Gem City Business College - Yearbook (Quincy, IL)

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A Group of Public School Teachers in Attendance at Gem City Business College, January 30, 1911 s PAY OF PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHERS TATE SUPERINTENDENT BLAIR has given out some figures regarding the compensation of teachers in Illinois. The. average pay for male teachers in ungraded schools is $47.47 per month, while the women receive an average of $39.62 in the ungraded schools. However, adds the Burlington Hawk-Eye, this showing is neither just nor true. The school vear ranges from seven to ten months. But the teacher draws pay only for the time when school is open. However, he or she has to subsist during the vacation time which may be as much as five months in the year. The average for women teachers in the ungraded schools is probably but very little over $300 per annum, or about $25 per month, upon which they have to live and dress themselves and take in teachers ' conventions and keep up on educational progress, read and pay for educational journals and pay fees of various sorts. There is a summer school of some two weeks which again calls for extra expenditures. It is a wonder that there are teachers to be found for many of these schools. And the teachers who do good work under these conditions are surely worthy of the highest respect. Public school teachers are each year appreciating the advantages gained by taking a commercial education, preparing them either for commercial work or for commercial teaching in high schools and business colleges. In this way they are enabled to double and in many cases to quadruple the salaries they formerly received. PREPARE FOR COMMERCIAL TEACHING MORE THAN three hundred business colleges, normal s chools, high schools, and commercial departments have called upon us during the past year for commercial teachers. Hundreds of our students are now teaching the commercial branches in schools and colleges throughout the country. Every student who has prepared for commercial teaching in the Gem City Business College has secured a satisfactory position. At all times we have had more applications from other schools for teachers than we could fill. In preparing for commercial teaching, one should take either the penmanship and bookkeeping combination course or the shorthand and bookkeeping combination, because the majority of the calls for teachers are for one or the other of these combinations. We also have a great many calls for those who can teach shorthand only. Usually when a school asks for a teacher of bookkeeping branches, it also desires one who can teach penmanship as well. Any one who completes either of the above described courses, is thoroughly prepared for high-grade commercial teaching, as well as for any office work. Salaries range from $60 to $100 a month at the start.

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Penmanship Gold Medal Contest THE importance of good penmanship in business cannot be over estimated. Our students are given special attention in penmanship under the guidance of ex- perienced teachers, and much enthusiasm is shown by them in this part of the course. For a number of years past handsome gold medals have been offered by the management to those excelling in penmanship. Last fall an interesting contest between the Introduc- tory Bookkeeping and the Advanced Book- keeping departments was held. The contest extended over a period of several months, closing December 14th, with very satisfactory results. At the close of the contest three medals were awarded in each department, as follows: A gold medal to the best penman. A gold medal to the lady and another to the gentle- man making the greatest improvement in writing during the contest. A group picture of these medal winners is shown on the ooposite page and may be iden- tified by the following key: Advance! Bookkeeping Department — Best Penmanship A. A. Gregory No. 2 -„ . T ' I Bessie Huher No. 5 Best Improvement J H. E. Zimmerman No. 1 Introductory Department — ■ Best Penmanship... Upton Giles No. 3 Best Improvement $ lia Mansfield No. 6 I Henry Hoowell No. 4 Spelling Contest FOR a number of years past there has been much friendly rivalry between the Shorthand department and the Business department of the G. C. B. C. on the subject of spelling. A handsome banner has been presented by the school, to be contested for each year— the winner holding the banner and being entitle! to the championship honors until the following year, when it is again contested for. Each department has its own preliminary contest for the purpose of select- ing ten of the best spellers to represent it, and it is considered a great honor to make the spelling team. When the teams are selected and properly drilled, the entire school is called together and the team missing the fewest words during a period of two hours is awarded the cham- pionship banner. Although the contest this year was remark- ably close, the shorthand team won, and hence is entitled to the banner until next fall. A group picture of the winning team is shown on the opposite page. The following key will enable the different contestants to be identified: Back Row Left to Right — 1, A. M. Rinaman: 3, C. M. Rash; V. A. Penn; 6, H. E. Belden. Front Row Left to Right — 7, Dora Peters; 9, Annabel Rupert; H. Davisson ; J. C. Naylor; M. Browne; L. L. Turpin. | Typewriting Contest WE PRESENT herewith the portraits of the prize winners in the annual type- writing contest. The contest con- sisted in copying from plain copy for twenty minutes on absolutely new matter. There were five contestants on the Remington machine and five on the Underwood. Mr. G. W. Glover wrote 1069 words gross, with an average, after being penalized for errors, of 40.85 words per minute, and was awarded the Remington medal. Mr. H. H. Bartelt wrote 1007 words gross, with a net average, after being penalized, of 37.9 words per minute, and he was awarded the Underwood medal. Mr. Dunbar Williamson, of Quincy, Illinois, has gone to Yashington, D. C, to accept a position as stenographer in the War Department. He completed a course in stenography at the Gem City Business College and for a time was employed in the office of the Electric Wheel Works, Quincy, Illinois. Mr. Wil- liamson is a Quincy High School graduate and has many friends. H. P. MABERRY Recorder of Deeds, Lawrence County Mount Vernon, Mo., February 2, 1911. Mr. V. G. Musselman, Quincy, Illinois. Dear Professor: I completed the business course in your school about the middle of July, 1909, and since then I have been employed as deputy collector for Lawrence County, Missouri. It is with pleasure that I express the great esteem in which I hold the G. C. B. C. and its efficient and courteous officials. I can heartily recommend the G. C. B. C. as an institution of superior merit, excelled by none in the United States. Sincerely yours, H. P. MABERRY. Mr. C. P. Eresch is bookkeeper for the German National Bank at Beloit, Kansas. Mr. N. F. Costin is in the general mercantile busi- ness at Worth, Missouri. Mr. A. L. Alexander is operating two large shoe stores located at Hudson and Waterloo, Iowa.

