POIC wins CETA contracts, one more year
The Portland City Council accept
ed a proposal by Commissioner
Charles Jordan to contract for at
least $1.4 m illion worth o f CETA
services with POIC over the next
year.
The
••hold-harm less”
argument w ill insure that POIC re
tains its current funding level for
one year, while it reorganizes and
prepares to compete with other or
ganizations for contracts for the fo l
lowing year.
The Council also voted to accept
the CETA reorganization proposal
by the Human Resources Bureau.
The reorganization w ill result in a
single CETA department, with the
City responsible for all aspects o f the
program. Individual components —
recruitm ent, pre-vocational, jo b
training — w ill be contracted to
other agencies but City employees
w ill provide counseling, supportive
services, job development and job
placement.
The reorganization is designed to
provide continuous services, coordi
nated by a case manager, from the
point o f intake to job placement.
POIC had feared losing its con
tracts — which make up 90% o f its
funding — through the reorganiza
tion. Although POIC could have bid
along with other organizations, there
was no assurance that they would re
ceive any CETA contracts. POIC
spokesmen state that they have not
received full explanation o f the reor
ganization or how they will fit in the
new system.
Eldon Jolly, national OIC execu
tive director, advised the Council
that OIC is concerned because o f the
lack o f information, the absence o f a
written plan, and the failure to in
volve com m unity groups in
developing the plan. “ If the process
had been carried out according to
federal regulations, the community
might be behind your plan."
Ed Leek, speaking for the North
east Coalition o f Neighborhood Or
ganizations, asked the Council to
delay the decision u n til neigh-
Ozie Johnson, Jr., an employee o f
POIC said the CETA program has
kgone from serving the poor to
creaming,*' because everyone is
concerned about statistics. “ I f you
want to serve poor people, you have
to forget about statistics."
Commissioner Jordan said he does
not like the idea o f reorganization,
but since he has nothing better to of-
borhood groups could be provided
enough information for citizens to
make a recommendation.
James Walker, POIC board mem
ber, questioned the decision leaving
POIC out o f the system without in
forming POIC o f any failure to meet
the goals o f past contracts.
fer, he will support it. He is concern
ed about whether the “ hard-core”
unemployed will receive services they
need.
He recommended that POIC be
given contracts totalling $ 1.4 to $1.5
million, their current funding level,
and that they reorganize in order to
fu lfill whatever role the City asked.
Mayor Neil Goldschmidt offered
$1.2 in contracts for recruitment and
pre-vocational tra in in g . A n ad
ditional $600,000 could be awarded
for specific on-the-job training pro
grams.
Jordan also asked if there were any
deficiencies in the POIC program,
whether there were any statistics to
show that the program is not suc
cessful!. He said he had been told by
Goldschmidt’ s staff that since the
C ity has contracted to train em
ployees for “ first source contracts" —
Wacker and others — they were
afraid that POIC could not deliver
and so they wanted the city to take
over to insure the contracts were
met.
Rumors have been rampant that
POIC was not meeting its goals, that
there are deficiencies in the financial
records, that an audit has found dis-
crepencies in use o f funds.
Joe Gonzales, director o f man
power for the City, said the reorgani-
(Please turn to Page 4 Column 3)
PORTLAND OBSERVER
Volume 9 No. 8
Thursday. March 1,1979W
McNamara says Coalition seeking retribution
D
acnnn/ji n n t to <
*• K ex ■* n a» e F
v t/ tha
Responding
charges
by
the
Community Coalition for School In
tegration that the School Board’ s re
sponse to Coalition recommenda
tions were inadequate, Board Chair
man Frank McNamara accused the
Coalition of seeking “ retribution.”
“ I have cosistently felt that it is
helpful and there is some element o f
energizing that comes from the con
sistent prodding o f the C oalition
and. I have to say, the consistent cri
ticism o f most o f what the Board is
doing. . .
“ It troubles me that there is such a
negative sense o f the actual programs
and activities o f the District.
“ It troubles me that the Coalition
finds it most useful to present its
challenges in the context o f calling
what the Board has done segrega
tionist policies.”
