Evening star., 1950-10-05
School Board Votes
Policy Investigation in
Ban on Sesqui Scene
By Colt HendIey, Jr.

The Board of Education has de-
cided to investigate itself. It in
tends to find out what policy. if
any, resulted in the banning OF
scenes from Faith OF Our
Fathers" at Anacostia High
School because Negroes were in
the cast.
Meeting yesterday, the board
voted to set up a special commit
tee to look into the situation and
to formulate a definite policy.
Mrs. Opal Cookery, principal of
Anacostia High School, recently
banned the scenes and School
Supt. Hobart NJ Corning backed
the action. He thus brought
down on his head the wrath of
those opposed to segregation in
the schools. as we'll as many
others.
In other actions yesterday. the
board:
/. Gave the District Recreation
Board permission to use Cardozo
High School (formerly Central
High SCHOOL, for a city wide rec
reation center. The Recreation
Board has announced it will op-
crate the center on an inter-
racial basis. The program prob
ably will get underway there
sometime next week.
Closes Reno School.
2. Closed the colored Reno Ele-
mentary School, located at Howard
and Fessenden streets NV. near
Woodrow Wilson High School, be-
cause enrolment had dropped to
six pupils. The pupils will be sent
to other colored elementary
schools.
3. Received from DR.. Corning a
report concerning the school situ-
alton in northeast Washington,
showing classrooms available for
the enrolment. The board re-
queSted this report from DR..
Corning as part of an effort to
ascertain just what northeast
needs in the way of schools.
4. Added II teacher positions to
the crowded colored schools.
The decision to go further into
the incident of the Sesquicenten-
NAL drama was reached after DR..
James A. Cannon, board member,
introduced a resolution backing
DR.. Corning for his handling of
the situation.
This drew protests from colored
board members.
DR.. Phillip T. johnson stated he
could not possibly accept" such
a resolution. He pointed out
that if the school policy was 60
ing to be as the incident indicated,
it would be impossible for white
person to speak in the colored
schools, or vice versa.
Mrs. James w. Williams said
she would be without self re-
spect' if she voted for the resolu-
ton. She characterized the BAN
ming of the play as vicious" and
said the whole blame should rest
with DR.. Corning.
DR.. Cannon, in explaining his
reasons for introducing the reso-
luton, said that DR.. Corning had
been criticized severely for the
action but that he was only sup
porting a principal following the
segregated system. This dual
system, he said, is imposed by
Congress.
A move to table the resolution
was made by Mr.. johnson and
was carried with Mrs. Williams,
Woolsey w. Hall and Albert E.
Steinem supporting him.
c. Melvin Sharpe suggested a
special committee be appointed to
investigate the policy involved.
The board members approved. He
then named Adelbert w. Lee, DR..
Cannon and Mr.. Hall to the spe-
cial committee. Mr.. Lee had
spoken in support of DR.. Corning's
motion.
Halls First Meeting.
Mr.. Hall, who had been ap-
pointed to the board only last
Tuesday, was attending his first
meeting. He was sworn in as a
member before the meeting began.
The whole argument took place
in board room packed with
colored parents of children now
enrolled in the Junior high school
being operated in the old Birney
Elementary School. They were
there as silent protest" against
using Birney as a Junior high, ac-
cording to Gardner Bishop, presi-
dent of the Consolidated Parent
Group.
Earlier, they had sent a petit
ton to the school board denounc-
in" ~" ''~e of Birney.
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