desirable features of the two-story and one-story types, and is well adapted to the eighteen acre plot on which it is located. The main portion of the school is contained in the two story central part of the building while the assembly and gymnasium is placed in a one-story wing at one end of the building and the manual training shop and laboratories are placed in the opposite wing. This gives direct access from the outside into the wings one step above the grade line. The noise from the manual training department and gymnasium will be almost eliminated and will not be annoying to the students. The showers and lockers for the _j _ , , , j 1 1 1 , i , gymnasium are located un- |rj_.^^jiJ, l^ad^bp l ,, , , ,[, der the stage and make convenient dressing rooms when the stage is used for entertainment purposes. Note also that direct access to the stage is arranged for from the front vestibule. The library for the school is also used as a circulating library for the whole con- solidated district and to accommodate the public, is located with an outside en- trance through the main vestibule, so that the library may be used when the entire school is locked up. The physics, chemistry, botany, biology and agri- cultural laboratories are all — u— *i 8 !i ji i a zz i. i mm t |Ocou^D-r^Qoe-PLAA-" - Mi&ti iJuniob. School- -VAVtSL-Y— lOWA* G-L-Lockhmit- ARCflHTTT-~l -aT-PAui_-Mi*/i- 180 PUBLIC SCHOOLS combined in two rooms with a small conservatory projecting from the south wing of the building adjacent to the laboratory, to serve as a growing room for agriculture and the botany classes. The combined Junior and High School Building illustrated on this and the preceding page was planned for a square city block with entrances on two sides of the building. The assembly room and gymnasium being located in the center of the building is lighted from skylights. Folding doors are placed between gymnasium and assembly so that bleachers may be turned around and used for an overflow crowd when the assembly is inadequate. Note that the rear wall of stage also has folding doors that may be swung back including the cross corridor as a part of the stage, thus providing stage room for the largest opera company. Convenient access to corridors is provided on each side of audi- torium on both floors on Dotn floors so that the room can be quick- ly emptied. At each end of main corridor on ground floor large cloak rooms and ticket windows are conven- iently placed both for crowds to the auditorium and to the gymnasium, where visitors wraps may be checked and tickets is- sued. Note also the light to the swimming pool and its convenient location to locker rooms. All voca- tional subjects, superinten- dent's office, etc., are lo- cated on ground floor, with Junior and High School As- semblies, with all class rooms on floor above. ■:.. . ;:::.:;:.:;:;;:; Hi " | n U . Hi r I* " mniii ii i iiiiirfffffl m i i iiiii -twtw t; i miuiii -H" SADrntnT 7>laa First and Second Floor Plans Next Page. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 181 LO/iGlTUDl/SAL OtCTtOA 182 PUBLIC SCHOOLS On this and the next two preceding pages, a plan for a combined junior and grade school building is illustrated. The scheme is one that deserves considerable attention, as several interesting features are shown, principally the combination of assembly and gymnasium. By examining the plans it will be seen that both assembly and gymnasium are thrown together by a rolling partition, and have direct outside entrances, on one side through a vestibule to the rear one step above ground, on the other side across the corridor and out through the main entrance. Notice the longitudinal sections at the foot of the preceding page. Also note on the section that the swimming pool is placed under the gymnasium bleachers, with entrances to swimming pool and lockers from either end of gymnasium with lockers placed under the court. (See basement plan second preceding page.) The rear entrance to stage is one step above grade opening on the court, and all dressing rooms are placed beneath the stage, providing ample space for a large chorus or opera troupe. An orchestra pit is also provided in front of the stage with entrance from corridor under stage. The whole object in this plan is to provide facilities for bringing the school population together with the whole