Evening star., 1946-02-03
Receiving Home Foes
Plan Drive 10 Strip
Board Of Powers

Twenty citizens groups, defeated
IN an effort to change the plans of
the Board of Public Welfare for a
new Receiving Home for Children,
will go to Congress in drive to strip
the Board of its administrative
powers, Mrs. Eugene Meyer an
nounced yesterday.
The disputed plans for the Receiv-
ing Home show members of the
Board are "glaringly incompetent
and completely lacking in technical
knowledge required to administer a
welfare department, she charged.
After reluctantly" approving the
Boards plan, the Commissioners an
nounced they would support a bill,
now before Congress, to create De-
partment of Welfare responsible to
the Commissioners and to reduce
the Board to an advisory capacity
Showdown Foreseen.
The Commissioners said the
spirit" of the law prevented them
from overriding the Board. Social
workers who refused to be quoted
said yesterday they believed the
Commissioners upheld the plan in
order to force a showdown on the
powers of the BoaEd.
Mrs. Meyer commented it would
not have been good administrative
procedure" to stop the Board mere
ly by Withholding funds" The entire
issue should be argued out on its
merits, she said.
The Council of Social Agencies
sided with the citizens in condemn
ing the boards plan, on the grounds
1t did not provide for separation of
deInquents from nondelinquents.
The council is expected to wait until
the Washington social survey, which
it is sponsoring, makes report on
the administration of welfare here
before taking stand on the re-
organization bill.
Lack of Vote Brought Out.
The council previously has argued
that the trouble lies in the appoint
ment of the board by the Commits
sioners. In view of the fact that
the District has no vote. it advocates
some type of civilian participation
in the public welfare program.
Speaking for the council. Mrs.
Katherine Norton did strike out at
suggestions that opponents of the
receiving home plan we're not suf-
|ficiently conciliatory. She pointed
out the council sponsored meetings
as early as 1914 where experts pre-
sented their views.
In December opponents agreed to
compromise in demands for foster
care of all normal children and ac-
cepted the boards proposal for an
emergency shelter, she.recalled. Last
month opponents withdrew a de-
mand for two separate buildings,
but the board never made any con-
cessions to provide for greater seq
regation, she charged.
Inadequate Personnel Charged.
Mrs. Norton also denied that
proper selection of personnel can
overcome physical defects in the
proposed building. She noted the
Boards CHEF objection to a sub
stitute plan was that it would re-
quire more personnel.
The main reason the Board
fought for its original plan, ac-
cording to Mrs. Meyer, is that it
does not want to hire sufficient per-
sonnel to provide proper care of
the children.
Building plans are determined
by your philosophy of care" she
observed. AS an example of the
boards inadequate personnel plan,
she pointed out it contemplates
only one recreation worker for
delinquency and normal children.
Mrs. Meyers group also wants to
separate the correctional institu-
tlons from the Board of Welfare.
No other large city in the country
puts welfare work and prison ad-
in the same depart
ment, she pointed out.
The problem of running a prison
she added, is totally different from
handling children who, often by
mere accident or neglect, commit |
some offense.