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 Educational Work in 
 the Young Women’s 
 Christian Association 
 
 By Helen L. Thomas 
 
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Educational Work in 
 the Young Women’s 
 Christian Association 
 
 By Helen L. Thomas 
 
 Secretary of the National Board for Educational Work 
 
 Published by 
 National Board 
 
 OF THE Young Women's Christian Associations 
 
 600 Lexington Avenue, New York City 
 
 1916 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2016 
 
 https://archive.org/details/educationalworkiOOthom 
 
Educational Work in the Young Women’s 
 Christian Association 
 
 By Helen L. Thomas 
 
 For half a century the Young Women’s Christian 
 Association has been erecting guide posts along the road 
 of successful work with girls. It is the aim of this pam- 
 phlet to give a brief statement of the results of Association 
 experience in educational work. 
 
 An Inspiring Past 
 
 When two rented rooms composed the entire plant of 
 the very first American Young Women’s Christian Asso- 
 ciation started in Boston in 1866 — even then the educational 
 purpose was unmistakable. ‘ ‘ The reading room was particu- 
 larly large and airy, and with books and magazines, a few 
 cuts and a loaned piano, it was a cheerful place to which to 
 ask young women.” Moreover, as a modest forerunner 
 of an organized educational department, girls met regu- 
 larly in a singing class. Not long after, as evidence of 
 progress we find evening classes in astronomy, botany, 
 physiology, penmanship and bookkeeping. The first three 
 give a hint of the intellectual ambition for which Boston 
 girls are noted; the others have a vocational fiavor. A 
 much larger vocational undertaking, however, than a mere 
 class in bookkeeping or penmanship was the training 
 course for domestic service carried on for years with suc- 
 cess in the Boston Association aided and abetted by the 
 
 3 
 
employment department which had there, as elsewhere, to 
 cope with the problem of the unfit. Conspicuously suc- 
 cessful, too, was the needlework department inaugurated 
 by the New York Association. Under competent teachers 
 large classes of girls were ti’ained as seamstresses for what 
 amounted to a new occupation; for not only were the 
 graduates able to do fine hand-work, but they could adver- 
 tise themselves as fully able to handle the various makes 
 of the new-fangled sewing machines. 
 
 Evening and day classes in sewing and dressmaking, 
 for home use chiefly, were introduced into all the early 
 Associations and have continued from that day to this 
 with a popularity dimmed somewhat these last few years 
 by the competition of the ready-made garment. But if 
 it was to keep abreast with the needs of the times, the 
 Association could not stop with training girls for both paid 
 and unpaid work done only within home walls. In the 
 seventies and the eighties in all the large cities, offices and 
 business houses were opening up new opportunities for 
 girls seeking to earn a living. Here was a chance for the 
 large city Association. Telegraphy was hailed in one 
 instance as the coming occupation for girls, and Phila- 
 delphia opened a class in that subject. Phonography and 
 typewriting were taught in another as providing a means 
 of employment “most remunerative for their sex,” to be 
 followed by classes in retouching negatives, photo coloring, 
 technical design, and free-hand drawing. It all sounds 
 easy and natural enough to us a few decades later. But 
 when we stop to think, we ai’e filled with amazement at 
 the initiating energy of the Association women of a genera- 
 tion ago. Such vision they had, and such courage and 
 
 4 
 
ability to meet new situations! i\Iore often than not the 
 Association had no precedent to follow. Private enter- 
 prise was then, as now, paving the way for real educational 
 progress. Domestic science in the Association antedated 
 the teaching of cooking in the public schools in city after 
 city. 
 
 It would take too long to relate the interesting story 
 in all its details, but to quote a good summary of Associa- 
 tion educational activity for the first decades: “In the 
 
 days when there were no free public libraries, and mem- 
 berships in corporate libraries or rentals for books were 
 costly, in the days when there were no free evening schools, 
 in the days when there was no available trade or tech- 
 nical instruction for girls, in the days when household arts 
 had not been academically fornudated, the Christian Asso- 
 ciation, which recognized mental cultiire as a necessity in 
 the whole development of young womanhood, undertook 
 to collect libraries, teach English branches and genei'al sub- 
 jects, provide cla.s.ses preparing the pupils for self-support, 
 and gather the untrained into classes in sewing, cooking 
 and other domestic accomplishments. But even when these 
 educational agencies appeared in community after com- 
 munity the city Association had still the task before it 
 in making books accessible to busy girls, or cultivating or 
 guiding their choice in reading ; in supplying evening 
 classes at the hours when young women could attend, and 
 for such blocks of time as they could devote to study, also 
 in stimulating them to begin and heartening them to con- 
 tinue; in studying the labor market and opening classes 
 from whicb graduates could reasonably hope to go into 
 occupations for which they had showed natural aptitude ; 
 
and in seizing the first opportunity to secure teachers of 
 the common household subjects which everybody declared 
 all girls should understand, but for teaching which no 
 provision had apparently even been made. ’ ’ ^ 
 
 Our Challenging Opportunity 
 
 With schools and other institutions duplicating fea- 
 tures that were characteristic of the Association alone, 
 with radical changes transforming the realm of wmmen’s 
 work in the home and outside, the demands upon the Asso- 
 ciation have been changing correspondingly. For example, 
 the emphasis has shifted from sewing and cooking as 
 accomplishments to home-keeping in the large. The range 
 of courses has enlarged to include scores of subjects. 
 Clearer distinctions have had to be drawn between train- 
 ing for home and trade use, as making over hats for the 
 family and learning the millinery trade. Flexibility of 
 method has made ample room not only for the class 
 groups but for the club educational program preceded by 
 a ten-cent supper and followed by a frolic. Changing 
 demands and changing methods ! But still an immense 
 unoccupied field — a field barely touched by all the educa- 
 tional forces together. Just to hint at the size of the field. 
 Few only of the women engaged in homekeeping — the 
 largest occupation of all — are even to-day equipped by 
 training to do their work wdth the efficiency demanded in 
 ordinary business. Even yet half of the girls of the 
 country have no more than an elementary education. Only 
 one in hundreds of the young women employed in indus- 
 trial occupations enter with preparation for the task, 
 
 * “Fifty Years of Association tVork Among Young Women.” 
 — Eli~ahr'ih ^X'ilson. 
 
while the industry itself, instead of continuing the process 
 of education for real living, has often a deadening effect 
 that can be counteracted only by the right kind of recrea- 
 tive education. As against these undeniable facts, there 
 are on every hand the most compelling demands for effi- 
 cient work — industrial and commercial, professional and 
 volunteer — demands for a quality of ser^■ice which the 
 Association has such resources for developing among 
 young women as no other existing organization can boast. 
 
 For Every Woman 
 
 In the earliest days, As.sociation classes were opened 
 for girls who worked. To-day we have a flexible educa- 
 tional institution that enrolls 50,000 girl and women 
 students in more than fifty subjects in classwork alone and 
 several thousand more in study clubs; that touches many 
 thousands through educational talks and reading rooms, 
 and makes use of a wide vai’iety of means fitted to some 
 need of almost every girl and woman. 
 
