Motion to Quash Subpoenae or in the Alternative for a Protective Order
Public Court Documents
December 17, 1981
Cite this item
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Brief Collection, LDF Court Filings. Head v. Blakeney Appendix Vol. I, 1970. e4835ae1-b79a-ee11-be36-6045bdeb8873. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/6f477e0c-a0eb-486d-a6b6-09ee9f2f973f/head-v-blakeney-appendix-vol-i. Accessed August 19, 2025.
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I n t h e
Itufrft Btutm dmirt of Appeals
F oe the F ifth Circuit
No. 30560
R osa A. H ead and Clara B elle McCrary, Individually and
on behalf of all others similarly situated,
Plaintiffs-Appellants,
■— versus— ..
R. D . B l a k e n e y , Individually and as Superintendent of
Schools of the Gainesville, Georgia, City School Dis
trict, et al.,
Defendants-Appellees.
a ppe a l fro m t h e u n it e d states d ist r ic t court fo r t h e
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA.
A P P E N D I X
(Volum e I— Pages 1A to 3 32A)
J ack Greenberg
J ames M. Nabrit, I I I
Conrad K . H arper
N orman J . Chachkin
10 Columbus Circle
New York, N.Y. 10019
H oward Moore, Jr.
P eter E. R indskopf
Citizens Trust Company
Bank Building
75 Piedmont Avenue, N.E.
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
Attorneys for Plaintiffs-
Appellants
I N D E X
P A G E
Copy of Docket Entries .................. .......................... 1A
Complaint ........... ................................... —..... -.......... 4A
Summons ....................................-.............. —.............. 12A
Returns on Service of Writs ........ -........................ 13A-16A
Disqualification of Judge Sidney 0. Smith, Jr. and
Designation of Judge Albert J. Henderson, J r 17A
Order to Show Cause ............. ........................ -.......... 19A
Transcript of Proceedings of June 11, 1969 ...........20A-74A
Order Dismissing Georgia State Board of Educa
tion and Jack P. Nix as Party Defendants, Dated
June 20, 1969 ....................... ............ -.............. -..... 75A
Motion to Dismiss Georgia State Board of Educa
tion and Nix as Party Defendants .................. ....... 78A
Memorandum Brief ....... ......................-..................... 80A
Plaintiffs’ Memorandum in Opposition to Motion to
Dismiss ................. .................-...................-............ 82A
Memorandum of Law in Support of Motion to
Dismiss ....................................-........... -................... 89A
Plaintiffs’ Motion to Alter or Amend an Order ..... . 83A
Memorandum in Support of Motion to Alter or
Amend an Order ........ ................ -..........-..........— 98A
1 1
P A G E
Plaintiffs’ List of Witnesses ...........—...................... 106A
Answer of Defendants Blakeney and Gainesville
City Board of Education.......... ..........-.................. 107A
Vols. 1 & 11 of Transcript of Proceedings of June 23
and June 24, 1969 ..............................................109A-658A
Order Setting Hearing on Plaintiffs’ Motion to Alter
or Amend Order ................................... -.........-...... 6o9A
Written Argument on Behalf of the Defendants
Blakeney and Gainesville City Board of Education 661A
Brief for Plaintiffs After Hearing in Support of
Their Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions
of Law —-......................—-........ - -.....—.......- 671A
Plaintiffs’ Response to Defendants Findings of Fact
and Conclusions of Law .......................... -..........— 691A
Memorandum Submitted to Trial Judge on Behalf
of the Defendants Blakeney & Gainesville City
Board of Education ......... -............... - ................... 695A
Order That Plaintiffs’ Counsel Respond by Brief
Within 15 Days ............—......-.............. -..........-..... 704A
Order—Ruling Delayed Pending the Fifth Circuit’s
Decision in Harkless ............ ...... -........................... 705A
Findings of Fact, Conclusion of Law ..............-...... 706A
Judgment .................... ............... -................................ 718A
Bill of Costs ................................................... -.......... 719A
Ill
P A G E
Deposition Costs Incurred in Preparation for Trial 720A
Plaintiffs’ Notice of Appeal ..................................... 721A
Cost Bond on Appeal ............................................... . 722A
Clerk’s Certificate ................. ...................... ............. 724A
O V ^ // * is />■
CIVIL DOCKET
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
.« •
D. C. F o rm No. 106A R er.
1 A
Jury demand date: 5^
i? O ; y
TITLE OF CASE
ROSA A. HEAD’and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly
situated, -
Plaintiffs
v
i ft
■V
R. D. BLANKENEY, Individually ''
and as Superintendent of Schools
of the' Gainesvi 1 le, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION: JACK P. NIX,.
Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
Defendants
Rights sought to be protected
& Fourteenth Amendments,
by 42 U.S.C., Sec. 1981,
and 45 C.F.R., Sec.
A T T O R N E Y S
For plaintiff:
Howard Moore, Jr,
Peter E. Rindskopf
859^ Hunter St., N. W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314
Jack Greenberg
Conrad K. Harper
Norman J. Chackin
lo Columbus Circle
New York, New York 10019
For defendant:
W i l l i a m ' G u n t e r
Kenyon, Gunter, Hulsey & Sims
P. O. Box IplS
Gainesville,. Ga. 30501
by Thirteenth
U.S. Constitution
1983, 200d et seq.
80.4 'and l8l et seq.
STA TISTICA L, R E C O R D COSTS D A TE NAM E O R
R E C E IP T NO. R EC . D ISB .
J.S. 5 mailed 6 - 2 - 6 9
J.S. 6 mailed
Basis of A ction:
Action arose at:
Clerk
Marshal
Docket fee
Witness fees
Depositions
■ 15 bo
24 24
uC ̂
1969
6-2
6 - 5
8-27
NOT I
8-31
00
Howard
Moore, JrJ 15|l0
Teeas. /10l 1 5.
George L.
Howell 5|)0
CE OF APPEAL
Treas. Dept
#19 5bo
69-
2
ne 2
e 1+
ne i|
: 9
11
e 13
e 13
e 18
e 20
s 23
iS 2i|
PR O C E E D IN G S
| D a te O rd e r o r
| J u d g m e n t N o ted
Complaint filed, being a petition for ism preliminary and permanent
i n June t i on. Summons—-Lasmed— and— m-a4-T-ad— t-o—th; S't~~-Mar-5iva-l Judge
Disqualification of Judge Sidney 0. Smith and designititaion of
Judge Albert J, Henderson, Jr. to preside in said case, filed.
(Per phone call from J hnny Pressley in Atlanta) Hearing to be
June 23, 1969 at, 1-0: OCPA.M. in Atlanta. Summons delivered to U
Marshal
Smi tih
held
S.
took to
At I ant a
by Johnny Pressley.
Copy of ORDER by Judge Edenfield - respondents ordered to show cause
before this court at‘Atlanta^ gj. Show' dause^ks t os
Mr^SJames S^Peters, Chairman - by telephone
Mr. Jack Nix personally on June 5, 1969
Mr. R. D. Blankeney - on June 5> 1969
Mr. Otis Eiienbur, Jr. on June $ , 1969.
Notice to Johnny Pressley (See memo in file)
PRE-TRIAL Conference held in Atlanta. With
case set for final trial on Monday, June 23
Summons on June 6, 1969 - Copy mailed.
.e 23
;e 23
.e 23
,3 23
,e 23
is 23
ie 23
ae 2lj-
e 1 y 2
My 2
,iy 214
iy 30
ly 31
consent of Judge Hender
1969 at 10:00 A, M.
'lie be mai led
in
to
on
Gainesville, Ga. Request by John Woodyard that
Atlanta. This request received on June 13* 1969.
File mailed to Atlanta per request of John Woodyard.
Reporter's steno notes of June 11, 1969 filed. (Pre-Trial in^Atlantq}
Transcript of proceedings of June 11, 1969 at Atlanta, Ga. filed
ORDER dismissing the Georgia State Board of Education and Jack P, Nix
as party defendants filed. Copies furnished- to counsel by Johnny Pressley,
Cause came on'for hearing before the Court on Plaintiff’s Petition ibr
Injunctive relief. He-aring continued until June 21]., 1969.
Cause proceeded upon hearing before the Court as continued
June 23, 1969 on Plaintiff's Petition for Injunctive relief. The court
directed counsel for the parties to file written arguments and proper
Findings of Fact and Conclusion of Law within 10 days after receiving
a transcript of record. The Court further directed that counsel foil
the opposing parties to file response
original briefs and arguments.
Plaintiffs Motion to Alter or Amend
support of Motion to Alter or Amend
service, filed.in Open Court.
Plaintiffs' List of Witnesses
briefs within 5 days after the
an Order,
an Order,
with
with
memorandum in ■
cert if i cat e of
Depos i t i on
Depos it i on
Depos i t i on
Depos i t i on
Deposi t ion
in Open Court
filed.
GAINESVILLE CITY BOARD OF
original - Howard
COURT.
Moore
f i led
of Otis M. Ellenburg, Jr.,
of Rosa A. Head, filed,
of R. D. Blakeney, filed,
of Clara Belle McCrary, tiled,
of T. Martin Ellard, filed.
Copy of ANSWER OF DEFENDANTS BLAKENEY AND
EDUCATION filed. JUDGE Henderson has. the
acknowledged service. This filed in OPEN
Deposition of L, C. Baylor, filed.
Deposition of Mrs. Frances Miller, filed.
From Atlanta - request to make docket entry as follows:
Vo Is. 1 & 11 of Transcript of Proceedings of June 23 & June 2k, 19c
filed. Copy mailed to Johnny Pressley, Court Deputy.
File mailed to Atlanta, Clerk’s Office per instructions by phone by
Johnny Pressley.
By Johnny Pressley: Order setting hearing on Pltf's Motion to Alte
of amend Order of this court - Set for.Sppt. 2,1969 at 9:30 A.M. at
rL/ •’C-v.-,' y . A , - ̂̂ \ ̂• ■■ ̂ _______ _________ _— ......— .
» C . l i O A © o i (7)^ - . «3A * CfflL ACTIUIX NO. 1277 PAG~
1
< ■
D ATE F IL IN G S —PR O C E E D IN G S
C L E R K 'S FE E S A MOL
R EPO R T
I N T
ED IN
vl EN T
RNSPLAINTIFF DEFENDANT
EM O LU I
RETUJ
-1969- rAug . h Written Argument on 3ehalf of the Defendants B1 aken |y and Gcane svi 1 i 5
City Board of Education Pursuant to Trial of th e Ca(e Eef ore the Cou r t
'Without a Jury on June 23rd and 2!+th, 1969, wit h ceijtif i cat e of serv .ce
filed. Original mailed to Judge Henderson.'
Aug . 13 Brief for Plaintiffs after.hearing in support of. the i r proo )serfindings of fact and conclusions of law, with cert if ic it e o f sirvicc ,filed. Original mailed to Judge Henderson.
Aug. 15 Plaintiffs Response to Defendants Findings of Fact anc Cone lus I ons
of Law, with certificate of service, filed. Cr i g 11dal mai 1 ed to
Judge Henderson.
Sept . 5 Memorandum submitted to the Trial Judge on Bel lalf Of .he F i f eitdants
Blakeney and The Gainesville City Board of Ediicat ion, wi th cei‘t if i cate
of service, f i l e O r i g i n a l mailed to Judge 1lend e r soiU
Sept . 19 ORDER - Pltf's counsel ordered to respond by bi1 i ef vi th In f f t cen ( 15)days, filed. Certified copies to counsel of r<:cord . C>r i g i rial mai I ed
back to Judge Henderson.
Dec 29 ORDER. - Ruling delayed pending the Fifth Circu it's dec i s i on in Hark. ess{Case has been appealed to the Fifth Circuit aid i s scbedu 1sd to. be hearin a matter of days) filed. Certified copies to counsel of rscord,-1970-
June 12 File mailed to Judge Henderson per phone call 1rom flr. Willi am Gaf fney.Law Clerk. Via registered mail - receipt no. h352.
June 17 Acknowledgment by Judge Henderson of receipt of fii e - see pos tal
receipt number 1+352, filed.
July 31 ORDER - FINDINGS OF FACT, ConCLUSIONS OF LAW - Plai nt if f s recu est f<orinjunctive relief denied. Plaintiffs motion to alt er or amend theJune 20, 1969 denied. ' Counsel for defendants is di rec ted t0 prepana judgment in accordance with this order, file d . Cer ti f i ed C O pies iocounsel of record.
Aug. 6 JUDGMENT - Pltf's request for injunctive relie f den i ed act I on be
dismissed on the merits, and that the Defts re cover of the D11:Is .
their costs of action, filed. Certified copie s to cou ise 1 of "ecorc •
Aug , 6 Bill of Costs mailed to Kenyon, Gunter, Hulsey & Sims .
Aug 11 Bill of Costs in the amount of $857.50 filed. Tot e taxed Aug . 17, 1970Aug 11 Deposition costs incurred in preparation for trial, f ik d. Mr Sami ek L
Oliver stated that he would mail copy to Mr. Haward M o o r e , Jr.
Aug 11 Portion of file received from Atlanta Office.
Aug. 17 Cost taxed in the amount of 857.50. (SDM)
Aug . 21 Plaintiff's NOTICE OF APPEAL, filed. Cert ifie i cop i es to c )un e 1 oi
record Hkvik1; Vk^xU and
to U;S.C.,A., New Orleans. .
Aug. 28 COST BOND ON APPEAL, in the amount of $250.00 .'lied •
AND A true*'copy ’
Claudo L. Clerk S£p 4
nr, 4 ^ mBy? J m Ik^ t c T̂
Deputy Clerk
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION________
D-%.
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly
situated,
Plaintiffs,
-vs-
R.' D. BLANKENEY, Individually
and as Superintendent of Schools
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX,
Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
Defendants.
C O M P L A I N T
1. Jurisdiction is invoked pursuant to 28 U, S. C.,
S1343 (3) , this being a suit in equity authorized by law under
42 U. S. C., §1983, to redress the deprivation under state
statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage of rights,
privileges, and immunities secured by the Constitution and laws
of the United States, or by any acts of Congress providing for
the equal rights of all citizens. Rights sought to be pro
tected here are secured by the Thirteenth and Fourteenth
Amendments, United States Constitution; by 42 U. S. C., §§1981,
1983, 2000d et seq., and 45 C.F.R., §§80.4 and 181 et seq.
2. This is a proceeding for preliminary and permanent
injunction enjoining the defendants, and each of them, from
participating in the refusal to rehire plaintiffs and members of
their class as public school teachers because of their race or
color.
5A
3. Plaintiffs, ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE McCRARY, are
adult Negro citizens of the United States, and of the State of
Georgia, presently residing in Gainesville, Hall County, Geor
gia, within the jurisdiction of this Court. They sue on behalf
of themselves and all other Negro teachers in the State of
Georgia similarly situated, pursuant to Rule 23(a), (b)(2), and
(c)(4), F. R. C. P ., there being common questions of law and
fact between them and the various defendants shared by other
members of the class. The group of teachers is too large to be
brought oefore this Court, but a common relief is sought.
Adjudication of the claims of the named plaintiffs will affect
the claims of other members of the class. The named plaintiffs
adequately represent the other members of the class. All
members of the class teaching in the Gainesville City Schools
are equally affected by the action or inaction of defendants
Blakeney and the Gainesville City Board of Education, All
members of the class teaching in the State of Georgia are
equally affected by the action or inaction of defendants Nix and
Georgia State Board of Education. The questions of law and
fact common to the members of the class predominate over any
questions affecting only individual members, and the class
action is superior to other available methods for the fair and
efficient adjudication of this controversy.
4. Defendant, R. D. BLAKENEY is a white citizen of the
Unitea States and of the State of Georgia, residing in Gaines
ville, Georgia, within the jurisdiction of this Court. He is
the cnief administrative officer of the Gainesville City Schools
and Superintendent of Schools thereof. He holds office pursuant,
to the laws of the State of Georgia, subject to the authority
and control of defendant GAINESVILLE CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION,
a majority of whom, on information and belief, are white.
- 2 -
Defendant BLAKENEY is sued individually and in his official
capacity. Defendant GAINESVILLE CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION is a
governmental agency of the State of Georgia, charged with the
supervision and control of the schools of the City of Gaines -
ville, Georgia.
5. Defendant JACK P. NIX is the State Superintendent of
Schools of the State of Georgia. He is a white citizen of the
united States and of the State of Georgia, residing, on informa
tion and belief, in Atlanta, within the Northern District of
Georgia. He does business in Atlanta, Georgia. He is sued
individually and in his official capacity.
6. Defendant GEORGIA BOARD OF EDUCATION is composed of ten
members, one from each of the State's Congressional Districts,
who are appointed by the Governor. Each of the members is and
always has been, a white citizen of the United States and of the
State of Georgia. Said Board nas its headquarters in Atlanta,
Georgia. Said Board is charged with prescribing all rules,
regulations, and policies required by the Minimum Foundation
Program of Education, Georgia School laws, and other laws
necessary to carry out public school education in the State of
Georgia, including standards for the operation of the various
school systems in the State, and for the certification of
teachers. The Gainesville City Schools are among the systems
subject to the rules of the State defendants and receive aid
therefrom.
7. Plaintiffs Head ana McCrary are properly qualified and
certified teachers in the Gainesville City Schools. Each
plaintiff has been notified by defendant Blakeney that she will
not oe given a contract to teach in said schools during the
coming school year. Plaintiff iMcCrary has served in the Gaines
ville City Schools as an elementary school teacher for the past
6 A
nineteen (19) years. She has received a B . A. degree from
Clark College in 1956 and an M. A. degree from Atlanta Univer
sity , Atlanta Georgia, in 1963. She holds a T-5 certificate.
Plaintiff Head has served in the Gainesville City Schools as
a teacher of Business Education for three years. She holds
a B. S. degree from Fort Valley State College and has done 3
hours of graduate work. She holds a T-4 certificate. Neither
teacher has ever been told that her performance is below
standard by any classroom supervisor or evaluator.
8. The alleged reason orally given plaintiffs for refusinc
to rehire them by defendant Blakeney is that the Gainesville
City Schools will be needing fewer teachers in the 1969-70
school year than this year because of the loss of 300 Negro
pupils to Hall County, which surrounds the City of Gainesville.
Under an arrangement now forbidden by the federal Department of
H. E . W ., defendant city schools were teaching the county's
black students. Plaintiffs Head and McCrary both teach at
schools that are presently segregated or all-black.
9. On information and belief, Gainesville City Schools
plan to or have in fact hired some thirty new teachers for
the year 1969-70.
10. The failure to rehire the plaintiffs was solely be
cause of their race or color. Before the determination not
to rehire plaintiffs was made, on information and belief, the
qualifications of each and every member of the faculty of the
Gainesville City Schools were not reviewed, nor were plaintiffs
least qualified in terms of education, experience, certificatior.
and competence.
11. The racial refusal to rehire is illegal and unconstitu
tional under the Constitution and laws of the United States.
7 A
-4-
SA
12. The action of the defendants Blakeney and Gainesville
City Board of Education has been supported and sustained by
the actions of defendants Nix and Stake,J3oard of Education.
Said State defendants have taken no steps to disestablish the
dual school system operative within the State of Georgia prior
to the decision of the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of
Education, 347 U. S. 483 (1954), nor since the decision of the
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in United States v. Jefferson
County Board of Education, 380 F. 2d 385 (5th Cir. 1967) . Said
State defendants continue_to jive financial and technical aid
Jxy_a 1.1 puhl.ie-.AChjQOls in the State of Georgia, despite the
fact that some thirty-seven school districts have been cut off
from receiving federal funds by the United States Department of
Health, Education, and Welfare for their refusal to submit
acceptable plans for the lawful desegregation of their
schools.
13. Said State defendants continue to give financial and
tecnnical aid to defendant Gainesville City Board of Education
for the operation and maintenance of its public schools,
despite the involvement of said City defendants in forbidden
racial discrimination.
