AGRICULTURAL SCHOOL

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23369, 8 December 1937, Page 5

AGRICULTURAL SCHOOL

DEVELOPING HIGHER EDUCATION AMALGAMATION OF TWO COLLEGES ANNUAL GRANT OF £27.000 VOTED (From Our Parliamentary Reporter) WELLINGTON. Dec. 7. The establishment of a New Zealand School of Agriculture in connection with the Univei'sity of New Zealand for the purpose of co-or-dinating and developing higher education in agriculture is provided for. in the School of Agriculture Bill, which was introduced by Governor-General's Message in the House of Representatives to-day. The main feature of the Bill is the amalgamation of Massey and Canterbury Agricultural Colleges <-for general administrative purposes. The controlling authority of the new school is to be the Council of the School of Agriculture, which will consist of four members appointed by the Board of Governors of Canterbury Agriculture College and four members appointed v b'y the Massey Agricultural College Council, which will be known in future as a board of governors;. The council will have the righj . to,;; appoint one of its members to be a member of .the Senate of the University of ■New Zealand. - )'■;!

Each member of the council will hold office for two years and there is provision for retirement by ballot of two members in November, 1939, and in every succeeding year. The retiring members will, however, be eligible for reappointment. Casual vacancies will be filled only for the remainder of the term of the member concerned. The chairman of the council is to be elected annually. The council is to be the governing body of the School of Agriculture and will be charged with the duty of co-ordinating the work of two colleges with a view to the development of a progressive policy of agricultural education in the Dominion, determining the general policy of research and teaching, and collaborating with departments of State in the preparation and adoption of a special programme of work. The various machinery clauses in connection with the general administration are included in the Bui, and there is authority for an annual grant of £27,000 for the maintenance of the school. The amount of the grant may be varied by the Minister of Finance on the recommendation of the council. When the Bill was introduced the Minister of Agriculture (Mr W. Lee Martin) said it embodied recommendations for the best methods of co-ordinating the work of the two agricultural colleges, and had the unanimous approval of the controlling authorities of the colleges. He had no doubt that it would assist in raising the level of agricultural education in the Dominion. The Bill was read a first time.