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SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS—MARCH, 1965—PAGE 7
TEXAS
More Than 100 Districts
Desegregated This Year
LOUISIANA
State vs. Federal Laws
Among Problems Debated
AUSTIN
uperintendents revealed in
their annual reports that
more than 100 additional Texas
school districts have announced
desegregation policies, compared
with 1963-1964.
This does not include a large number
of districts recently announcing they
will comply with the 1964 Civil Rights
Act in order to continue receiving fed
eral funds. Texas public schools have
been accepting about $35 million a year
from this source, and a spokesman for
Texas Education Agency said that more
than 90 per cent of the state’s 1,380
districts had filed compliance state
ments by March 1.
The state has 862 districts with stu
dents of both races, but many of these
have been transferring students of one
race or the other to nearby districts.
The latest count from superintendents’
annual reports showed 398 districts
which have both white and Negro pu
pils had dropped segregation policies
at the beginning of this school year.
This represented an increase of 107
schools with more than 16,500 Negro
pupils.
Most of Texas’ approximately
345,000 Negro students already were
residents of desegregated districts,
although the number actually in school
with white pupils still runs in the
! estimated 25,000-30,000 bracket.
Hundreds of districts with only one
race have announced they will follow
nonsegregation policies if any student
of another race enrolls.
New Desegregation
Districts showing desegregation last
fall, on new reports by superintendents,
include by counties:
. Anderson — Frankston; Archer—Me-
gargel; Bailey—Three Way; Bastrop—
Elgin; Bell — Bartlett and Salado;
Bosque—Meridian; Bowie—Hooks and
Redwater; Brazorian County—Angle-
ton; Briscoe—Silverton, Collin—Allen,
Frisco, and Plano; Collingsworth—
Quail and Wellington; Colorado—Eagle
Lake; Cooke—Muenster; Crockett—
Crockett County ISD; Crosby—Crosby -
ton, Lorenzo, and Ralls; Denton— Pilot
I Point and Ponder; DeWitt—Westhofi;
Dickens—Girard and Spur; Dimmitt—
Asherton; Donley—Clarendon; Ellis—
Ennis and Ferris; Fisher—Roby; Foard
—Crowell; Freestone—Butler.
Galveston—Clear Creek; Garza—
Southland; Gillespie—Stonewall; Gray
—McLean; Grimes—Navasota; Hale—
Abernathy and Plainview; Hall—Tur
key; Harris—Goose Creek; Haskell—
Carney, Rochester, Rule and Sagerton;
Henderson—Athens and Chandler;
Hockley—Ropes and Sundown; Jack—
Jacks boro; Johnson—Cleburne; Kauf-
/ 111311 —Kemp and Terrell; Kent—-Jayton;
Knox—Knox City; Lamar—Paris; Lamb
—Amherst; Lavaca—Shiner; Lubbock
—Cooper, Idalou and Slaton.
services to Negro children who expect
to ent er previously all-white classes
n ext fall. A spokesman said the service
'"'as necessary to compensate for the
aheged inferior instruction he said
jwgro students have been receiving in
‘heir own schools.
, Other speakers said the school board
33 filed a zoning plan with federal
C0Ur t that would have the effect of
Iri3 intaining segregation.
Johnson City began desegregation
'’oluntarily in 1961 and this year more
an 70 Negro students are enrolled in
11 *acial classes.
^**cellaneous
^hite and Neg ro
Memphis Schools
Schedule Game
1 I a Nr footba11 6 ame between teams from
bg e & ro and a white high school has
\r“ scheduled for next season in
* Memphis.
i < sch^?i^ eSmen ^ or Catholic High, a white
Sgu , anc * Father Bertrand High
th e °°l the Negro Prep League said
EW gan ? e has been set for Sept. 10.
“■a, sc hools are Roman Catholic.
y e e anticipate starting a year-to-
tranH „ t ball game with Father Ber-
Ifipi ’ Coach Ollie Keller of Catholic
“eh said.
