Evening star., 1949-09-08
Negro Educator
ConcedesCounty
School Control
Knox Admits Arlington
Officials Should Rule
On Courses, Facilities
By John V. Horner

the racial discrimination case
against the Arlington School
Board, conceded under cross-ex-
animation today that it is the
right and duty of school admin
istrative officials to determine
what courses and what facilities
should be provided at public
schools.
The statement was made by DR.
Ellis o. Knox, professor of educa-
ton at Howard University in the
suit brought in the name of Con-
stance Carter. II. pupil at Hoff
man-Boston School.
DR.. Knox said the decision on
curriculum and facilities should
only be made after careful survey
and preferably with the help OF
an expert.
The school board is prepared to
show that such a survey was con-
Quoted in Arlington with the help
of DR.. Howard A. Dawson, director
of rural service for the National
Education Association.
Same Courses Urged.
Another witness for the plain
tiff testified earlier at the hearing
before Judge Albert v. Bryan in
Federal District Court, Alexan-
dria, that in his opinion Arling-
ton should provide equal facilities
for colored children, every course
provided at white schools and
qualified teachers, regardless of
the number of Negro students and
the demand for specific classes.
The witness was DR.. Martin D.
jenkins, president of Morgan
State College. Maryland, and for
mer professor at Howard Uni
versity.
Miss Carter, II, is a Hoffman
Boston student. Formerly she
attended Dunbar, in the District
She is asking Judge Bryan either
to force equal educational op-
portunities and facilities" at Hoff-
man-Boston or direct that she
be admitted to WaShington-Lee.
The Virginia Constitution re-
quires racial segregation of pupils.
Basic Issue in Case.
Although the testimony was
nowhere near complete. the basic
issue in the test case already was
apparent:
The plaintiff wants the Arling-
ton School Board to offer Negroes
every course offered whites and
provide them similar facilities,
regardless of the number of
pupils to be served and regardless
of whether there is request for
the courses:
The defendants-the county
school board and Supt. William A.
Early-hold there is neither need
nor practically in providing
courses and facilities not demand
ed by the relatively small number
of Negro pupils.
The plaintiffs views were ex-
pressed yesterday by DR.. jenkins.
LAS a school administrator -
asked Defense Attorney Lawrence
Douglas, would you advocate hav-
ing teachers sit in empty class
rooms at colored schools, ready to
teach subjects for which there had
never been a demand, hoping-in
effect-that they might get a
customer, a pupil?"
System "Unsound."
"Yes." replied DR.. Jenkins, Il
would" Then he added:
"Of course, that sounds ridicul-
Gus. but it is what this situation
of segregation brings us to. We're
just bound to subscribe to a sys-
tenn that's unsound.'
DR.. Jenkins gave the same an
swer with respect to providing
guidance counselors at Hoffman
Boston, band instruction and op-
portunity to have a football team
although the school may have an
insufficient number of boys to
make up a football team and rot
enough pupils to form a band.
He said also that he favored
the establishment of cadet corps
for both boys and girls at Hoff-
man-Boston. though there are
only 8 boy pupils and fewer than
40 girls.
Failure to afford the same op-
portunities, he insisted, indicates
racial discrimination by the school
board.
The defense became clear in ad-
vance of the appearance of any
witnesses. 1t is contained in a
voluminous report compiled by DR..
Howard A. Dawson, director of
rural service for the National Ed
ucation Association. This COM
pares facilities and opportunities
at the white and Negro school.
DR.. Dawson concluded that any
discrimination against Negro pu-
pills in Arlington is "too scant and
ephemeral to deserve serious con-
sideration. He contends that, as
a practical administrative matter,
the big disparity in the number of
white and colored pupils must be
taken into consideration. He said
segregation is beyond the control
of the local school authorities.
Mock Battle 10 Be STAGED