 “I got my first inspiration in the Association expres- 
 sion class,” acknowledged a young woman who was asked 
 the secret of her successful professional career. 
 
 ‘‘First, it was that English ela.ss. and then one thing 
 after another in the Association stirred me up to doing 
 things, and now I imi a business of my ovm.” was the 
 te.stimony of a foreign-born girl. ‘‘To see the way she 
 i-uns her business would do you good.” explained the 
 secretary on the side, “and as for the girl herself, you'd 
 never guess .she was the same person who came to us three 
 years ago.” 
 
 The little gild who must needs master fractions and 
 
ilie multiplication tal)lc to hold her place in the store; 
 the young woman in tlie office who must be able to trans- 
 late the Spanish letters from South America ; the young 
 housewife whose little family are taking their dinners out 
 until she can engineer a two-eoui’se meal, and the well- 
 educated Avoman who seeks exact knowledge of social con- 
 ditions and training for the task of meeting them — these 
 all have found the very help they need in the Association 
 educational depaidment — the Women’s University, it is 
 sometimes popularly called. 
 
 Principles of Work 
 
 "Our greatest draAvback is to act before we study,” 
 said a prominent Avoman leader in a public address 
 recently. To be really successful, the educational pro- 
 gram of the Association in anj’ pai-ticular city must be 
 definitely based not upon theory hut upon a true interpre- 
 tation of things as they are and girls as they are in that 
 city. In fact, the chief object of interest and study for 
 the committee is girls, not education as such. To make 
 its Avork real, it must, fir.st, last and ahvays, take account 
 of girls and their needs, not in the abstract, but real gilds 
 in tlieir families, or girls aAvay from home, many of 
 them Avith earning iioAver to develop — all of them Avith 
 bodies, minds and spirits to lie trained and equipped 
 for Avork and play and social action. In the second place, 
 a Avise educational committee Avill have at hand for desk 
 use and committee guidance catalogues and uji-to-date 
 infoianation, preferal)ly in cai’d catalogue foi-m, aliout the 
 schools, i)uhlic and iiidvate. Avith facts about the progress 
 and ti'eud of all vocational courses for girls. Lastly, tlie 
 
committee will need to have a "rasp of the Association 
 itself, locally and nationally, what it does and why, as an 
 instrument of service for girls. In the light, then, of 
 what girls need to help them to become wiser and more 
 useful members of society, what other agencies are doing, 
 and what the Association is organized to do, the Associa- 
 tion, through a committee formed for that purpose, con- 
 ducts such forms of educational work — clubs, classes, tours, 
 exhibits, etc. — as are best adapted to girls living in the 
 city and its environs. “There’s a reason” could be said 
 of every good Association enterprise. 
 
 Suggested Educational Study of a City 
 
 I (U'.NER.U, 
 
 1 I’opuhifion. Xniiil)ev of girls and women in the city (age 
 
 limits according to figures obtainable). Xnmber of 
 girls away from borne. 
 
 2 Xiimher of foreign-speaking women and nationalities rep- 
 
 resented. Sections where they live* Work done for 
 them by any agency. 
 
 II VOCATION.S FOR GiRLS 
 
 1 Occupations for girls and women; number employed as 
 
 school teachers, private teachers of music, etc.; ])hysi- 
 cians: osteo])aths; trained nurses; practical nurses; 
 stenographers; piivate secretaries; bookkeepers; tele- 
 ))hone operators; saleswomen and store workers; dress- 
 makers; milliners; hotel and restaurant workers; 
 factory workers ; domestic workers. 
 
 2 Emptopmenl agencies. Which of the above obtain posi- 
 
 tions thronsrh employment agencies. Requirements 
 made in different occupations. Efficiency of workers. 
 Supply and demand. 
 
 Ill Education AL Agencies 
 
 1 Schools 
 
 a Day Schools — Xnmber of girls in grammar and high 
 schools. Percentage completing each grade for past 
 three years. How many went to high school ? What 
 in general are girls doing who didn’t go to high 
 school — to college? Exact character of courses in 
 household arts with the number enrolled. Business 
 
 n 
 
courses ami iminber enrolled. Comparison with the 
 nnmlier of positions. Recent changes and trend of 
 (laining for girls. 
 
 h Kriiools — Xninher of girls in attendance. .\t- 
 
 lendance compared with enrollment. Honrs and ses- 
 sions a week and numher of weeks. Class and 
 aj)])roximate ages of girls and motives for attending. 
 Rece)it changes and trend. 
 
 c lluainess CoUrqes — Numher of students — city or out- 
 of-town girls. Compare enrollment with numher of 
 otlice |)ositions. Entrance requirements. Any change 
 in view? (iraduation requirements. When and how 
 girls are jdaeed. vStanding of graduates with busi- 
 ness men. Tuition and length of course. Salary of 
 graduates. 
 
 d Trade and Continuation Schools for Girls — Numher of 
 girls enrolled. Character and length of courses. 
 Number of graduates. Demand for and supply of 
 workers. tVages of graduates com|)ared with otliers. 
 
 e \ ocational ('oiirses for Girls — not included in the above. 
 
 f ]'oeational Guidance in the Schools — full particulars. 
 
 2 Libraries 
 
 Location of libraries and branches. Arrangements for 
 exchange of books in schools, factories and centers. 
 Hours when open. l"se made of libraries and reading 
 rooms by girls. 
 
 ;1 Lectures and Public Amusements 
 
 Where and for whom are any lectures or entertainment 
 courses? What ones, if any. a))peal to girls and 
 women? Number, location and character of moving 
 picture shows. Attendance of girls. !Most popular 
 iilms. Any educational films? 
 
 TV Deditction.s for As.sociatiox EniTCATTOx.vi. Work 
 
 Sources of Information 
 
 vStatistics and other facts for this study may be obtained from 
 the reports of local officials, particularly the superintendent of 
 schools, from the state and federal census reports and from the 
 annual reports of the United States commissioner of education. 
 Other valuable information can be gained through inquiry from 
 teachers, superintendents of schools, employers of girls, employment 
 bureaus, ])astors, parents and social workers, conversation with girls 
 and women, an analysis of the business suceess or failure of girls 
 recorded in the eni])loyment dejiartnient and from a study of tlu' 
 successes and failures of other organizations. 
 
 10 
 
Organization of Committee 
 
 The chairman of the educational committee should be 
 a member of the l)oard gifted with peculiar ciualifications 
 for this position, since tlm chairman is the keystone of 
 the committee. She must have the power to see and to 
 rally other women under her strong leadership. Educa- 
 tional qualifications alone will not serve, unless supple- 
 mented by warm human sympathy and understanding of 
 girls. The other members of the committee, numbering 
 from five to twelve persons, should be gathered about the 
 chairman with the idea of forming a representative com- 
 mittee that can work together. There should be a repre- 
 sentative from each of the committees also interested in 
 education, as the girls’ work, industrial, employment, and 
 immigration work committees, if such exist. There might 
 also be a public-spirited business woman, a high school 
 teacher, and other open-minded women representing home, 
 professional and civic interests. Each should be chosen 
 with reference to her special ability and her willingness 
 to study and to serve. 
 
