Administration
Based on interviews with a former principal, and two former Dallastown superintendents, it is obvious that school operations have changed over the years. There has been change in the types of equipment used and the way that students are taught and disciplined. As the interviews demonstrate, school administration has evolved in the terms of these individuals.
When Mr. Clair Trout was asked what he worked on when he worked at the school, he responded, "I did a lot with the schedule. I started the summer, so that it was ready within the first hour of school. I also dealt with kids that teachers sent up to the office, and I was also in charge of everything that went on at the school, such as programs, shows, classes, ect.." He responded to the question, what type of machinery did you work with then? "We had very little machinery back then. What we did have consisted of a typewrite and duplicator. Computers were just being invented then." He explained how Dallastowns administration compares to other schools. "When I worked at the school it was top of the county at that time. When people would look for homes, realtors would recommend Dallastown. As far as I know we still have good rating." Mr. Trout recalled the changes from when he worked there to now. "It changed for the worst. Back then students would never talk back to teachers and principals, there was a certain respect. If I worked there now, I'd be in jail. I believed in using the paddle once in a while, in fact I probably used it about four times when I was working there. The school created a punishment, like in school suspension called the rubber room. Students called it this because the walls of a mental facility are rubber and that is what the room looked like. The kids would go in there, and get double assignments to work on."
Dr. Neil Harvey said that the responsibilities of superintendent were, "The overall operation of the school district from fiscal matters, instruction, curriculum, cafeteria, transportation, board relationships, and community interactions to leadership. Also, staffing and operating a central office building, preparing for, and reporting to a board of education's bi-monthly meetings, and providing a realistic vision and goal of direction of district for community." He also commented on the machinery that was used back then. "Many years ago secretaries used manual typewriters, then electric typewriters, electric for dictation, and finally computers for word processing. There was also overhead projectors, calculating machines, and tape recorders for dictation." Dallastown's adminsitration comparison to other schools was, "Very favorable in York County and statewide board on test results, cost was per student per year for districts. Based on state reports administration ranked very favorably", spoke Dr. Harvey. He also thinks that, "I think that it would not be too much different now because I just retired about a year ago." He saw plenty of changes from when he first began, like, "change in technology, in classroom, and administrative utilization, more discipline problems, and definately more violence. When I first began to work there, there were more fist fights, now the fights involve weapons. Also there is much more drug use at an earlier age. More at risk students, and services and classes for the students."
Dr. Grimm said, "my experiences while teaching and coaching directed my studies towards administration being exposed as a son of a successful coach and public school superintendent." He spoke about the responsibilities as chief of school administrator, and said, "I provided direction for the board of education, and employed and supervised a quality staff. I also had to create a positive image in the eyes of the public, and was in charge of curricular activities. The machingery that was used was primarily by dictaphone to my secretary. We only used computers for maintaining records and personal data, student transcripts and board minutes." When asked how the Dallastown district compared to other districts he answered, "Our district grew from 3200 students to 5500 students. During my tim as superintendent many schools were built and re-sized. With this are administrative team continued to grow. Our team grew and we made an effort to provide top quality leadership." He stated that, "I don't think that the difficulty would be too much more today. Districts have been dealing with students disturbances in the past, so I'm confident that they are addressing the issues with appropriate measures today."
In conclusion, the interviews show that Dallastown has changed over the years. From the type of equipment that was used, from then to now. Computers have replaced typewriters in almost every room in the school. That was a huge change. Principals used to be able to paddle students, and now they can barely touch them. However, Dallastown can be proud taht some things did not change, such as the fact that our school district is one of the best educational institutions anywhere. Good administration led by the individuals interviewed in this report played a big role in making this so.
