Unit 7: Set 4. Rural and Town Schools - Divide County Schools Data

Tables 1 through 5 have been compiled from data recorded in the Report of the Director of Secondary Education for the years 1932 and 1962. Tables 1 through 3 offer some basic information on Divide County High Schools. Tables 4 and 5 provide data on schools statewide and in North Dakota’s biggest city, Fargo, for 1932 and 1962 for comparison with Divide County schools.

Table 1: General Population and Student Population of Divide County
Date	County Population	School Age Population (actual year of count is given in parentheses)
1910	6,000	1,358 (1911)
1920	9,637	3,001 (1919)
1930	9,636	3,450
1935	------	2,932
1940	7,086	1,932 (1941)
1950	5,967	1,502 (1951)
1960	5,566	1,533 (1961)
1970	4,564	1,151 (1971)

Table 2: Divide County High Schools, 1931-1932
	Ambrose*	Crosby*	Noonan*
No. male pupils	21	98	30
No. female pupils	37	149	49
Persent graduates going to college	24%	18%	27%
Teachers with degrees	3	10	3
Teachers without degrees	0	0	0
Pupil/Teacher Ratio	20 to 1	35.5 to 1	27 to 1
No. of volumes in library	850	1300	450

*Crosby was fully accredited since 1918. Noonan became an approved high school in 1919. Ambrose was a Class 2 consolidated school until 1931 when it was reduced to Class 3.

Table 2: Divide County High Schools, 1961-1962
	Ambrose*	Crosby	Noonan*
No. male pupils	7	110	22
No. female pupils	9	93	38
Persent graduates going to college	not recorded	53%	66%
Teachers with degrees	2	11	4
Teachers without degrees	0	0	0
Pupil/Teacher Ratio	not recorded	20 to 1	25 to 1
No. of volumes in library	not recorded	3,268	1,399

* Ambrose closed its high school in 1962 at the end of the school year. Noonan also closed its school in 1962.

Table 4: North Dakota and Fargo¹ high school data, 1933.
	Fargo	²State Class 1	State Class 2	State Class 3	Total
Percentage of HS graduate going to college	60%	50.9%	33.5%	34.2%	35.4%
Pupil/Teacher Ratio	22.3 to 1	22.6 to 1	21.3 to 1	19.7 to 1	-----
No. Vols in school library	11,000	-----	-----	-----	-----
No. male pupils	524	7,178	1,654	1,193	10,026
No. female pupils	601	8,824	2,177	1,403	12,404
Percent freshman continuing to HS graduation 1931	-----	-----	-----	-----	44.6%³

¹Fargo High School is used as a comparison because it was the largest city high school in the state.

²In 1931, fewer students entering high school graduated than any other year in the twentieth century. This low rate was somewhat related to the Great Depression. However, soon parents understood that high school education offered an advantage in times of economic hardship, and the graduation rate began to rise again. High school graduation increased in 1932 by 259 students over 1931, and college attendance increased by one percent.

³State schools were ranked in a numerical system of Class 1, Class 2, and Class 3. There were also some schools identified as Consolidated and Ungraded. The highest ranking schools were Class 1 such as Fargo and Crosby. Though Ambrose was a Class 2 high school in 1931, most state records list it among the third class high schools. Noonan was a Class 3 high school in most records dating from the 1930s. Fortuna High School does not appear in state high school records for 1933 or 1962.

Table 5: North Dakota and Fargo high school data, 1962.¹
	Fargo	State
Percentage of HS graduates going to college	63%	59%
Pupil/Teacher Ratio	22 to 1	15.2 to 1
No. Vols. in Library	12,162	-----
No. male pupils	1,089	19,025
No. female pupils	1,080	19,275
Percent Freshman continuing to HS graduation, 1961	-----	77.18%

¹Fargo high school data is for all public school students. State figures are for both accredited and non-accredited schools.

North Dakota History

Unit 7: Set 4. Rural and Town Schools - Divide County Schools Data