V 0^f'Pill^ ^ ^?AY i 1918 (^^ A BV 1532 .M3 1917 McEntire, Ralph N. The Sunday school secretary THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY RALPH N. McENTIRE MAY 1 1918 A THE METHODIST BOOK CONCERN NEW YORK .-. CINCINNATI Copyright, 1917, by RALPH N. McENTiRE CONTENTS Chapter Page I. A Business Proposition 5 II. The Secretary 15 III. Enrollment 20 IV. Class Records 31 V. The Study of Absences 48 VI. Withdrawals — ^The Problem 64 VII. Withdrawals — The Solution 71 VIII. The Personal Letter 81 IX. The Secretary's Report 91 X. Prospective Members 108 XI. The Rural Sunday School 118 XII. Decision Day 126 XIII. The New Secretary 135 XIV. Quick Reference Records 140 XV. Things to Remember 146 CHAPTER I A BUSINESS PROPOSITION Until within the last few years the Sunday school secretary was regarded rather as an accessor}^ than as a part of the vital mechanism of the school. He did very little, largely because but little was required or expected. The development of the Sunday school during the last decade has been marvelous in many of the phases of the work, but in the majority of schools the secretary is still merely counting the attendance, perhaps adding the collection, and making a note of w^eather conditions. Just a glance, liowever, into the history of the development of the modern Sunday school shows that criticism is not to be directed at the secretary in contrast with the other offi- Recognized cials. Nearly all of these other officers ^"st°"d^^d ^^^^^ ^^^^ new, up-to-date plans and meth- ods all worked out and not onl}^ offered but urged and forced upon them and their schools. Scores of volumes have been written, numerous mag- azines published, uncounted helps, representing fabu- lous investment, furnished — for nearly everyone but the secretary. There are training courses and schools and institutes for the teachers, organizations and councils and congresses for the superintendent; but off at some corner in the average school is a little desk or table, a little pile of class books or cards and some faithful worker, patiently doing the monotonous, uninspiring, unappreciated work which has in it the 5 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY undeveloped germ, which is but just beginning to stir itself, and which when it bursts into full power, is destined to give modern Sunda}^ school work an un- precedented forward impulse. What is meant by Sunday school records? What is the business, the work, the duty, of the secretary ? In the answer to those questions lies the solution of many a problem. Are the duties mereh^ to count the school and report the number present each Sunday? Then there are untold thousands of perfect secretaries. If, however, there is a broader view, greater possibilities, more opportunities for service, we would do well to seek information and instruction in the place where record-keeping has "come into its own," where it has its greatest recognized value, where it has attained to its greatest degree of efficiency — the modern business world, the great manufacturing establishment, the commercial institution. Modern business is a science; its fundamentals are past the experimental stage and it is building upon Records in recorded knowledge. The cost expert, the the Business efficiency engineer, the business statistician ^® are recognized as indispensable factors in the business world of to-day. The business man, like the inventor, keeps a record of his failures as well as his successes, and frequently learns more from the one than from the other. The great establishment will have its vast accounting department, with scores of busy workers, past whom no detail can get, and there is a fascination in watching this great mass of informa- tion as it is handled, the essentials sorted and selected, until finally in the safe of the manager's office there is a little book marked "Private Ledger," and by 6 A BUSINESS PROPOSITION means of this one volume all of the vital statistics pass in review before the man upon whom the final responsibility lies. Some years ago a wave of office system swept over the country and the most elaborate equipments were installed. In a short time, however, the experts real- ized that some records were costing more than they were worth, and business record-keeping gradually resolved itself into the essentials — the expenditures, changed from expense to investment, paying hand- some returns. The business office now closely scruti- nizes every proposed change which means time and money, and it thereby sets a precedent which the Sunday school worker will be wise to follow. For years the church has been telling the business man that he should take his religion into his everyday life and mix it with his business. Is it not now time to ask that same business man to bring his business train- ing and experience to bear upon some of our Sunday school problems which are identical witli those with which he has successfully grappled in his everyday work? Until there is some method for trainhig Sun- day school secretaries as we have learned that Sunday school teachers must be trained, oin* successfid officers will be very largely recruited from the business world, and many a trained expert will gladly give his local Sunday school the benefits of all of his experience when he is shown the possibilities of the v/ork, and is given the opportunity to work out the solutions just as he does at his business desk. Business records to-day are due to the development of an idea which needs emphasizing in connection with their Sunday school value — one which is of greatest importance in determining the breadth and the scope 7 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY of the work. The greatest value in Sunday school records, properly kept, lies in the fact that at least one person must know the school thoroughly, comprehen- sively, analytically, before these records can be com- piled. Far too few schools have had the advantage of seeing themselves as a modern Sunday school secre- tary helps them to do. When the light of the record book reveals a bit of antiquated machinery, a broken shaft which should be carrying power to an entire de- partment, a slipping belt which makes a class stand still, the average school will be quick to send for an expert if it cannot make the repairs itself. There are, in the main, just three reasons for poorly kept, incomplete, inaccurate Sunday school records; Reasons ^ ^^^^ ^f desire, usually founded on a for Poor failure to realize the importance and value Records of the work; A lack of knowledge, dealing with the technical side of statistical work. A lack of money, because we have not yet learned to look on the expenditure as an investment instead of an expense. No matter how much we may appreciate the value of business records, there constantly arises the query as to whether there is any real necessity for work of this nature in Sunday school, and any discussion of record-keeping must first establish the "why" before dealing with the "how." Records There is one basic reason which is fre- as a Basis quently overlooked and which cannot be Q?1?!!?^«L too strongly emphasized. The individual School Helps i i • ^ *^. ^- i i . ip school IS not an independent, sen -organ- ized or self-sustaining institution. The literature, the 8 A BUSINESS PROPOSITION helps, the siipphes, the graded lesson system, the de- partmental ideas, the Cradle Roll, the Home Depart- ment, the special organized classes, all the supplies for the special programs which make the school inter- esting, etc., come from some great organization, de- nominational or interdenominational, as the case may be. The real success of the individual school depends upon whether or not all of these are adaptable to the actual conditions and problems in that individual school. In other words, the whole Sunday school movement is based on interdependence and mutual helpfulness. Originality is a good thing, but the hap- piest faculty in a Sunday school worker is originality in adapting proven plans to local, specific problems. Some of the best talent of the intellectual world is engaged in the study of Sunday school problems and in the preparation of Sunday school helps. They try to fit them to the actual conditions ; to make them intensely, efficiently practical. We realize indefi- nitely, impersonally, that the work of these leaders and all of our various commissions must be founded on a knowledge of general conditions, but we seldom real- ize that our individual problems are a component part of the great problem, and that if we, with others, give them inaccurate or incomplete information, the re- sults will affect not only our individual school but the whole general movement. Stop for one moment and think of the problem. Would you ever tr}^ to establish a private enterprise in the world of dollars on the basis of the scattering data which form the records of the average school? Could a commission plan wisely on the information which it could get from a study of the records of your school? It is an unfortunate but acknowledged fact 9 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY that a very large per cent of the reports which go forth to State Sunday School Association and denomina- tional headquarters are based on estimates or guess- work. When we see large classes or entire schools using for their motto, "Once a member always a member," and reporting in their enrollment figures everyone who has ever been in the school, never separating associate from active; when we find some one branch of Sunday school class organization developed in cer- tain towns to such an extent that the same names appear on the enrollment of several different schools ; when we see figures reported to county, State, or de- nominational secretaries which are based on an inflated membership brought in for a few Sundays only by campaigns, contests, parades, brass bands, etc. ; when we find entire schools asked to adjourn early and come over so as to be counted in some other school and thus help to beat some other town; when it is almost impossible to find two schools keephig just the same data, then we begin to realize the necessity of uniformity. Anyone who studies Sunday scliool records, in scliool after school, seeking the general average rather than the exceptional case, cannot but wonder at tlie great measure of success which has attended the efforts of our leaders, founded on such insufficient data, and tlien stand almost overwhelmed at the vision of what miglit be accomplished in the Master's business if we would place in the hands of our executives the kind of records which have proven invaluable in the world of dollars. Knowledge can be made just as powerful a force in the Sunday school as in the fac- tory. 10 A BUSINESS PROPOSITION The next question which arises is whether there is not here a confusion of the terms "knowledge" and ^'records." The statement is frequently vs!^Rea)rd^ made that the knowledge does exist and that the recording of it is a waste of time — that the skilled superintendent knows the school thor- oughly and plans the work on the basis of this knowl- edge. Such an argument opens up practically unlim- ited discussion, and but a few of the points can be touched upon here. There are but few people who have intellects so highly trained and dependable as to afford a safe, properly catalogued storage place for all the details of the modern Sunday school, year after year. Again, conclusions reached without the broadest investigation, the most careful research and the most painstaking balance and weighing of the evidence, are likely to be more properly labeled "Opinion" rather than that other word which has so much of finality in it — "Knowledge." Again, a school which is operated on the basis of the knowledge which is nowhere else than in the head of the superintendent is of necessity a one-man school. Where the knowledge is strictly localized, authority and initiative are centralized in the same place. Some one, in a business magazine, has said, "You cannot play much of a game of chess with merely a king and the pawns." We are usually too close to our own school, our own work, to judge wisely. We do not get the right view- point. Few people can sit in judgment on their own plans and render a decision which is impartial. The only dependable, practical way to make progress in Sunday school work or elsewhere is to make compar- 11 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY isons, and "Comparisons" is merely one of the several ways of spelling "Records." From another phase, Sunday school records are really an asset, although this particular phase is some- rpj^g times advanced as an argument against Spiritual them in dealing with the technical side of Aspect ^YiQ record-keeping. Some one says that the work of the Sunday school is spiritual; that soul- growth cannot be reckoned in figures, and that, there- fore, Sunday school statistics may be interesting, but nothing more. However, inferences can be drawn when the secretary's records show certain classes run- ning along year after year and never bringing in non- Christians; every member of the class a church mem- ber, but the class never reporting any practical Chris- tian work done. This record can be compared with a neighboring class which shows nonchurch members continually added to the enrollment, constant acces- sions to the church and numerous class activities. If the records show one teacher with a class largely made up of boys whose parents are not Christians, and we find them regular in attendance, attentive in their interest and gradually uniting with the church and taking their places in its organization, we can at least make comparisons with that other teacher who starts with a class of the same age, coming, according to the records, largely from homes of church members, but month after month showing negative results. The aggressive Sunday school secretary can and does know his school spiritually as well as statistically. Some one raises the question as to the value of records to the school, to the officers and teachers. Per- haps not the value of the work of an aggressive secre- 12 A BUSINESS PROPOSITION tary, but as to whether the inanimate records are im- portant, whether others can get any good from them. An ilkistration from the business world will best an- swer this question. Two traveling men were exchanging territory, and exchanging at the same time what was of equal importance to them, information regarding the trade on those two sections. The conversation ran some- what this way : "Now, here's Jones — you'll find him a jolly good fellow. Slap him on the back, shove him a cigar, and jolly him along before you talk business. Busines^^ ^ Smith, over at the Junction, is different. He hates tobacco. Don't make the mis- take of going in there smoking. Approach him from the side of his lodge. Talk that up big and you can win him. Now, your next man is Thompson. He is strictly a home man. Tell him that I told you about the kids and ask how they are. He will probably invite yoii home, and his wife is the best cook in the territory." This was simply what they regarded as essentials. Did each man depend upon his memory or did those little details go down into notebooks? Transferring the thought to the Sunday school: if secretary or superintendent or teacher moved away ; if the last call came suddenly between Sundays, are the records of your school in as good shape for your suc- cessor? If all similar information is stored away in the head of some official, everyone knows how nuich time it took to gather up that information. Some of it could never be replaced, and the Master's time is too valuable to waste in the duplication of effort in compil- ing what could be found out by the new worker. 13 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY Any teacher who faced a new class on the first Sun- day and looked into those strange faces, would give almost anything for all of the information which their former experienced and well-beloved teacher could have given. Any teacher who has ever gone into a school with thoroughly modern records and had the opportunity of studying that new class from the record standpoint, knowing details of personal life, learning the home problem and the everyday environ- ment of each member, familiarizing himself with all of the details of policy of that particular school, will never fail the secretary when he is, in turn, asked to contribute his part to the compilation of those records. Sunday school records — "Why?" Because it is our very real business to conduct our little part of the Master's work in the most efficient method possible, and the modern Sunday school secretary with his records is the advance agent of efficiency. 