McNamara explained his rejection
o f the Coalition’s recommendation
that desegregation be achieved
through school pairing. He accepts
the Superintendent’s assessment that
pairing is impossible because it
would require that one Black school
be matched with two or three white
schools, would require movement o f
too many students, and would leave
one-third o f the Black students out
o f their community for the full eight
years.
Jamas H. Williams has baan named parsonnel representative for
United Airlines in its Seattle regional office. Williams was a personnel
supervisor fo r the C row n Zellerbach C orporation in Camas,
Washington, for the past nine years. In his new position, he will handle
United employee relations services in Seattle. Portland. Salem. Eugene
and Pendleton. Williams is a graduate of Alcorn A 9 M University end
received a masters degree in education from Lewis end Clerk College In
Portland. He was a defensive halfback with the Cincinnati Bengals pro
fessional football club during the season of 1S
County gives ratios
The M ultnom ah County Com
Women make up 47 per cent o f the
mission held its informal seesion at
County employees, but are concen
the King Neighborhood Facility this
trated in professionals, protective
week and one o f the topics o f
services and office/clerical.
discussion was affirmative action.
The
classification
of
o f
Robert Hilsman, county personnel
ficials/m anagers has only one
officer, reported that a high turnover
minority and eleven women, out o f a
rate is a problem and that women are
total o f 93.
still underemployed in non-clerical
Protective Services is also under
positions.
represented among Asians, Indians
Hilsmann reported that county
and women.
employment o f minorities is at 8.5
O f the 455 employees hired in
per cent, comfortably over the 4.7
1978, 55 or 12 per cent were
percent o f minorities in the labor
minorities. None o f these were em
market. He did admit that the per
ployed as official/managers and six
centage o f minorities living in M ult
were professionals.
nomah C ounty w ould bea con
Turn over is a serious problem,
siderably higher than in the labor
with a high percentage o f women and
w m arket (S M A ) which includes
minorities leaving the County. Last
Washington and Clackamas Coun
year the County hired 55 minorities
ties.
but lost 49. Last year 254 women
Blacks make up 3.2 per cent of
were hired, but 208 left. The percen
county employees, or 128 out o f
tage o f minorities and women ter
2,433. There is only one Black o f
minating is much higher than that o f
ficial/manager, 31 professionals, 6
white males. Hilsmann does not
technicians, 22 in protective services,
know why minorities and women are
20 para professionals, 21 o f
leaving in such great numbers, but a
fice/ clerical, no skilled craftsmen, 27
study is being done. He estimated
In service maintenance.
that this turn over costs the County
Blacks are under represented in of-
$300,000 a year in recruiting, hiring
ficers/managers and skilled crafts,
and training new employees.
and over represented in service and
Hilsmann said minority recruiting
maintenance.
is successful, with about 10 per cent
The County employs 24 Hispanics.
o f the applicants being minorities.
Spanish Speaking people are under
The County is considering a program
represented in officials/managers,
that would attempt to direct ap
professionals, office /cle rica l, and
plicants who are not hired to other
service/maintenance. There are no positions for which they might be
Hispanic officials/managers.
eligible. Approximately 11,500 ap
The County employs 13 Indians.
plicants are not hired.
There are no Indians employed as o f
Chairman Don Clark said he is not
ficials/managers.
satisfied, especially with the em
Forty-one Asians are employed.
ployment ratio o f Hispanics, Indians
They are concentrated in profession
and women, but that he is proud that
als and para-professionals. There are
the C ounty
exceeds federal
no Asian officials/managers.
requirements in most categoreis.
.
The Coalition recommendations
also call fo r establishing middle
schools in Albina and McNamara
does not think it wold be justifiable
to change schools that have recently
been renovated for early childhood
education centers.
“ I have been impressed that the
way your statements have been made
seem to me to be focused on a man
datory cross-busing plan. They seem
to have a rigid requirement for white
students to be bused as a primary
goal.”
