file statement

appeal.

execute and

(122.) § 4744. SEC. 2. Said appellants shall, before tak- Appellants to ing such appeal, make out and file with the board of school in- of cause and spectors, or in case of fractional school districts to the clerk demand for of the joint boards of school inspectors, a written statement, to be signed by said appellants, setting forth in general terms the action, order, or decision of the board or boards of school inspectors, with respect to which the appellants feel themselves aggrieved, and their demand for an appeal therefrom to the township board or boards of said township or townships, and shall also cause to be executed and signed by one of Appellants to their number, and by two good and sufficient sureties, to be file bond. approved by the clerk of said board or joint boards of school inspectors, or by any justice of the peace of the township, and filed with the clerk of said board or joint boards of school inspectors, a bond to the people of the State of Michigan in the penal sum of two hundred dollars, conditioned for the due prosecution of said appeal before said township board or boards acting jointly, and also in case of the dismissal of said appeal as frivolous by said township board or joint boards, for the payment by said appellants of all costs occasioned to the township or townships [by reason] of said appeal.

BOND:

The statute is positive in requiring the bond to be approved and it can not be dispensed with.-Clement v. Everest, 29 / 21. The appeal is not complete without such approval.-Id.

inspectors

ship board

of case.

(123.) § 4745. SEC. 3. Upon the filing of such appeal Duty of papers and bond with the said board or joint boards of school when appeal inspectors, the said board or joint boards of school inspectors is filed." shall, within ten days thereafter, make out and file with the clerk of said township in which the said schoolhouse is located, a full and complete transcript of all their proceedings, actions, orders, or decisions with reference to which the appeal is taken, and of their records of the same; also, said bond and appeal papers, and all petitions and remonstrances, if any, with reference to the matters appealed from; and upon the fil- When towning of the same with the said township clerk, the said town- deemed in ship board or boards shall be deemed to be in possession of the possession case, and if the return be deemed by them insufficient, may order a further and more complete return by said board or boards of school inspectors; and when such return shall by Proceedings them be deemed sufficient, they shall proceed with the consid- in the appeal. eration of the appeal, at such time or times, within ten days after such return, and in such manner and under such affirmation, amendment, or reversal of the action, order, or decision of the board or boards of school inspectors appealed from, as in their judgment shall seem to be just and right; or, if they When memdeem the appeal to be frivolous, they may summarily dismiss ship board the same; but the decision of said board or boards of school determining inspectors shall not be altered or reversed, unless a majority of such township board or boards, not members of said board or boards of school inspectors, shall so determine.

See cases cited in notes to Section 121.

bers of town

cannot act in

case.

Graded school

ization of.

Proviso.

Trustee,

election of.

(124.) § 4746.

CHAPTER X.

GRADED SCHOOL DISTRICTS.

SECTION 1. Any school district containdistrict, organ- ing more than one hundred children between the ages of five and twenty years may, by a two-thirds vote of the qualified electors present at any annual or special meeting, organize as a graded school district: Provided, That the intention to take such vote shall be expressed in the notice of such annual or special meeting. When such change in the organization of the district shall have been voted, the voters at such annual or special meeting shall proceed immediately to elect by ballot from the qualified voters of the district one trustee for the term of one year, two for the term of two years, and two for a term of three years, and annually thereafter a successor or successors to the trustee or trustees whose term of office shall expire: Provided, also, In all districts organized prior to the year eighteen hundred and eighty-three there shall be one trustee elected at the annual meeting for the year eighteen hundred and eighty-three, and thereafter there shall be elected a trustee or trustees in the manner aforesaid, whose term of office shall be three years, and until his or their successor or successors shall have been elected and filed his or their acceptance: Provided, also, That in the election of trustees, and all other school officers, the person receiving a majority of all the votes shall be declared elected.

Proviso.

Proviso.

Simpkins v. Ward, 45/562.

GRADED SCHOOL DISTRICTS: The wisdom of the graded-school-district act was vindicated in Stuart v. Sch. Dist., 30/69, and its validity determined. -Keweenaw Ass'n v. Sch. Dist., 98 / 439. It is competent under the constitution to provide by taxation for free instruction in the higher departments of education, in union and high schools.-Stuart v. Sch. Dist., 30/69. Union and graded schools, whether organized under the general law or created by special enactment are subject to the general primary school law, except as otherwise provided in the law creating them.-People v. Detroit Board of Education, 18411; Keweenaw Ass'n v. Sch. Dist., 98 / 442.

ALL OTHER OFFICERS: The term "all other school officers" includes the director, moderator and assessor of primary school districts, there being no others to whom it could refer, as the trustees are the only officers to be elected in graded school districts.-Cleveland v. Amy, 88/377.