Martin—Stanton; Matagorda— Mata
gorda and Tidehaven; McCulloch—
Melvin; McLennan—Axtell, Bruceville-
Eddy, China Springs-Bosqueville,
Gholson, Hallsburg, Lorena, Mart, Mc
Gregor, Moody, Riesel, Robinson, Ross,
and West; Milam—Buckholts and
Cameron; Mitchell—Colorado; Navar
ro—Corsicana; Nueces—Agua Dulce;
Reagan—Reagan County ISD; Runnels
—Ballinger; Schleicher—Schleicher;
Stonewall—Aspermont; Tarrant—Ren
don, Taylor—Trent, Tom Green—Lake
View; Travis—Homsby-Dunlap, Man-
chaca-Oak Hill; Walker—New Waver -
ly; Wharton—Boling; Wheeler—Wheel
er; Wilbarger—Oklaunion; Willacy—
Lasara; Williamson — Leander and
Round Rock; Wilson—Poth; Wood—
Mineola; Young—Olney.
All 12 Grades
Most of these reported that desegre
gation policies in this school year cover
all 12 grades. Larger Negro student
populations involved include 1,128 at
Navasota, and 1,279 at Goose Creek,
both near Houston; 1,355 at Corsicana,
1,203 at Terrell and 1,218 at Paris, all
near Dallas.
The new list includes Stonewall, a
school within a mile of President
Johnson’s ranch 65 miles west of
Austin. It has three Negroes among
100 students.
Districts announcing new and addi
tional desegregation scheduled for the
fall of 1965 included:
Cuero, Dewitt County—Consolidating
all-Negro Daule school district with
Cuero junior and senior high, after
voters failed to approve bond issues to
maintain a separate Daule district.
Pflugerville, Travis County—Enroll
ment of about 300 white and 30 Negro
pupils.
Port Arthur, Jefferson County—A
two-year-old stairstep program will be
accelerated at a rate to be announced
later. It has nearly 5,000 Negro pupils
and twice as many whites.
Angleton, Brazoria County—Extend
to all 12 grades its desegregation
started last fall in the first grade, but
without any applications by Negro
pupils to transfer. The district has
about 2,700 white and 470 Negro stu
dents.
Newton, Newton County — Adopted
a nonsegregation policy to retain
$30,000 a year in federal aid. It has 958
white and 489 Negro pupils. Said Supt.
Norman Paschall: “I think we’ve got to
do what we think we ought not to do.”
Granger, Williamson County — With
about 300 white and 90 Negro pupils,
will desegregate all grades.
Over Member's Protest
Austin’s school board adopted the
required compliance motion to continue
receiving federal funds, but over the
protest of Clint Small, an attorney-
member.
“They’ll be telling us next to stand
The game is scheduled to be the first
in Memphis history between football
teams of different races.
★ ★ ★
A group of eight Brazilian teachers,
newsmen and social scientists visited
Nashville on Feb. 16 and afterward
declared that reports of racial tension
there were without foundation.
“We were wondering when we got
here how the problem would present
itself,” said Fernando Mourao, a
journalist and sociology teacher, but
“there is no Negro problem in Nash
ville.”
The group visited Vanderbilt Uni
versity and other points of interest in
Nashville as a part of a three-week tour
of the United States.
★ ★ ★
Tennessee A&I University at Nash
ville began a year-long study of Negro
history to mark the predominantly
Negro institution’s observance of Negro
History Week.
The observance, which was held the
week of Feb. 7, also included visits by
students from Vanderbilt University,
Fisk University, Meharry Medical Col
lege and George Peabody College for
Teachers.
The visits, sponsored by the Rho Psi
Chapter of Omega Psi Phi fraternity,
were designed to promote better under
standing between students, faculty and
ethnic groups at Nashville colleges.
Texas Highlights
More than 100 additional Texas
school districts dropped segregation
policies last September, according
to annual reports by superintendents.
This makes 398 desegregated dis
tricts known in the state, excluding
those recently announcing plans to
comply with the U.S. Civil Rights
Act to continue receiving federal
funds.
Rice University announced it had
accepted its first Negro student. The
State Court of Civil Appeals rejected
an appeal in the suit by Rice alumni
who sought to prevent the desegrega
tion.
A lawsuit was filed to have a court
declaration that all Texas statutes
involving segregation in public
schools are void.
One Negro sorority voted to accept
an invitation to join the Panhellenic
Council at the University of Texas.
Another refrained from immediate
reply.
A Negro candidate ran third in a
field of nine seeking a vacant East
Texas legislative seat.
