From the Academy

“Not a crash program, but a cash program”: this is the slogan which some zealots for federal aid to schools have produced recently. They’re not much interested in doing anything to aid the nation in its present struggle to retain its security and influence; but they are very much interested in hard cash. I admire their candor.

Mr. Folsom, our Health, Education, and Welfare benefactor, has come forth with a crash-cash program, approved by President Eisenhower. It would award 10,000 federal scholarships annually to students of science; 5,500 fellowships for college teachers; $15.5 million for grants-in-aid to states for “uncovering high-school students” of promise; $110,000 to “improve teaching methods” and encourage teachers of science and mathematics; $1.2 million—and more to come —to hearten teachers of languages; $79 million to the National Science Foundation for scientific institutes and “research to improve teaching methods.” The trouble with all this, the NEA people say, is that it isn’t enough cash. But with one thing they are well satisfied: it would establish the precedent of federal spending for, and supervision of, the schools.

RK

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Russell Kirk

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“Not a crash program, but a cash program”: this is the slogan which some zealots for federal aid to schools have produced recently. They’re not much interested in doing anything to aid the nation in its present struggle to retain its security and influence; but they are very much interested in hard cash. I admire their candor.

Mr. Folsom, our Health, Education, and Welfare benefactor, has come forth with a crash-cash program, approved by President Eisenhower. It would award 10,000 federal scholarships annually to students of science; 5,500 fellowships for college teachers; $15.5 million for grants-in-aid to states for “uncovering high-school students” of promise; $110,000 to “improve teaching methods” and encourage teachers of science and mathematics; $1.2 million—and more to come —to hearten teachers of languages; $79 million to the National Science Foundation for scientific institutes and “research to improve teaching methods.” The trouble with all this, the NEA people say, is that it isn’t enough cash. But with one thing they are well satisfied: it would establish the precedent of federal spending for, and supervision of, the schools.