 Flexibilit}^ of mind is absolutely essential for develop- 
 ing in the Association, not another night school, or a few^ 
 classes, but adapted educational plans, city-wide in scope 
 and elastic enough to fit diverse groups and individual 
 girls. Appointment on the committee should be for one 
 year, and reappointment should betoken service, not sen- 
 timent. The chairman should make it her duty to build 
 up a well-balanced working committee. It wdll be her 
 duty, too, in consultation with the president of the board, 
 to appoint such sub-committecs as are needed for special 
 parts of the educational work. Such committees might 
 
 11 
 
l)C for (1) general education, (2) household arts, (3) 
 commercial and business subjects, (4) library and reading 
 room, (5) music, (6) printing and publicity. For some 
 of these committees one person would suffice, and they 
 would not as a rule require more than three members. Sub- 
 chairmen should be members of the educational committee 
 and report at the regular meetings. For really effective 
 service, the whole sub-committee should meet with the 
 general committee at stated times, particularly at the 
 beginning and the end of a term’s work. 
 
 Where there is a members’ council, certain gilds should 
 be elected to that body to represent the educational work. 
 This council is a discussion group and would be the means 
 by which the educational committee could get the gilds’ 
 viewpoint. Ways might be developed by which they 
 could co-operate in helping to make the educational 
 activities fit conditions. 
 
 Committee Work 
 
 Meetings. The educational committee should hold 
 regular monthly meetings at the hour agreed upon as most 
 convenient for the members. When the usual hour of 
 meeting occurs in the daytime it is well to hold some of 
 the meetings in the evening, especially when a full attend- 
 ance of sub-committee members is desired. Business and 
 professional women whose service may be of inestimable 
 value may thus be utilized on the committee. Every 
 meeting should be made too valuable to miss. Reports, 
 discussions ^nd new business must be attended to, but 
 place should be made at every meeting for other things 
 that would keep the members alive to their opportunity. 
 They should realize that the Association is or ought to 
 
 12 
 
be one of the great factoi’s in the city life, and that the 
 educational work is not incidental but fundamental. In 
 order that the Association may be one in fact as well as 
 theory, besides interlinking committee work, it is impor- 
 tant to have the work of other departments occasionally 
 presented. It is quite as important, also, that the com- 
 mittee be kept in closest touch with current conditions 
 affecting girls and women. The present industrial situa- 
 tion, or business opportunities for women, unemployment 
 among women — such subjects as these would give reality 
 to committee study and planning. The high school prin- 
 cipal or the school superintendent might be called on to 
 speak of what the schools are doing to train girls for life, 
 or to confer upon ways in which the Association could 
 work with the schools. The attention of the committee 
 should at times be called to legislation affecting the 
 employment of girls, the regulations about working papers, 
 and up-to-date statistics of the number of young girls 
 going out to work — the girls whose need may be greatest, 
 and with whom the Association may have established no 
 contact whatever. 
 
 Program. All the educational work of the Association 
 should be co-ordinated and correlated under one educational 
 committee, so that the entire resources of the Association 
 may be within reach of all girls alike. It is the duty of 
 this committee not to run a department, but to provide 
 for the educational needs of the entire membership. The 
 committee should be en rapport with all educational plans 
 in the large, though the details ^can be left to sub-com- 
 mittees. So varied are the needs of different girls that 
 tlie responsibility for carrying out plans for certain 
 
 ir, 
 
natural groups within the Association, as the younger 
 girls and the industrial girls, may be assigned in a large 
 measure to the committees in closest touch with the groups 
 in question. When committees are represented on the 
 educational committee overlapping or conflict in plans will 
 be obviated. The program for the year should be blocked 
 out in advance. A written policy ^ outlining the organiza- 
 tion of the committee and the current activities will be 
 most helpful, giving definiteness both to committee aims 
 and plans. ' 
 
 Budget. In order to mature a program for the year 
 it is necessary for the committee to know how much money 
 will be at its disposal. It is the duty of the committee to 
 make out in advance its budget for the year, estimating 
 its probable income and expense. The expense items will 
 include salaries, supplies, lectures, printing and advertis- 
 ing, new library books, papers and magazines. The sources 
 of income may be fees from classes and educational clubs, 
 income from special endovunent, and special contributions 
 or scholarships. Since class fees are conditioned by the 
 character of the course and upon the ability of the student 
 to pay, rather than the actual expense of the course, the 
 total income where the missionary spirit flourishes cannot 
 be expected to equal the expense of the department. The 
 fees of certain classes offered will bring in a surplus, others 
 may meet the actual cost involved, but still others, as 
 elementary subjects which may require the best kind of a 
 teacher, will bring little or no income. AVlien the budget 
 has been approved by the board, it will be the duty of 
 the educational committee to co-operate with the finance 
 
 ’ See siia}iost(‘(l ])olicy ]'agp .S.t. 
 
 14 
 
committee not for raising its own estimated budget deficit 
 as a separate issue but in doing its share toward raising 
 in advance the whole Association budget. The committee 
 must keep within its own budget appropriation. If unfore- 
 seen need for more money arises, the matter will have to 
 be taken up by the board for action. 
 
 The Educational Secretary 
 
 Xo large Association can satisfactorily develop its 
 educational work without an educational secretary. Some- 
 times, as the next best thing to the whole time of a secre- 
 tary for educational work, a combination of duties is made, 
 as a secretary for membership and educational work. The 
 number of educational secretaries for the period from 1909 
 to 1915 increased from nineteen to fortj'-seven. This fact 
 .speaks for itself. Efficient as the work of a committee 
 may be, it is necessaiy to have the constant service of a 
 member of the staff under the direction of the committee, 
 woi’king always, of course, in harmony with the board and 
 the general secretary. This educational secretary acts 
 as organizer, promoter and executive. She cannot be 
 expected to do much teaching. She is an administrator 
 and should be free for general work during the hours 
 when classes and clubs are meeting. This is a reason why 
 the combination sometimes made of domestic science 
 director and educational secretary is unsatisfactory. To 
 get best results, the educational secretary should have 
 sufficient stenographic help. Class fees should be paid and 
 receipts given at the general office with the exception of 
 such cases as the secretary wishes to handle herself. On 
 genei’al principles she .should not he so tied up with office 
 
 1.) 
 
details that she will be kept from using her time to best 
 advantage in her city-wide field. A good portion of her 
 working hours should be spent outside the Association 
 seeking out girls, acquainting leading persons and organi- 
 zations with what the Association is about, discovering the 
 best possible teachers and leaders, enlisting friends and 
 patrons and keeping on the keen scent for new lines of 
 effort, particularly new fields for vocational training. 
 Equipment 
 
