Wood County Schools, West Virginia This file was submitted by Valerie Crook, E-mail address: This file may be freely copied by individuals and non-profit organizations for their private use. All other rights reserved. Any other use, including publication, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission by electronic, mechanical, or other means requires the written approval of the file's author. This file is part of the WVGenWeb Archives. If you arrived here inside a frame or from a link from somewhere else, our front door is at http://www.usgwarchives.net/wv/wvfiles.htm History of Education in West Virginia Prepared under the direction of the State Superintendent of Free Schools 1904, Charleston: The Tribune Printing Company, 1904 pg. 250 - 252 Wood County BY W. T. COCHRAN, SUPERINTENDENT Early in the history of the State of West Virginia, the Legislature of the State saw the importance of education, as being one of the prime requisites of good citizenship and progressiveness in the citizen and resident of the State, and to promote such citizenship and progressiveness, a system of education was devised and established by law, on such liberal lines as were necessary to secure to all persons, without regard to race or color, between the ages of six and twenty-one years, such education as would fit them' to perform the ordinary business transactions of life. For the professional life a higher education was provided by the establishing of a State University, and Normal Schools, where those desiring to follow the profession of. teaching or other professions, might be fitted and prepared for such work. The enterprising and patriotic citizens of "Old Wood County" immediately set about putting into opera- tion and utilizing the system thus provided, so as to secure to the children of school age in the county, the very best possible opportunity for securing an education under the system. To this end the county was laid off into townships and districts (afterward changed in name to districts and sub-districts), county superintendents and boards of educa- tion elected, trustees appointed, school houses built, teachers employed and schools opened. The people were eager to take advantage of the opportunity thus afforded, and it was soon found necessary to enlarge and construct new buildings to accommodate the children. It soon became necessary to secure better and more efficient teachers, but it was somewhat difficult to secure teachers of such educational standing and preparation as would meet the growing demands. County superintendents, realizing the necessity of better and more efficient teachers, set about to stimulate, if possible, a higher grade of preparation in teachers. To effect this as far as possible, county institutes were held, and teachers encouraged to seek better preparation, by having educators of high rank lecture on such subjects as would awaken an interest in mental development. These in- stitutes were not provided for by law; their advantages, however, soon became so apparent that by legislative enactment attendance was made obligatory upon all the teachers, and instructors were employed by the State Superintendent of Schools. The county superintendents of Wood county were men of a high appreciation of the benefits flowing out from these county institutes, all of them were men of high morality and literary attainments, seeking continually the betterment of the public schools. During the early history of the school system, the schools were not visited so frequently by the county superintendents as was contemplated by law, but subsequently more of it was done, and this was a stimulus to both teacher and scholar. The term of office of county superintendent being at first only two years and unless retained in office for more than one term, there was not that efficiency that would come with a longer term. Superintendent Samuel T. Stapleton held the office longer than any other incumbent, having been appointed and re-elected from time to time, and thus he was enabled to give of his time, eleven years to the work, and the wisdom of his being so retained in office, was manifest in the marked improvement in, not only, the proficiency of the teachers, but also in the pupils. Mr. Stapleton insisted upon advancing the grade of teachers to a higher standard, and his being retained in office gave him an opportunity to do so in such a gradual way as to make but little irritation, and great improvement was the result, in all depart- ments of the public schools; teachers either dropped out of the profession or had to better prepare themselves for their work; they must work harder to keep up with the rapidly advancing scholars in the schools. Under his administration the work of visiting the schools was efficiently done, going into all the schools of the county, and assisting both teacher and scholar in the work. What I say about Mr. Stapleton is no less true of all the superintendents of the county, but their short terms did not give their work an opportunity to manifest itself in such marked degree. So it was that school houses increased in number, and each succeeding one was a better one than its ancestor. Perhaps the most marked improvement in any of the schools of the county is to be found in the schools of the city of Parkersburg; their beginning was like the country schools, not of the highest order and efficiency, but with a broad minded, patriotic and businesslike board of education, their growth has been phenomenal, continually growing fti efficiency and usefulness, until now they stand second to none in the State; having a large enrollment of scholars and a corps of teachers that stand high in efficiency, moral tone and uplift. I am, therefore, glad to be able to say that the schools of Wood county, stand second to none in the State, the standard being high both in city and county.