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A strar w mm Qmmm xi ® w mam 8lt8 S0S0OIS, 1948-109

Afmwmm

I ©3? Professoa*

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SSKQUcStiC*

Mmm? Professor

Bean of the school of Business

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THESIS

Presented to the Graduate Council of the North

Texan State College in Partial Fulfillment

of Hie It»fBlr4NM&t»

For the Begree of

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By

William M, leager, B. 3. •4 i '

1. J $K?<> Portales, lew Nexioo

Jime, 195©

N. T. S. C. LIBRARY

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U S ? @r V M M M • • • . . . . V

Chapter

Z. INTRODUCTION . . • 1

Jhirpose of the Study Procedure Limitations Organisation

ii. eaiIiT iisfQiy or kkjca?i®» x* m r mbxxoo . . . 6

Mnoatloa Baring Spanish Colonial Ktile (15*0-1821) .

Iteration under M m l & m lule (1821-1848) Education Baring territorial Bays (1848-

1912) Idsoatioa Sine* statehood la 1912

xxx. um simoom is xnr Mexico a h fimhsid . . . . 16

Shift from County and Loeal Sources to State Sources of Kevenue

Apportionment Fund mid Equalisation Fund State Educational Budget Auditor

X?# ISSTOfS if sokve? 25

Findings on State Basis Findings on County Basis

Bernalillo County Catron and Chavez Counties . Colfax County Carry and BeBaea Counties Bona Ana County Eddy County Grant County Guadalupe County WlfcaMii-nia* Jff-ildfr iMh jJi» w&t 4Mbt. Ili

H®i*:<Sing qowa vjr Hidalgo County

iii

Chap**? _ F&g®

LifiCOlS G&Vtttj Luna 6oti»ty UeKiiiley County Mora Q&rnty ©t«r© Qmmtf %««!",§©n»$3r . 81# Arriba County loo««velt County SaMoval Q®m%f Sati jruan 0©tiiity . . . Sam Miguel Gotinfcy Santa f « Soraaty Sl*rra »m& Soeopyo C@anti»# *«©• Gvmtj 9aama#* County BbIob m l Yal«nol« Counties

SlflMMUFjr

V. COJKJLOSIQKS Am> lieO»IESMfI©lf8 . . . . . . . . 66

0©U®lHSlO3Q« ' l«@Ms»Matlons

APFBXDXX . . . 77

BXBLIQ&BAFHT 80

lv

LIST o r TABIDS

T&blo Fag®

1 . M M & H M M T ' F#«B Ghargod Sfcw&oafca la fwoaty-alae High Schools of' Mew Healeo, 1948-1949 . . . 30

2. Earollmeat; foe# for School Subjects la fwo High Schools in Beraalille* eouafcy, 1948-1949 . « 37

3* EarolliBtat Tern £m School Subjects In Two High Schools la Colfax County, 1948-1949 . . . . 40

4. Sarolljaoafc Foo® for School Subjoofea la Two tigh Schools in Oraat ©onaty, 1948-1949 . . . . 42

5* Earollaieat Fees for School tufejootf la One Sigh School in Guadalupe County, 1948-1949 «... 44

6. Earollaieat Foes for School Smbjoefce ia three ffilgh 'Schools - la Mellaley County, 1948-1949. 46

7. Bnrollffi®iat foot for gofeool Subjects. ia fwo Ugh, Schools la Mora Couaty, 1948-1949 . . . . * 48

8. larollwmt foot for School Sublets la fhroo Bl#i Schools la Ofcoro Couaty, 1948-1949 . . 50

9. Earollmoat Foes for School Subjects la Two High iotool# la Bio Arriba ©otmly, 1948-1949 . . 51

10* Karollneat Fees for School Mbjoott la Two High §ofe#ol» ia Sa» 3mm Cowaty, 1948-1949 . . . 54

11* Earollmoat F#«# for School Subjoots ia Om High School ia Saa Miguel Couaty, 1948-1949 . . 55

12. Xarollaoat Foos for Sohool Subject* la Four Mgh Sahools ia Saata Fe County, 1948*1949. 56

13. Enrollment Feoa for Sohool Subjects la Qm llgh Sohool la Torrance County, 1948-1949 . . . 59

fable Page

1%. Number ©f High Schools £a lew Mexico Charging Certain Fees Per Year for iiitu Sowses, 19*8-19*9 61

15* lumber of Sehoals in Each County Charging Fees, the Number of Courses for Which Fees Were M&BG9BG&, & M Ifoe lank of the Counties oo the Basis of Fees . . . 6*

v±

CHAPTER X

IHT!01Xf§fI©H

Pvrp«M of the Study

the purpose of the study reported in these pages was to

ascertain how well the educational system as practiced In

the public high schools of New Mexico was complying, 19*8-

19*9, with the provision ©f the state Constitution, included

in Article XXI# which stipulates that na uniform system of

free public schools sufficient for the education of, and open

to, all the children of school age in the state shall be es-

tablished and maintained. b1

the means selected for carrying out this proposed proj-

ect was an investigation of the various fees assessed to stu-

dents enrolled in the public high schools of the state* with

the realization, of course, that the fee system is only one

factor involved in the question of whether equal educational

opportunities are being provided for all students of the

state. Although,as previously indicated, the Constitution

of New Mexico provides for equal educational opportunities

for all students throughout the state, the question arises

*The Constitution of the State of Hew Mexico, As Amended by the people in 8eneraY~Sl!eeti©n, 19l2to 1939™Prepared un-der the Supervision of Mrs. Jessie M. Gonzales, Secretary of State, Article XXI, Section 1.

as to whether a state with Hew Mexico's racial and financial

problems can effectively comply with such m educational

ideal. It was fcelleve& that a study of the fee system 1b

nee by all schools ©f the state would prove to he enlighten-

ing as to how uniformly equal ©ideational opportunities. In

no far: as they can he Measured hy 'fees and charges, were

being offered to the students enrolled in secondary public

schools In Sew Mexico in- the session of 19^8-19^9.

procedure

For the purpose of collecting data deemed necessary in

the development of this study, the writer formulated a ques-

tionnaire to he submitted to the high schools of the State

of Hew Mexico, (A copy of this questionnaire Is included in

the Appendix of this study*} This questionnaire was designed

to obtain information as to the subjects for which fees were

charged, the amount charged per year, and the use made of the

money collected in fees*

After the fuestlonnalre had been returned, all data

were carefully studied and compiled in tabulations, first

on the basis of the state as a whole, and then on the basis

of individual counties within the state, fhtse data appear

in this study in tables which are dlsoussed and analysed

in the text.

Another phase of the study consisted of research In

published sources in order to gather material to be used in

wit lag a brief sketch of the developiaent of education In : •

8ew Mexico ia3 of the means whereby education It financed

within this state.

Limitations

This Investigation it limited to a study of fees as-

sessed to student® in the public seoondary schools of Hew

Mexico la 19*8-19*9 i» connection with courses offered %

these schools• the question of whether equal educational op-

portunities are provided for all,, is accordance with the state

Constitution, la thus United In this study to an examination

of the'fee system at it exists in the high schools of this

state, 'With the understanding that fees and charges consti-

tute only one, phase of. the problem of providing equal educa-

tional opportunities for a|l students. Although there are'.

132 high school® in the state, to'all of which questionnaires

were sent, responses were received from 107 of these schools,

representing approximately eighty-one per cent of the total

nuisber of suoh schools in the state. . 7he schools to which

questionnaires were submitted were those listed.as.public

secondary schools in the New Mexico Educational Directory.

1255-46, published by the State Superintendent of Public In-

struction* • .

fhe conception of "fee" which is incorporated in this

study is'that fe«M In Webster »s Collegiate. Dictionary, sanely,

wa fixed charge . * . for stated privilege*,* In mm in-

stances • the fees assessed by schools for certain subjects

seemed to imply the payment of a small tuition for the privi-

lege of attending the school or of enrolling la certain

elassesI but in other schools, the fee appeared to he for the

purpose of replaeeaent of damaged or destroyed materials ami

equipment needed in specific courses. Since It Is the writer*s

premise that "free and efual educational opportunities" for

all students imply no charge whatsoever for the privilege of

enrolling In any class or course, it Is believed that either

type of fee described above is In violation of the concep-

tion of free and equal educational opportunities for all.

Children should not he restricted to the pursuit of certain

course* of study Is which they may possess little or no la*

terest for the reason that they do sot have the money to pay

the fees assessed for other courses In (Alob they may he «ich

more deeply Interested.

Organization .

• This initial chapter of the study has stated the prob-

lem .described the procedure used in the study, < and outlined

certain limitations recognized In the investigation,:

' Chapter 11 presents, in brief, a discussion of the early

history of education in Hew Mexico and of its development to

the •present - time,

Oh&pttr III indicates the methods employed In financing

the educational system of Hew Itesloo, •

Chapter IV consists of & presentation of the findings'

©f this study by means of tabulations and discussions. lata

are first analysed on the basis of the satire state, then

later on tht basis of individual counties within the state.

Chapter ¥ Hats, certain oonolusiona and reeojaioendatlons

which appear to be warranted by the data considered in this

study*

CHAPTER II

' MELT list mi m IBUCATX0H IW SEW MEXICO

Education During Spanish Colonial Rule (1540-1821)

One hundred years before the founders of the Commoiiwealth

of llassaohusetts enacted the first school lav in Aseriea and

pledged themselves to the principle that "education is a mat-

ter of the greatest possible importance to all nations and to

all cosuKuaitiea, ana « . . deserving of the special attention

of the state,**3, the first school® of lew Mexico were being

pioneered by Catholic Missionaries* Franciaoaa.friars had

accompanied Coronado on his expedition into the area in 1540,

and.two of the®, Pray Luis de Escalona and Fray Juan de Pa-

dilla, retained in th® conquered country after Coronado re-

turned to Mexico. fhey oontinued their work of converting

the Indians and instructing then in the ways of the con-

querors •

Consequently, lew Mexico has both a unique .and an inter-

esting educational background. fhe culture of the state is

a peculiar product of the past Mixed with the present. fhe

feet that oeabers of her state legislature speak two languages*

• Payson Smith and Frank Wright# Education in the Forty-

English and Spanish, Is a living example of her past learn-

ing and of the present racial, problem of the state. Hie

Spanish came to build a state and, having built it, decide<1

t© live in it as Spaniards. ffce many Indian ruins still to

fee seen today ©peak from the past of a people who must, even

yet, 'fee given consideration, In the dogged determination of

th® first Franciscan friars to bring learning and religion

to the unpredictable natives of a Strang# land, lies the 'ba-

sis, 'perhaps, of an equally stubborn determination on the

part of iew Mexico's present inhabitants to keep their oul-

tural level high in the faee of many obstacles.

In 1598j when Qnate came to lew Hsxie© to establish per-

manent settlements, he brought with him missionaries to es-

tablish churches and schools in the pueblo*. the mission-

aries, in addition to stressing the doctrines of the 0torch,

"taught the Indians the three !fs, singing, ami vocational

work such as shoemaklng, tailoring, felackimithing, carpentry,

and kindred ©rafts.*2 But the Indians, steeped 1b centuries

of ignorance, tribal mysticism, and primitive culture, were

indifferent toward education! and, despite the efforts of the

missionaries, edueation remained in m extremely backward

condition throughout the entire period of Spanish colonial

rule. However, some trace# of these early teaching efforts

%ho»as c. Matiiar, fMl* tatim* P- *•

8

were'to establish theaselves in the culture of the people,

and even when the Spaniards were driven out' fey til® Indians

In 1680, their Influenceupon the cultural and spiritual

life of the north American aborigine8 could not be erased' .

entirely. . . . . . •

In 1692 Be Vargas, who had been appointed Governor of

Hew Mexico by the Viceroy of Spain, set out fro® El Paso few

the purpose of attempting.a reoontuest of the -territory, and

by 1694 the area which is now the state of Hew Mexico was

one® inore under Spanish rale* Missions and pueblos were re-

established, .and. church building and mission work made steady

progress under the diligent supervision of the missionaries.

Yet. the Missions .did not flourish as educational centers, as

the Spaniards * limited knowledge of the Indian languages was '

a constant handicap.

