Horace Mann's 12 for 12

via Horace Mann Legacy:

"How did the first Secretary of Education convince the public to invest their tax dollars into schools?

He did his homework. Horace Mann rode horseback across Massachusetts, physically inspecting school buildings and gathering hard data on their crumbling conditions. He published his findings in 12 famous Annual Reports that served as a roadmap for modernizing curriculum, improving physical classrooms, and securing permanent state funding. He proved that public schools were the ultimate investment in society's future.

Check out tthe link below to listen to his annual reports:

https://librivox.org/annual-reports-to-the-massachusetts-board-of-education-by-horace-mann/"

From the biograpies that I have read about Horace, it was his wife Mary who provided the secretarial services putting together the reports from notes and drafts Horace created.