superintend 7. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Assistant state may appoint an Assistant State Superintendent of Public ent. Instruction. He shall file a certificate of such appointment in the office of the Secretary of State, and, with the approval of the Governor, fix his salary, which salary shall be paid in the same manner as the salary of the State Superintendent shall be paid. Said Assistant Superintendent shall perform all the duties of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction during his ab sence. 8. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Clerks. may employ such clerks as he may deem necessary, and, with the approval of the Governor, fix their compensation, which compensation shall be payable monthly on the certificate of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction; provided, that the salary of the Assistant Proviso. Superintendent and the compensation of said clerks shall not exceed in the aggregate the sum annually appropriated therefor by the Legislature. state board of member of aminers. schools. 9. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Secretary of shall be the Secretary of the State Board of Education, education, and and a member, ex officio, of all boards of examiners. boards of exHe shall enforce all rules and regulations prescribed by the State Board of Education. He shall have super- Supervision of vision of all the schools of the state receiving any part of the state appropriation. He shall, from time to time, instruct county and city superintendents as to their duties and as to the best manner of conducting schools, constructing school-houses and furnishing the same. arising under 10. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Decide disputes shall decide, subject to appeal to the State Board of school law. Education and without cost to the parties, all controversies and disputes that shall arise under the school laws, or under the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. The facts involved in any controversy or dispute shall, if he shall so require, be made known to him by written statements by the parties. thereto, verified by oath or affirmation, and accompanied by certified copies of all documents necessary to a full understanding of the question in dispute, and his deci Keep record of decisions. Official seal. Appoint county superintendent sion shall be binding until, upon appeal, a decision shall be given by the State Board of Education. (a) 11. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall keep a record of all his official acts and shall preserve copies of all decisions made by him, and shall adopt and provide an official seal. Copies of all acts, orders and decisions made by him, and of all papers deposited or filed in the Department of Public Instruction may be authenticated under said seal, and, when so authenticated, shall be evidence equally with and in like manner as the originals. 12. Whenever there shall be a vacancy in the office of to fill vacancy. County Superintendent of Schools, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall appoint, subject to the approval of the President of the State Board of Education, a suitable person to fill such vacancy, and the person so appointed shall hold office until his successor shall be appointed by the State Board of Education. Withhold salary of intendent. 13. In case a County Superintendent of Schools shall County super- neglect or refuse to perform any duty imposed upon him by this act or by the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall, subject to appeal to the State Board of Education, withhold from such County Superintendent of Schools the order for his salary until he shall have fully complied with the provisions of this act and with the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education relating to his duties. Withhold money from 14. In case a board of education, or any officer thereof, school district. or the legal voters of any school district, or any board or officer of the municipality in which any such school district shall be situate shall neglect or refuse to perform (a) 1. The state superintendent having been given authority to hear and determine certain matters, his determination thereupon has the conclusive quality of a judgment pronounced in a legally-created court of limited jurisdiction acting within the bounds of its authority. Thompson v. Board of Education, 28 Vr. 628. 2. There is no distinction in point of conclusiveness between the decisions of special tribunals and the judgments of courts of record. The difference is solely in the presumption of jurisdiction. Ibid. 3. The court may, in the exercise of its discretion, refuse to interfere by mandamus in a controversy cognizable by the special tribunals created by the School law of this state, where an appeal to such tribunals has not been made. Jefferson v. Atlantic City, 35 Vr. 59. any duty imposed upon such board, officer or legal voters by this act or by the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, the custodian of the school moneys of such school district shall, upon notice from the County Superintendent of Schools, approved by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, withhold all moneys received by him from the County Collector and then remaining in his hands to the credit of such district, until he shall receive notice from said County Superintendent of Schools that said board, officer or legal voters. have fully complied with the provisions of this act and with the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education. salary from 15. In case a teacher shall neglect or refuse to per- Withhold form any duty imposed upon him or her by this act teacher. or by the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, the State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall direct the custodian of the school moneys of the school district in which such teacher shall be employed, to withhold from such teacher all salary due to him or her until he receives notice from said State Superintendent of Public Instruction that such teacher has fully complied with the provisions of this act and the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education relating to his or her duties. officer. 16. Whenever it shall be proved to the satisfaction of Suspend school the State Superintendent of Public Instruction that any member of a board of education, or any officer thereof has been guilty of a willful violation or neglect of duty under this act or under the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education, said State Superintendent of Public Instruction may, by an order under his hand and seal, which order shall be recorded in his office, and a duplicate thereof transmitted to said board of education, suspend such member or officer from his office; provided, that notice of his proposed action shall be Proviso. served upon said member or officer either personally or by letter directed to him at his last known post-office address, at least two weeks prior to the making of said order; provided further, that said State Superintendent Proviso. of Public Instruction shall forthwith report such suspen Apportion school moneys. Reports from private schools. Proviso. Proviso. Furnish blanks to school officers. Annual report. sion to the State Board of Education, and said board shall, after due investigation, reinstate or remove such member or officer. 17. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall equitably apportion to the several counties the amount appropriated for the support of public schools from the State School Fund on the basis of the aggregate number of days attendance of all pupils attending the public schools during the year preceding that for which said apportionment shall be made, and shall furnish to the State Comptroller and to the several County Superintendents of Schools and County Collectors an abstract of such apportionment, and of the apportionment of the moneys due to the several counties from the State school tax and from the reserve fund, and shall draw his orders on the State Comptroller and in favor of the County Collector of each county for the amount to which such county shall be entitled. 18. The superintendent or manager of each educational institution receiving support or aid from the state, and the president, manager, or principal of each seminary, academy or private school shall report to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction annually, on or before the first day of August, such statistics relating to such institution, seminary, academy or school as said State Superintendent of Public Instruction may require, and in the manner and form prescribed by him; provided, that no report concerning the expenses or finances of such institution, seminary, academy or private school shall be required; and provided further, that no report of any seminary, academy or private school shall be published or made public by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction. 19. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall prepare and cause to be printed forms for making all reports and conducting all proceedings under the school laws of this state. He shall cause all school laws to be printed in pamphlet form, and shall annex thereto forms for making reports and conducting school business, and shall distribute the same. 20. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction shall present to the State Board of Education annually at its meeting in December, a report of the condition of the public schools and of all the educational institutions receiving support or aid from the state. Such report shall contain full statistical tables of all items connected with the cause of education that may be of interest to school officers or the people of the state, together with such suggestions and recommendations for the improvement of the schools and the advancement of public instruction as he shall deem expedient. 21. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Take affidavits. and the Assistant State Superintendent shall, without charge, administer oaths and take affidavits concerning any matter relating to the schools. erty to suc 22. The State Superintendent of Public Instruction Deliver propshall, at the expiration of his term of office, deliver to cessor. his successor his official seal, together with all the property, books, documents, maps, records, reports and other papers belonging to his office. ARTICLE III. COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS. of county ents. 23. The State Board of Education shall appoint for Appointment each county a suitable person to be the County Super- superintendintendent of Schools of that county, who shall hold office for the term of three years from the date of his appoint- Term of office. ment and until his successor shall have been appointed as aforesaid, unless sooner removed for cause by said board. No person shall be appointed as County Super- Shall hold state intendent of Schools unless he shall hold a state teacher's certificate. certificate. 24. The yearly salary of a County Superintendent of Salary. Schools shall be a sum which shall be equal to eight dollars for each teacher employed in the public schools in his county as ascertained from the last published report of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction; but such salary shall in no case be less than thirteen hundred dollars nor more than two thousand dollars. |