14 CHAPTER II THE SECRETARY Ix dealing witli tlie secretary in the modern Sunday school we are considering what is practically a new element in the work — a new official in the Sunday school. Admittedly, tact is needed in introducing the work, and the secretary not only needs to he thor- oughly grounded in the fundamentals of the work, hut will have to conduct an educational campaign to awaken the school to the possihilities of the work, to avoid the frictions which will otherAvise arise, and to secure the cooperation which is an absolute essential in the work. Going again to the business world for a concrete definition of his duties, we w^ould find it summed up in this sentence : to organize a force which will collect and compile all of the information, all of the vital statistics which the up-to-date superintendent and his assistants need in performing their executive functions. In this connection it should be definitely kept in mind that the secretary is not an executive officer. It is 23rimarily his job to report on condi- PosiUon^ tions as he finds them, but not a necessity to couple with that report recommenda- tions. As a matter of fact, this unique position enables him to judge the results of the work of the executive officers as they cannot possibly do themselves. He has no plans or methods which are being tried out ; he has no personal self-interest in their success and can 15 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY record results with a clear-headed and unprejudiced accuracy. It will quickly be shown that he will sup- plement the work of all the other officials and in the average school will assume many of the burdens of the long over-worked and overburdened superintend- ent, and will be ranked as one of the leading officials of the school. His opportunities, especially during the formative period of the work, are practically unlimited. He will know more about the school than any other person in it. He will see and study the officers, teachers, and scholars from an impersonal angle. These cease to be individuals and become figures in his problem. In this impersonal way he seeks the viewpoint of his fellow workers ; he knows the motives as well as the methods. He collects from the teacher those vital things which only a conscientious teacher can know about those in her charge ; and then, by supplementary investigation, by the study of totals, by comparisons, class with class and individual with individual, come the revelations which, in the hands of the trained executive, are trans- muted into achievements in this great work. As an illustration of the impersonal attitude, is the opportunity which comes during the secretary's visits over the school. There is an almost inevitable attitude toward the member of the school who has been ele- vated to the superintendency, or toward one who has been called to a pastorate. There is always a bit of "dress parade" when they come to a class or depart- ment room. The best pupil is usually called upon. But the secretary, until they get a glimpse of all of the data that are going down into the little unobtrusive notebook, is simply one of the school and has an oppor- tunity to see every phase of the work in its entire 16 THE SECRETARY naturalness. He very frequently has the opportunity of writing into his notes the fact that those boys are discussing their last "hike" or yesterday's baseball game ; that the girls are telling what a good time they had at the party; that a class is discussing its next social, instead of its social service obligation. There is always a score of impressions received on each trip through the school, and they are carefully sorted and become the basis for some of the most effective work of tlie executive officers. Every profession has its distinguishing characteris- tics and qualifications. The modern Sunday school secretary has his. He is a statistician, an investigator. He is a thorough student of modern Sunday school work and organization, because without this knowl- edge he cannot know what really comprises the vital statistics. He likes to deal with figures, not merely to keep a neat, perfectly balanced set of books, but because by the compilation of these records, by the comparisons, by the hours of study as to the real mean- ing of the figures, he can get at the root of the problem and place before the superintendent and his corps of teachers a general, comprehensive, and dependable survey. He has tact and patience, and will need both. As indicated before, business training will be al- most indispensable until the Sunday school trains its secretaries in some practical way, and the secretary needs especially the broad viewpoint instilled by the business training and experience. He will use the telescope as well as the microscope — he will test the conclusions drawn from his own records by those of others. He studies by the comparative method; he seeks the final conclusions by the law of averages. He especially realizes the necessity of thoroughness, 17 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY of facing conditions as they are, of actualities instead of theories. He faces facts squarely. Character- The problems, the worries, the weak istics of the places play a very important part in his Secretary ^^sd summing up. He realizes that the average school prefers that its family skeleton be kept safely locked up in its closet and that his records are the key. His school pride, as well as his judgment, however, makes him exceedingly cau- tious as to when and under what carefully chosen con- ditions he unlocks the door. Right here is where arises the need for the partic- ularly outstanding characteristic — the ideal secretary is an optimist. The wearer of blue glasses may be use- ful somewhere, but the office of the secretary is for- ever closed to him. There is a place for plain speak- ing, for sober thinking, for outspoken criticism, but the only secretary whose report is really constructive is the one who has faith in the ultimate success of his own school. And this serious side of his work has but little place in those phases which are known to the school as a whole, and especially to the children. Here he is a stimulant of the cheeriest sort. He never scolds, and he has studied other schools and other workers until he realizes how few really have the requisite tact to publicly administer reproof, and he "plays it safe" by sticking close to dependable methods of commendation. This does not mean effusive flat- tery, for he knows children too well to try that, but there are few sessions of any school where there is not something helpful and inspiring to report and the secretary's training instinctively leads him to these. Here is the point. Every one feels better when they are told that there are ''nearly five hundred" pres- 18 THE SECRETARY ent, instead of the discouraging note of ''less than five hundred." Your true secretary tells how many were on time and lets you figure out the tardinesses except on very occasional Sundays. Those who come out on a rainy day are commended, and not scolded because others are absent. Human nature does not change simply by bringing the individual into a Sunday school, and consequently it is far easier to raise the standard in any phase of the work by continual refer- ence to the excellence attained than by a recital of failures. It is the real purpose of the secretary's report to send each cliild liome from the scliool with the firmly fixed idea tluit he is an important part of that Sunday school and tliat tliat Sunday school is one to which it is well wortli while to belong. Naturally, the only one who is successful in arousing enthusiasm is the one wlio has been previously aroused himself and the successful secretary is the one who has had the vision and believes heartily in his school. His business training has led him through some of the intricacies of that modern term "efficiency," and he has been shown that the basis of this line of work is seeking the answer to the "why" of everything which goes onto his record book. It is the facts behind the figures which he is really seeking, and the universal trademark of the Sunday school secretary is the ques- tion mark. 19 CHAPTER III ENROLLMENT Every record system starts with the enroUment data, and this is the first step in the secretary's work, hecause, no matter what the size of the school, whether it be so small that one person does all of the work or so large as to reqnire a separate enrolling force, the details should be under the direction and supervision of the general secretary. The enrollment data are a very important factor in all of the work which follows, and every phase of the record keeping must be prop- erly co-related. Opinions differ as to the best manner of enrolling new scholars and making the assignments to depart- ments and classes. Naturally, methods Secreta^ will differ. The school with an enrollment of fifty will have no use for all of the com- plicated machinery which is necessary in the school of twenty-five hundred. No matter how the assign- ments may be made; whether the new scholar goes into the class with a friend and the name is simply written in a classbook; whether the general superin- tendent or the department superintendent determines the class ; whether the general secretary or the enroll- ment secretary has the responsibility, the secretary must have opportunity to secure the requisite informa- tion for the records. In every school, it is decidedly preferable that the new scholar should be brouglit to the secretary or some member of the force in order 20 ENROLLMENT APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP Na'Tf Enroll ♦ No Mi^rc^n D«t« . \ exact if under 18 1S.24 over 24 Birthday bay Month If a student Day School Gradc_ Occupation..... High School CoIIeife .What Church ?_ Church Member ? Former Sunday School Membership — What School 7_ -Baptized Position in School 7_ Assigned to. By_ _ -Department- -Qa IC METTHODIST BOOK CONCERN. Year School Attendance Lessons Brought Bible OflTering Church Attendance TOTAL Ti.f nerage result altalntd bv the Bcholai tach year accordlnj to the claia record ahosld Be transferred to lhl» card as a penninenl record. | These cuts show both sides of an application card, which is also in- tended to be used as an enrollment card. It provides for practically all of the data which are used in the ordinary Sunday school. 21 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY that the records may be filled out correctly and com- pletely. The details of enrollment information will vary with the methods in use in the individual school. There are, however, certain fundamentals which are necessary in any system and which are necessary in making a study of the individual member as an ele- ment in the entire school problem. These are : Name Address Birthday, which should include the exact age of the younger scholars and the approximate age of the older members. Birthday greetings are being used in increasing degree, and the information should be secured at time of enrollment, whether it is being used in the school at the time or not. Public School Grade. This, of course, applies especially to those who are in the grade schools, high school or col- lege, but is necessary where the Sunday school is graded on the public school basis. Even where this is not the basis for Sunday school grading, the information should be on the enrollment blank, so that it will be available for the officers and for the individual teacher. Baptism, Confirmation or Church Membership. This will, of course, vary in different denominations and different schools, but whatever the form or term may The Funda- be, the information is of exceeding great value, mentals and is one which is very frequently over- looked in record keeping. The teacher, in particular, will need the information, and the officers of the school should have it in planning their work. It is an absolutely essential element in the modern, scientific study of the school. Parents' Name and Address. This will apply only in the enrollment of children, but with these should always be secured. The necessity of greater cooperation between the school and the parents is universally recognized, and specific uses for this enrollment information will be developed later. 22 ENROLLMENT '/ ■/ '/ ■/ ' / '/ ' / / t«.d, K.„. ' /'/////// A.IJ,„. DATE OF BIRTH - - - **** **** 1 MEMBER of what CHURCH ATTENDS WHAT S. S 4. 1 CRADLE ROLL - - BEGINNERS - - - PRIMARY - - - JUNIOR - - - - INTERMEDIATE SENIOR - - - - ADULT ... - TEACHER TRAINING HOME - . . - »M«Y P.CORO C.RO. TH« MCTHOO.ST BOOK CONC«N. NC* YORK-C.,.C.NN.T. OTHER 'MEMBERS OF FAMILY NAME AGE .ee below MEMBER OF Sondar School Church OCCUPATION F.tl>hi> School .. . Date of Birth— year — . month . day Phone: a orb If a Student Grade ; Year, High School Univ. What vocation do you plan to follow? __ Father's occupation Dale of convertion , Baptised? Member of Church? What Church? . Names of Parents— Mother — , Father Are Parents members of Church? What Church? . Other members of family who do not attend Church or Sunday School . n.rzii~zz.izi"zi]-Zziziiz ; zzzizzizizzz Ageiizii Attended this School years mon!h« Attended what other schools? From what department graduated? Regular or irregular in attendance? Transferred to special index-Reason Dropped from enrollment— Reason Standing— Ct^a.Jle Roll Beginners Kindergarten ^_ Primary Junior Intermediate— High School . Senior— College — Graduate— Aduft These forms show the wide range of information which is asked for in various schools. A study of these will prove very helpful as illus- trating the thoroughness with which some schools go into the study of their membership. 25 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY machinery of the school with a view to bringing these non- Sunday school folks into the school. This phase of the work is covered in more detail in the chapter on ^'Prospective Members." There is sometimes hesitancy in attempting the com- plete enrollment scheme, but the schools which have been using it longest find that the new scholar thinks none the less of the school for these little formalities. On the contrary, there is the feeling that anything which is so easily joined as the ordinary Sunday school is hardly worth the operation, and the tactful enroll- ment secretary can get practically any reasonable data. Where the enrolling is done by a separate officer or force, great care should be taken in the selection of the person. The new member, especially if it be a child, will get the first impressions of the school in this way, and the value of first impressions needs no argument. From the school standpoint, however, a thorough knowledge of every department of the school, with the lessons studied, and even the peculiarities Analys^^^ of the teacher, and the component ele- ments of the various classes, is a requisite. Of course this applies in largest measure to the school which is of a size to have several classes doing the same work; but where this is the case, the little in- formation, the side lights which are not covered by any enrollment card, can play an important part in the assignment to a particular class. For example, when a boy unites with the Sunday school and the enrollment secretary learns that he comes from a certain grade school, tactful questions as to teacher or day-school life, or perhaps some out- standing phase of athletics in that particular day 26 EXROLLMEXT school, have a decided bearing on the proper placing of the boy. If he be of a quiet, reserved, studious nature, he will be much more at home in a certain class, while if he be fond of sports and games, there may be some other teacher who can much more quickly and easily win him. The correct placing of a child in a Sunday school class is frequently the determining factor, and the information which is secured at the time of enrollment is of the greatest importance, whether the enrollment secretary does the assigning or simply collects this information as an aid to some other official, who may have the assignment in charge. One final reason for thoroughness in enrollment is that it will never again be so easy to ask some of these questions in a perfectly natural way, and the enroll- ment blanks should, therefore, cover all of the details which the school expects to use. Especially is this true in those features relating to the other members of the family. Especially in the case of the enrollment of little children there will be some of the questions which can- not be answered, and this makes it necessary to provide some other way of securing the data. Some schools use a postcard form as illustrated, senduig it to the child's parents and asking them to fill it out and return it to the secretary. In other schools there are not so many enrollments and the secretary personally secures the information during tlie week. Whatever metliod may be used, this accurate enrollment data shoidd be all secured, even with the smallest children who get onto the rolls of the school. From the business viewpoint, again, if the enroll- ment secretary could take a trip through some large manufacturing plant and see how carefully all of 27 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECllETARY Register of Members D.„ 'rrr" — Chu.ch .... °- WITHDRAWN 1 D.t. «•-"" L..^^ ' ^ A page from the enrollment secretary's record book, giving the data which are used the most. The familiar, quick reference card tray which is an indispensable feature in the secretary's office. In compfeiing our enrollment records ut need a lililc more information, kindly fill out any blanks which are checked and mail the card as soon a Scholars Name Will you not possible: Parents Name Address Are Parents Members of the Church? _ _ 1 Has the child united with the church? If so. give date if possible The school which uses this form, prints it on a government postcard and sends it to the parents of the younger children who have not been able to furnish all of the information at the time of their enrollment. 28 ENROLLMENT the new material is analyzed, and how this niustratfon analysis and examination determines the course of the material through the fac- tory, the processes to which it is subjected, etc., there would come a new realization of the possibility of that position. If the trip could be extended through sev- eral factories, and the scrap piles studied, comparisons made between the loss in material in different factories and the direct connection between this and the analysis of the raw material before the beginning of the opera- tion, there w^ould be far more care exercised in study- ing the new pupil and, where the school was large^ enough to offer a choice, in the selection of the teacher; and in the school where tliere could be no choice of teachers, especial care in the passing on of the little bits of detailed information which would help that teacher in taking the raw material and transforming it into the finished product of the modern Sunday school. The possibilities of the position of enrollment secretary, especially in the larger schools, are just be- ginning to be realized. All of the preceding suggestions have dealt very largely with what might be technically termed the "ap- pHcation for enrollment," although perhaps the ma- jority of schools use this same card as the enrolhnent card. Where the work is being done in a large school, or where the records would get voluminous, tliere is usu- ally this application card and then the enrollment card. The differences are shown in the sample forms illus- trated. Much of tlie information of the application card is essential only for the purpose of properly de- termining the class or department and will not find place in the technical enrollment card. On the other 29 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY hand, the enroUment card will provide place for recording the promotions from department to depart- ment and the other details which should be made a part of the permanent records of the school. If each enrollment secretary could have a course of training and one section of this course could include the experience of the new superintendent who takes up the work of the school, without having had a chance to know it thoroughly for years in advance, and who wants to learn, in some way, not only what has been doing but just who it is that really composes the membership of the school, the enrollment records would l)e not only most carefully filled out but kept up with equal care. This phase emphasizes the abso- lute necessity of the most thorough knowledge on the part of the general secretary of the whole scope of Sunday school work, the laying down of very specific rules, if they are to be followed by different persons who may be carrying on the different parts of the secretarial work, and the bringing together of all of this information in its tabulated form at the desk of the general secretary. 