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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 13, 1977)
7 Death remorse by Barbara T ratta r I t was Labor Day. My frwnd and I decided to go to a park. We piled the kida in the car and headed for Unthank. Hut we had to aak a woman for directions on the way..it had been so long since we'd been there. We sat and talked in the cool afternoon sun and watched abeentmindedly aa our children played. A mother with two little g irl. came over to the awings that were in front ol us. The girls got on and began to swing. Aa their swings became synchro nised. I noticed the big pillars holding them up began to away. The girts were swinging high and in unison. The poles began to Jerk back and forth violently with their swings' pull. I interrupted my friend mid sentence, "Ijook at those things! You don't think they could be made of ce m en t do you? “ As we watched, the mother quickly stopped the girls from swinging and they left the park. Aa we watched them go and sensing the immediate danger to be over, my friend and I went back to cur conversation. One week later, almost to the day, a thirteen year old girl was dead because of PORTLAND Thursday, October 13, 1977 10c per copy 9' J ¡ ¡ f \ T IM O T H Y A. T Y L E R B R IA N W A R R EN A N T H O N Y JACKSO N Benson students win merit awards by Shirley E. luuig The scores achieved in the National M erit Test by Seniors Anthony Jackson, Timothy A. T yler, and Brian W arren have resulted in their being selected semi finalists by the Achivement Scholar ship Program as the most outstanding Black students in the State of Oregon. Annually the National Scholarship Pro gram selects 1.500 Black students nation wide as semi finalists. Semi finalists who meet additional requirements and ad vance to finalist standing will compete for 575 Achievement Scholarships to be awarded in the spring of 1978. This it the first time any Portland school has been honored in having three students from one school rank as semi- finalists. I t reflects the high academic status Benson sets for its students and the teaching ability of its staff. These bright young students present interesting profiles. Timothy A. T yler is a native of Streeter, Illinois. He is majoring in architectural drawing and building construction. He plans to attend the University of Oregon and major in electronics and communication. They say Timothy is big timber for football, which is his favorite sport. He's tailback on the Benson team and shows promise of being a real threat once he reaches the college football field. Brian W arren is a native of Oregon. He is majoring in electronics. A devoted hockey fan, he helped sponsor a team on which he has played both right and left wing. Brian also likes ice skating and photography. He hasn't, as yet, decided on the college he would like to attend. Anthony Jackson is a native of Massa chusetts. He was born on the Westmore Air Base as his father served in the A ir Force. He has only been in Oregon five years but he has been in tw enty countries abroad. Asked about his favorite place overseas, Anthony says, “Okinawa and Japan. The people are nice and friendly there." Anthony is majoring in printing at Benson, but when he attends college he plans to take business administration. He is a soccer fan and one of Pete's admirers. The Junior Achievement Program spon sored by the school was a definite benefit to him. “I learned many worthwhile things about business," he said. Travel rates high on Anthony's list of hobbies. The Portland chapter of the YW CA has paid Dorothy Baker, a former employee. 112,000 in damages as a result of her suit charging racial discrimination. Miss Baker, a Black social worker with the Y's Women's Prison Project, charged that YW CA director Jean Trisko threat ened to fire her in response to her own efforts in behalf of a Black client who was terminated from the program. Miss Baker had expressed her concern that this client had been released because of a “suspected theft while the project direc tor, Julie Wykoff had been kept on after admitting that she had taken illegal drugs into the Oregon State Penitentiary and that this fact was known to some of her clients. On February 18,1975, Miss Baker was called to her “termination hearing" w ith out being informed the reason for the hearing or of her employment rights. A fter her protest to the board of direc tors a meeting was held between the personnel committee and the administra tion, she was not allowed to be present or to hear a recording of the meeting. Not learning anything about her job security. Miss Baker protested to the board in w riting and on March 19th was asked by board chairman Mrs. Richard Hughes to “voluntarily leave the agency” within 48 hours. The situation was allowed to linger on as a task force looked into Miss Baker’s allegations of racism. In June the board met to hear personnel committee recom mendations, but Black visitors were barred from the meeting. The personnel committee recommended and the board adopted a position that all staff would be retained and that