Letters to the Editor
To the Editor,
I'm writing to you, at Senator
George McGovern's suggestion,
to bring you some encouraging
news about events of the past
few months -- and to ask you to
join us in a challenging effort to
guarantee, at last, quality
education for Southern blacks.
Many have felt that President
Nixon's federal court
appointments have signified a
reversal in the progress of the
Civil Rights Movement.
But both Senator McGovern
and I have seen hope for the
affirmation of human rights in
some recent lawsuits won by our
attorneys at the Southern
Poverty Law Center.
A U.S. Supreme Court ruling
won not long ago states that a
poor person cannot be
imprisoned just because he is
unable to pay a small fine.
Other federal court orders
won this year by our lawyers
give Southern blacks equal job
opportunity (notably with the
Alabama State Troopers), equal
repres . entation in local
government, and equal rights to
municipal services like street
paving and emergency medical
care.
This August we won a
landmark decree opening the
way to significant improvement
in the quality of public schools
all over the South.
Representing Macon County
Sheriff Lucius Amerson (see the
enclosed snapshot), the South's
first black elected Sheriff, we
sued the privately run Jones Law
School in Montgomery. We
charged that the school's refusal
to admit Sheriff Amerson solely
because of his race was illegal
under federal law -- that federal
equal-right-to-contract statutes
do apply to private transactions.
And we won. It was the first
time a federal judge ever ruled
that a private school cannot
legally discriminate against
qualified blacks by denying
them admissions.
Poverty Law Center
As a result, "white flight"
schools (segregated private
schools that exist throughout
the South only to provide an
all-white haven for the daughters
and sons of racists) are now
vulnerable to integration suits
under federal law.
Because the sons and
daughters of white public school
board members and other
prominent citizens attend these
private schools, most Southern
towns and cities have been
unwilling to vote funds needed
to improve woefully inferior
public schools. They have spent
their money, instead, on
improving the quality of the
private schools.
In some areas, property taxes
have actually decreased as public
school rooms have filled to
overflowing with the children of
blacks and poor whites.
But if the segregated private
schools are integrated, the
reason for their existence will
have been taken away from
them. They'll go out of business,
and Southern school boards will
find themselves with a strong
motivation to improve the
quality of public education.
The importance of the
Amerson decision cannot be
over-emphasized. This one ruling
is the key to the final failure of
separate school systems (quality
private schools, inferior public
schools) in the South.
Our lawyers at the Center are
anxious to move quickly into
the area of "white flight"
schools to implement the effects
of our victory. When all young
Americans white and black,
poor and wealthy -- have access
to equal education, we'll have
gone a long way to eliminate the
poor trap which has kept so
many blacks from escaping
poverty through education and
professional training.
We plan to bring as many
lawsuits as we can afford, against
segregated private schools
Southwise this year. Only the
THE CAPITO LIST
generosity of your support of
the Southern Poverty Law
Center will determine how
quickly we move.
The Center accepts no fees
from clients; every case is
handled free. We can only
finance our efforts by asking
you to join us in the struggle.
If you participated in the
Civil Rights Movement before,
you can take pride in what was
accomplished. But unless new
support enables us to carry on
the fight in the arena of human
rights, much of what was
achieved may be lost.
As President of the Southern
Poverty Law Center I feel that
I'm participating in one of the
most significant advances in
American life ever made. Not as
a founder of S.N.C.C. more than
ten years ago, nor as a member
of the Georgia legislature
representing poor black
constituents, have I felt so much
encouragement in the potential
of a project as in our present
effort to win equal education for
blacks Southwide.
For that reason, I'll
personally appreciate your
generosity now. And in return
for your (tax deductible)
contribution I'll see that you
receive regular reports on cases
in progress. (Perhaps you can
pass on news of our
achievemer.ts to help someone in
your area.)
If you can send twenty
dollars or more, I urge you to do
so; every dollar you can spare
will benefit thousands of
children who may never escape
poverty without a decent
education.
Can I count on you?
Most sincerely,
Student Co
Capitol's Student Court on
December 6, 1972 handled a
traffic appeal submitted by
Joseph Potena of Meade Heights.
As explained in the following
official decision of the Court,
Potena received tickets for
failing to have a parking sticker
on his vehicle.
According to Justice Sam
Randazzo, Potena realized he
had received the first ticket in
October and decided to pay the
fine at the conclusion of the fall
term. Potena then was issued
several more tickets, and
disputing the reasoning of
several tickets for the same
offense, he took his case to the
Court.