30 CHAPTER IV CLASS RECORDS Studying the new scholar is one of tlie more mod- ern phases of secretarial work, and it is another ohliga- Following ^i^^^ ^^^^ another opportunity to he of up the New service to the school. An increased em- em er j)hasis is properly heing placed on the holding of the scholar when once enrolled. I^ess atten- tion is heing paid to mere numhers, to a large enroll- ment of nonattending memhers. There is an increased realization of the fact that a much higlier standard of class work can he attained through regularity of at- tendance and less dependence on the idea that there is some pecvdiar merit in the religious atmosphere of a Sunday school which will have some strange and mys- terious effect on the life of the individual who spends but a Sunday or two in the school. As a matter of fact, the school which first reaches the individual who has had no previous Sunday school experience, and then fails to make that Sunday school experience en- joyable, has made it just that much harder for any other school to approach the same person. Naturally, the ideal condition is one where every officer and every teacher is giving the proper consid- eration to this phase of the work; ])ut whetlier this is being done or not, the executive officers need to know the actual facts, and it becomes tlie duty of the secre- tary to collect this information — to know whether each new member really becomes an active attendant, and this means class records. 31 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY In this phase of the work, plans and methods are almost without number. No matter which method may be determined upon, it should be made to center at the desk of the general secretary. In schools large enough there will be department secretaries who will collect the data for each department, but these, in turn, will come to the one desk in their condensed form. In these class records there should be the greatest degree of simplicity which will be in keeping with the needs of the school. This for two reasons. The average teacher is not a statistician, has not made a study of record-keeping and its essentials, and, there- fore, records, which are more or less complicated, com- piled by regular teachers, if present, and by substi- tute teachers frequently, can never reach the desired degree of accuracy which makes them valuable. In the second place, with all of the importance of the lesson presentation and the far too limited time avail- able during the session of the ordinary Sunday school for lesson study, it is hardly fair to ask the teacher to use so much of that time in keeping up intricate sys- tems. The experienced secretary usually secures the best results by having a sufficiently large force of trained workers to handle all of the details in the office, leav- ing the teacher practically free during the entire lesson period, but calling on this same teacher for cooperation during the week. There is a great difference of opinion as to the information which should be covered by the class Information records. The average school simply Usually records individual attendance and class collection, and even this most simple form of class records requires increasing skill in the han- 32 CLASS RECORDS 1 4 .' '-t J' j 1 i J a § 1 " i - i I II |l I 1 i i m J] 1 " 1 r i ^1 n II » h i i 1. ■ i 1^1 9 ' 9 This form and that on page 34 are very exceptional in the amount of detail which is recorded. While such a system would admittedly require a great deal of clerical work, the schools using these consider the time well spent. dling as the enrollment of the school increases. As shown by the forms illustrated, the supplemental in- 33 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY EFFICIENCY SYSTEM SUNDAY SCHOOL CLASS RECORDS INDIVIDUAL Dcr~r\an MARKS, e- '"^7-;-„,*,;,°,^ ^-.^^^^^^'.o^' r„"„°,?»'r"A'^r,i™ Lu^""'"" *""-"" n<>i»>rfm«n* ,E,„ ,5, JANUARV fcbduahv MADCH ..... MAT JUHC Aci.ndir.^ On Tim. - ■ Ch., I 0. and T. oo Time. - Student. OQ Tlioe. • - TOTAL. - . - 0. and T. Prnmt. - StudCTiti Pment, • - - TOTAL. - . - CollKtion, - - , . » . ll j 1 1 IIl.sa Rodsers ... - - - U— ' REMARKS .^ J \^\ \ i — \ ra 1 ^^^^ :'as.a.wa.ter.8 .secy \r- r^ TSACHBR3 Clui No. \ J lie- c MlflB. JIazeL. GrA-vea - ..Ule8..Jane.Al.e.X8,nd.ex Hl8s..j;ar.j(»T..i.«..RQ(iger.a Uii^ Jean J.Iorrl? ...1.. ...2. ...3. 4 lU : ::\ .Ui.3.8...HazeV.He.l.3on i,ir3,...5pj;'r..S[pr.tio.i3i. ...5... 6 :::\ f \ it*^ ' ■•- ^ U^ \ L- U'-^ _.-•-'' \ r A Jytlat*** ••■■•■" ..,.-'-•■■ \ ^\ G^*-^;^^^-^ V \ ^ ^-^ ^ \^ r TOTAL. 1 1 This form is used by a Sunday school which secures its information as the scholars enter their resi»ective department rooms. The small cards are filled out by the membei's themselves, the number or the word on the end of the card indicating the class. These little slii)s are dropped into boxes and are collected at the time for the opening of the school, thus showing those who are on time and again later on to get the complete record of -attendance. The records of a large school are handled with a minimum of time and trouble. 35 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY in schools where the building arrangements are such as to make the plan feasible, all of these records are taken at the door as the members enter. This may be at one door for a small school or at the door of the department rooms for the larger scliool. Where this plan is followed, three general methods prevail. In the first there is one person for approximately fifty members, grouped into classes, who has a desk at the door and to whom each of these fifty report as they enter. All of the details of any credit system can be recorded very raj^idly in this way, and the individual members of even tlie larger schools verj^ quickly learn to which desk to go. Tliese data are sometimes re- corded in special books, and in otlier cases on the reg- ular attendance cards. This metliod insures accuracy, and gets all of the reports to tlie office of tlie general secretary at a certain definite time. It also saves all of tlie time of the class period for tlie lesson presentation. On the other hand, it calls for a very de- Methods pendable force of a considerable number of secretaries in tlie larger schools, and these must, of necessity, be the first persons present at each session of the school, in order that the early comers may be properly recorded. Again, many Sun- day school buildings have many places of entrance and find it impossible to get the members of the school to always come to certain doors. Where building and secretary's force and school cooperation can all be brought together, this plan is ideal. Another system follows somewhat the same general plan, but provides at the door or doors card racks somewhat similar to factory time-card systems, and each scholar takes out or transfers the individual at- tendance card. Still another provides a separate 36 CLASS RECORDS report card for each scholar for each Sunday which is filled out at the door hy the scholar and deposited in the proper receptacle. The most general method, however, is that of having hound class books or envelopes containing the individ- ual cards which are distributed to the classes by the secretary, marked by the teacher or the class secretary, and again collected. The bound class book has points of merit, but as a part of a record system which is to be both accurate and comprehensive, it has features which require the closest supervision. Where the names are simply written in such a book it is very easy for a new scholar to come direct to the class and some one write the name in the book without ever reporting to the secretary the fact that there is a new scholar. It is equally easy to erase a name and thus S tr 2 3 I Q t' S 2 I g -f s ? I <3 f Q. - \a3ao±oo «3aw3±d3S ±snonv Ainp CLASS NO. DEP'T. NAME ADDRESS. LESSON STUDY ATTO CHURCH DATE ISSUED /-vtTMODlST BOOK CCNCtSH-NtwyOtm CINCINNATI CREDIT MARKING PUT CHECK M*OI _IN COPOESPONOINO "iOUAPe UNOtP 0*TE JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL 3 4 5 12 5 4 5 12 3 4 5 2 5 This form is designed to meet the needs of the school which prefers the card system, but wants to keep an individual record of the funda- mental features. It can at the same time be used by the school which merely wants to punch or mark the card to indicate attendance. 37 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY XASSNO.-- &e(>Am m&nt.-^^HHH n^^ txaiher SB IHM »«ca by pU««n8 th« csrtjs i^ the prgp»r c». Uk [v^ pJlii CLmi r^ 1 a 1 1 1 July 4 Oct. 3 11 11 18 17 25 24 31 A»g. 1 Nov. 7 8 14 15 21 32 28 29 Sept. 8 Dec. 5 12 12 19 19 36 3i Toui. 39 Secretary 's Record for Quarter Endinsr ^ ** ROLL OF TEACHERS AND ATTENDANCE CLASS ? 5: - i NAME I 2 ,.s 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 M [ V 1 f 1 1 f f i f 1 1 f w J, Tot.U for the »..!< ROLL OF OFFICERS AND A TTENDANCE WEEKLY SUMMARY Pa.tor D... ......... 1 Enroll'l Collectioni 11 Sup't T'"w< Schilari Vniftri T.UI R.pUr MbinuiT Srtul T»tal Ay.rnrte A sample sheet from a very complete record book which provides for the recording of all many denominational reports. See 40 Sundav School i ATTENDANCE AND RECORD 1 r [ r f f f f I f { f f f .f [ i r f [ 1 r f 1 f TOTAL FOR QUARTER 1 Atl.nd»nc. «0»i ColUction -J .... QUARTERLY REPORT OF SECRETARY SUPPLIES FOR THE QUARTER | s ■EnoBiir 1 EMMia a. KM. \amK»m oijia OMFOM S. i IXSSOK Rr. KUMCIAKI SOnH SOOM IXSMB h. tt. h- KMlMOUa i k ..i~ 1 Cipa c ..X. 1 S. S. Ad.o..t. B.t T.«t Book — » - umor Pupil'. Vork Book 1 1 J - .^ 1 Th. au.m.t. S. S. J.urn.l L^t, - f 1. D. PIctur. Card! c . R. X X X Adult BiU. Ou. MonlWr B.(inn.r'. SloriM — t - nt.rm«li>t* r..ch.r'. Mmt«l Quutwlr Wlthdraw.b X X S.nl«Qu«t.,l, 'upil-. T«t Book « ^ Au.i.d.nc Te..! *"» r— X Th. L.u.n Uaf — 1 - ' 2 1 ' 1 L..f Clur>' >nd ClrU- Quut
ntribu- 3d Yew S^^ Attended Contribu- tioni I.lQu.rt« 1.1 Quarts lit Quarter 2d Quartc. 2d Quarter 2d Quarter 3dQu.«« 3d Quarter 3d Quarter 4.hQu.rt.r 4lh Quarter 4th Quartet TolaU To(d. Total. MEMORANDA Reaion (or %vilhdrawa) oi traoif TraoJeneJ / New viiiiart -name o< \ Name of S. S. Itaa^erieJ lo If movrd ■« av - new addr«i. P O _ Scte Pul addido Thii card fu al memor rouhedbi aoda on ba youc own ck of card. 1 dealer or bylhe Nteigi PubUJuag Company. IndianapolU. Indiana A card record, to be filled out from the quarterly reports, providing for the recording of detailed information for a period of years. Offer- ing valuable comparisons. work, and the information is recorded in a standard secretary's record book. The forms illustrated show one of these books which is, of course, especially pre- pared for Methodist Sunday schools, as it provides for information required by that particular denomination. The forms used throughout the various denomina- tions are all similar. (For illustration, see page 40.) In addition to this particular style of book, nearly every house publishing Sunday school supplies, as well as several individuals, issues special books for Sun- day school records, some of them bound volumes and others loose-leaf forms. The secretary would do well to familiarize himself with these various forms and select the one which is best adapted to the needs of the particular system which is being worked out. Care should be taken to see that there is a place for all of the information which he will be required to furnish 46 CLASS RECORDS and still have the system just as simple as is compat- ible with the necessary detail. Some schools use a specially ruled book and record all of the details of each individual member's record, each Sunday. This is, of course, technically, a part of the record and history of the Sunday school, but especially in the large school some wa}^ will pro])ably be sought to simplify this detail which would take so much time. Where the school is large and the work is done by departments, each department secretary usually lias a loose-leaf form somewhat similar to the one illus- trated in the bound-book form, which is kept up by the department secretary and turned in to the office at the close of tlie montli or (juarter, as the forms maj^ pro- vide, and then put into tlie loose-leaf binder, becoming a part of the permanent records. Some secretaries condense all of the day's data onco a simple card form which shows all of the essential details and is easily filed and easily referred to. Of course, in such cases, all of the other data are contained in other record forms, and the card merely shows that which is most frequently wanted for report or refer- ence purposes. In this detail, again, the correct process is to study the fundamentals, determine what details are best adapted to the needs of the individual school, select the system which will most nearly conform to this, and then faithfully follow up the careful recording of the data which have been determined upon. 47 CHAPTER V THE STUDY OF ABSENCES The study of causes and the development of pre- ventive methods are ahiiost an uncultivated field and Importance o^^^* great opportunities for the secre- tary to be of service to the school. There can be no possible argument over the value of knowing the reason for continued absence fi'om any school, be it small or large. In the school witli small enrollment, however, there is the feeling tliat everyone knows everyone else and that no records are necessary, while in the school with tlie large ern-ollment tfie force of mere numbers seems to overshadow the importance of following up each individual member. The secretary will naturally view this problem from a different and perhaps broader angle than will the individual teacher or the individual class. The fact that the teacher may know the reasons in the case of the one class will help in the management of that single class, but it is the compilation of the reasons from all classes which puts the problem in its correct setting for the attention of the proper executive offi- cial, and which really determines whether these ab- sences are a class or a school problem. Careful surveys show that very few teachers really do follow up the absent members, at least until the absence has been very long continued. In one school, where special emphasis had been put on this phase of a teacher's obligations, a report was secured from every teacher present at a teachers' meeting (and usu- 48 THE STUDY OF ABSENCES ABSENTEE REPORT— Form No. 2 s.s. Date. Dear Teacher: Our records do not reason of the absence of_ show any answer to the request for the If you have secured this information will you not kindly let us have it, as it forms a very important part of our record. If the former request has been overlooked we are sure that it will now have your attention. If you cannot secvire the information, for any reason, please report that fact so that we may cooperate with you in this very vital phase of our work. The Metbodiat Book Concero. New York-Cincinnati. These two forms are part of a follow^-up system designed to secure the following up of absentees by the class or by the teacher. ABSENTEE REPORT— Form No. 1 Date .Teacher of Class number_ .S.S, Our records show that has not been present at out Sunday School since_ If this is correct, will you please make a personal investigation this week and ascertain the reason for the absence. Kindly use the blanl^s below for your report and return same next Sunday. The Methodi«t Book ConceMi. New Yprk-Ci 49 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY ally the most faithful teachers are found at such a meeting) as to whether or not they knew the reasons for the absences from their classes on the preceding Sunday. Just four out of the eighty-two answered in the affirmative. There is another phase of this matter which gives added reason for the supervision of the secretar3\ There are manj'^ teachers who are thoroughly con- scientious, according to their individual viewpoints, who entirely fail to realize the importance of the close personal touch with each scholar, outside the class- I'oom. Every secretary, and especially those in the larger schools, knows that the teacher who has that personal interest in every member of the class which makes an unexplained absence impossible has but few absences from the class, and those almost invariably for good reason. Then there is the class where the membership is so large that it would be impossible for the ordinary teacher to do this work unaided. In these classes there is usually a membership committee, sometimes active and sometimes needing the frequent reminder from the secretary. Any class, however, which is so large that it cannot, in some way, follow up its absent mem- bers by means of its own organization, needs some kind of treatment. An amputation may be necessary ; there may be an obstructed vision, the directing brain may not be working rightly, or tlie class nerves may fail to carry the right impulse. In any event, where stagnation occurs, there is need for the services of the executive officers of the school, and the secretary, with the knowledge gained by the records, is the most reli- able individual to diagnose the case, whoever may treat it. 50 THE STUDY OF ABSENCES ST. PAUL'S M. E. SUNDAY SCHOOL REV. A. M. JAYNE. Pasto-* C. E TUTTLE. SUPEBINTENOENT Cedar Rapids, Iowa, This is t-j tell you that we missed you from the class last Sunday. I hope you were not ill and that we shall have you with us next Sunday, for we are endeavoring to make ours an ''Every Member Present" Class. Kindly drop me a card U you are ill, or if for any reason you cannot he present next Sunday. Your friend and teacher. Address The form used by one school for keeping in ttuich with al)sentees. By the use of the out of the church they give a personal interest to the matter. Jirat ^rpabatrrian MxbU ^rliool, (Hoprka. Kan. REV. S. S. ESTEY. D. D.. Paator. SICKNESS EXCUSE CARD I was absent from Sunday School on the following dates because, 1 1 was really too sick to come. 2 contagious disease in our family. Pupil's Name Address Parent's Name — Teacher's Name- Used in recording absence due to sickness. This permits credit where it is deserved and yet i)roperly safeguards the report. THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY In all of these cases it becomes the duty of the secre- tary, either individually in the smaller school or through the necessary assistants in the larger one, to keep in touch with all of these conditions, to help, influence, stimulate, direct, encourage, or possibly al- most venture to reprove, as the case may be. Where the study of the class record shows contin- ued absence the secretary should have the blanks — which are available in many forms, sim- Methods ^^^^' ^^ those illustrated — to use in asking for this information from teacher, class committee, or individual worker. If the school is so fortunate as to have a school visitor or visitors, salaried or volunteer ; if the messenger service is used ; if older classes will look after absences among the children, the work of the teacher can be supplemented or the secre- tary has this assistance to fall back on in case the teacher fails in the work ; but the teacher is the first one to approach for the information. Frankly, the effect on the teacher is sometimes as great as on the scholar. Many a teacher has sought this information simply to be accommodating to the secretary, and, by the investi- gation, has received a vision which has made all such requests unnecessary in the future. In fact, it is not wise to even tell the teacher that the absence can be investigated in some other way, at least when the first request is made. The responsibility belongs with the teacher, and should be kept there when it is at all pos- sible to do this. There is a wealth of postcards, form letters, and plan after plan for use of the teacher in making this investigation. Where these are used in the school the secretary or the assistant in direct charge, should at- tend to the disbursement so that there may be a record 52 •/oo.p5- Jy; Jo fijD/pjjp^ 1 loiiuiry ,y; Of uJiiiS Jij 0/ qn,s t.iyj _ ■OM •••13 .... •<&D;>i»y ,u,m,wa 61 ill i , o c > ?i E C u o s ^ 1 I? ■f 1 !