Portland OI C lost es city's CETA training contract
POIC was n o tifie d Wednesday
that it w ill no longer be contracted to
train City o f Portland’s CETA em
ployees. Although rumors have been
circulating since November, the first
official notification was from Joseph
Ganzalles, CETA Director, in a let
ter dated February 6th.
The letter states in part, “ The City
Council has taken aggressive action
to link CETA with the economic de-
I velopment efforts o f the City, the
Council has adopted the First Source
Em ploym ent Agreement concept
which assures jobs resulting from
economic development activities are
targeted toward the economically
disadvantaged, and the Council has
developed specific criteria for PSE
positions which emphasize s k ill
development and transition to un
subsidized employment.
“ The cumulative results o f these
actions, and others which the Coun
cil will be asked to consider in the
near future, is to establish the de
velopment o f unsubsidized employ
ment in the private sector for the
economically disadvantaged, the un
employed and the underemployed as
the p rio rity fo r the C E T A p ro
gram.”
The C ity plans to recognize its
CETA program to have its own staff
deliver all services that are currently
provided by POIC — on-the-job
training work experience and job
readiness training. C ity s ta ff w ill
also handle the intake, assessment
and orientation now contracted to
Portland Community College. For
these functions a Case Management
Unit has been created and partially
staffed.
POIC, which has been active in
Portland for nearly ten years, has
held the C E T A contract fo r 4S4
years. Currently the CETA project
makes up 90 percent o f the POIC
budget, the rem aining being a
separately funded clerical training
program.
During the past year, POIC served
1,163 persons. O f these 897 com
pleted training, with 363 o f those
placed in unsubsidized employment.
Another 138 either found their own
employment, enrolled in school,
took apprenticeships or found other
tra in in g
o p p o rtu n itie s.
Two-
hundred -sixty-five persons le ft
before training was completed for a
variety o f reasons — moving, em
ploym ent, etc. Remaining in the
program at the end o f the vear were
384.
The total budget for serving these
1,163 persons was SI.6 million.
C om m unity members who are
gathering to support POIC in its ef
fort to retain the contract are con
cerned about the following:
a) The withdrawal o f the contract
would drastically reduce the effec
tiveness o f one o f the few Black-
directed programs left in the city.
b) The city w ill hire and train its
own staff, hired through civil ser
vice, with no special consideration
given to those now working at POIC
and PCC, although much money was
spent to train these persons.
c) There are 63 people employed at
POIC and 30 at PCC, most o f whom
are minorities or female head-of-
households. Many o f these people
w ill be unemployed.
d) The city has not included com
munity organizations or the target
communities in the planning.
PORTLAND OBSERVER
e) The city has hired staff, which
although labeled “ temporary” are
functioning, without announcing the
positions and making them available
to the general public.
f) The city is placing a great em
phasis on training 472 people for
W acher, S teinfield Pickles and
Rhoda Paint. Com m unity persons
fear that those individuals most in
need o f training will not receive this
opportunity and that the emphasis
on training for these positions will
rule out persons who are not suited
for that work or who arc interested
in other fields.
g) Location o f the operation in the
(Please turn to Page 2 Column 4)
V olum e 9 No. 5
Thursday. February 8 .1 9 7 9 10C
Albina inter-agency meetings to be revived
For many years the Albina Inter
agency Council held regular lunch
eon meetings attended by representa
tives o f the public and o f agencies
serving the residents o f the Albina
community. These meetings even
tually came under the coordination
o f the Model Cities Program and af
ter that agency was terminated, the
meetings ceased.
Mrs. Edna Robertson, director o f
the Northeast Neighborhood Office,
and John Miller, Multnomah Coun
ty Northeast Quadrant coordinator,
hope to revive that tradition.
“ We w ould like to start the
meetings again, ” Mrs. Robertson
explained. “ There are many organi
zations and agencies operating in the
community that most o f us know
nothing about. There is no way for
people from these agencies to get to
gether, to find out what the others
are doing, and to communicate with
each other.
“ Holding regular meetings would
not only give the organizations an
opportunity to explain their services,
and to compare notes, but people
w ould get acquainted. There are
many employees o f agencies who
have few contacts in this community
except with their clients. This would
give them a better picture o f the com
munity and an opportunity to get in
volved.”
The initial meeting w ill be held on
February 16th at the Albina Human
Resource Center, 5022 N. Vancouver
Avenue, at 10:30 a.m. This is to be
a planning meeting, when agency
representatiaves can explore their in
terests in organizing the meetings,
and a format. Approximately sixty-
five agencies have been invited, but
any that were overlooked are
welcome.
“ We envision sharing information
on the various agencies and speakers
on issues o f special concern to this
neighborhood, but the direction the
meetings will take w ill be entirely up
to those who decide to participate,”
Mrs. Robertson said. “ M r. M iller
and I are sponsoring the first meet
ings to get it started and the people
.involved can take it from there.”