S. P. Hanninga, in his very thorough study of the Hew '

Mexico school,system, gives this picture of education from • ,

1721 •until the establishment of Mexican independence in 18211

.la 1721 public schools were to be established in the pueblos and in all of the Spanish settlements by decree of the king under the direction of the Fran-ciscan fatten. A provision was made that each pueblo and colony should cultivate a field of corn for the remuneration #f the teacher, la spite of the decree, education remained in a backward condition all through the eighteenth century. Religion and the ancient lan-guages had a proainent part in the schools, fhere 'were no colleges or public schools and only private teachers could be found in the larger towns • Some tlaie prior to 1777, S*ln© made a desperate plea to the king for educational facilities, which later resulted

ia the fculldiag of a school la Saata Fe whleh mm aeirer used tmmmm of a lack of fuMs, Thus were the law^able efforts of the people always defeated , . by po?e|ty, One m y wall marvel at their eoa-

. • ataaey»3 •

Ham#, tli« e M @f Spanish rule over Hew Mexico la the early

P»t of Hie alaeteeath eeatury fmM the state possess lag

aot ©a® e&ieatloaal iaatitatloa worthy of the aaaie. ;,

Sdueatloa uader Mexican Rule (1821-18*8)

With the estaMishmeat of Mexlcaa ia<tep©a<Ieac© la 1821,

another attempt was mad# to etfaeate the people,' A email ama-

her of primary aohool® were estssfclithea, hut reaiiag a ad writ*

lag were 'the oaly laraaehes of Maeatloa taiaght lack of

reveaue made it ioposaible for theae aohools to mate much '•

progress, ana the oaly two sehools that reoelvei sraeh reeog- _

aitioa were those at Saata Fe and m m , where son® of the

earlier leader* and law-iaafcers of the atate reoeived their

tralaiag.

Ths Mexican goveraaeat, whatever Ita good la-teatioaa ooaoeraiag school®, failed to earry them ; oat# aad stemliihed almost aothlag la furtheriag the ed*ieatioeal opportuaitle© of the people.5 •

Education Xnrlag Territorial Day® (18*8-1922)

*ew Mexioo was ceded to the Ifaited statea la 1848, aad

la 1850 the territory ©f Sew Wejtloo waa officially organised*

30, p. ftumlacft, mm. Masio.o School System, pp. 3~*.

^I&aaelly, op. jl|., p. 2. ' §im<L

10

"At that time there was absolutely nothing in the way of edu-

cational advantages, except a very few church schools. the

population at a whole spoke only Spanish, thai* native tongue.

Consequently,, 'after taking over, the new territory, It became

the obligation ana responsibility of the Halted State# Qov- ,

mmmnt "to provide ftan&s for Instructing these newly a®~

quired people in the English language « the language of the

country which they were foiled to adopt*"7 Congress, however,

failed to assume this major responsibility, and Hew Mexico

had to' work out her own educational salvation*'

fhere were other reasons for the discouragingly slow

progress of education in the new territory, fhe majority of

the people — and there were very few people to begin with —

were very poor, OG&arunlcation with the outside world was

aloest impossible besatise of incredibly bad transportation

routes. There was constant danger from unfriendly Indians,

It was hardly surprising that the United States Congress

failed to appreciate its obligation to a territory .that was ,

far beyond the last outposts of civilization at that time.

fhe only important source of outside aid for education

in territorial days was the church. In 18f51 Bishop La»y ar-

rived m Santa Fe to take over the work of the Catholic

Church in the new territory. Being a reformer and believing

In the value and efficacy of education, he did such to further

^Hanninga, eit., p. 9* 7Xfrl«.

11

its progress in the area. By 1865 the [email protected] system of

schools was well-established, and its influence has spread

in the years since that date, Although the first parochial

schools were Catholic in origin and conduct, Protestant de-

nominations also found lew Mexico a fertile field is which

to work. Shortly after American occupation, many Protestant

missionaries came to the new territory and were instrumental

in establishing their own denominational schools throughout a

the region. Many of these sehools have survived and are ef~

festive examples of Protestant educational work which ha®

continued down to the present time.

fhe first school laws of Hew Mexico were passed in ^

1855-1856.^ these laws represented the first basi© attempt

to-lay the foundation for a public, tax-supported school

eyatea in the state, Due to widespread public hostility,

these laws were repealed in a few months and the taxes whioh

had been collected under them were refunded. In i860 a new

school code w&s passed and# as amendments to the code were

added in the years that followed, the rough outline of the

present state situational system began to take shape, However,

public sentiment did not really favor education until tha

®Bonnelly, op. olt.. p. 3. Sonnelly lists the Nenatil School | Bpesbyterfan) and the Xarwood fir Is* School (Method-ist) of Albuquerque, and the Allison James School (Freeby-terian) of Santa Fe as three outstanding examples of frotest* ant sehools whioh have survived.

9isifl-»». 5.

32

©oralJig of tli# railroad "boom" of the eighties. The railroads

brought as lnflnx of settlers, people who bad been aoowstomed

to having good schools for the la? children, and they helped

to areata aiaeh-needed sentiment for an expanding educational

program. la 1891 the territorial legislature passed a new

soliool oodo which Is generally regarded as the foundation of

the modern jwUle sohool system of the, stato.

fhe code provided for a superintendent of public instruction, to be appointed by the governor, and established a territorial hoard of eiwoation which was given broad powers over' the organisation and operation of the entire school system. fhe oode also provided for the Issuance of school district bonds to finance the construction of school houses.1®

The sohool law of 1891 did not revolutionise education

In New Hexloo overni$it, Indeed, the people must have felt

that some of the first sehools set up under this new oode

were a black mark against democracy.

fhe minimum sohool term was three months, and for years afterwards many a district was without a school**house and struggled to maintain a three-months • term. there was so normal sohool for the training of teachers. in store than one district the naming of a teacher, the furnishing of wood for the school stove, and the hiring of a Janitor were floats to be passed around among politically favored families» Even In Santa Pe ai the begin-ning of the century, the high schools and grammar schools were housed in a rented building,1*

Nevertheless, pro-school sentiment and the wisdom of Governor

lQlbid., p. 6.

^Lansing B. Bloom and fhomas C. Donnelly, lew jtexloo Mstory mm. ftmm, p. 392.

13

prince In appointing Amado Chaves as the first Territorial •'*

Superintendent of Public Instruction combined to further the

development of the Hew Uexico school aystern. ' Chaves was

Spanish la blood and Catholic in religion, thereby allaying

*all suspicion . , . that the public school system Might he

an American scheme for training children away from their an-

cestral traditions.b12

By the and of 1892 the American public tax-supported

school system had been definitely established in Hew [email protected].

The first year's progress had not been phenomenal, but Super-

intendent Chaves could be 'justly proud of his accomplishments

in the field of public education, la reported that the "ter-

ritory had spent nearly a quarter million dollars for schools

and that 23#000 pupils had been enrolled* There were more

than 300 teachers. n3-3 fjje beginning had been Mid#* and edu-

cation in the elementary and secondary schools was free and

equally open to all who wished to attend. By the beginning

of the twentieth century educational progress was an estab-

lished fact and, since that time, the development of schools,

colleges* and other educational facilities has been rapid,

Education Since Statehood in If12,

Although lew Mexico's educational position in the nation

ISjfanninga, jg* olt.. p* 18.

*3&MUi»21ft Of* olt., p. 7.

1*

is still low when compared with that of older states, its

educational development has been remarkable when considered

against its own historical background. It must toe remembered

that the schools when established were planned for & people,

and not by themj the founders of mission schools had to com-

bat language difficulties and generation® of illiteracy,

free schools, apart front those maintained by the church, were

considered at timet as a means ©f educating children away

from the church. fhere was a general disinclination to pay

taxes, and the few people who controlled most of the wealth•

in the state did not wish to be taxed to educate the poor. -

tee of the major obstacles wa® a lack of desire on the part •

of the masses for learning.

Sinn# tho development of public education la the United

States has been almost entirely a state function,1** Itew

Mexico has had to meet and overcome many obstacles with very

little help from outside sources, the second youngest state,

uallto most of the states la the Onion, still has a serious

problem in educating and amalgamating the peoples who rep-

reseat three distinct civilisations, Another major problem '

**fhe foath Amendment to the Constitution of the United States readsi the powers not delegated to the United States by the ©onstltution, nor prohibited by it to ths States, are reserved to the States respectively or to the People." in accordance with this principle, the development of public education la the United States has been a function of the states•

• 2 5

concerns the Question of how a state which ranks forty-• •

seeond in population, and whose tourist industry tops all

other industries in the state, can finance her schools; and

how school revenue can "be equitably distributed -between, the

sparsely settled counties and the few counties which- possess

the major portion of the state*® population.

In the chapter which follows, a geseral idea of lew -

Mexico*s plan for financing schools, and for equalizing,•as

nearly as possible, the educational opportunities among the

rich and the - poor - counties and districts, will toe presented.

The educational program of the state is largely dependent on

its ability to. finance -adequately'and fairly- all,public in-

stitutions of learning*

CHAPfER 111

mm 8oio©ia xv sew mxxm ME pikaijcsb

. It is the purpose of the present chapter to present a* .

ba»lef- discussion ©f the various methods employed in Stew Hexico

for financing the public schools., Likewise, In these pages

will he .given a description of the plans thereby an effort.

1® made by the state to equalize the educational Income of

the counties and. school districts of the state.

Shift froa County and Local Sources to . State Sources of leveaue

. In the, early development of .the Hew Meade© public school

system, that is, from about 1892 to 19%5, 'the counties and

local school district® supplied from local,taxation almost

all of the funds necessary t© maintain the.schools. faxes

and real and personal property were the chief sources of

revenue. "In 19S0 mm Mexico received a higher percentage

of its school Income fro® county and local taxes than did

any other state .in the Union*nl fhis was a far step from

the territorial days when public hostility toward any ki&d

of school taxes caused the repeal of the territorial laws

of 1055-1®56.

1Boaaelly# jgg. olt., p*

16

17

Beginning in the late twenties, the. state assumed m .

Increasing thaws of the cost of financing the public school®,

and In the thirties and forfeits came to supply by far the, ma-

jor portion,- ,• ,

. : Whereas in 1929-30 the state of $»*r fitexleo con-trltouted ©sly 3*5 per «nt of the cost of malntatn-

. . , ing the public schools and the county and local dis- . , , . pr#vi«#i 96,5 *•* «#at# by tfe» atate

• »as- supplying 7*. per cent.2 . 1 . ,

Since the 19*1-19*2" school year, the -state-'s contribution .

has Increased. to approximately eighty per cent.

The principal reasons for the shift from county and local

sources to state sources of school revenue were two in num-

bers first, the growing public awareness that the state had

a responsibility for equalizing educational opportunities

among the favored rich and the unfortunate poor counties and

districts * and second, the depression of the early thirties,

which caused a breakdown in county and local property tax

collections, fhl® latter occurrence led many states, few

Mexico among them, to add amendments to their constitutions

limiting the amount of. taxes that could be levied- on real

and personal' property,^ . In Hew Msxico this amendment is popu-

larly known as' the "twenty-mill. amendment, * and limits psep*

arty'taxes for all purposes, except necessary levies for

t§t§?

BBosaselly, og* &&&•* 9* 25*

18

paying the public deist and aueh additional levies as may be

authorised by the voter® of a taxing district, to twenty , .,

Mills annually on each dollar of .assessed valuation, the

amendment was ratified by the voter® of the state is 1933*

fo mafee up the .deficiency in school funds occasioned by

the loss of property-tax funds and revenues, Hew Mexico passed

the Emergency School fax Act, commonly known as the sales

tax, and created the Income fax Fund, the revenue from whieh

is derived by levying a tax on the gross Income, less exemp-

tions and deductions, received by individuals, companies, , . ;

partnerships, and corporations> both domestic and foreign,

conducting operations within the state,

All the revenues obtained by virtue of the sales tax, except four per cent which covers the cost of administration, is used for common school purposes . . , and 67.5 pe* oent of the Income Tax Fund is

, transferred, to the state j&ualiiatioii Fund to be used for school purposes.4

Consequently, of the total amount which the state and its

subdivisions now spend on the public schools, '"about half is

derived from the sales, income, and other forms of non-

property taxes• "5 Slew Mexico, like many other states, de-

pends more upon indirect taxes than upon direct taxes for

sources of revenue with which to conduct the affairs of the

state, including public education.