■ ^ ~ ^ a. I ii ^ 1^ ,__, jl p s £ -2 £ \ 3 ^ ^ '^ to ^11 ^ I .'^ c '.E j; \ % f -lit \ — 1- M m -, cq §-1 2 s S \ a 1 feo .1 r-2 ■3 -^ i; s :; -\ h. 1 § 1 1 1 \ «1 ^ :;; o , i\ .- " -O ■- •" — 4 1> U 1> o £ £, a - ^ - §• I 1 III! 1 i i*lil. Name ; . 6. Why? NOTE — Write additional names and information, if any, on reverse side TEACHER'S Report of Absentees, meigs publishing co. inoianapolis, ind. form No. y, price 4oc per 100, postpaid A form for the teacher's report on absentees. The great number of these in use indicate the growing value which is being placed on the study of absentees. 55 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY probably cannot avoid the absence by anything which they can do. Where this credit is given, a certificate of attendance at the other school should be required, and in the case of sickness, with children, the excuse card should be signed by the parents. Do not be afraid of this degree of formality. If the credit is worth working for, it takes on an added value when it must be regularly certified, and, with the parents, such a request is accepted as exceptional interest on the part of the school. Some one says, however, '^'Why give credit?" Keep in mind the fact that the secretary is working for regularity of attendance, primarily for Credit?^^^ the possibilities of increased efficiency in class work. The properly kept records of any school will show a far different grade of class work where there is ninety to one hundred per cent of attendance than where it drops to the average fifty per cent. An unbroken attendance record is a strong incentive to continued regularity, no matter whether the motive be the winning of some offered prize, the expression of appreciation which the wise secretary does not overlook, a real desire to get the greatest good from the lesson study, or merely the fun of seeing how long such a record can be maintained. Even the "grown-ups" take pride in such an achievement as year after year is added to an unbroken record, and the value of this regularity both to scholar and class and school is worth all it takes to keep the record recorded and recognized. When, however, an attend- ance record is started, and sickness comes and a Sun- day is missed, and the child is told that there is no pos- sibility of attaining to some coveted honor or recog- nition for the month or quarter or year, the enthusiasm 56 THE STUDY OF ABSENCES Sundays we have miss- ed you in your accustomed place in your class. We hope to have you with us next Sunday ag-ain, and enjoy your hearty co- operation and assistance YOU are a LINK in our chain, and vour absence aflfects our school more than you would suppose. S it is YOUR school. MY school. OUR school, and may YOU and ^ I do all in our power to make it what THE MASTER would have it to be May HE g-uide us in it all, to wise conclusions. ''Come thou with us and we will do thee g-ood." Very Sincerly yours, E. Ag-nes Dean, Asst. Supt. W. G. McCune, Supt. Another school which publishes many of its owu forms, thus making a strong appeal to its members. ABSENTEE CARD FIRST METHODIST SUNDAY SCHOOL, INDIANOLA, IOWA NAME CLASS . ADDRESS ; 1 Jan. 1 Feb. | Mar. | Apr. | May | June July Aug. 1 Sep. 1 Oct. 1 Nov. Dec. First Sunday Second Sunday Third Sunday Fourth Sunday Fifth „ Sunday Dropped from roll... 191 Cause | A rather unusual but very effective card, giving opportunity for the study of the absences of the members. When this card begins to fill up there is not much doubt but that the reason for the increasing absences will be carefully sought. 57 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY is gone, the effort is relaxed, and the slightest excuse is enough to cause repeated absence. It is really far easier to prevent a great many absences than it is to trace them after they occur, or to bring back the scholar. Out-of-town absences, business trips, summer vaca- tions, draw heavily on the attendance of many schools during certain seasons, and the secretary finds a new problem. Are we to say to our members that our interest in them ceases when they are away, that their record in the home school cannot be maintained ? We are learning far better than that. Practically the only question is that of the method which is best suited to the needs of the individual school, and school policy and finance will govern this. In some sections, we find members removing to summer homes and attending the same school Sunday after Sunday. In these cases, a card form RecordT oi* little booklet which provides for the record for a number of Sundays, answers every purpose. In otlier cases, the members are at- tending a different school practically every Sunday, and the keeping of the record and especially its return to the home school, becomes a very real problem. On this account, many schools are using a form which is printed either on a government postcard or a card which can be returned in the same way, some schools even going to the extent of furnishing the return postage, in order to get the cards returned promptly. Where a card is used for every Sunday, it has been proven to be almost impossible to get these kept by the member and returned at the close of the vacation period. The point which needs particular emphasis in this 58 THE STUDY OF ABSENCES "ETigitor^fli attenliance Certificate ISSUED BY THE OF To (name; Pointa of cj-edit (if Jesirtd). Date Signed- Superintendent. Secret«ry or Tei ^^ma= The M«lhodi8l Book Concern. New York-Cincinna A certificate of attendauce which can be carried by the scholar to another school or can be issued by any school to visitors. I attended Sunday School at... - , - > on TOWN STATE DATE Class No Signed The enrollment of this school is The attendance today was Mail will reach me if addressed to. If possible send us a post card showing the church or some feature of interest in the place you are visiting. The original of this form is printed on a government postcard, and is given to the members of the school whenever they leave for trips or vacations. A card is mailed back each week, and this close touch with the home school has proven very valuable. 59 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY 1111)13 Uiill ^nfro^urf to jioiK tDl)o is a lojal member of ^Ijc #unba5 ^tliool of tlje first Methodist [piscopal Cliurcli Topeka, Kansas ^mi fDurtcsits txirnbrii to our mrmlccrttary. This card is really a Sunday school letter. It introduces the scholar to the new school, its possession is frequently an incentive to attend another school and it tells the superintendent what position was held in the former school. A series of record books for those departments where the keeping of records is especially difficult because of the age of the. children. Proper records, properly kept up, are an indispensable element in the prevention of withdrawals. 75 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY The blanks which show poor reasons call for the most intensive study. The records should show whether these are accumulating from a Reports^^ certain class or classes. The reasons should be studied. The enrollment cards should be studied in the hght of the withdrawal; in- formation as to whether the member who had left was a member of the church at the time of enrollment, whether the card shows church accession during the connection with the school; whether the child came from a Christian home ; what element and what age are causing the greater number of withdrawals — these and other similar details open up a line of investigation which is fascinating as a research study. Incidentally, a withdrawal for a poor reason should not be dropped with the teacher's report. Some- where in every school, be it large or small numer- ically, there should be an organization, a committee, an individual, who will see the teacher, make a per- sonal investigation, and make sure that every agency of the school has been put to work and failed, before the entry is made that the school has lost a member for a poor reason. If the scholar is a nonchurch member and comes from a non-Christian home, work the harder on the case. The next step, which really should not be a problem at all, but which is, very frequently, a serious one, is to get the superintendent or the governing body of the school to seriously study and consider the reasons given for the withdrawals, particularly those for poor reasons, and take whatever steps are necessary to pre- vent similar cases the next year. While the secretary is not an executive officer, there is a duty connected with that office which will make him hold on tena- 76 WITHDRAWALS— THE SOLUTION Fir^t Methodic Sui PETOSKEY, MIC 1 iday School H. iiit^ninet in uoocl xtaiiuinu cc /'Ae pat^ ihunJau 'hc^ooC c£ ^7 etc. ccnuneiiJccl to the yt .^MetA'cJi^t ^yhcc- aiia L\ ailccticnatetu 'hiinJati ihc^ocf cf yOiincitntmic/ciifi. Another form of Sunday school letter. 77 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY ciously until he gets some action which will put a stop to the withdrawals for some of the specific reasons which will be revealed the first year. In the majority of schools, however, the officers will welcome such information as furnishing a reliable basis for their planning. In more than one school the superintendent has resigned his position in order to take up the work of the secretary simply because he has found it impossible to get the former secretary to fin-nish the data, the need of which every wide-awake superintendent realizes. Conditions will differ in different localities and in different schools, but any secretary who once realizes all that it means to know accurately the reason for every withdrawal will work on the problem until the key to the local situation is found. As an example of the importance of the record of withdrawals, the following reports are taken from the records of a county secretary, both schools Examples being in the same town. One report showed a membership of ^ve hundred and thirty-seven, which was an increase over the previous year of fifty-two. The other showed about the same enrollment, but a decrease of ^ve, in comparison with the previous year. This was all the data called for, and it is not hard to know which report was received with the more favor. As a matter of fact, when the investigation was carried direct to the school, it de- veloped that the first school had used various plans to get in new members, but its emphasis was laid on num- bers instead of efficiency, and its campaign was still on. It had had three hundred and eighty-seven with- drawals during the year. In the great majority of cases the teachers, when questioned, said that they did 78 WITHDKAWALS— THE SOLUTION not know why the scholars had left, but guessed that most of them were merely visitors and should never have been enrolled. When asked how many of those who were reported as actual members would be with- drawn a little later for this same reason, even guesses were not ventured. In the case of the second school, with practically the same enrollment, there had been only eighty-two with- drawals. That school knew why ever}^ member had left and there was not, during the whole year, a single withdrawal for a poor reason. Which school was really tlie more prosperous ? Tlie average scliool is content if its em-ollment and attendance are equal to the preceding year, and re- joices if an increase is shown. Sucli a school needs to be reminded tliat the death rate does not equal tlie birtli rate in a healthy school. In this connection, a business incident will help to illustrate the intensive study which should be given this subject. In a factory, one of the processes of which was the enameling of its product, an expensive enamel was used, the receptacle for which was a large tank holding hundreds of gal- lons. The foreman of the department found, from his records, that an increasing amount of enamel was required to handle a normal output. He had his bar- rels of enamel and could easily keep the level in the big tanks up to the required standard by simply adding the required amount. While this is the ordinary method in Sunday school work, it does not apply to the business world. In that case, at a considerable expenditure of time and effort, the tank was emptied, raised from the ground, cleaned, and gone over almost microscopically; but the leak, the evidence of which was revealed by the records, was located through the 79 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY efforts of the man who studied those records. The Sunday school appHcation needs no special attention drawn to it. In studying withdrawal records the secretary will do well to remember that a Sunday school can grow rusty, and that rust means leaks. 80 CHAPTER VIII THE PERSONAL LETTER Volumes have been written for the business world deahng with this subject, but only a comparatively few Sunday schools have realized its true value. In this connection, again, the business viewjioint is heli)- ful. The man of affairs would grant that, under ordi- nary circumstances, a personal visit or interview would be preferable, althougli tliere are times and cases where trutlis are better written than spoken. The Sunday school leader woidd always prefer a teaching force which coidd establish tliat intimate and personal touch with each new member and with the family of that member and which would maintain that relation- ship. Such an aim is not too high and is not unattain- able, but in the average school it is as yet only a desire and not a realization. Even in schools where this ideal has been reached, and most certainly in the aver- age school, there is much which the active secretary can do to supplement the work of teacher or officer, and the use of the personal letter is one of the most effec- tive ways. With the New Scholar. There is always much comment on the relationship between the home and the school ; on the apparent failure of the par- Scholar^ ^^^ts ^^ properly cooperate with the teaclier and the school; on tlie modern tendency to leave the religious education of the child entirely to the Sunday scliool teacher. There is an- 81 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY other side, and one which is just as real — the failure of the teacher and the school to properly cooperate with the home and the parents. These are both very vital problems, and the secretary can only aid in their solution. Considerable research has shown that but few schools make an intelligent effort to direct this co- operation, or even to arouse it. The school usually waits for a voluntary offer from the parents, and while it is difficult for the enthusiastic Sunday school worker to understand why the parents do not actively seek ways to assist the teacher to whom they will owe so much, the facts and not the theories must be consid- ered. It is certainly within the province of the secre- tary, through whose hands passes in some way the information regarding the new scholar, to write to the father and mother, extend greetings from the school, express appreciation at their confidence in the school as demonstrated by their placing their child in its charge, tell them what the school is trying to do, a little about the work which that particular child will take up, who the teacher will be, and just how they can help the school to help their child. This will aid the teacher in similar work, and if, as is frequently the case, it is the only expression which comes from the school, it will be a big factor in establishing the desired relation- ship. As AN Aid in Decision Day. More and more is the value of personal work, in leading the child to this personal acceptance of Christ, being real- Day Aid i^^^ ^^^^ emphasized, but there is nearlj^ always a place for supplemental help. The school gains in dignity, in the estimation of the parents, when the school's concern, as well as the 82 TO S MOTHER My dear Iriend: It is a pleasure to welcome your diild to Sunday flckool. I teel tkat tKe children belong to me as well as to their mothers. They are with me hut one hour during the w^eelc, and you can see how much I need your help li that hour is to mean anything to them. Each Sunday I tell the children a story. Often they say. "Tell it again." but I do not have time. So I give them the story to take home, that their mothers may tell it to them as many times as they wish. I tell them these storied not only to interest them, but to teach them about the heavenly Father's care, or to help them to be kind to animals, or to make them obedient children, or to fill them with love for Jesus, the children's Friend. I wish the stories to be part of their everyday life, but they cannot be unless the mothers help to make them so. You will find beneath the story a line or two called "The Mother's Part," which will suggest ways of doing this. The stories are nearly all from the Bible. Now and then there is a nature story. I think you will enjoy looking up the Bible nature verses on w^hich they are based, and enjoy, too, these stories that help your child to see that everything in the great outdoors is a gift from a loving Father, and that God. who provides for the little child, cares also for animals and birds. Once in a while you will find that the etory in the folder which your child brings home is neither a Bible story nor a nature story. ^^hen this occurs you w^ill know that I. have taken that particular Sunday for telling over again old Bible stories, and that I have not told the folder story. I am leaving the telling of that story to you. It has the same thought as have the Bible storiea ior that day and illustrates their teaching in modern child life. Perhaps you will wonder how the stories are chosen, for they are first from one part of the Bible and then from anotner part. They are arranged to fit subjects. A child does not care w^hether one story happened before or after another, but is impressed hy a group of stories on the same topic, such as obedience or kindness or love. I hope your child will enjoy the Bible verses printed in colors, and that the pleasure derived from looking at them w^ill lead to a w^ish to say them. \Ve do not give more verses than oan be learned easily. They are all very short. I like to think that the Sunday school songs w^ill be sung at home. Do come to visit us. The children and I should love to have you. You will see then what we are trying to accomplish, and bow very much w^e need your help. Sincerely yours. A printed letter which is sent to the mother when the child unites with the Sunday school. It is verj' effective in linking the parents' interest to the school. 