Stating that he sees the Coalition’s
primary goal to be cross-busing, he
said, that rather than discrimina
tion/integration as primary and the
end goal, it appears that the
Coalition wants “ compulsive busing
almost as re trib u tio n .” ‘ ‘ This
troubles me and had some influence
on my view and recommendation on
student transfer.”
In clarifying his statement, Mc
Namara said that to the Coalition,
“ equity appeals to be equal numbers
bused or do unto others what you do
unto Blacks.”
The Coalition report was in re
sponse to proposals adopted by the
School Board on January 15th and
22nd. The School Board had address
ed some o f the findings and recom
mendations o f the Coalition.
.
.
In referring to its own report, the
Coalition spokesman, Ms. Mary Ed
wards told the Board “ that the in
equity o f the School District’ s poli
cies and programs have caused the
follow ing: scattering, inefficient
adm inistration, inequitable disci
pline, denial of equal choice, indif
ferent handling o f minority cultures
in the curriculum, ineffective train
ing and preparation o f teachers, and
d iscrim inatory
placement
of
minority teachers . . .
“ The Board has not acknowledged
the underlying inequity in its educa
tional philosophy, that the white
community shall not be required to
carry its share o f the burden for de
segregation.” The Board’ s responses
were vague, unspecific, and, “ In
most cases, the Board has not even
stated its resolution in words which
indicate willingness to assume the
leadership required.” (For specifics
see the Observer, 2/18/79.)
The response o f the Coalition to
the School Board’ s January 22nd
resolution on student transfer was
that “ these resolutions are vague and
ambiguous, perhaps purposely so.
Further, they give no hint at time
frames fo r even these band-aid
measures, they are but talking about
the Board’ s intent not to see sub
stantive re lie f on the present
inequity.
“ In its recommendation on
Student Transfer, the C o a litio n
established the need for a program
that involves an equitable two-way
transfer program that keeps neigh
borhood classmates together: The
Board and Administration have cho
sen to plan only some reduction in
the scattering and isolation o f Black
students.
" I f you are going to use the school
bus as a to o l f o r achieving in
tegration,
it must be used
equitably."
Board member W ally Priestley
said he was sadly disappointed by the
Board’ s reaction to the Coalition
report. He said the minimum the
Board should have done was to have
the Superintendent draw up a set o f
proposals to implement the Coali
tio n ’ s recommendations so the
Board could proceed w ith the
debate. Instead, the Board failed to
deal w ith the recommendations.
Priestley asked i f the Board could
reconsider.
Board member Jonathan Newman
replied that the decisions had been
made and the Board’ s resolutions
w ill be implemented. “ Priestley
doesn’t agree. The Coalition doesn’t
agree. But these are the ground
(Please turn to page 2 col. 1)
Vern Chatman: Seeking opportunity
by Michael Grice
In this modern society there arc
many jobs that need doing. One o f
the more important jobs is keeping
our youth interested in their own
development. Not only does this job
need doing, it must be done with sin
cerity, knowledge, and the kind o f
commitment that today’s young peo
ple will respond to. Vern Chatman
has been quietly and successfully
doing this for the past ten years.
Chatman is the D irector o f
Education for the Urban League o f
P ortland and th orough ly under
stands the schooling process as well
as the ins and outs o f Portland and
surrounding school districts. The
primary objective, says Chatman,
“ is to encourage and provide oppor
tunities and information for students
to achieve their goals.” He begins
making his rounds early in the Fall;
visiting grade schools and high
schools in the Portland area and ad
vising students o f the services and re
sources available through the Urban
League. “ We can’t make students*
choices for them, but we want to en
courage them very early that sound
choices w ill have to be made and
there are resources available to help
them,’ says Chatman. The response
has been gratifying over the years.
Vern Chatman intimates to stu
dents that as they get older the
choices they make become more cri
tical and thus they need fo llo w
through. By way o f follow through,
he also has a base o f operation on the
campus o f University o f Portland.