the Y W C A would car« program open for business 7. continue to sponsor the project. On June 18th, United W ay determined that the project should not be sponsored by the Y after July 1976, because of mismanagement. On July 2nd Miss W ykoff resigned. Mrs. Hughes then took a poll by mail, requesting the board to drop the project as of July 1, 1975. Dorethy Balter examines $12,000 check discrimination suit against the YW CA. The project did continue for a time with Rita Clinton as the new director, but the board refused to deal directly with the issue of racism. Miss Baker had filed a discrimination suit with the federal court, and in October of 1977 agreed to a $12,000 settlement. received as settlement of her racial P rio s tlo y d ic a g ro e s School Board votes Monroe, Washington merger The Portland School Board voted Mon day night to merge James Monroe and Washington High Schools, using the Washington building, and to include Benson High School in the planning to make programs of that school available to students of the Monroe-Washington com plex. The decision followed a lengthy meet ing in which testimony was offered by start has had a positive impact on those Health. Education and W elfare, the cen The Child Development Center -- pre Monroe students and faculty and repre children who have been able to partici ter provides a Headstart educational iously known as the PMSC Child Deve- sentatives of Washington and Benson program. The children are housed in five pate in the program. ipment Division - is again open and High Schools and the Area I I and Area I I I Breakfast, lunch and snacks are pro centers Columbia Villa, Iris Court. Wood rcepting children. The center, which advisory boards. The decision is the vided. Field trips and special projects lawn United Methodist Church, Hughes as closed temporarily due to lack of culmination of a two year task force Memorial United Methodist Church and conducted by community volunteers add jnds. has reopened under the sponsor study. variety to the days. St. Davida Episcopal on S.E. Harrison. hip of the Albina Ministerial Alliance. The students and faculty of Monroe According to Ronnie Herndon, direc Headstart was originally a program The program is designed to give High School preferred to remain separate jr. the center provides full day care for conceived and designed by parents under children a "headstart" on the education but if consolidation is essential they «3 children from three to five year» of the “W ar on Poverty." Parents partici process. Headstart guidelines insure that recommended a merger with Benson ge. Children are from low income pate in all phases of planning and are educational and cultural enrichment and High School, which is also a vocational unilies whose parents are employed, in encouraged to become active in parent the opportunity for educational and social school. The merger of Benson and Mon raining or in school. Ton percent of the groups. development are provided. roe would build the vocational pro hildren can be from families whose grams as well as meet the federal icomc is above the federal poverty Some time is spent each day to learn Parents who would like to inquire requirement that separate schools for uidelines and ten percent can be handi colors, sizes, shapes, numbers and to about the program should contact Gene males and females not be returned. Area apped. Holmes, Social Service Department, 283- prepare to learn to read. Recent federal I I recommended that the Monroe pro Funded by the U .8. Department of 1287. studies have demonstrated that Head grams be moved into the Washington building, with the Monroe vocational program becoming a magnet. A fte r the merger is accomplished Area I I recom mended that cooperative programming be developed between Washington/Mon roe and Benson. Area I I I recommended the development of a merger of Monroe with Washington and the development of a two campus complex involving students of Washington/Monroe and Benson. Both Areas wanted the symbolic identity of Monroe retained. Superintendent Robert Blanchard em phasized that the merger is necessary not only to address economic problems brought in by the declining school enroll ment but to strengthen the programs at Washington, Monroe and Benson. Until this year Monroe has retained its enroll ment at about 500 students and Benson is one of the district's largest high schools, with an enrollment of 1,800, Washington, young men admitted to Benson to 1,200. “In this effort to economize by consoli dating its high schools the School Board has missed an opportunity to promote racial and sexual integration while en hancing its technical vocational programs and at the same time strengthening its inner city comprehensive high schools." Combining Monroe with Benson would carry on the character of the technical- vocational program of the two schools while allowing both male and female students to receive training in trades not M sjre Vefam Jey Executive Director of the Leea J »hasaa, husband of the lota Mrs. Jsknis n , and Harriot traditional to their sex. The entry of roe the Joaofa Mae