83 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY flRST METHODIST EPISCOPAL SUNDAY SCHOOL [vi^wi::i] TOPCM. XAH*a#. Dear Friends: It la with ouoh pleasure that wa nave enrolled your child in our Sunday School. You may be eure that' the officers and teachers reoognlze the great responsibility whloh rests upon them as their part In the developement of ohlld life and character. All of the work of the most faithful teacher and ef- ficient school will prove Ineffective, unless there Is the oloaeet oooperatlon between school and parente. Unless you have been In closest touch with modern Sunday School work, you can hardly realize the wonderful advance which has been made In plans and methcds. The child receives Bible training and we try to throw arouni It every Influence to lead quletlv and naturally to a per- sonal acoeptanoe of all of the prlnolplee for which the Church stands. Church membership, however, is not our sole aim. Our real purpose Is svumred up in the phrase which appears in our- heading, and in the realization of this, we ask and expeot your help. This will necessitate a kaowledge of the work in the particular department to which the child is aesigned. Will you net get In touch with the teacher, whose name and address is given below, and find out about the work and how you can be of servioe^ Perhaps you do not reallzfe that there is a plaoe for every member of the family in our school, one which is enjoyable as well as helpful. Your influence will be much greater if you, yourselves, are connected with the sobool in some way. You are cordially Invited to attend any of our sessiona. Reeularlty in attendance is an absolute requialta for the best work. Will you not exert all of your Influence along this line? Every Sunday morning - 9:30 sharp - please. By sending your child to our Sunday School you have aeVed us to help you in the religious training. We appreciate the opportunity. Will you not respond, with equal readiness, to the requests which tr.ay be made for ycur support and assietanoa* Yo\ire very truly. Teacher's Same Sao. Adress A typical letter sent out by the Sunday school to the parents of all new members. In this particular case there are always inclosures of little folders or pamphlets. 84 THE PERSONAL LETTER First Methodist Episcopal Sunday school Seat to new seabar of the ohurdb. W* are always glad to weloome newooDere Into our ohuroh but are doubly pleaeed when we can also enroll them into our Sunday Sohool. We note the addition of your oaaa on our phurch roll - may we remind you of the oppor - tunltiea whlob the Sunday Sohool offers you, not only for pleasure but for real serrioe. ETery Sunday morning you will find from 700 to eOO men, women emd children gathered together, engaged in every phase of modem Sunday Sohool work. There are child- ren of 4 years and there are adults of more than 80. There is a plaoe for everybody, congenial classes for each one, phases of work which are so diversified as to appeal to all age*. If you have been engaged in Sunday School work, please don't let it drop. If you have never given it serious consideration you are honestly not fair to yourself to pass it without investigation. We extend to you a most cordial invitation to come out next Sunday morning at 9:30 and find out what a really modern Sunday School is. Miss Wellcome, our enrollment sec- retary, is really an expert in placing new members in the most congenial and helpful classes and she will be glad to go Into details with you. Tou will find a hearty welcome and you will never be * etranger after that first Sunday. Cordially your»» ^ One way of approach to the new church member which is very effec- tive and results in many new enrollments in the Sunday school. 85 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY teacher's interest in the welfare of the scholar, is ex- pressed, and a word from the school, through its secre- tary, is especially appropriate at those periods when a special effort is being made to direct the child in the great matter of church relationship. These letters may go to the child, to the parents, or, what is still better, to both. Upon Uniting with the Church. When the child unites with the church, the school has its greatest opportunity to reach and touch the par- with^Church ^^^ts. The secretary, with the knowledge of the record constantly before him, will not neglect this opportunity for a word with both child and parents. A brief, simple expression of per- sonal pleasure in recording this act of the child, as a part of the school history, opens the way to the heart of many a child and serves not only to elevate the school in the child's esteem but emphasizes the connec- tion with the school and not merely with an individual class. A letter to the parents has the same effect. In this connection is recognized the value, the absolute necessity, of knowing whether the parents are church people or not, information which is properly secured at the time of the enrollment of the scholar. There is naturally a difference between the letters written to parents who are active church workers and to those who have little or no interest in it other than that which may be aroused by the child. With New Members of the Church^ who are not connected with the Sunday school. Again, it is granted that a personal invitation coming M^mber?^ from the class or department to which these new members would naturally be assigned in the Sunday school is the most desirable 86 THE PERSOXAL LETTER First Methodist episcopal Sunday school OUR AIH- Thi Dcvfie^ntNT or tui H . TtPt Of CNNIfTUH Ch*»ACTCR ' OT?!.*?.?;! 3«Dt to parents wh«n a ohlld unites with the ohurob. Dear Frlende • One of the waye by whloli you alwaye Judge the efficiency of the Sunday School to which you eend your children, la whether or not it is able to lead the chil- dren to a perfectly natural acceptance of the principle* for which the church stands. We are glad with you, that a ?iemVer of your family hae taken this step. The Methodist Church has long taken the posi- tion that the children were really a part of the church - has believed in keeping them under its influence - as Dr. MoFarland put Jt "The Preservation va the Rescue of the Child. • ' As you know, in the case of your own child, there was no emotional appeal or Influence but our teachers have •tried to lead their scholars quietly, simply, naturally to a personal expression and decision. As a Sunday School we do not think, however, that our ^rork is done when the chllds name is written ou the,.church roll. A reopansibllity, greater than ever,restt upon us as upon you, and in the meeting of this we again ask your cooperation. As your child grows and developee Intellectually, the understanding of the real meaning of church membership will grow and develope. Will you not work with us to the end that the rlrht aspect of the church obligation may always be presented, 'for each phase of child grewthf The officers and teachers want your suggestions and advice. Mil you not come to us frankly, -at all tlmosT The leadln=^ of =i cMld, after the first step is taken, is a labor of love and Is worthy the best efforts of us all. Will you not feel that we are in heartiest accord with you and ready to do anything we can, to be of service to you and your children. Tours very elncerely. Touching the parent at the most approachable time. If every school could see the results such letters have secured, their use would rapidly increase. 87 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY N«. no. DieH |t««or A card for tho secretary's report, showing simply the most commonly used data. MONTHLY REPORT CARD Address Months— » Percent ^ MARKING BASIS We can reasoDably expect all the aemben of the Main School to attend Sunday School tegulatly and punctually, study lesson, bring Bible, make an offering and attend church once on Sunday. We therefore have the following marking basb, Sunday School At- tendance 50, On Time 10, Lesson Study 10. Bible 10, Offering 10, Church Attendance 10 Total 100. Those standing 100 ate Excellent; 90-100 Good; 73-90 Fair; 50-75 Poor; un. tier 50 Very Poor. Pupils absent with good excuse should send ^vritten excuse to the Super- A card which is sent to the parents giving the report of the indi- vidual member. 93 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY SECRETARY'S REPORT TIOGA BAPTIST SUNDAY SCHOOL Brsid Below Tiot> Sorel PHILADELPHIA Date. _ — -"-"' ! I J 1 i i ;i I if li - BEGINNERS' Officers Teachers Scholars PRIMARY Officers mp.,„„, c.iKi -leachcrs Scholars jriNIOR Officers l«,.,»n,c Teachers Scholars INTERMEDIATE Officers 1.0 ,.,„.., CI..... Teachers Scholars YOUNG PEOPLE'S Officers m K. cm ci.i... Teachers Scholars ADULT Officers i....,<„.,.cui... Teaehers, Scholirs OFFICERS »-"'<" Totals W«aiher Birthday Offerines, $ Last Year's Record— Aiiendance, REMARKS: Home Dept , « Collections. « - A more complete form for the .secretary'.^ weekly report. 94 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT o o _ T S ur, SECRETA First M. E. Deca f'S REPORT unday School Illinois DepArtmcnt _o M F T M F M F V N S Total Offering Adult Senior Intermediate Primary Kindergarten General Officers Total PERCENTAGES DepkrtoMat T«Mhcr Attendance Offering 1 Averace Adult Senior Intermediate Junior Primary Kindergarten Beginners Last Sunday Same Sunday Last Year Per Cent. «f Tntftl Attandance in Adult Department Senior Intermediate " Junior Primary Ktndergarteq " '< •' Beginners No. Late Remarks """ """" 1 Another secretary's report which provides for still more data of various kinds, 95 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY ^^^^^^ CLASS REGISTER C^SS^^^II mmmm Wc^MKe&^^^^^^^k 1 MjSStON ^^JJ ^H^SOOAiJ ^^B PilOSt>tCT$ j^^l PS^I ^^■[fi^^HJ Hjj^^^^JH 1^^^ REGISTER ATTENDANCE & OFFERING NUMBER C "7 fl ON THE ROLL O f j. ATTENDANCE C 1 n TODAY OIU ATTENDANCE A y| Tl Q YEAfiAGOTODAY ^U O °Kr 2046 OFFERING A 1 C "7 C TEARAGOTO-DAY X U f D Different forms of bulletin boards. 96 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT Register AHENDANCEaOFrERiNG ENROLLMENT ATTENDANCE TO-DAY OFFERING TO-DAY_ ATTENDANCE A YEAR AGO 647 538 1299 459 A YEAR AGO Fei)l8M ATTENDAISCE ^!i^ OFFERINoHji^ BepnEril3 8M40 ^^M learagoj, BJJain 39; : Interirr'djBpWL^ TBarpBirtliilay 1iTDept.f29Ml ;? ZlSAprJl'Missiflnary !McfeJrMSM47l _ TeaiSlZ I ^ ^^^S3 "Star Classes 2R|7l8 Total M2 7 8^VisilorsWr4lHome Dept.^M9 3' ^tiipAini450l Differeut forms of bulletin boards. 97 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY should be given the setting which will make it the most effective ? To illustrate : There is value in occasional compari- sons of perfect classes in the various departments. Extracts from the reports of two secretaries are given almost verbatim — which of these forms would have the greater tendency to make that information re- membered ? "There are three perfect classes in the Junior De- partment to-day and two in the Intermediate Depart- ment." Here is the other one : "Are you interested in base- ball ? If you are, you heard about the big game yester- day, even if you were not lucky enough to Suggestion ^^^ ^^- Weren't you glad that the home team won ? You remember the score was three to two. Well, in our contest for perfect attend- ance to-day, the Juniors beat the Intermediates by just the same score — three to two. Mr. Smith's and Miss Thompson's classes scored for the Intermediates and Miss Robinson's, Miss Clark's and Mr. Johnson's classes for the Juniors. By the way, do you remember that the winning run yesterday was scored on a sacri- fice hit? To-day Frank Smith, in Miss Clark's class, had a chance to go out with an automobile party for a picnic and turned it down in order to come to Sunday school. That is the kind of a sacrifice that makes a hit with us. Now just watch the score next Sunday." Of course it is only very occasionally that such a re- port as that could be possible; it was simply a coinci- dence which brought it about, but it illustrated thor- oughly the methods of that secretary and explained the eagerness with which the reports were looked for- ward to. It demonstrated another point, that the 98 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT ! 1 12 3 UJ. 1 2 I 3 I 4 I 5 "Every man's work shall be made manifest ; for the day shall declare it. 1 Cor. 5 : 13. Report of_ For. .Quarter^ jg A tteyidance. Lessofis (shozvn by margin) SuppleineJital zvork. Co n (ill c t \ Punctuality ^ Note to Parents.— The pupil's record is described as "good, fair, or poor." Parents are kindly asked, (1) To co-operate in secur- ing regular aftendance, which is held to be of prime importance. (2 1 On return from Sunday School to ques- tion their children carefully on the day's lesson, and to impress, during the week, the truth taught. <3) To assist children dui-ing the week in learning Golden "Texts, and any other special work assigned. (4) To visit the school as often as possible. Supt. N. B. No home preparation of lessons is asked of children in the Primary Department aside from memor- izing Golden Texts and other Bible verses. Record for subject matter of lesson is based upon knowledge of facts as taught at Sunday School. The Golden Text to be memorized is always that of the lesson taught the pre- vious Sunday. Due allowance is made for very young children. A star or other emblem may be placed in upper left hand corner ^at option of teacher) to denote any special degree of excellence. VI H. DIETZ, CHICAGO Price, 50c per 100 99 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY secretary had the enthusiastic cooperation of the school, for without that, the fact of the boy's giving up his Sunday picnic would not have been known to the secretary. The report should always have one outstanding characteristic — it should always be typically "booster," always enthusiastic. Those who are pres- Boo^ter ^^^ should not be taken to task because others are absent. It is far better, on a rainy Sunday, to call attention to the fact that Tom Jones came three miles over bad roads than to mention tlie fact that Charles Stewart, who lives right around the corner, is not present. It is almost an invariable rule that tlie secretary who cannot find tlie bright side of the school, even on a cloudy day, had better pass the report for that day than to say the discouraging things which may come most naturally. The wide-awake sec- retary is a subscriber to Sunday school periodicals, those of his own denomination first and foremost and then others, such as the Sunday School Times and the Sunday School Executive. The right kind of a secretary can arouse school interest in what other schools are doing, and by the information which can be gleaned from these various papers, can make a report which will fairly set a school on fire with enthu- siasm to equal the record of some other school. Who Should Make this Report? Preferably the secretary ; but it is not always possible to find the ™, ability of the statistician coupled with that Should of the ready speaker. The secretary holds Make the h^q position, not for the honor of the title, but because of the opportunity for useful- ness. If he does not think that he can be of more serv- ice here than elsewhere, the maximum results will 100 TO THE PARENT This report ift«tibmltte<) to-yon that yon may be able to form an estimate of the progress being made by your child io his or her Sunday School work Von are therefore urged to examine it carefully every month and to Investigate any condition that may appear to you unsatis- Jactory May we have your help and hearty co-operation' 1 have carefhlly examined this card Dept. Highest marks obtainable for the month Lesson book, four; Lesson work done at h\ citation, fonr; Deportment, eight; Review Memory work, twenty Please sign and return on a (grarp liett^abiat Spiarapal S'unJiag ^rljonl NEWPORT NEWS. VIRGINIA MONTHLY AND QUARTERLY REPORT Of vUj a-V-eAyt... 4 /^ 1 / / i % L >^ 1 / / 1 % L Total V y y ^ i %^ Review , i u. %H 7!^L It ±. /^ ± ^ J^ l^ J^ A^ TA 1 M he year must be obtained to be promoted with distinetoo A very complete system of reports to the parents. These reproduc- tions of actual cards show that this work can be done efficiently, and schools which have tried it, testify to its value. 101 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY never follow. With this viewpoint, he is ready to turn over to the superintendent his data for the report, if the superintendent can present them in a more effec- tive way, but this is seldom necessary. On the other hand, the superintendent should recognize the report as being one of the privileges as well as the duty of the secretary and should never try to usurp it, and espe- cially should not comment on special features of the school in advance of the secretary, as this frequently entirely upsets a carefully prepared report. Nearly any secretary can make a good report if the proper effort is made in its preparation. It may take some time to catch the spirit and some effort at first to make the report in public. There will be some experiment- ing before the best line of approach is found, but it is well worth the preparedness effort. The new secretary needs another suggestion here. The report is not something which comes as an inspira- tion or which is prepared on the spur of the moment. The modern secretary always has the report outlined before Sunday comes. Of course there are many times when some feature will come up, some incident which has the greatest of immediate value, many things which may make a substitution advisable, but there is always the outline to fall back on, always some inter- esting data or some touch of outside interest which can enliven a monotonous session. "Preparedness" is a fundamental in this phase of the secretary's work. How Much Time Should Be Given to the Report? Usually from two to five minutes, depend- ing upon the time available and the Necess^s^y importance of certain features in the indi- vidual report. It is exceedingly helpful to supplement the verbal report with the bulletin 102 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT First Methodist Episcopal Sunday School Topeka, Kansas OFFICE OF THE SECRETARIES Every class has its own effect on the attendance records for the school— you must either raise the average or lower it Would you not rather push up than pull down? The school average for dwvsJt was..jfL£l %~ the average for cUss ^o.