 Sometimes a new Association carries on certain forms 
 of educational work with little space and under hamper- 
 ing conditions. But such handicai)s will not be tolerated 
 in a large city longer than absolutely necessary. Well- 
 lighted, airy rooms, in keeping with the dignity of the 
 organization, should be provided, the number to be deter- 
 mined by the size and character of the city. Ideally, 
 every room should be used during the greatest possible 
 number of hours day and evening. Each room, so far as 
 practicable, should be xisable for a number of purposes 
 with ample provision for storing away Association sup- 
 plies, material and the students’ working properties. 
 Seldom is there sufficient closet and shelf room for the 
 use of sewing, millinery, and art and handicraft classes. 
 Care should be taken that the domestic science kitchen be 
 equipped adequately but not elaborately. If a separate 
 dining room is out of the question, an alcove set off by 
 screens may serve the pxxrpose. The idea of having a 
 model ai)artment in the building does not seem to be 
 gi'owing in favor rajudly, pi’esumably because the amount 
 of space is considered more valuable for other purjioses. 
 i\lnch can be said in favor of the custom of having a 
 
 ii; 
 
kitchen fitted up with the o(iuii)inent rccpiired in a small 
 family, where the club <iirls can l)c taught to cook, under 
 conditions more like those at home than those afforded by 
 the domestic science kitchen. Indeed, an actual home 
 kitchen is sometimes used for a cooking class of girls or 
 housewives. In lieu of room at the Association, or for 
 the greater convenience of girls in different sections of the 
 city, church and school kitchens are also pressed into sei’- 
 vice by the domestic science director for extension classes 
 taught by herself or a' supervised pupil teacher from her 
 advanced cookery course. Similar extension classes in 
 sewing and millinery are feasible, not to speak of other 
 subjects. 
 
 Reading Room 
 
 A dim, half-lighted room, furnished with ancient copies 
 of magazines, may serve as a rest room. But a reading 
 room, small though it may be, can be an important means 
 of popular education, if well-equipped, well-located and 
 well-supervised. That good ventilation and proper light- 
 ing are prime essentials goes without saying. Racks for 
 newspapers and durable covers for magazines are good 
 investments in the interests of economy and good order. 
 Great care needs to be exercised each year in the choice of 
 periodicals. None should be admitted to which, in the 
 best judgment of a wise committee, reasonable objection 
 could be made from any standpoint. Special periodicals 
 for the use of technical classes should be reserved in the 
 class rooms or accessible in the educational secretary’s 
 office. One member of the educational committee at a 
 time might have as her special duty the oversight of the 
 
I'oading room and the study of ways in which it could be 
 more extensively used with l)etter i-esidts. It should be 
 recognized that the function of the reading room is not 
 primarily to entertain, but to create interest in the sort 
 of reading that counts. To keep the room from growing 
 stale, not only fresh papers and niagazines will be added, 
 but new clippings on the bulletin board, short lists of 
 aidiclcs, irresistible quotations tempting to further reading. 
 
 Library Service 
 
 ]\Iany Associations build up small or large circulating 
 libi’aries of their own. Some few give room to a branch 
 of the public, library. Others aim only to provide refer- 
 ence books for reading room use, especially for educational 
 and Bible and mission study classes. Whatever the 
 method, it is a far bigger thing for the educational com- 
 mittee to stimulate good reading among the entire mem- 
 bership than to supply all the books that ought to be read, 
 especially when the public library is a good one. Arrange- 
 ments can u.sually be made to facilitate the exchange of 
 library books on certain days at the factory, shops or some 
 convenient center. It is often more satisfactory to lay 
 claim to the service of a librarian for these hours than to 
 depend upon volunteer help. A loan library obtained for 
 the use of mend)ers may serve a good purpose. Cam- 
 paigns for good reading, with wide newspaper publicity 
 in Avhich schools, ehui’ches, libraries. Associations and 
 book stores co-operate, ai’C of recent development. Too 
 little thought has heretofore been given to the reading of 
 our young people and it is high time that Associations 
 became roused on the subject. A little investigating might 
 
 IS 
 
put the educational committee on its mettle. An Assoeia- 
 tion secretarj' recently looked into the reading of some of 
 her girls and learned to her horror that some of their 
 favorite books bore such titles as “Whose Husband Was, 
 He?” and “Three Buckets of Blood, or the Washwoman’s 
 Revenge.” Not only should books be made accessible to 
 girls, but definite guidance in the choice of books is 
 needed also. Posted book lists have some value. Book 
 talks may well lead the way to getting cards for members 
 from the public library, the formation of book clubs, or 
 the signing up for popular reading courses. The Chaix- 
 tauqua Reading Course makes appeal to the more thought- 
 ful girls who would like to work toward a certificate. The 
 secretaries themselves should lead off by making good use 
 of the lists prepared by the Employed Officers Association. 
 
 Educational Clubs 
 
 The reading room and the library prove good recruit- 
 ing ground for girls who would take up some systematic 
 study if made sufficiently attractive to them. The educa- 
 tional club is the next step. It serves the double purpose 
 of furnishing pleasant social contact for a small or large 
 group of reasonably congenial persons, and presenting an 
 informal method of learning something worth while. Some- 
 times a class studying ixnder a paid teacher elects to 
 organize itself into a club with officers and a name, for 
 the sake of adding the social element. But as a rule the 
 object and method of the class and club are distinct. An 
 educational club, in distinction from other clubs, usually 
 organizes for a definite study extending in time from four 
 weeks to a season and disbands when the study is eom- 
 
 19 
 
])lete(l. Only those clubs are listed as educational which 
 follow a definite iirograin or plan of study. Some of the 
 favorite subjects of study are current events, civics, travel, 
 story telling, drama, photography and music. Especially 
 in small cities, where first-class teachers are hard to secure 
 and social life is not already over-organized, most interest- 
 ing and profitable work can be developed through clubs. 
 Responsibility for making and carrying the program can 
 be largely shouldered by the club members. Clique spirit 
 can be forestalled by keeping the door ajar from the first 
 to new members, and having every club so far as prac- 
 ticable embody in its plans some regular service to the 
 Association and the community. Such clubs should be 
 carried on as part of the Association life and not as casual 
 attachments. 
 
 Practical Talks and Lectures 
 
 The practice of having a membership course of lectures 
 and entertainments continues to some extent in Associa- 
 tions. The practical talk as an educational feature has 
 in some cases superseded the more formal lecture. Such 
 talks are invaluable when they have a definite object and 
 are given by the right person before the right group. They 
 should, as a rule, be arranged in a series, each related to 
 the others, leading up to a climax and definitely directed 
 to a particular group at a time when that group can be 
 easily collected, as business girls at the noon hour, home 
 women at the afternoon tea hour. Association students 
 between class hours or in connection with a club meeting 
 for younger girls, industrial girls or business women. As 
 a rule, a small company is preferable to a large one, fur- 
 
 20 
 
nishing opportunity for a closer relationship between 
 speaker and listener. It is important liej-e, as in other 
 educational enterprises, that the girls should have a voice 
 in plans and execution. 
 