M rs. Robertson also plans to
publish a directory o f services avail
able in the Northeast area.
Professional Volunteer Service offers psychiatric aid to convicted
Judge Richard Unis has announced
a new Professional Volunteer Ser
vices which will provide psychiatric
treatment to persons who have been
convicted of crime.
Through the program, volunteer
psychiatrists and psychologists w ill
provide long-term treatment to per
sons who have been convicted o f a
crime and who have mental or emo
tional problems that i f treated would
reduce the probability o f continued
criminal behavior.
Stating that the purpose o f the
Carnival honors Black History
A community carnival to honor
Black History Week w ill be held on
Saturday, February 17th at the King
Neighborhood Facility. Open from
10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., the theme
w ill be “ Black Culture - Alpha &
Omega” .
Carnival booths w ill be operated
by com m unity organizations and
businesses, using the Black Culture
theme. A bazaar w ill give the public
the opportunity to purchase arts and
crafts from local artists. A rtis t’ s
works w ill also be on display.
The C om m unity In fo rm a tio n
Area w ill feature inform ation and
brochures on community agencies.
In the Black Cultural Awareness
Area, sponsored by the Portland
Branch, NAACP, short topics o f in
terest related to Black culture and
Black history, w ill be discussed.
Film s and story reading w ill be
available for children.
A poster contest w ill be held for
shcool age children and the entries
displayed.
For inform ation and fo r poster
contest rules call Ms. Linda John
son, 281-8197 or 284-8620.
program is to provide mental health
treatm ent to persons engaged in
crim inal activity who can benefit
from that treatment, Judge Unis ex
plained, “ The program is designed
to recognize that there are human
beings who come within the criminal
ju stice system who, w ith proper
treatment, care and support, could
get out o f the system.
“ The program w ill help in
dividuals w ith mental and mental
health problems so they w ill not hurt
themselves or be a menace to society.
“ Sometimes the community feels
we forget the responsibility fo r in
carceration — for punishment. Our pri
son system is in the 17th century in stan
dards. We should try our very best to
help human beings so they can return
to the community.”
Individuals who have been found
guilty o f a crime w ill be referred to
the Diagnostic Center, directed by
Roby Eldridge, for screening. Pcr-
sons considered by the Diagnostic
Center as to be suitable fo r the
program w ill be referred to a volun
teer psychiatrist or psychologist. I f
the doctor believes he can work with
the person, that recommendation is
included in the presentence report.
Once the doctor accepts the in
dividual for treatment, he makes a
commitment to treat that person as
long as needed.
The trial judge continues to be
responsible fo r sentencing and the
individual served may or may not be
incarcerated.
I f successful, the program is ex
pected to prove the benefit o f
psychiatric treatment in the field o f
corrections. Although many crimes
are committed by persons with emo
tional problems, little assistance is
available to them in the penitentiary
or outside.
Judge Unis emphasized the need to
look for options and alternatives.
(Please turn to Page 2 Column 5)
Director o f ‘DuBois’ thrives on challenge
Michael Orica la the writer and director of "DuBois," which will run
March 9th thru 11th at PSU's Lincoln Hall Auditorium. Orica la presi
dent of Ona World Arts Foundation and taachaa at Adams High School.
Michael Grice is the director and
writer o f a unique oral history pro
gram, called “ D uBois,” which is
scheduled to run at PSU’ s Lincoln
Hall Auditorium on March 8th, 9th,
10th and 11th.
The program w ill trace the life and
teaching o f Dr. W .E.B. DuBois, who
fo r 95 years put his tremendous
talents to use in the struggle for
equality and a world without racial
prejudice. “ DuBois” is a production
o f One W orld Arts Foundation, Inc.
One W orld is a local, n o n -p ro fit
organization designed to preserve art
in all its forms, and to encourage
young Black people to develop their
artistic talents.
Grice explains that “ the intent o f
‘ DuBois’ is to promote oral history
as an art form. We also seek to reveal
the life and deeds o f Dr. DuBois.
And, thirdly, we intend to raise funds
for scholarships for Black youth who
excel in artistic endeavors.”
Grice is president o f One World
Arts Foundation. About the foun
dation, he said, “ We want to assist
young artists to develop their talents
by giving them exposure and helping
them create their own opportunities
for expression.”
“ There is a great deal o f quality
young talent around,” insists Grice,
*ho teaches at Adams High School,
fe adds, however, “ much o f our
'oung people's talent has nowhere to
to because the channels o f ex
pression are not open. There is,
herefore, a need for the formal pro
m otion o f Black art in this city.
Through the discovery o f the poten
tia l q u a lity inherent w ith in our
youth, we can help them realize the
value o f our cultural strength,” the
director o f the oral history program
said.