^-XTf. __was. — 7 J^_ Jo i~S).. - of the.._ 5L.I _ classes which had a better percent have ,a larger enrollment. Are you satisfied? Can you not do even better next month? Have you asked any o'f the secretaries for suggestions? Are you making use of the Membership Committee? The Sunday School Board meeting is a mighty good place to bring your problems. Try it next time. jj jj McENTIRE, General Secretary. „ „ Dep't Secretary. A report to the class of its standing in the school. -Wfe rfon'f ei« down and ait. but we get uo and »rt CENTRAL M. E. SUNDAY SCHOOL "The School That DoesThings" RELATIVE STANDING OF YOUR CLASS FOR MONTH OF . NAME ... ^If-ei^e" sl7.„ Enr'oCnt A^'n'Sree P" Cent total Offering Average Offering Scholar NumeiicBJ Standing ■ 1 Decision. ^-i Teacher s Attendance Record S. S. 1 Church 1 Prayer Ser.|S S. Board 1 1 1 The Members of your class whose names appear on attached reply card have been placed on reaerve duiing the month. In order that the Sunday School may render all possible assistance, would ask that you kindly report on these names with any inlprmalicn you may possess as to whether scholar i»sick..out ol the city, haa bten visit- ed of written, as well as any suggestion^ you may wish to offer. Kindly retura attached card with this information, not later tha n .,-..»* — -.-.. . • Yours for Service. Dale 191 ... ' SupeiiniendenI Another f(»rm for reporting to the class, which provides for very comprehensive record. 103 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY board. This may be one of the more convenient ones with movable letters and figures, the old reliable black- board, or the large poster sheet, if neither of the others is available. Where there is no opportunity for re- porting the figures of the present Sunday until a week later, a bulletin board is all that is usually used. In making the regular report to the school, the bulletin carries the strictly statistical information for the lim- ited number of people who are interested in it, but does not force it on the others at a sacrifice of valuable time. Again, the report should not cover the same features, Sunday after Sunday, while there are some items which never vary, except in detail, and these find their logical place on the bulletin board. It is possible, how- ever, to stimulate interest in comparative records until the children will gather around the board at the close of school to see how their class or department stands. In this phase, the secretary can take lessons from the athletically inclined public. Both the box scores on the bulletin boards and the story of the game, with its numerous little items of interest and of personalities, have their place. It is impossible to arouse interest in a secretary's report without the little elaboration which will call for a few minutes of time. It is almost imj^ossible to hold the interest if too much detail is used in a lengthy report. There are times when the eager interest of the scholars will justify another minute or two, and there are also times when the very atmosphere of the school calls for brevity. The experienced secretary has his finger on the pulse of the school and usually knows when to stop. There are, in reality, more cases where the secretary is unduly limited in the opportunity for this report than where the privilege is abused. 104 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT Record of S. S. Board Meeting ORDER OF BUSINESS 2. Calling tha Roll 8. Reoort from I 9. Reoort from Pastor aoa S. S. S. Reports from Comn A sample page from a secretary's book, providing for tlie minutes of the teachers' meeting. Two devices used by aggressive secretaries for stimulating attendance, 105 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY The Report to the Sunday School Board The Sunday School Board, the superintendent's cabinet, the teachers' meeting, the workers' council, or whatever name may be given the organization, is composed of co-workers who have had the opportunity of hearing the secretary's weekly report to the school, and who will, therefore, be more or less familiar with all of the details which it covers. For this reason there is little use in going into the matter of comparative at- tendance, enrollment, etc., and the time of the report is more properly spent in laying before the Board the problems with which it is the business of that body to deal. In this connection, the secretary will need to put continual emphasis on the fact that the optimistic side is the one which is presented at the session of the Sun- day school, that the spirit of enthusiasm has its place at that time, but that the Board meeting is properly the place for the presentation and discussion of the knotty problems, and tlie sometimes disagreeable j^roblems, which a real secretary will uncover in every school. There is no other phase of the work which offers such an opportunity to be of real service to the fellow workers as does the Sunday School Board meeting. The secretary can study any particular problem, bring the data to bear on it from every angle, and present it to the Board in such a way that it can be handled expe- ditiously and at the same time wisely. Without the check of complete and accurate records, many a Board meeting resolves itself into an expression of opinions or prejudices instead of real constructive thinking and planning. 106 THE SECRETARY'S REPORT The recording of the minutes of the meeting of the Board is very largely an incidental feature of the work of the secretary, although accuracy is called for and the aggressive secretary can add little individual touches which will make even this business report in- teresting. 107 CHAPTER X PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS There is an increasing tendency to judge the school not alone from the standard of lesson instruction, but from the viewpoint of the degree to which View* ®^^ the members carry out the present-day application of the teaching by their work in making a school an aggressive force in the com- munity. The Christian Church started on the basis of each one bringing others, and the modern Sunday school is, to say the very least, missing a big oppor- tunity if it is not actively carrying out this principle. The school without an active propaganda is usually either going back or else sinking deeper into a rut as a result of simply "marking time." The secretary's records form the basis for a great deal of this follow- up work, and all of it should be reported to the office, whether it originates there or not. When a new member is enrolled information should be secured as to members of the family who are not in Sunday school, and this is frequently ex- Family tended into a list of friends. This in- formation should be immediately placed in the hands of the proper parties by the enrollment secretary, or whoever attends to the enrollment details. There may be a membership secretary or committee, or the work may be left to the individual class or teacher or, as in some cases, investigated by the Home Department visitors. In any event, no school should PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS be satisfied until it has exhausted every possible means of bringing in every member of the family, when one member unites with the school. In this connection the secretary will need to do edu- cational work in arousing classes to their duty in this connection. If there is a men's class in the school which starts out on a membership campaign, it should be influenced to extend its work to every member of the family, and the results of the campaign should be checked up j ust as thoroughly on the number of mem- bers which it bi'ings into other departments of the school as on the increase in its own membership. Nearly every school can secure from its own mem- bers a list of others in the community who are not con- nected with any school, and there is no better training for the young workers than is found in going after new members. Our classes should, in a very real sense, be, each one of them, a training class, and in this line of work it is not at all necessar}^ that they complete their course and graduate before beginning work. There are no union rules limiting the number of ap- prentices or the hours of work in the Master's vine- yard. Another place where the secretary's records furnish available material is in checking over those who drop out from some reason such as work or sickness. These should be very carefully followed up and brought back into active membership just as soon as possible. Then, too, many of those who ''leaked out" a few years ago may be brouglit back through some influence, perhaps that of having children of tlieir own now in the Sun- day school. The matter of the details of a town, community, or neighborhood survey differs so decidedly with the 109 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY To. tko oam* given below 10 that of A PROSPECTIVE MEMBER or OPe who alioullaU ';^^1;"!>tal Schnoiy SliND/LY SCHOOL yo/ra^tLo"'^ I— J « ■ i k v f. w figures = /^ A) 'H Fa 5 c__V_oo I MUtlt MolTier* 3 SUNDA.Y SCHOOL P r'efrey^ce 1 SURVEY t ' Ak>lo^isl^a O"*"* tot'<« poo' 'j^^o;^')^ | 3c>»ool 119 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY out, and ^x the fence." The problem of getting co- operation in the study of withdrawals was solved. There is just as much difference between the way two teachers hold their classes in a rural school as be- tween any two in a city school, and the secretary's records can just as unerringly test the methods of those two teachers in one school as in the other. Regularity of attendance is equally of importance, and the secretary of the rural Sunday school can study the school, find out why its members come and why others do not come, more accurately in the rural school than ip the city school. There is a closer acquaintance, a personal touch which cannot exist in the school where the attendance runs up into the hundreds. As a matter of fact, the rural school becomes the center of the social and religious life, and under the leadership of the wise superintendent whose plans are laid upon the foundations furnished by the secretary, it becomes the leading force of the community. In the rural school the secretary will undoubtedly attend to practically all of the details. The children will appreciate just as much a birthday greeting as though they lived in the city. They will respond to the various lines of appeal which may come through the little note or the telephone call just as readily as if they did not live on a farm. Perhaps the one phase of the work which offers the greatest opportunity to the rural school secretary is the properly made and carefully kejjt up survey of all of the people wJio live in the territory which is tribu- tary to that school. The illustration shows a survey made by a rural Sunday school meeting in a country schoolhouse. It is exceptionally complete, but simply shows what can be done by an energetic secretary. 120 West Indianola Sunday School Survey. Name . No, in Family No. in Sunday School No. in Home Department No, in Cradle Roll Church Preference No, of Members No. of Prcfessing Christians . . No. of Acres in Farm. Owner or Tenant How long have you lived in the neighborhood Remarks. 121 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY The chart is absolutely homemade, and the informa- tion was all compiled by volunteer workers from the Sunday school. Where such a survey is made and the results are kept constantly before the school, it will be but a short time until the majority of all of the people in that district will have some connection with the school. The failure on the part of the average school to get to work and to win its community is due largely to the lack of some one to assume the leadership and to point out what really needs the doing. The average man on the farm does not need to be told what to do if he finds some pest infesting his neighbor's field; he knows that his neighbor's affairs become his own, and when he once gets the vision of Sunday school work which the secretary can give him, he realizes that the religious welfare of his neighbor and his neighbor's children is likewise his affair. The rural Sunday school worker who is asked what he would do if he rented his farm on shares and then came back and found the tenant working only perhaps a third of it and knowing absolutely nothing about the rest of it, requires but little persuasion to get out and help to see that that Sunday school thoroughly cultivates all of its section of the Master's vineyard. The Sunday school teacher who is carefully pre- paring her vegetable patch is in a responsive mood for the approach of the secretary with the report that some of the boys who dropped out of her class a short time ago might have been held had she as carefully prepared the soil for the reception of the seed which was to have been sown in the teaching of the lesson and from this angle the between- Sundays work can be stimulated. 12^ THE RURAL SUNDAY SCHOOL The secretary who carefully studies tlie records of the rural school, not only of his own but those of any others with which he can get in touch, will probably be able to furnish very conclusive data as to the effect of inadequate building and equipment, and the wealthy farm owner who has just invested large amounts of money in the housing of his machinery and in barns and granaries for the care of the crops, can usually be reached when he can see the benefits put down in plain figures. It is undoubtedly true that it is more difficult to get the Sunday school work properly financed in the small school, but the secretary who can demonstrate that all of the members of the school can be registered and every phase of the school work recorded for an entire year for what it would cost to register one, or at the outside, two of the herd of thoroughbred cattle belonging to one of their active members, should not have much difficulty in getting the funds necessary for the proper carrying on of this work. The secretary of the rural school should be espe- cially well informed on rural school work and should be ready to analyze the records of the school from this viewpoint. He should also know what is going on in other schools, because he can, in this way, bring in- formation and stimulating suggestions which probably would never reach the majority of members in any other way. The secretary of the rural school will need the broadest vision of the possibilities and the greatest degree of faith for the final working out of the plans. It is impossible to tell what effect the work done in one school may have in another. As an example, the school which prepared the chart shown in the illus- 123 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY tration did it from the standpoint of the good which it would do them. This was reahzed when they found better than seventy-five per cent of all of the people in that community enrolled in some department of that Sunday school. However, the influence of that survey did not stop there. The adjoining district took the matter up, made a survey, used it in the upbuilding of their school, but in the making of the survey discov- ered a spirit of unity among those who were members of various denominations, and through the Sunday school as a nucleus brought all of these church people together, and within eighteen months after the Sunday school survey was made there was a church across the road from that schoolhouse, a minister trained in rural work installed, and tlie church and the schoolhouse are the social and religious centers of the entire com- munity. The work started from the efforts of a rural Sunday school secretary to increase the enrollment in one school. In the rural school, the secretary is most logically the advertising or publicity man, whether he is given that title or not. Work of this nature is perhaps more effective here than in the large city schools because of the fact that the rural Sunday school has an excep- tional opportunity in ministering to all phases of the life of its members. Opportunities in this connection are almost unlim- ited, ranging from verbal announcements to hand- lettered posters; printed handbills, fre- er p^blic?ty quently run off on a little printing press which is the property of the Sunday school; newspaper notices, and taking in perhaps school fans and a school calendar. In connection with the latter form of publicity, one school secured splen- 124 THE RURAL SUNDAY SCHOOL did results by putting out, free of charge, a plain, simple calendar, with a sheet for each month, some appropriate school information on each sheet, etc. In addition to this, every special day — Children's Day, Easter, the annual picnic. Rally Day, Christmas — and several others which this school observes, were marked on the calendar by a little printed sticker which cov- ered the date. The school carried this plan to the extent of appointing some one person to be in charge (^f each one of these special days, and on the sticker indicating this day was the name of the person who was in chai-ge. This not only emphasized these particular days with everybody in the community, but there was a personal interest in it because of loyalty to the individual in charge. It also, most logically, had the effect of mak- ing the person who was known to everybody in the community as having the responsibility especially anxious that his or her day should be the most suc- cessf id of any during the year. In this case, again, the plan simply originated with the secretary; the work was all done by the other members of the school, and the school as a whole reaped the benefits. From the matter of finances, work of this nature brings big returns. There are always individuals in every community who are willing to pay the extra fare for a ride in the observation car if they think that the trip looks sufficiently attractive and they are easily influenced by the advertising. 