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Successful Teachers Miss Opal Burton has charge of the short- hand and typewriting department of the Ottumwa, Iowa, Business College. In a letter dated Feb. 26, 1911, she says: I am. glad to add a few words of testimony regard- ing your excellent school. I am teaching shorthand with excellent success, and I shall always think of the days spent in the dear old G. C. B. C. as the most profitable of my lifb. Mr. L. R. Hanks is pleasantly located in the city of Atchison, Kansas, serving as head of the. commercial department of the Atchison High School. He states: It is needless to say that I shall always hold a warm regard for the good old G. C. E. C. and its faculty who always extended to me tlK.r assistance with true courtesy and efficiency. Miss Grace Williams is one of our Roll of Honor graduates, who completed both the business and shorthand courses. After gradua- tion we secured a position for her as a commercial teacher in the High School at Hiawatha, Kansas. We have just received, a letter from her stating that she has closed a contract with the Gray ' s Harbor Business College at Aberdeen, Washington, at an increase of $15 a month in her salary. Benjamin H. Holland completed a course of study in the Gem City Business College about two years ago and is at present teaching ace Wiluam ' s shorthand in the Massey Business College at Columbus, Ga. He states: I have never regretted taking the course in stenog- raphy in your school, which I consider stands without a peer. My work in the South has been very pleasant and I enjoy it greatly. Miss Mata N. Calhoun is located in St. Louis and has been in commercial work since leaving the Gem City. In a recent letter she states : I am at present teaching in the shorthand depart- ment of Brown ' s Business College. I often think of the G. C. B. C. and wish for it the best of success. Mr. E. E. Snyder is also engaged in com- mercial teaching at Nora Springs, Iowa, where he has built up an excellent school. He writes : I found the school here in a very run-down condi- tion and felt like taking the first train out of town, but I made up my mind to bring about a change. I went to work and took the boys and girls into my confidence, and together we have built up a fine school, well equipped in every particular. I had sixty-three students in my department this winter. The Board has re-elected me for the coming year, at a salary of $100 per month. Before I attended your school I taught school in Kansas at $40 a month. I have nothing to say against public school teaching, but, fellow-teacher, why not spend a year at the G. C. B. C. and fit yourself for commercial work where you will be of still greater service to young men and women? Miss Nora White is engaged in teaching the commercial branches in a school at Columbus, Kansas. She writes: It giveu me great pleasure when I contemplate the wise choice I made in deciding to enter the Gem City Business College. Your school has the reputation of being the best in America, and its graduates are given a prestige that can be obtained in no other college today. I am commanding double the salary that I received before going to your school. C, B. Q. E. R. St. Louis, Mo., June 19, 1911. My dear Professor: I have now been with the C, B. Q. Railroad Company for about six years, and am employed as assistant chief clerk in the general freight office. I enjoy my work, and have an exxcellent place. I have three younger brothers that I want to become graduates as soon as they finish the public schools. I shall always say a good word for the Gem City. Yours very truly, ' H. B. HOWE. Mr. F. Good is cashier of the Lowrv (Mo.) City Bank. Mr. S. E. Dickhut is salesman for the Borden-Vay Lumber Company, with headquarters at Indianapolis, Indiana.