 Places suitable for different talks may be a club or 
 class room, the lobby, the library, the gym, around the 
 fireplace or on the roof. But they need not all be confined 
 to Association precincts. A church parlor, a recreation 
 center, a factory, or a school house might be used. The 
 one great object of practical talks is not to have some- 
 thing going on, but to help girls and women to live, to 
 introduce new ideas about health, dress, work, thrift, 
 books, to give motives for doing something worth while. 
 A larger outlook upon life can be opened, fresh desires 
 created, and, perhaps chief of all, through the personality 
 of the speaker, the dormant, half-formed groping of a 
 girl’s heart and mind may be quickened into life and 
 action. 
 
 Class Work 
 
 For all technical subjects, and, indeed, for thorough 
 work in any subject, class instruction adapted to the 
 students under a competent teacher is the most satisfactory 
 form of educational work. Evening classes meeting once 
 or twice a week are arranged for girls employed during 
 the day time ; day classes meeting once to five times a week 
 for girls preparing for wage-earning, for young house- 
 wives or women of leisure. There are certain definite 
 conditions which, being met, will insure the success of any 
 class: when it is the Association’s answer to a well-defined 
 need of the students enrolled; when the instructor com- 
 
bines a knowledge of the subjeet with the power to interest 
 and to make every session invaluable; and when the class 
 room atmosphere is Avhat it ought always to be, friendly, 
 congenial, Christian. 
 
 The backbone of the educational department is created 
 by the gi’aded classes in certain subjects for which there 
 is demand in all the larger cities year after year, as 
 English, cooking, sewing and millinery. To these may be 
 added modern language and literature courses. Certifi- 
 cates are granted for the completion of such courses with 
 examination. The fifteen- weeks’ term is in greatest favor, 
 and certificates are granted upon the basis of two, three 
 or four terms’ work, according to the subjeet and arrange- 
 ment of courses. The reputation of the Association as an 
 efficient Christian organization demands that high stand- 
 ards be maintained, and the certificate awarded should 
 give a correct idea of the amount of work done, so that 
 the student and the public can take it at its face value. 
 The whole trend of the educational work should be in the 
 direction of longer courses divided into convenient units 
 and better graded work in standard subjects. Too great 
 care cannot be taken that the stamp of quality be placed 
 upon everything done under Association auspices. The 
 word Christian is something to be lived up to, never to 
 provide a cloak for inediocrity. 
 
 In addition to the standard courses, there is ahvays 
 need for short-term courses in special subjects or unit 
 courses, either related or unrelated to the longer courses, 
 and completed in three to ten lessons. Experience has 
 often proved that rightly planned short-term courses 
 build up rather than undermine strong educational work. 
 
 22 
 
Sharp distiiaction should be drawn between the short 
 course which skims and cheapens a subject, and is tliere- 
 fore to be tabooed, and the slioid course which is complete 
 in itself, or which, like a series of demonstrations, makes 
 a direct bid for deeper interest and further study. 
 
 Association methods and activities have been exten- 
 sively duplicated by schools and other agencies within a 
 few years. It is the Association’s glory that this is so, 
 l)ut only through per-sistent study and intelligent action 
 can the Association fulfill its nfission as a great and grow- 
 ing educational factor in the life of girls of to-day. High 
 standards of work are imperative, more active co-opera- 
 tion of departments within the Association and more 
 unselfish co-operative effort among the educational forces 
 within the city. Its aims are unicpie and constructive ; to 
 seek out the girls who have been overlooked, those out of 
 step with schools because of age, working hours or need 
 of individual attention ; to specialize in peculiar educa- 
 tional needs of girls and women — vocational, home-keep- 
 ing, civic; and to release hidden talents and capacity for 
 sei’vice. 
 
 Courses 
 
 1 General — Common branches, English for foreigners, 
 elementary and advanced English, English and American 
 literature, Spanish, French, German, Italian, voice cul- 
 ture, expression, public speaking, story telling, parliamen- 
 tary law, astronomy, botany, bird life, geography, physics. 
 
 2 Business and Commercial — Business English, com- 
 mei'cial arithmetic, typewriting and stenography, penman- 
 ship, speed dictation, business correspondence, salesmanship, 
 sign lettering and show card writing, advertising. 
 
 23 
 
3 Household Arts and Personal Service — Plain sewing, 
 dressmaking and designing, lailoring, embroidery, remodel- 
 ing, millinery, flower making, costume sketching, household 
 decoration, house furnishing, plain and fancy cookery, 
 dietetics, dinner, luncheon and supper courses, table ser- 
 vice, household management, home nursing and hygiene, 
 kitchen garden, camp cookery, hair dressing and manicur- 
 ing, laundering, first aid to the injured, social manners 
 and customs. 
 
 4 Trade and Professional — Trade dressmaking, appren- 
 tice sewing, trade millinery, tea room management, voca- 
 tional cooking, attendant nursing. 
 
 5 Music and Art — Choral, orchestra, vocal, piano, 
 mandolin and guitar, violin, history of art, arts and 
 crafts, china painting, water colors, basketry, stenciling, 
 photography, sketching. 
 
 6 History and Social Science — United States history, 
 civics, commercial geography, cixrrent events, industrial 
 history, the wmman movement, social service, the Associa- 
 tion movement. 
 
 Teachers 
 
 Because of the great popularity of household arts in 
 the Association, usually the first full-time instructors to 
 be employed are those for domestic art and science. Grad- 
 uates are obtained from the best institutions in the 
 country. Such an instructor may or may not rank as the 
 director of a department, according to local arrangements. 
 Though the Association must depend chiefly upon teachers 
 paid by the hour, it can ill afford any but the best teachers 
 with the essential qualification of Association spirit. Some 
 
 24 
 
Associations make use of an application form ^ as a way 
 of getting more readily at the facts indicating the fitness 
 of a person for teaching in the Association. Prices paid 
 to teachers vary, according to locality and the subject, 
 from one to five dollars or more a class session. Student 
 teachers and volunteers can be utilized as auxiliaries in 
 certain subjects and classes, but for strong, permanent 
 work, teachers should be paid at current rates. At least 
 twice a year teachers, committee and secretary should 
 meet for discussion and conference. The custom of having 
 bi-monthly faculty meetings can do much toward unifying 
 and strengthening the department, swinging the educa- 
 tional work into line with the whole life and purpose of 
 the Association. 
 
 Office Details * 
 
 Uniform class record books ^ and report blanks for 
 the teachers simplify the keeping of records and increase 
 the much to be desired accuracy of the annual reports. 
 A card catalogue of all students is indispensable for keep- 
 ing track of enrollment, payment of fees, courses, standing, 
 etc. Though fees are paid at the general desk, the educa- 
 tional office is responsible for seeing that payment is made. 
 
 Mailing lists of the names of persons making inquiries 
 at the general office may be supplemented by those of 
 interested friends and acquaintances furnished by the 
 students and by other departments, as the employment 
 bureau. To be valuable, such lists must be frequently 
 
 ‘See page 40 for aii])lieatio7i form. 
 
 ‘ Cla.ss Record — I’nhlicatioii De]iartment, Xational Board — Pi ice 
 10 cents. 
 
revised. Further suggestions are given in the paragraph 
 on publicity in this pamphlet. 
 