125 CHAPTER XII DECISION DAY Has the Sunday School secretary anything to do with this phase of the work of the schools He has a most vital part. The reports which are called for from denomina- tional schools have inquiries as to the number of mem- bers who are members of the chiu'ch, while those from the International Sunday Scliool Association ask for the number of conversions or church accessions. The secretary must, therefore, have a thorough knowledge of the school from both of these angles. The mere matter of church membership is informa- tion which is secured from the enrollment or applica- tion cards. When this is properly shown by classes and departments, it is very easy to determine the aver- age age at which this step is taken, and when the records of the individual school are compared with those which are accepted generally, it is very easy to determine whether or not the school is up to the gen- eral average in this very important pliase of the work. These data, however, which deal more or less with generalities, are not nearly so important as the secur- How ^^E ^^ complete information in each indi- Records vidual case. The form shown in the illus- ®^ tration is one which is used in getting a report from the teacher of the class. It is, of course, information which it is to be supposed the average 126 DECISION DAY teacher has ah-eady secured, but the secretary who tries to get these reports will, undoubtedly, find that it will take both tact and persistence to make the lists com- plete. From this phase alone the work of the secretary will be exceedingly valuable, because in untold cases where the teacher gets this information simply to sat- isfy the requests of the secretary, the conditions which are revealed by the investigation are such as to imme- diately result in personal efforts. Where such a survey is made, and where these re- ports are checked over and revised, at least quarterly, a very marked difference in the number of nonchurcli members will soon be apparent. In those cases where the reports are made regularly, showing a large per- centage of the class to be nonchurcli members, and where there are practically no chiu'ch accessions from the class, the superintendent will have no difficulty in seeing one of his problems. The class which is showing frequent church accessions is not the one which needs the work and worry of the executive officers. Such a survey, with its tabulated results, is invalu- able to the pastor. It simply means that all the work of either pastor or superintendent can be centered just where it is needed, and there need not be any waste of time or duplication of effort on the part of either. It will also be true in practically every school that there will be cases where, because of certain peculiarities, the teacher will ask that the matter be not taken up by outsiders, and where the teacher is known to be com- petent and reliable, both pastor and superintendent will willingly wait until there is an opportunity for them to be of service. The secretary, again, is in position to bring influ- 127 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY JUirst jttctlraMst ^ptscapal #unbag #cf|aal '(Tof cko, l^ansas Our records show that - , a member of your class, has been in this school for but has never united with any church. Is this record correct? What is the scholars attitude, indifference or active opposition? What element or phase of the Sunday School holds the scholar?.. Are the parents members of the church? What is their attitude and what is the home influence regarding the scholar uniting with the church? Can you suggest how the CHURCH or the Sunday School could help you in bringing the scholar into the CHURCH? Class No Date _ - _- -.Teacher. A blank which is iisod quarterly in making a survey of all of the members of the school who are old enough to have taken the step, but have not yet united with the church. Such a list is invaluable in any school. 128 DECISION DAY I I I I I I I I TT I I I I DIAGRAM Showing Percentage of Conversions in each Year of Age Jrom 6 to 36 based upon the Experience 0/ 2/2 Men Average A^e oj Conversion 16.4 Years 30S COMVEKSIOVS <149 3798 34 «J 3037 2728 2369 15 20 2S 30 35 40 45 S ^^GE OF ACCEPTING CHRIST AND PROBABLE YEARS OF USEFULNESS THEREAFTER 9,|.^e43^4 70 75 80 VPS. UiCURES BELOW THE CANDLES REPRESENT THE ACE OF ACCEPTINO CHRIST nOURES ALONGSIDE THE CANDLES SHOW THE LENGTH OF LIFE THAT MAY BE EXPE CTED TO FOLLOW BASED ON UFE INSURANCE ACTUARI ES TABLES An EARLY DECISION MEANS JUST SO MANY MORE YEARS OF CHRISTIAN SERVICE 129 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY ence to bear of a nature which is possible to no one else. One The secretary who will study the with- Decision drawals from the school, select those, *^ especially the ones for poor reasons, who were not members of the church when they united with the Sunday school and who withdrew from the school without ever taking that important step, will have data which will make the most careless teacher realize the problem. The school or the teacher who complacently waits for the one annual Decision Day, and who is brought face to face with the record of the oppor- tunities which are in all probability lost forever, so far as that teacher or scliool are concerned, will not need much further urging to bring about tlie change which will put a stop to sucli a condition. The secretary who can show the teacher in the Junior Department that the greatest number of church accessions, from that particular school, occur during the later Junior years, will do well to couple with this information the admonition of a prominent Sunday school leader, in discussing the matter of con- version: "Give the child time, but work during that time." In the reports to the Sunday school during its Sun- day sessions, the secretary can give due prominence to the cases of the children who unite with the church. At the Sunday School Board meeting, however, the emphasis will properly be placed on the numbers who are in the school, in the departments past the age when conversion usually occurs, but who are not as yet con- nected with any church. The secretary needs a very real and very true vision of this phase of the work. It is so easy to be either rejoiced or to feel complacent over the numbers who are led to take this step, but to 130 DECISION DAY rather overlook or forget those who have not done so. There are far more cases where the burden hes too hghtly or the responsibihty is shifted to other slioulders than where an undue emphasis is placed. As indicating the field for work in the Sunday school, the following figures are taken from the year book of the JNIethodist Sunday School Board for 1915. It shows 4,598,000 in Methodist Sunday schools; 2,000,000 of tliese, approximately, are not church members; 230,000 conversions were reported for 1915. Simply as an aid in studying the problem, the fol- lowing little story has proven helpful to some secre- taries, not only from a personal standpoint, but as opening up a somewhat different line of approach to the teacheivs. "WILL THERE BE ANY STARS IN MY CROWN?" A "Once Upon a Time" Story for Grown-Up Sunday School Folks Once upon a time there was a great and wise King. He ruled over his people wisely, but some of them did not want to do what the King knew was best for them. He did not want to punish them if he could help it, but he loved them so much that he finally sent his only Son out to these people to teach them and to show them how much better it would be for them .to do as the King wanted them to do. Some of the people welcomed him gladly and listened to him and loved him and followed his teachings, but some of the wicked ones made him all of the trouble they could and finally drove him away. Before this, however, he had told all of them just what the King wanted them to do, and that all of them were to tell all of their friends and their neighbors about it. He told them how, 131 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY if they would do all of these things, they would some day come to live in the palace with the King, and he told them that the King would have a splendid crown for each one of them to wear. And, what do you think, he said that every time they got some one else to quit doing what was wrong and to obey the rules of the King, there would be a jewel — a star — added to that crown. The crown was made so that there would be room for all the stars they could earn, and those who worked the best could have the finest crown. Long, long after the Prince went back to the palace, a baby girl was born in one of the homes. Her father and mother loved the King and his Son and had been very happy work- ing for them. They were so glad when baby came, and they gave her the best kind of a home. She had good food, which made her body strong. They sent her to the best schools so that her mind was trained better than the minds of lots of other folks. They told her all about the King and his plan for making his people happy, and how she could help by telling other people about it. When she was old enough to understand just what it meant — and she did not have to be grown up, for his rules were so simple and plain and easy that even a little girl could tell others about them — she went into a special school where she could learn just the best way to help others. Finally, when she had grown up to be a splendid young woman, they gave her a whole class of little children, all for her very own. She was to have the chance to tell these children about the King and his Son, and how much they loved these boys and girls, and what they wanted them to do, and what kind of men and women they wanted them to be when they, too, grew up. Now, the King always knew all about his people, and when he saw what a wonderful chance this young woman had, he told his people to make one of the very best crowns they had ever made and to put just lots of the settings for the jewels in it, because anybody who had had all this home life and all this 132 DECISION DAY training and all this chance, could earn ever so many stars for her crown. But, do you know, this young woman got careless. She began to pay too much attention to other things. The King would have been glad to help her, but she didn't talk to him like she used to and didn't ask him to help her. She thought that some other time would do to talk to those little children, and one day one of the boy's parents moved away and took him with them. They went off where there was no one to tell the boy about the King and his way of living and that boy never did learn. Another boy met a man one day who began to teach him bad things, but this man paid so much more at- tention to the boy than did the young woman that the boy just w^ent with him and the King never did get him to come back. This made the teacher sad and she decided to talk with another one of the boys the very next Sunday, but before Sunday came that little boy was sick, and he grew worse and worse, and he never did come back to the school, and she never saw him again. And one by one, for this reason and for that, those children grew up without ever learning to love the King and, do you know, that was really all that the King wanted them to do, just love him; because when we really love anyone we like to do just what they want us to do; and if she had just loved those children so much that they would have loved the King, that would have been all she would have had to do. Well, finally, she had to go to the Palace and see the King. Of course he knew all about it. She had not done anything that was wicked herself, but the King just showed her her crown, and I am sure that there were tears in his eyes when he did it. There was that splendid crown, but nearly every one of those settings stood there empty and ugly. Just a few of them had jewels in them, and these only showed her how it would have looked if it had been all finished. She had to put on that poor unfinished crown and wear it. How different it was from 133 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY what she had once thought that it would be ! When she learned about those children who had once been in her care and had slipped away, and how unhappy they were and how unhappy they made their King, she felt so sorry, but it was too late. How she wished that she might have a chance to try it all over again ! She finally went to the King and told him all about it and asked him to please help her. And what do you think the King did.? He sent just one Httle idea down and put it into the head of that lady's own little girl, and one day she was teaching her own class of little boys and girls, and she thought how her own crown would look unless she did all she could to win a star for every one of these children; and she went right to work, and, of course, when she did that the King helped her all of the time, and finally she had one of the biggest and finest and best crowns that had ever been worn in that Palace. 134 CHAPTER XIII THE NEW SECRETARY The problem which the new secretary faces is de- pendent in large measure upon the former policy of the school and of his successor. Where the work is planned and being carried on in a modern, up-to-date manner, the work of keeping it going is comparatively easy. The average new secretary, however, will usu- ally find that all there is on which to build is the attend- ance records. The first step to be taken is the educational one. The new secretary must realize that the feeling of need The f^i' the records on the part of the school Educational and his fellow officers must be first de- ^^® veloped. The work, even to-day, is in very large measure pioneer work. The lack of rec- ords is not felt in the ordinary school, and the first task of the secretary is well expressed in the words of a prominent educator in outlining tlie duty of the day- school teacher, and would be, paraphrased, "To make tlie members of the school want what the secretary really knows they ought to have." Unless this want can be created, the compilation of complete records in a school which has run for years without them will be admittedly a difficult task. As a general thing, it is necessary to secure eiu'oll- Xhe ment data from the school as 'a wliole. To Starting do this it is necessary to get the confidence and cooperation of the teachers, and then on some day when there is a good attendance 135 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY distribute the enrollment cards and get tlie teachers to give you enough of their valuable class time to have each member fill out the individual card. Keep a record of those who are not present on this Sunday, and week after week, as the attendance records show these to be present, get these additional cards filled out. As this is being done, names will be found where the scholars cannot be located, and here is the call for the starting of the investigation of withdrawals. This little journey into unknown territory leads to another, and the reasons for continued absences are discovered. As the view broadens, one of the great purposes of tlie Sunday school stands out — the leading. of the child to a personal acceptance of Christ. Card after card is found which reports no church membership, and there comes the desire to learn from each teacher just the "why" of every unsaved scholar. Thus each step log- ically leads to the next. There are delightful side trips, little excursions made possible by strictly local conditions, but the broad, beaten path follows the course just outlined. These are the fundamentals on which to build the individual system. No two will be just alike. The properly selected secretary is chosen because of marked ability in the record line, and should al- wajs be given a free hand in methods. A ready- made system never makes an appeal to the ideal secre- tary, but it is equally true that some good can be gleaned from the study of those plans which others have found successful. Study the details of the indi- vidual problem, seek the reason for each form shown in the book, go through the catalogue of every supply house, seek to know what others are doing, and then 136 THE NEW SECRETARY carefully, painstakingly develop the system which you can best work, in your own way, in your own school. Found it on the fundamentals of enrollment, at- tendance, study of absences and withdrawals, and with these once established, be your own mental?^*" builder. One additional suggestion may be given the new secretary. It is a plan calling for information which can be most reasonably and most tactfully secured by the new secretary early in the work. It is the survey of the school for the reason for non church membership. The new secre- tary can ask rather personal questions and conduct lines of inquiry which would be closed to one who had been doing the work for some time. A regular period- ical following up of each case of continued connection with the school, but without uniting with the church, will frequently do more good than almost anything else. The secretary can approach the teacher in an impersonal way which is open to no other officer, and many a teacher has been led to see the importance of this work simply by being asked to make these regular reports. The new secretary will be wise in going slowly. The average Sunday school is not strong enough to have the entire dose of a complete modern secretary system administered at one time. If the four funda- mentals can be thoroughly established in one or two years' time, the secretary is to be congratulated on the progress. In a very real sense, each Sunda}^ school secretary is conducting an experimental station, and the success of the experiment will, in a very large measure, depend upon the cooperation which is secured from those who are being experimented upon. This particular phase 137 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY will appeal to a certain element in nearly every school, which, if tactfully handled, will make the work of the secretary not only easier and more pleasant but much more effective. The new secretary, in the enthusiasm for methods which will mean increased regularity of attendance, will do well to profit by one phase of expe- Dangers rience, which has been dearly bought by more than one secretary or superintend- ent. Contests and competition between classes and departments in the same school, fairly based on per- centage of attendance, rather than totals, are bene- ficial, but decidedly need safeguarding. Any plan which is so devised or conducted as to result in classes seeking to avoid having new members assigned to them, lest they be more irregular than the old mem- bers, and thus lower the class standard, is decidedly to be avoided. It is far better to have a class which per- haps does not have quite so high a percentage of at- tendance, but which has the honor and credit of hold- ing some member under very difficult circumstances. While regularity of attendance is desirable, there are other featiu'es whicli carry still more lionor, and the new secretary will build very cautiously and experi- ment carefully before launching any big campaign or contest. The new secretary will need two things, at first thought diametrically opposed. He needs all the ex- perience which can be secured second- Essentials hand, and for this reason it would be far better if the newly elected or appointed secretary could be given a few weeks, or even months, for visiting other Sunday schools and seeing how the work is done in those schools. As said before, the 138 THE NEW SECRETARY position is not merely a clerical one and requires a very general knowledge, not only of record-keeping, but of the principles of modern Sunday school work. The second element is self-confidence. The secretary who is not sure of his own plans and methods will not be successful in getting his fellow workers to believe in them or to give them a fair trial. A business mag- azine contained two phrases which the new secretary would do well to keep constantly in mind: "The one who thi7iks that he can't do a thing is usually right." "The first half of IF is I." Red tape should be dispensed with. The sole pur- pose of the records of the secretary is to increase the efficiency of the school, and red tape and efficiency are not synonymous terms. Study the characteristics of the ideal secretary and develop just as many of them as is possible. Remember that a large measure of the success of your school will be in your keeping. Seek to make yourself worthy of this trust and this responsibility. No higher aim need ever be sought than to live up to the fullest responsibility of the modern Sunday school secretary. 