^Banning*, ©b* oit., pp* 130-131* 5£onnelly» eg* elt., p. 25#

19

.Property levies, principally by the county and local

districts, Income from the lease of school lands, end 'Inter-

est on the permanent school funds account for the reaalning .

half that the state now expends for the operation and mails-

tenanee of public schools. fhe Interest on the permanent

school funds Is derived froa oil- royalties and the sale of ' '

school lands. •

It will he recalled that the federal- govern-ment set aside four sections [of land3 la each township a®' as endowment for the cows©*! schools of the state* la some eases where these lands had al-

' : ready passed to private ownership at statehood, other federal lands were substituted in lieu there-

/ of. The school ownership fro® these sources now (19%tl consists of approximately 8,500,000 acres.

• • These lands are leased to. private individuals for agrleultural, grasing, and mineral purposes. In 19^1-40 the income fro® these' leases amounted fcc #993J059«30. Twenty per seat of this income is used for administrative purposes.6

Federal funds forest reserve earnings, Mineral' leases, and

grants for vocational educationand state Income fro® Mis-

cellaneous nan-tax sources (district court and justice of

the peace fines, game law violations, and so on) contribute

a minor percentage ,

Apportionment Fund and Efualisatlon Fund

School moneys collected fey the state'are placed by the

treasurer into two separate funds, the apportionment fund and

the equalisation fund, fhe apportionment fund is made up

%ew 'Hsxieo Educational Association, fablic School Fl-mm& ®£ Mm * t m n e t i » , 19*2, p. go.

&0

largely of money derived from the leas® of school lands, In-

terest-bearing securities in which the permanent _ funds of the

schools are invested, a M the state school property tux. of

one-half mill, fhe state constitution requires that the

apportionment fund he distributed among the school districts

of each county "in the proportion that the number of children

of school age (6 to 18) in each district bear® to the total

number of suoh children In the s t a t e . f h e treasurer of

each county receives front the state treasurer the share due

to his county on this basis, and he credits each .school dis-

trict with its portion, the districts, thorough their govern-

ing authorities, issue warrants or vouchers against the

county treasures? when they wish to use their. Income fro® the

apportionment fund for the administration and maintenance of

public schools.

The eoualliatlon fund, derived from the sales and income

taxes, is apportioned t© the counties for financing transpor-

tation of school children and for maintaining the elementary

and secondary schools. Bash county's percentage of partici-

pation in this fund Is determined in the following manners

First, the state transportation director deter-Mines the number of pupils transported, miles traveled, type of roads, etc,, according to the statutory for- • aula, and thus, the amount due each county for trans-portation purposes up to a maadmum of twenty per cent of available equalization funds for the year, fhe

Si Si M m M M f ® * Article X X X , Section *.

21

iNMMlaAt* Is distributed on the basis of average tally attendance according to two schedules j namely, the Primary Bistribution and the Secondary Distribution. Currently, the Primary Blstrlbution Is required by statutes to regulate tit# Increase or dotreasa in the revenue going to the several counties on of the change in distribution under provision of 19%1 laws, in such a manner a» not to Inerease or de-crease any county1 a allotment more than ten per cent in amy year, ?wa the isouai the county received during the previous year fr©m the state Public Sato®®! Equalisation Fund is deducted the amount said county would have received had the total been distributed on a weighted average dally attendance basis. iach county is then given credit for the amount of d«* crease or increase it would have received m the lat-ter basis up to tea per cent* fhls constitutes the county1* ixpxmary allotment *

the balance of the Btualiaatiom Fund, over the total amount used in the primary attribution, is dis-tributed to the several counties on the basis of weighted average dally attendance, that it, high school students are considered 1*73 grade school students*®

the equalization fund, unlifce the apportionment fund, offers

an incentive to each school district to maintain a full

nine-month term of school and to enforce the compulsory at-

tendance laws, Zt has done much to equalise educational op-

portunities throughout the state.

neither the apportionment fund nor the equalisation fund

can be used for purchasing land or constructing buildings and

other permanent improvementsIbr the use of the schools *

these phases of school development are paid for by a direct

charge fund derived from a property tax within the school

district*

%ttr Utaclco Educational Association, Public school Fi-nance of Jfew Mexico. Bulletin, 1$*2, p. is.

23

mxtmm fate of property tan f w all direct charges*in each school 'district emmet' exceed five ' ailis, •• Another five stills can fee levied for mainte-nance purposes. Bonds cannot be issued by a school district in excess of € per cent of its assessed . valuation, flit total bonded indebtedness against all public school property is the state was approxi* Siateiy$5,530*060 la if45-19&6, according to Ins state educational budget auditor.° • <

After the district lias provided buildings and equipment for

the schools, state funds are available from various personal

and property taxes fer teachers* salaries, janitors* salaries,

fuel 1 water, electricity, transportation, i M all mintenanee

lo purposes* -

' State Educational Budget Auditor

fh© State Educational Budget Auditor, who is appointed

by and hold* M s office at the pleasure of the ©overnor, su-

pervises the wiping of *11 school budgets for tbe state as a

whole, "M is bonded ia the amount of $5,000 conditioned on

the faithful and impartial discharge of his duties,' <

M s duties are to compile and preserve accurate informtion concerning school finances and adminis-tration and to report to the governor any violation . of the budget law or any illegal expenditures of school funds. W» confers with the State fax 0oa-Mission as to tmm for reports and budgets to be re-quired froa all school districts and all state educa-tional institutions. He also supervises and controls the preparation of all budgets and estimates of all . . public schools and state educational institutions and consults and advises with the state superintendent of Public Instruction in regard to financial siatters af-fecting all schools,11

9»sanelly, jg* eit., p. 27. l 0D&|.

•^SOw Mexico State Bepartsent of Education, law Mexico P-.** School Code, IS®9 Ooapilation, Obapter 120, Section 6ol.

23

Before April 15 of @ach year the school budgets, as

agreed upon lay tins boards of education and the supe*lntaft£~

•nts, are presented to the county school budget commissions,

composed In each county of three persons, on© of whom oast be

tt* educational budget auditor, the other two, one resident

taxpayer from each of. the two dominant political parties., are

appointed1 by the o aunty commissloner#« this commission has

the responsibility of examining the budgets In'detail and

making any changes which appear to be wiae, , %#n hearings •

art held to afford the public an opportunity to be heard*

the State tax ©©amission has final authority to fix budget

allowance®, and budgets approved fey the state commission are

certified before July 1 to the county and municipal school

boarda.

the matter of' collecting and providing source a of school

revenue la one Important lean® to be considered, bit the nat-

ter of apportioning school revenues la another that too many

school people have not appreciated and recognised as. con-

tributing to an effloleat educational system for all chil-

dren, Sew Mexico has been admittedly weak in practicing the

equitable distribution of school revenues, a fast not «o

surprising when one considers that most of her population

la concentrated in a very few cities in the state* Equita-

ble distribution la not, as la often thought, an impartial

distribution* to .equitable distribution is one wfclefe takes

2%

1st© consideration arctoh factors as costs, needs, inequali-

ties, and local efforts, All of these Items Must "be consid-

ered when a state comes. to recognize It® fcroad and general .

responsibility for the education of til the children of the

state rather than of portions of them scattered her# and

there. . Inequalities in schools are frequently the results

of nature and sodern Industrial development, •

' ;The fundamental principle of a state apportionment plan

should be "to equalise the burdens of maintenance and educa-

tional opportunities for the entire s t a t e » . tu the chap-

ter that follows, data resulting from a survey of Individual

counties In 1948-1949 will attempt to show how ©suitably the

.school children of Hew Mexico share in "free education,* in

so far' as is reflected in fees and charges assessed toy sec**

ondary schools for enrollment in certain courses of study*

too often, as the surrey will point out, schools are forced'

to equalise educational opportunities for students fcy char®*

ing fees for many of the courses taken. If there is not suf* ! ,f ;

ficient school revenue for all children to share alilst'in

pahlic education, then the state should* determine to what ex-

tent it can correct 'this situation*

• * ®®snnlnga, on* 5it., ?. 155.

OHAPfFJR IV

HlSTTLfS 9 BfSffST

In the development of tills study, It was- the writer's

assumption that "free and etual educational opportunities"

oust be Interpreted literally, Although tills particular in-

vestigation was limited to a study of the fee system as It

existed la the public high schools of Hew Mexico during the

19*8*19*9 school year, It was assumed that fees charged would

provide some Insight list© the extent to which the educational

system of that state Is "free and equal.* It la recognized,

of• course, that aany factors «tl»r than foot would hair® to he

considered la a comprehensive analyala of "free and ©fu&l

educational opportunities," hat these factors — swell m

physical etuipiaent, teaching personnel, salaries, operating

expenses, and school buildings — were not made a part of

this study*

fhe writer insists that educational advantages, to be

mtmm and equal, * oust be available to all atudMta without

charge of any kind except for breakage or lost of school-

©wf»d equipment or supplies, this means that' fixed fee® of

any amount charged to all students for th» privilege of en-

rolling in a given course, regardless of breakage or loss of

25

26

©tptlpaent, la & violation of the principle of "free* educa-

tion. Obviously, teachers or schoolauthorltiess cannot de-

termine la advance what breakage or loss will oeew, and .

for this reason the assessment of fijwd fee®, la to fee re-

garded as In the nature of tuition t© the extent that the fee

paid: is not all required fop the replacement of efulptaent

and supplies lost or broken during use by the student.

lata to be presented in this chapter will reveal that

most of the fixed feee assessed by the high schools of Hew

Mexico in 19^8-19*9 were required for the so-called practical

or vocational subjects, that is, for the sciences, for hoae-

afcking course®, for various types of stoop work, including

mainly Industrial arts and woodwork, and for courses In .

typewriting*.

It Is * ewwOBly known fact that in Hew Mexico an un-

usually small percentage of Mgh school students ever attend

college, for this reason, secondary education 1® to be re-

garded as terminal training for those students who d© not

enter college« Hence, students, in high school who know that

they will not have the advantages of college training would

like to; receive instruction at the secondary level to pre-

pare, then for entering a vocation upon leaving high school,

flits desire was the basic reason for the introduction into

the secondary curriculum of American schools of the practical

and vocational courses* since these courses are the ones

27

for which, In #ew Jisxieo, fees are nest frequently assessed,

It may h® assumed that such supplementary fees beooair virtual

tuition barriers which aay toe particularly burdensome for

low-income groups, such as predominate in Haw Kexico. Such

ferns, them, present th® danger that m m j students who would

like to enroll for practical and vocational subjects are pro*

M M ted from doing so because of the fee which is required

in some schools for enrollment*. For this reason#. they are

denied certain educational opportunities which are readily

available to those in wore fortunate circumstances who can *

afford to pay the price of entry Into the courses.