town into the school for entertainments, operas, literary society meetings, lectures, debates, etc., fostering the commu- nity spirit, enabling the pa- rents, teachers and children to get in closer touch, better each to understand the other, so if there be any who should criticise this as an unnecessary expenditure in the plans, let him pause and consider. An excess number of lock- ers makes it possible for citizens of the town to form clubs for athletic work in gymnasium and in this way the school can furnish for the average town the con- veniences of the city Y. M. C. A. where the Y. M. C. A. would be unable to exist or find sufficient patronage to maintain itself. J1I7ADA HKilt AND JUNIOR XrtOOL CyL LOCK HAW ARCHITECT 3t. Paw, Mwn X>A3IMI/iT TlOOV. Pla/i PUBLIC SCHOOLS 183 b J» ° " liEVADA H1GHAND JUNTO SCHOOL NEVADA IOWA. G-L LOCK HAW ARCHITECT 3T. PAULMiM. (^CUMD FLODT2 5cAur -fa." • l-C PlArt All the preceding plans are of the low spread-out type of building, while the Nevada, Iowa high and junior school, illustrated on this and the following page, is a compact type of the small school accommoda- ting about four hundred pupils. Manual training and domestic science de- partments were placed in one of the old buildings (re- modeled) when this struct- ure was built. (See small building, page 13.) A street was condemned where the new building now stands and the entrances to the building were planned to be facing the sidewalk on either side of the street so that any one approaching the building in front, their eyes would focus on the entrance to the building. The construction of the building is shown by figures 22, 23 and 24, pages 22 and 23. No more economical type of construction can be found for the three-story building than this. Interior photographs of auditorium and gymnasium are shown on pages 56 and 57, and they indicate very little expenditure, but neatness withal. This plan is arranged so that all light is taken from the east and west with no north or south lighted rooms in the building. Toilet facilities are provided on each floor for boys and girls at opposite ends of the building. There are no cloak rooms, corridor lockers are used throughout and these are connected to exhaust ventilators. The corridors are well lighted from windows at each end and very quiet floors are secured by the use of insulite mastic. Toilet rooms are enameled with washable enamel and are easily kept clean and wholesome. The chemistry, physics and agricultural laboratory are all connected to exhaust ventilators to exhaust all fumes and odors quickly out of the rooms. The bookkeeping, typewriting and stenography rooms are all connected with clear glass partitions so one teacher can control all three rooms and observe classes at work. NEVADA j union $.LL0CKfiAT2T. AECHITKT. 2T, PAUL,MlM. flTDT TlOOV. PLArt iCALt l'-o- 184 PUBLIC SCHOOLS NtVALAHKMD JUN10E. OCttOOL NT/ADA 10Y/A t -Paul • Minn • 22-22 22-22 ^>o5tATi I 1 1 I 1 ! i 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 hum iiiillttNlii 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 NMII - «3nCOM3.fLOOO« Pla/, » !4l<5U i ■ QRADL J>C!4oOL DuiLDlMCj. • ROLfL-lOYVA Q- L-Lockmaut ■ Architect • Jyr- Paul-Mi/n/j n -*■ J>alcoa\y-<3-Attic-Pla.^' o^^t«^&- - r-o- PUBLIC SCHOOLS 187 III l + 1 1 j j k -y^ ruTDlie Addition I Ground ("look. Plan G. L. Lockhart, Architect Building Erected 1917. Tir/t TuooR Plan 188 PUBLIC SCHOOLS J2 :: i i )""iti"i;s# Sr ru m f * $ m # I : r- -; »— --tjB CASEMENT Plan -Qround Tloor. Plan- G. L. Lockhart, Architect. Building Erected 1917. JVM PUBLIC SCHOOLS 189 W ' Kff' oral 4-4- ■$■ ****#f-*_fl-# ■ - , j\)t> Sa/cmcmt Plan ±JL Ground TLoor Plan • GK£I>* SQi (VA : G. L. Lockhart, Architect. Building Erected 1917. Tirvt Floor. Plan Floor Plau 190 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ■ p o -3 PS X — PUBLIC SCHOOLS 191 PUTUItt CL.AS5 fcAA ruTvjtec ci_>^»» a^ S3 sa«=***v. C «-.*>&» KOOV^ StiCO^JO f=H_«?«?f3 F-l—^fc.-'M «-.■«.*"» •--» 192 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Entrance Detail Albert S. Brandcis School, Louisville, Ky. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 193 Entrance Detail Win. R. Belknap School, Louisville, Ky. 194 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 3 O O o — 58 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 195 m C O R. S2 i o O &. feE.C.O^JS> F*LOO« F^IL-A./** iF'lR.