339 CHAPTER XIV QUICK REFERENCE RECORDS For Larger Schools In schools where the enrollment runs to the hun- dreds, or even to the thousands, it is somewhat diffi- cult to compile some of the details without a degree of work which is usually prohibitive. This condition has been met in some schools by methods which not only make for quick reference, but which also attract atten- tion by their appeal to the eye. The chart shown in the illustration is one which is applicable to almost any school. Some schools which keep the individual record of the scholar or the class in a bound book use the same method of different colors and shapes of labels to indicate the various changes, etc. An ex- planation of this one chart will give the basis for all of these systems and will also serve to show tlie extent to which these details are kept, and the value of doing so. This is, as explained before, only one method out of many, but is a representative one. Each label indicates a member of the school. The oval label is used with two different colored borders, one red and the other gilt. The gilt border indicates a member of the school who is also a member of the church. The red border indicates a nonchurch mem- ber. The hearts indicate those who have just united with the school and who have not yet been registered as active members. A great man}^ schools do not enter a 140 First Methodist Episcopal Sunday School OUR AIM- The Deveuopment of the H15HEST ?1 on the chart has a different meaning ae explained below - that it is just ae easy to attach one as the other and far A put on a label than to fill out several cardn for fiTino- ^ I explained bslow ■ ffllf ^ LabelB plac O J,:^ ^-% Thla label : { > Blclcneae, li .asB gratlfylngly i QUICK REFERENCE RECORDS new scholar as an active member until a certain per- centage of attendance is recorded, usually fifty per cent. The hearts are in two colors, red and gilt, indi- cating, as do the oval labels, nonchurch membership and church membership. The round seals indicate withdrawals. The white one indicates a withdrawal for a good reason, the red one a withdrawal for a poor reason. The diamond-shaped label indicates a transfer from one class or from one position in the school to another. The star indicates that the member has imited with the church din-ing the current year, in which this chart is in effect. The number on each label indicates the enrollment number of the individual scholar, so that the name can be ascertained at any time, by reference to the nu- merical register. This chart deals simply with enrollment details and does not show attendance. All of the details which the executive officers of the school need in planning their constructive work, are shown on this chart. The following are some of the phases revealed by the chart which would require prohibitive time to sort out from even a most thorough card system. The relative size of classes and departments is shown at a glance and is easily subdivided into church members and nonchurch members, by classes, by de- partments, and the totals for the school as a whole. The executive officers can tell with just what elements they are dealing in every section of the school. The heart-shaped labels reveal the activities of the school, so far as reaching the community is concerned. The growth of the school by departments and by classes is easily traced. The classes or departments 141 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY which are growing are clearly indicated, as well as those which are simply standing still. The informa- tion goes further. The chart shows clearly whether the school is enrolling simply church members or whether it is reaching out for new material. It shows which classes or departments are doing this work among nonchurch members. The influence of the school on the nonreligious life of the community is absolutely traced in this way. When the new member becomes an active member the proper oval hibel is placed over the heart-shaped label. Again, there is the efficiency test of the school by departments and l)y classes. Holding the scholar after enrollment is of prime importance, and this chart focuses attention on this specific problem. The heart- shaped label wliich goes on the cliart and stays there is a warning, and the superintendent or proper execu- tive officer is prepared by the use of this chart to fol- low up the individual scholar and exert the proper influence in bringing back the one who is indifferent. The superintendent who has the information before him knows positively to what teacher to say, "How do you do it?" as well as to whom to say, "Why don't you?" The chart will eliminate every waste motion, in this respect, on the part of both superintendent and secretary. Church membership information is recognized as being valuable, but it is usually so hard to compile in any way that will make it available for quick reference that it is, as a rule, simply a matter of guesswork. A system of this nature gives this information at a glance. Anyone who wishes to make a close analytical study of the transition period in Sunday school life has all of the necessary data easily available. In this con- 142 " QUICK REFERENCE RECORDS nection there is another great possibihty. The number on the red-bordered label will indicate the approxi- mate date of enrollment as each new member is listed on the numerical register. (In the case of the school which is already organized, but which has not used any numerical register, the first step is to ascertain the approximate year when each member joined the school. Tlie numbers can then be assigned more or less arbitrarily, giving tlie scholar who has had the long- est connection witli the school the lowest number. When tliis system is once established, the lower the number on tlie label, the longer connection with the school is indicated.) Therefore a low numl^er on a red-bordered label indicates a long connection with the school on the part of some one who was not a church member at the time of uniting with the school and who has not been brought into church fellowship. Data of this nature are invaluable in working with Decision Day records, whether the Decision Day is one Sunday in the year or every Sunday. The next step is the crucial one. The study of with- drawals, and particularly those for poor reasons, is a most vital element in modern Sunday school manage- ment. These labels show the information in graphic form. The round white labels, indicating withdrawal for good reason, are simply a matter of record. The red ones are the real danger signals of the school. They mean a withdrawal for which some one, some- where, is directly to blame. The superintendent w^ho sees them accumulating in a class or a department cannot be too quick in applying "first aid." The superintendent who does not have this information available is laboring under a heavy handicap. This 143 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY system furnishes the information by classes, by depart- ments, bj'^ the school as a whole. It is no longer a matter of surmise as to the age at which scholars leave the Sunday schools, neither is there any element of doubt as to whether the reasons are good or poor. The star which indicates union with the church is again the test of the work by departments and by classes. Again, the superintendent knows where to say "How?" and where "Why not?" At a glance he tells the critical age, knows where to concentrate, and applies the test of the real efficiency of the work of the school. These are bvit a few of the phases which are made prominent by this system of labels. There are innum- erable other features which will develop as the chart is prepared and its opportunities studied. The informa- tion furnished by this chart alone will give the aggres- sive Sunday school superintendent opportunities for effective work. To the new secretary the work may look compli- cated. As a matter of fact, it is exceedingly simple. It is just as easy to put on one label as another, and the shape and color of the label tell their own story and in a way which would require an exceedingly com- plicated card system to record it by that method. This system also serves as a check on the compila- tion of some of the vital statistics. For example, it requires positively that the secretary know whether or not the new scholar is a church member. Without this knowledge the proper label cannot be selected. In case of withdrawal, the records must show whether it is for a good or a poor reason, in order that the proper label may be used. This holds good throughout the entire system. 144 QUICK REFERENCE RECORDS The cost element is always one to be considered, but in tliis case it is reduced to a niininuim. The labels are simply stock ones which any stationer can furnish. Where they are used in a bound book the trifling cost of the labels is the entire expense. Where a chart is preferred the secretary can simply use a sheet of card- board, ruled to shoAv the dej)artments and classes. The system can be made as simple as may be practical or as elaborate as may be necessary to meet the needs of the individual school. The system is not a "cure-all." It will do nothing by itself. It will take time and careful work to keep it up, but can be made to repay all of the effort ex- pended upon it. It will enable both the secretary and the executive officers to know the school as they have never been able to know it before. It will not be re- garded as a result, but it will afford wonderful oppor- tunities for results. 145 CHAPTER XV THINGS TO REMEMBER Records are not results. They may be an evidence of results or an incentive to effort. They are not the end, only a possible means to the end. There is a difference between records and knowl- edge. The latter may be useful to the individual possessor; the recording of the knowledge makes it available to all. Sunday school records mean an investment of time and money and energy, and the investment should not be made unless there is an intention to make it pay returns. Many a school is suffering from an excess of unassimilated plans and methods. In the keeping of secretary's records, an outlay of thought will bring far greater returns than a mere outlay of money. Go slow in experimenting. Experiments cost money. Every branch of modern industry is eager to study the methods used elsewhere and quick to profit by the experience of others. In co-related prob- lems, the approved method is to seek the solution which is nearest perfect and begin at that stage, rather than to retread the various fundamental steps in the proc- ess. The Sunday school secretary is, therefore, wise 146 THINGS TO REMEMBER in making a close intensive study of the industrial and commercial problems which so much resemble those in the Sunday school work, seeking the approved meth- ods in general use, and devoting all of the time and effort to adapting them to the needs of the particular school. The work of the secretary's department will center around the ability of the general secretary and will take on the characteristics of that individual. This is an element to be considered in the selection of a new secretary. The superintendent and secretar}'^ must work in complete harmony. Team work is an absolute essen- tial. The superintendent is tlie chief executive of the scliool. The secretary should be selected with this consideration. The secretary can perform a very valuable service by releasing the school which is tied up with red tape. Red tape always decreases efficiency. Proper records always increase efficiency. Methods are more than forms. The ability to col- lect information is more important than the particular rulings in a record book. The secretary who is filled with a desire to so study his school as to be of the great- est help to it will always outstrip the automatic user of the finest ready-made system. The secretary is essentially the superintendent's assistant. The greatest need of the average superin- tendent is not new plans or methods, but time to work 147 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY out those the need of which is ah^eady felt. The secre- tary's job is to see that the superintendent has this time by making it possible to eliminate every waste motion and concentrate every available moment on real constructive work. The secretary who has a thorough, comprehensive grasp of the fundamentals of record-keeping can suc- cessfully select his own methods. If he tries individual theory, ignoring the basic principles, there is trouble ahead for both secretary and school. Statistics, figures, are peculiar. They are like chil- dren — it is no use to try to work with them or get them to do anything for you, unless j^ou, in tiu'n, like tliem and like to work with them. Records are important, but they constitute only one phase of Sunday school work. They should be, and they can be, collected with all due regard to the value of the limited lesson period. The secretary's system should be planned with a view of not interrupting the class during the time which properly belongs to the teacher. The starting point in the development of any record system is a study of the purposes of the institution. If the Sunday school be merely an educational factor in the lives of its members, one form of records will be needed. If the membership be regarded as a won- derful instrumentality which is intrusted to the officers and teachers to be used in His service in the com- munity, something entirely different will have to be 148 THINGS TO KEMEMBER devised in the recording of its activities. Know the school, its aims and objectives, first. Records are inanimate, but have a terrific amount of energy stored up in them. As coal releases its en- ergy when used by the expert fireman in furnace or under boiler, so the records yield their greatest value when they are properly placed and properly handled by the expert secretary, whose first consideration is the transmission of the energy which he alone can release. Don't be discouraged if the results are not imme- diately evident, or if cooperation is not spontaneous. Remember that the work is new and is but little under- stood. With the leaders only is the work of the secre- tary filling a long-felt want. With the majority that want must be created as well as supplied. Remember that the momentum of the mass depends upon getting the atom started. Concentrate the first work on an individual, perhaps a class, possibly a department. Remember that school loyalty is one of the aims of the work of the secretary. The most valuable growth of the school is from within. It is a most important element in the work of the secretary to arouse school loyalty and make constant appeal to it. School loy- alty is something which can wither and die very quickly simply through inactivity. Keeping it exer- cised is one of the secretary's jobs. The real test of the efficiency of the work of the secretary is not to be found in scientifically ruled books or beautifully kept records, but in the fact as to whether or not the work and the records have benefited 149 THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SECRETARY the school. It is not a question of what tools have been used, but of the results achieved. If the attendance is not more regular; if the withdrawals for poor rea- sons are not checked; if a larger percentage of the members do not unite with the church, if the efficiency of the officers, as well as of the teaching force, is not raised, if the school is not better for the work which has been done, then the real purpose of record-keeping has not been achieved. 150 INDEX Absences -. 48 Excused 53, 54 Forms 49, 51, 53, 55, 57 Advertising 124 Age of Conversion 69, 126 Attendance Records 32 How to secure 34 Forms 33, 35, 37, 39, 43 Birthday Forms 89 Bulletin Boards 96, 97, 105 Business Meeting 106 Forms 105 Class Records , 32 Forms 33, 35, 37, 39, 43, 116 Contests 114, 138 Decision Day Helps 126 Forms 129 Enrollment Securing iiiforrnalion . . ^ 20 Essent ial data 22, 140 Enrollment secretary 26 Forms 21, 23, 25 Home Influences 67, 76, 108 Letters To parents 82 Forms .S3, 84, 87, 88, 101 To scholars 86 New Teachers 14 New Members How to enroll 20 How to hold 30, 42, 48, 62 How to assign to class 27 How to secure 85, 108, 119 Forms 110, HI, 113, 115 151 INDEX Parents Letters to 82 Reports to 101 Prospective Members 108 Forms 110, 111, 113, 115 Record Book 40 Cards and loose leaves 93, 94, 95 Register 31 Reports To school 91 How to prepare 92 To classes 103 To parents 101 To scholars 93, 99 To business meeting 106 Rural Schools 118 Survey 119, 121 Secretary, The In business 6 Duties 15 Qualifications 17 Training 7 Suggestions to new 135 Starting Point for New Secretary 135 Studying the Scholar 26, 60 Survey of Community 1 19, 121 Teacher's Report 45 Cooperation 131 Test of the Work 149 Transfers 68 Forms 75, 77 Vacation Records 58 Forms 59, 60, 61 Withdrawals 64 How to watch 143 Chart of causes 66 Forms 73 152 ^M rinceton Theological Semmary-Speer Library 1 1012 01040 3790 lli'-i;': •.'I :!::■:;!::!