LEGISLATIVE PROVISIONS: The constitution does not require an absolute uniformity in school districts throughout the state and the legislature has not so construed the constitutional provisions. Uniformity has not been kept up; graded schools have been established; boundaries of districts changed and fixed by the legislature; and the qualifications of electors at school meetings have been fixed, limiting the classes entitled to vote and providing exceptional methods of electing officers. The mayor of Grand Rapids is made a trustee and ex officio a member of the board of education; and being a trustee he is eligible to the office of president of the board. The president of the board has the veto power. The mayor of Alpena is president of the board, and the trustees elected constitute the board, and exercise all the powers and perform the duties of trustees. The mayor of Detroit, as ex officio member of the board of education, has the veto power, and this provision is constitutional.-Pingree v. Board of Education, 99 / 407-9. It is no new thing for the legislature to fix the boundaries of school districts. It is done by the charter of nearly every city or village in the state, and some of them go so far as to provide exceptional methods of electing officers and limiting the classes entitled to vote (citing Mudge v. Jones, 59/165).-Keweenaw Ass'n v. Sch. Dist., 98/441. And in Perrizo v Kesler, 93/280, an act providing for the organization of school districts from entire townships was held valid.Id. 442.

be

(125.) § 4747. SEC. 2. Within ten days after their elec- Acceptance tions such trustees shall file with the director acceptances of of officers to the offices to which they have been elected, and shall annually Officers to be elected by elect from their own number a moderator, a director, and trustees. treasurer, and for cause may remove the same, and may appoint others of their own number in their places, who shall perform the duties prescribed by law for such officers in other school districts in this State except as hereinafter provided. The trustees shall have power to fill any vacancy that may Vacancy in occur in their number till the next annual meeting. When- board, how ever, in any case, the trustees shall fail, through disagreement When inor neglect, to elect the officers named in this section, within appoint twenty days next after the annual meeting, the school in- officers. spectors of the township or city to which such district makes its annual report shall appoint the said officers from the number of said trustees.

Am. 1901, Act 165.

VACANCIES- -COSTS: The minority of a school board have no authority to commence an action in its name, and, if they do so, they will be individually responsible for the costs.-Johnston v. Mitchell, 120 / 589.

filled.

spectors shall

(126.) § 4748. SEC. 3. It shall be the duty of the board Duty of of trustees in any graded school district:

trustees.

pupils.

First, To classify and grade the pupils attending schools in To classify such district and cause them to be taught in such schools or departments as they may deem expedient;

high school,

Second, To establish in such district a high school when To establish ordered by a vote of the district at an annual meeting, and to etc. determine the qualifications for admission to such school, and the fees to be paid for tuition in any branch taught therein: Provided, That when non-resident pupils, their parents or Proviso as to guardians, shall pay a school tax in said district, the same shall be credited on their tuition a sum not to exceed the amount of such tuition and they shall only be required to pay tuition for the difference between the amount of the tax and the amount charged for tuition;

tuition.

accounts.

Third, To audit and order the payment of all [of] the ac- To audit and counts of the director for incidental or other expenses in- Day directors curred by him in the discharge of his duties; but no more than fifty dollars shall be expended by the director in one year for repairs of the buildings or appurtenances of the district property without the authority of the board of trustees; Fourth, To employ all qualified teachers necessary for the To employ several schools, and to determine the amount of their compensation and to require the director and moderator to make contracts with the same on behalf of the district, in accordance with the provisions of law concerning contracts with teachers; Fifth, To employ such officers and servants as may be neces. To employ sary for the management of the schools and school property, and prescribe their duties and fix their compensation;

teachers.

officers, etc.

Sixth, To perform such other duties as are required of dis- Other duties, trict boards in other school districts.

Consent of trustees necessary to change in

boundaries

of district.

not restricted in size.

Proviso.

FIRST: To classify and grade.-People v. Detroit Bd. of Ed., 18/412. Under our system it is common and convenient to have the various grades in one building and there is nothing illegal in it.-Hathaway v. New Baltimore, 48/255. The authority to classify and grade the pupils and prescribe the course of studies confers the power to provide for teaching music and to purchase a piano for such purpose.-Knabe v. Board of Education, 67 / 262. FOURTH: A contract with a qualified teacher, made pursuant to a resolution adopted by a majority of the trustees and signed by the moderator and assessor and one of the trustees, is valid though not signed by the director. Farrel v. Sch. Dist., 98/43 (citing Crane v. Sch. Dist., 61/299). The board has power to employ a qualified teacher for the ensuing year prior to the annual school meeting.-Id., (citing Tappan v. Sch. Dist., 44/500; Cleveland v. Amy, 88/374.) The power to employ teachers conferred upon the district boards of primary schools is co-extensive with that conferred upon the boards of trustees of graded schools.-Cleveland v. Amy, 88 / 376. Teachers in graded schools are required to have certificates in the same manner as teachers in primary schools; but a person employed by the board to superintend and manage the schools need not be a teacher nor have a teacher's certificate.-Davis v. Sch. Dist., 81/214. The trustees are empowered to employ all teachers necessary, and what teachers are necessary is left to be decided by their sound discretion.-Tappan v. Sch. Dist., 44 / 502.

