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GOVERNMENT

Storage HEARING

BEFORE THE

0—ra

)R AND PUBLIC WELFARE

NITED STATES SENATE 0

EIGHTY-NINTH CONGRESS

COMMITTEE ON

SECOND SESSION

ON

IILLER, OF WEST VIRGINIA, TO BE ASSISTANT

SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH,

EDUCATION, AND WELFARE

AUGUST 10, 1966

Printed for the use of the

Committee on Labor and Public Welfare

444

U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

67-909 WASHINGTON : 1966

4
COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND PUBLIC WELFARE

LISTER HILL, Alabama, Chairman

WAYNE MORSE, Oregon

RALPH YARBOROUGH, Texas

JOSEPH S. CLARK, Pennsylvania

JENNINGS RANDOLPH, West Virginia

HARRISON A. WILLIAMS, JR., New Jersey

CLAIBORNE PELL, Rhode Island

EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts

GAYLORD NELSON, Wisconsin

ROBERT F. KENNEDY, New York

JACOB K. JAVITS, New York

WINSTON L. PROUTY, Vermout

PETER H. DOMINICK, Colorado

GEORGE MURPHY, California

PAUL J. FANNIN. Arizona

ROBERT P. GRIFFIN, Michigan

STEWART E. MCCLURE, Chief Clerk

Jogs S. FoilsraizAenortibteounsel

ROBERT W. BARCLAY, Professional Staff Member

STEPHEN KURZMAN, Minority Counsel
NOMINATION OF PAUL A. MILLER

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 10, 1966

U.S. SENATE,

COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND PUBLIC WELFARE,

Washington, D.C.

The committee met at 10:05 a.m., pursuant to call, in room 4232,

Senate Office Building, Senator Wayne Morse, presiding pro tempore.

Present: Senators Morse (presiding pro tempore), Yarborough,

Clark, Randolph, Williams, Pell, Kennedy of Massachusetts, Javits,

Prouty, Murphy, and Fannin.

Committee staff members present: Stewart E. McClure, chief

clerk; John S. Forsythe, general counsel; Robert Barclay, professional

staff member; Roy H. Millenson, minority clerk; and Stephen Kurzman, minority counsel.

Senator MORSE. The hearing will come to order.

Mr. Miller, will you come up and take a seat?

Senator Randolph, it has been suggested that we go ahead with the

nomination hearing.

Let the record show that we have referred to us this morning for

hearing the nomination of Paul A. Miller, of West Virginia, to be

Assistant Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare.

There will be inserted in the record at this point a biographical

sketch setting forth the very fine qualifications of Dr. Miller and his

exceptional background.

.(The biographical sketch of Mr. Miller follows:)

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF PAUL A. MILLER

- Dr. Paul A. Miller was appointed 15th President of West Virginia University

o November 5, 1961. He assumed the duties of the office in January 1962, and

was formally inaugurated on April 11, 1962.

Dr. Miller was born March 22, 1917, in East Liverpool, Ohio, but spent the

greater part of his early life in West Virginia, and is a graduate of Wells High

School in Newell. He is the first alumnus in nearly half a century to head the

University, having received his B.S. 'degree in agriculture at West Virginia in 1939.

As an undergraduate, he captained the Mountaineer boxing team, was elected to

Mountain (ranking honorary organization for University men), and was chancellor

of Alpha Zeta, agriculture honorary fraternity.

Following graduation, he joined the University Agricultural Extension Service

and served as a county agricultural agent in Ritchie and Nicholas Counties before

enlisting in the Army Air Corps in 1942. As a firs , lieutenant, he saw foreign

service with the Air Transport Command in South America, North and Central

Africa, and India.

