§ 2. The board of education so selected and acting for each such district is hereby declared to have been and to be the duly constituted authority thereof, and all acts and proceedings heretofore done, had or performed by each such district, and the persons from time to time selected and acting as the board of education thereof, such as are authorized to be done, had or performed by such school districts or boards of education thereof by the general school laws of the State are hereby declared to be legal and valid in all respects; and each such board of education hereafter shall consist of a president and six members and three additional members for every additional ten thousand inhabitants and shall be elected and organized in the same manner and have the same powers and discharge the duties of boards of education of school districts, as provided in sections 123, 125, 126, 126a and 127 of "An Act to establish and maintain a system of free schools," approved and in force June 12, 1909, as amended, as said sections now exist, or may, from time to time, be amended or supplemented.

The board of education acting for each such high school district at the date this Act becomes effective is, and shall continue to be the duly constituted governing body thereof, until a new board of education shall have been elected and qualified, and such acting board of education is hereby expressly authorized to call. and hold an election to elect such new board of education.

§ 3. All elections heretofore called and held by the board of education of each such high school district, including elections called for the purpose of voting upon the question of issuing bonds of such high school district are hereby validated and legalized, and all bonds so authorized by a majority of the voters voting upon the question are hereby validated, and the board of education to be elected, as above provided, shall have power to issue and sell such bonds and to adopt all resolutions necessary for that purpose.

§ 4. The provisions of any special legislative Act establishing a school district are hereby specifically repealed in so far as such provisions are in conflict with the right of each such high school district hereby validated to establish and maintain a high school, and this Act shall be construed as evidencing a legislative intent to repeal such conflicting provisions and to legalize and validate each such high school district, including such as have within the boundaries thereof a school district established by special legislative Act. § 5. The invalidity of any section of this Act shall not affect the remainder thereof.

§ 6. Whereas, an emergency exists, therefore this Act shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and approval.

APPROVED March 31, 1921.

§ 1.

HIGH SCHOOLS-ORGANIZATION VALIDATED.

Amend section 1, Act of 1917.

§ 1. Elections called for or-
ganization and electing boards
of education legalized-date of
election.

(HOUSE BILL No. 756. APPROVED JUNE 24, 1921.)

AN ACT to amend section 1 of "An Act entitled 'An Act to legalize the organization of certain high school districts," approved and in force June 14, 1917.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: Section 1 of "An Act entitled 'An Act to legalize the organization of certain high school districts,'" approved and in force June 14, 1917, is amended to read as follows:

§ 1. In all cases where a majority of the inhabitants of any contiguous and compact territory voting on the proposition, having voted at any election called for the purpose by a county superintendent of schools in favor of the organization of such territory into a high school district, and when at a subsequent election similarly called and held a board of education has been chosen for suc district, each such election is hereby made legal and valid and such. territory is hereby declared legally and validly organized and established as a high school district, and a valid and existing school district and body politic and corporate of this State for the purpose of establishing and maintaining a high school. The board of education acting for each such dictrict is hereby declared to be the duly constituted corporate authority thereof, and each such board shall hereafter consist of a president and six members, and shall be elected and organized in the same manner and have the same powers and discharge the duties of boards of education of school districts as provided by sections 123, 125, 126, 126a and 127 of an Act of the General Assembly of the State of Illinois entitled, "An Act to establish and maintain a system of free schools," approved June 12, 1909, as said sections now exist or may from time to time be amended; but the annual election of the members of the boards of education shall be on the second Saturday of April. APPROVED June 24, 1921.

AN ACT to amend sections 25, 25a, 27, 30 and 34 of an Act entitled, "An Act in relation to an Illinois State teachers' pension and retirement fund," approved May 27, 1915, and in force July 1, 1915.

SECTION 1. Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly: That sections 25, 25a, 27, 30 and 34 of an Act entitled, “An Act in relation to an Illinois State teachers' pension and retirement fund," approved May 27, 1915, and in force July 1, 1915, as amended, are amended to read as follows:

§ 25. Any person, who has complied with the provisions of this section may retire and receive an annuity provided for in the following cases:

(a) After a period or periods aggregating twenty-five (25) years of service as teacher in the public schools of the United States of which fifteen (15) years must have been spent in the public schools of this State included under the State Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund Act, provided that the payments and deductions of his or her salary have been made and turned over to said fund as provided in sections 12 and 13. If said payments shall not have amounted to $400.00, the teacher shall pay into the fund the deficiency before receiving the annuity with interest as provided by clause (b) of this section. No person while receiving a teacher's annuity from any other public school teachers' pension or retirement fund shall receive an annuity from the funds created under this Act. Nor shall any person under fifty years of age receive an annuity, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section (a) 1.