As has been emphasized in the preceding chapter, the

plan by which public money is allocated for the support of

the schools ©f lew Mexico is not capable of providing uniform

distribution of funds to the variolas counties, and to school

districts within1 the counties. Because of this, inequitable

financial support for the schools of the state, the schools

of Mae counties enjoybetter buildings and facilities, bet-

ter trained teachers,ilarger quantities of teaching supplies

and equipment, and surplus funds for providing necessary ma-

terials out of public iBOney. Other schools less fortunate

in the receipt of funds may.have to operate on a rigidly

curtailed budget which allows for only a minimum of equip-

meat, fhls explains why, in the following pages, some schools

wiH be shown to assess no fees whatsoever for any ©oursea,

28

whereas other school® may charge numerous fees ranging from

nominal amounts to rather large assessments, la these latter

schools, students are virtually being asked to help support

the public school system of Jfew Mexico by their payment of

fixed fee® to take care not only of breakage or loss of equip-

ment hut also to provide an additional sum to. supplement the

Inadequate funds available from public money fm the opera-

tion of the schools,

this Is a very vnfortnnate sltuatlon-which has the ef~

feet of penalizing children who are unfortunate enough to

live in school districts which receive insufficient funds

for the operation of the schools under the present inequita-

ble plan for the collection and distribution of money for

the state's educational system * Students are penalised in

three significant wayst (1) those who enroll in certain.

courses have to, pay an assessed fee for the privilege•of

taking the course j (2) many other children who would like to

have the instruction offered in these courses may have to

take other subjects because of their inability to pay the

feei and finally, (3) students who cannot take the courses

because of the fee required for entry are thus prevented

from receiving practical or vocational training which, they

May desperately need in order to earn a livelihood after

they leave high school.

finis the fees become more than supplementary income for

29 ?

the schools • they at the same time are barriers wMeh de-

prive students of the advantages of "free and equal efiuoa- ''

tlonal opportunities," ' •

Findings on Stat® Basis

fo determine whether the high schools of Mew Mexico

were "free and uniformM i» 108-109 ia giving the school

child educational opportunities, t^ostionnaires mm sent to

all of the high schools of the state as listed la the Hew

Mexico Educational Mraotory, 105-1946, published toy the

office of. the Stat® Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Of the 132 questionnaires sent out, 107 > or approximately

eighty-one per ceat, were returned with all of the informa-

tion necessary to this study. Of the number rtlwa»(3# twen-

ty* nine schools, or approximately twenty-seven per cent,

stated that students In these schools were charged fees for

ob# or more of the courses offmd, . By using this percent-

age figure., twenty-seven per cent, as an index to th# number

of schools that charged fees, and applying it against the

total number of high school* in the stata, 132, we may assume

that approximately thirty*six schools charged fees of one

type or another la providing their students the 'benefits of

"free education.*

Table 1, on the following page, shows Hie various sub-

jects for which charges were made, the percentage of sohools

which charged for these subjects, the saiiwa and minimum

30

TABLE 1

m m e m m FBES CEAME© swiehss IS W S W W - H I ® high schooib or m f skxico, 1948-1949

MrnhBT of Ft* Cent

Charge Per Tear

Subject; . • : Schools Report-ing Fee

of Schools Reporting Maxlmta® Minimum Average

Chemistry..•* • 16 14,95 - #4.50 $0.50 $1,81

Typing....... 13 12.15 10.00 1.0 Q 2,81

Biology*•»*«« 9 8,41 2.00 . 0.50 ' 1.33

Industrial arts...... 6 5.61 75.00## 1.50 • ' 19.80

5 4*67 6,00 0.50 2.50

Borne econo-•1.08 ...»»« % 3*74 2.00 0.50 1.25

I%]f0l6l •••»•« 3 2,80 1.00 0.80 0.93

General BOteliC®,.* 3 2.80 2.00 0.25 1.08

Arts aai crafts.,,. 3 2,8© 2.25 0.50 1.42

Languages• • • • 2 1,87 2.50 Hone # # # '

OteSMPIS® ...*•*. 1 0.93 0.25

l£%>*ry« 1 0*93 0.25

Fhy»leal •dn*" cation,.•* 1 0.93 10.00

Piano ...««.. • 1 0.93 9.00

Vocational agriculture 1 0.93 10,00

Ifotsl * * * * 69 64.45

•Ooatsmt^i ©a the basis of 107 school© reporting. ##JDsmitM«a pasraeat f«p aaterl&ls tm®€ la class, *##0ne of tla® two sohools aid set IMle&te the fee,

31

charges, iM the average ©barge isade throughout the state

for the same subjeots. fhe subjects are listed according to

the frequency of ©barges assessed,

0ne weakness of the questionnaire employed la the collec-

tlm of data was that it did not jtlaoe sufficient emphasis

upon the necessity for inforsiation as to whether [email protected]

"fee#® were assessed as payment for supplies and Materials

or as straight fees amounting to special tuition required for

©nrollwent in certain courses of study. Frost to© list of

subjects in fable I for which fees were charged, it is ob-

vious that in some instances, notably the sciences and music

and ©rafts, additional materials were required beyond the

textbooks supplied by tiie state* lease in these instances

it is to be surmised that the fees were either primarily or

entirely for the purpose of Meeting the cost of equipment

and Materials needed, lire® this method of financing school

needs, however, goes against the Ideal conception of "free

and equal educational opportunities® as outlined in the

state Constitution of Pew Msxloo* In such subjects as typ-

ing, languages, and library it is difficult to understand

how any charge could be made for additional supplies and ma*

terials, and for this reason the fee in these instanoes stay

be looked upon as equivalent to a siaall tuition. Because of

the writer's inability to distinguish accurately between

charges Made for Materials and those assessed as virtual

32

tuition, ail charges will fee considered in this study m

"feesw and will be regarded as digressions from the constitu-

tional conception of "free a M etual eduoatloiial opportuni-

ties. •

As indicated in fable 1, chemistry is the subject for

which thegreatest number of schools exacted a fee from the

students. • Six tees schools, or 1*** 95 i w #e»t' of to 107

high schools returning questionnaires, charged the students at \

fee for talcing this subject. Most of the schools reported

that this'fee Is used to provide equipment and Materials

for the laboratory,'but the fast that the fee Is a fixed one

Indicates that It includes elements of tuition also, ae the

amount of breakage a M loss of efulpment would naturally'

vary widely with individual students. Six ©if the schools re-

ferred to the chemistry fee as a charge for breakage and loss,

and three of these six schools refunded the fee at the end of

the school year, less the cost of all e$uipment lost or broken

by the individual 'Student* Although the charge for chemistry-

was the most' frequent, It was not nearly so large as the. fees

charged for am# of the other subjects.

The second most fretuently eharged-for subject was typ-

ing. thirteen schools * or 13M5 per cent of those reporting,

charged students for taking this course. The average charge

assessed by these schools was $2.81 per student per year,

fen dollars was the maxiiau® charge, and only one school

33

charged as much as this amount. The minimum fee oharged

for typing was $1.00, reported by two school#.. la all. ease#

the typing, fees were used by the schools Is maintaining and

replacing their old typewriters,

Sine, schools, or 8,41 per cent of those reporting,

charged a fee for students enrolling in Mology courses, plac-

ing this subject third among the subjects for which charges

were made, -. fhree schools charged $2.00, the maximum charge ..

mde in the state, and two schools charged fifty cents, the

minimum, All but two schools stated that this annual charge

was designed to cover the cost of equipment and materials -

used in the laboratory, the two exceptions reported that the

fee was used to cover the cost of laboratory equipment broken

by the student, and one of the schools followed the practice

of returning the fee if no equipment was broken or lost.

Industrial arts was the fourth most,frequently charged*

for subject, lender this heading all subjects of a vocational

nature, aucha® shop, woodwork, manual training, and printing,

are Included, Haay of the schools, returning fuestionnalres

stated that the students were required to pay for only the

materials actually used, these schools were not included in

this study, Of the remaining schools, one .reported that it

charged $75.00 of each student taking woodwork to cover the

cost of. the materials as well as an additional fee (included

In this amount) for enrollment in the course*, Since this was

3%

plainly an arbitrary figure not dependent upon the actual

cost of supplies. used# it Is included is this study* A to-

tal of six schools in the state, 5.61 par cent of' those re-

turning questionnaires, charged for their industrial art a

@ow»e»4 Four schools used the fees to #efray the oost of

machines and equipment used. One school reported that it

had no definite oharg©, but that each student wasreQuired to

pay for' the electrical power that he consumed in aaklzig arti-

cles assigned by the instructor as projects in the course,

1©: explanation was gliren as to the method employed for ap-

proximating this oost.

Fiye schools, or 4.6? per cent of the- schools reporting,

collected a fee from students *410 were member© of the school

tend. These fees ranged from a high of $6*00 annually to a

low of fifty cents per student per year, the average fee

being $2.50, Four 'different reason® were given as a basis '

for this charge.' fwo schools stated that the fee was used

to purchase sheet music$ another' reported that the hand fee

was a uniform rental; and another charged for the renting

of musical instruments belonging to the school. The school

making the highest charge, $6.00, reported the fee to be a

deposit required of eaoh student accepted as a ©ember of the

land, this deposit was returned at th* end of the school

year if the student had not lost or damaged any of the 'band

equipment and supplies assigned to him or used by him.

35

fhe sixth subject most frequently charged for was home

economics. . Four schools reported charging for this subject,

two stating that the student was charged for the use of the

equipment, and mm reporting that its charge was made for the

food used, >fh» remaining school gave no reason as a basis'

for Its fee. fhese charge® ranged from $2.00 to fifty cents

per school year, the average being $1.25. . . . .

fhree of the schools reporting, or 2.8 per cent, charged

for each of the following subjects r ' general science, phy-

sics, and arts and crafts. These subjects ranked seventh in

the list of course® for which students were charged, fhe

three schools that charged for general science and physics

stated that the fee collected was used to pay for the m~ •

terials and equipment used In the laboratory. • fwo of the

schools, charging for arts and crafts assessed, their fee for

the use of machines and equipments the other charged a fee

to cover the cost of materials used in the course*

Foreign languages were, charged for in two schools, or

1.8? per cent of the schools surveyed. Both schools assessed

a fee for these subjects because free textbooks were not. pro-

vided by the state. One school charged $2,50} the other

school reported no specific amount, stating that each stu-

dent , was required t© pay for the textbooks that -he used in

the language courses.

fhe least frequently charged-for subject® were vocational

36

agriculture, piano, library, physical education, and chorus.

A charge for each of these courses or subjects appeared In

only on® school among those returning questionnaires* .the

one school which collected a #10,00 fee for vocational agri-

culture stated that Mils was a charge used to cover the cost

of supplies, Bach student of another school was required to

pay a twenty-five-cent library fee, this money being used to

purchase current magazines for the library, , h $10.00 phys-

ical education fee charged by another school was used to pro-

vide gymnasium equipment for the school. . Students taking

chorus, were required to pay a twenty-five-cent ft#, by one

school in the state, this assessment being used to purchase

**tsl#, for choral classes, fhe cost of maintaining equipment

was-the basis of a $9.00 fee charge<| piano: students la an-,

other Hew Mexico high school» .

Fljiaijaga on bounty;Basla'

Whereas fable 1 and its accompanying discussion on the

preceding pages have pointed out the status of fees charged

by the high schools of Hew Mexico as a whole during the '

school year 19^8-19^9, the present section will present data

concerning fees on the basis of high schools located within

specific counties of the state/

Bernalillo Sounty. — Bernalillo Gousty has four hi#

schools to which questionnaires were sent# three were re-

turned* One school' made no charges for any of the courses

37

that it offered. £he eeeond high school charged s tudents

$1.00 tw enrollment la chemistry ©lasses, fifty cents for

a r t e w i i i * sad $€*0© f m Membership in t he sehool band.

' fABUB 2

EHROimETO FEES FOR SCHOOL SOBJSGTS Uf TWO HIGH ' • adHoois i » mmrnauM -emm*. i f fcs~ipi§* • .

.' Subjeot; • Ifember of Sehool® ^ Charging Pee '

Amount Charged

Basis for Fee

Art* 1 # * * * Equipment ,

BflUttd » .»««»•« . . . . 1 • ' 6 . 0 0 Deposit**

Biology,»«. . .««• 1 . g.O© Equipment /

Chemistry. . 8 1.00 Squipsaent 3 .00 Laboratory f e e

L a n g u a g e s . . . . . . . 1 2 .50 fextboo&s'

1 10.00 Maintenance

' Seventy-f ive per cent of the schools 1» the oounty re-l a n t i the ques t ionna i r e s .

#*fhis deposit was returned if equipment was neither lost-nor damaged.

^he chemistry and art fees were used to provide equipment and

supplies, whereas the hand fee was a deposit put up by each

student who became a meaber of the school band, fhis deposit

was returned at the end of the school year if the student did

not damage or lose the equipment and supplies, used by him*

ft*e third school had the following charges: typing, $10.00 '

38

per .sohool yestrj biology, $2,00*, ohmaistry, |3.00j and ad-*'

vanced languages, #8.50* She typing, eheialstry, ana biology

fees way# used to laalntaln the respective departments, i M

the advanced language fee was refused to pay for the text*

books ttsed# as the state SIS not supply such books.