After the war, Dr. Miller went to Michigan State Un'versity to begin a stay

which lasted until his appointment as president of West Virginia University. He

received his master's degree in sociology and anthropology there in 1947, and a

Ph. D. in the same fields in 1953. He joined the Michigan State faculty in 1947,

and served successively as assistant professor, associate professor and professor

of sociology and anthropology, director of the Cooperative Extension Service,

vice president for off-campus education and, from 1959 to 1962, provost.

In addition to his presidential duties, he is currently serving as chairman of the

Columbian Commission on Higher Education, chairman of the board of directors

1
2 NOMINATION

of the Center for the Study of Liberal Education for Adults, member of the board

of International Voluntary Services, and is a member of the American and Rural

Sociological Societies. Also currently, he is serving as member of the National

Advisory Commission on Food and Fiber, included in the omnibus farm bill to

develop national farm policies. In other activities, Dr. Miller is the chairman of

the Task Force on Agriculture and Engineering in the National study on Professional Schools and World Affairs, chairman of Governor's Commission on

Higher Education in West Virginia, member of -President's National Commission

on Food and Fiber, and chairman of Advisory Committee on Health of the Appalachian Regional Commission. He is 'author of Community Health Action (1953) ,

co-author of Higher Agricultural Education in Columbia (1961), and a number of

articles on rural health, community development, university extension and

organization.

Dr. Miller married Dr. Francena L. Nolan, professor and dean of home economics at the University of Connecticut, in January of 1966.

Senator MORSE. I judge that leaves no room for doubt as to his

qualifications.

I call upon Senator Randolph to make any statement that he wishes

before I call on Dr. Miller.

Senator RANDOLPH. Mr. Chairman, I shall be brief. But my references to Dr. Paul A. Miller will be genuine. They will be based on

my personal association with him both in his capacity as the head of

the West Virginia University at Morgantown, and also our service

together as directors of the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation. This is a philanthropic organization which is helpful to institutions of higher learning through grants, incentive gifts and scholarships,

and which have helped the young men and women in West Virginia

to receive the benefits of higher education.

Mr. Chairman, and members of the committee, President Miller

became the administrative head of our West Virginia University in

1962. And he was the 13th president of this excellent land-grant

institution.

He is not unfamiliar with Government assignments, and has performed with achievement. And I mention that these advisory

commissions include Food and Fibers, which has to do with the world

agricultural supply, and the Health Advisory Committee of the

Appalachian Regional Development Commission. He has given of

his time and talent in a real sense of leadership as president of the

West Virginia Association of College & University Presidents.

For 3 years we have been fortunate to have him in that overall

position of help as the State has advanced its higher educational

institutions to serve more effectively the citizenry of West Virginia.

For a number of years Dr. Miller was at Michigan State University,

where he served as provost. And he had received a masters and

doctorate, and also taught at Michigan- State University. But we

think of him very much as a West Virginian. Dr. Miller's B.S. degree

in agriculture, Mr. Chairman, and members of the committee, was

earned at West Virginia University in 1939.

I think it is important many times, when you have a man to go

into an important position, to know that he has not only a brilliant

background in education, but is also "a man of the soil." I think it

is vital to let you know that he was a county agricultural agent in

West Virginia. His service in the defense forces of the United States

was with the Army Air Corps in World War II. So he has not only

this interest locally in West Virginia and in the Nation in education,

but he has had an intense interest in the filed of international education.
NOMINATION 3

I hope, Mr. Chairman, you may find, if the time permits, the

opportunity to ask Dr. Miller about the work that West Virginia

University has been doing in Africa from the standpoint of leadership

in educating those people.

Now under Dr. Miller at West Virginia University we have created

the Appalachian Center. And this was done through the leadership

of the nominee. We have had the graduate Institute of Biological

Sciences come into fruition. We have had courses now in human

resources and education. And we have established a creative arts

center. We have had an office of student educational services. And

this leader of our institution has been the sparkplug—I use the word

advisedly—of a $50 million expansion program with an operating

budget that has nearly doubled in the past 5 years. He has brought

to West Virginia a challenge—and if I could speak just personally

and selfishly, I would say, President Miller, we would want you to

remain at West Virginia University. But now that the President

has expressed this confidence in Dr. Miller, and he is before this

committee, I recommend him very sincerely as a personal friend, and

one who officially has had many contacts with him over the period of

the past few years. Thank you.

