Evening star., 1954-01-10

Clinic Sought
For L Schools
Parents in Northwest
Plan Free Center to
Treat MoIodiusted
BY james 6. Deone

'SI SSAS0
By james 6. Deone
Washington soon may have a
second free school psychiatric
clinic.
Parents and teachers of IL
Northwest schools hope to estab-
lish a clinic modelled on the
Kiwanis clinic now operating in
the Southeast.
DR.. Addison M. Duval, director
Of the Kiwanis clinic. is advising
the new group. Last night DR..
Duval predicted the clinic may
be able to start operating at
Mcfarland Junior High School
before the end of the school
year.
The chief problem, DR.. Duval
said. is in recruiting volunteer
psychiatrists. He said the Wash
ington Psychiatric Society has
agreed to help. And DR.. Julius
Schneider, another psychiatrist
who is public education chair
man of the Mental Health AS
ISOLATION, said his group also is
looking for recruits.
DR.. Schneider said he is conf
dent they will be found.
Train Teachers.
The Mental Health Associa-
ton already has promises from
pSychiatrists to help train teach
ers to recognize emotional prob
lens in children. The association
expects to start a program of this
sort not only at Mcfarland but
on a city-wide basis, in both
white and colored schools, DR..
Schneider said.
At 8 pm. Wednesday meet
ing is to be held at Macfarland
for parents interested in the pro-
posed clinic and DR.. Duval is
scheduled to speak.
A parent-teacher council
Council A of Area 2 of the Dis
trict Congress of Parents and
Teachers-is sponsoring Wednes-
days meeting.
The aim of the parents is to
provide help for emotionally NAL
adjusted school children. The
public schools have no psychia-
trists OF their own, and while
there are four child guidance
clinics in the city besides DR..
Duval's. all of them are over
taxed. And many parents cam
not afford private psychiatrlc
service.
Successful Clinic.
DR.. Duval's clinic, sponsored
by the Kiwanis Club Of Eastern
Branch, has a staff of "a. IN
;luding nine psychiatrists, most
of whom donate their WORK.
Many of the staff are from ST.
Elizabeths Hospital, of winch
DR.. Duval is assistant superin-
tendent. The clinic, started at
AnacoStia High School two years
ago, has attracted highly favor
able attention,
But the Kiwanis clinic, despite
expansion this winter, has its
hands full even though it con-
fines its service to schools cast
of the Anacostia River. 1t has
had to turn down many requests
from schools elsewhere.
DR.. Duval has urged that the
school system be provided with
full-tlme paid psychiatrlStS.
School officials have asked funds
for a clinical psychologist IN
next years budget, although this
would be only a step in the dl-
rection proposed by DR.. Duval.
The school system itself will
not be able to do much for some
time to come, however, and this
situation spurred parents into
action.
Mrs. Agnes N. Arnold, assist
ant principal at Macfarland, Is
chairman of the PTA project
committee.
Public schools besides Mac
farlanG which would use the
clinics service are Roosevelt
High. Burdick Vocational,
Health, Bancroft, West. Ray
mond, Barnard and Powell. The
Hebrew Academy and St. Cab
riel and Sacred Heart parochial
schools also are included in the
list announced by the PTA con-
0reSS