Among til® various ©©unties in Hew Mexico, Bernalillo

ranks seventh on the basis of the number of subjects for

which fees were charged, at the high sotool level in 19%®- ,

19*9.1 However, the average of the fees charged for chemls-

try in Bernalillo County was #2*GO, which Is somewhat above

the average charge made In the state as A whole, namely,

$1.8lj and the $10.0© charge for typing made by the one school

in the county which charged for this subject Is fide above the

state average of $2.81 for this course. Bandi and biology •

fees were also above the state average, but the average art

%he writer adopted the following flan for determining the rank of the counties on the basis of the number of course® for whloh fees were charged: the masher of schools in the county charging fee# was multiplied by the amaber of courses for Which fees were charged; this simple calculation produced & produot which was ttoe basis for assigning the raidsj that is, the lower the product, the lower the rank, fhe rank of 1 was accepted m most commendable aiaong the schools. charging fees, as • it lap lied that only one school in a given county charged a fee, and that for only one course. . A rank'of 2 was second most commendable, and so on. It should be reitteaibered (see p. 29) that fewer than one third of the, hi#, schools included in the study charged any fees whatsoever# and# of course, those schools not charging any fees at all were more nearly abiding by the principle of "free and equal educational oppor-tunities * as accepted for this study, than were the schools of rank 1. Icwever* only the schools and counties in which foes were charged are assigned ranks, as this was a study of fees and not of schools not charging fees* (fable 15 in the lat-ter portion of this chapter presents the ranking of all counties In which fees were charged*)

39

fee for the.county was somewhat below the average charge for

all of the counties combined. • •

Catron and Chaves Counties. 80 school In Catron .

County or ©havea County Bade any charges applicable'to:this

study. • Itegative questionnaires -mm returned fron both

schools in Catron County, and from the four schools 4b ©haves

County three questionnaires wore returned, all three stating

that so fees were charged the student® attending these schools,

Colfax County. •— Seven of the eigiat schools of secondary

level In Colfax County returned their Questionnaires, but

there were only two schools out of the seven which collected

fees-froia the students enrolled' In. their courses. In one of

these schools there was a |a.00 charge for band student®, the

fee being used, according to the questionnaire, as a rental

for the students» use of the school*s band uniforms * fh©

second school In this county that had a fee system charged

$5.00 for typing, $10*00 for vocational agriculture, and

$10.00 for physical education. It was stated that these fees

were used for providing supplies and equipment for the re- '

spectlve departments.

Colfax County ranked fifth on the basis of the number

of subjects for which the schools la the various counties

wade charges. _the typing fee was above the state average of

$2*81, but the aaount charged for band was fifty cents less

than the average for the state as a whole, Colfax is the

40

only county making a charge for vocational agriculture and

far physical education, and only one school reported a fee

for each of these courses, • •

TAMM 3

ESROUmm FEES FOR SCHOOL SSBJECfS XI WO HIGH SCHOOLS I* COIF AX C GOUTY, 19*8-1949* ' •

Subject Stiaber of Schools Charging Fee

Amount Charged

' Basis for Fee

Band<»«•»••«•••• 1 # 2,00 Uniform rental

1 5.00 Supplies

Tooafclonal • agriculture.. 1 10,0© Supplies

Physio al educa-tion* ««*#*#«* 1 10.00 Equipment

Eighty-seven and five-tenths per seat of the high schools in Colfax County returned their questionnaires.

Smsx B M m Comities. — Helther Curry County nor

DsBaca County a»ade any charges for - the courses offered la

their schools, BeBaea County had only one high school,

whereas Curry County hat eight such schools. However, two

of the eight high sohoola in Curry County did not return the

questionnaires sent to thing*

toum Mm. JlBlBlZ* ~ ®a®a tionnaires mm returned toy all

three ©f the high schools in Bona tea bounty. Hon® of these

schools mate any formal assessments against Its students for

%1

enrollment la any ©our sea, bat one of the schools stated

that It required t he individual student to pay for M a leak-

age OP loss In the chemistry laboratory.

Iddy County, — Two of the three hi$i schools in Eddy

County returned their questionnaires * One school aal« no

charges at all, W the other school required students to

purchase their textbooks for the Spanish IX course. fhls

textbook fee ranked Iddy County as first among the counties

of the state on the basis of the number of subjects for which

charges were made, slnoe this was the only fee reported. Only

one other school in the state charged for a language course,

the reason for this diaorepanoy la not known; however, sinoe

the textbooks for language courses are not provided by any

of the schools along with other textbooks furnished by the

state, it Is obvious that some local weans of financing the'

purchase of such books is in operation In most of the high

schools of the state, thus making it unnecessary for students

to buy their own textbooks for language eoursos.

grant ttuntsr* — A H four of the high sohooia in ®rant

0ounty returned the questionnaires sailed to then. Of the

four schools, two siade charges of their students* One of

these assessed a It.OO fee for typing, stating that the money

is returned to the student at the end ©f the school year if

the typewriter is in no way damaged, the following charges

per semester were made in the second school $ chemistry, $1*00?

%2

SABIE 4 Mmmmm vmm FOR mmm* I W I E W J® I P mm

mnmw xx mum mmm,

,... Suhjeot , Swtfber of Schools Charging Fee

ibiount** jMV-MLg. mi JK

Basis for ' ' Fee '

1 $ 1.50 _ Equipment '

1 1.0© Ifuipaeat

ihes is t ry * . . . . . . 1 1,0® Iquijaent

1 #ft5

Home economics.. 1 1*00 Equipment

Industrial arts* 1 S.S5 trse of machines

Printing 1 4.50. Use of machines

Shop 1 4.5© fs# of machines

typing 2 3.50 Use of machines

• #tee' hundred f©r eent of the high schools In grant Q&vmtj returned their viestloaaaires.

**A11 of thsao eharges ay© ©n a |>er-semester Male, with the exception of that for printing, which 1® am annual fee,

***fwo dollars of this fee is refunded I f there la no damage to t he machine.

ar t , $ l *P f typewriting, $1.5©J home economics, #l f©0| shop,

$4.50} biology, $1.00} industrial arte, $a.85j ®a?afts, $a.25f

and faint ing, $4.50. M l of these ©barges were made for the

use of machines and equipment* grant ©ounty, on the hasis of I t s schools charging the

^3

students fm® for ten ewie#. offered is the curricula of

the high schools» ranked eighth aiaong the various counties la

the state which exacted fees from the high school stMeats*

the average of charges aide toy schools la' this county for

arts and wafts was above the a tat# swag#., this was also

ferae for chemistry, biology, and home economics. lowever,

the average ©to®© for typing and industrial arts was below

the average for the state as a whole,

m&&&lrnw Ooqnty, -*• Swo questionnaires were seat to

high schools In Guadalupe Sounty, and tooth were returned.

One of the two schools In this @®a»ty made no charges for

the owrsis -tot It offered to its stwdenfcs. fhe other school

had a $l,0Qfee 'each for general science, chemistry* and

biology. fhese' fees were assessed for the use' of the labora-

tory ©tuipmnt.

Guadalupe County ranked third on the basis of .the number

of subjects for which Its high schools charged fees,, low*

ever, in comparison with state averages,' the average charge

for each of these courses was low,

Harding Gountj. -- Questionnaires were sent to the two

high schools in Kardlng County, but only one school returned

its questionnaires. This school made no charges for any of

the courses Offered'to its students*

Mdaino' gounty, — 111 three of the high schools in. Hi-

dalgo Sounty returned their (juestlonnaires. fwo of these

TABLE 5 •

EHROLDSEKT FEES FOR SCHOOL StfBJECTS IX OBE W3M SCHOOL m MAMuam cmnmr,

Subjeet Somber of schools Charging Fee

Amount Charged

Basis for • foe ' •

Biology. 1 $ 1.00 IkiUijsaent

Chemistry* 1 1*00 Shipment

general science. 1 1*0© Equipment

• ' • m& hundred per cent of the high sobools 1® Swadalupe County returned the questionnaires»

schools made m ©hargee for the eowaea that they offered to '

thetr students. • fhe third collected a fee of $3.00 annually

fwm eaeh of It# students, tout supplied no information re-

garding the use to whieh this uniform fee was pit. Since m

figures were given as t© how the fee m m wet, Hidalga County

was not ranked on the basia of the number of sheets for

whioh its high schools charged.

LIHGOIB County, -- fhe four high schools in Linooln

County returned their Questionnaires, but three of the schools

in the eownty did not ma Ice any charges to theistuients desir-

ing to enroll in eertain eoursea. fhe one remaining.sehool

charged biology students a $2.00 fee per school year, stating

that the money was used to provide materials for. the labora-

tory. On the basis of'the number of subj©ets for which its

45

high schools charged, Mncoln County ranked first, along

with Eddy and Sandoval Counties• Each of these. counties

charged fees for only one subject in one school .in each

county. ILiaooln County's fee fop Mology, however, urns some-

what above the average fee for thin cowse for the state as

a.whole* ..-,.. •

Luna County. <*« Only oae high school was list®# for

&tsita County, end it returned the questionnaire su&aitted to

it, The school reported that no fees were charged for any

of the' courses of farad to its students,. 1 > :

'' ' *jl&*X»3r County. — HcKinley County had three high •

schools eligible for this study, and all three of the schools'

returned the questionnaires which were sent to them, ' Although

all. three of the schools exacted fees- from their students, no

two schools charged for the same subject. One school stated

that it assessed each student .a $25«G0 tuition, fee each year,

and that this money was used to cover any charge made of the

student,, either in study courses or in activities, Xt did

not list any specific activities, or courses for which Que

money atight he used during the course of the school year.

Another M g h school in the county made only one charge,

and that was |?5*©0 per year from each student enrolling in

woodwork courses, .It was stated that this money was used to

provide materials for the.projects which woodwork students

complete during the. school year* the use of this fee should

*6

VJUBftS 6

Emommm mm FQSR S C H O O L S O B O N O F S I N mm rati schools i» miamMi oomTz, 19 8-19** 9*

Smtej m % Iftwber of Schools Charging Fee

Aaouiit Charged

Basis for - ... Fee .

18&©.3L®l5y 1 1 0,50 ' Laboratory sup-plies ,

0timiatry*,* ##*«« 1 1.50 Laboratory sup-plies

XdLfcspwy# 1 0,t5 Current naga* sines

1 • 0.80 Laboratory sup-plies

tuition**. 1 t5»00 Over-all charge

woodwork, 1 T5.0Q Cost of Materi-als -

One hundred per eest of the high sehool® la JtoKinley County returned their questionnaires.

##fhis $25.00 annual f«« for tuition «u required of all students enrolling is me public high school.

be taken Into consideration, for many of the vocational de-

partments In the high schools of -few Mexico required their

students to furnish their own aateriala, and did not consider

this requirement as a formal fee assessed by the school. Or-

dinarily the charges made by these department®, if there are

eharges, are in addition to the materials that the student

furnishes, There might he some question, of coarse, m to

whether a student would use 175.00 worth of materials in 01a#

school year. fhere was no indication that any unused por-

tion of this large fee was returned at the end of the year,

She remaining school la MeHnley County stated that it

made the following charges s chemistry, flȤ0f physics,

eighty seats | and biology, fifty cents, these fees were used

to supply Materials seeded la laboratory work, 'this school

also charged its students twenty-five ©ents eaehat the time

of their enrollment to provide magazines for the library.

' JtcKinleyiounty ranked eighth on the basis of the number

of subjects for which it eharged its students. ^ the charge

for woodwork was the highest in the state 1 however, as men-

tioned above,-this eharge included the east of the materials

required* 'the eharge# for chemistry, physics, and biology

were all below the state averages for these courses. Mc-

Kinley Oounty had the only school in the' state which assessed

a library fee from all students.

flora County, — All @f the questionnaires which were

sent to the three high schools in Mora County were returned.