As the d ire c to r and w rite r o f
“ DuBois,” Grice thrives on the chal
lenges o f coordinating the talents of
H erb C aw thorne, who portrays
DuBois, and Ken Berry, the musical
d ire cto r. It is a challenge Grice
thoroughly enjoys.
“ I coordinate,” he said with self-
assurance. “ I put together a compo
site o f energies, thoughts, philoso
phies, and materials. In the end, this
composite expresses the vision o f our
best efforts and comes as close as
possible to goals we had in mind
originally.”
The idea o f oral history programs
originated w ith C awthorne, who
sought to recreate great Black indi
viduals so that Black children and
adults could better appreciate their
heritage. Ken Berry, a highly respect
ed musician, is a founder o f One
W orld and w ill prepare a musical
score which harmonizes w ith the
words Cawthorne speaks as DuBois.
The goals Grice seeks make the
d iffic u lty o f the task seem like a
small price to pay. “ Since all art is
not worth supporting, we want to set
a standard — provide an example of
what q u a lity means to us. In
education, many o f our young
people have low self-concepts. Con
sequently, they fail to set their sights
on achievements which are w ithin
their talents. We want to show, by
example, what quality can produce.
Perhaps we can help send them on
their way achieving all their worth
while dreams and goals,” the energe
tic Grice said.
One World Arts Foundation hopes
the com m unity
w ill support
“ DuBois” , on March 8th, 9th, 10th
and 11th, as it did last year’s pro
gram, “ From the Pulpit, From the
(Please turn to Page 6 Column 3)
Tony Ross won the Oregon State free throw shooting contest in his
age group. He now moves on to the Regionals to be held in Seattle.
Ross wins free throw title
The Oregon State free throw shoot
ing contest for boys eight-sixteen was
held this past weekend in Corvallis.
Seventy-five boys competed in the
tournam ent w ith winners being
crowned in four categories. Tony
and Eric Ross, sons o f Ms. Ethel
Ross, represented the Albina area in
the competition.
Tony placed first in his age group
and w ill represent Oregon in the
Regionals to be held later in Seattle.
Tony hit 23-25 to win the event.
Tony is also active in Little League
baseball where he was outstanding
during the past summer. And played
on the League championship team.
Parent Child changes its name
Parent-Child Service, Inc. (2710
N.E. 14th, phone 284-6267) is a ten
year old program , one o f th irty
Parent and Child Centers in the U.S.
It is a private non-profit agency fund
ed through the D epartm ent o f
Health, Education and Welfare. It is
unique in, that it serves families with
children up to the age o f three years,
and that parents and their children
attend the program together. Soon
the name w ill be changed to empha
size our uniqueness, the new name
being Parents & Children Together,
Inc.
The present program , which
begins February 26th is quite d if
ferent from the last several years,
with a completely revised program
and a completely new staff. The new
Family Advocate staff are persons
skilled in more than one discipline;
some are counselors, some are nutri
tionists, some are specialists in un
derstanding and directing children
w ith special needs. A ll combine
several fields o f expertise in child
guidance.
The new program embraces the
“ cluster” concept. This notion grew
out o f the conviction, shared by all
staff, that parents are the primary
educators o f their children and that
the first three years are the crucial
years o f a child’ s life.
A team o f family advocates w ill di
rect the “ cluster” which w ill be com
posed o f parents and their children.
The hours together w ill be used to
raise parenting skill levels, to provide
support fo r parents, to educate
parents to the use o f community re
sources, to make available inform a
tion pertaining to parenting so that
the whole community w ill be enrich
ed. Two meals, a breakfast and a
lunch, w ill be served.
The new program is designed to
serve up to 115 children and their
parents. Parents are required to at
tend with their children because the
emphasis is on the whole family.
A lso, parents and ch ild re n w ith
special needs and disabilities are wel
comed.
Any family who lives in Multno
mah County, who meets the federal
income guidelines and who has a
child or children under three years is
eligible fo r the program and the
program is free to those who qualify.
(Please turn to Page 2 Column 5)
Halftime features young dunkers
Timmy Pittman, 11, and Todd Ir
ving, 14, w ill be featured in an
exhibition o f lowered hoop dunging
during the halftime o f the February
13th Blazers vs Jazz game.
Pittman and Irving were selected
to represent Oregon in the Pacific
States Dunking Championships in
H aw aii
in
December.
Both
youngsters won first place in their
classifications, competing against
delegates from the United States,
Taiw an, Canada, Japan and the
Philippeans. They are now eligible to
compete in Puerto Rico this summer.
Pittman was selected Most Out
standing Dunker in a January 28th
Oregon vs W ashington meet in
Olympia. He turned in several im
pressive performances including vic
tories over two o f Washington’s bet
ter dunkers.
Other winning dunkers included
Todd Irving, Kenny Lucket, 12, and
Tony Pittman, 13. A ll are students
o f Binnsmead Elementary School.