(b) Teachers who elect to become contributors to, and beneficiaries of the said Illinois State Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund, under the provisions of this section may count past services in public schools as a part of the whole of the period of twenty-five years hereinafter specified, but no annuity shall be paid until said teacher shall have paid into the fund a sum equal to that which he or she would have contributed under the provisions of this section had he or she been a regular contributor to said fund during said period of past service, together with simple interest thereon at the rate of four per cent per annum from the time such payments would have been made, had such person during such time been a contributor to such fund, to

the time such person shall by making such payments become entitled to the benefits and credits of such past service.

(c) After fifteen years of service as teacher in the public schools, two-fifths of which may be outside of Illinois, or in the public schools not included under the State Teachers' Pension and Retirement Fund Act, but within the United States, any teacher who shall have been declared by two competent physicians, who have made a physical examination of the teacher, at the request of the board of trustees, to be suffering from any disability such as to disqualify him or her for teaching, may during the continuance of such disability retire, provided that the payments of said teacher to the fund shall have amounted to a sum, as provided in sections 12 and 13. If said payment shall not amount to $400.00, the teacher shall pay into the fund the deficiency before receiving the annuity. No person while receiving a teacher's annuity from any other public school teachers' pension and retirement fund shall receive an annuity from the fund created under said sections.

(d) In computing the terms of service under clause a, b, and c of this section, a year shall be a legal school year at the time and place where said service was rendered in public schools not included in the provisions of this section, a time less than a legal school year in this State shall not be included as a year, but only such portion of a year as the number of teaching weeks in each such year bears to the number of weeks required at the time to constitute a legal year in the State.

(e) Any person who has compiled with the provisions of this Act and desires to retire from active service in said public schools, shall apply in writing to the board of trustees of the Illinois State teachers' pension and retirement fund.

(f) Any teacher coming from a public school not included within the provisions of this section who may be employed to teach in the public schools mentioned in this section may become a contributor to and beneficiary of said fund in like manner as provided in clause (b) of this section.

§ 25a. Any person not now employed as a teacher or not now holder of a certificate to teach, and who at the time of the going into effect of this Act had served twenty-five (25) years as teacher as defined by section 34 of this Act, three-fifths of which period has been in the public schools in the State of Illinois, may become a beneficiary of the Illinois State teachers' pension and retirement fund and receive the annuity provided by section 26 of this Act by paying into the fund the sum equal to that which he or she would have contributed had he or she been a regular contributor to said fund during the period of such service, together with simple interest thereon at the rate of four per cent per annum from the time such payments would have been made to the time when such person shall, by making the payments, become entitled to the benefits and credits of such past service.

§ 27. Any teacher who is a contributor to said fund who shall cease to teach in said public schools before becoming a member of the third class as provided in section 13, shall, if application be made in

writing to the board of trustees within six months after the date of his or her retirement, be entitled to the return of fifty per cent of the amount, without interest, which shall have been paid into the fund by said teacher. If such teacher shall again thereafter teach in the public schools, he or she shall, within five months, from the date of his or her return to the service of said public schools, return to said fund the amount so returned to such teacher, together with simple interest on said amount at four per cent per annum for the time such amount was withdrawn from the fund.

§ 30. Any teacher who has elected or may elect to come under the provisions of this Act shall be entitled to compute as a part of his twenty-five (25) year period as such teacher, time, not to exceed one year, spent in profession preparation in a State normal school, reputable college, or university, by paying into the fund a sum equal to the amount he would have contributed, if he had been a regular contributor during such period: Provided that he shall have already taught at least ten years.

Any teacher who has elected to come under the provisions of this Act shall be entitled to compute as a part of his twenty-five (25) year period as such teacher, time spent in service with the military or naval forces of the United States during the Spanish-American War and during the war between the United States and Germany, by paying into the fund a sum equal to the amount he would have contributed if he had been a regular contributor during such period.

§ 34. The term "teacher" as used in this Act, shall include any teacher, teacher-secretary, substitute teacher, supervisor, principal. supervising principal, superintendent or assistant superintendent, who shall teach or be employed in the public schools of this State: Provided, however, that service as county superintendent or assistant superintendent or as teacher in any State school or institution as defined in section 22 of an Act, entitled "An Act to create and administer a State institution teachers' pension and retirement fund," filed June 14, 1917, and in force July 1, 1917, may be counted as a part of the twenty-five years of service required to enable a teacher to receive the annuities provided for in this Act, subject, however, to all the requirements of this Act: And provided, further, that service as a substitute teacher shall not be counted as a part of the twenty-five years of service required to enable a teacher to receive the annuities provided for by this Act unless the substitute teacher shall be employed for the school year and paid monthly for such service.

APPROVED June 30, 1921.