One of the.schools reported.that it made no charges for any

©f the courses which it offered to it* students, loth of the

regaining schools charged fees. In mm ®t the spools there

was a #5.00 eharge for typing courses, an eaceeptionally high

eharge when compared with typing fees assessed by the other

aah@®ls that made an assessment for this subject. The sehedl

m

fABIM 7

s n o t x m a n p PISS FIG SCHOOL STFB ISFS XV. WO mm SCHOOLS IS MORA 0CKJWT, 19*8-19*9*

Subject Hwaber of Schools ' Charging Fee

Amount Charged

. Basis of ; ' Fee

Chemistry.,,,,,, 1 $ t.00 Breakage fee**

Manual training* 1 1.50 Maintenance

Yyplng • *•••••»•* 2 5.00 Miintenaxioe Yyplng • *•••••»•* 1.50 Maintenance

tee hundred per cent of the high schools in Mora Cousty returned' their <iw®«fcionnaires. ; '

fee was ref raded if no breakage or loss occurred*

explained that the aoney thus derived was used for repairs

and upkeep of the machines. fhis school also charged #2.00

of students taking ©herniatry. However, this was explained as

a breakage fee, and if the student did not damage, lose, or

break laboratory e$wlpseiit, the money was returned to him at

the end ©f the school year,

$he second school in Mora County which made charges of

its students collected fee® for two subjects. Typing stu-

dents wore assessed #l.{?0j and Manual training students were

charged an equal amount per year, these fees were 'used to

pay for the maintenance of the efuipaient in the respective

departments. It might he well*' is the interest of this study

of educational equalities (or inequalities) as reflooted in

49

the .fee system of the state* to note the difference SM typing

fees assessed fey these two schools la. the smm county *- $5.00

and $1.50.

Mora County ran&ed fourth, along with Colfax County, on

the basis of the number of subjects for which Its high schools

charged their students. fh® average of charges for typing In

the high schools of this county, $3»2f5, was above the state

average. fh*' charge for chemistry was also above the aver*

age for the state • However, the fee for manual training was

below the state average for Industrial-arts coiirses.

Otero 6oyn|jr, — Five high schools were listed for Otero

County, and all five returned the questionnaires which were

mailed to thest, fhere were no existing charges In two of the

schools* Of the three schools that reported fees, one had a

|2.00 fee for breakage in ehemletryj another, a #1,5© charge

for food used in the cooiiag courses offered by the home

economics department, and a #1*50 rental fee for band in- '

strtnaentsj and the remaining school had a $1.00 charge each

for chemistry and physics, and a $1,00 fee for home economics,

fhe school stated that t M fee assessed In chemistry and phy-

sics was used to cover the cost of supplies and breakage in

the laboratory* It did not indicate how the $1.00 home eco-

nomics fee was used.

. Otero County was one of the two counties ranking In

seventh position on the basis of the number of fees charged

50

• • TABUS 8

' wffl&fi'f 'f' w i t tijirajvvt. isttttk MM*iis«a. iMhi MWBWW tiYf&vst IBBylJJl&liT JrjcJSS 702* SvmVVM SvWJa^TS £M Wmm^M MM$m SCH00IS I* (TOO COTJBTY, 19*8-19*9*

Suhjeet Huaber of Schools Charging Fee

Amount - Charged

Basis for , Fee'

Band.*«*•••*•*•• . 1 $ 1*50 Eental of in-struments

Chesilstry..,. 2 2*00 1,00

Breakage Laboratory sup-

'plies

Horn economies •. •'• 2 1.00 . 1,50

lOne reported L.Ifood, used .

Physics•••••*•«• 1 1,00 Supplies, . breakage

#Gne hundred per cent of the high schools la Otero County returned their questionnaires.

and the number of schools charging theau• fhe average oh&rge

for ©Maistry la this county was below that 'for th© state a®

m whole. Band fees also were somewhat lower than the state .

average» fhe fee for physios, however, was a'oove the average

figure for the state, whereas the average oharge for horn®

economies in Otero bounty was identical to the state1® aver-

age oharge *

Quay County> -- Six of the nine high schools in Quay

County returned the questionnaires which were sent to them.

Hone of these «ix, however, made any ©barges for the courses

which were offered to the students enrolled.

51

13,0 Arriba County. — Rio Arriba County had six public

high ©chools listed in the stmt#*9 educational directory,

and questionnaires were sent to all of then; however, only

four of the six schools returned their questionnaires» CMP

these four that responded, two made charges of their pupils.

TABLE 9

RTOM,fjm:»!» FEES FOR SCHOOL SUBJECTS XI fWO BX0R SCHOOLS XV HI® AR1I1A COtJHTir, 19*8-19*9*

Subject Humber of Schools Charging Fee

Amount Charged

Basis for Fee

Biology *«.«•*»«»* 1 # 2.00 laboratory sup-plies

Chealstry. 1 2.00 Laboratory sup-plies

General aclenoe.. 1 t.oo laboratory sup-plies

Typing*.*..*»**»» 1 »*oo Ribbons and repairs

Shop..»*****•.»«« 1 •# Electricity consumed

*Sixty-six and two-third® per cent of the high schools in Rio Arriba County returned their questionnaires.

Jlo specific amount m a reported, but the fee was made to cover the cost of the electricity consumed in, the making of ahop projects•

One school had a $i.QO fee each for the following subject®!

chemistry, biology, general science, and typing. According

52

to the questionnaire, the fees charged for the science

courses were used to provide laboratory materials for 'the

student®» the typing charge was mate to cover the cost of

maintenance and ribbon* for the typewriters. • 'the other •

school in the con®ty *ft*ich made charge® of. It* students • • ,

stated that shop students were charged a nominal fee, ffaie

school did not nam* any specific amount for the shop charge,

bat it did explain that the fee was assessed t© cover the

©est of electricity consumed by the students In carrying out

the projects which were assigned as requirements in.the course.

&lo Arriba County ranked sixth among the counties making

charges for the subjects offered in their schools, fhe charges

mad* for chemistry, biology# and general science were all

above the average charge for all of the schools in the state,

the typing fee, however, was less than the average for the

state.

Roosevelt •<Nwqty. — Boosevelt bounty had nine'-high'

schools to which Questionnaires were sent, but only six of

these schools returned their questionnaires. Hone made any

charges • for any courses offered. ,

Sandoval Oounty. — Questionnaires were sailed to the

three high schools in Sandoval County, but only one school

responded with the information necessary for this survey.

this school made only one charge of its students, and-this

was for biology* A $1.00 fee in this subject was assessed

53

to cover the oost of breakage is the laboratory. • fhe mm fee

assessed by the school places Sandoval County,' along with •

three other counties, in first rank ©a the Mai® of "Ilia num-

ber of subjects for which It charged. Vfat biology fee, how-

ever, was below the average amount charged by the schools'

of the state for thie subject.

' aa3D County. — Questionnaires were mailed 'to the

four high schools In San Juan County, three of which were

returned, two of these schools charged the students for

only one subject, which was chemistry, fhe fee for this

subject in one school was $1.00, and in, the other, fifty

cents per year, loth schools explained the fee aft • breakage

charge, and the school charging fifty cents reported that

this amount was returned if. the student was not responsible .

for the breakage or lota of any of the laboratory equipment.

fhe other school in San Juan bounty which made charges

of its students assessed fee# for. four subjectsi , band,

chorus, chemistry, and physios* fhe chorus fee was twenty-

five cents, and band students were assessed.fifty cents,

loth' of these fee# were used to provide muslo for the stu-

dents# fhere was a $1.00 charge each for chemistry and phy-

sios, these fees being explained as ©barges for breakage in

the laboratory.

San Juan County ranked in fifth place on .the basis of

the number of subjects for which its high schools charged,

5*

TABLE 10

g»E<a»®»f FEES FOB SCHOOL SUBJECTS III W O HIGH BCmmS I» SAM JUAH CQJMTY, 19*®~109*

s«h|«ot Number of schools Gharging Fee

Mount Charged

Basis for Fee

1 $ 0.50 Music

Chemistry....... 3 0.50 Breakage fee** 1.00 Breakage fee 1.00 Breakage fee

Ohorus..*»«»..»« 1 0.25 Mssio

Physics......... 1 1.00 Breakage fee

#S«nBtr"flve f®r cent of the high schools in Sin Juan Ootinty returned their Questionnaires.

##fhls fee ««s refunded if m breakage

fhe average charge made by sehools in this oonnty for chestls*

try was eighty-three oents, *fol0h was below the state aver-

age. loth the physies and the band fees were above the state

average, fhe charge made for chorus was the only ©m made in

any high aohool in the state.

San Miguel County, -* Four out of the five high sehools

in San Kigttel County returned the questionnaires which were

sent to 'then. Only on® of the four schools that answered

mad® any charges of its students, fhis school charged chem-

istry students $3,00 and assessed typing students $5,00,

the eheaistry fee was used to supply equipment and materials

for the laboratory, and the typing fee covered the cost of

upkeep on the machines.

TABLE 11

EMBOLOiEif FEES FOR SCHOOL SUBJECTS IV @H1 SZtl ^ SCHOOL xi sur ihsbel omrnt, 19^8-19^9*

Subject Number of Schools Charging Fee

Amount . Charged

Basis for , Fee

Chemistry 1 • 3*0© Equipment, ma-• 3*0© terials

Typing*......... 1 5.00 Maintenance of Typing*......... machines

#£ighty per cent of the high schools 1B Ban Miguel County yetapiiifi their questionnaires.

Although San Miguel Cfounty ranked second, along with one

other county, on the baa It of the nawber of subjects for

which It# high, schools charged their students, the fees for

both chemistry and typing were well above the average charge

made by schools of the state for these courses. Only two

other schools in the state had a higher typing fee,

Santa Fe County* — Santa F© County had. six high schools

to which questionnaires were sent, Fife were returned. Four

of the schools whloh returned Questionnaires made charges of

their students. tee school had a $1*00 typing fee used for

servicing and purchasing new machines, this school also

56

TABLE 12

%moumm m m wm SCHOOL sBMscfs i * FOW TOR SCHOOLS in 8AHTA PI COQTOT, 19*8-19*9*

Subject Sumber of schools Charging Fee

Amount Charged

Basin for fee1

Blolojy•••»••«.« 2 $ 1.00 0.5©

B*«aSEftge fee** Laboratory sup-

pl ies •

Oheialstry. 3 a.50 1.00

JfeHH 0,50

Breakage fee** Laboratory sup-

, ',1 'pHes Ifuipraent. sup-

pl ies

General science. 1 0.25 Laboratory sup-plies

Home economics.. 1 0.50 Materials used

Piano.••«*.. .*«. 1 9.00 Maintenance

^fypin^j ••«••••».» 3 9.00 3*©0

1.00

Maintenance ffew machines*

maintenance Rew machines,

' raaintenence

Eighty-three tad two-thirds per cent of the hi#i schools la Santa We Ootinty returned their i |t»gtionnairea.

##TM.s fee wae refunded If no toe a tog® oceurred,

***fhis fee wit® payable monthly.

charge*! a fifty-©ent aonthly fm of ohewiatry students, &M

a f i f ty -oen t annual fee for hone eoonoaios »t®£e»t», Both of

these charges were made to provide equipment for the respec-

tive departments. A seoond aefcool in th is county mad® the

57

following chargesi typing, $3.00) ohe*iatry, $1.00; biol-

ogy, fifty oentsf and general science, twenty-five cents,

fii® typing fee was used to cover the expense of providing new

machines and Maintaining old one®, and the otlsea? fees were

used to cover the cost @f equipment and materials for the

se la nee laboratory.

fim third school in Santa Fe County made only two . .

charges s a #9,00 charge for enrollment in typing courses,

and a $9#00 piano fee. Both of these assessments ware made

to defray the coat of purchasing and maintaining the equip- ,

Must involved, fha other school in the county that ]aa.d@ any

ohargea for Ita subjects assessed two fees — a $2.50 fee

for chemistry and a $1.00 foe for biology., these fee® were •

used to cover breakage in the laboratory and were refunded

If ,th@ students did not break m lose any of the equipment.