 Summer Work 
 
 Louder demands are heard each year that the Asso- 
 ciation building be used to the fullest extent not only 
 from September to ^lay, but during the summer season. 
 It is becoming the rule to employ the full staff of secre- 
 taries on a twelve months basis, including vacation. The 
 swimming pool and the roof garden make the Association 
 building an alluring center for recreation. There are 
 also good educational possibilities. Girls released from 
 school, teachers and women with lightened household 
 duties, or employed girls engaged in seasonal occupations, 
 often have more available free time than during the rest 
 of the year. Sometimes alone and sometimes in co-opera- 
 tion with the Young INIen’s Christian Association, the 
 Young Women’s Christian Association carries on a sum- 
 mer school for children who have failed of promotion in 
 grammar or high school. Competent teachers are em- 
 ployed to prepare them for examination in the subjects 
 which they may have mi.ssed for some reason or in which 
 they have failed. The advice and co-operation of the publio 
 school should invariably be sought in carrying out such a 
 summer school. Fees for this work should cover expenses. 
 
 What can be offered in the summer depends upon the 
 resources of the Association, indoors and out, and the 
 particular ability of available teachers. Sometimes there 
 ai-e technical courses for teachers. Industi-ial courses for 
 unemployed girls, with scholarshii)s. can be developed 
 where conditions favor. Short coui'ses of from three to 
 
 2(i 
 
six lessons in domestic science succeed when fitted to the 
 season and local demand, as the preparation and packing 
 of picnic lunches, or camp cookery. In domestic art, 
 summer courses also prove attractive, as instruction in 
 embroidery, the use of patterns, the making of blouses, 
 waists, or one-piece summer dresses. This season is espcr 
 cially appropriate for the study of trees, flowers, stars, 
 in connection with outdoor doings. 
 
 Corresponding with the fall rally for winter work, the 
 summer plans are sometimes launched by an entertaining 
 program with light refreshments. All the Association 
 summer features would, of course, be proclaimed on this 
 occasion, including the swimming pool, gymnasium, Bible 
 courses. Association camp and outings. 
 
 Music 
 
 The limitless possibilities of music in and through the 
 Association call for a special word. As a means of expres- 
 sion of individual and Association life, it has only begun 
 to be used. There are at least three lines of development 
 to Avhich a small committee of the educational committee 
 should give its best thought and effort : First, music at 
 
 Association gatherings of many sorts — vespers, prayers, 
 banquets and special occasions ; second, the training of 
 choral clubs, orchestra, bands ; third, encouragement and 
 assistance to Association girls with musical talents to be 
 drawn out. 
 
 Following are certain suggestions along these lines 
 gathered from various sources. Aim at good singing at 
 every Association gathering. Procure a good hymn book 
 and use only hymns appropriate to the purpose of the 
 
 27 
 
meeting?. Seek out the undeveloped talent in the member- 
 ship — girls who can sing or play any instrument, not 
 forgetting the foreign girls with their songs and instru- 
 ments. Work out with leading musicians a plan by which 
 girls of ability may get instruction and music opportunities 
 at prices within their reach. Plan lecture talks about 
 music and musicians, noon musicales, victrola concerts. 
 Observe holidays and festivals with music features — carol 
 singing at Christmas and Easter, !May festivals, national 
 airs for national holidays. 
 
 The possible organized music groups are many: an 
 Association choir ; an organized choral club under the best 
 leader in the city, with men’s and women’s voices, or 
 women alone, paying expense by public cantatas, oratorios, 
 etc. ; trios, quartets, or double quartets of female voices 
 composed of picked girls; orchestras for girls or young 
 women, or men and women ; a mandolin and guitar club. 
 
 Publicity 
 
 A reasonable percentage of the educational budget (5% 
 to 15%) should be appropriated to printed matter and 
 advertising. A member of the educational committee, in 
 co-operation with the secretary, will find it most interest- 
 ing to aim to become an expert in effective advertising. 
 The most productive methods and mediums in the city 
 Avill be determined as the result of study and experi- 
 ence from year to year. Excellent suggestive material will 
 be found in Miss Ballard’s “Publicity for the Local 
 Association.” ^ 
 
 The annual prospectus outlines all the activities of the 
 ' l’iil)lislie(l 1)V tlie Xational Board — Briop 2.5 cpiits. 
 
 2.S 
 
Association and is published separately or in a special 
 issue of the local Association paper. This needs always 
 to be supplemented by foldei’s of special courses, cards 
 easily carried in the pocketbook. window cards, dodgers, 
 posters, etc. Mailing lists for the different t^^pes of printed 
 matter should be carefully worked up. There is, of course, 
 the general membership list, names of persons making 
 inquiry at the office desk, conmiunity leaders, suburban 
 dwellers and classified names in the telephone book or 
 directoiy. As an illustration of specialized lists — domestic 
 science folders are sometimes sent to brides whose names 
 have been gathered from newspaper wedding announce- 
 ments during several months. In one instance, names of 
 recent purchasers of gas stoves were obtained through a 
 friend and folders sent on the supposition that the own- 
 ers of brand new stoves might have a special interest in 
 cookery. 
 
 The advertising columns of newspapers in the city and 
 surrounding towns may or may not bring direct retuims. 
 But at any rate, the paid advertisement paves the way for 
 the entrance of news items and write-ups in the other 
 columns of the papers which the Association caimot afford 
 to get along without. 
 
 The whole make-up of the bulletin boards in the lobby 
 and outside the main entrance is most important. To the 
 public eye they stamp the educational work as below par, 
 fair, or first class. In addition to these, it is an excellent 
 plan to have a place in the lobby for an ingenious, fre- 
 quently changed exhibit showing what the educational 
 department is about at present, visualizing whatever is 
 capable of Ausual presentation, through exhibits of work, 
 
 2ft 
 
photographs, fii'st-aid outfits, Red Cross and National 
 Hoard certificates, etc. 
 
 “Open Innise” wlien the classes are in full swing is 
 a most convincing argument l)rought to l)ear upon the 
 possible student and the could-be subscriber personally 
 invited and pei-sonally conducted through the building. 
 Stationary exhibits and active demonstrations, as skirt 
 di'afting, typewriting, first-aid, or food preparation, hold 
 great advertising possibilities. Sometimes a downtown 
 store window or a booth at a fair is used for displaying 
 the students’ work before a wider public. Singing con- 
 tests, typewriting speed and other competitions have . 
 pul)licity value. Incidentally, as an innovation upon the 
 commencement address, in the larger Associations, the 
 closing exercises in the spring are sometimes given over 
 to the girls themselves for some simple presentation of 
 what they have learned or what they can do. The inge- 
 nuity of the girls may be depended upon to work up an 
 original program. 
 
