The School Board Rejects a World's Fair Scheme
Seattle school board members debate fundraising for a 'baby building' at the Chicago World's Fair.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The school board last evening sat down upon the scheme to raise funds in the public schools for a 'baby building' at the World's Fair. When the board met, Superintendent Barnard stated that he had been approached on the subject and been asked to have it announced in the schools. The women of different states have projected a scheme to establish a building at Chicago where the babies of women attending the exhibition can be taken care of while the mothers are looking around. They have assessed the state of Washington $500 and asked Seattle to raise $100. It was proposed to seek a good proportion of this sum from the children in small contributions. 'Why do they ask half of all the money wanted in the state from Seattle alone?' asked D. A. Spencer. 'Where do Tacoma, Spokane and Walla Walla come in if Seattle raises one-half the whole sum?' asked W. J. Cockett. 'I am opposed to this thing of dunning pupils in this way,' said T. W. Prosch, the third member of the board who was present. 'If the matter for which money is asked is one directly connected with the schools, it is all right. But I am opposed to this.' And right there the Chicago baby building project stopped, at least as far as the Seattle public schools are concerned.
“Why do they ask half of all the money wanted in the state from Seattle alone?”
Early Seattle civic leaders were fiercely protective of school time, fearing that external charitable 'dunning' of students would distract from education. This tension between schools as community hubs and as targets for fundraising remains a perennial conversation in Seattle Public Schools today.
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