'Senator MORSE. Mr. Miller, we are glad to have you with us. And

we would welcome any statement you may wish to make at this time,

if you have any.

STATEMENT OF PAUL A. MILLER, NOMINEE TO BE ASSISTANT

SECRETARY OF HEALTH, EDUCATION, AND WELFARE

Mr. MILLER. senator Morse, ',enator Randolph, and members of

the committee, as I listened to the very fine words of Senator Randolph—and I am grateful for them—and I would hope that words like

that would be said much more often in West Virginia.

Gentlemen of the committee, I am delighted to come before you

under these circumstances. The President has recommended my appointment to this post.

I do not want to go into the background of my work—I think Senator Randolph has covered this very well—except to say that my entire

career at this point, as a student, professor, and administrator, has

been almost exclusively at West Virginia University, then Michigan

State University, and a return to West Virginia some 5 years ago. I

can say at this point that I look forward to serving as best I can in this

post.

Senator MORSE. Have you been advised, Dr. Miller, as to what

would be encompassed in your work as Assistant Secretary of Health,

Education, and Welfare? Has the Department assigned to you any

particular segment of the work in the field of education, or is your

assignment a so-called overall assignment without any particular subjects being assigned to your office?

Mr. MILLER. Of course, as the committee knows so well, the post of

the Assistant Secretary of Education is relatively new in the governmental structure, Mr. Keppel having occupied the post a short time.

I would say that that consideration of it, its newness, seemed to stand

out. But in a post of a general advisory nature there are at this time

particular lines of development with which I am sure your committee

has been dealing. And these seem to fall into the following categories.
4 NOMINATION

First of all, by Executive order the Assistant Secretary- of Education

has been asked to serve as chairman of the Interagency Committee on

Education, which involves some 15 departments of Government, to

improve coordination and cooperative development across the governmental front of educational efforts.

Secondly, there is the area of educational television, which is at this

moment under review with reference to the implications which it has

for both public and higher education.

One of my substantial interests, as Senator Randolph mentioned, is

in the field of international education. It is of great concern to the

entire educational community. There are also in the office of Assistant Secretary certain quasi-governmental relationships with certain

institutions.

Senator MORSE. I am very glad that you have this background in

the field of university work, because in the next few days we will

start our hearings on the international educational bill. And I

shall look forward to any contribution that you can make to help the

committee on that particular bill.

Any questions?

Senator Prouty.

Senator PROUTY. Dr. Miller, even without Senator Randolph's

fine tribute, which I think you fully deserve, I would be inclined

to vote for you because you have the same name as the recently

retired dean of the College of Agriculture at the University of Vermont. I wonder if there is any relationship?

Mr. MILLER. No relationship or kinship. But you will be interested in knowing, Senator Prouty, that at one particular point there

were in the State land-grant universities Paul Miller of Vermont,

Paul Miller of Minnesota, and Paul Miller of Michigan State. And

each and all of us had the same tasks.

Senator PROUTY. I have no further questions.

Senator MORSE. I would like to say that Senator Prouty was very

instrumental in the phase of the work of this committee having to

do with the development of the technical institute. I can speak

about it because I enthusiastically support him with the leadership

of the others on the committee. I think that institute perhaps owes

its present status more to this committee than any other one force

within our Government. I was so glad to heat you make reference

to it in your statement. You may be sure that when you appear

before us in behalf of that institute you are appearing before a very

friendly group. Any further questions? Senator Pell.

Senator PELL. Dr. Miller, your jurisdiction with the Department

of Health, Education, and Welfare will be education. Will it be in

any particular aspect of education?