 Adaptations to Different Groups 
 
 As indicated elsewhere, it is the duty of the educa- 
 tional committee to provide an educational program for 
 the entire membership in closest co-operation with other 
 committees. The employment department comes into con- 
 tact with girls touching the Association at no other point 
 — girls whoso need of further training is sharply I’cvealed, 
 coupled though it may bo with lack of desire or sense of 
 need. The majoi-ity of these may wish only the Associa- 
 tion’s hel]) in getting desirable employment. Even so, 
 some emj)loyment bureaii girls can be I’clated to the educa- 
 
 30 
 
tional class and club work, otliers will respond to the 
 chance of private tutorin'?. The Avaiting room of the 
 employment de]mrtment will present a fertile field of 
 study for the educational secretary. The study of the 
 emplojunent situation and discovering the need for voca- 
 tional training should be equally the responsibility of the 
 employment and educational committees. More than one 
 Association has proved that it is possible to raise standards 
 of efficiency and wages of women by attacking the problem 
 Avisely and systematically. 
 
 Younger Girus 
 
 Preventive education Avith young gilds is less pictur- 
 esque hut more effective than correctiAm education for older 
 ones. With a member of the girls’ work committee seiwing 
 regularly on the educational committee, a policy for educa- 
 tional Avork should be devised that Avill include systematic 
 effort to keep girls in school until prepared for some form 
 of productive Avork and such educational actmties as fit 
 the younger portion of the membership. These may in- 
 clude Amcational talks and tours, story telling, plans for 
 good reading, camp cookery and personal hygiene. 
 
 Industrial Girls 
 
 Whereas the Association should do all Avithin its poAver, 
 in co-operation Avith parents and organizations, to create 
 a public demand that young girls should not be sent off 
 to a job unfit for any kind of Avork, yet the process of 
 educating the public is a sIoav one. iMeanAvhile, Ave must 
 do our best to help the girl AA^ho Avas throAvn out into the 
 Avorld prematurely. Within the last feAv years a ncAv type 
 of educational Avork has been sloAvly taking shape for the 
 
 .31 
 
wlio have liad little sehooling and who are employed 
 loiif^ hours at small waj^es. A eonsideral)le number of 
 them will l>e ai)j)ealed to by the eveniiif^ school or by 
 Association educational class work, bnt many more will 
 respond to a different type of informal instruction. For 
 these the Association offers short units of club program 
 work requiring little or no outside study, with subjects 
 definitely related to the personal life of the girls, their 
 home interests, and themselves as citizens. Spirited club 
 contests, singing competitions and exhibits in action or 
 stationary give color and finish to the end of the course 
 of eight or ten weeks. Further details are given in a 
 pamphlet ^ on the subject. l\Iany difficulties will be 
 avoided if this part of the Association’s educational work 
 is lined up, as it should be, under the educational com- 
 mittee, though the responsibility of carrying it out may 
 l)c delegated to some extent to the industrial committee. 
 
 Forkigx Born Girls 
 
 English classes for foreign girls are valuable so far as 
 they go, but as a rule they reach few girls. Where there 
 is a foreign community, a special committee is needed to 
 interpret the entire Association to the foreign girls, not 
 merely to teach them English. Foreign girls are found 
 in the industrial clubs. AVhen the barrier of a strange 
 language has been overcome the all-round club program 
 will be fitted for them. But whatever their educational 
 need, the educational committee should give full considera- 
 tion to supplying that need. 
 
 ' Federation of Industrial and Extension C'hdis — Florence Simms 
 ami ll(den L. Thomas, judee lo cents. 
 
 .32 
 
National Educational Work 
 
 Educators and students in search of material for 
 graduating theses often make inquiry about the educa- 
 tional department of the Association throughout the 
 country, assuming that courses and methods are uniform 
 in the two hundred and fifty city Associations. Such is 
 not the case. The First Aid course conducted by the 
 National Board and the Red Cross Society is the one 
 }iational course. Local conditions and local enterprise are 
 the determining factors in each city, and these vary from 
 year to year. There is, however, great similarity between 
 the courses offered in Associations of relatively the same 
 grade. A group of Associations in and around New York 
 is at present studying the possibilities of further unifying 
 their standard courses in household arts without seeking 
 uniformity, and it is expected that the results of their 
 experimenting may form a basis for further standardiza- 
 tion. Diversity and a constantly changing progi’am in 
 response to conditions — yet the guiding principles of Asso- 
 ciations, at their best, large or small, east or west, north 
 or south, are alike. Each has something to learn fi’om the 
 others — something to add to the common stock. National 
 publications, conferences, and visits of secretaries and 
 board members keep the live streams of communication 
 open. Local Associations linked up with each other and 
 with the national organization in an effective union are 
 proving as never before an unmistakable force in the 
 social, edv;cational and religious life of American girls 
 ;md women. 
 
BIBLIOGRAPHY 
 
 Working Girls in Evening Schools. Van Kleeck. . . .$1.50 
 
 (.'onunercial Work and Training for Girls. Eaton and 
 
 Stevens 1.50 
 
 Vocations for Girls. Laselle and Wiley 85 
 
 Vocations for Girls. Weaver 75 
 
 \'ocations for the Trained Woman. Perkins 1.20 
 
 Ghoosing a Vocation. Par.sons 1.00 
 
 Vocational Guidance of Youth. Bloomfield GO 
 
 Tlie Problem of Vocational Education. Snedden . . . .35 
 
 Changing Conceptions of Education. Cubberley . . . .35 
 
 The Worker and the State. Dean 1.20 
 
 History of Education in the United States. Dexter. . 2.00 
 
 Association Educational Work for Men and Roys 
 
 (Y. M. C. A.) Hodge ...1.00 
 
 I'hrift and Efficiency Report — National Board 05 
 
 Girls and Education. Briggs 1.00 
 
 Saleswomen in ^lercantile Stores. Butler 1.00 
 
 Boys and Girls in Commercial Work (Cleveland Sur- 
 vey). Stevens 25 
 
 34 
 
SUGGESTED POLICY FOR EDUCATIONAL 
 WORK 
 
 I PURPOSE 
 
 The purpose of the educational work of the Association is one 
 with the purpose of the whole Association, — the development of 
 Christian character. More specifically it is to awaken higher ideals 
 of life among girls and women, to aid them in preparing for their 
 work, and to lead them into completer expression of themselves in 
 life and service. 
 
 II ADillXISTRATION 
 
 1 A strong educational committee of five or ten women with 
 vision, initiative and understanding of girls should he appointed and 
 should include one member each from the girls’ work, industrial and 
 employment committees. 
 
 a To promote the educational interests of girls and women 
 through carefully adapted educational opportunities of- 
 fered by the Association. 
 
 1) To encourage girls to take advantage of other educational 
 agencies. 
 
 c To bring to the girls whom it reaches the rounded Christian 
 ideal for physical, social and religious life. 
 
 2 A trained, full-time educational secretary is also needed or at 
 least one member of the staff" to act as executive of the committee 
 to plan and push educational activities. The geTieral secretary is 
 a member of the committee ex officio. 
 
 3 The best ]>aid teachers obtainable are essential for good work. 
 They may be supplemented by supervised volunteer teachers and edu- 
 cational club leaders who should all meet in conference with the 
 educational committee at least twice a year. 
 
 4 Girls elected to represent the educational de])artment on the 
 members’ council should co-operate with the committee in forming 
 and promoting educational plans for the entire membership. 
 
