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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 30, 1976)
Page 2 Portland Observer Thursday, September 90th. 1876 School finance We see the world through Black eyes by Yvonne Brathw aite Burk« Copley New» Service A 70 year-old man planned to live out his years in a little home he bought 19 years ago for $6,000. Now. he cannot afford to pay tho taxes on it. The tax assessor values his home at $28,000. Just the taxes would take half of his only income, his Social Security check. He is angry. Disruptive behavior is everyone’s problem The Portland Public Schools received the report o f the Blue Ribbon Panel on D isruptive Youths M ondoy n ight - a report prepared by o lay com m ittee a fte r e ightee n m onths o f w ork. The c o m m i.e reports that school personnel estim ate up to tw e n ty -fiv e per cent o f the district's students have le o rn in g d is a b ilitie s that b rin g about or occentuate d isruptive b e h a vio r. A lthough b ehavio r in and out o f the classroom is one o f the m ajor school problem s across the country, it is d iffic u lt to b e lie v e that o n e -fo u rth o f our ch ild re n are handica pped m e n to lly or p h y s io lo g ic a lly to the p oint that they cannot learn. O ne has to w o n d e r how the b rig h t little fiv e -y e a r-o ld w h o e a g e rly begins k in d e rg a rte n turns into the un ru ly fifth grader or the d e lin q u e n t o f fifte e n . If this p ro b le m is caused by le a rning problem s, there must be som ething lacking in the teaching m ethods or in the te a ch in g p h ilo s ophy rather than som e innate p ro b le m in this m any children. M uch m ore needs to be do n e w ith this study. The com m ittee w as m ade up o f school personnel, busi ness people , and representatives o f th e p o lice force and the court, in the m ain. They are not p e o p le w ith the expertise to analyse the causes o f d isru p tive b ehavio r or to d e te rm in e corrective m ethods. The com m ittee should have been p ro v id e d professional staff to assist w ith a p ro b le m o f this d im ension. The Portland Public Schools should n o w procede -- using the report as background — to d e lv e m ore d e e p ly into the causes of this in a b ility to learn. One aspect o f classroom te a ch in g that w as m e n tio n e d by J e w e ll G oddard to the school board is that teachers do not have tra in in g or e xp e rie n ce in g ro u p dynam ics. They learn how to teach subjects, but do not learn h o w to control gorups or h o w to h e lp students to control them selves a nd each other. This tra in in g , as w e ll as kn o w le d g e o f hum an re la tio n s and an understanding o f current trends in in d iv id u a l freedom and student rights, w h o u ld seem essential. W ith a w h o le new em phasis on the rights o f students, teachers must be a b le to teach and inspire responsi b ility . A nother area that needs m ore e x p lo ra tio n is the role o f the parents. It is easy to o la m e parents fo r lack o f p a rtic ip a tio n in the child'» e d u ca tio n a l life , but it must be rem em bered that fo r m any years parents w e re adm onishe d not to in te rfe re and th e ir presence on the edu ca tio n a l scene was resented. N ow w e w a n t that p a rtic ip a tio n , but m any parents e ith e r resent the a ttitu d e o f the school personnel or are fe a rfu l o f th e ir a u th o rity. The school has a great re sp o n sib ility to encourage parents to becom e in v o lve d at a il levels, in c lu d in g pla n n in g . The C om m unity has a role, also. It is true that there are not s u ffic ie n t resources to h e lp thoe c h ild re n w h o have serious e m o tio n a l problem s. These kinds o f resources take m oney, a nd th e P ortland co m m u n ity has not been w illin g to spend that kin d o f m oney. Treatm ent program s are still e x p e rim e n ta l -- they d o n 't have a ll the answ ers an d they cannot g u a ra n tee success. These are not the kinds o f program s that appea l to the taxpayers. M uch needs to be done to insure th a t every c h ild has a secure life and an o p p o rtu n ity fo r a good education. C h ild re n w h o do have p roblem s -- w h a t ever the cause -- do have a rig h t to tre a tm e n t a nd the schools must h e lp to see that this tre a tm e n t is a v a il able. The schools also must insure that th e y are not part o f the p ro b le m — th a t they a re not co n trib u tin g to the c h ild 's disturbance and that th e ir e ffo rt to m ake e a rly diagnosis of p o te n tia l problem s does not la b e l or w rite -o ff a ch ild . As a part o f the co m m u n ity, the schools can o n ly do w h a t the c o m m u n ity m andates, a nd w ill do o n ly w h a t the c o m m u n ity insists. W e cannot a ffo rd to discard a g e n e ra tio n o f c h ild re n as h a vin g u n d ia g nosed le a rn in g d is a b ilitie s that p reclude th e ir le a rn ing, nor can w e a