An FBI official said Communists
are not controlling the civil rights
movement.
A Houston Negro minister said
the cause of civil rights is “ex
ploited” sometimes for publicity pur
poses.
on our heads before each meeting,”
said Small, voting “No” as all other
board members approved the new
order.
Austin schools have desegregated
all grades and have begun integration
of faculties. Small objected that federal
officials should “just look at us and see
what we’re doing” rather than requir
ing a written promise of accepting fed
eral regulation.
Legal Action
State Court Asked
To Void Statutes
A lawsuit filed in state District Judge
Herman Jones’ court March 1 sought
to declare invalid all segregation stat
utes involving public education. The
suit is styled Mr. and Mrs. Fred D.
Mann et al v. Texas Education Agency.
The Negro plaintiffs seek to strike all
Texas segregation laws to clear the way
for Texas participation in federal fi
nancial aid and compliance with the
Civil Rights Act of 1964. No specific
complaint was involved but attorneys
for the plaintiffs said the suit was nec
essary because of the Civil Rights Act.
Texas school segregation laws and a
state constitutional provision were de
clared in violation of the U.S. Supreme
Court’s ruling as far back as 1955, in
McKinney v. Blankenship.
In the Colleges
Rice University
Accepts Its First
Negro Student
Rice University announced that its
first Negro student is Raymond John
son, 21, who has been doing research
there for two years without publicity.
The 21-year-old student from Alice
attended the University of Texas on
a scholarship, receiving a bachelor de
gree in mathematics. He is working
on a doctorate in mathematics at Rice,
has a job doing translation in Russian
language, and works also for Humble
Oil & Refining Co.
The youth said he might go into law
eventually.
The State Court of Civil Appeals in
Houston rejected an attempted appeal
of Rice v. Carr, the case seeking to
validate enrollment of Negro students
at Rice University and the charging of
tuition.
Alumni sponsoring the lawsuit to
prevent desegregation of the university
plan an appeal to the state Supreme
Court, on the ground that the govern
ing board’s policy would violate the
founder’s will.
★ ★ ★
The Dallas Times-Herald reported
that five Southwest Conference schools
are among eight seeking to recruit
James Cash, a six-foot six-inch Negro
basketball star from I. M. TerreU High
School in Fort Worth. The conference
has no Negroes on varsity football,
basketball or baseball teams, but Ne
groes have performed on track teams.
(Continued from Page 3)
recall petitions in five of the state’s
eight congressional districts but did
not say which ones.
Council representatives made the
threat to Gov. McKeithen during a
conference Feb. 11, but the governor
said he would have no part of the
move. Under the law the governor has
authority to call recaU elections once
the required proportion of voters sign
the petitions.
“I would be most hesitant to call any
recall election,” said Gov. McKeithen.
“The State Board members are not
doing anything they should be recalled
for. We’re not anywhere near ap
proaching the recall of our State Board
of Education members.”
Schoolmen
Iberville Approves
Assignment Setup
For Desegregation
Pupil-assignment procedures for de
segregating the 11th and 12th grades
of the Iberville Parish public schools
in September were approved by the
parish school board Feb. 9. The board
acted in conformity with an order of
U.S. District Judge E. Gordon West
issued last fall.
The resolution included these general
provisions:
• Initial assignment of pupils to all
parish public schools will be made
before June 1.
• The new procedures for assigning
pupils without regard to race will apply
only to the 11th and 12th grades.
• Eleventh- and 12th-grade assign
ments will be made on the basis of
individual choice.
• Notification of the procedures will
be sent by registered mail to principals
of the schools to be affected.
• These factors will be considered
in determining pupil assignment: de
sires of the pupil and his parents or
guardian; availability of space in the
particular school; age of the pupil as
compared to the ages of other pupils
attending the school; availability of
requested curriculum; scholastic record
of the pupil where available and pro
fessional judgment of the aptitude
and prospects for compatibility of the
pupil in the school to be attended.
Miscellaneous
Manpower Program
Quietly Resumed
Under McKeithen
In 1963, Louisiana relinquished more
than $1 million in federal aid available
for manpower development and re
training because then Gov. Jimmie
Davis and Supt. of Education Shelby
M. Jackson balked at requirements that
the program be carried out on a non-
segregated basis.
