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HEW says Augusta Tech discriminates Page 1 Vol. 9, No. 29 our new Civic Center Grand Opening Held on Dec. 5 By Fannie Flono For Ed Mclntyre, Augusta’s new civic center is the culmination of a long and sometimes hard fought battle. It has meant overcoming verbal assaults on the worth of the project and realized that for some the issue was just a “political football,” he said. But Mclntyre, originator of the civic center idea and vice-chairman of the Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority, “pursued it (the civic center) until it became a reality,” he said. Mclntyre, a former chairman of the Richmond County Commission, feels the completion of civic center represents a “renaissance” for the Central Savannah River Area. “We’re finally coming into modem times,” he said. The new civic center, like HEW says Augusta Tech discriminates By Fannie Flono The Augusta Area Technical School Unlawfully discriminates against blacks, women and th® handicapped, the Atlanta Regional Office of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare charged lucf u/pplc The HEW Office of Civil Rights has told Richmond County School Board officials they must immediately begin correcting the 16 violations and submit plans for more extensive compliance where funds and construction may prevent immediate compliance. A report must be filed within 30 days. However, the director of vocational and technical education for Augusta Tech said school officials will continue at least one policy which federal officials said are discriminatory until they can develop alternate policies. Augusta Nma-Steiijm Mclntyre is Civic Center originator the shopping malls, will provide area residents with a sense of pride, Mclntyre said. “Those who could afford it were going to Columbia and Atlanta for something they could get here,” Mclntyre said. The new civic center will attract businesses, bring cultural events to the community and make major entertainment available at a minimum cost, Mclntyre said. The Vice-president of Pilgrim Health and Life Insurance Co. said he supported the construction of the civic center because it was one of the basic things a community such as this one should have. “The community is no better than its leadership and the leadership should try to provide basic things for the community. We were way behind in one of those basic ingredients.” Jack Patrick, the director, said most of the violation cited by ORC are being corrected. Already, the school has eliminated its participation in off-campus housing. But Patrick said the vocational-technical school will continue to use the test of Adult Basic Education, a test which a disproportionate number of blacks and women fail, ORC contends. Patrick said he has been told the tests are culturally biased, something Patrick doesn’t think is true, Patrick said. “We had already decided though that the TABE test was not giving us all the information we needed,” Patrick said. “We feel it is not comprehensive enough.” Patrick said the school will continue to use the test until a new one is found. On the basis of the TABE scores, 64 percent of the blacks during the 1977-78 school year Ed Mclntyre originator of new civic center Page 1 P.O. Box 953 A ' '" a I ’’ I ■ r ” i I I ■ *L, j I ' • ’• ....--i* ’ ‘ ' ' j I -.a, . L~—-i— i" T .Mfaw i i ~ ‘ i ' y ' •P"'' .*> urt BtL t ■ fcf * ASsk ■ ; ........ *g*>~ •< ■A' sL H” -w 4 rl( i i 1’ ■ ’ ' J . S : , . .... x : P 1 f f r K—« ■, I . »» HMSKT ■ i» - .< w., L..._ ■—•■ *'* v? ’ LI Ed Mclntyre For area residents, the new civic center will provide family type entertainment, he said. “There are fewer and fewer things nowadays that families can do together that are were referred to remedial programs. Seventy-seven percent of the women were assigned to such programs. The ORC also questioned the school system’s assignment of faculty members and racial indentity of the two campuses. Patrick admitted that the two campuses, one on White Road and the other on Lumpkin Road, are segregated though not by intent, he said. “Because the White Road campus is in a black neighborhood, more blacks go there. The same is true of the Lumpkin Road facility,” he said. “It’s almost lily-white,” he said of the Lumpkin Road School. The White Road facility was originially developed for blacks. Patrick thinks the duality of the schools will be eliminated once a new building is finished early next year. The technical December 8, 1979 entertaining and educational and in a price range they can afford,” Mclntyre said. Experience with the kind of entertainment available at other civic centers will mean an increase in “wholesome” entertainment locally, he said. Economically, the new civic center will mean more conventions. Thus far 43,000 people have been booked into area hotels with promises of many more, Mclntyre said. “Experts say these (conventioneers) will spend SSO a day here,” he said. That money would be turned over three times. Visitors would also contribute to the local option sales tax funds which help area residents roll back property taxes. They also pay hotel-motel sales taxes and are expected to contribute in the form of increased sales of beer and liquor and the taxes. school will then be housed on one campus. Patrick said for the time being school officials will try to remedy the situation by appropriately hiring and assigning when persons resign. A centeralized admissions policy was developed a few years ago to change the student complexion of the campuses. Patrick admits the school system has not been successful either way. He said it is hard to attract black instructors to either school because of the low pay. The present make-up of the schools are 772 female students, 601 male students, 502 black students, 844 white students, 47 female teachers, 53 male teachers, 22 black teachers and 78 white teachers (one oriental and one Hispanic). The ORC also requests completion of self-evaluatior, requirements in regards to Thieves hit hospital for $4,000 Page 8 Additional jobs will also be available. Mclntyre said blacks will be helped in the same ways as everyone else in the community with the construction of the civic center. “Blacks will get a fair share of the jobs.” Mclntyre has been on the Augusta-Richmond County Coliseum Authority since its inception and “most of the time there have been two minorities out of eight members of the