Mere again, one should note the variation of fees within

the same county. One of the schools charged a $1.00 typing

fee, and another charged the student $9.00 for a similar

course. Oheaistry fees also ranged frosi fifty eants to $4.50

ftha latter fee estimated m the basis of fifty cents per

Month which one school charged). And t© emphasize further

the inequality within the county itself, one of the schools

"to which a questionnaire was aent made no ohargea whatsoever

of its' students«

to Santa Fe County goes the doubtful distinction of

5a

charging Biore fms of ite students than any other county In

W&w Maxioo,-. It yanked ninth, or ia last position,* on tha 'ha-

sit of the number of subjects for which Its schools charged

their .students,' • fh# average charge for the subjects In the • •

county was, with the exception of the typing charge, below

the state average. the average typing fee In Santa Fe County

w w l*K33 as compared with the state average of $2 •Si for

this course. This county was th@ only oil© in the state of-

fering a course in piano, as indicated by the responsea on

the questionnaires. ' .

" ' ! Sierra Jag Socorro Countlea. *— .Both high schools; in ..

Sierra Oounty, and three out of four in Socorro Soanty, re-

turned the questionnaires which were sent to then, Hone of

the'schools ia 'either one of these, counties-, however, -wad®

any charges of its students for courses in which•they en-

rolled. : . .

• faoa • County. Of the five high school® in faos County,

four returned the ueetionnaires which were sent to them.

Of these four schools answering., only on# made any charges

of its students, fhia school charged each student taking

typing a $2*00 fee, and explained that this money was u«®d

to purchase new machines. 0n the basis ®f this one charge,

faoa County, along with three other counties, ranked in first

position* the fee assessed for typing by the faoa bounty

school waa below the average charge of #2>8l for the .state as

a whole.

39

Torrance County, — Four high schools were listed for ;

Torrance County, and <iueatl©i»naire® were sent to all of

Three of the sohools returned their que s tlonaatret, and, out

of the three, there was only one school that uade anycharge®

©f its students. Thla school ohargod $1.00 for typing ana

$2*50 t m hand* The typing fee was used to provide ribbons,

and the band fee was used to purchase sheet anisic for the

students' use in the school.

TAB» 13

Iffi©Himf FEES FOK SCHOOL ifBtWffto IS (MB Mm it:.: SCHOOL Xff TOSEMOB C O u m , 1948-19%9* . . •.

Subject VttMber .of Schools. Charging Foe

Aaount Charged

,. Basis for Pee

Band. 1 "t i s*50 •" male

Typing........, 1 1.00 llbbons

*geireaty-five per cent of the high schools* inforranee County returned their Questionnaires.

Serrano# County ranked second, along alth San' Miguel

County, on the basis of the number of subjects or courses for

which Its high schools charged, The charge sade for typing

In the on* School assessing fees was below the state'average,

whereas the charge for band was the sans as the average for

the state for this particular activity.

Onion and Valencia Counties. — fhe two remaining counties

60

la Hew Mexico not already mentioned, Ttolon County and Tales©la

0®a»ty, did not exaet any fees; fro® their students la any of.

their high school®, Union County hat five high, schools to

which guestioiiniilres were sent, and four of them returned

thoir questionnaires. fhere was one hundred per cent re- '

sponse fro® the four high iohools in Valencia County, all ,

of which reported that no charges were made for any of the

course® which they offered, to their student®.

Summary

two final tables are presented by way of a general wmr

aary of the data included in the preceding pages of this

chapter* fabl® 14 show® the number of 'high schools in lew

Hex!®© which charged certain fees per year for the ooursea

listed,' whereas fable '15 indicates the rank assigned to each

county in the state in which any fees were charged for high

school'subjects *

ike shown in fable 14, sixteen schools charged fixed fees

for courses in chemistry, all of which ranged from fifty

cents to three dollars. typewriting was the subject for which

the second largest number of charges were made, twelve schools

requiring fee® for this course ranging fro® on© dollar to tea

dollars, Seven schools required fee® for biology, ranging

from fifty cents to two dollars, whereas five schools had

fixed fees for band. Five school# assessed fixed fees for

shop courses, including subjects Hated by the respondents

61

fABLE 2%

wmm m mm wmmw in ® w mexioo §mmim GMfAin wmm fm mm $m smi Qomzm,

Ctem« Mmb&r of mhmlrn OMvgtmg

t5# 5<M |i.©o •1.5© $2.00 ft*§© 13,©a

l&a&d «»•*••••••** Blolou #».»»»»«• Ch«*i«try. GhttFui<•»••••««• Oftfts••••••»•»• General science. %®mml tuition. Brae e©©aoaiies,. India atrial arts, litngaagea MWsofj Hiatal tralDlng Physical e$«ea«. Fhysio PAa®®»»••»«••••• frljitljag ******»•

Shot*#«***#***«*

?o©» agpl@ii»ltw« W OdWOJPlc * * * * * * * *

1 1

1

1

7

1

# # * * • • •

1 a 3

X

1

1

1

1 1

2

Hie t©*» wg$n»3?al tuition" was «ulor«4 fey one high school to i®aot« a fe« ofeavgad eveyy student at t&e tiam «f «sr@llaia®tt Oat of tfels an* of $&5*QQ f«#a for breakage and 1&bs of school ®fmif»e®t were taken* f&ere was m inftiefctlea that awplma aoaey left In the f®M at tfe® end of the school year waa refunded to tit student.

TABLE 14

Each Wm fwr Tea* for i&efc Qmree

#330 #* ,50

1 1

#5 M #6«Q0 #9. ©0

1

1

$10400

1 1

•*5*00 #75*00

1 5

xl 1 1

! * 1 1 I I %

J 1 1 1 12 1 1

63

at industrial arts, printings shop, woodwork, and manual

training. Four schools M A fee® for home economics, and

three each for general science and physios* ©a© school each

had a fixed fee for the following courses t languages, TOO a*

tional agriculture, physical education, art, crafts, chorus,

and piano. In addition to these course assessments, one

school required every student to pay a small annual fee for

the «•« of the school library, whereas another required a

{25.00 annual tuition of all students who attest the school.

This tuition includes all courses and services available la>

the aohool, and no additional fees are charged,

In the discussion of thai individual counties Resented

In the earlier pages of this chapter, the ranking of the re-

spective counties is given with respect to the number of fee*

assessed in their high schools for the privilege of enrolling

in certain courses offered* fable 15 indicates the method

employed fur determining the rank. In Mils table, the number

of sehools and the number of courses for which fees were

charged in the various counties have been taken largely from

preceding tables* By multiplying these two numbers together,

the rank of the county was determined as indicated In the

table, the rank was baaed upon a comparison with other

counties of the state and represents a relative status.

As indicated earlier in this chapter, thirteen of the

counties of new Mexico did not have any fixed fees whatsoever

m

$ASUE. 15

m i m SC100X3 ix each cooiify gbamijis f e e s , $Sg S l u m <F 0©*J1®E§- FOR VJHGB F18S W i t

• ASSESSED, AXU f8S BASK W W.@ii8fXS$ ATff MttP IMMi'tfL A1?

• Cotmty Kumber of ' Schools:

Number of ' Courses

Sft«is for Hank

l e a m a l i l l o . . . . . 8 6 i t 7

0©lf ®3K» *'#••##»» 2 * a . 5

fiiSdy •*«•••«•*•• 1 1 i 1

®Murt» ••«•••»*•« t 9 IS 8

SQidftlujc*>»•i« 1 3 3 . 3

USSOIA • •••«*«• 1 1 1 1

JKJtJIilO 3 6 18 a

WHNI<•»•»••«»•• 2 3 . 6 %

W t N •*•••»«»*• 3 * 12 7

11®. Arrib*»., • • 2 5 1© 6

Bw>4w®X ••«*«•» 1 1 1 1

Ulan «•••»• § % a 5

San Miguel . . . . . 1 2 2 2 Fo f»•# * # * % 6 24 9

Sft08«•*•••••*•» 1 1 1 1

fwrwis®, **,*•, 1 a 2 2

fhe h&«ls fo* rank 3.8 obtalaeA fey wilfciplytag the mm-ber of aehools by the and** of e e w m tm l i i o b fees were charged. The lowest miaiber es a basis for rank was a#signed the lowe»t (aost ©owaieJJ&able) rank, *std to ©u.

65

for course® la their high school®, la so far as the data,

collected in this study could he considered a# valid aM at

it time picture of the situation. A number of schools did

wit »t«r& their Questionnaires, lid for this reason the

data were not complete, fha® the findings of this study

are based only upon the schools which supplied the necessary

infonaation, and it should "to® understood that any inferences

drawn fro» the data are limited to the extent that the data

are incomplete.

At Indicated on page 29 9f this the®!®, fewer than one

third ©f the schools froia which data were obtainable reported

any fisted fees whatsoever, the remaining larger group of

schools finding It possible to offer their students all

courses without the nee®salty of supplementing their funds toy

means of fees paid by the student# for the privilege of re-

ceiving instruction in certain courses, • fheae schools, of

course, are fulfilling the conception of "free education*

as defined in this study and are therefore to be commended

for avoiding participation in the fee system. Jtewever, as

previously pointed out, the inevitable distribution of

school funds throughout the state Is largely responsible

for the' charging of supplementary fees by many schools•

In the succeeding chapter, conclusions baaed upon the

data of this study are listed, and recommendations are made

for a siore equitable distribution of school funds for the

purpose of eliminating the necessity for charging fees*

CKftPfffl V

OOHCUJSIOHS MD w m m m m m m m m

Conclusions

Generally speak ing , a system of f r e e educa t ion provides

b u i l d i n g space , I n s t r u c t i o n , l i b r a r y f a c i l i t i e s , playground

f a c i l i t i e s , athletic equipment, science e«p»ipment, textbooks,

ami any th ing else needed for a c h i l d ' s basis e d u c a t i o n .

Aether these. facilities are actually "free* is dependent

upon, many f a c t o r s , p r inc ipa l ly upon, tfee interpretation of

the concept of "free and equal education* by ttie state, by

t h e county , and by t h e i n d i v i d u a l school systems, within t he

coun ty . . ;

. In the light of the data presented in the preceding

chapter, it becomes obvious t h a t a f r e e and uni form system

of p u b l i c e d u c a t i o n , a s provided f o r by t h e C o n s t i t u t i o n of

the State of lew Mexico, has been liberally in te rpre ted by

t he s t a t e , by the c o u n t i e s , and by the i n d i v i d u a l schools

within the counties, there are many instances in which the

individual students bear the cost of a course In one school,

whereas in another school the state bears the cost f o r simi-

l a r or identical supplies and courses. And along this same

line,. many courses which require special equipment and fa-

cilities, such as laboratory and shop courses,, are offered

66

67

tp the student without any special fee in one school, where-

as other schools stake as assessment that definitely limits

enrollment la the course to the privileged few who can bear

the cost without hardship.

Hew Mexico is a poor state. Her population is ©pars©

and uneveply' districted. Yet, her teachers* are well-paid

and•the "people of lew Mexico give a higher, percentage of

their total Income to education than do the> people of any

other, state. h1 Why, then, we »ay ask, are some students dis-

criminated against in the matter of "free*1 education? A re-

cent survey conducted by the Division of Surveys and Field

Services of the Oeorge Peabody College for feachers explains

lew Mexico's lack of equitable educational opportunities for

her school children as follows-

Hew Mexico laws provide that all revenue from the following sources remain in the counties in which It is collected t federal forest land/tax, 5~»111 county tax levy, motor vehicle license tax, and mer-chant 's license tax* these taxes vary from county to county* fhe current school fund is distributed to each county on a school population basis. . fhe so-called "equalisation fund® is distributed to all ' counties and independent school district# on .a weighted average dally attendance "basis. In 19^7- '

. ^8 this combination of funds yielded as little as . $2,851.13 par classroom unit in one county and as

• much a®'$%,53i»2S in another county**

Wha$ this .survey points out is obvioust the' children living

in sparsely populated counties are being penalised by the

*!ow Mexico Educational Survey Board, Public Education is B e telas# p- i.

2ndd., p. 23.

