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PAGE 12—APRIL 1961—SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS
Dr. Mays Believes Negro
Colleges Will Serve All
(Continued from Page 1)
without designation. They will become
colleges serving all the people. Al
though these colleges must be keenly
aware of the disabilities peculiar to
an economically and culturally dis
advantaged people and seek to elimi
nate these handicaps, the emphasis
must be on quality education and not
on Negro education.
The emphasis on quality education
will help to erase from the public mind
the erroneous notion that if it is for
Negroes, it doesn’t have to be as good.
The colleges now serving Negroes must
seek support in the future on two
bases: that they are needed and that
they are good institutions sponsoring
programs that will enable their gradu
ates to compete in every area of life
in a highly competitive society.
No college, whatever its origin, has
a right to survive unless it is needed
and is excellent. This places all colleges
on the same level—whether formerly
serving only Negroes or formerly
serving only whites.
Enrollment To Double
There can hardly be any doubting
the prediction that college enrollment
will double in the next decade. This
fact alone will insure the need of ex
isting institutions. Certainly no good
institution which meets the standard
of excellence required of it will need
to close unless it becomes unable to
find adequate financial support. The
possible inability to secure adequate
financial support is a problem con
fronting all private colleges and it
hits the predominantly Negro colleges
hardest of all.
The Negro students come from an
economically disadvantaged group and
I see no immediate way to close the
gap between the average income of the
Negro and white families.
At best the Negro’s average income
is only about 60 per cent of that of a
white American. The alumni of Negro
colleges have not accumulated great
wealth. Most of the predominantly Ne
gro colleges are located in the South
and the wealthy white South does not
yet accept whole-heartedly the Negro
colleges as it does the white colleges.
The wealthy South will not contribute
to the support of Negro colleges pro
portionally as it contributes to the
maintenance of white colleges. This
is a sad fact, but it must be admitted.
This picture may be changed as the
Negro colleges become more and more
desegregated.
Survival Will Depend
On Financing Ability
If the future of what is now a pre
dominantly Negro college is precarious,
it will not be because of desegregation.
Its survival will depend upon the col
lege’s ability to finance its program.
This will be true of the predominantly
white college, but the road to security
will be more precarious for what is
now called a Negro college.
If the alumni will contribute more,
tuition fees are increased, private
giving becomes more generous, and if
the federal government develops a
program of support for private colleges,
the future of the predominantly Negro
colleges will be secure; and they will
make their contribution to the South
and to the nation on a non-segregated
basis.
Many of the Negro colleges are
better than some white colleges, and
many of them compare favorably with
the best white colleges in their area.
These colleges will compete and sur
vive. I assume the predominantly tax-
supported Negro colleges will continue
to receive large state appropriations
mainly because of need and in order
to ease the pressure of Negroes seeking
to enroll in formerly all-white state
universities.
And yet white students are already
seeking entrance to several of the tax-
supported Negro institutions. These will
be desegregated even in the strictly
southern states.
‘Token’ To Continue
I may be in error, but I believe
that for some time to come the Negro
enrollment in the white colleges of the
South will be relatively small. Token
integration will be practiced for quite
some time in the white colleges, and
Negroes will not go to an institution
merely because it was formerly all-
white. They will go to good institutions.
I shall not attempt to give the rea
sons why, but it is significant to note
the following:
Berea College opened its doors to
Negroes for the second time in 1950.
Thirty Negroes are enrolled in Berea
this semester. Goucher College opened
its doors to Negroes in 1955. There are
only two Negroes enrolled in the under
graduate college this semester. St.
John’s College in Maryland began to
admit Negroes as undergraduates in
1948; one Negro is enrolled there this
semester. And yet Morgan State Col
lege, a predominantly Negro institution,
is crowded despite the fact that the
University of Maryland has been ad
mitting Negroes in the undergraduate
college since 1954. The university does
not keep racial records, so it is not
known how many Negroes are in the
University of Maryland.
Six Undergraduates
The University of North Carolina
began to enroll Negroes as under
graduates in 1955; only six Negroes
are registered this semester in the
undergraduate division of the uni
versity. The Negro colleges of North
Carolina, such as A and T, North Caro
lina College, Bennett and Johnson C.
Smith, have as many students as they
can handle.