llo w 'le a rn in g d is a b ilitie s ' to take the place o f race or social class as an excuse not to teach. "i " Another Point of View And so to school the V ancouver Sun Did you take them fo r the first tim e , by the hand, and put up w ith th e ir tears an d th e ir leg-clutching s? Did you take them fo r the first tim e , by the hand, and w atch th e m b o ld ly w a v e g o o d b ye and tw o seconds later turn th e ir backs, a nd th e n com e hom e yo u rse lf in tears? Did you w a tch them fo r m aybe th e um pteenth year go ru n n in g d o w n the steps to m eet th e ir friends, d e lig h te d , a fte r tw o m onths, to be back in a society that m ade sense? Did you, as you w atched them go, fe e l hurt at your ow n d im in is h in g in flu e n ce ? A t your o w n increasing exclusion? Look, th e y 're o n ly on loan to you. SOUTHERN JUSTICE THREATENS NAACP A Mississippi judge has ordered th$ National Association for the Advancement of Colored People to pay 12 white merchants over $1.2 million because of a boycott the NAACP led against their stores in 1966. The boycott was seeking employment for black people. The 1966 boycott, protesting job discrimination and other racial abuse in the town of Port Gibson, Mississippi was called by the judge an “unlawful conspiracy.” The NAACP calls the judge’s decision a “legal lynching.” We need your help to fight this injustice. Mississippi law requires that we post a bond or cash in excess of $1.6 million just to appeal the judge’s decision. This money must be raised within the next ten days. If we do not appeal —because we are unable to post the bond—then the NAACP must pay $1.2 million it does not have. If this happens, we’re out of business. He is not alone. Taxpayers everyw here are threatening to revolt and for good reasons. The inequities of taxes on resi dential property cannot be allowed to go unexamined. A substantial part of property tax is spent for education. Bach school district is financed by tax ing the real estate w ithin its boundaries. Consequently, the amount of money spent to educate a child is determined by the wealth of the school district he lives in. A comparison of the financing of two California school districts gives a good example of this kind of educational dis Hays (Continued from p. 1 col. 3) Commission. In 1972 she served as chairman of the Governor's Commission on Human Rights. She is a member of the National Asso ciation of Social W orkers, the National Association of Black Social W orkers, the National Alliance of Black School Educa tors and Pi Lamda T heta, national honor and professional association in education. Other local membership include the Urban League of Portland, the T ri County G overnm ental Commission and the Rocky Butte Relocation Advisory Committee. She is m arried to Chauncey 0 . Hays and is the mother of three daughters. The 13-member Advisory Council is chaired by Ira K e lle r, long-time civic leader. O ther members are: Joaeph Blu mel, president of Portland State U niver sity; E d ith Green, form er congresswo man from Oregon's 3rd D istrict: Leland Johnson, president. F irs t National Bank of Oregon; Roger M eier, chairman of the Oregon Investm ent Council; R o e« « N el son,, Portland attorney and estate plan ner; Robert Notson, retired publisher of the Oregonian. Barbara Schwab, a Salem civic leader and form er Portlander whose board activities have included the Parry Center for Children; Robert Roth, presi dent of Jantsen. Inc.; Rudie W ilhelm, Jr., former state legislator and past president of the Portland C ity Club; Harold e. Sand, executive vice president of the Georgia Pacific Corporation; and Steve Bailey, president of the HSC Student Council COMPARE COMPARE N e w J b e droom hom e in V ancouver w ith 1 'A baths, range, dishw ahser, fire p la c e , d o u b le garage, w / w carpet. Only $29,600. 8'/ j % an n u a l percentage rate. , by W i l 1 B e rn a rd Telltale Voice Veterans m ove in fo r $75.00 FHA purchasers m ove in approx. $1,250. HERMITAGE br. Myron Lewis Real Estate Inc. The court was reflecting the law's usual view (hat the human voice is a recognizable, telltale characteristic. The voice o f a man wearing a mask . . . the voice of a man in a dark alley . . . the voice o f a woman in another room— all these have been held identifiable in court. The identification is especially convincing if the voice has some distinguishing feature. In a bookmaking case, a prose cution witness testified that he recognized the defendant's voice because it had a Boston accent. This testimony helped the state win a guilty verdict. Nevertheless, even though iden tification-by-voice is usually ac ceptable, it is usually not conclu sive— not enough to convict someone all by itself. F or exam ple: A masked gunman held up a bank. A t a police lineup two months later, the bank teller iden- lifte tj a suspect solely on the basis of his voice. But at the trial, the prosecutor could offer no other supporting