68

lack of funds with which to operate the educational system

m as adequate standard* On the basis of the sources of

revenue mentioned in the quotation above, It Is obvious that

some counties with concentrations of population or those with

national forest® will reap far greater benefits from such

taxes than the sparsely settled counties or those lacking

federal forest lands. Those counties in which there is. 'ft

small population and m national forests are 1 indeed in a sad

plight in so far as than# particular sources ofeducational

revenue are concerned* they are sadly in need' of wore money

with which to offar an adequate school program, and it'it

easy to surmise that schools i® such unfortunate counties

resort to special fees and avail to some form of tuition on-a

small scale to help relieve financial difflenities, the

Peabody survey indicates that the tola* for the inevitable

distribution of sohool revenues lies more hesvlly on the

state1# system of taxation than' on the policies' of looal or

county school systems. In fact, looal policies have to be

adjusted in keeping with the state1# plan of supplying edu-

cational revenues.

Although the inequitable distribution of school money

probably does aecount for many ©f the educational inequali-

ties in the sohools of JteW'Mexi©©, it la just as certain that

counties and looal school systems within the counties should

shoulder a portion of the blame. From the data presented in

69

the preceding chapter, the following general conclusions are

warranted?

1, Free and equitable educational opportunities do not

exist -for'mil ©f the school children of lew Mexico, in so

far as such can he measured by special fees and charges as-

sessed by some schools as a requirement for enrollment in

certain coursws. •.. . • .

2. Of the schools returning questionnaires, 27.1 pea?

cent made one or more charges of studentsj the others indi-

cated no charges for any subjects»

• 3. Among the schools charging fees, there is no uni-

formity in the aaouat charged, nor is there:any uniformity

1® the subject® « courses for which the students'are charged,

fee® vary per course frost twenty-five cents to $75.00 per

school year, and subject® charged for rang;# fro® advanced

languages to vocational courses.

4. fhe basis upon which fee® are charged -is not uni-

form among the schools,, fbe most frequent basis for charge

it that of providing equipment or that .of maintaining equip-

ment in usable condition, therefore, the student is penal-

ised when he enrolls In any courses which require 'special

equipment.

5. Htny •inequalities are existent within the counties

themselves. For this reason the state is not entirely to '

blame for educational discriminations against its school

70

children who happen to live In sections of the state not fa-

vored by the inequitable policy of taxation for educational

support now In effect in Hew Mexico.

.6. Mmj individual f ami lie® way not be able to pay the

fee® assessed toy the school for certain eonraea. Barents who

have- more than on® child in school may be forced to exhibit

partiality toward some of their own ohildren in the range of

subjects which they can afford to permit each child to se- •

leot, . . . . . . . .

7. fhe fact that many of the high schools in Hew Hexlco

do not make any charges at all,, even for laboratory and shop

courses, lapllea that sueh schools as do assess fees do so

fro®' necessity and not fro® choice. As tea already been

shown, • the tax plan of the state provides for inequitable

distribution of revenues for' the support of education by al-

lowing each county to use for its schools all funds collected

from certain types of taxation. Since the taxable items vary

widely from county to county, the income from the taxes is

high in soae counties and extremely low in others.

8, 'Most of the school# which charge fee® of amy type

have a stimulated•nxm which is required of every student who

enrolls for certain courses. Most of the schools, likewise,

did not indicate that any of this fee is refunded to the gtu-

dent if his breakage or •lota of equipment ha® not necessi-

tated the spending of the' entire' fee for replacements * Hence

71

til# conclusion Is testified that, on the whole, the schools

of the state which charge fees have set tip a schedule of as-

sessments which provide additional Ineoiae to the school after

lot® and breakage of etwipaeat hair© been oared for. Such

money kept by the school la used for the purchase of needed

equipment and tan he considered as a aatall tuition which the

students arast pay is order that the school may provide serv-

ices and faollitlea whioh shotild he furnished fey the state or

the county under the constitutional conception of "free and

efue.1 educational opportunities.B

9, fhe inability of the writer, in many instances, to

determine from the questionnaire returns the amount of the

fee which is ttted for replacement of broken or lost items

of equipment and the amount still left in hand after stich

replacements are made oonstltated a major weakness of this

study. lowever, the faot that most schools apparently do not

follow a practice of asking refunds from these feea indicates

that the students are actually paying a siiall tuition for the

privilege of enrolling 1© certain cowsesj and In two or

three schools a fee is required of every student enrolled,

irrespeotive of the courses he selects, and such a fee is

very obviously of the nature of a tuition repaired of the

students to provide educational facilities which would be

iaposslble if left to the meager state and local revenues

available to the sohool*

72

10* Is connection with these general mmlmtm*, three

speeific exaaples of inequalities may toe pointed out for the

sake of emphasis t ,.

(1) lb# public high school In RcKinley ttnu&j.

charges every student enrolled a. $25.00 tuition fee, iM an-

other In the saate county assesses a. mall • library fee f«w

every studeatj whereas a high school la Hidalgo County nafces

a charge of |3*0© for every student enrolled,. Although these

tuition fees my appear to be comparatively saall, they are

certainly a direct violation of "froe iM «aif©ww publie

education, 1 student my he expeoted to pay for breakage or

lot* of school equipment placed la his ©are, but no student

attending a public school should ho required to pay tuition,

either openly and directly as in the three instances sited

above, or, indirectly, as appears to be truo in nost of the

schools which haw fixed fees ostensibly, for the .purpose, of

oaring for loss, breakage, or rental of sohool equipment

and facilities, • •

(2) two schools do not provide all of'the text-

books needed by their students, this additional charge for

books doubtless prevents aany students fro® taking the courses

in which the books vast be supplied by the students them-

selves .

(3) tee high sohool makes a $75.00 shop charge.

Although this fee covers the oost of materials used by the

73

students, the 'initial cost makes the couni#. prohibitive for •

mnj students. la Hew Mexico, perhaps taore than in any other

state, the native skill for handicraft shouldbe emphasized

a»d encouraged. Ho vocational fee should be so high as to

limit the course to the minority. . •

Recommendations

. f he Constitution of the State of m « mxtm, adopted

when, statehood was attained in 1912, has a number of. coramenda-

hie features relating to education# lowewr, it also pos-

sesses a few definite limitations and handicaps which will

have to he eliminated before a satisfactory educational .pro-

gram can he developed throughout the statu, Sot least among

these handicaps is" a poorly set-up plan for, the equalization

of school funds, fhe state's equalisation fund should he

allocated by the use of the classroom-unit method, as defined

in the Public School Code of the stated rather than by the

principle of weighted average daily attendance, whieh is now

the basis of distribution, fhla classroom-unit plan would

help to correct the inequalities in the other types of edu-

cational aid and the variations in yield of the present five-

mill county tax levy. With this major change in the equalisa-

tion program effected, a great many of the minor discrimina-

tions against students, the result of lack of proper and

equitable school financing, could be eliminated.

- .. .3*?w. State Department of Education, Hew Mexico U M i g School jJode, 193a ©ampliation, pp. 15-16, '

7*

In the aaate connection, the taxation policies of the .

state should he studied Is an effort to devise a plan which .

would not penalise counties of sparse population or those .

lacking In national forest lands. If'It Is deemed unwise

to alter the basic principles of taxation now existent* then

certainly the state should set -up a program of aid for those

counties In which the school revenues coming from taxable

sources are inadequate for the maintenance of "free and equal

educational opportunities w for all students.

Another phase of the educational program which could

be more adequately administered by the state than toy the

county concerns the field of vocational work, k,large per*

cent age of the lew Mexico populace Is mad©. tip of Spanish-

American people whose ancestry 1® largely Indian, these

people possess latent skills In handicrafts and they should

toe given every possible opportunity to develop them. If the

state would set up .a plan for providing the funds to ellial-

nate any necessity for assessment against the individual

students, no county would need to discriminate against these

students by aeans of prohibitive fees,

it is a commonly accepted principle In public free edu-

cation that students should be responsible for the care of

all school supplies and equipment entrusted to their use,

and that they should pay for the replacement of any ma-

terials lost or broken. It should toe the concern of the

75

educational authorities la the Stat© of Uew Mexico to m e

that no school in the state demands fees of Its students in

excess of this requirement of replacement, In order to

eliminate the fee system,, of course, It will be necessary

to make available to the schools the funds needed to mint tin

equipment already la hand and to purchase new equipment as

the need arises.

One otter recommended change which would apply to the

state, rather than to the county, concerns! textbooks. the

Jfewr mmim Public School ©ode has set up a policy whereby

free textbooks are provided to all school children. It has

been noted that two schools charge for textbooks in advanced

language courses. The state should see that all textbooks

necessary for instructional purposes are included in the free-

textbook list for public school student®,

If the proposed changes la the equalisation program for

state funds cannot provide a system in which n© fees are

assessed any student within-the state, then the following

recommendations are suggested for immediate conslderatloni

1. Courses for which students are eiiarged, and the

amount charged for these subjects, should be uniform through-

out the state*

Z, Courses requiring unusual facilities•and equipment

should not be free if, at the same time, students are re-

quired to pay a fee for subjects requiring only the usual

classroom facilities.

76

3. Fees should not s s@rre to discriminate against stu-

dents following any particular field of study.

4. Wo tuition, either direct or indirect, @r any .over-

all fee should be charged by any state-supported high school.

5. If the fee system must exist until state-wide re-

forsts can 1* brought about 1B the source© and distribution

of educational funds, sows provision should 'fee- mad@ to exempt

those students who are financially unable to. pay a fee for,

the courses which they Indicate.a desire to take. ,

Afmrnm

Box 657 portales* Sew Mexico liovember 1, 10®

Bear SIPj

I am collecting some data la connection with a research atudy for a Hastar*a thesis is the Seheol of Business, Mmth fexas State College, Seat©©, fexas *

"WmM jm please tale# the tlm to answer to# enclosed QueatiOBuaire and return it to ae aa soon as poaaible 1

Vhla questionnaire is heing sent to all of the high schools ill Sew Mexico, If you would fee Interested in com-paring your acfeool with the others of the state regarding the feea charged, indicate this faat on the westionnaire, and I shall send you a copy of the tabulation'upon comple-tion of the study.

A staarped addressed envelope la enclosed fm your convenience*

Sincerely yours,

William «[* Beager

7T

78

qwBmmmam

!• Are students charged fees fo r any of i n your h i$ i •ofctatlf

1»g HQ

a* If f««» are charged, glv« th« amount and Hit purpose fo r which the funds are used. '

Course #g j f ! f g M W f r I l i M

t*r

English

Histoid ljg»g«»gea

Chiwistry ' .

typewriting

Bookkeeping ' 1

Shorthand

Business. m&ohiaes • 1 _«««««»«,

Vocational ag.

Koiae economies

Mtarary

Physioal education

©and

Othersj

79

3. i Are jm Interested la having a tabulation of this study?

. *»• _ _ No

your

Yo«r school

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

Blooa, lansiag B., and mimellf, 0. #JBl SBlSS J|S~ tory and Civics All*uquerqw>* University Freae, 1933.

Jannlnga, S. P., fia J2»JteS2 32IS2132&SSSU. .ttl»qwr<jue, University BP#i»7iP2V

Smith, Fay#®»# and IWTiglit, Frank W,, |S IffilZ" «igh-b states. Washington, Government Printing Office, 1939.

Public Documents .

S 2 a s ^ i r $ # s » - ^ ^ E M % i ^ ^ p w v f s i o n of lrs. esale M^oaSles, Secretary of Stata# Santa ?e, Haw Mexico, 1939.

Buhm'Uj, ffeoasas 0,* editor, JQ& j$f|&, |ja®a^ional l2&tgg> Bulletin, Altatiqiaanni©, University Press, 1P6.

mU±o»r ». and Fixley, s. editor®, i S B M ISMSl Ut" tflMme# and School Jgsil M SSSL AMwwrqua, University Press, 19^6*

lev Mexico Educational Association, gihllc ,|||ig,l S£ Hew Mexico, Santa f#, Santa fa WeaiT 19*t. .

Sew Mexico Educational Survey Board and 01 vision of Surveys and Field Services, @eorg© feabody College for Teachers,

s t s s s M M s . ! * : " • • "

- ^ • a . ' a s p s s f i a r a s ; » : a a r ^ c a f e mat of Education, 1939-

$0