The University of Virginia accepted
Negro students as undergraduates in
the academic year 1950-51; there are
only six Negro undergraduates at the
University of Virginia this present
semester. Hampton, Virginia State,
Virginia Union and St. Paul are not
suffering for a lack of students.
Even when one considers the fact
there are a goodly number of Negroes
enrolled in universities such as the
University of Texas, the University of
Arkansas, the University of Maryland
and Catholic University in Washington,
where no record of race is kept, the
predominantly Negro institutions are
full.
White Colleges
It is a revelation to note the data
gathered from white liberal arts col
leges in the Southern and border states
that are opened to Negroes, one as
early as 1935, others since and before
1954. We wrote 202 white institutions,
known to have desegregated or to be
willing to desegregate, asking two ques
tions: “What year did your college
decide to admit Negroes to your under
graduate college? How many Negroes
are enrolled in the undergraduate col
lege this semester?”
Of these 202 colleges queried, 47
did not reply; 20 teachers colleges,
seminaries and a medical school were
excluded from the tabulated data. This
leaves 135 schools forming the basis of
these data. Colleges which accept Ne-
goes number 127. Of this number, 33
colleges keep no record of the number
of Negroes enrolled, and 16 accept
Negroes but have none enrolled. In
the 135 there were eight that said they
do not enroll Negroes.
In other words, 94 institutions ac
cepting Negroes have an enrollment of
1,738 Negro students in the second
semester of the academic year 1960-61.
In reality this number is enrolled in
78 institutions, for 16 accept Negroes,
but have none enrolled. We do not
know how many Negroes are enrolled
in the 33 colleges that keep no record
by race.
All Good Colleges Needed
It ought to be clear by now that all
good colleges will be needed to absorb
the increase in enrollment in the years
ahead. It seems clear also that Negroes
are not going to rush to attend an
institution just because it was formerly
a predominantly white institution.
It is false to assume that a Negro
college, however excellent, must cease
to exist when desegregation becomes a
reality. If Negro colleges must close
because they formerly served only
Negroes, it will be the rankest kind
of discrimination in a supposedly
“integrated” society.
Will white students matriculate in
an institution existing primarily for the
education of Negroes? Since 1954, 20
Negro colleges have enrolled 294 white
students and 60 white students have
graduated from predominantly Negro
colleges. These figures do not include
Howard University in Washington, D.C.,
which has a long record of admitting
and graduating white students. Nor
does it include Lincoln University in
Jefferson City, Mo., where hundreds
of white students have enrolled since
1954.
Further Proof
Further proof that white students will
and do attend institutions established
mainly for the education of Negroes
comes from West Virginia State Col
lege. The registrar of that institution
informs me that in the fall of 1954,
the year of the decision on segregation,
185 white students enrolled in West
Virginia State College. The Supreme
Court decision came in May. In the
1960 graduating class, 41 white students
graduated at West Virginia State Col
lege. Including the evening school, there
are far more white students enrolled
there this semester than Negroes.
One can hardly escape the conclusion
that education in the South will be
desegregated, however slowly, and in
many places it will be token integration
for a long time. The predominantly
Negro college will not only serve Ne
groes; it will serve whites as well. It
will be judged and appraised not as a
Negro institution but as a college for
the education of all students who
qualify for admission. If it is an ex
cellent institution, no one will take
the time to argue about the institution’s
past.
Questionnaire Sent Out
On Effects of Decision
In our questionnaire to the presidents
of the 33 colleges that make up the
United Negro College Fund and of the
10 largest predominantly tax-supported
colleges for Negroes, the dominant
question was: “What effect did the May
17, 1954, decision of the United States
Supreme Court have upon your col
lege?”
We wanted to know if the decision
caused a change in the college’s charter;
if it produced a change in the racial
complexion of the student body, in the
number of white students enrolled prior
to 1954 and in the number of white
students enrolled since 1954; and if
more white students had graduated
from predominantly Negro colleges
since 1954 than in a comparable period
from 1948-1954.
We also sought to find out the col
leges’ policies with respect to recruiting
white students before and since May
17, 1954, and if they plan to increase in
the future the number of white persons
on the faculty and in the student body.
Of the 43 predominantly Negro col
leges written, 38 replied.