However, the Court saw the
summonses as separate offenses
and ordered to pay for four
tickets.
Following is the official
Court decision:
Upon presentation and
careful scrutiny of the facts
surrounding the appeal of
Joseph Potena, the Student
Court has made the
following decision:
Joseph Potena will pay
all recorded tickets bearing
Officially Promoted
Two key personnel changes in
the staff of the counseling center
at Capitol Campus of The
Pennsylvania State University
have been announced by the
provost, Dr. Robert E.
McDermott.
Marian E. Krieger, former
counselor at the center, has been
named psychologist and center
director and Edward S. Beck has
been appointed to serve as
counselor. Ms. Krieger replaces
Dr. David M. Lefkowitz who
resigned.
In her position, Ms. Krieger
will be responsible for in-service
training of the center staff,
individual and group counseling,
coordination of campus testing
programs as well as serving as a
consultant to the campus
faculty, staff and student
organization.
Prior to joining the Capitol
Campus staff in 1970, she served
as counselor and head resident at
the University of Redlands,
Redlands, California. She holds
bachelor of arts and master of
education degrees from the
University of Pittsburgh and has
completed the course
requirements for a doctorate in
counselor education at that
instutution.
Beck will be involved in
teaching, research and working
with faculty and student groups
in addition to his counseling
responsibilities. He comes to
Capitol Campus after serving
two years as co-director of
student activities at the New
York City Community College.
He was granted a bachelor of
science and master of arts degree
from New York University
where he received the Arch
Award Certificate of Merit and
the Educational Alumni
Association Dean Withers
Award. He is the member of
numerous professional personnel
and guidance associations and
has conducted reserach on the
speciality-oriented student.
Julian Bond
urt Decision
his name and dated up to
and including November 16,
1972. The recorded tickets
are seen by the Court as the
proof of the Business Office
that they were sent to
Joseph Potena as notices
alerting him that he
received the tickets.
Mr. Potena claims that
he received no tickets for a
second, third and fourth
violation or did not receive
any letters acknowledging
those violations. Since the
Business Office did have
letters for the second and
third tickets but not for the
fourth ticket, Joseph
Potena is to pay only the
second and third tickets.
Since Mr. Potena
acknowledged the first
ticket and was only
appealing the second, third
and fourth (10/30/72,
1 1 / 6 /72, 1 1 / 1 6/72) tickets,
the first ticket (10/27/72)
was not seen as part of his
appeal.
Potena reportedly paid the
fine, which totaled nine dollars,
prior to the conclusion of the
term.
January 11, 1973
7e4t Dated
70 Resit efft get
GRADUATE RECORD
EXAMINATIONS (GRE's):
Aptitude (Verbal & Quantitative
Only) Test Date: February 24,
1973 Last Day for: Registration
without $3.50 late fee: January
30, 1973.
February 6, 1973 ($3.50 late
fee).
LAW SCHOOL
ADMISSIONS TESTS (LSAT's)
Test Date: February 10, 1973
Registration Deadline: January
19, 1973.
NATIONAL TEACHER
EXAMINATIONS (NTE). Test
Date: January 27, 1973. Regular
Registration Closes: January 4,
1973. Late Registration Closes:
January 11, 1973.
ADMISSIONS TEST FOR
GRADUATE STUDY IN
BUSINESS (ATGSB) Test Date:
February 3, 1973 Registration
Deadline: January 12, 1973.
DENTAL ADMISSIONS
TESTING PROGRAM Test
Date: April 27-28, 1973.
Registration and Application
Deadline: April 2, 1973.
MILLER ANALOGY TESTS
(MAT's) are administered, by
appointment, in the Counseling
Center, Wll7.
Information and study guides
for these and other professional
and graduate school entrance
examinations are available from
the Counseling Center, Wll7. A
complete library of graduate
school catalogues and programs,
as well as program cross
references are also available on a
loan basis.
Many graduate schools
require one, none or any
combination of the above tests
for admissions. It is always a
good idea to consult with the
particular graduate programs of
your choice to find out exactly
what is or may not be required.
The counselors will be happy to
assist you in this selection
process.
These tests are administered
on certain dates throughout the
year. Should you wish to find
out more about these tests and
to consider graduate school, stop
into the Counseling Center.
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