evidence to connect the man with the robbery. The court finally de cided to throw the charge out. The case against the defendant, said the court, was “pregnant with the danger o f honest mis take." 2 2 3 -8 2 2 9 4 Tri-County area other areas $7.50 $8.00 'Published every Thursday by Exie Publishing Company, 2201 North Killingsworth, Portland, Oregon 97217. Mailing address: P .0 . Box 3137, Portland, Oregon 97208. Telephone: 283 2486. Subscriptions: $7.60 per year in the Tri-County area. $8.00 per year outside Portland. Second Class Postage Paid at Portland. Oregon The Portland Obaervor'a official position is expressed only in its Publisher’s column (W e See The World Through Black Eyes). Any other m aterial throughout the paper is the opinion of the individual w rite r or subm itter and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the Portland Observer. Address.. A L F R E D L. H E N D E R S O N Editor/Publisher National Advertialng Repreaontattve Amalgamated Publishers, Inc. Now York Zip (Ad paid for by friends of NAACP) Subscribe to the Observer Portland Observer Name------------------------------------- ------- Please make all tax-deductible checks payable to the N A A C P Special Contribution Fund, 1790 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10019 228 00 57.00 285 00 360 mo. paym ents at Est. tax & Ins. Reserve Total m o n th ly paym ent Could you identify a voice that you heard only on the telephone? " I can," said a woman witness in a recent case involving an ob scene caller. “It was definitely the defendant." The defense attorney objected that such an identification was too unreliable to be permitted in the courtroom. But the court overruled his objection and al lowed the woman's testimony to stand. Enclosed is my check (money order) for $_ City___ campus reinforces a feeling of pride and self worth. Pupils who are fortunate enough to be a part of a “good" school most often develop into high achievers. The stimulating environment and the high expectations motivate children. A continuous supply of successful teachers, new and imaginative teaching tools and inspiring physical surroundings cost money. Most criteria used to judge schools are based on how much money is spent. The gross injustice of the present method of financing schools was recog nized by the California Supreme Court in the Serrano-Priest derision in 1971. I t ruled that basing school finance on local property taxes discriminates against children in districts with little taxable property. In the near future, five years after the original decision, the California Supreme Court is expected to call for a reordering of the present system of school finance. School finance cannot be reordered with out opening the question of property tax reform. Residential property taxpayers are ready to open the same question. Proper ty taxes have risen so high that people are losing their homes. The tax on higher and higher assessed valuations works great hardship on elderly and low income persons. The change of funding of education from property tax to a more equitable tax source is long overdue. Income tax. tax on nonreaidential real estate and. possib ly. sales tax are among the more logical sources of school money. School tax and property tax have been linked in the law and in our minds long enough. The link is causing undue hard ship to students and residential taxpay era alike. The problems are clear. The necessary changes must not be delayed. COMPARE COMPARE THE r EAMlEV’w LAW YER I WANT TO HELP WITH THE NAACP MISSISSIPPI APPEAL State.. rrim it ation. The wealthy community of Beverly Hills in a year spends $2,063 for each child. A t the same time, the nearby City of Compton spends $1,116 for each child. How ever. Compton taxes itself more heavily for schools, at the rate of $4.86 por $100 of its assessed valuation rompar ed to the Beverly Hills tax rate of $3.18. How can it be that Beverly Hills taxes itself less and spends more per child? In Beverly Hills, there is $74,886 in assessed valuation of real estate for each child. In Compton, there is only $10,045. A child in Compton is penalized because of where he lives. W e all struggle w ith the question of how to judge effectiveness of schools. As parents, school administrators or legists tors, we know that the best circum stances for education of children vary w ith the child. How ever, we do know that good salar ies a ttrac t aggressive, bright teachers who encourage and inspire pupil achieve ment. The latest books and teaching m aterials help students and teachers alike. An attractive, well-maintained MEMBER Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association MEMBER fW êfW P A lP E P Association - Founded fM 0 1st Place Community Service O N P A 1973 1st Place Best Ad Results O N P A 1973 5th Place Best Editorial N N P A 1973 Honorable Mention H errick Editorial Aw ard N N A 1973 2nd Race Best Editorial 3rd Race Community leadership O N P A 197i
