Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-07-25
ARLINGTON

ARLINGTON
Continued From First Page
cants because they live out
side the attendance area Of tho
school to which they sought
admission.
Informed of the decision, Ar
lington School Board chairman
L. Lee Bean said the board
would confer with its attorneys
regarding possibility of appeal.
But he stressed that if no
appeal if filed and the decision
stands, he is confident Arling-
ton will accept it without dis
turbance.
II think that we will have
to consult with our attorneys
on the matter and no decision
has been reached al this time"
he said.
81 feel that the county al
ready has experienced admis-
sion of children to STAFFORD
Junior High without any dis
turbance. If the final court
decision should be that the
children be admitted, I have
confidence that the people Of
Arlington would accept this
and that no disturbance would
result"
Will Use Same Criteria
Mr.. Bean reported that the
school board will refer future
applications from Negro stu
dents to the State Pupil Place
ment Board in Richmond.
But he added that if it is
called upon to make placement
decisions independently, it will
continue to use the criteria
which Judge Bryan upheld
today.
The case came before Judge
Bryan for the second time
after the Fourth Circuit Court
of Appeals directed the school
board to reconsider the appli-
cations.
The % Negroes were among
80 who first sought entry to
white schools last fall. The
school board rejected all Of
them but last February Judge
Bryan ordered four admitted
to Stratford Junior High
School.
4 Applicants Withdraw
Four of the remaining 26 APP
plicantS Withdrew and the board
subsequently reaffirmed its de-
NAL of the remaining %. The
board employed these criteria
in reaching its conclusion: At
tendence area, AGA d emic
achievement, psychological fac
tors and overcrowding. The
board discarded adaptability as
a criterion after last years de-
cisiOn. In his finding today,
Judge Bryan said:
The criteria used by the
school board in 1858, and then
for the most part approved by
the court, have been employed
by the board in the present as
signments. The criteria are still
approved. But in some in
stances the application of the
criteria by the board this time
has not been uniform as be-
tween the white students and
the Negro petitioners.
las pointed out in the find
ingS and conclusion of this
court in September, 1858
reasonable and fair tests for
the applicants acceptance were
then justified even though such
criteria had not been used
heretofor. This was because
the admission presented an I'M
experienced situation. 1t was.
of course, understood that
thereafter the criteria would
be applied evenly, without re-
gard to the race or color of
the pupil. The inequalities be-
come apparent as we review
each of the applications"
Properly Turned Away
. Judge Bryan said four Ne
groes were properly turned
away from Washington-Lee
High School last year because
it already was filled beyonn
capacity.
But now" he added, "theJ
cannot be singled out for re-
lection for overcrowding alone.
The boards rejection on this
score cannot stand"
Seventeen Negroes were
turned down last year for fail
ure to meet academic tests as
such, placing them below the
median achievement level of
the class applied for.
, There were. of course, white
students in these classes under
those levels" Judge Bryan said,
but the school board was war;
ranted in not increasing the
number in a class below those
lines"
Must Use Ratings
1t was at this point Judge
Bryan said academic achieve
ment ratings would have to be
applied without regard to race
in the new classes about to be
constituted in September.
He noted that the Negroes
Contended in arguments before
him that mental maturity or
the intelligence quotient should
be a measure for admittance
rather than actual academic
achievement.
The school board has, on
substantial evidence, preferred
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