Chap. 211.—An ACT to establish and maintain a system of public high scn¢
and to appropriate money therefor.

Approved March 14, 1906.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That it shall
lawful for any district school board or districts school boards to establ
and maintain a public high school at such place as may be both m
convenient for the pupils who attend and most conducive to the purposes
of such school : provided, that the high school may be conducted either in
a suitable building provided for that purpose, or in the same building with
one of the graded schools of the district, in which said high school is es-
tablished, but no State funds shall be appropriated under this act for
high school purposes until provision has been made to maintain, for a
term of at least five months in each year, the primary and grammar
schools of the district or districts establishing said high school in such
county or counties,

2. Two or more districts in the same or adjoining counties may unite
in establishing and maintaining a joint high school under the provisions
of this act, and under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by
the State board of education; and the said board shall also prescribe the
requirements for admission to such high school and the conditions on
which properly prepared pupils residing in other districts may attend said
high school.

3. The superintendent or superintendents of any division in which
such high school shall be established shall give due notice of the same to
the State board of education, and before any State funds shall be appro-
priated for the support of such school, the said board shall cause the same
to be inspected by a competent person, to see that suitable arrangements
have been made to enable the school to conform to such standard as may
he prescribed by the State board of education for regularly organized
public high schools in this Commonwealth; and when the district school
board or district school boards shall appropriate annually as much as two.
hundred and fifty dollars for the support of such, high school from the
local school funds under the restrictions named in the first section of this
act, or from funds privately subscribed for this purpose, and this fact shall
have been duly certified to the State board of education by the superin-
tendent of the division in which such high school is established, then the
State board of education shall issue annually a warrant on the second
auditor for two hundred and fifty dollars ($250), except as hereinafter
provided, in favor of the treasurer of the county in which such high
school is located, which money shall be placed to the credit of the high
school fund of the district in which such high school is located and paid:
on the warrant of the district school board exclusively for the support of
said high school. The treasurer of each county in which such high
school is located shall keep such funds separate and distinct from other
public school funds, and shall make a detailed report of receipts and dis-
bursements of said high school fund to the division superintendent of
schools at the same time that he makes the annual report of his settlement
with the county school board: provided, that not more than one high
school in any school district shall have the benefit of the appropriation of
State funds provided for in this act, unless in the judgment of the State
board of education the area and school population of a district may
justify the establishment of more than one high school therein.

4. The sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) is hereby appropriated
annually for the purposes of this act, to be paid out of any money in the
State treasury not otherwise appropriated, which amount, or so much
thereof as shall be necessary, upon the itemized statement of the State
board of education, duly certified and filed with the auditor of public
accounts, shall be turned over by the auditor of public accounts to the
second auditor, and shall be placed to the credit of the literary fund, and
shall be used exclusively for the support of public high schools, estab-
lished and maintained in accordance with the provisions in this act:
provided, that if any district school board, or district school boards, shall
appropriate a larger amount the State board of education shall issue
annually a warrant equal to the amount appropriated by said district
school board, or district school boards, but said warrant issued by said
State board of education shall not exceed four hundred dollars ($400.00)
for any one high school in any one year: provided, also, that- the State
board of education shall have the power to fix such rules and regulations
as are necessary for the proper distribution of this fund. ~