14. Such direct state aid to unlawful segregation and
discrimination based on race contravenes the constitutional
and statutory provisions of the United States, enacted in the
Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, United States Constitu
tion , and §§1981, 1983, and 2G00d et seq., 42 U. S. C.
15. The firing or refusal to rehire Negro teachers in the
State of Georgia is not confined to the City of Gainesville,
Georgia. On information and belief, numbers of Negro teachers
and administrators have been treated in a fashion similar with
plaintiffs Head and McCrary, in that, they have not been
rehired for racial reasons, often due to the abandonment of
formerly all-black or Negro schools under pressures from the
federal courts or the United States Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare.
16. Defendants Nix and Georgia State Board of Education
have supplied and continue to supply financial and other types
of aid to school districts throughout the State of Georgia who
refuse to rehire Negro teachers on the ground of their race or
color, or because of the closing of schools formerly attended
by all-black student bodies.
17. Plaintiffs have no other or plain and adequate
remedy at law.
WHEREFORE, plaintiffs pray that:
(a) Process issue upon the defendants;
(b) Upon filing of this case, the Court advance the
case on the docket and order a speedy hearing according to law;
(c) This Court issue a preliminary injunction pending
final disposition of the case enjoining defendants Blakeney and
Gainesville City Board of Education from refusing to rehire
plaintiffs and members of their class because of their race or
color;
(d) This Court enjoin defendants Blakeney and Gaines
ville City Board of Education from making or enforcing contracts
with any other teachers which will have the effect of denying
positions to plaintiffs and members of their class because of
race or color;
(e) This Court order defendants Blakeney and Gaines
ville City Board of Education to pay the plaintiffs any salaries.
9 A
-6-
10Aor future salaries of which they have been deprived by the
defendants' illegal acts;
(f) This Court enjoin defendants Nix and Georgia
State Board oJL.Education from continuing to supply any
financial, technical, or other aid to the Gainesville City
Board of Education or any other board of education in the State
of Georgia unless said defendants shall take appropriate and
necessary steps to ensure that those boards to whom it is
furnishing aid do not participate in the unlawful firing or
failure to rehire Negro teachers on the basis of race or color;
(g) This Court..eaiftin.. defendants Nix and Georgia
State noard of Education from refusing to promulgate and enforce
the following guidelines^to each of the boards whom it aids;
to-wit:
1. Faculty Employment. Race or
color shall not be a factor in the
hiring, assignment, reassignment,
promotion, demotion, or dismissal
of teachers and other professional
staff members, including student
teachers, except that race may be
taken into account for the purpose
of counteracting or correcting the
effect of the segregated assignment
of faculty and staff in the dual
system. Teachers, principles, and
staff members shall be assigned to
schools so that the faculty and staff
is not composed exclusively of members
of one race. Whereever possible, teachers
shall be assigned so that more them one
teacher of the minority race (white or
Negro) shall be on a desegregated faculty. . .
The defendants shall establish as an ob
jective that the pattern of teacher
assignment to any particular school not
be identifiable as tailored for a heavy
concentration of either Negro or white
pupils in the school.
2. Dismissals, Teachers and other pro
fess IonaT~staiTf members may not be
aiscriminatorily assigned, dismissed,
demoted, or passed over for retention,
promotion, or rehiring, on the ground of
race or color. In any instance where
one or more teachers or other professional
-7-
I1A
staff members are to be displaced as
a result of desegregation, no staff
vacancy in the school system shall be
filled through recruitment from out
side the system unless no such displac
ed staff member is qualified to fill the
vacancy. If, as a result of desegregation,
there is to be a reduction in the total
professional staff of the school system,
the qualifications of all staff members
in the system shall be evaluated in selec
ting the staff member to be released
without consideration of race or color.
A report containing any such proposed
dismissals and the reasons therefor, shall
oe filed with defendants Nix and Georgia
State Board of Education, and upon counsel
for plaintiffs, with copies to the Clerk
of the Court, within five (5) days after
such dismissals, refusals to rehire, de
motion, etc., are proposed.
3. Past Assignments. The defendants shall
take steps to assign and reassign teachers
and other professional staff members to
eliminate the effects of the dual school
system.
(h) This Court appoint defendant Nix as receiver for
any school system which refuses to comply with the guidelines
above and continues to attempt to dismiss or refuse to rehire
any faculty members because of their race or color;
(i) Grant plaintiffs such other and further relief
as is meet and proper, including their costs and a reasonable
attorney 1s fee.
/ .. C / / / ' , v ' /a x tJ
HOWARD”'MOORE , JR.
PETER E. RINDSKOPF
859 1/2 Hunter St., N. W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD K. HARPER
NORMAN J. CHACKIW
10 Columbus Circle
New York, New York 10019
ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFS
-8-
S U M M O N S IN A C IV IL A C T IO N A CIV. 1 (2-64)
(Formerly D. C. Form No. 45 Rev. (6*49))
SlmtFit ^ t a t F S ©istrirt C o u r t
FOR THE
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA - GAINESVILLE DIVISION
C i v i l A c t i o n f i l e N o ........1 2 7 7
ROSA A. HEAD a n d CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, I n d i v i d u a l l y an d on
b e h a l f o f a l l o t h e r s s i m i l a r l y
s i t u a t e d
Plaintiff S U M M O N S
v.
R. D. BLANKENEY, I n d i v i d u a l l y an d a s
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s o f t h e G a i n e s v i l l e ,
G e o r g i a , C i t y S c h o o l D i s t r i c t ; GAINESVILLE
CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION: JACK P . NIX ,
I n d i v i d u a l l y and a s G e o r g i a S t a t e
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s ; an d GEORGIA
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
P e t i t i o n f o r p r e l i m i n a r y
an d p e r m a n e n t i n j u n c t i o n
Defendant s
To the above named Defendants :
You are hereby summoned and required to serve upon HOWARD MOORE, J R .
PETER E . RINDSKOPF
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD K. HARPER
NORMAN J . CHACKIN
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD K. HARPER
NORMAN J . CHACKIN
10 C o lu m b u s C i r c l e
New Y o r k , New Y ork 10010
an answer to the complaint which is herewith served upon you, within 2 0 days after service of this
summons upon you, exclusive of the day of service. If you fail to do so, judgement by default will be taken
against you for the relief demanded in the complaint.
plaintiff’s attorney , whose address
HOWARD MOORE, J R .
PETER E . RINDSKOPF
8 5 9 ^ H u n t e r S t . , N. W.
A t l a n t a , G e o r g i a 3 0 3 lij-
CLAUDE L . GOZA
Clerk of Court.
Deputy Clerk.
D a te : J U N E 2 , 1 9 6 9 [Seal of Court]
N ote:— This sum m ons is issued pursuant to Rule 4 of the Federal Rules of Ciyil Procedure.
Form USM-282
(Rev. 6-1-66)
13A
RETURN ON SERVICE OF WRIT
*
!3mteb States! of America
ifertharn D istrict of
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ROSA A« HEAD and CLAR itera/iav Clerk’s No. 1277 G
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vs.
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U.S. Marshal’s No. .... i m ex
SERVICE COMPLETED SlErasnS & Cn m la ln fc &
I hereby certify and return that I served the annexed Reiser to She© Cw w a
(W rit)
on the therein-named_GEORGIA- ST^TE BOARD OF EDIlP-̂ -TXPV________
(N am e of individual, com pany, co rp o ra tio n ,.e tc .)
by handing to and leaving a true and correct copy thereof with _____ ___ __ ____ J__
___________ Ifr?___James__S_._.Pe_ters,_..Cteiririan̂ î after calling him at his office
(N am e of individual or agen t o f com pany, corpo ra tion , e tc .)
in Manchester, Ga, on this 6th» day of June 1969 and he accepted service by
p e r s o n a l l y a t Mi§Pho?16 ^_d a(dvlBed me to mail it to him at Manchester, Ga®
(A ddress— Stree t num ber, ap a r tm e n t num ber, ru ra l route , e tc .)
_______________ G ppy Mailed 6/6/69 »
______ ._. Atlanta______ _
(C ity )
at________ a.m.-p.m., on the
G^orsia
(S tate)
day of
- in the said District
June... __f 1 969..
SERVICE NOT COMPLETED
Date
I hereby certify and return, that on the________ day of ______________ , 19___,
I received the within ------------------------------- -------- and that after
diligent search, I am unable to find the within named ___________________________
-------- 1— 4.;---------- ------„------ -- ----- ----- ---- within said district.
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Marshal’s feeŝ *j?®L
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United States Marshal.
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Mileage .... .00.............. By--
Deputy.
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Form USM-282
(Eev. 6-1-66)
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RETURN ON SERVICE OF WRIT
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I hereby certify and return t h a t ^ ^ i ^ ^ t h ^ annexed
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S m m t m & OeBg32jsis& & ‘-v
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c i8 (W r i t)
on the therein-named JACK P„. i ) IX ,/s ta to S uperin ten d en t o f . Schools o f th e . S ta te
(N am e of individual, com pany, corporation , e tc .)
_______________ .oX..Georgia.____________________________
by handing to and leaving a true and correct copy thereof with Mr. Jack Nix
(N am e of individual o r agen t of com pany, corporation , e tc .)
personally a t ________________ h±s o f f i c e ___ _______ ________________
(A ddress—S tree t num ber, a p a rtm en t num ber, ru ra l route, etc.)
________ ______________ S-tat-ClfXice-illdg-.
Atlanta
(City)
a t _________ a.m.-p.m., on th e _________ J?itu_____ day o f __________ Jure.__ , 19___69
.GftKjgjbi..
(S tate)
in the said District
SERVICE NOT COMPLETED
Date
I hereby certify and return, that on th e _________ day of ...... ................... ..... , 19...... ,
I received the within ____________ ______ ______ ______ ___ _________ and that after-
diligent search, I am unable to find the within named _______ ____ ___________ __________
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ within said district.
6,00
B t / /
tmmm c . kdsjut
Marshal’s fees
Mileage .....
r, ft United States Marshal.
By .....
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VA
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GPO : 1 9 6 6 -0 -2 3 5 -8 5 7
Form USM-282
(Rev. 6-1-66)
15 A
RETURN ON SERVICE OF WRIT
&!nttets S t a t e s of A m erica v ,
N orthern D istrict of
G eorgia Ct
au
ROSAl A. HEAD and CLAR BELLE McCRARY Clerk’s No. .1 2 7 7
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R.__D._ B M I ^ N S Y 5__ETAL_ U.S. Marshal’s No. H ^ 8?
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SERVICE COMPLETED Summons & Com plaint &
T * i , , ,, , T , ,, • , Order to Show CauseI hereby certify and return that I served the annexed________
(W rit)
on the therein-named R* D* BLANKENEY, In d iv id u a lly and as S u p e rin ten d en t o f
{Name of indiv idual, com pany, corporation , e tc .)
Schools o f th e G a in e s v il le , G eorgia, C ity School D i s t r i c t
by handing to and leaving a true and correct copy thereof with __ Mr* -Dtis--Ell©nb§rg-yJr
— Assist—.—Sup-t* -of-Schools----
(N am e of individual o r agrent of com pany, corpo ra tion , e tc .)
personally a t -----h is -o f f ic e -
(A ddress—S tree t num ber, ap a r tm e n t num ber, ru ra l rou te , e tc .)
at
G a in e s v i l le ___________________ G eorgia
(C ity) (S ta te)
___a.m.-p.m., on th e _____ _______________ day of
__ .... in the said District
June 69
SERVICE NOT COMPLETED
D ate_____________________
I hereby certify and return, that on th e ____ ______ day of _________________ , 19____,
I received the within _________________ ________ _____ _________________ and that after
diligent search, I am unable to find the within named ____ _________ ________ ___ _____
-------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ -------- ------ - within said district.
Marshal’s fees ̂ *00.. ......
Mileage .... p\9^...... .
United States Marshal.
,,,W5h£ » W C. MURRAY
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By __...................................................... ...............
* Deputy.
GPO. 19G6—0 - 2 3 5 - 857
Form USM-282
(Rev. 6-1-66) RETURN ON SERVICE OF WRIT
© n itetj H>tate£ of A m erica
Northern_ district of <2>
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U.S. Marshal’s No. ... .JJJiBfc___ ________
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vs.
R, D. H ta!Iiu2;!ET* ETAL
SERVICE COMPLETED Sussaona & C o sp la in t & ^
I hereby certify and return that I served the annexed Order to Show Cause
(W rit)
on the therein-named _..GAIHES5fILLE..CIIX..BQAaD.. .QE..EDUCATION_____
(N am e of indiv idual, com pany, corporation , e tc .)
Mr. Otis Ellenbflrg,Jrby handing to and leaving a true and correct copy thereof with ...
....__...___ _____________ Assist . •'lupt. of Schools
(N am e of individual o r ag en t of com pany, co rpo ra tion , e tc .)
personally a t ____ h is o f f ic j
(A ddress—S tree t num ber, a p a r tm e n t num ber, ru ra l route , etc.)
____Gainesville._____________.Georgift._____________ in the said District
(City> Sth? June 69
a.m.-p.m., on the ___ .____ __________ day o f ...... ............................., 19....... .at
SERVICE NOT COMPLETED
Date
I hereby certify and return, that on th e __________ day of _________________ , 19____,
I received the within ______ _________ L_________________________________ and that after
diligent search, I am unable to find the within named ......................... ........... .................. ..........
— _______ ____ ___________________............... ............................................. within said district.
& / /
Marshal’s fees 6*Q0.......
Mileage ..... z & m —
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C.MURRAJ______
United States Marshal.
Deputy.
r •/ . , V 7 ■> ■)/ iil— A -• ' 7
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COffift
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
'■'t/tuut
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE )
McCRARY, Individually and on )
behalf of all others similarly )
situated )
)
vs. )
)
R. D. BLANKENEY, Individually )
and as Superintendent of Schools )
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City )
School District; GAINESVILLE )
CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. )
NIX, Individually and as Georgia )
State Superintendent of Schools; )
and GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF )
EDUCATION )
CIVIL ACTION
NUMBER 1277
Upon consideration, it appears that this court has
prior knowledge of facts and circumstances surrounding the events
complained of which could result in an opinion based on the
merits on some basis other than that learned from participation
in the case. Also, it is possible that some of the policies of
defendant, Gainesville City Board of Education, which were
adopted while the court was a member might be relevant to the
proceedings. Such extra-judicial knowledge deems it inappropriate
for the undersigned to preside. See United States v. Grinnell
Corp., 384 U. S. 563 at 583; Wolfson v. Palmieri, 396 F.2d 121
(2d Cir. 1968); 28 U. S. C. A. §144.
Moreover, the court has three children in the school
system and one sister who is employed as a teacher in said system
who could be affected by the results. On such basis, the under
signed hereby disqualifies and Judge Albert J. Henderson, Jr. is
hereby designated to preside in said case.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
This the 2nd day of June, 1969,
Sidney 0. Ĵ mith, Jr. ̂
United States District Judge
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
ATLANTA DIVISION
GOZA, CLERK
• opuiy CIi
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly
situated
VERSUS
R. D„ BLANKENEY, Individually and
as Superintendent of Schools of
the Gainesville, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE
CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION: JACK
P. NIX, Individually and as Georgia
State Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
O R D E R
The above styled action for injunctive relief has been
filed with the court. It appears that a full hearing will be re
quired to dispose of the important issues which have been raised
before the court.
Therefore, the respondents are ordered to show cause
CXX
before this court on the JSS day of June, 1969, at
/ C ; o*clock JL, _.M., why the relief which petitioners
request should not be granted.
So ordered this the 4th day of June, 1969.
i -, a.
____/ < 44 > - * j\_______
Judge, United States Bi'strict Court
for the Northern District of Georgia
A A Af~ v*- ■»—* £ 5-. i
ROSA A. HEAD, et al )
)
Vs. ) CIVIL ACTION
)
R. B. BLANKENEY, individually, ) NUMBER 1,277
and as Superintendent of Schools, )
Gainesville, Georgia, et al )
_____________________________ )
IN THE U N I T E D STATES D I S T R I C T C O U R T
F O R THE N O R T H E R N D I S T R I C T OF G E O R G I A
G A I N E S V I L L E D I V I S I O N
Atlanta, Georgia; June 11, 1969/^ ^
/,V
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B E F O R E
l.
%
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C/C ' c/,
Honorable NEWELL EDENFIELD, Judge
APPEARANCES OF COUNSEL:
For the Plaintiffs: PETER E. RINDSKOPF
For City of Gainesville
Board of Education: WILLIAM B. GUNTER and
SAMUEL OLIVER
For the State of Georgia: AL EVANS and
LEE PERRY
2
JUNE 11, 1969
+++++
THE COURT: All right, Gentlemen. Let me make a
little preliminary statement and ask you some questions.
There are two of these cases which involve at
least certain problems in common. One's the Pike County
system we just dealt with, and there's this suit, in each
of which is alleged in substance that certain teachers and/or
principals, as the case may be, were not given renewal
contracts for the coming school year on the basis of race.
And that, as I understand it, is the central
issue to be tried in each of the cases.
So that the record may be complete in this case,
although I've already stated it in the other case, these
two cases by our process of rotation fell in part to
Judge Henderson and in part to me. The Gainesville case,
I think, is assigned to me, is it not?
CLERK: No, sir. I believe it's assigned to
Judge Henderson also. Both of them are, Judge.
THE COURT: Well, how did I get in it? What am I
doing here?
CLERK: I don't know,
THE COURT: I didn't volunteer. I don't remember
that. I'm sure about that.
But any rate, I am involved in it, certainly as
n
3
i
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C‘\i, h<*'A
far as Pike County is concerned, because I just entered a
decree about the desegregation of their schools and whatever
is done in the Pike County principal's case will have a
bearing on the desegregation question which I entered.
So, at any rate, whether I inadvertently
volunteered or not, Judge Henderson and X have agreed on
two things:
One, that since this affects the composition of
the faculty in both schools for the coming year, they ought
to be promptly and finally determined.
Considering the fact that we are now in school
recess, summer recess, it seems utterly ridiculous to have
some sort of an interlocutory hearing at this time, and
bother with a temporary injunction. Both of them are equity
cases; there's no jury demand in either one of them. And as
I say, it'll take a very short time to try the cases.
So, we have concluded that the thing to do was to
set them down as promptly as we could and try them separately,
of course, but one behind the other, on the merits and enter
a final decree. And unless there's some compelling reason
to the contrary, that's what we're going to do.
Is there any objection to that?
MR. GUNTER: William B. Gunter. I'm City Attorney
of Gainesville, Georgia, and represent the Gainesville City
Board of Education.
Mr. Samuel Oliver is an associate of mine, in my
firm, both from Gainesville.
MR. EVANS: Judge, you know Lee Perry, and myself,
from the State.
THE COURT: Well, I know you're with the Attorney
General's office, but I don't know what Lee --
MR. PERRY: I'm with the Attorney General's office
also.
THE COURT: Oh.
MR. EVANS: And I am A l Evans. And, Judge, of
course, when we talk about a final hearing on the merits,
I presume this is protecting all our rights for motions to
dismiss, et cetera?
I mean, our position is we're not a proper party.
THE COURT: Well, we'll get to that in just a
minute. We may dispose of that before lunch. So you can
just make your motion into the record here when we get
around to that, and that won't delay us very long.
So, we’re going to set these cases down for the,
the only time —
MR. GUNTER: Judge, —
THE COURT: — Judge Henderson and I can find a
mutual time, and whether it's legal or not, for the benefit
of each other, we're going to hear them en banc, and then one
of us may enter an order.
5
MR. GUNTER: Judge, the letter that I have received
states that the -- this is from the Clerk of the Court —
states that the Pike County case of the Newnan Division is
assigned to Judge Edenfield, and that the Gainesville case
is assigned to Judge Henderson.
Now I agree with the Court, and am representing
the City of Gainesville Board of Education, and we're just
as anxious to get the matter disposed of and we'll be
prepared to go ahead and try the case whenever the Court
sets it down.