FIFTH: The power to appoint a superintendent of schools is incident to the full control which by law the board has over the schools.-Stuart v. Sch. Dist., 30/85. And the person employed as superintendent is not required to be a teacher or to have a teacher's certificate.-Davis v. Sch. Dist., 81 / 219-20.

SIXTH: A contract between a teacher and a graded school district is invalid, unless the teacher, at the time of making the contract, has the certificate required by Sec. 4812 C. L., authorizing her to teach during the term covered by the contract; obtaining a certificate after the making of the contract, and before commencement of school, is not a compliance with the statute. -McCloskey v. Sch. Dist., 134 / 235.

(127.) § 4749. SEC. 4. No alterations shall be made in the boundaries of any graded school district without the consent of a majority of the trustees of said district, which consent shall be spread upon the record of the district, and placed on file in the office of the clerk of the board of school inspectors of the township or city to which the reports of said. Such districts district are made; and graded school districts shall not be restricted to nine sections of land: Provided, however, That any three or more tax paying electors having children between the ages of five and twelve years, residing one and one-half miles or more from a schoolhouse in such district, feeling themselves aggrieved by any action, order, or decision of the board of trustees with reference to the alteration of said school district, affecting their interests, may, at any time within sixty days from the time of such action on the part of said board of trustees, appeal from such action, order or decision of such board of school trustees, to the judge of probate of the county in which such schoolhouse is situated, in the same manner, as nearly as may be, as appeals from the action Appellants to of inspectors, as provided by chapter nine of this act. Said appellants shall file a bond with said judge of probate, with sufficient sureties, to be approved by said judge of probate, in the penal sum of two hundred dollars, indemnifying said school district of any and all costs made on such appeal in case the appellants shall not prevail therein. Whereupon said judge of probate shall be empowered to entertain such appeal, and review, confirm or set aside or amend the action of the board of trustees appealed from.

file bond.

Am. 1899, Act 258.

NO ALTERATION: This provision is not intended to take from the board of supervisors their constitutional power to erect townships, but the prohi

bition applies only to inspectors.-People v. Ryan, 19 / 207. Township school inspectors cannot enlarge a graded school district by adding unorganized territory, though they may, with the consent of the trustees, transfer to its jurisdiction territory previously organized into primary districts.-Simpkins v. Ward, 45 / 559. The action of the board of inspectors in detaching territory from a graded school district is void, unless the inspectors have before them legal evidence of a consent of a majority of the trustees of the graded school district.-Burnett v. Inspectors, 97 / 103. Addition of territory by legislative action.-Keweenaw Ass'n v. Sch. Dist., 98 / 439-41.

contiguous

school

(128.) § 4750. SEC. 5. Whenever two or more contigu- Uniting of ous districts, having together more than one hundred children districts to between the ages of five and twenty years, after having pub- form graded lished in the notices of the annual meetings of each district district. the intention to take such action, shall severally, by a vote of two-thirds of the qualified voters attending the annual meetings in said districts determine to unite for the purpose of establishing a graded school district under the provisions of this chapter, the school inspectors of the township or townships in which such districts may be situated shall, on being properly notified of such vote, proceed to unite such districts, and shall appoint as soon as practicable, a time and place for a meeting of the new district, and shall require three notices of the same to be posted in each of the districts so united at least five days before the time of such meeting, and at such meeting the dis- Election of trict shall elect a board of trustees, as provided in section one trustees. of this chapter, and may do whatever business may be done at any annual meeting.

board of

trustees in

to change,

(129.) § 4751. SEC. 6. Whenever the trustees of any or- Duty of ganized graded. school district shall be presented twenty days certain cases, before the annual meeting thereof with a petition signed by ten etc. electors of said district, stating that it is the desire of said petitioners that at the annual meeting of said school district there shall be submitted to said annual meeting the proposition to change from a graded school district to one or more primary school districts the said trustees shall, in their notice of such annual meeting, state that the proposition set forth in said petition will be presented to said meeting, and if two- In case of vote thirds of the qualified voters present at said meeting shall vote etc. to change to one or more primary school districts such change shall be made, and it shall be the duty of the board of school inspectors of the township or townships in which such district is situated, upon being duly notified of such vote to proceed to change or divide such district as determined by such annual meeting, and they shall provide for the holding of the first meeting in the, or each of the, proposed primary school districts in the same manner as is provided for by law for the organization of primary school districts, and whenever a fractional graded school district shall be so changed, the township boards of school inspectors of the respective townships where such graded school district is situated, shall organize the said district into one or more primary school districts, as provided for by law.