Mr. MILLER. Well, with the very general briefing that I had, and

on the basis of the study which I have made, it will be, as I said

earlier, one of the newer roles in the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. As I understand it, the Assistant Secretary for

Education serves in an advisory role to the Secretary of HEW. But

at this time there are particular kinds of problems which stress the

framework of educational television and manpower development and

training, with particular reference to the international education.

Senator PELL. What will be the area of responsibility of your

specific office over and beyond that of the Commissioner of Education?
•

NOMINATION 5

Mr. MILLER. Again, the-post of the Assistant Secretary for Education being a new one, it will involve a period of working out its relationship within the structure of the Department. As I understand

it to be, and as I have looked at the organization charts, the Commissioner of Education bears the responsibility for operation and

program development for education, and the Assistant Secretary is

more a staff positionlin the office of the Secretary itself in order to

bring about a spirit of coordination and long-range planning.

Senator PELL. I must not have made myself clear. What will

be the area of your responsibility as the Assistant Secretary over and

beyond the jurisdiction of the Commissioner of Education?

Mr. MILLER. The organized educational effort in terms of administrative operations fall to the Commissioner of Education. However, there has been reason in the Depar+ment to include, with the

Assistant Secretary, Gallaudet College, the relationship with Howard

University, and general leadership of the Manpower Training Development Act, and educational television.

Senator PELL. I still must not have made myself clear. Is there

anything in the office, bureau, or division within HEW which falls

under you that does not fall under the Commisssioner of Education?

If so, what office?

Mr. MILLER. The more immediate administration to this point

deals with the Manpower and Development Training Act, as well as

certain arrangments of educational television have been assigned to

the Office. And the proposed center for educational cooperation has

been considered as a part of the Office of Assistant Secretary.

Senator PELL. Those would be under the Office of the Assistant

Secretary as opposed to the Commissioner of Education?

Mr. MILLER. That is right. But one has to say, of course, that

within the Department as a whole there will be a period of working

out a collaborative arrangement for the new office.

Senator PELL. What work have you done in the field of international

education? I believe the University of West Virginia has done some

work in this area.

Mr. MILLER. My first interest was in the agricultural field. I had

a part to play in the development of various programs of Michigan

State University in its international effort. I developed during that

period a substantial interest in Latin America, with particular reference to the Andes, and land reform problems in that area. And more

recently at West Virginia University, under contract relationships and

with foundations, substantial work in East Africa, Uganda, and Kenya

is underway. At the moment we have some 40 members of our faculty

serving in East Africa.

Senator PELL. Obviously each of us in this committee are very

interested in education and the various phases of it. I have a few

particular programs of interest to me. The first is a general effort to

try to get university education or optional education, in any event,

public education up to 14 years as a matter of right. And I also am

interested in your views with regard to tests to find out how different

educational systems compare, somewhat along the lines of the

Carnegie series but with greater depth.

Mr. MILLER. Well, in terms of the first, it seems to me it would be

very clear. As young America continues to swell in attendance at

our schools and colleges, we can look forward by some means or other
6 NOMINATION

to a time when, as we now consider it mandatory for almost everyone

to go to high school 4 years, we should make it possible for them to

spend 2 more years. I would not say mandatory attendance is

necessary, but, rather, there should be provided a way to help every

young person continue his education in the post-high-school period.

Senator PELL. And then with regard to some form of permissive

school testing, such as the regents' tests. It is hoped that these

would encourage the high schools around the country to have at least

one science course, one foreign language course, and so forth. It

could bring some uniformity into our high school system so that you

do not have youngsters graduating only in ballroom dancing, or quite

a high number graduating only in domestic economics; the aim is a

core of minimal subjects. I would like to hear your views with regard

to such a permissive testing program which could lead in that

direction.

Mr. MILLER. Testing should be improved, to be sure, and I think

other methods as well. We need vastly improved ways to determine

the quality of educational opportunity in the respective States and

communities and institutions and schools of the country.