However, I will have at least eight witnesses who
are all Gainesville people, and I was going to make the
request of the Court that if it were at all possible, this
one issue, and I only think there's one issue in the case,
that this be — and there's a fact question — heard in
Gainesville if possible. If it can't, of course, we'll be
glad to come to Atlanta.
But I thought perhaps Judge Henderson could hear
the Gainesville case on the 23rd in Gainesville, and if
this other case is assigned to you, you could hear that
case in Atlanta at the same time.
If there are additional issues, which I do not
think there are, to be determined as far as the State of
Georgia is concerned, then we would be perfectly willing
to adjourn the case and come to Atlanta the next day and
2.o
6
hear any other issues that are there.
But, as a matter of convenience to a number of
witnesses, I would make this request.
THE COURT: Well, I'll have to take that up with
Judge Henderson.
My disposition at the minute, Mr. Gunter, is to
go ahead with it like we planned.
But — how many witnesses do you have in the
Gainesville case?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Our witnesses in the Gainesville
case would be the, just on the Gainesville issue, would be
the two teachers and some character witnesses for the
teachers.
THE COURT: And they're located in Gainesville,
of course?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right.
THE COURT: Well, I have no objection to going
to Gainesville for the hearing, as far as that's concerned.
MR. GUNTER: Well, I'm going to have, I'll have
the Superintendent of Schools, the Assistant Superintendent
of Schools, at least five members of the Gainesville Board
of Education Personnel Committee and Gainesville Board of
Education who are all businessmen and women in Gainesville.
The two teachers there are in Gainesville.
THE COURT: How long is it likely to take to try
26A 7
©
this case?
MR. GUNTER: I think, depending upon the cross
examination, which you never can anticipate, I think it'll
take a day and a half to try the Gainesville fact issue on
personnel selection and non-selection of teachers. This is
my opinion.
As I say, there'll be at least a minimum of eight
witnesses for the City.
THE COURT: How long do you think, Mr. Rindskopf?
MR. RINDSKOPF: I'm confident that no less than
a day and a half. I don't think my particular witnesses
are going to take more than a half a day, examination and
cross examination.
THE COURT: Well, I'm having to interrupt a jury
trial to try it at all at this time, as far as I'm
concerned.
Now, if, if we could divide it up where
Judge Henderson took your case and I took the other one,
it might save us a day on my case.
CLERK: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: But I better talk to my fellow judge.
MR. GUNTER: Right. I understand that.
THE COURT; Might split the Court down the middle.
MR. GUNTER: All I want to do is make the request.
We'll do what the Court says, of course.
2 ^
THE COURT: Well, leave that. We'll advise you
what we'll do during the day.
What is Judge Henderson doing at the moment?
CLERK: He's on the bench trying a case.
THE COURT: Well, I thought he was. If necessary,
when he gets off, we can get him in on this discussion.
CLERK: Let me see, Judge. He may be out now.
THE COURT: That brings up another question. If
he's going to take over the Gainesville case as such, then
I don't know but what he ought to conduct these preliminary
discussions rather than me.
If we are going to do it together, then that's
something else.
One reason we decided to do it together is because
it would be a right strange come-off if, under this Pike
County case, if he decided one thing in his part of it, and
I decided something else in mine. I don't know whether
that's possible. I don't know that it is in the turn it's
taken.
MR. GUNTER: Well, I am not familiar at all with
the Pike County case.
But my feeling and belief is that the factual
issues are quite different in the two cases, and I certainly
want them tried separately.
THE COURT: They'll be tried separately, as far as —
J 3
9
CLERK: He's off the bench and he'll be up here
in just a minute.
THE COURT: That's fine.
Let me ask a question here. Mr. Rindskopf could
have, and maybe this is out of order since I may not be
involved in it, again, what's the need for the whole State
to be involved in this thing or the State Board?
Who hires the teachers up there? Does the State
have anything to do with hiring them?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, as Mr. Caldwell said before
he left, the State puts out money.
THE COURT: Well, —
MR. RINDSKOPF: If, if —
THE COURT: •— you've got something in yours
seeking to enjoin them from distributing money on, to
schools that you say are discriminating against Negro
faculty members.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right.
THE COURT: Well, how do you know — isn't the
issue going to be whether or not they're discriminated
against? I mean you can encompass the State and all the
money and everything else; but if it turns out they fired
them for cause and justifiably, then you're out of court.
If they fired them for racial reasons, then you
don't need all this other stuff. I mean you're going to
1
get your relif one way or the other, on the turning of the
simple issue, whether or not one by one they were fired for
racial reasons or other reasons.
MR. RINDSKOPF: I may get my relief on the simple
issue in Gainesville, but what I'm looking to do is trying
to, trying to prevent having to come back with all the
different school systems.
THE COURT: Well, again, I repeat what I said in
the Pike County case, you're going to have to do that anyhow,
because if you had a single decree respecting every school
district in Georgia that Thou shalt not discharge or refuse
to hire a teacher or principal for racial reasons, you're
still going to have to try each one of them on the basis
of whether that's what was done or not. You can't have a
class involving every discharge when the reasons for
discharge may vary for a, in a hundred different ways.
MR. RINDSKOPF: I may just be naive, but I'm
hopeful if we have that kind of decree, it'll cut down on
the number of discharges.
MR. GUNTER: We've already got that law, Your
Honor, and what we say is that we know what the law is,
and the Gainesville City Board of Education has certainly
been advised what the law is.
MR. RINDSKOPF: I don't think we're talking
about Gainesville.
1120 A
THE COURT: Well, that's the only case I'm involved
in. That's what we're here for.
MR. RINDSKOPF: The Judge and I were talking this
morning, I think, — ■
THE COURT: Where there is a broad guage decree
saying You can't discriminate, or, whether you go back to the
Constitution which says You can't discriminate, the result in
each case with respect to each teacher and each school system
is going to turn on the same question: Was he fired for racial
reasons or not.
And I just don't see that when you may have a
hundred teachers fired for cause and a hundred teachers fired
for racial reasons, and nobody can tell which is going to be
which, I don't see that this is conducive or lends itself to
a class determination. I may be wrong, but I don't see it.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, I think the State question is
a markedly different one than the question of Mr. Glover down
in Pike County.
I think where you're claiming that this is happening
all over the State to a certain kind of teacher, then you've
got yourself a real class.
THE COURT: Well, how could, how can the State
prevent somebody from, a local system from firing a teacher,
whether for racial reasons or otherwise?
Admittedly, if it's for racial reasons, you can
1 C
12
correct it.
But suppose a State Superintendent of Schools
issued an edict or a manifesto or whatever he issues, how
can he stop them from firing somebody, the Board of
Education, when they say, We're not going to hire you?
You've got to have a trial to find out whether he was
justified.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Once that happens, it's true.
But I'm talking about the other situation where the
State Superintendent issues something, or local systems
are required to report to him and to the Court, it's going
to cut down on the number of these kinds of discharges, I
think.
THE COURT: Well, if you're contending it's a
class action, the first thing to be determined, whether it
shall be allowed to proceed as a class action -— come in,
Your Honor.
+ + + + +
(Whereupon, Judge Henderson joined the conference
at 11:11 A. M.)
+ ++++
THE COURT: Do you know all these gentlemen?
JUDGE HENDERSON: Yes, sir; I do.
MR. OLIVER: I haven't met you, Judge. I'm
Sam Oliver.
>7
13
JUDGE HENDERSON: I'm glad to see you, sir.
THE COURT: We had sort of pretried, in a way,
the Pike County case, and I had told them of our announced
intention to sit on these cases en banc, and to try both of
them the 23rd and 24th.
Mr. Gunter then suggested that his advice was that
the Pike County case was my case, and the Gainesville case
was your case.
MR. GUNTER: This is what was reported to me in
this letter.
CLERK: I think, Judge, this came about because
you consolidated those two.
THE COURT: The Pike?
CLERK: Yes, sir. And we did call that yours.
JUDGE HENDERSON: Well, I think that's true.
Judge Smith called me about the Gainesville case
and, what, week before last, wasn't it, and I told him that
I would take it. At the time, I thought it was a straight
integration, school desegregation case at the time I talked
to him.
When he brought the papers in, I think last week,
it was this teacher business; and then that's when I
discussed it, I believe, with Judge Edenfield, and we
decided earlier, before we ever got the Gainesville case,
we would sit en banc on the Pike County case, and the
7 S '
suggestion was made, I don't know whether made by Judge
Edenfield or me, it may have been me, Well, you want to do
the same thing in the Gainesville case? And —
THE COURT: Well, the reason, Mr. Gunter, one
reason why he mentioned it is because he said all the
witnesses, and he has some eight witnesses and I think
there are four plaintiffs up there, are there not?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Two, Your Honor.
MR. GUNTER: Two.
THE COURT: Two. Everybody resides in Gainesville,
and for the convenience of the witnesses, he prefers to have
the hearing in Gainesville.
And he also suggests that it's going to take at
least a day and a half to try the Gainesville case, and we
hadn't allocated but two days for both of them, because I've
got to recess a jury case to try it, to get into either one
of them.
CLERK: Judge, at this point, how about plaintiffs'
counsel, Howard and Peter, would you split up in this case?
They both represent the plaintiffs in both cases.
MR. RINDSKOPF: I was going to say at one point it
would be difficult, to be in both places at the same time,
but we could work that out.
JUDGE HENDERSON: Well, you do have a difficult
pr lem, and I do also in that respect, because on the 23rd,
*<?
15CJzail<?iA £
Monday,, hopefully, I was wanting to have two days in my office
that week, since I have not been in my office since the first
of May, to do some work on some things.
three-judge hearing on the 27th and I was going to leave here
after work Thursday and fly down there.
very complicated case, one of these carpet mill cases, on the
26th. It'll probably take a half a day.
there's a motion to sever in that case, and I've got to get
that order out before the 30th. But I put it off until I
could get all the lawyers and discuss it and see whether or
not it would be better to try them separately or jointly.
That takes care of the 26th and 27th, mostly for me, and any
time, 23rd, 24th, 25th, I have no objection to going to
Gainesville, but it was suggested, and I don't know whether
it was Judge Smith or me, perhaps since we had the Pike County
case and going to sit en banc on that, although when I first
talked to Judge Smith, there wasn't anything said about sitting
en banc in the Gainesville case at all, because I had to be
here then, and those two cases were consolidated, and while
I haven't talked to Judge Edenfield about it a whole lot,
I felt like if we could, since they were originally Newnan
Division cases, I should do what I could on that, help out
But I've also got to be in Savannah for a
I have a pretrial that's been reset twice now in a
And I've got to make some decisions, because
35 A 16
on those.
And it was my suggestion perhaps that we handle
the Gainesville case, and suggested we could do them both
down here. That would be for the convenience of us more
than anybody else. I realize that.
I don't mind going to Gainesville at all to, to
hear it. My problem right now is going to be a question of
time, and also if the same lawyers are representing both
parties in both cases, it's going to be sort of a hard thing
for them to be in two places at the same time.
When Judge Smith first brought it to me and
suggested we better set a time on it, my immediate reaction
was the week of the 23rd because it was the only week I had
open.
I think the week of the 30th we've got pretrials
all that week, don't we, Johnny?
MR. PRESSLEY: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: I'm the one that suggested we sit
en banc on both cases, and that just struck me at that time,
when I first made that suggestion, I think the Pike County
case in Newnan, that was yours, —
JUDGE HENDERSON: My case.
THE COURT: I had the Pike County case on
desegregating the whole system, and we thought two judges
ought not to be dabbling with Pike County at the same time.
3/
26A
17
But I don't know there's any reason why we couldn't
just divide up the cases and you take the Gainesville case —
JUDGE HENDERSON: Well, I first thought that two
judges could handle it for several reasons, and my reason,
if there's going to be any sort of pattern, I don't know
there will be the same situation in the Gainesville case,
I don't know that, I haven't read it other than the petition,
and the Pike County case, but there might be a little bit
more coordination in handling these things. As you know,
these are long and drawn out affairs once they get started,
and pretty much of a drain on everybody's time, and with
coordination, hopefully we could streamline these things.
I don't want to knock anybody's right to be heard
out or anything, for anybody, but —
THE COURT: There is one question raised in the
Gainesville case that's not raised in the Pike County case.
The plaintiffs in the Gainesville case have named
the State Board of Education as a party, and I gather are
trying to — do you seek an injunction against him, the
State? It would be a State-wide injunction?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes.
THE COURT: And which — what you really seek is
to make it a class action?
•3■v
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes. That's right.
THE COURT: And to get an injunction against
37 A
18
discriminatory discharge of teachers.
I have already ruled just while ago in the Pike
County case I saw not the slightest necessity for a class
action; that all over Georgia, every time they come up,
firing a teacher, everybody knows, and I think everybody
would be willing to stipulate, if it's for racial reasons
it's unconstitutional. If it's for some justifiable reason,
It's not unconstitutional.
So, each one of them, I don't care whether you've
got a class action or whether you're relying on the
Constitution or what you're relying on, each one of them is
going to have to sit on its own bottom and be determined on
its own facts. And I don't see how it lends itself to class
treatment.
But, I haven't studied, and I'll keep an open
mind on it, but —
JUDGE HENDERSON: My thought, an order could very
easily be passed, Nobody shall discriminate in the hiring
and firing of teachers, but that doesn't help the practical
problem in the individual counts, or individual cases,
because I agree with Judge Edenfield, I think it's, as far
as these hiring and firing cases are concerned, it's going
to have to be kept in line with the particular circumstances
of each case.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes, sir. I indicated to
19
Judge Edenfield before you arrived that I was hopeful that a
state-wide sort of decree would simply cut down on the number
of cases we have to deal with, because there might be some
school boards that might take a second look before they would
go —
THE COURT: I might agree with you if the State
had anything to do with hiring and firing.
But as I understand the Georgia law, the people who
do the hiring and firing are the local people, and I don't
think if you enjoin Jack Nix, Mr. Nix, whatever his name is,
ten times, I don't think he can stop Emanuel County Board of
Education from firing a teacher or refusing to employ one.
You just think it would be a persuasive force in,
for example, you can't join in this suit all the school boards
in Georgia; and Nix, whom you did join, has no control over
their power to hire and fire.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, I'm not so sure that we can't
join them all. We haven't yet, or haven't tried to yet.
THE COURT: Well, —
MR. RINDSKOPF: But we ask for a certain sort of
reporting provision to Nix and to the Court, which I think
would be very helpful —
JUDGE HENDERSON: May I ask a question about,
getting down to the practical problems involved in hearing
these cases?
p Q A O u ix
20
How many witnesses do you, you all anticipate you
have in the Gainesville case?
MR. GUNTER: I anticipate having at least eight
on behalf of the City Board of Education, and told
Judge Edenfield in my opinion it'll take a day and a half to
try the one issue, which is the only issue I think is in the
case.
Now we, Judge, we admit that, what the law is, and
what the Constitution says, the Fourteenth Amendment; that the
Gainesville City Board of Education cannot refuse to rehire a
teacher or any personnel on the basis of race. I think we
can all agree to submit to any injunction as that.
The issue we've got is whether or not in fact, in
two instances, where the Gainesville City Board of Education
did not offer contracts to a number of White teachers and to
two Negro teachers, this is the situation that we've got, and
the question, only question is whether the contracts were not
reoffered to the two Negro teachers because they are Negroes.
That's the only issue we are going to try.
We've got to go through, the reason I think it's
going to take a day and a half, all the personnel procedure
of the Gainesville City Board of Education; what they do.
They have been advised since 1954 when the Brown
case was decided, what the law is. It's never varied one
iota. They know what they're supposed to do, and if they have
3 r
discriminated against anybody on the basis of race, we would
not expect to win the lawsuit. And this is, this is our
position.
JUDGE HENDERSON: Well, how many witnesses do you
have, Mr. Rindskopf?
MR. RINDSKOPF: I don't think I have as many as
eight, and I think a day and a half would be about right to
try it.
JUDGE HENDERSON: One of the practical — I have
several reasons — another problem that week, I've got most
everybody out of my office. I'm about the only one left here.
One or two on vacation, one off studying for the Bar exam,
and I haven't got anybody left.
MR. GUNTER: Judge, this is a problem I've got on
the 25th, 26th and 27th. I will be engaged in giving the
State Bar exam here in Atlanta for three days. I'll be
available, I can try the case Monday and Tuesday, the 23rd
and 24th and, or, I'll try it anywhere the Court says try it.
I just said as a matter of convenience we would prefer trying
it in Gainesville because the members of the Board of
Education are Gainesville businessmen; the two teachers are
Gainesville teachers, residents there; all witnesses will be
in Gainesville, and*as a matter of convenience, I request
this. But we'll try it in Atlanta Monday and Tuesday if
the Court wants to sit en banc, and we'll do it like that.
22
'l-t 4 o
But I think the better part of two days, by itself,
if you're going to start on the Pike County case on Monday
the 23rd, I really have to give the Bar exam the 25th, 26th
and 27th. That's been the, that has been set for, I mean
that's set by law. We have to do that. And I, I could be
away, there are five examiners in this, but it's customary
for all five examiners to be present for the three days,
I can, I can come to court and try the case,
though.
JUDGE HENDERSON: How long do you anticipate the
Pike County case will take?
THE COURT: It'll take less than a day, they think.
JUDGE HENDERSON: Can we switch them?
THE COURT: Well, with one exception.
Johnny Caldwell is going to be in the new session of the
Legislature, and he may have some preference.
He says, "I want to try my, I prefer the 23rd
because, because if there's going to be a crucial vote over
there on that tax question the 23rd, I would like to be
there. On the other hand, if it's on the 24th, I'd like to
be there." So, —
JUDGE HENDERSON: Well, there's some legislators
who argue there won't be any of them there on the 23rd.
THE COURT: Well, I suggested that.
JUDGE HENDERSON: I can't say that's going to happen,
§h::
I
I?
37
23
I don't know anything about it.
THE COURT: That's the first thing I told Johnny,
"You're sure you're going to be there 'til this weekend?"
JUDGE HENDERSON: I've heard varying estimates as
to when they're going to be there. I'm not, you might want
to talk about this later, but if you wanted to put down the
Gainesville case on the 23rd and set the 23rd and 24th for
that, and if something happened to Mr. Caldwell, since the
Pike County case is going to take less time than the
Gainesville case, I could, and could find that out, say, a
day in advance, I could move up my pretrial and try to work
it out to —
THE COURT: Well, let me make a suggestion.
JUDGE HENDERSON: — for the convenience —
THE COURT: I agree with you about one thing. I
would like to see us in this District, in case we have more
of these things, and we may very well do it, establish a
uniform approach to them insofar as firings are concerned,
and insofar as the class feature is concerned.
We might do this, Judge. We might let you go on
up to Gainesville and hear the evidence in that one on the
23rd, and on the 23rd I'll hear the evidence down here, if
we split Peter Rindskopf in half, or —
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, I think Mr. Moore will be
able to handle one of them, I don't see that's a particular
o 24
problem.
THE COURT: Then I, you and I can get together and
we'll have transcripts of what transpired in both places, and
if we want to confer, we can do that at our leisure,
MR. GUNTER: In other words, this will be the
temporary hearing and permanent hearing, all at one time?
THE COURT: All at one time. And I assume that a
single judge, whoever it's assigned to, will enter an order
in the one assigned to him; and the other will enter an order
in the one assigned to him.
But in the meantime, we may caucus without you all
knowing it.
MR. GUNTER: I wouldn't blame you.
JUDGE HENDERSON: That's always a privilege
reserved —
THE COURT: That's always a privilege of the
judiciary, as to --
MR. GUNTER: You can read the record en banc.
THE COURT: That's right.
JUDGE HENDERSON: I don't have any objection to
that. No objection to setting it down the 23rd in Gainesville.
