Bells Toll For OSU School From Battle On The Campus Series By Bill Worth Citizen-Journal Staff Writer Wednesday, February 10th, 1965 Copyright 1965, Columbus Citizen-Journal Used by permission Second of a Series By September, 1967 the upper six grades of University School on the Ohio State University campus will be gone. They are being phased out according to a plan devise by an advisory committee to Dr. Donald R. Cottrell, dean of the OSU College of Education. The committee decide that public school students in selected districts In Ohio could serve as subjects for the experimental educational programs now carried out at University School.
The committee suggested the entire University School be closed and its resources used for an intensive program of educational development on a contract basis with selected public school districts in Ohio.
The committee report admitted there would be trouble in accepting a major change such as its proposed reorganization of the college. But it said it was a convinced its proposal represents that best alternative available to the college. Therein lies the chief reason for closing the upper six grades of University School, according to Dr. David Clark, associate dean of the College of Education. "We didn't have the money to run both the University School and work out our program with school systems in the state," Dr. Clark said. "The committee ( of which Dr. Clark was chairman ) decided the college could better use its funds in the proposed state system--other words, work more closely with Ohio schools. "The nature of University School changed about six years ago to the University School and the Center for School experimentation ( CSE ). The idea Was to make it sort of a state center to disseminate information about school experimentation." Dr. Cottrell said when be decided to accept the committee report last year that Ohio public schools increasingly have asked OSU to help them solve problems. He said at that-time: "I don't think anything has developed at University School in the last five years that really couldn't be developed in the public schools," Dr. Clark said a five-year study of University School completed in 1963-64 showed the school was too small to be used for student teaching or demonstration. "The study also showed the staff and student population would have to be increased, which indicated a new building would be needed. It was strictly a matter of where to place the emphasis. The committee felt we couldn't do both. Of I course, we would have liked to have both." The original committee report advised closing the entire school, from kindergarten to the 12th grade. "We would have phased out the whole thing," Dr. Clark said, 'but a lot of faculty members urged us to try some things we never
had before, such as a closed-cir cult television hook up. "So we decided just to close the secondary and junior high because it is more expensive to run than the elementary school--you need more teachers, for one thing." Dr. Clark said he thought there was no danger of the elementary school closing and added the concept of the Center of School Experimentation would remain and be greatly expanded. The Department of Education ( teacher training ) faculty voted 33-6 to accept a minority report which criticized the decision to close University School. The Department of Psychology voted unanimously to accept the minority report. The school's Parent Council marshaled forces in an effort to change the decision. However, it looks as if their efforts will fail. Another committee is studying the original advisory committee's report and will make its own report July 1. But it has been told to keep hands off the University School issue. Unless the hue and cry reaches massive proportions, the decision will stand. The upper six grades of University School will be closed in September, 1967.