Secondly, I think we need far more transmission of expertness from

one State and from one school to the others so that we have some of

these similarities of which you speak and can come to a much more

universal set of standards.

But I also have some qualifications on this. And that is that

schools will reflect the conditions of the regions in which they are

located. I do not believe that a high school in the Appalachian region

in this country has the same mission, by reason of planning and other

related institutions and faculties, as does a high school in San Francisco. And there is a difference in circumstances. And then I have

always, as most educators, a certain kind of skepticism that tests will

take you too far in ascertaining the nature of what ought to be done.

Senator PELL. This is perhaps the reason why an optional testing program only for those pupils who want to take it would be

desirable, a program without the general pressure on the school board

to meet the competition.

In any event I think we need this permissive testing program in

order to have some uniformity in our high school system.

Senator JAVITS. I have two questions to ask you. They will not

be very long.

We note that this is a rather new arrangement that is being made.

You are going to replace Francis Keppel as Assistant Secretary. The

Commissioner of Education

'

however, continues. Now, who is

going to have the final word to say in relations with Congress as to

legislation? Who is going to come up here and testify? What is it

that you gentlemen are articulating, anyway, or is the Secretary

articulating along the lines of authority?

Mr. MILLER. Of course, Senator Javits, you recognize that I have

not reported to work, and I have not been on the job. And so I

speak without competence. But I know that the Department as a

whole has its legislative liaison branch, and the Commissioner does as

well, and I am presuming that the Assistant Secretary. on matters of

broad policies on education will work within that framework.

Senator JAVITS. You are not really apprised, then, as to how this

would work?
NOMINATION 7

Mr. MILLER. NO.

Senator JAVITS. And the other question is, we understand that

there is some feeling on the part of the administration with respect to

education of the handicapped. Do you in your experience have any

feeling about that, or do you want to say anything?

Mr. MILLER. I very positively—I speak from some limitation hi

the field of higher education—we have done far too little in the field

of higher education to be concerned about the education of the

handicapped. I am delighted to have some opportunity of working

with the technical institute idea. And secondly, I have been quite

interested for many years in ways to employ the handicapped.

Senator JAVITS. Thank you very much.

Senator MORSE. Any further questions?

Senator Prouty.

Senator PROUTY. Mr. Chairman, I have no further questions.

However, I hope that Mr. Miller will recognize that this committee

is very much concerned with the problems of the handicapped. Much

more can be done and I hope that you will make this known to your

colleagues in the Department.

Senator RANDOLPH. Mr. Chairman, if it would not be inappropriate

in this public station since President Miller comes from West Virginia

University, I would like to have the privilege of requesting that the

committee report his nomination to the Senate.

Senator JAVITS. That question can be taken up in executive session.

Senator MORSE. I have not reached any conclusion, I am not quite

sure what the Department position is with regard to legislation for

handicapped, and thus far I am not at all pleased with what I consider

to be a failure on the part of the Department to make itself crystal

clear as to what it proposes by way of legislation. I sincerely hope

that we will not run into a conflict in the Department on legislation

for the handicapped. But if the Department thinks that legislation

for the handicapped should be postponed, I would vigorously oppose

such position.

Senator JAVITS. If the Chair would yield, I would say that the

reason for my request was obviously that there has been some opposition to what we have done about this question in the Subcommittee

on Education. And I was not sure that we had an Assistant Secretary

that was sympathetic to what so many of us here were trying to do.

Mr. MILLER. I was unaware of all these activities.

Senator MORSE. We will take it up in due time with the Department. But I would say most respectfully, on behalf of this administration and the American people, that any postponement of assistance

to the handicapped would be opposed.

Any further questions?

Sena-Lor FANNIN. I would like to ask Mr. Miller a question regarding

our Indian constituents.

Have you had any experience with the programs of the Department

of Education in the field of Indian Affairs?