29 Didn’t Change Charters
Twenty-nine colleges stated that the
decision of the U.S. Supreme Court
did not cause a change in their charters.
However, a few comments are im
portant. One school wrote: “No change
was necessary.” Similarly, one re
sponded: “No change was required or
needed.” Another replied: “No,” but
added: “Our charter always made it
possible for any student regardless of
race, creed or color, or sex to attend
here.”
One college said the decision pro
duced no change in its charter but
pointed up the fact that “Our charter
provided for the acceptance of all
qualified students.” Still another col
lege answering “No” clarified the
college’s position in this way: “Our
charter forbids discrimination based on
race. Any qualified student may enter.”
Three colleges responded in essence
that revision to admit all races “took
place prior to 1954.”
These answers may be fairly typical
of the 29 if they had taken the time
to spell out the “No.” The possible
exception might be in some of the
tax-supported colleges. Six institutions
said that the 1954 decision of the United
States Supreme Court did cause a
change in the colleges’ charters making
it possible for them to admit all
qualified students irrespective of race.
One of the five said the college
omitted the word “Negro” from its
charter. Another of the five stated:
“The charter was amended to include
all races.” A third responded that
“colored youth” was changed to read:
“All qualified students may enter.” A
fourth of the five replied: “It ac
celerated our efforts to change the
charter so that students of all races
could be enrolled.” A fifth said: “We
anticipated the decision and had our
charter changed before 1954.”
New Policy
One state college answered that the
decision caused no change in the col
lege’s charter, but “it led to the state
board of education establishing the
policy of admitting students without
regard to race.” Another tax-supported
college official wrote: “We desegregated
faculty and staff in 1955.” This official
commented further: “State laws re
stricting enrollment due to race were
considered null and void after May 17
1954.”
One school says: “Our charter has
been changed but not as a result of
the court’s decision.”
We wanted to know about the en
rollment and graduation of white stu
dents in predominantly Negro colleges
prior to and after May 17, 1954. We
found that in nine of the predomi
nantly Negro colleges 27 white students
had been enrolled fairly immediately
prior to May 17, 1954. Since 1954, as
noted earlier, white students have been
enrolled in 20 of the 38 Negro colleges
reporting, with a total enrollment of
(See NEGRO COLLEGES, Page 13)
TEXAS
Fort
Worth Lawsuit Set
I
For Hearing on April 101
AUSTIN, Texas
S. District Judge T. Whit-
• field Davidson set a hearing
for April 10 on the application to
desegregate public schools in Fort
Worth, the state’s largest system
lacking a definite plan to abolish
segregation (Flax v. Potts—See
Southern School News, Novem
ber, 1959)
The setting of a date was requested
by attorneys for the National Associa
tion for the Advancement of Colored
People, who represent the plaintiffs.
The applications were made in Octo
ber, 1959, to enroll children from two
Negro families in all-white elementary
schools. Arlene Flax is the daughter
of an Air Force sergeant and his wife.
The other plaintiffs involved are chil
dren of Mr. and Mrs. Herbert C. Teal.
The district last year had enrollment
of 50,031 white and 9,681 Negro pupils.
A larger district, Dallas, retains segre
gation this year but plans to begin
grade-a-year desegregation in Septem
ber by court order. Houston and San
Antonio schools already have admitted
some Negroes to classrooms with
whites.
Schoolmen
Suburb of Houston
Holds Election on
Ending Segregation
"Dy petition, the school board of
* ' Northeast Houston Indepen
dent School District (a suburb
of the main city) set an election
for April 1 on abolishing segre
gation. A federal court suit was
filed earlier to force desegre
gation (Eastland v. Wheat—See
SSN October-November, 1960).
Two Negroes are candidates against
present school board members at an
election to be held the same day as
the desegregation referendum. Incum
bents T. J. Engram and Roy L. Mc
Cullough are opposed by H. L. Kelley
and Elmer W. Busby, the Negroes.
The petition on desegregation bore
2,092 signatures. It was presented to the
board by J. B. Chapman, a citizen,
who said the move is necessary to
convince the courts that most voters in
the district oppose biracial schools.
Chapman predicted the proposal would
be defeated overwhelmingly.