The only reason I say the 23rd in Gainesville, you've
got your problem about the Bar and it won't put me in a jam,
because I've got to be in Savannah for that three-judge
thing that's been set some time,
2 9 ) /
G 25
THE COURT: That'll give you plenty of time, even
if it took three days, and also relieve Mr. Gunter on
Wednesday. Nobody estimates it'll take more than two days.
MR. GUNTER: No, sir.
THE COURT: And get both heard in two days, and it
will also help me, because I'm going to be trying this
Corvair case, and I was going to excuse the jury Monday and
Tuesday.
JUDGE HENDERSON: I have another Corvair case.
You can try it at the same time if you want to.
THE COURT: This one is going to take three weeks.
MR. EVANS: I wonder if we could possibly get a
ruling today on the propriety of the State being a party?
I think under Rule 21 you could drop us as a
party.
I'm perfectly willing to make a motion and argue
it right now. I don't see how the State can be a proper
party.
THE COURT: I would be inclined, if we are going
to do it this way, it looks to me like — first, let me ask
this question.
To what extent, if at all, will the presence or
absence of the State as a party affect the testimony to be
adduced?
MR. GUNTER: Not any on this issue.
e/o
45 A 26
|V
MR. EVANS: None that I see.
THE COURT: Why don't we let you make your motion,
and you respond, and take it under advisement, and we'll both
go ahead and hear the evidence in each case and enter a
ruling on the motions and on the ■— •
MR. EVANS: Is it proper to do it orally, right
now, or a written motion —
THE COURT: You can do it orally right now. I want
to see —
MR. EVANS: It seems to me it's so clear-cut, and
I'm trying to save the time of having to write a lengthy, or
even a memorandum.
THE COURT: Well, of course, Mr. Rindskopf doesn't
agree to that, I'm sure.
But, go ahead and state your position, and then
Mr. Rindskopf can state his position for the record.
JUDGE HENDERSON: I'm on a break, non-jury trial
downstairs, and I just took a break for fifteen minute^ and
then they handed me your message when I came out, and I've
been out a half an hour.
THE COURT: Why don't I do this, why don't I let
them state their motion and reasons without authority into
the record, and each one can supply us with a memorandum?
JUDGE HENDERSON: Would you just type that
particular part of it up and give it to me, Mr. Pugh?
48 A
27
REPORTER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: And if you're agreeable to that, and
hear the Gainesville case on the 23rd and 24th, —
JUDGE HENDERSON: 23rd and 24th, Johnny.
THE COURT: -— and I'll dispose of the Pike County
case on the 23rd, —
JUDGE HENDERSON: We'll assign it two days.
All right. That'll be fine.
THE COURT: Fine.
+++++
(Whereupon, Judge Henderson retired from the
hearing at 11:30 A. M.)
H— I—f—!— I-
THE COURT: All right, Mr. Evans. State your
position with respect to this issue.
MR. EVANS: The State believes it should be granted
its motion to dismiss on the ground it's not a proper party
to the case, the reason being that the wrong claimed of,
which is the refusal to extend through contracts to teachers
for the coming school year, is a matter in which the State
Board of Education and State Department of Education has no
connection whatsoever.
Under the Constitution of the State of Georgia,
the management of local school systems is vested in the local
school board.
28
Under Georgia Code Annotated, Section 32-607, it
is provided that teachers are hired by the local school board
upon the recommendation of the local school superintendent.
The only role of the Board at all, connecting, in connection
with teachers is that —
THE COURT: You mean the State Board?
MR. EVANS: Yes, sir, the State Board, can prescribe
minimum qualifications.
The law expressly limits our qualifications with
respect to certification, to classifications based upon
academic, technical, professional training and experience.
And even here, all we do is say whether or not
an individual is qualified to be a teacher.
From that point on, we have no control over whether
he is hired or fired or dismissed by a local board.
Now, as far as payment, we do not pay directly
for teacher salaries. As the Court I'm sure is aware, there
is the funding by the State Department of Education, and it
is under a complex program known as the Minimum Foundation
Program of Education Act.
Under this Act, a state, a county board or a city
board gets a lump sum each month which is based on many
criteria, having to do with not the number of teachers
employed by the local board, but the number of allotted
teachers, the number of teachers the State Board computes
48A
29V.
they need for a minimum level of education.
The sum is not paid directly for teachers salaries.
It encompasses all sorts of things. It encompasses capital
outlay, transportation — in other words, the local board
gets a lump sum.
Now, as I have said, the State Board has absolutely
nothing to do with who is hired by a local board. By State
law, we have no authority to affect this one way or the
other.
Secondly, I would say that the only relief that I
see sought against the State is one that with all due respect,
I think the Court, unless it is to change to my knowledge the
entire system under which our democracy functions, the Court
is without jurisdiction, obviously, to tell a Legislature to
draft a bill and say to the Legislature Thou shall pass this
bill.
I think similarly you cannot tell an administrative
body, Thou shall promulgate this bill. That's directing the
courts to tell the State Board to adopt particular regulations.
The traditional role of the courts is to adjudicate
the validity of an existing regulation. I know of no
precedent whatsoever for a court telling an administrative
or legislative body what law it must pass.
Now secondly, even if we were wrong on this point,
and the Court were to say You must pass a regulation saying
Thou shall not discriminate, even if the Court were, this
would be a little redundant, if the Court wanted to do that,
it could pass a decree saying No one shall discriminate.
But assume we did pass this regulation, how could
the State Board possibly enforce it? The State Board gets
a list monthly of the teachers from each school for purposes
of computing the funds that system will receive. There’s
no racial designation by the name of the teacher. When the
State Board gets a list, it takes the list for two purposes:
One, counts the number of names. Second, it checks on the
names to see if that individual is duly certified so that
funds can be computed.
Now, how would the State Board go about enforcing
whether or not a teacher, enforcing non-discrimination in
the hiring and firing, retention of teachers? We think it’s
utterly impossible.
The State Board has no funds, no staff, no
qualified personnel to run .a gestapo in each one of the —
I think it's a hundred and ninety-six, perhaps, school
systems in the State. We couldn't possibly begin to do this.
Even if we had legal authority, which we do not.
In any event, I think that it says so clear on
the face of it that the State is not a proper party, we
should be entitled to be summarily dropped as a party
defendant in this action.
31J1
THE COURT: All right.
MR. GUNTER: On behalf of the City of Gainesville,
Judge, I would like to state the position of the City is that
the State School Board and the State Superintendent of
Schools are not proper parties, on the same basis, primarily
Georgia Code Section 32-607, which is 1964 Georgia Laws,
Page 3, which says the local counties have, school
administrations, have the right to employ or not employ
teacher personnel in the local county.
THE COURT: That's the same section you cite?
MR. EVANS: Yes, sir.
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir.
In addition to that, we say that if the fact issue
is determined by the Court, that these two particular persons
were discriminated against because of race, then the Court
will order they be re-employed and this would give no right
to the State to cut off any funds to the Gainesville School
System.
Now the complete relief that the plaintiff asked
for can be determined by the Court. If these two particular
plaintiff individuals have been discriminated against, the
Court will order their re-employment. If they were not
discriminated against, in which case then there is no
necessity for terminating the funds, and the funds of the
City of Gainesville could not be terminated by the State or
o AL̂, i A. 32
anybody else.
And so, we. say that this is the only, I agree with
what the Court said initially, that each teacher discrimina
tion case is really, we've got two separate factual
situations with these two plaintiffs even, and so,
assuming that the plaintiffs won the case, this would be no
reason to terminate funds by the State to the City of
Gainesville School System.
THE COURT: All right. Before I hear from
Mr. Rindskopf, let me get Mr. Evans' and perhaps your position
straight on one other thing, for the record.
Mr. Evans, in due course 1 want Mr. Rindskopf to
respond to this, too, for the record. But what do you say
about two questions under Rule 23, relating to class actions?
What do you say about whether, aside from the arguments which
you have made, this type of situation lends itself to class
determination —
do you also say about whether or not any one particular
principal or teacher who has been discharged can properly
represent the class for whom the action purports to be
And we say they're not a proper party for this
reason
MR. EVANS: No, sir.
THE COURT: and — wait just a minute — what
brought?
33
MR. EVANS: Judge, I think the question really
answers itself. Any time you have a person who is not
granted a contract, the reasons are apt to be very unique
to that individual. I can't possibly see how you can have a
class action — I'm saying as a general rule. There could
be some fantastic situation where if, if the county board
suddenly decided it would not rehire any Black teacher and
did rehire each White teacher, that might be a local county
class action perhaps, and there could be a class action on
behalf of the Black teachers in that county.
and not involved here and not alleged, where you have a case
of one or two, a number of both races is not rehired and you
are trying to determine whether the Black teachers were not
rehired for racial reasons, I think it's obviously a question
where you have to get into the merits, the argument as to why
this individual teacher was not rehired.
to show that it was on the record of that individual teacher,
and that individual teacher's record will have to be rebutted
or argued by the plaintiff.
action, either as to plaintiffs or as to defendants, because
obviously the management power of a board of education in
Georgia, I'm speaking of the county board of education, is
But ordinarily, where that is not the situation
Presumably the county board will offer evidence
I can't see how possibly this could be a class
£ \
\ ) ;3A € .}
34
at the local level, and as the Court knows, conditions vary
tremendously in different counties. The number of Black
teachers varies undoubtedly tremendously in different
counties. So I can’t see how it could possibly be a class
action, either as to plaintiffs or as to defendants.
THE COURT: Do you care to add anything to that?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir. I say that under Rule 23
this cannot be a class action, first, because there are
only two members of the class here, which are the two
plaintiffs in the case.
There has been no other Negro teacher in the
Gainesville School System that occupies a similar position.
There are five other White teachers who were not reoffered
contracts for the coming year at the same time these two
Negro teachers were not reoffered contracts.
But if you, talking about a White class and a
Black class, they do not fall into the class. So, we say
that this, under the Rule, this can't be a class action.
There are no more Black teachers in the class.
The second thing that we would say is that I can
visualize where there could be a class action if fourteen
Negro teachers were not reoffered contracts and you only
had fourteen Negro teachers in the system. But this, this
is not the situation in the Gainesville case. We have many
Negro teachers who were reoffered contracts.
o
35
tZ/) A
We have a situation here of only two who were not,
and we say for reasonable, valid reasons, not based on race.
We say that there were a number of White teachers who were
not reoffered contracts. So, there are no other members of
the class other than the two plaintiffs.
And under Rule 23, this cannot be a class action.
THE COURT: Mr. Rindskopf, suppose you state your
position on the first thing which was argued, the first
question which was argued, whether they should be dropped as
a party defendant; and second, as to the propriety of a class
action under the circumstances?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, the first question it seems
to me depends on whether or not there1s a lump sum of money
that the State passes out to each of the county and city
boards is sufficient to involve them in the alleged
discrimination these other boards are participating in.
I don't think there's any doubt that State
participation in discrimination is constitutionally forbidden.
If it is forbidden, and the City's participating, therefore,
the Court can stop it.
THE COURT: Right there, without — let me ask
you one question -- suppose, and I don't know the answer to
this, does the State Board when it gets a payroll from a
school system, does it know who's White and who's Negro?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Not necessarily. Probably no.
MR. EVANS: The answer is no, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Well, how, suppose, one, if someone
was fired, they didn't know whether he was Black or White;
and second, they had no way of knowing whether he was fired
for racial reasons or not.
How would you say they are participating in
discrimination?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, I think the answer is that
whether or not it's intentional, under the law, they're held
to intend the consequences of their acts.
If the Board is going to close its eyes to what is
actually happening, that's fine. But that doesn't mean that
the Board can escape from the consequences.
The complaint alleges —
THE COURT: All right, sir.
MR. RINDSKOPF: -- that this is happening, not
just in Gainesville, but in districts throughout the State,
including some that no longer are being policed by the
Department of Health, Education and Welfare.
THE COURT: All right. I didn't mean to interrupt
your presentation.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right.
It seems to me this is the question. We don't
claim that the State Board of Education comes into the local
systems and actually determines who is going to get contracts
37O ■ SSA- O
and who is not. The question, as I see it, is whether this
money is sufficient involvement to make the State a proper
party.
As to the class question, it seems to me that,
first, the teachers in Gainesville, the fact that there are,
or may be, only two of them at present, my information was
there are more than two involved. There are only two who
are suing. The fact that there are only two at present
does not mean they can't represent a class.
Gainesville, for example, is not like Pike County.
They're not operating under a court decree. Therefore, we're
concerned, it seems to me, with the question of how the
Gainesville City System behaves in the future. It gets to be
like one of these Equal Employment cases where the case is a
of employees or class of would-be employees, and the
decree runs not only to the individual, but runs to the
actions of the company in the future. In this case, the
company is the State Board of Education.
I know the issue of class action in those kinds
of cases is in flux.
THE COURT: Yes.
MR. RINDSKOPF: It's being litigated. We all know
that. And as, as for the other class, the class of Negro
teachers throughout the State of Georgia who are being
discharged because of their race, it seems to me this is very
j O
3857 A /:
W
clarly a real class under Rule 23. It's certainly too large
to all come before the Court, and the common questions of
fact and law, whether they're discharged because of their
race, would seem to me to predominate over the individual
questions involved in the case.
The questions don't have to be identical in every
way. The question is whether or not the common questions
predominate.
We would say that certainly on the basis of the
complaint, you can't say that these classes do not exist.
THE COURT: All right, sir. Is that all you care
to state?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: Let me ask one other question of both
of you, or all three of you.
Do either of you know of any case where the
involvement under these circumstances of the State Board
has been decided?
Now I realize there have been some cases brought
and designated as class actions; but do any of you know
under the, under any system which is comparable to the
arrangement in Georgia, where the State Board has been
retained as a party simply because it allocated money among
systems?
MR. GUNTER: Judge, I'll respond to that by saying
■57
58 A
39
I think I have read all of the teacher non-rehiring cases
that have been decided with the exception of a few that are
not reported in FEDERAL SUPPLEMENT.
I have found none.
THE COURT: Mr. Evans, do you know of any that
have decided either way?
MR. EVANS: No, sir. I have not found any that
have decided either way, where the situation is at all like
Georgia.
THE COURT: Do you, Mr. Rindskopf?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, the case that is most like
the Georgia case is, I guess is the case in Alabama, Lee
against Macon County. It's possibly distinguishable,
because there was a legislative action as well as just money.
There are lots of cases saying State money in and
of itself is a tie, going all the way back to Burton against
Wilmington Parking —
THE COURT: Well, it seems to me like you've mixed
apples and oranges here. I'm just expressing my view.
I could see how in some states where the, you’ve
got what might be referred to as a streamlined and integrated
State educational system controlled from the top, where you
might enter in there with a sort of a Jefferson-type decree
which would bind everybody under the control of that
department.
40
And that's really what you're striving for, isn't
it?
MR. RINDSKOPF: In effect.
THE COURT: Yes.
MR. RINDSKOPF: I don't think we can get that on the
facts in Georgia.
THE COURT: I'm not sure, in Georgia, I'm not
saying that you can or can't, but it might be possible in
some fashion to join every school board in Georgia and enter
such a decree. But I don't think you can do it. You're
going around your elbow to do it on, as to one little school
system, where the only connection of the State defendant is
the fact it allocates funds among systems without any
knowledge whatsoever as to who's fired or who's not fired,
whether they're Black or White, or whether they're fired for
cause or for racial reasons.
And it just seems to me like if there be an action
to bring about what you're trying to do, this isn't, this
isn't the vehicle for it.
Now that's my view of it.
All right. Maybe I should have stayed out of it
and let you all recite your positions. But I've already said
in advance that's what I thought.
All right.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Could we have a couple of days to
submit any authorities that we might find?
4160A
THE COURT: Yes, sir. Of course. After all, this
looks like it may be Judge Henderson's case anyway. He may
overrule you may each one submit any authorities you want
to.
I would suggest that you get them in as quickly
as you can.
MR. GUNTER: Well, Judge, doesn't Rule 23 provide
that if there are members of the class, some notification
has to be given to these members?
THE COURT: The first thing to determine is whether
or not you're going to let it proceed as a class action.
MR. GUNTER: That's right, and then that rule
provides, it's my recollection, I haven't read it in some
time, that certainly —
THE COURT: Nobody knows what it means any more.
They revised the rule.
MR. GUNTER: Well, it's a new rule.
THE COURT: And I was at a seminar where they were
supposed to have had the greatest living authority on class
actions, and he disavowed any knowledge of what it now meant,
and refused to be, to comment on it at all.
And week before last, the Supreme Court of the
United States handed down a six-to-three opinion in which
they went back to Spurious, Hybrid and Spurious class actions,
at least that's what the dissenters said they did.
4‘I' •
But whatever else it may mean, there are certain
things that a Court has to do when a class action or a right
to proceed by a class action is claimed.
And the first thing is a determination as to whether
or not it shall be allowed to proceed as a class action. And
I would think that ought to be determined by this Court before
this hearing starts.
MR. GUNTER: Well, it seems to me that that in
itself is going to involve a factual question, too. You've
got to determine who the members of the class are, and my
contention is that there are no other members of the class
except the two who are plaintiffs.
THE COURT: Right there, who do you say the members
of the class are, Mr. Rindskopf?
MR. GUNTER: All Negroes, I assume, that are
teaching in schools in Georgia, is what I gather from the
petition,
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right. Who have been refused or
will be refused contracts because of their race.
MR. GUNTER: Well, how can that determination be
made, who will be? This --
THE COURT: Well, to be a member of a class, he
must be, one, a member of a group that all stand in the
same shoes and are affected by some action that's taken
;>r
place, isn't that correct?
43lJ'
MR* GUNTER: And a Negro teacher who is not
rehired —
THE COURT: You've got thousands of them who, I
mean you never could identify the class. I don't know how
many thousand Negro teachers you have or what percentage of
them have been rehired. They don't fall within the class —
MR. RINDSKOPF: Maybe I missed the point, but I
don t think that a class action, in a class action you're
trying to identify the individual people in the class.
MR. GUNTER: Well, this is what the rule says.
MR. EVANS; You have to know who's in or out of
the class.
MR. RINDSKOPF: You have to know what the limits
are.
THE COURT: Who could opt in or out? I mean, as
the rules require, as to notice, suppose you sent one to,
sent such a notice and said, "Do you want to be bound by this
judgment or not?"
Well, when you get through, really, what you're
seeking is just a Jefferson-type decree which would apply to
every school board in Georgia, and I just don't see how you
can get at it under the allegations of this suit and through
the medium of a class action,
I'm not saying you couldn't bring such a class
action and impose such a decree on everybody. It's been done.
\
if;
!t
tvf
l
l
S' L
ftn, ao i it. (. ■) 44
Over in Alabama, I understand there are ninety—three school
districts where they've entered comprehensive decrees affecting
all of them, and all of the judges over there sit en banc
and they're running the thing just like they were members
of the school board. That's hearsay, I don't know. But,
they didn't do it, they didn't get that, bring that about,
they brought those local school boards in and made them a
party, and put them under a Jefferson decree, and if they
violated, I guess they cite them for contempt. I don't know.
But they didn't do it in this fashion, and frankly, I don't
know of one that has been done in this fashion.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Well, I agree with those remarks.
THE COURT: Well, I think, frankly, you've got here
a pop gun and trying to kill an army with it. I mean, I
don't think you can use this little pop gun to annihilate,
make an atomic bomb out of it.
MR. RINDSKOPF: This is the reverse of what
Mr. Justice Black said, that the Court was using a cannon
where a pop gun would do.
THE COURT: That's what I'm saying. You've got a
pop gun and trying to make a hydrogen bomb out of it, under
the allegations as made and parties as made.
MR. RINDSKOPF: It may be that the Court will defuse
it.
THE COURT: It may be.
45
iV-'S'Hm. 5
1A
t -
Let me ask you this, and I ask this for the
benefit of Judge Henderson, aren't there some salient facts
m the Gainesville case, as in the Pike County case, which
can be stipulated to save time of proving them?