coliseum authority. “We have had minority input,” he said of the development of the civic center. The Coliseum Authority will remain an active body evaluating policy, creating policy, monitoring finances and proper management of the facility , he said. rights of women and the handicapped, adoption of grievance procedures for women, blacks and the handicapped, revision of admissions applications to exclude reference to marital or handicap status, monitoring of apprenticeship program of unions or other businesses, notification of employees and beneficiaries of the school’s non-discrimination policy, preparation of plans making programs and activities of school accessible to the handicapped, and action to assure that students are not discriminated against in off-campus housing. Patrick said the school has already completed its self-evaluations and have been working with grievance procedures and policies See “HEW” Page 8 Less Than 75% Advertising James Dunn county’s second black assistant school superintendent By Fannie Flono James Dunn, Richmond County Board of Education personnel director, last week recame the second black assistant superintendent in the Richmond County School system. He replaces Dave Mack, assistant superintendent for administrative services, who becomes assistant superintendent for personnel. Mack, the system’s first black assistant superintendent, has served at that level since 1973. The changes were made possible because two school superintendents plan on retiring at the end of the year. Dunn, a graduate of Allen University and South Carolina State College, has been personnel director for the past four years. He did further study at the University of Georgia. Civic Center Southeast's most modern By Billy W. Hobbs Coliseum Authority Manager Richard Cobb said, “With the new complex, we will be able to provide area residents with professional type entertainment, ranging from concerts, Harlem Globetrotters, Holiday on Ice, Pro Tennis exhibition and a possible heavy-weight professional boxing match.” “The complex is the southeast’s most modern multi-purpose facility to service conventions, trade shows, sporting events and entertainment spectaculars,” Cobb said. The new facility is located at 601 7th St. It includes a Grand Arena with a seating capacity of 9,258 and 23,000 square feet of unobstructed floor space, a 14,570 square foot exhibit hall, a seven meeting rooms, banquet facilities for up to 2,500 people and on-site parking spaces for 1,080 vehicles. Projections prepared by the Augusta-Richmond County Planning Commission indicate a 1980 metro-area population approaching 310,000 and a 1990 census of over 375,000. Forecasts to 1990 have been developed for the total market area by the U.S. Environmental Projection Agency. Total market area population is projected at 545,538, with anticipated growth to exceed 630,000 people by 1990. “As a result of research tasks -- it became evident that definite demands existed in Augusta for public assembly facilities. J V ! James Dunn Dave .Mack “Prior to the new' complex, the majority of facilities in Richmond County were inadequate in terms of design and seating capacity,’’ Cobb continued. “The larger entertainment events such as the Ringling Brothers Circus, Holiday on Ice and others were bypassing Augusta because of the limited seating capacity, and now that we have the new complex - events like these and others can be booked in Augusta.” Presently, Cobb and other officials are estimating that the facility will attract some 35 events per year... with an average attendance of 5,000 persons. Average attendance per convention is estimated at 1,500 delegates, with total delegate enrollment around 53,000 annually. Most conventions are expected to be of state or district affiliation with larger regional conventions anticipated in the future. The complex has three large meeting rooms, which can be divided into six smaller rooms - with a large VIP meeting room. These rooms can accommodate a variety of meetings of 25 to 400 persons. It is anticapted that over 100 such meetings will be held per year. The new facility is expected to attract a number of activities such as dances, banquets, crusades, and commencement exercises. There will be 18 sporting events, 13 entertainment events, 35 concerts and theatrical events, 165 conventions, exhibits and shows, and still other events during the remaining 36 days. woman is shot Page 8 Dunn has been a counselor, supervisor of secondary education, principal, director of elementary-education and director of > the Emergency School Aid I’drgram. He is married to the former Mamie Cummings and they have three daughters, Lisa, Kathy and Sonya. A trustee of the Tabernacle Baptist Church, he is also a member of tire Frontiers International, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and the Human P.elations Council He said he feels good about the change. “I flunk of it as a challenge. ready to ®t down to the ijßsiness of dura the job.” ™ Dunn will be in charge of educational media, visiting teachers. student records, transportation, tire print'shop and psychological services. He takes over in January. Parking fee will be SI.OO. This will yield approximately $187,400 in parking revenues annually. Staffing will consist of seven administrative positions with 21 full-time employees. The operation of the facility will creatq* new job opportunities j-j-most of which will originate from the Augusta-Richmond County employmen; base. As estimated * earlier, annual employment gerfbrated by the facility should result in 20 full-time job's and 40 part-time positions of 36.4 total man-years of employment. Ii total, payie 11 ' salary supplements for vrkers should approx-. . ...V.’C per year. It is also t '-ncvt .« as z result of emp’o-o■. ■ sted through ope A the recommends* ecifitles, additional eqgloyment will in turn be stWuiated via a multiplier process. Using a 2:1 multiplier, about 72.8 additional annual man-years or employment should be generated; mainly in the service sector of the economy. “The estimated $25.4 million in community income generated by direct and indirect expenditures will have substantial effects on various segments of the local economy. Some of the obvious include the greater magnitude of state tax revenues, increased hotel and motel occupancy and benefits relating to ancillary growth ... gs- real estate See “CIVIC CENTER” Page 8 25 c