Evening star., 1954-11-07
Fairfax 10 Test
Student Option
On Segregation
If
State to Eye Program
Pupils Would Attend
School Of Choice
n kA AkR
By Mary Lou Werner

The Fairfax County School
Board hopes to comply with
terms of the Supreme Court
segregation decision by operat-
ing separate schools for white
and colored children who prefer
them. but permitting colored
children to enroll in white
schools if they elect to do so.
A majority of the board ex-
poets that few, If any. of Fair
fax County's small colored pop
ulation would choose to send
their children to white schools
as long as they have good schools
for their own race.
The voluntary" plan and a
plea for retention Of public
schools will be offered by a dele
CATION from the Fairfax board
before the State commission
studying segregation. The COM
mission is conducting a hearing
in Richmond on November Is
to hear recommendations about
what course Virginia should fol-
low in face of the Supreme Court
segregation ruling.
Members Listed.
Members of the Fairfax
School Board delegation are
Chairman Richard Stands. Rob-
ert F. Davis and Fred w. Robin
son.
Mr.. Davis said the school
board agreed to the voluntary"
separate school policy and ap-
pointed the delegation at a
meeting Thursday night. The
action came as a surprise. since
a majority of the school board
two. days earlier had resisted
efforts to force some stand on
the question.
School board members said an
invitation to appear at the State
commissions hearing prompted
Thursday nights action.
Mr.. Davis said the Fairfax
School Board believes that, while
the Supreme Court decision out
laws compulsory segregation, it
does not necessarily bar opera
tion of separate schools for
white and colored children who
choose to attend them volun-
tarily.
Under the voluntary plan, the
county would continue to oper-
ate It's colored and white schools
the same as at present, with the
same bus routes and same teach
ers. The only difference would
be that no child would be COM
pelled to attend a separate
school, and would be enrolled at
any chosen school. said Mr..
Davis. zfs 35s
Negroes Would Suffer.
IF we were forced to integrate
the colored and white schools
Immediately in Fairfax County,
the colored children would sur
fer most" said Mr.. Davis. He
explained that less than Z per
cent of the county's $4,000 school
children are colored.
''You would only have one or
two colored children per class, -
he declared. THAT would work
q severe hardship on them"
He said the reverse would be
true elsewhere in Virginia where
white children are in the
minority, and thought the volun-
tary idea might also apply. But
he conceded that the problem
varied throughout the State, and
said for that reason Virginia
should be permitted as much
local option as possible.
Mr.. Davis said another i'm
portant consideration in at
tempting to continue operation
of separate white and colored
schools was the fate of colored
teachers. In a county like Fair
fax where the white population
Is so much greater. colored
teachers would stand to lose their
jobs under a complete integra-
tion program, said Mr.. Davis.
Fairfax County just completed
q big, new colored high school.
and almost every old, small col
ored elementary school has been
replaced in recent years with
modern consolidated schools.
The school boards position is
in harmony with a resolution
adopted by the Board of County
Supervisors, urging the State to
give as much local option as pos
sible in solving the segregation
problem. A petition urging the
supervisors to rescind their ac-
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