MR. GUNTER: I am unfamiliar with the Pike County
case, Judge.
THE COURT: Well, I just said in that case, I asked
if there weren't some facts, and all I was going to suggest
was that the two of you get together and sit down and if
there are some things that are in dispute, that you enter a
stipulation, because it does save time.
MR. GUNTER: Well, we will stipulate that the two
plaintiffs were not reoffered contracts for the ensuing year.
This is the only thing I know that's necessary for the
creation of the issue.
THE COURT: Let me ask another question.
Are there any written criteria for the, either
local or otherwise, used by the Gainesville system in
determining who it will retain and who it will discharge?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: Well, can't you stipulate what those
criteria are?
MR. GUNTER: We intend to offer it in evidence.
I don't know whether the plaintiff could stipulate it or not.
I assume he will once he examines it and sees it. It's a
S' S'
handbook, given to every teacher in the Gainesville System.
THE COURT: How was it adopted? Local board?
MR. GUNTER: City Board of Education.
THE COURT: Have you see that, Mr. Rindskopf?
MR. RINDSKOPF: No, sir, I have not.
THE COURT: You might show it to him, Mr. Gunter.
MR. GUNTER: I'll be glad to furnish him a copy
of it.
His plaintiffs have a copy.
MR. RINDSKOPF: That might cut down some of, of
the testimony.
THE COURT: And you can at least go into the
authenticity of it before you get into court.
Is there any question here, as in some of these
cases, that these terminations were brought aboutby reductions
in faculty?
MR. RINDSKOPF: I think there's some question here
as to whether the terminations were brought about by a
reduction of the number of Negro pupils in the system.
Maybe we can stipulate that.
MR. GUNTER: We can stipulate that.
MR. RINDSKOPF: That the Hall County pupils —
THE COURT: I think the allegation is that there
were formerly three hundred county students who attended
city schools, and now they will no longer attend the city
47
schools?
MR. GUNTER: That's correct.
THE COURT: Which, I assume, cuts down on the city
school population?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: And I suppose that that will play some
part in the decision that these teachers, White or Black, were
not needed, is that correct?
MR. GUNTER: That’s correct. There's a reduction
in the overall teacher, number of teachers in the Gainesville
School System.
THE COURT: Who you're going to keep, and not
going to keep?
MR. GUNTER: That's right.
THE COURT: All right. How does your, does your
resolution or whatever it is, specify how it shall, where
that situation arises, does your resolution specify how
they shall determine who shall be retained and who shall be
released?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir. And they have to be given
notices by a certain date. All who are not to be reoffered
contracts for the ensuing year are to be given written
notice by a certain day.
THE COURT: Does it provide, for example, that
those, that in determining who's going to be released, the
n
y o
48'67 A.
whole faculty shall be compared on the basis of scholastic
ability, achievement or any other criteria?
MR. GUNTER: I'm not so sure that that's in the
written portion of it, but this is actually what was done.
We expect to produce evidence — -
THE COURT: I see.
MR. GUNTER: — that that was done.
THE COURT: There's no writing establishing such
criteria?
MR. GUNTER: I'm not certain, Judge.
THE COURT: All right.
MR. GUNTER: There may be, but —
THE COURT: All I was going to do, if there was
such, it could be exchanged so that you could —
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes, sir.
While we are here, I wonder if maybe we could set
up a date to do some discovery? I would like to take some
depositions next Wednesday, if that'll be convenient.
THE COURT: Yeah. I mean to ask about that.
MR. PERRY: Does that involve us?
MR. RINDSKOPF: I don't believe so.
MR. GUNTER: That will be the 18th?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right.
MR. GUNTER: That's quite satisfactory.
THE COURT: All right. Do you wish —
<£/
68A 49
MR. GUNTER: Do you know who you want? Can you —
MR. RINDSKOPF: I guess the Superintendent,
Assistant Superintendent, the Head of the Board of
Education, and what -- does it have a personnel branch?
MR. GUNTER: Personnel Committee.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Committee. Right. Those four.
THE COURT: Well, how many are on that committee?
MR. GUNTER: Four, is my recollection. I'm not
absolutely certain. I think there are four committee — ■
THE COURT: Does it have a chairman? I suppose
the chairman?
MR. RINDSKOPF: Right. Chairman.
MR. GUNTER: Right.
THE COURT: Chairman of the Personnel Committee.
MR. GUNTER: We would like to take the two
plaintiffs' deposition at the same time.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Okay.
MR. GUNTER: Could you do this in Gainesville? All
of them will be in Gainesville.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Sure. Why not get together after
we're through here and decide?
MR. GUNTER: We might get the case decided on the
pretrial, on depositions.
THE COURT: All right, Gentlemen. What else?
MR. EVANS: Judge, could we have five days to reply
69 A 50
to their brief or memorandum on the involvement of the State?
This is a rather novel theory, and, frankly, I'll be writing
in the dark, sort of, unless I know what their ideas are on
how the State's a party.
My only authority is the one I've cited as of
this point.
THE COURT: The five days will go to when?
MR. EVANS: From the day I receive their memorandum
or brief on the point.
THE COURT: Well, you just about run over beyond
the trial with that.
MR. EVANS: Well, as I said, my problem is I have
no idea what their theory is. It is a very novel one, and I
know of no authority for it, and as of this point my only
authority is that we don't have anything to do with the
hiring and firing of teachers under the Code Section I
mentioned.
So I don't see any point, I mean, I could write a
brief reiterating that, but I don't see the point unless Your
Honor knows one.
THE COURT: I see no need of that. I'll put it
this way. If either one of you finds any authority for
keeping the State in under a factual situation such as
Georgia's, which I gather is not in dispute, a factual
situation as to the organization of the State Board of
(o -b
70A 51
Education, — ■
MR. EVANS: Unlike Alabama; yes, sir.
THE COURT: Never mind five days, get it to us by
the end of this week if you can. If you find any, and if you
find any.
And then, and exchange them and then I would
assume that, if somebody wants to respond, they can immediately
do so. But I think if we start waiting until we get his and
then give you five days, the hearing is going to be over.
All right, Gentlemen. I don't know of anything
else we can do unless somebody has some further -—
MR. RINDSKOPF: Do I assume that there will be a
■̂̂ ding by the Court on whether the State is in or out before
the 23rd?
THE COURT: Well, I would prefer at the moment to
leave that to, or at least to discuss it with Judge Henderson.
But my present feeling, and I don't mind expressing
it, I will express it to him, that before the hearing starts
he ought to make some determination of whether a class action
is proper in this situation, and if he rules that a class
action is proper, then there are a whole lot of steps under
Rule 23 that are going to have to be followed.
There's going to have to be al sorts of determina
tions: Adequacy of representation, a determination of who are
the members of the class, and then you get into this business
53
of notice to the members of the class. So, I think if he
makes a determination that it may proceed as a class action,
you may very well have to suspend the whole thing until some
later time.
MR. GUNTER: I don't think there's any question
about that, Judge, if this is a class action, we —
THE COURT: I don't see how you —
MR. GUNTER: We're prepared to proceed with just
the Gainesville class, but we say that a teacher not reoffered
a contract by Pike County Board of Education does not fall in
the same class as a teacher not reoffered a contract by the
Gainesville City Board of Education. And this is, if they
want to put everybody that's not reoffered a contract in the
State of Georgia in the same class, that's one thing.
But we're certainly going to oppose this.
THE COURT: Well, I'm saying that if he, if
Judge Henderson, nevertheless, does it, then the rule itself
prescribes certain procedures which must be followed before
you can try the case.
MR. GUNTER: And we're going to have to go through
a factual hearing to determine who the exact members of the
class are, and we will demand and require a — ask for, I'll
say that, ask for a hearing on who the members of the class
are.
THE COURT: Well, you got two classes here, and
54
looks to me like you've got problems on each end of the line.
One, you have the class of defendants whom he's
seeking to bind, and that is, I assume, every school board
in Georgia, right?
MR. RINDSKOFF: Eventually. I don't know that
they're all in at this point, but the class of them may be
in.
THE COURT: If they're the people that have to be
bound, you've got a problem about whether or not they can be
bound in this area by the State Board, haven't you?
MR. RINDSKOPF: That's right.
THE COURT: That's as to who are the members of
the class, who are to be enjoined or restrained as you pray.
On the other hand, you have the question of who is
to get the benefit of such injunction, if it's issued, in
terms, as you said while ago, of Black teachers against
White teachers, if, and I don't see how that can be a class,
but you've got problems about who the class is, on both ends.
MR. RINDSKOPF: Yes, sir. That's right.
THE COURT: And, well, all right.
Is there anything else, Gentlemen, that any of
you need to bring up?
MR. EVANS: Well, again, just a question, I would
hope that we would have an order on our motion so we don't
have — well, so we know whether we have to go to Gainesville
73 A o
55
if the hearing is held in Gainesville, prior to going„
THE COURT: Well, —
MR. EVANS: If at all possible.
THE COURT: I'll acquaint Judge Henderson with
your comments. It may be you'll have to go to Gainesville.
But that depends on, if he's entered some order before he
goes up there, if it's in your favor, I see no reason for
you to go. a
MR. EVANS: That would be out point. We would
hope we didn't have to go.
CLERK: If you gentlemen will send me your
authorities in Atlanta — this is a Gainesville case, but
if you'll send them to me here, I'll get them to
Judge Henderson quicker than if you send them there.
MR. EVANS: As of the moment, you have my authority.
It's in the record.
CLERK: All right, sir.
THE COURT: Let me, off the record, —
+++++
(Whereupon, there ensued a discussion off the
record.)
+++++
THE COURT: All right, Gentlemen. Thank you for
coming.
+++++
56
C E R T I F I C A T E
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
1/ James G. Pugh, Official Court Reporter of the
United States District Court for the Northern District of
Georgia, do hereby certify that the foregoing 55 pages
contain a true transcript of the proceedings had before
the said Court held in the City of Atlanta, Georgia, on the
above date in the matter therein stated.
In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand on
this the 13th day of June, 1969.
James G. Pugh, Official
Court Reporter, Northern
District of Georgia.
Ja;
Co
75A FH-FD IN CLERK’S OFFICE
(..-Ly-iubi; L L buLftfl
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
3Y
Deputy Cief£7
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
ROSA A, HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly
situated
VERSUS CIVIL ACTION NO„ 1277
R„ D„ BLANKENEY, Individually
ans as Superintendent of Schools
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P.NIX,
Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
The complaint in the above captioned case seeks redress
for alleged racial discrimination in the firing of two Negro
teachers by the Gainesville (Georgia) City Board of Education.
The motion presently before the court is to dismiss for failure
to state a claim, as to Jack P. Nix, individually and as Georgia
State Superintendent of Schools, and the Georgia State Board of
Education, as parties to the suit. The motion is granted.
On Wednesday, June 11, 1969, a hearing was held, with
counsel for each party present. The above motion was made at the
hearing. The court, Judge Newell Edenfield presiding, directed
the parties orally to submit authority on the jurisdiction of the
court over Nix and the State Board of Education as soon as possible,
and " ... by the end of this week if you can." While counsel for
plaintiffs have submitted no authority, defendants Nix and the
State Board of Education, have submitted a written motion to the
court, accompanied by authority.
O R D E R
76A
As basis for their motion, Nix and the State Board assert
the state constitutional and statutory scheme which generally pro
vides that municipalities shall have the authority to maintain city
or independent school systems. Art. VIII, Sec. VII, Par. I of the
Constitution of the State of Georgia of 1945, Georgia Code Ann.
§2-7001 (1948). In addition, defendants cite Georgia Code Ann.
§32-607 (Supp. 1968), which provides in pertinent part:
All teachers, principals ... and all other
school personnel of local units of admini
stration shall be employed by local boards
of education on the recommendation of the
superintendent of schools of the local unit....
Moreover, plaintiffs submit no authority to show any control by
Mr. Nix or the State Board of Education over teacher employment,
and the court is aware of no authority for that proposition, other
than that cited by defendant, to-wit, the provision in Georgia Code
Ann. §32-608 (Supp. 1968) that personnel employed by local school
systems must hold a certificate issued by the state board certify
ing his or her qualifications and classification. This qualifica
tion is to be based on academic, technical anc^rofessional training
and experience. Finally, as indicated by counsel for defendants
at the hearing, the movants are unaware on the basis of their pay
roll records, as to which teacher is black, white, or otherwise.
Thus, the court concludes that movants simply have no machinery to
discriminate as to the hiring and firing of teachers, at least
under the facts alleged in the complaint before this court.
Therefore, the motion is granted, and the movants are
dismissed as parties to the action.
After this order was prepared, plaintiffs submitted a
brief in opposition to the motion, citing Lee v. Macon County Bd.
- 2 -
77 A
of Educ., 267 F.Supp. 458, 471 (M.D. Ala. 1967), and Turner v .
Goolsby, 255 F.Supp. 724 (S.D. Ga. 1966), both of which were school
desegregation cases, and are distinguished by the court on that
ground. In addition, the Lee case demonstrated, in contrast to the
facts alleged here, "overwhelming" evidence of "extensive control"
by the Alabama State Board of Education, 267 F.Supp. at 471, while,
in the Turner case, neither the state board nor the state superin
tendent were named as parties to the action.
So ordered this the 20th day of June, 1969.
idge, Uni
for the Northern Distri
t Court
t of Georgia
7SA
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
j ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE §
McCRARY, Individually and on §
| behalf of all others similarly §
| situated, §
! ■ §
Plaintiffs, §
I §-vs- §
§
R. D. BLANKENEY, Individually §
and as Superintendent of Schools §
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City §
|School District; GAINESVILLE CITY §
l! BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P„ NIX, §
Individually and as Georgia State §
Superintendent of Schools; and §
(GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION, §
I §
Defendants. §
CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
i!
MOTION TO DISMISS
COME NOW, JACK P. NIX, Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools, and the GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCA
TION, and move that complaint be dismissed as to these defendants,
or in the alternative, that they be dropped as parties defendant
pursuant to Rule 21 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on
!the ground that the complaint fails to state a cause of action
;against these defendants.
ARTHUR K„ BOIfTON
Attorney General
HAROLD N. HILL, JR.
Executive Assistant Attorney General
7 >
79 A
(Mfj 7T Cj
ALFrId EVANS, Jr 7~ ~
Assistant Attorney General
| Please address all
| communications to
i attention of:
ALFRED L . EVANSe JR .
Assistant Attorney General
132 Judicial Building
j 40 Capitol Square
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
Telephone: 525-0401
This is to :e ” ip- i'"-?' >
opoovng parly o' I. « "
Pbad nc b ;
same in a p ro p v iy .
Dr SERVICE
: I'v-. s'Tvad course! for
i iio r v'ith a copy cf this
.• t js M at a ccp v cf
_ . i, h adequate postage
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73
M E M O R A N D U M BRIEF
DISTINGUISH POINTS OF TURNER V. GOOLSBY, 255 F. SUPP
724 ( S.D. GA. 1966) CASE AT BAR
L. In Turner v. Goolsby the State Superintendent and State
Board of Education were added as Parties Defendant at court's
suggestion when it appeared during the course of the hearing
unwilling or
that the County School Board had showed itseLf wholly/unable
to comply with desegregation requirements and had in fact been
iLLegialLy using state funds to transport white students
out ot the county to avoid desegregation. The state was
added ,in other words, after the need for relief became apparent.
Here in the case at bar, there is no need because of the fact
that should the locaL system be shown to have been acting
improperly the obvious remedy is the compelling of the local
board to reinstate the teachers in question. If the teachers
are reinstated, there is obviousLy no reason to withhoLd state
funds and on the other hand, if the local board is found to have
acted correctLy, there is still no reason to withhoLd state
funds.
2* In iurner v, Goolsby the State Level defendants were added
upon the court’s suggestion in order that the State School
Superintendent could be appointed as a receiver for the LocaL
board which was shown to be unable or unwilling to comply with
the requirements of Law respecting desegregation. There is
certainly no similar showing in the case at bar.
-1 • -̂n turner v. Goolsby the situation in Toliver County was one
which threatened mass vioLence. For this reason, the state
desiring to do aLL it could to calm the situation, interposed no
objection either to be added as parties defendant or to be
appointed as a receiver. Nothwithslanding the fact that it was the
81A
opinion of the state at the time that the appointment was
without authority of Law.
4. It may finally be noted that no relief was obtained against
the state Level defendants in Turner v. Goolsby.
Respectfully submitted,
AL Evans
Department of Law
State of Georgia
82A
\
°/b %
* n
7 \<*V t>■■.;> y,<
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
X
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on X
behalf of all others similarly
situated, X
Plaintiffs, X
CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
-vs- X
R. D. BLANKENEY, Individually X
and as Superintendent of Schools
of the Gainesville, Georgia,City X
School District,- GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX, X
Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools; and X
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
X
Defendants.
X
PLAINTIFFS' MEMORANDUM IN OPPOSITION TO DEFENDANTS'
MOTION TO DISMISS FOR FAILURE TO STATE A CLAIM OR,
ALTERNATIVELY, TO BE DISMISSED AS PARTIES DEFENDANT
Defendants, JACK P. NIX and the GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF
EDUCATION have moved the Court for an order dismissing the com
plaint or, in the alternative, that they be dismissed as parties
defendant. The grounds of their motion is "that the complaint
fails to state a cause of action against them. . ."
Defendants have attached to their motion a memorandum in
which they argue that they have no control over the hiring and
firing of school teachers. They assert that the Constitution of
the State of Georgia (Art. VIII, §V, para. I) and various
sections of Title 32 (The Education Code) relegate such matters
‘7 /
to the local boards of education. They assert that their
involvement is limited to issuing a professional certification.
Defendants then relate that they have other administrative
functions of a nominal record-keeping nature.
POINT I
DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO DISMISS FOR
FAILURE TO STATE A CLAIM MUST BE
DENIED BECAUSE THE ALLEGATIONS OF
THE COMPLAINT ARE ADEQUATE TO STATE
A CAUSE OF ACTION AGAINST THEM.
A cause of action is stated against the defendants. The
complaint alleges that defendants, Nix and Georgia State
Board of Education, have supported and sustained the actions
in
of the other defendants culminating/the refusal to hire the
named plaintiffs because of their race or color (Para. 12).
Plaintiffs allege that these "defendants continue to give
financial and technical aid to defendant Gainesville City
Board of Education," despite its involvement "in forbidden
racial discrimination" (Para. 13). The complaint further
alleges that Nix and the Georgia State Board of Education
"continue to supply financial and other types of aid to school
districts throughout the State of Georgia who refuse to rehire
Negro teachers on the grounds of their race or color” (Para.
16). Elsewhere in the complaint (Paras. 5, 6) plaintiffs
show that Nix is a state officer and that the Georgia State
Board of Education is a state agency, each acting under color
of the authority of their offices and under state law. Plain
tiffs allege that the aid that defendants have given directly
to such "unlawful segregation and discrimination" violates the
Constitution and laws of the United States (Para. 14).
These allegations stat® a cause of action against the
defendants and this Court is authorized to entertain this
83 A
-2-
^ 7
84.4
action. Monroe v. Pape, 365 U. S. 167 (1961); Snowden v.
Hughes, 321 U. S. 1 (1943.
Plaintiffs have done all that they are required to do
under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure: they have set
forth, in their complaint, a short and plain statement of the
facts entitling them to relief against Nix and the Georgia
State Board of Education. See, Rachel v. Georgia, 342 F. 2d
333, at 340 (5th Cir. 1965), aff'd 384 U. S. 780 (1966).