At Houston, a threat of legal action
apparently halted a demonstration at
a high school, which involved a com
plaint of discrimination against Negroes.
Vocational Courses
Mrs. Charles E. White, Negro member
of the school board, complained that
San Jacinto High, which is being ex
panded, would offer nine vocational
courses to its white students that are
unavailable to Negroes at another vo
cational school, which they attend.
This brought a threat of demon
strations at San Jacinto High by persons
claiming to be members of the pro
gressive Youth Association. Supt. John
W. McFarland said he told the men
who visited him, threatening to demon
strate, that “we would be prepared for
them.” The board’s attorney reportedly
has a plan of court action ready for
any persons who attempt to interfere
with the operation of Houston schools,
which started desegregation last Sep
tember on a grade-a-year basis in the
first grade.
Legislative Action
Texas Highlights i
A federal district court set f Qt '
hearing on April 10 the application 4
for desegregation of public schools ^
at Fort Worth, the state’s large* (8
system still lacking definite plan, ?|
to abolish segregation. ^
Northeast Houston Independent
School District held an election on
April 1 to determine whether J 0
should desegregate. A lawsuit al- "
ready has been filed against the ^
school board seeking this goal.
The Texas legislature received one
proposal to fine “sit-in” and “stand-
in” demonstrators; by contrast, ,
another to establish a State Fait J
Employment Practices Act to abolish c
racial discrimination in public em
ployment. j
The Texas Baptist Executive r
Board accepted without comment c
various suggestions that eight de- 1
nominational colleges under its con- 1
trol drop racial bars.
discrimination in public employment i
based upon race, sex, national origi 1
or religion.
★ ★ ★
Rep. Lloyd C. Martin of Normangs ,
introduced H.B. 797, providing penalties ,
for “sitdown” or “stand-in” demon- |
strators or other persons who refus ,
to leave a privately-owned business
establishment when requested by tin
management.
A fine up to $500 could be levied
against violators.
The penalty would apply against
those who failed to leave upon request
of the owner or manager or “when it
appears unequivocally” that the pres
ence of such person “is undesirable
or unwanted” by the management
Conduct of “legitimate labor organi
zations” is excluded from the act.
In the Colleges
Baptist Board Urged
To End Segregation
In Eight Colleges
T he Texas Baptist Executive
Board received without com
ment suggestions for desegrega
tion of all eight colleges whid
the church operates in Texas
Wayland Baptist College at Plai®
view has been desegregated f° :
several years. The other seven-
including Baylor University, &
tain segregation.
Dr. W. E. Wyatt of Hurst, a
dentist recently appointed as a Bap®,
missionary to Nigeria, urged the bo^
to drop college segregation as a
step toward eliminating prejudice. ^
T. A. Patterson, executive secret#)
of the Baptist General Convention
Texas, also acknowledged motions
resolutions for integration adopted W
Baptist groups in Houston, Waco an
Lubbock.
★ ★ ★
At Dallas, President T. B. Maston^
Southwestern Baptist Seminary
all ministers to lend their suppo®
the forthcoming desegregation of
public schools. ^
“When the courts have
the responsibility of the pastor to a.
up for law and order whether heag 1 ^
with desegregation or not,” said
Mas ton.
Solons and Students
Cancel Lunches in
Segregated Place
A t Austin, four state legislators
from San Antonio and a group
of nearly 70 law students from St.
Mary’s University of that city
canceled their orders for lunch
at a restaurant near the state
capitol, which declined to serve
a Negro student in their group.
The group included State Rep. John
C. Alaniz of San Antonio, author of
a bill to establish a “Fair Employment
Practices Act” for Texas and prohibit
★ ★ ★
At the University of Texas in AV^£
efforts continued to integrate
academic activities more fully- ^
university’s academic program is
to Negroes without racial restriC*^*
The Daily Texan, campus newsp-^.-,
complained of the athletic depart®® t
policy against allowing Negroes to P.
on varsity athletic teams. This j
after Junior Coffey, a Negro bask® .
and football star from Dimmitt, I ^
high school said he would like to c ,, e *
to Texas as an athlete. Instead, CO^jj
told reporters that he probably .
enroll at the University of Okl®*^
an athletic rival which recruits
as well as white athtletes. Coffey s ^
that he expects to have trouble j
his studies in college. &