Evening star., 1937-09-23
DATE NIGHT MADE
POLITICAL ISSUE.
Oklahoma Plan for State
Training School Girls
Stirs Up a Storm.
Special Dispatch to The Star.

special Dispatch to The Star.
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla, Sep
tennber % (NAN.A).-When Mrs.
Creighton Burnham, superintendent
Of the State Training School for Girls
at Tecumseh, announced her plan
for date nights" at the institution
early in the Summer, it was hailed
enthusiastically throughout the State
as coTnmonsense step. Today it is
the center of a political storm that
will undoubtedly have a bearing on
the next campaign for State commits
sioner of charities and corrections.
Mrs. Burnham previously had intro
duced other reforms into this school,
which cares for delinquent girls from
8 to Is, that received wide approval.
She was among the first heads of such
institutions to introduce beauty shops
into ther program on the theory that
q proud girl was less likely to be
problem girl than one careless Of her
appearance.
The date night" idea was merely
continuation of that program.
Three-fourths of the girls in the insti-
tuition come from broken homes,
most of them have had no social ad-
vantages, and most of them had been
sent. to the school because too much
of their leisure time was not super
vised.
Mrs. Burnham had group of
"honor girls" most of whom were
about ready for parole. She decided
they were entitled to more recreation,
as a'reward and as an incentive, than
the drab routine of the school per-
mitted.
Approved Dates.
The honor girls were to be per-
mitted to have party and dance, and
young men, approved by ministers or
the county judges of their own coun-
ties, were to be permitted to attend.
For weeks before the first party.
July Is, the girls made dresses and
planned menus.
Mrs. Mabel Bassett, State commits
sioner of charities and corrections,
did not take much interest IN the
plan, but commented that she didn't
very much like the idea.
For the first party, SO young men
appeared at sundown. There were
s8 honor girls The party was held
In the recreation room at the school
and was so thoroughly supervised
that it would have been impossible
for any girl and her escort to have
eluded the crowd. Mrs. Burnham
made every effort to prevent photog-
raphers from posing boys and girls
with their arms around one another.
Town cut-ups from surrounding
towns were there for an entertain
ment program. There were rope
twirlers, fellow who could hop like
q frog, fancy dancers.
The evening opened with game
In which the boys and girls mingled,
trying to learn the names of others
present. Then there was dancing.
Between dances, music for which was
furnished by the flremen's band from
Oklahoma City, the entertainment
numbers were sandwiched in. There
were lemonade and ice cream after
the dancing, which ended at mid
night.
Photographers Many.
Gov. Marland had as his personal
representative at the dance Wayne
Phillips, who approved the plan. The
State Board Of Affairs, which super
vises the school, approved continu-
ance of the plan.
The question in the Governors
mind was whether the special privi-
lege to the 38 girls would cause the
other girls to sulk and become re-
sentful. Mrs. Burnham handled this
problem by having the band play a
special concert for inmates not at
tending the party. All apparently
were enthusiastic about it.
The criticism that followed the first