Evening star., 1955-11-08
Amid DopeE Education
For District Studied
Pros-und-Cons
To Be Heard at
AII-Ddy Hearing
BY MIRIAM OTTENBERG

BY MIRIAM OTTENBERG
The controversial question Of
teaching District school children
the evils Of dope is being ex-
plored as part Of the Council on
Law Endorsements full-scale In
vestigation Of narcotics laws and
addiction here. it was learned
today,
Superintendent Of Schools F1o.
bart M. Corning: the Very Rev.
Msgr. John s. Spence, director
Of education in the parochial
schools, and John p. GiIliland,
president of the District Con.
gress Of Parents and Teachers.
all have been asked to express
their views.
They were also invited to ap-
pear at an all-day hearing to be
held by the Law Enforcement
Councils special narcotics COM
mittee later this month. All as
poets Of the dope problem win be
discussed at that session.
Study All Phases
Donald Clemmer, director Of
THE District Department Of Cor.
rections and chairman Of the
Law Enforcement Councils nar-
cotics committee. said his group
Ihad been instructed to look into
narcotics education along with
Jail other phases Of the narcotics
laws and their possible loopholes.
He pointed out that . Fed
ieral law dating back to the
I18S0s requires District public
schools to instruct children In
lthe nature and effects Of alco-
hol and narcotics. The same
law requires prospective teach.
lers to pass an examination in
subject before they can teach In
lthe public schools here.
| The big question Is how the
law Is being applied. Members
lof the police narcotics squad and
their chief, Capt. Todd o. Tho
imam, want to see more school in-
lstruction in the effects Of addic.
ltion. Opinion even within the
Police Department is divided,
however. with some officers def.
linitely opposed to o campaign
ito warn juveniles against the
'leffects Of dope on the ground
THAT there Is not q juvenile ad-
;Idict problem here.
9Is42 Curriculum
i The Board Of Education
lladopted q curriculum for In
lstruction In the evils of alcohol
land narcotics In 1912 whitlA vas
ito be adapted to grade levels.
Two years ago DR.. Corning
called q meeting Of principals,
assistant principals and guid.
lance counsellors to hear both
District and Federal authorities
lbrief them on narcotics.
| Subsequently, at DR.. Corning's
request. the District Health De-
lpartment prepared q manual on
narcotics for all District public
school teachers.
"All the authorities" said DR..
Corning today, agree that an
intensified campaign to instruct
1.-THE 100000 school children In
1.-THE evils Of narcotics would do
more harm than good.
II am not opposed to teaching
lthe effects of narcotics in the
normal classroom procedure
where this comes into health M
Istruction. But I believe sim
igling out narcotics and holding
school assemblies on the subject
might cause some Of the more
venturesome to experiment."
Knows Of No Cases
DR.. Corning added that he has
not heard of case Of narcotics
addiction among children in the
schools since two years ago when
three cases were reported.
The opposition to narcotics
education In the schools Is led
by Commissioner Harry j. Ans
linger Of the Federal Bureau Of
Narcotics. Committees of both
the League of Nations and the
United Nations have gone on
record against 1t, as has the Ma.
tional Woman's Christian Tenn.
|perance Union.
Among those favoring inten-
|sive education for juveniles in
the field are DR.. Victor H. vogel.
former head Of the Federal Mar
|cotics Hospital at Lexington, KY.
and DR.. Clare C. Baldwin, as
sistant superintendent OF the
New York schools.
Opponents argue that, how
ever horrible addiction is made
to appear, discussion of the sub
ject viii prompt juveniles to
experiment. Those favoring q
policy Of drilling teen-agers in
the dangers of dope believe that
proper instruction will serve as
q deterrent.
Doubts Material
On the one hand, Commis-
sioner Anslinger says that he
hasn't seen any training material
that he would approve for mass
education in dope addiction. On
the other hand, DR.. Baldwin has
said, "If we are unable in our
schools to make q case against
drug addiction. then we are
either ignorant of its awful con-:
sequences or we should admit
nothing can be taught"
Mr., Clemmer accompanied
Sergt. Joseph Gabrys to an as
sembly at the Takoma Academy,
a Seventh-Day Adventist school,
as part Of bis education study.
Mr.. Clemmer said Sergt. Gabrys
lectured with deep feeling and
the children listened with rapt
attention.
II want to emphasize, however.
that ! am open-minded about
this" MIR. CIemmef said. ssI am