After the change of administration in
1964, the program was quietly under
taken with the approval of Gov. John
J. McKeithen and Supt. William E.
Dodd, and thus far in fiscal 1964 has
recorded these results, as reported by
F. C. Doyal Jr., administrator of Lou
isiana’s division of employment securi
ty:
• 1,232 unemployed persons have
been placed in jobs.
• Projects now under way are train
ing 905 unemployed heads of house-
No Southwest Conference coach is
known previously to have attempted
to recruit a Negro athlete via the
scholarship route.
★ ★ ★
Alpha Kappa Alpha, a Negro sorority
at the University of Texas, accepted
an invitation to join the Panhellenic
Council. The other Negro sorority on
the campus, Delta Sigma Theta, with
held any action.
All other sororities at the University
of Texas are all-white. There also are
separate fraternities for white and Ne
gro men.
★ ★ ★
The legislature approved almost
without dissent Gov. John Connally’s
(See TEXAS, Page 11)
holds and youths and represent a total
federal outlay of $2,080,550.
• Plans have been developed for
retraining an additional 760 unem
ployed heads of households at an addi
tional cost of $1,458,000.
• Special pre-vocational programs
and training in eight occupations are
provided for 400 youths in the New
Orleans area, and a special program to
retrain unemployed workers over 45
years of age in 18 occupations is about
to be launched.
In all, about a dozen projects in eight
cities throughout Louisiana are pro
viding job training in occupations as
diverse as auto repairs and stenogra
phy, both in “institution-type” pro
grams and in on-the-job projects.
In Louisiana the program is admin
istered jointly by the division of
employment security and the depart
ment of education. The employment
agency is responsible for conducting
surveys of job training needs; for se
lection and referral of those qualified
for retraining; for payment of the
training, subsistence and travel allow
ances to eligible trainees; and for
placement of trainees on completion
of their programs.
The education department develops
the course outlines and curriculum;
furnishes instructors, equipment and
supplies; provides weekly certification
of eligibility of trainees for the allow
ances they received.
★ ★ ★
Questions Over Appointment
Delay War on Poverty
Louisiana’s participation in the War
on Poverty is off to a slow start, due
in part to questions raised over the
appointment by
Gov. John J. Mc
Keithen of former
Education Supt.
Shelby M. Jack-
son to be second
in command of
the economic op
portunities pro
gram in this state.
Allocation of
federal funds has
been held up, ac
cording to federal
spokesmen, pending an investigation of
the Jackson appointment. However,
said Hyman H. Bookbinder, assistant
director of the national Office of Eco
nomic Opportunity, Louisiana is not
the only state in which there has been
a delay of allocation.
Gov. McKeithen, who has been cool
toward various aspects of the anti
poverty program, said he has no inten
tion of removing Jackson from the post
until it has been shown that he is not
a capable administrator. Appointment
of the long-time education superinten
dent (who was one of six men defeated
by McKeithen for governor) was pro
tested by the American Civil Liberties
Union and the Congress of Racial
Equality because of Jackson’s segrega
tionist sentiments.
★ ★ ★
Jefferson Parish Group
Opposes Stale Grants
Opposition to the state grant-in-aid
program was voiced Feb. 23 by the
Better Government Group, Inc., of Jef
ferson Parish, a private political action
organization. In a caucus of the organ
ization, the following statement was
prepared for release to the press:
“This program, whereby the state of
Louisiana pays the sum of $360 per
year to the parents of students attend
ing private, nonsectarian schools is both
unfair and discriminating to the citizens
of Louisiana. All state taxpayers are
compelled to support two school sys
tems, the public and the private, and
many taxpayers support three, the pub
lic, private and parochial.
“We maintain that the freedom of
choice in education is fundamental to
our American heritage and we respect
the right of all citizens to educate their
children in the school of their choosing.
However, in keeping with the spirit of
this free selection, all must be prepared
to pay their own way.
“The Better Government Group feels
that one of the primary obligations of
the state to its citizens is to provide, by
equitable taxation, the very finest pub
lic school system obtainable. This sys
tem, financed as it is and should be by
public taxes, must be accessible to all
who wish to enter. Private schools,
privately financed, are available to
those individuals not desiring a public
school education.”
Tennessee
(Continued from Page 6)