Thus, Vern Chatman serves as an ad
junct to the counseling facilities in
elementary, secondary and higher
education. “ Probably the most
serious problem fo r m in o rity
children in education today,” offers
Chatman, “ is the lack o f adequate
counseling. The need for direction
and sound decisions among m inority
students is at the critical level.”
Thus, he emphasizes having the
proper inform ation before making
choices in school. The range o f ser
vices that he alone provides goes
from personal counseling to career
counseling even to the precision re
quired for filling out college finan
cial aid forms. And probably, the
key to his success and the element
that Vern Chatman supplies is re
laxed atmosphere in which minority
children feel enough at home to ask
the necessary questions that w ill ad-
(Please turn to Page 6 Column 3)
VERNON CHATMAN
Race not the issue
School Board politics: Time to grow up
by Herb Cawthorne
I t ’ s about time the Black com
munity o f Portland grew up, espe
cially when it comes to local politics.
For a long time now this community
has been the patsy o f politicians
looking to further their own aims
while ignoring the legitimate goals
and dreams o f Black people. I t ’ s
about time we put an end to it. It’s
time to grow up.
The struggle with the desegrega
tion issue provides a case in point.
For eighteen months members o f the
Black community studied. We co
operated with well-meaning white ci
tizens, trying hard to hammer out a
meaningful solution to the desegre
gation problems. When we presented
our report to the Board o f Educa
tion, they virtually ignored the basic
inequities identified. They gave us a
shallow response; they said our solu
tion would not work; but they offer
none to take its place.
A ll this time, what did the Black
member o f the Board o f Education
do and say? The answer in a nut
shell, "N othing.” Evie Crowell did
not stand up for the issues raised in
the Coalition's report. In fact, she
hindered our progress because she
did not challenge the basic assump
tions o f the Board of Education, and
she presented no idea, asked no
pertinent questions, offered no
significant resolutions, and was w ill
ing to stand by while the Board o f
Education made mockery o f an ex
cellent community-oriented process.
Analysis
For this reason, 1 w ill support
Steve Buel, who is running against
Ms. Crowell for the School Board.
Although many have not said it pub
lica lly, a large number o f Black
people are also going to vote for Mr.
Buel. It is not a question o f race. It is
a question o f who will best stand up
for the cause o f improving the edu
cation o f Black children in this city.
Mr. Buel has spoken clearly. He is
the only candidate who came before
the Board to speak boldly on the
C o a litio n ’ s reports. He has come
forward in favor o f an equitable so
lution to the problems o f integration.
One thing seems sure: If he w ill come
forward now and commit himself to
the aims o f the Coalition, knowing it
may cost him needed votes in what
may be a tight election, then he will
stand firm ly for our cause once elect
ed.
The logic for supporting him is
very strong. It is clear that Ms.
Crowell w ill not represent those o f us
who feel desegregation should not be
carried out in a manner that tramples
the dignity o f Black people. It is clear
that most white politicians w ill not
help us — there is no political ad
vantage in doing so. Therefore, when
a politician, whether white or Black,
comes forward to help our cause, we
should respond with aid and assis
tance.
I f we do not organize to help can
didates willing to help us, then we
have no right to complain when the
Board refuses to hear our concerns.
I f we are too complacent to work for
individuals, there is no way to make
Black politicians accountable. We
w ill be ignored. “ There is a
p o litically impotent com m unity,”
they w ill say.
Why should a politician risk his
fortune on us? Nine chances out of
ten, we w ill vote for the Black indi
vidual — even if they have hurt our
cause. The chances are good, if past
history here in Portland is an indi
cation, that we w ill not mobilize our
community so that our votes are
placed squarely behind the causes we
hold dear.
I f politicia n s, Black or w hite,
knew that we would come together as
one mind and support those who
support us, then we would get better
results on the matters o f concern to
our children and their future.
Race is not an issue. The record is
the issue, along with a deep concern
that this Portland community seize
the opportunity to solve the desegre
gation problems out o f court To
reach an equitable, fair, and educa
tionally sound solution to the well-
documented problems in the present
system, we need people who w ill ac
knowledge the aspiratiom o f the
(Please turn to Page 3 Column I)
I