There, the Court emphasized by reiterating the rule to be
followed when a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim
is to be decided; namely:
"[T]he courts have ruled time and again
that a motion to dismiss for failure
to state a claim should not be granted
unless it appears to a certainty that the
plaintiff would be entitled to no relief
under any state of facts which could be
proved in support of his claim" Des Isles
v. Evans, 200 F. 2d 614, 615 (5thCirT
D “ST) T ~
■k k is *
"Under the Rules of Civil Procedure a case
consists not in the pleadings, but the
evidence, for which the pleadings furnish
the basis. Cases are generally to be
tried on the proofs rather than the
pleadings." DeLoach v. Crowley, Inc.,
128 F. 2d 378, 380 (5th Cir.~l§"42) .
POINT II
THE MOTION TO DISMISS OR, ALTERNATIVELY,
TO DROP DEFENDANTS NIX AND THE GEORGIA
STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION MUST BE DENIED
BECAUSE THEY ARE PROPER PARTIES DEFENDANT.
Defendants, Nix and the Georgia State Board of Education,
are proper parties and are subject to the jurisdiction of the
1/
Court. They have the power to control and disburse all monies
to the local systems from the federal government under various
1/ At the depositions taken on June 18, 1969 of defendant
-3-
________________ ____2JL
federal statutes. (For examples, §2000d, 42 United States
Code, Education Act of 1965 (Title I, P-L. 89-10,79 Stat. 27).)
Both the legislative history of Title I, Public Law 89-10
and the regulations made pursuant thereto show that the
defendants are required to secure the compliance of the local
system with federal laws against racial discrimination in
federally assisted programs. See, 1 U. S. Code Cong. & Adm.
News, 89th Cong., 1st Sess., 1965, p. 1480. Section 116.31(c),
45 Code of Federal Regulations provides:
". . .(c) The application for partici
pation by the State in the grant program
shall contain an assurance of the State
educational agency that each application
by a local educational agency (including
a State agency directly responsible for
providing free public education for
handicapped children or for children in
institutions for neglected or delinquent
children) approved by the State educa
tional agency will comply with the re
quirements of Title I of the Act and the
regulations in subpart C of this part,
that the State educational agency will
require each such local educational agency
to carry out all assurances given by it in,
and to perform all obligations imposed on
it in connection with its approved appli
cations for grants and that the State
educational agency will in all other respects
comply with the requirements imposed on it
by Title X of the Act and the regulations
in this part."
The defendants are substantially involved in the employ
ment of public school teachers. Section 611, 32 Georgia Code
1/ CONTINUED f"
Blankeney, it was brought out that the Gainesville City
Board of Education receives a total of $130,000 from the
federal government. This money is not paid directly to the
local board but is paid to the Georgia State Board of
Education. The Georgia State Board of Education then dis
tributes the monies to the local school system. Even the
plan of desegregation as well as the letter of assurance of
compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 are
routed through defendants Nix and the Georgia State Board of
Education.
8GA
Annotated, requires defendants to allot teachers to the local
school systems and for providing funds with which to pay them.
Of the approximately 200 teachers and specialists employed
by the Gainesville City Board of Education, roughly 175 of them
are state allotted teachers. The defendants contribute more
than $1,200,000 in state funds to the $2 ,000,000 budget of the
Gainesville City Board of Education [from the deposition of
defendant Blankeney on June 18, 1969]. Defendants are re
quired to fix the minimum qualifications for teachers. Section
607, 32 Ga. Code Ann. No person can teach in the State of
Georgia unless he holds a certificate issued by the State Board
of Education. Section 608, 32 Georgia Code Annotated.
The Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments obligate the
defendants to operate their program of financial and technical
assistance to local boards without discrimination or segrega
tion on the basis of race or color. See Burton v. Wilmington
Parking Authority, 365 U. S. 715 (1961). The defendants cannot
shift the whole burden to local systems to assure nondiscrimina
tion in the employment of teachers. See, Evans v. Newton, 382
U. S. 296 (1966). Defendants financial involvement in the
operations of the local system places them in a controlling and
dominating position with respect to the employment of teachers.
Lee v. Macon County Board of Education, 267 F. Supp. 458, 471
(M.D. Ala. 1967).
Substantial relief is sought against the defendants.
Plaintiffs seek an injunction which would compe1 defendants to
promulgate guidelines which would prevent or prohibit racial
discrimination in the employment, dismissal or assignment of
teachers (Prayers g(l) (2) (3) of the complaint). An order is
also sought which would result in a cut-off of federal or state
funds to the Gainesville City Board of Education,if it did not
cease and desist from discriminating on the basis of race with
-5-
. 8 7 A
respect to the employment, dismissal and assignment of teachers
(Prayer (f)). The evidence developed at the deposition on
June 18, 1969, shows that the Gainesville City Board of Educa
tion has only hired two Black teachers out of a total of fifty
in the last two years; that few Black teachers are assigned to
predominately white schools; and that few white teachers are
assigned to the two all-Black schools operated by that defen
dant. Additional relief of identical scope is prayed for
against other wrongdoing school systems as well as the appoint
ment of a receiver (Prayers (f) and (h)).
The propriety of granting the relief sought against the
Georgia State Board of Education and the State Superintendent
has been judicially recognized. Lee v, Macon County Board of
Education, supra; Turner v, Goolsby, 255 F. Supp. 724 (N.D. Ga.
1966) . In Turner, the defendant Nix, then the recent successor
to jr. Purcell, was appointed receiver of the Taliaferro County
School System in a rather analogus situation. The local school
officials in Taliaferro County were permitting the white
children of that county to attend school in adjoining counties,
so as to avoid desegregation of its school system. The defen
dants had availed themselves of the power conferred upon local
school systems to contract with adjoining counties to covertly
arrange transportation for the white students. The similarity
of Turner with the instant case lies in the fact that the Court
went behind the customary practices of local boards to eradicate
racial discrimination in public education and called upon the
State Superintendent because of the financial assistance given
the local system and his expertise in school matters. 255 F.
Supp. 729, 734. United States v, Jefferson County Board of
Education, 372 F. 2d 836 (5th Cir. 1966), leaves no room to
doubt both the necessity and propriety of promulgating guide
lines against racial discrimination in employment, dismissal,
and assignment of public school teachers.
- 6 -
____________________________________________________________—
SbA
WHEREFORE, the plaintiffs, having demonstrated that their
complaint states a claim against the defendants and that
substantial relief is sought against them so as to make then
proper parties, pray that the motion to dismiss or to drop
the State defendants be overruled and denied.
Dated: June 19, 1969.
Respectfully submitted,
HOWARD MOORE, JR7
PETER E. RINDSKOPF
859 1/2 Hunter St., N. W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30314
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD HARPER
10 Columbus Circle
New York, New York 10019
ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFS
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that I have this day, prior to filing,
served a copy of the within and foregoing memorandum of plain
tiffs upon counsel for defendants by depositing copies of same
in the United States mail, addressed to:
Hon. Alfred Evans
Assistant Attorney General
132 Judicial Building
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
&
William B. Gunter, Esq.
Post Office Box 415
Gainesville, Georgia
with adequate postage affixed thereto, to mail the same first
class, this 19th day of June, 1969.
/lvYk(
HOWARD MOORE, JR.
OF COUNSEL
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
ROSA A <, HEAD and CLARA BELLE §
MCCRARY, Individually and on §
behalf of all others similarly §
situated, §
§
Plaintiffs, §
§
-vs- §
§
R0 D. BLANKENEY, Individually §
and as Superintendent of Schools §
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City §
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY §
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX, §
Individually and as Georgia State §
Superintendent of Schools; and §
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION. §
§
Defendants. §
CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
MEMORANDUM OF LAW IN SUPPORT OF
THE MOTION TO DISMISS OF THE
STATE SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT
AND STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
The instant complaint shows on its face that it is
brought to secure redress for plaintiffs who allege racial dis
crimination in the refusal of the local school superintendent and
local board of education of the City of Gainesville, Georgia, to
re-employ them for the coming school year. It is contended that
the refusal of the Gainesville City defendants to rehire them is
solely because of the fact that the two plaintiffs involved are of
the Negro race.
In providing for the county school system as the basic
unit of school organization in Georgia (See, Art. VIII, Sec. V,
Paragraph I of the Constitution of the State of Georgia of 1945,
SOA
i|
j Ga. Code Ann. § 2-6801), the Georgia Constitution expressly pro
vides that municipalities shall have the authority to continue
existing city or independent school systems. See, Art. VIII,
:Sec. VII, Paragraph I of the Constitution of the State of Georgia
f«jTRviI of 1945 (Ga. Code Ann. § 2-7001). This/constitutional provision
! expressly declares that such systems are to be maintained and j
! supported "as authorized by local or special law. "
Similarly, Georgia Code Ann. § 32-607 provides in per
tinent part:
"All teachers, principals . . . and all other
school personnel of local units of administration
shall be employed by local boards of education
; on the recommendation of the superintendent of
l
schools of the local unit „ . . „ “
It is clear beyond doubt, in other words, that the
;employment and retention of teachers of the approximately 196
i; school systems within the State of Georgia is a matter which rests
I!under the exclusive control of the local school superintendent
ij
|i and local county or municipal board of education.
The sole involvement of the State Board of Education
with teacher employment by local school systems is that Ga. Code
jjAnn. § 32-608 provides that personnel employed by local school
j|systems must hold a certificate issued by the state board certi-
|i
i!fying to his or her qualifications and classification (The same!;
j Code Section expressly provides that such classifications shall
| be based only upon academic, technical, and professional training
!
j and experience), and its payment of an educational grant to local
i!school systems which is in part based upon the amount of monies
2
91A
iii
I S required to pay for the salaries of that number of teachers
!i deemed necessary to provide for a minimum level of education in
lithe local school system. In connection with this activity, the
I State Department of Education receives a monthly listing of
teachers employed by local school systems. The names appearing
on the list change monthly as teachers leave the system for such
reasons as relocation, marriage, or dismissal. The State Depart-
jmentfeonly concern with the list is to verify the fact that the
; Ij| teachers' names thereon are certified and to ascertain the total
jjnumber of teachers employed each month. The State Department of
j
jj Education does not review older lists to determine who has depart-
iiI!|ed from the school system and, even if it did compare such olderii
|l lists with a present list it would have absolutely no way of know-
iij|ing the reason why a given teacher was no longer employed within
I| j a school system.II
The absence of any practical reason for the retention
of the state level defendants as parties defendant also appears
jwhen one considers that a question as to whether a teacher does
I||not receive a contract of employment for' justifiable educational
^reasons as opposed to improper racial reasons will in each case
ijrequire judicial inquiry into the precise facts of the matter.II
ijlf the court finds that the failure to re-employ a teacher is due
l| to improper racial motives, it will obviously require the rein-
jstatement of the teacher. In such event, would hardly be any
|i . V ffWijreason to require the State Board to/hold state funds from the
jj
jj school system which acted improperly. If, on the other hand, the
1 oca I school board is found to have acted properly, any? withholdingjj /
jjof funds by the State Board would be unlawful. (Under State law,
j j of course, the withholding of funds would probably be unlawful in
jjeither event - - federal funds were never withheld prior to the
3
92k
his $ . >PPÔf
:>l:vadin
:am e.in
r eon
!l964 Civil Rights Act which expressly authorized the withholding
‘of federal funds).
| In summary, plaintiffs, if they prevail on the merits
jare manifestly in position to obtain full and complete judicial
relief through an injunction issued by the court against their
employers (the local school superintendent and school board of
Gainesville). There is no reason to retain the State School
i
Superintendent and State Board of Education as parties when under
jstate law, they have no authority respecting plaintiffs1 employ
ment by the Gainesville School System and it is noted finally that
plaintiffs who were asked during the pretrial hearing as to whether
they had authority to support the retention of the State School
Isuperintendent and State Board of Education as parties defendant
under a state legal system similar to Georgia's have wholly failed,
to the best of our knowledge, to furnish any legal authority what-
HAROLD N0 HILL, JR.
Executive Assistant Attorney General
93 A
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
Claude I**
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McGRARY, I n d i v i d u a l l y and on
b e h a l f o f a l l o t h e r s s i m i l a r l y
s i t u a t e d ,
P l a i n t i f f s ,
v.
R.D. BLANKENEY, I n d i v i d u a l l y
and as S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f Sch oo l s
o f t h e G a i n e s v i l l e , G e o r g i a , C i ty
School D i s t r i c t ; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX,
I n d i v i d u a l l y and as G e o rg i a S t a t e
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s ; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
)
)
)
)
) CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
)
)
)
)
D e f e n d a n t s . )
.)
PLAINTIFFS' MOTION TO ALTER OR AMEND AN ORDER
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE McCRARY, i n d i v i d u a l l y and
on b e h a l f o f a l l o t h e r s s i m i l a r l y s i t u a t e d , p l a i n t i f f s i n
the above numbered and e n t i t l e d c i v i l a c t i o n , p u r s u a n t t o
Rule 59 (e ) o f t h e F e d e r a l Rules o f C i v i l P r o c e d u r e , w i t h i n
t e n (10) days o f t h e e n t r y o f t h e O rd e r o f June 20, 1969,
move t h e Cour t f o r an o r d e r amending o r a l t e r i n g t h i s o r d e r
t o c o r r e c t and e r r o r o f l a w ; n a m e l y :
A. That th e c o m p l a i n t a i d n o t s t a t e a caus e o f a c t i o n
a g a i n s t t h e d e f e n d a n t s , J a c k P . N i x , i n d i v i d u a l l y and as
G eor gi a S t a t e S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s , and G eorg ia S t a t e
Board o f E d u c a t io n and t h a t t h e e v i d e n c e was i n s u f f i c i e n t to
a u t h o r i z e t h e ca se t o p r o c e e d a g a i n s t s a i d d e f e n d a n t s ,
b ec au se t h ey d i d n o t a p p e a r to have e x t e n s i v e c o n t r o l o v e r
l o c a l u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n .
- 1 -
94A
B. In s u p p o r t o f t h e i r c o m p l a i n t and t h i s m o t i o n ,
p l a i n t i f f s a r e p r e p a r e d t o show a t t h e h e a r i n g s c h e d u l e d
f o r J une 23, 1969, t h e f o l l o w i n g f a c t s :
1. C e r t i f i e d copy o f th e 1960 Census T ab le s f o r t h e
S t a t e o f G e o r g i a which show t h a t o f t h e a p p r o x i m a t e l y
4 , 5 0 0 ,0 0 0 p e o p l e l i v i n g w i t h i n t h e S t a t e o f G e o rg i a 28.341
o f them a r e B lack o r N e g r o .
2. C e r t i f i e d r e p o r t o f t h e Depar tment o f H e a l t h
E d u c a t io n and Wei f a r e which shows t h a t t h e r e a r e a p p r o x
i m a t e l y 193 s c h o o l d i s t r i c t s , o r u n i t s o f l o c a l a d m i n i s t r a
t i o n i n t h e S t a t e o f G e o rg i a and th e e x t e n t each d i s t r i c t
has com pl ied o r f a i l e d to comply w i t h t h e g u i d e l i n e s
p r o m u l g a t e d by t h e Depar tment o f H e a l t h E d u c a t i o n and
W elf ar e t o a c h i e v e t h e e l i m i n a t i o n o f t h e d u a l s c h o o l
sys tem r e q u i r e d u n d e r t h e p r o v i s i o n s o f S e c t i o n 6401, 2
G eorg ia Code A n n o t a t e d .
3. A s t u d y co n d u c te d by th e G eorg ia T ea ch e r s and
E d u c a t io n A s s o c i a t i o n ( h e r e i n a f t e r r e f e r r e d t o as GTEA),
201 Ashby S t r e e t , N.W., A t l a n t a , G e o r g i a , a s t a t e - w i d e
a s s o c i a t i o n o f B lack o r Negro t e a c h e r s and p r i n c i p a l s
employed o r s e e k i n g employment i n th e p u b l i c s c h o o l sys tem
s c h o o l s i n th e S t a t e o f G e o r g i a .
4. A summary o f th e s t u d y c o n d u c te d by t h e GTEA as
w e l l as t h e q u e s t i o n n a i r e s u s ed i n t h e s u r v e y o f t h i r t y
c o u n t i e s i n Nor th G e o rg i a i n which " a f f i r m a t i v e a c t i o n " has
been t a k e n in com plai nce w i t h t h e g u i d e l i n e s o f t h e Depar t -
ment o f H e a l t h , E d u c a t io n and Wei f a r e t o e l i m i n a t e r a c i a l
s e g r e g a t i o n o r d i s c r i m i n a t i o n a g a i n s t s t u d e n t s . S a id s tu d y
shows t h a t i n t h e y e a r 1963-64 t h e r e were 742 Black o r
Negro t e a c h e r s employed in t h e t h i r t y sys tem s and a t t h e
end o f t h e s c h o o l y e a r 196 8-69 on ly 544 Black o r Negro
t e a c h e r s were so em ployed . S a id summary would a l s o show
-2-
3 5 A
t h a t o f t h e 54 Black o r Negro p r i n c i p a l s employed i n th e
t h i r t y sys tem s in 1963-64 o n ly 24 a r e so employed a t t h e
end o f s c h o o l y e a r 1968-69 .
5. The s o l e e x p l a n a t i o n f o r t h i s r e d u c t i o n i n t h e
number o f B lack o r Negro t e a c h e r s and p r i n c i p a l s i s
d i s c r i m i n a t i o n on t h e grounds o f r a c e o r c o l o r . P I a i n t i f f s
would e s t a b l i s h t h i s by competen t w i t n e s s e s who would
t e s t i f y t h a t t h e t o t a l e n r o l l m e n t i n t h e s e sys tem s has
n o t d e c r e a s e d , b u t has i n c r e a s e d by 8618. There i s no
d e a r t h o f com pe tent and q u a l i f i e d B lack o r Negro p e r s o n s
d e s i r i n g t e a c h i n g p o s i t i o n s w i t h i n t h e S t a t e o f G e o r g i a .
GTEA has on f i l e t h e a p p l i c a t i o n o f a p p r o x i m a t e l y 55 Black
o r Negro p e r s o n s s e e k i n g t e a c h i n g p o s i t i o n s . The su p p ly o f
t r a i n e d and q u a l i f i e d Black o r Negro t e a c h e r s i s e x c e p t i o n a l
due t o t h e f a c t t h a t t h e r e a r e e i g h t p r e d o m i n a t e l y Black
c o l l e g e s and two p r e d o m i n a t e l y Black g r a d u a t e s c h o o l s in
t h e S t a t e o f G e o r g i a . Each o f s a i d s c h o o l s o f f e r s a major
and minor i n e d u c a t i o n and t h e g r a d u a t e s c h o o l s o f f e r a
m a s t e r s deg ree i n e d u c a t i o n . Three o f t h e p r e d o m i n a t e l y
Black c o l l e g e s , Albany S t a t e , F o r t V a l l e y S t a t e , and
Savannah S t a t e , a r e d i v i s i o n s o f th e U n i v e r s i t y System o f
G eor gi a and a r e u n d e r t h e c o n t r o l o f d e f e n d a n t s Nix and
G eorg ia S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t i o n .
6. D e fen d an t s Nix and G eo rg ia S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t io n
by v i r t u e o f f e d e r a l and s t a t e law contrjU>uL£_£Xtens i ve
f i n a n c i a l and t e c h n i c a l a i d to ea ch l o c a l u n i t o f a d m i n i s
t r a t i o n i n t h e S t a t e o f G e o r g i a . For e x a m p l e , d e f e n d a n t s
c o n t r i b u t e a p p r o x i m a t e l y $130,000 i n f e d e r a l money and
a p p r o x i m a t e l y $ 1 ,2 0 0 ,0 0 0 i n s t a t e funds t o t h e G a i n s v i l l e
C i ty Board o f E d u c a t i o n , e ach s c h o o l y e a r .
-3-
96A
7. S e c t i o n 2 0 0 0 d , 42 U n i t e d S t a t e s Code, p r o h i b i t s
d i s c r i m i n a t i o n on t h e b a s i s o f r a c e o r c o l o r i n t h e
a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o f f e d e r a l l y a s s i s t e d p r o g r a m s . Under
T i t l e I , P u b l i c Law 8 9 - 1 0 , E d u c a t i o n Act o f 1965, d e f e n d
a n t s Mix and G e o r g i a S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t io n r e c e i ve a l l
f e d e r a l moni e s due t h e S t a t e o f G eo rg ia and d i s t r i b u t e
t h e same to t h e l o c a l u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n .