Johaaoa Vehwteers el Amorfa Kefty, who succeeded Mrs. Johrsou at the Voina leers of young men into Monroe and of young e., preeeuted hy Mrs. Richard Momorfal Award from America Child Caro Coûter, Ieoh oa with ap;>reval. women into Benson has been negligible, tad Mrs. Chartes Wfflfams a« Bogle, Mrs. Ulysses P possibly because it is difficult for stu- PMSC why hadn't I talked to the mother of death occurred. And it will probably be a those girls or later why didn’t I report it long time before all the data is gathered to the Hark Bureau? I had done nothing. and a full report is given. But in me, All the classic answers for my negli something seems to be awakened. gence were there. It wasn't my child on More than ever, I am aware of the the swing that day. It wasn't my Hark. responsibility to my self my integrity - Maybe the columns were light-weight. If to be more caring, to become more they were heavy and dangerous then involved. Overcoming the “normal" surely they 'could be fixed soon. Not apathy in myself and In this society, to wanting to take the time, expend the make changes and take risks, is the only energy or lose my place in the converse way I ’ll be able to live in harmony with tion, I had just ignored the facts. myself. It was a painful lesson and one There will be a lot of questions to he that I ’m not sure I ’ve fully learned from answered about how and why a needless yet. YWCA pays in discrimination suit OBSERVER Volume 7 Ne. 42 the dangerous swaying pillars we had seen. A shock ran through me when I saw the article in the paper, and a feeling of confusion and dismay set in. How could this have happened? I was there. I had seen those pillars. They didn't look that dangerous..they couldn’t have just fal len... It was a time for me to evaluate my actions and my motivea. Why hadn't I gone over to those swings and pushed on those columns and found out that they were cement and that they were looeeOr dents to break tradition and go to a school overwhelmingly dominated by the opposite sex. The combination of Benson and Monroe would allow young women to enter traditionally male trades such as auto mechanics, printing or electronics and young men could take food service, a comprehensive high school in Southeast Portland, is rapidly declining with a cur rent enrollment of 750 and an expected enrollment of 600 in five years. Blanchard recommended merger of Monroe with Washington, with planning for programming to be concluded by February and the move to take place by September of 1978. Board member Gladys McCoy asked that the merger be delayed until after renovation of the Washington building is completed. Frank McNamara voted with the understanding that Benson will be included in the planning process. Robert Ridgley recommended that the Monroe name be retained, suggesting “Washing ton and Monroe High School." W ally Priestley, who voted against the merger, advocated the consolidation of Monroe and Benson. I t is more logical, he explained, to merge the two vocational schools. Washington’s enrollment could be protected by limiting the number of nursing, etc. Consolidation of Monroe, which has about 26 percent minority enrollment, with Benson, which is about ten percent minority, would further the district's desegregation policy by producing a school with about 17 percent minority enrollment. (The district enrollment is 18 percent minority.) Combining Monroe with Washington will impact the minority enrollment at Washington which is con sidered to be already higher than the optimum, by creating a new student body with approximately 25 percent minority. Lowering the Benson enrollment to 1,200 students would aid those inner city schools that are now being threatened with declining enrollment - Washington, Adams and eventually Jefferson. I f the students who live in those attendance areas were to attend Washington, Adams and Jefferson, with a lesser number allowed to attend Benson, those schools could maintain their enrollment and therefore maintain a comprehensive pro gram. Since Benson has drawn a dispropor tionate number of white students from the Jefferson, Adams and Washington attendance areas, restricting the number of students enrolling in Benson would retard the growing “racial isolation" at those schools. Priestley fears that the unique charac ter of the Monroe vocational programs will be loat after incorporation into Washington. I f they were to be combined with Benson, however, the vocational programs would be strengthened by the larger student body and staff and the opportunity for further development, and by the status of Benson, which has long been a prestige school. The students from Monroe who spoke at the school board meeting emphasized the special character of Monroe, with its vocational emphasis, and their pride in a school in which all students are “Some body.” IS i 1 ■ 1 w w . xl Acncw si i Portland joins national demonstration against Bakke case as U.S. Supreme Court hoars testimony in the case, which charges the University of California's minority admissions program with discri mination against white applicant*.