Mr. MILLER. I have had no direct experience with this. I must

hasten to say that my degree, the Doctorate, was in the field of anthropology, which always includes a great concern with the American

Indian. At a speech in Chicago some couple of years ago on the broad

subject of the poverty program I made a strong plea that we ought to

take the Indian population of this country and demonstrate that we

knew what we could do to lift them up.
8 NOMINATION

Senator FANNIN. I agree with you. But at the present time, as

you know, the Indian education is under the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Under this amendment we have less than one-half of 1 percent of our

citizens under the one program, and 99% percent under the other.

It is my view that we would profit greatly by putting our Indian

citizens under the HEW, under our standard program, and not have

them isolated under a program that has not been beneficial in comparison with what has been accomplished by HEW.

Senator MORSE. Senator Murphy.

Senator MURPHY. Doctor, you have had wide experience in your

field in regard to visual education?

Mr. MILLER. Senator Murphy, of course anyone in this generation

of educational people has grown up with the whole matter of visual

aids and television. At Michigan State University where I served a

number of years as provost, and the vice president for academic affairs,

a part of my work was concerned with what was one of the forerunners

of American higher educational television. I have had less experience

in public schools.

Senator FANNIN. Almost 10 years ago legislation was enacted which

provided for a study and a report to be made to the Congress in the

matter of the education of the Indians. We have asked for progress

reports from the Departments, but they have not been forthcoming.

And we would hope that you would have an interest in the subject

and a background so that you would see the great advantage of the

study.

Mr. MILLER. Mr. Colmen passed me a note saying that there is a

joint committee that is in process of coming up with a report.

Senator FANNIN. I hope that that this is so, because we have now

waited approximately 10 years for a report.

Senator WILLIAMS. I regret that I came in late. But it seemed as

though there was some atmosphere of contention here. He does not

know whether it was--

Senator MORSE. There is none, I can assure you.

Senator WILLIAMS. All I can say is that from what I know of Dr.

Miller, we are fortunate indeed, in these times when it is so difficult

to bring talent and experience and ability and dedication and public

service to the Government, we are lucky indeed to have him accept

this position.

Senator PELL. I would like to echo Senator Williams' thoughts.

Senator MORSE. There has been no question raised with regard to

the nominee at all.

Senator KENNEDY of Massachusetts. Reference has been made to

the interest of this committee in the problems of the handicapped.

One of the areas in which I am particularly interested is the field of

mental retardation. Legislation was passed in this area in 1962.

Since that time amendments have been considered concerning the

training, personnel, and funds necessary to further alleviate the problems of the handicapped. We certainly hope that this area will

receive prompt attention.

Senator MORSE. Dr. Miller, I want the record to show that Senator

Kennedy of Massachusetts cooperated with my Subcommittee on

Education from time to time again on this matter

'

and has proposed

various amendments himself, but he has never failed to get the support

of my subcommittee. I cannot stress too much what I think is the
NOMINATION 9

feeling up here that we have to move faster with regard to aging and

handicapped and Senator Kennedy has been one of our leaders in that

field.

Further questions?

If not, thank you very much, Dr. Miller. I want to put in the

record a wire that the Chair has received from Blue Carstenson,

chairman of the Adult Education Association Legislation Committee

strongly supporting the nomination.

(The telegram referred to follows:)

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 10, 1966.

Senator WAYNE MORSE,

Chairman, Education Committee, Labor and Public Welfare Committee, Care

Stewart McClure, New Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C.:

Strongly support nomination of Paul Miller for Assistant Secretary of HEW.

Have known Paul Miller for over 10 years and feel he is an excellent choice.

BLUE CARSTENSON,

Chairman, Adult Education Association Legislation Committee.

Senator MORSE. The hearing on Dr. Miller will come to a closeW e will turn now to the executive session.

(Whereupon, at 10:40 p.m., the committee went into executive

session.)