8. D e fen d an t s Nix and G eo rg ia S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t io n
a r e au t h o r i z e d by law t o a l l o t t e a c h e r s t o e a c h o f t h e l o c a l
u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , o r s c h o o l s y s t e m s . For example ,
o f t h e a p p r o x i m a t e l y 200 t e a c h e r s employed by th e d e f e n d a n t
G a i n e s v i l l e C i ty Board o f E d u c a t i o n , r o u g h l y 175 o f them
a r e s t a t e a l l o t t e d . D e fen d an t s Nix and G e o rg i a S t a t e
Board o f E d u c a t io n a r e c h a r g e d by law w i t h t h e d u ty t o
a l l o t t funds t o each l o c a l u n i t o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n w i th
which to pay s a i d s t a t e a l l o t t e d t e a c h e r s .
9. Defen d a n t s Nix and G e o rg i a S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t io n
a r e ch a r g ed by law w i t h t h e d u ty t o f i x minimum s t a n d a r d s
f o r t e a c h e r s , and no t e a c h e r can t e a c h w i t h i n t h e S t a t e o f
G e o rg i a u n l e s s he meets t h e minimum s t a n d a r d s f i x e d by
d e f e n d a n t s and i s so c e r t i f i e d .
10. The con t r a c t o f ev e r y p e r s o n who t e a c h e s., i n the
S t a t e o f Georg ia ija„ e x p r e s s l y made s u b j e c t t o j thfi power
and—aur thoxi t v o f t h e de f e n d a n t s Nix and G e o rg i a S t a t e Board
o f E d u c a t io n .
S i . N o t i c e o f t h e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f t h i s mo t ion has been
g iv en th e d e f e n d a n t s Nix and G e o rg i a S t a t e Board o f E duca
t i o n by a t e l e g r a m d i r e c t e d t o t h e i r c o u n s e l o f r e c o r d ,
ALFRED EVENS, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE STATE OF
GEORGIA, 132 J u d i c i a l B u i l d i n g , A t l a n t a , G e o r g i a .
-4-
B7A.
Dated: June 21, 1969.
R e s p e c t f u l l y s u b m i t t e d ,
HOWARD MOORE, JR.
PETER E. RINDSKOPF
859 1/2 H u n te r S t r e e t , N.W.
A t l a n t a , G e o rg i a 30314
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD K. HARPER
10 Columbus C i r c l e
New York, New York 10019
ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFS
-5-
98A
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McGRARY, I n d i v i d u a l l y and on
b e h a l f o f a l l o t h e r s s i m i l a r l y
s i t u a t e d ,
P l a i n t i f f s ,
v.
R.D. B lan k en ey , I n d i v i d u a l l y
and as S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f Sch oo l s
o f the G a i n e s v i l l e , G e o r g i a , C i ty
School D i s t r i c t ; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P.NIX,
I n d i v i d u a l l y and as G e o rg i a S t a t e
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S choo l s ; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
)
)
)
)
) CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
)
)
)
)
D e f e n d a n t s . )
)
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF MOTION
TO ALTER OR AMEND AN ORDER
P l a i n t i f f s i n c o r p o r a t e by r e f e r e n c e t h e i r memorandum
s u b m i t t e d to the Cour t on Jun e 19, 1969 in o p p o s i t i o n t o t h e
mot ion o f d e f e n d a n t s Nix and G eorg ia S t a t e Board o f E d u c a t i o n .
I t i s p l a i n t i f f s ' p o s i t i o n t h a t t h e o r d e r o f June 20,
1969 d i s m i s s i n g d e f e n d a n t s Nix and G eorg ia S t a t e Board o f
E d u c a t io n on th e grounds co n ten d e d f o r by them i s c l e a r l y
e r r o n e o u s and ought t o be c o r r e c t e d .
The s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s a r g u ed t h a t t h e c o m p la in t d id
n o t s t a t e a c l a im a g a i n s t them o r , i n th e a l t e r n a t i v e , t h a t
t h ey s h o u l d be dropped as d e f e n d a n t s on t h e a s s e r t i o n t h a t
t h e y have no power to h i r e o r d i s m i s s p u b l i c s c h o o l t e a c h e r s .
The Cour t a g r e e d w i t h t h e d e f e n d a n t s and d i s m i s s e d the
a c t i o n a g a i n s t them, b ecause " p l a i n t i f f s { s u b m i t t e d ) no
a u t h o r i t y t o show any c o n t r o l by Mr. Nix o r t h e S t a t e Board
o f E d u c a t io n o v e r t e a c h e r employment . . . . " (Order June 20,
1969, p . 2 ) . /Emphas is ad d e d / The Cour t t h e n i d e n t i f i e d th e
99A
r e a s o n s i t t h o u g h t t h a t t h e c o n c l u s i o n which i t had r e a c h e d
was c o r r e c t . F i r s t t h e Cour t s t a t e d t h a t t h e power g r a n t e d
by s t a t e law t o t h e d e f e n d a n t s t o c e r t i f y t e a c h e r s d i d n o t
g i ve them c o n t r o l over employment p r a c t i c e s . Second , the
s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s a r e unaware o f t h e r a c e o f t e a c h e r s , b ec au se
t h e r e c o r d s r e c e i v e d by them do n o t show t h e r a c e o f t e a c h e r s .
These r e a s o n s were th en summaried i n t o a f a c t u a l f i n d i n g to
t h e e f f e c t t h a t d e f e n d a n t s " s i m p l y have no m ach ine ry t o
d i s c r i m i n a t e as t o t h e h i r i n g and f i r i n g o f t e a c h e r s . . . "
( I b i d ) . The Cour t f i n a l l y a t t e m p t e d to d i s t i n g u i s h Lee v.
Macon County Board o f E d u c a t i o n , 267 F. Supp. 4S8, 471
(M.D. Ala 1967) and T u rn e r v. G o o l s b y , 255 F. Supp. 724
(S.D. Ga. 1966 ) , on t h e grounds t h a t b o t h o f them "were
s c h o o l d e s e g r e g a t i o n c a s e s . . . " ( I b i d , 3) .
The c o m p l a i n t s t a t e s a cause o f a c t i o n u n d e r the
a u t h o r i t y o f Monroe v. P a p e , 365 U.S. 167 (1 9 6 1 ) , and
Hornsby v. A l l e n , 326 F .2d 605 ( 5 t h C i r . 1 9 64) , r e h e a r i n g
o f which was d e n i e d 330 F .2d 55. In Monroe, t h e p l a i n t i f f s
a B lack man and h i s f a m i l y , c l aimed t h a t t h e p o l i c e o f the
C i ty o f Cnicago d e p r i v e d them o f t h e i r f e d e r a l l y p r o t e c t e d
r i g h t s by s e a r c h i n g t h e i r home w i t h o u t a w a r r a n t , a r r e s t i n g ,
and d e t a i n i n g Mr. Monroe. The d i s t r i c t c o u r t d i s m i s s e d t h e
a c t i o n on mot ion o f p o l i c e o f f i c e r s and t h e C i ty o f Chicago
f o r f a i l u r e t o s t a t e a c l a i m . The d e f e n d a n t s had u rg ed t h a t
s t a t e a c t i o n i n c l u d e d o n ly a c t i o n t a k e n by o f f i c i a l s p u r
s u a n t t o s t a t e l a w . The Supreme Cour t s p e c i f i c a l l y r e j e c t e d
t h a t argument and h e l d t h a t :
Misuse o f p o w e r , p o s s e s s e d by v i r t u e
o f s t a t e law and made p o s s i b l e on ly
b ecause th e wrong d o e r i s c l o t h e d w i t h
the a u t h o r i t y o f s t a t e law, i s a c t i o n
t ak en u nder ' c o l o r o f s t a t e l a w . ' "
365 A U .S . , a t 184.
The F i f t h C i r c u i t i n Hornsby h e l d t h a t a co m p la in t
which s im p ly s t a t e d t h e p l a i n t i f f had been d e n i e d a p ro -
-2-
1.00 A
t e c t e d r i g h t , p r i v i l e g e o r immuni ty and t h a t t h e d e f e n d a n t s
a c t e d u n d e r c o l o r o f s t a t e o r l o c a l law s t a t e d a caus e o f
a c t i o n unde r t h e C i v i l R ig h t s A c t . 326 F .2d 612. Mrs . Hornsby
m ere ly c l a i m e d t h a t she had been a r b i t r a r i l y d e n i e d due
p r o c e s s o f law by t h e w i t h h o l d i n g o f a l i q u o r l i c e n s e f o r
which she was o t h e r w i s e q u a l i f i e d .
The e r r o r o f d i s m i s s i n g the c o m p l a i n t f o r f a i l u r e t o
s t a t e a c l a i m i s one p r o b a b l y a t t r i b u t a b l e t o h a s t e , f o r
th e Cour t c e r t a i n l y u n d e r s t a n d s t h e law in t h i s a r e a ,
as r e f l e c t e d i n t h e d e c i s i o n on t h e mo t ion o f t h e d e f e n d a n t
G r i f i n - S p a l d i n g County H o s p i t a l A u t h o r i t y t o d i s m i s s in
H a r r i s e t a l v. Dr. H.A. F o s t e r , e t a l , C/A No. 881,
Newnan D i v i s i o n , June 20, 1969. Thi s c a s e i s no d i f f e r e n t
i n p r i n c i p l e from H a r r i s . The p l a i n t i f f s and t h e c l a s s
t h e y r e p r e s e n t a r e c o n t e n d i n g t h a t the s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s ar e
p a r t i c i p a n t s i n a f e d e r a l l y a s s i s t e d program as w e l l as
s t a t e a s s i s t e d p u b l i c e d u c a t i o n p rogram. The e s s e n c e o f
p l a i n t i f f s c l a i m s , as a r e t h o s e o f Mrs . H a r r i s , i s t h a t
t h ey a r e b e in g s u b j e c t e d to d i f f e r e n t i a l t r e a t m e n t on th e
grounds of t h e i r r a c e o r c o l o r in t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o f
th e p u b l i c s c h o o l s o f G e o rg i a . They a r e b e in g d i s c r i m i n a t e d
a g a i n s t w i t h r e s p e c t t o employment , d i s m i s s a l s , and
a s s i g n m e n t s .
The f a c t t h a t l o c a l u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o r l o c a l
s c h o o l boa rds a c t u a l l y make th e i n i t i a l s e l e c t i o n o f the
p e r s o n s t o be h i r e d and r e t a i n e d as t e a c h e r s does n o t
i n s u l a t e t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s fromrfche p r o s c r i p t i o n s o f the
F o u r t e e n t h Amendment and f e d e r a l laws p r o v i d i n g f o r eq u a l
r i g h t s . The p o s i t i o n o f th e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s v i s a v i s
the l o c a l u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n , f o r p u r p o s e s o f f e d e r a l
C o n s t i t u t i o n a l and S t a t u t e law, i s c l o s e l y an a lo g o u s to
-3-
101A
to t h e p o s i t i o n o f t h e r e s t a u r a n t e u r i n B ur t on v . Wilmington
P a r k i n g A u t h o r i t y , 365 U.S. 715 (196 1) .
T h e r e , th e A u t h o r i t y , a c r e a t u r e o f t h e s t a t e , l e a s e d
sp ace t o t h e o p e r a t o r o f a c o f f e e shop i n an o f f - s t r e e t
p a r k i n g f a c i l i t y . The p r i v a t e o p e r a t o r o f t h e c o f f e e shop
r e f u s e d to s e r v e B lacks b ec au se o f t h e i r r a c e o r c o l o r .
The f a c i l i t y was owned by th e Wilmington P a r k i n g A u t h o r i t y ,
an agency o f t h e S t a t e o f De laware . The Supreme C o u r t ,
n o t i n g t h e e x t e n s i v e i n v o lvem en t o f th e C i ty o f Wilmington
and t h e S t a t e dm t h e f i n a n c i n g o f t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f th e
f a c i l i t y h e l d t h a t :
A d d i t i o n o f a l l t h e s e a c t i v i t i e s , o b l i g a t i o n s
and r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s o f t h e A u t h o r i t y , t h e b e n e f i t s
m u t u a l l y c o n f e r r e d , t o g e t h e r w i t h th e o bv ious f a c t
t h a t t h e r e s t a u r a n t i s o p e r a t e d as an i n t e g r a l p a r t
of a p u b l i c b u i l d i n g d ev o ted to a p u b l i c p a r k i n g
s e r v i c e , i n d i c a t e s t h a t d eg r ee o f s t a t e p a r t i c i p a
t i o n and in v o lvem en t i n d i s c r i m i n a t o r y a c t i o n
which i t was the d e s i g n o f t h e F o u r t e e n t h Amendment
t o condemn. I t i s i r o n y amoun t ing to g rave i n j u s t i c e
t h a t i n one p a r t o f a s i n g l e b u i l d i n g , e r e c t e d and
m a i n t a i n e d w i t h p u b l i c funds by an agency o f th e
S t a t e t o s e r v e a p u b l i c p u r p o s e , a l l p e r s o n s have
eq u a l r i g h t s , w h i l e i n a n o t h e r p o r t i o n , a l s o s e r v i n g
th e p u b l i c , a Negro i s a s e c o n d - c l a s s c i t i z e n ,
o f f e n s i v e b ecause o f h i s r a c e , w i t h o u t r i g h t s and
u n e n t i t l e d t o s e r v i c e , bu t a t th e same t ime f u l l y
e n jo y s eq u a l a c c e s s t o n ea rb y r e s t a u r a n t s i n w h o l ly
p r i v a t e l y owned b u i l d i n g s . As t h e C h a n c e l l o r
p o i n t e d o u t , i n i t s l e a s e w i t h Eag le t h e A u t h o r i t y
co u ld have a f f i r m a t i v e l y r e q u i r e d E ag le t o d i s c h a r g e
t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s u n d e r t h e F o u r t e e n t h Amendment
imposed upon t h e p r i v a t e e n t e r p r i s e as a consequence
o f s t a t e p a r t i c i p a t i o n . But no S t a t e may e f f e c t i v e l y
a b d i c a t e i t s r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s by e i t h e r i g n o r i n g
them o r by m ere ly f a i l i n g to d i s c h a r g e them w h a te v e r
t h e mot ive may b e . I t i s o f no c o n s o l a t i o n t o an
i n d i v i d u a l d en i ed th e eq u a l p r o t e c t i o n o f t h e laws
t h a t i t was done in good f a i t h . C e r t a i n l y t h e c o n
c l u s i o n s drawn in s i m i l a r c a s e s by t h e v a r i o u s Cour ts
o f Appeals do n o t depend upon such d i s t i n c t i o n .
/ F o o t n o t e c i t a t i o n o m i t t e d / By i t s i n a c t i o n , the
A u t h o r i t y , and th r o u g h i t t h e S t a t e , has n o t o n ly
made i t s e l f a p a r t y t o t h e r e f u s a l o f s e r v i c e , bu t
has e l e c t e d to p l a c e i t s p o w e r , p r o p e r t y and p r e s t i g e
b e h in d t h e a d m i t t e d d i s c r i m i n a t i o n . The S t a t e has
so f a r i n s i n u a t e d i t s e l f i n t o a : p o s i t i o n o f i n t e r -
-4-
dependence w i t h E ag le t h a t i t must be r e c o g n i z e d
as a j o i n t p a r t i c i p a n t i n t h e c h a l l e n g e d a c t i v i t y ,
w h ich , on t h a t a c c o u n t , ca n n o t be c o n s i d e r e d to
have been so " p u r e l y p r i v a t e " as t o f a l l w i t h o u t
t h e scope o f t h e F o u r t e e n t h Amendment." 365 U.S.
a t 724-25
The o p e r a t i o n o f t h e p u b l i c s c h o o l s sy s tem i s n o t so
" p u r e l y l o c a l " t h a t t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s need n o t be p a r t i e s .
The s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s c o n t r o l t h e f i n a n c i a l a f f a i r s o f the
l o c a l u n i t s o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o r l o c a l h o a r d s . Under s t a t e
law, t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s make s u b s t a n t i a l f i n a n c i a l c o n
t r i b u t i o n s t o t h e l o c a l u n i t s and dominate t h e i r f i n a n c i a l
l i v e s . See S e c t i o n s 606, 609, 610, 611, 612, 613, 619, 620,
32 G eorg ia Code A n n o ta t e d . Such t o t a l i n v o lvem en t in th e
f i n a n c i n g o f t h e s a l a r i e s and m a in t en an c e o f s c h o o l t e a c i r e r s
t o t a l l y n e g a t e s any n o t i o n t h a t t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s do n o t
have " a ny c o n t r o l " o v e r t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o f t h e l o c a l
u n i t s of a d m i n i s t r a t i o n .
The power t o c o n t r o l t h e p u r s e s t r i n g s i s power t o
c o n t r o l the manner i n which th e sys tem i s a d m i n i s t e r e d .
Because t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s have n o t a t t e m p t e d to e r a d i c a t e
t h e v e s t i g e s o f t h e d u a l employment sys tem i n th e s t a t e s c h o o l
s y s t e m , does n o t and ca nnot r e l i e v e them o f t h e o b l i g a t i o n
t o answer p l a i n t i f f s co m p la in t . ! : Nor does i t c o n s t i t u t e a
d e f e n s e t o t h e r a c i a l d i s c r i m i n a t i o n i n th e employmen t ,
d i s m i s s a l and a s s ig n m en t o f t e a c h e r s i n the p u b l i c s c h o o l
sys tem . Bur to n makes t h i s p o i n t c l e a r : t h e f a i l u r e to a c t
a f f i r m a t i v e l y t o p r e v e n t r a c i a l d i s c r i m i n a t i o n i s as much a
v i o l a t i o n of t h e F o u r t e e n t h Amendment as t h e do ing o f an a c t
which p a t e n t l y o f f e n d s t h e p r o s c x i c l i . o n s a g a i n s t t h e d e n i a l
o f e q u a l p r o t e c t i o n .
.102 A
-5-
103 A
The a l l e g a t i o n s o f t h e c o m p l a i n t a r e more t h a n s u f f i c i e n t
t o s t a t e a cause o f a c t i o n , and f o r t h e p u r p o s e o f a mo t ion
to d i s m i s s must be a c c e p t e d as t r u e . Rachel v. G e o r g i a ,
342 F . 2d 333, a t 340 ( 5 t h C i r 1965) , a f f ' d 384 U.S. 780 (196 6) .
P l a i n t i f f s have n o t o n ly a l l e g e d f a c t s which s t a g e a cause
o f a c t i o n a g a i n s t t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s , b u t t h e y have a l s o
o f f e r e d t o p ro ve t h e i r a l l e g a t i o n s . T h e r e f o r e , t o t h e e x t e n t
t h a t t h e o r d e r d i s m i s s i n g t h e s t a t e d e f e n d a n t s i s b a s e d upon
as s u m p t io n o f f a c t s i t i s c l e a r l y e r r o n e o u s . S t a t e m e n t s o f
c o u n s e l , even t h o s e made in t h e i r p l a c e u n d e r G e o rg i a p r a c t i c e ,
c a n n o t o p e r a t e t o p i e r c e t h e a l l e g a t i o n s o f t h e c o m p l a i n t .
The Cour t i s r i g h t o n ly i f i t can s a y , from e x a m i n a t i o n o f
t h e c o m p l a i n t , t h a t u n d e r no s t a t e o f t h e f a c t s would the
p l a i n t i f f s and the c l a s s t h e y r e p r e s e n t be e n t i t l e d t o r e l i e f .
The Cour t co u ld n o t make such an a d v e r s e d e t e r m i n a t i o n as
a m a t t e r o f l a w , i n f a ce o f the u n c o n t r a d i c t e d a l l e g a t i o n s
o f th e c o m p l a i n t .