 5 Tlie educational budget made out annually in advance should 
 include the expense and income of clubs, classes, talks, reading room 
 and library and all the educational work of the Association. Service 
 rather than self-support should be the guiding motive. 
 
 ITT EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES 
 
 Such activities as the committee decides upon each year should 
 be vigorously promoted with a view to Tneeting present local needs 
 
 35 
 
of fl'ii'Is and women. Tliese are lield day or evening, in tlie building, 
 cliureh parlor.s, home kitchen, or elsewhere. Following are. some of 
 the features most common in Association educational work: 
 
 1 Reading room with at least a reference library for educational, 
 Bible and mission study classes and clubs. Papers and 
 magazines should be carefully chosen each year. Systematic 
 ])lans for good reading should be devised in co-operation with 
 the ])iiblic library. 
 
 '2 Talks and lectures in a series or single ones planned in view 
 of special needs and current interests. These may be paid 
 or free, for small or larger groups, in the lobby, gjunnasium. 
 class rooms or auditorium, or outside the Association in 
 shoj)s, offices or schools. 
 
 d Educational clubs combine both social and educational fea- 
 t>ires. Civic (piestions, drama, art, nattire, ])hotogra])hy or 
 any i)rolitable subjects are appropriate for club study. 
 
 4 Music. S])ecial emjihasis should be given to the development of 
 good music throughout the entire Association and the train- 
 ing of special groups as choir, choral club, orchestia. 
 
 .■) ( lass work. Fees should be kept down to the ability of the 
 members to )>ay: elementary subjects below cost; technical 
 courses with a snrj)lus: the total income expected to be less 
 than the cost. The instruction given shonbl be ap|)roj)riate 
 to the needs of women in the community. Class work should 
 include graded courses, some short and some long term 
 courses complete in themselves, as: 
 
 a English branche.s for em])loyed girls — tiitoring or night 
 school tyi)e. 
 
 h Vocational — trade, conunercial, tiained attendance, sales- 
 manship, tea room management, etc. 
 
 c Cultural — lit(>rature. story telling, nature study, art. 
 etc. 
 
 (1 Home — home management, nursing, graded courses in 
 sewing and cooking. 
 
 e Citizenshij) — civics, cmrrent events, study of the woman 
 movement. 
 
 f Personal efficiency — ])ersonal budget, business matters, 
 investments. 
 
 g Eirst aid to the injur(‘d — (examination with Red Cross 
 and National Board certificate). 
 
 h Special — |)\d>lic s|)eaking, memory, automobile. 
 
 i ( onrses ada])ted to industrial gills in co-operation with 
 industrial committee. 
 
 j Summer courses at the Association and at camjis. ac- 
 cording to locality and resources. 
 
 ;h) 
 
IV STUDENTS 
 
 1 Members already secured through membership, employment, 
 girls’ work, industrial and other committees should first be provided 
 for by the educational committee. 
 
 2 Others can be brought in by the appeal of the educational work. 
 
 a Through rallies, exhibits and demonstrations used as ad- 
 vertising. 
 
 b Through sj'stematic, intelligent advertising and publicity, 
 items in press heralding successful features, acquainting 
 important persons with the work, 
 c Through personal work by secretaries and committees armed 
 with good printed material. 
 
 d Through the active co-operation of satisfied students, espe- 
 cially representatives in the members’ council. 
 
 V CO-OPEEATION 
 
 To fulfill the purpose of the Association the educational com- 
 mittee should co-operate with other Association departments, espe- 
 cially the religious work. 
 
 1 By keeping students informed of other things going on in 
 
 the Association. 
 
 2 By assisting in the formation of Bible classes among the 
 
 students. 
 
 3 By holding a student assembly or chapel service at least 
 
 once a week. 
 
 4 By employing only teachers who will further the Christian 
 
 purpose of the Association. 
 
 5 By active interest in the religious life of the students and 
 
 helping to relate them to church life as well as religious 
 activities in the Association. 
 
 VI SUGGESTED EDUCATIONAL GOAL FOR ONE YEAR 
 
 1 25% to 35% of membership in some organized Association 
 educational activity, as 
 
 a Class work, tutoring, or guided home study, 
 b Educational club work as music, civic, dramatic. 
 
 2 2% to 10% of membership enlisted in systematic reading, as 
 
 a Reading of three to five books from selected lists, 
 b Twenty minutes a day devoted to a reading course, 
 c Regular reading of a good magazine. 
 
 3 2% to 5% of membership in attendance at practical talks 
 
 and lectures. 
 
 37 
 
Suggested List of Periodicals and Magazines for the 
 Association Reading Room 
 
 The Association Monthly. 
 
 The Survey. 
 
 The North American Student. 
 
 Women’s International Quarterly. 
 
 The best local dailies. 
 
 World’s Work. 
 
 The Independent or Outlook. 
 
 The Literary Digest or Current Opinion. 
 
 The Century. 
 
 Harper’s Magazine. 
 
 The American. 
 
 The Woman’s Home Companion or The Ladies’ Home 
 J ournal. 
 
 The Saturday Evening Post. 
 
 Good Housekeeping. 
 
 The Youth’s Companion. 
 
 St. Nicholas. 
 
 Life and Labor (Women’s Trade Union League). 
 
 The Club Worker (National League of Women 
 Workers). 
 
 National Geographic Magazine. 
 
 World Outlook. 
 
 38 
 
Missionary Eeview. 
 
 Everyland. 
 
 The Sunday School Times. 
 
 Leading denominational papers. 
 
 The Association papers in your field (list supplied by 
 field office). 
 
 In addition, there are magazines of interest to special 
 groups, which may be subscribed to according to the library 
 appropriation and to the demands of the given community. 
 
 The Garden Magazine. 
 
 Home Needlework. 
 
 The House Beautiful. 
 
 Musical America. 
 
 The Mothers’ Magazine. 
 
 The Nurse. 
 
 Photo Era. 
 
 American Cookery. 
 
 Housewives League. 
 
 Delineator. 
 
 Vogue. 
 
 The Hamilton Magazine Agency, 2091 East 102nd 
 Street, Cleveland, Ohio, and the Franklin Square Sub- 
 scription Agency, 325 Pearl Street, New York City, are 
 reliable agencies. 
 
 39 
 
Application for position as teacher in the Young Women’s 
 
 Christian Association of 
 
 Name in full 
 
 Address 
 
 Telephone number 
 
 Present position and business address 
 
 Position for which application is being made 
 
 Training and experience in teaching in the subjects to be 
 taught : — 
 
 Of what church are you a member? 
 
 What church in the city do you attend? 
 
 What previous connection with this or any other Y.W.C.A. ? 
 
 What, if any, active part have you taken in church or 
 Sunday school work or general social service ? 
 
 References (preferably some members of this Association 
 and your pastor, as well as those acquainted with your 
 training and ability as a teacher) : — 
 
 40 
 

 f-' 
 
 
 
 I 
 

 i: 
 
 i 
 
 J 
 
 
 
 
 (I 
 
 PALMER A OLIVER, NEW VOR*