&TT FL.OOR y'B--. -A*/"*! C}fl* OdJJJNiXS TPl-OOR ^WS1UI_^1^4^V 1R,. ia2:^iL J K.^i^4JF> 5CMOOI JtA^L MEi/SR-X ARCHITECT 196 PUBLIC SCHOOLS 3 O o a 03 W PUBLIC SCHOOLS 197 Ki«ietx*iTt/. ^s F*aW.AT iri-.OOR. PL^A.^1 ^i_j-T-t-*« ■ w^i EX TT AT&D J- J. U./N&.:><0>=<~r&.C> jNE^tC/ Ei ^^.OE^>^*s. El- /^J ~T~ F» I — /**./"N LOU1AV 1 L-l— &. vc et./s TUOCV J.EA^L HEJNE.-V AECWTE.CT, 198 PUBLIC SCHOOLS g s m PUBLIC S C 1 H O L S 199 200 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Perham, Minnesota High School Building. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. ZA=M1 1 -g^*i jo-/ff ir *■*-&■• NotUxcavatee 1 ji. Mot txcKVATto Gymnasium Plenum Chamocr. MorCxCAVXTErs z nn Fan Boom MotE.xcava.tcu 9 9 ■-*■ I3A31M TNT PLAN — PUBLIC SCHOOLS 201 r , aT J »"«a» i «' J iiwhw — ie'»iir-i>- L - Ground Floor. Pl>kn~ - i r. i ++ ' " ■ji " 1 * - j| " if — " i • 1 1"'°" np l jpi{a 1 j^ S3 Q — Class Boom I I nii * i i i 1 1 * 1 * in #H - Fiest Floor, Plan — — -Dccond Floor Plan- 202 PUBLIC SCHOOLS ilSJr A ' '1 ' il iKtl r "J irWM 1 £ L «l f *!' ™ •V- /sfl^Ilf^l 'ffiffc ■Shi -■•"*" §d PUBLIC SCHOOLS 203 204 PUBLIC SCHOOLS „C -&L < ■J p- c c o ,4J PUBLIC SCHOOLS 205 xra i i ii ii ii l__ _ _d_ _ - _ : igi : : _ _ K _ — — _o__ _ _ r ■ 1 — — i? — "" — j __ _E— — — h - -gh - - - IB r j a Dl C c J lu C o u O 5 « _ i - - -a- - _ _ — s — — _ _ _*}_ — WOO-g MYOT3 I I - - - «- -zL 8- q - - -«- - _ — — p — z: < j P. CJ o ■J h Pi k 206 PUBLIC SCHOOLS < a pi c c j fc- c z c be c ■a r| ffl "3 o J3 V •a 03 5 O s 1 i 1 — 1 Snnnnn pi- - u - - ■ : 1 5 : : 1 ^HH ana P : HF 3: - - :Bl •1 ' 1 iQ P c — □ < J a D Z <0 _^— w i AlE, A >v i { < w fc z: g 01 t P _] a \ U 1 £ r 5 ,, m c :■ I ■'jpit 531 1 I 21 •; A 1 LU J . 1 z < & a Q C f! H Z M S M O < (G 2 CO e o c o H wwg WOTJ '- E a o h a! PUBLIC SCHOOLS 207 Luana, Iowa, Consolidated School. Designed by W. L. Alban, Architect. Floor Plans below 3BI' «OOM - tj 7»-« G^ADt KLO /t'StZf fiSADfUW b- — r 1 : gfg a |L I «J A.n a rad fc I s * I -R. J* T - f-LOOR- f>LA I J" C C O rt X> - pLOOft-fLAJf- 208 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Q T20U7^iP , -T r L00E-PLA/S. r Ml 1 I II M GnKt^E. ia.^>oA\ TiR/T-TLoo^'fLA/i <* OeICCTID'- rLOQR -R.A/M : An economically planned grade building; the two end wings beyond stairways may be omitted entirely and added as needed. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. PUBLIC SCHOOLS 209 Consolidated School, Haifa, Iowa. Designed by G. L. Loekhart, Architect. (qYMNASIUM U ttALL K SSL Baoemint Plan: ■ i f i i ii Omct I I I I.I -a H\NUAuTRAlbUUq t Gymnasium 4 Hall £ Lanjins Domestic Science Tij^t Floor Plan ry-o" i — I * I I I t- ffiGtf School Em " | ' *■ ■fccIT- ATTON t-t-t- ■n I'^-O-'GBADEto. Hall Jl. 7*V &*"• G-FADE XW LIBRARY ^.S^e^GiKADT RM. I I I I 5rCOND fLOOl^PLAN 210 PUBLIC SCHOOLS / Armstrong, Iowa Consolidated School. Designed by G. L. Lockhart, Architect. -3T0KM-I 1 T- E ' vbm&Q 15*+ UWIUttBT.) WHMA3UK I I I I X*.'* 3*' T "Hllfl H Ip? B HilBllj tj— - ^CHIM ■Room =* \". ,1, [Li i, i i — i I ■ — hi. ii ■ j|Y J 4{4^LL»PrjWtHL r -h-M 1 J IIOME3TIC Stirrer. .DASEMIMT PLA/1 ■ j-l | I 11 3tYtrtTtt4EI$HT (BAPf ■I— -hW-h\ - - -cram: .i l-liili |'| Iwl-Y"!!!'!! - CLOAK ROOM | ICLOik-T^ aOAKUM »lCL0)ftN%n| CLOAK-lL HCCtTATOl HOOM ilXTH $RA*- - TL.OOH - - Itl — ' O-oak "SOCM k : . til i , ll. l n Coin 1 5012. fir-rn Cram Grouhd Tlceu Pi.A/1 -£C ITATIOM ROOM A33tMl>l.Y ROOM - -3* 1 ■ allif ' ^ Li^Mmii-tt i.i ii-tjiifH^p "BOOM ClOTATlO^ fcoor- riU-ST FLOOR. PLA/i 1" - v : 1 DICTATION ^^^ T£ECTAT»a/i Cl oak ■room $£CjTATlOrt ROOM zconv Turn Plaa PUBLIC SCHOOLS 211 BaoTmint Upper Part or Kcohejdcri Gymnasium Abound aooi. Plan flR^T ELOOR.PL.AM Second Tlooil Plan Consolidated School Building, Carpenter, Iowa. G. L. Lockhart, Architect. ^ I TmS BOOK ON THE DATE D« ^ „ W.LI- INCREASE TO BO «N the sEV£NTH DAY DAY AND TO *!•"« OVERDUE. I 21 «* ^» \<^ DEC 26 1940M JUN 1 RECTD LD JAN 7 1958 1,1) 21-30m-6/82 tf» ey^ *E 00450 6 *G8a ^v ERSITYofcaufornja LIBRARY RETURN CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT TO""^ 202 Main Library 642-3403 LOAN PERIOD 1 2 3 4 5 6 LIBRARY USE This book is due before closing time on the last date stamped below DUE AS STAMPED BELOW rr '<: - FORM NO. DD 6A, 1 2m, 6'76 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY BERKELEY, CA 94720 w^