Harold V. Hager was the guest speaker at the weekly meeting of Oneonta's Rotary Club on Jan. 11, 1945. At that time, the club met at the Wilson Hotel on the Chestnut Street Extension, where today's municipal parking garage is found.
Hager was then the assistant superintendent of schools in Oneonta.
"The school of tomorrow will be more and more a community institution," Hager told Rotarians as he gave an address on "Oneonta's Postwar Educational Needs." Hager told of a survey recently launched in the area after an exchange of communications with the state Education Department in regard to whether an expansion of the school system was contemplated for Oneonta.
Those Rotarians were about to witness big changes in Oneonta's school system for at least the following 20 years, and they heard from the man who'd execute the changes.
In less than four months after that meeting, Hager became Oneonta's new superintendent of schools.
Hager had arrived in Oneonta in 1942, becoming principal at Oneonta High School and then assistant superintendent during the 1944-45 school year. He replaced the retiring Dr. George J. Dann.
When he took over May 1, the newest building in the Oneonta school system was the junior high school, constructed in 1927.
It was on Academy Street where today's James F. Lettis Apartments are, across from the former armory. Hager would get plenty done by the time he announced his retirement in 1965.
During the 1950s, there were major changes in the structure of the school district. In 1950, the district was separated from the city's government and became a corporate organization with its own authority to budget and tax. School board officials were elected for the first time in 1951. Previously, they had been appointed by the mayor.
Oneonta's district was greatly enlarged in 1957, when 13 adjoining districts were consolidated into the Oneonta system. The resulting broader tax base opened the door for a construction program for buildings and renovations.
First came Valleyview School; followed by the annex to Center Street School, a cafeteria building for the schools on Academy Street, currently occupied by The Arc Otsego; extensive renovations to the Academy Street schools; and the present high school on East Street.
Before Hager's retirement July 1, 1965, contracts had been let for the Riverside and Greater Plains schools.
During Hager's tenure, enrollment had risen from approximately 1,600 to 3,165 in January 1965. Starting teacher salaries had risen from $1,200 to $4,500 per year.
A lot had been accomplished in 20 years, but it wasn't always easy for Hager, especially when it came to those construction projects.
He had a vocal and energetic ally in a school board member, Ani P. Colone, who served on the board for 17 years. Colone was recalled at his recent memorial as "instrumental in building Oneonta's modern school system."
The new schools were defeated several times at the polls, and while other school officials voiced despair and anger, Hager patiently began planning for a new bond referendum.
"We'll change the plans. Cut the costs," Hager once told The Oneonta Star. "The people know we need schools. Give them all the facts, and they'll support the referendum."
Also during his 20 years, Hager initiated several pupil services, including kindergarten classes, a school health service, a psychological service, adult-education courses, a school lunch program and summer high school sessions.
In his closing remarks to the Rotary Club, Hager said that "education is Oneonta's biggest single business, and its citizens should support whatever plan is offered, as the project is for the interest of adults and our own boys and girls."
This weekend, a 17-year-old who "wanted to fight fires for no pay, plus risk to clothing, life and limb," later became fire chief in Oneonta.
City Historian Mark Simonson's column appears twice weekly. On Saturdays, his column focuses on the area during the Depression and before. His Monday columns address local history after the Depression. If you have feedback or ideas about the column, write to him at The Daily Star, or e-mail him at simmark@stny.rr.com. His website is www.oneontahistorian.com. His columns can be found at
www.thedailystar.com/marksimonson.