Lee v. Macon County Board o f E d u c a t i o n , s u p r a , and
Tu r n e r v. G o o l s b y , s u p r a , c a n n o t be w r i t t e n o f f as a u t h o r i t y
f o r t h e r e l i e f which p l a i n t i f f s s ee k a g a i n s t th e s t a t e
d e f e n d a n t s on t h e b a s i s t h a t t h ey "were s c h o o l d e s e g r e g a t i o n
c a s e s . " Both o f them were f a r more t h a n s c h o o l d e s e g r e g a t i o n
c a s e s . Lee d e a l t w i t h t h e u s u r p a t i o n o f l o c a l a u t h o r i t y
by the Governor o f Alabama t o i n t e r d i c t t h e im p le m e n t a t i o n
o f a d e c r e e o f the f e d e r a l c o u r t in which Macon C o u n ty ,
Alabama was o r d e r e d to admit t h i r t e e n B l a c k s s t u d e n t s y e a r s
a f t e r Brown v. Board o f E d u c a t i o n ■ See 267 F . S upp . , a t
462-64. The p r im ar y r e l i e f sough t i n T u rn e r v . Goolsby was
a g a i n s t a c o n s p i r a c y to use u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l s t a t e s t a t u t e
- 6 -
104 A
t o p u t down Black o p p o s i t i o n t o t h e a r r a n g e m e n t which th e
l o c a l u n i t o f a d m i n i s t r a t i o n had c o n t r i v e d to bus w h i t e
c h i l d r e n o u t o f t h e co u n ty t o a v o i d com pl ian ce w i th th e
T i t l e VI o f t h e C i v i l R ig h t s Act o f 1964, r e q u i r i n g n o n
d i s c r i m i n a t i o n i n f e d e r a l l y a s s i s t e d p r o g r a m s . Even i f Lee
and T u rn e r co u ld be r e a d as mere s c h o o l d e s e g r e g a t i o n c a s e s ,
t h e i r f o r c e as p r e c e d e n t f o r t h e r e l i e f so u g h t h e r e i n would
fcemain e q u a l l y as c o m p e l l i n g . The s im p le f a c t o f t h e m a t t e r
i s t h a t p l a i n t i f f ^ . . h e r e a r e o n l y s e e k i n g r e l i e f i n a n o t h e r
b u t s a l i e n t a s p e c t o f s ch o o l d e s e g r e g a t i o n : t h e e l i m i n a t i o n
o f r a c i a l d i s c r i m i n a t i o n i n t h e employment , d i s m i s s a l , and
a s s i g n m e n t . o f . p u b l i c s c h o o l t e a c h e r s . See S i n g l e t o n v .
J ac k s o n - M u n ic ip a l S e p a r a t e Schoo l D i s t r i c t , 355 F . 2d 865
( 5 t h C i r . 1966).
b a t e d : June 21, 1969.
R e s p e c t f u l l y s u b m i t t e d
HOWARD MOORE, JR. ~ ~
PETER E. RINDSKOPF
859 1/2 H u n te r S t r e e t , N.W.
A t l a n t a , G e o rg i a 30314
JACK GREENBERG
CONRAD K. HARPER
10 Columbus C i r c l e
New York, New York 10019
ATTORNEYS FOR PLAINTIFFS
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105 a
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I h e r e b y c e r t i f y t h a t I have t h i s d a y , p r i o r t o f i l i n g ,
s e r v e d a copy o f t h e w i t h i n and f o r e g o i n g memorandum o f
p l a i n t i f f s upon c o u n s e l f o r d e f e n d a n t s by d e p o s i t i n g c o p i e s
o f same i n t h e U n i ted S t a t e s m a i l , a d d r e s s e d t o :
Hon. A l f r e d Evans
A s s i s t a n t A t t o r n e y G enera l
132 J u d i c i a l B u i l d i n g
A t l a n t a , G eo rg ia 30334
5
W il l ia m B. G u n te r , Esq.
P o s t O f f i c e Box 415
G a i n e s v i l l e , G eorg ia
w i t h ad e q u a te p o s t a g e a f f i x e d t h e r e t o , t o mai l t h e same f i r s t
c l a s s , t h i s 19th day o f J u n e , 1969.
HOWARD" MOtJRF',..TR7
OF COUNSEL
̂f 6A
?IIlED IS OPEN COURT
«“"*}un'-Ci'969
w*
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT (?T •• ,<v P-5;
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
x
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly
situated,
Plaintiffs,
R. D. BLANKENEY, Individually
and as Superintendent of Schools
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX,
Individually and as Georgia State
Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
Defendants.
X
CIVIL ACTION NO. 1277
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X
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PLAINTIFFS’ LIST OF WITNESSES
1. Ulysses Byas
2. Marilyn Pajot
3. Lewis S. Conn
4. Marye E. Gordon
5. Dr. Horace E . Tate
6 . Jack P . Nix
\X 7. R. D. Blankeney
8. Otis Ellenburg J'
Mary Trawick \f
10. L . C. Baylor
11. Willanell Green ^
'inOj * David Massey
7
13. Dorothy Dellaprase
i f 14- Clara Belle v'
McCrary
7 ^ 5 . Rosa Head *
Plaintiffs may call three other witnesses who are not
present in the courtroom, but can be summoned to court without
delaying the proceedings.
Dated: June 23, 1969.
PETER E. RINDSKOPF
859 1/2 Hunter St., N. W.
Atlanta, Georgia
COUNSEL FOR PLAINTIFFS
__________________________________ tl
<■ 1) HOWARD MOORE, J R . [7
FILED IN OPEN COURt
CflALNl/? 4ot9,6̂ ierk
Bŷ Ŵ -g 1' Qt-' - •> ̂
/~i Deputy Clerk
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE §
McCRARY, Individually and on
behalf of all others similarly §
situated,
Plaintiffs §
&
Vs .
$
£ CIVIL ACTION
R. D. BLAKENEY, Individually
$
NO. 1 2 7 7
and as Superintendent of Schools §
of the Gainesville, Georgia, City
School District; GAINESVILLE CITY §
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P. NIX,
Individually and as Georgia State §Superintendent of Schools; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION, §
Defendants §
ANSWER OF DEFENDANTS BLAKENEY AND
GAINESVILLE CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION
1 .
Paragraphs I, 5 and 9 of the complaint are admitted.
2 .
Paragraphs 10, 12 and 17 of the complaint are denied.
3.
Defendants Blakeney and City Board deny the allegations
in paragraphs 2 and 13 relating to their participation in any acts
of racial discrimination. The remaining allegations of paragraphs
2 and 13 are admitted.
4.
Defendants Blakeney and City Board admit paragraphs
11 and 14 as abstract statements of law, but deny any allegation,
either express or implied, that racial discrimination has been
practiced.
1 0 8 a
5.
From lack of information or knowledge, defendants
Blakeney and City Board can neither admit nor deny the alle
gations of paragraphs 15 and 16 as they relate to school
systems other than Gainesville. A.s they relate to Gainesville,
the allegations of paragraphs 15 and 16 are denied.
6.
Paragraphs 4, 7 and 8 are denied as stated.
7.
Defendants Blakeney and City Board, from lack of
information and knowledge, can neither admit nor deny the
allegation of paragraph 6 relating to racial composition of
the Georgia State Board of Education. The remaining allegations
of paragraph 6 are admitted.
8 .
Defendants Blakeney and City Board admit the allegations
contained in the first sentence of paragraph 3 of the complaint.
The remaining allegations of paragraph 3 are denied.
W H E R E F O R E , defendants Blakeney and Gainesville
City Board of Education pray:
(1) That plaintiffs' prayers for relief be denied.
(2) That judgment be entered in favor of defendants.
KENYON, GUNTER, HULSEY & SIMS
A/*-
Win. B. Gunter
Samuel L. Oliver
P. 0. Box 415, Gainesville, Georgia
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108A
MONDAY, JUNE 2 1 . VOLUME I
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF GEORGIA
GAINESVILLE DIVISION
ROSA A. HEAD and CLARA BELLE
McCRARYj I n d i v i d u a l l y and on
b e h a l f o f a l l o t h e r s s i m i l a r l y
s i t u a t e d ,
P l a i n t i f f s C i v i l A c t i o n No. 1 2 7 7
vs
R. D. BLAKSNEY, I n d i v i d u a l l y
and a s S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s
o f t h e G a i n e s v i l l e , G e o r g i a , C i t y
S c h o o l D i s t r i c t ; GAINESVILLE CITY
BOARD OF EDUCATION; JACK P . NIX,
I n d i v i d u a l l y and a s G e o r g i a S t a t e
S u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f S c h o o l s ; and
GEORGIA STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION,
D e f e n d a n t s
IP A.%
A'
T r a n s c r i p t o f p r o c e e d i n g s had b e f o r e t h e H o n o r a b l e
ALBERT J . HENDERSON, J R , , U n i t e d S t a t e s D i s t r i c t J u d g e ,
i n G a i n e s v i l l e , H a l l C o u n t y , G e o r g i a , o n M onday , J u n e
23 and T u e s d a y , J u n e 2 4 , 1 9 6 9 , i n t h e a b o v e s t y l e d a c t i o n
-0-
APPEARANCES OF COUNSEL:
FOR THE PLAINTIFFS: Howard M o o re , J r . , E s q u i r e
FOR THE DEFENDANTS: W i l l i a m B . G u n t e r , E s q u i r e
Sam O l i v e r , E s q u i r e
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liOA
2
INDEX TO THE
BLAKENEY, R. D.
BOND, Dr. Horace Mann
BROWN, Austin Clinton
De La PERRIERE,' Mrs. Dorothy C.
De LONG, G. HAROLD
ELLENBERG, Otis M., Jr.
GREEN, Mrs. Willanell E.
HEAD, Miss Rosa A.
MASSEY, David
McCRARY, Miss Clara Belle
NICHOLSON, Avery J.
REYNOLDS, Perrin C.
STRIBBLING, Dr. W. D., Ill
TRAWICK, Mrs. Mary B.
WITNESSES
15 357 393 413 4 3 0
375 332 336 336
529 531 547 543
453 453
436 433
506 510 516 517
519 523
3 29 336 355
200 213 219
229 233 32 7
44 9 45 1
445 44 7
44 1 443
163 17 9 196 197
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111A
3.
( G a i n e s v i l l e , G e o r g i a ; M onday , J u n e 2 3 , 19&9, 9 : 3 0 A. M . , i n
o p e n c o u r t . )
-0-
THE COURT; A l l r i g h t , g e n t l e m e n , I b e l i e v e we h a v e
a h e a r i n g t o d a y , C a s e Number 1 2 7 7 , Head and o t h e r s v e r s u s
B l a k e n e y and o t h e r s . Who r e p r e s e n t s t h e P l a i n t i f f s ?
A re t h e y h e r e ?
MR. GUNTER; I f i t p l e a s e t h e C o u r t , M r . Howard M o o r e ,
J r . , o f A t l a n t a , r e p r e s e n t s t h e P l a i n t i f f s . He h a s n o t
a r r i v e d , y e t . I h a v e n o t s e e n h im . I t a l k e d t o h im
F r i d a y , and h e was -—
THE COURT; I t h o u g h t Mr. R i n d s k o p f was g o i n g t o be
h e r e ,
MR. GUNTER; My u n d e r s t a n d i n g f r o m M r . M oore i s t h a t
Mr. M oore i s g o i n g t o t r y t h e c a s e .
I s e e D r . T a t e and M r . B y as h e r e , and t h e P l a i n t i f f s .
I s t h i s c o r r e c t , Mr. M oore i s g o i n g t o h a n d l e t h e m a t t e r ?
DR, TATE; Mr. M oore w i l l be h e r e . He w i l l be h e r e .
THE COURT; I g u e s s we c a n w a i t , t a k e a r e c e s s and
w a i t u n t i l h e g e t s h e r e .
I p a s s e d a n o r d e r - - d i d yo u g e t a c o p y o f t h a t ?
MR. GUNTER; Y e s , s i r , I r e c e i v e d a c o p y o f t h a t
S a t u r d a y .
THE COURT; - - s u s t a i n i n g t h e S t a t e ' s m o t i o n t o
d i s m i s s . S o , i n s o f a r a s t h i s h e a r i n g i s c o n c e r n e d , y o u
/
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will be confined solely to the issues in this case and
not in the class action involved or the State being a
party to it.
Does anybody know what time he may have left Atlanta?
MR. GUNTER: I notice that the Court ordinarily in
Gainesville begins at 10:00 o'clock. I noted on the
calendar it was 9:30, which departs from the regular time
Court begins here. He may have thought it was 10:00
o'clock and may be on the way. I don't know.
THE COURT: The first day, I think, usually does, but
I usually start at 9:30 every day.
MR. GUNTER: This is what the letter from the Clerk's
office said, it would be 9:30.
THE COURT: Why don't we do this. Why don't we take
a recess until Mr. Moore gets here. I don't think there
is any other preliminary issue to take up.
MR, GUNTER: I understood the Court to say it will
not proceed as a class action?
THE COURT: That's right.
MR. GUNTER: That was the only matter I knew that
needed to be taken up.
THE COURT: We11, with State out of it, I don't think
we should proceed as a class action, I didn't say
anything about a class action in the order, but —
MR. GUNTER: Well, at the pre-tria] conference, I
{/a
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© . 113A ©
_____________________________________________________5______
believe it was not when Your Honor was present, but we
took the position that the two Plaintiffs here are the
only two persons within the class, and that there could
not be a class action.
THE COURT: Well, my reservation about the class
action was when you have a situation where a teacher is
not being rehired, that each case would sort of stand on
its own merit, would have to, I don't see how a class
action could be involved, as opposed, say, to a
desegregation case.
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: But maybe we had better reserve all of
that until Mr. Moore gets here and see what he has to
say about it. We will do that. We will take a recess
until further order.
As soon as Mr. Moore comes in, Mr. Marshal, if you
will report that to me, we will go ahead and start the
hearing.
(Whereupon, Court was recessed at 9:35 A. M., reconvening at
9:^5 A. M.)
-0-
AFTER RECESS
THE COURT: All right, gentlemen, are we ready to
proceed with the trial of this case, which is Head and
others versus Blakeney and others?
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MR, MOORE: Yes, sir, Your Honor,
There are two preliminary matters that will only take
a brief moment, the first of which is that one of the
witnesses that the Plaintiffs would call in this case,
Mr, L. C. Baylor, the principal of the E. E, Butler School
here in Gainesville, had to leave the jurisdiction becauss
of a death in his family. Mr. Gunter informed me of that,
and we agreed, if Your Honor is agreeable, that we could
proceed, perhaps, in one of two ways with respect to
that witness: One, that we could take his deposition
as soon as he returns, or, two, that the Court could
perhaps take his testimony at another time. We would be
agreeable to doing it any way the Court would like to do
it, but he had a sudden unexpected death in his family,
and he had to leave the jurisdiction,
MR, GUNTER: This is correct. And we would have no
jurisdiction — we have no objection to this procedure,
provided that he thinks that the testimony of the
witness is necessary.
THE COURT: Well, do you think you could get it by
deposition within a reasonable time?
MR. GUNTER: My understanding he is to return Thursda
THE COURT: My reason for that is today and tomorrow
is about the only opportunity I am going to have to come
back here, because I have got to be in Savannah on Friday
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and I have pre-trials all next week, and following that I
start four weeks of jury trials in Atlanta. I could come
back for part of a day just to hear his testimony, but I
think it would be simpler if you could take his depositior
MR. MOORE: We will do that. We will arrange to take
it as quick as we possibly can.
THE COURT: I have asked Mr. Hixon, I am going to
take the evidence in this case today and tomorrow, and I
have asked Mr. Hixon to get that record out, put that
ahead of others, to get it out, but if you will then agre<
to take his deposition upon his return, say immediately
upon his return, to meet with his convenience and your
convenience, we will leave it on that basis, if that is
agreeable with you.
MR. MOORE: Very well.
THE COURT: All right, sir.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, the next preliminary matter,
Your Honor entered an order on June 20 dismissing the
State defendants, the Superintendent of Schools, Jack P.
Nix, and the Georgia Board of Education. Your Honor, we
have filed with the Clerk at this time a motion to alter
under Rule 59(e) of Federal Rules of Civil Procedure so
the Court can be given an opportunity to correct what we
think is an error of law. We think there is jurisdiction
we think the complaint stated a claim, and there is
)
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116 A 8
further jurisdiction in our opinion on the basis of the
involvement of the State Board of Education and Superinten
of Schools in the financial affairs of the local unit of
administration of the school districts in the State of
Georgia.
Wow, we have given, Your Honor, the Assistant Attorney
General notice by telegram. I would like to file this as
evidence, as Plaintiffs1 Exhibit No. 1, a copy of the
telegram, indicating that we would tender such motion to
Your Honor this morning and that we would proffer evidence
in support of that motion. Of course, that is subject to
the Court allowing us to do so.
THE COURTj Is it a matter of law at this particular
time?
MR. MOORE; It is a matter of law, but we think we
should show the Court, since the Court has passed an
opinion, a judgment, as to the adequacy of the petition,
the evidence that we would have to support, that we would
offer in support of the motion, because the alternative
basis of the Court's order of June 20 is Rule 21 of the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure whereby the Court may
drop a party. However, the Court may drop a party at
any point in the proceedings and to the extent that the
motion -- that the order of June 20 is based upon Rule
21 we think that a proffer of expected evidence would be
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o
proper.
1 1 A V.Jr*.-*'*- «*' 4 a . g
THE COURT: Well, I have not had an opportunity to
read this motion. I will do that sometime during the day,
MR. MOORE: I don't expect the Court to rule on it --
THE COURT: 1 will read it sometime during the day,
and I will discuss with you later if and how much time
will be required to give that. I think, if you are going
to include that, the State ought to be given an opportuni5
to cross-examine your witnesses --
MR. MOORE; Yes, sir.
THE COURT: -- or be heard in the matter.
MR. MOORE: All right, sir.
THE COURT: I might want to reset that at another
time. I might have to do that in Atlanta, since the
Board of Education is in Atlanta and Mr. Nix is in Atlantia
I don't know that it would be necessary to come back up
here for that unless Mr. Gunter wouldn't be interested in
that, from the standpoint of the Gainesville Board of
Education.
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: And I think the only interested parties
there would be the Plaintiffs and State Board of Educatio
I think since you have your clients here, of course, I
would have to have their consent to do it in Atlanta, but
I think we can probably do that in Atlanta.
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H i Q Ai j . 1 0
MR. MOORE; Very well.
THE COURT; I would like to get all the evidence in,
if we can, as to the issues in the original petition filec
as far as these two Plaintiffs are concerned today and
tomorrow, as soon as that testimony can be completed.
I will go ahead and rule on that.
MR. MOORE; Your Honor, I would like to indicate that
the proffer is in good faith and not for the purposes of
delay, and that I have present in the courtroom to
testify in support of the proffer and at the time the
Court does entertain the motion more fully, I expect to
call the following witnesses, and I would like for them
to stand and indicate that this proffer is in good faith.
Mr. Ulysses Byas, Mrs. Marilyn Pa jot, Mr. Lewis S.
Conn, Mrs. Marye E. Gordon, Dr. Horace E. Tate,
They are present in the courtroom at this time, and
at such time as the Court does entertain the motion more
fully we expect to have these witnesses present to
testify in support of our allegation that the State
Defendants are proper parties and should be in the actior
Your Honor.
THE COURT; Well, it may be that I could do it in
Atlanta this week. I just don't know. I will have to
talk to you about that later —
MR. MOORE; All right, sir.
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O . USA O
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THE COURT: -- to see when we could set it up. I will
also have to know what time is going to be required,
because time is the biggest problem as far as any
evidentiary matters are concerned. I believe I set aside
today and tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow I could go into it,
depending on how long the evidence will take in this
case.
MR, MOORE: Yes, sir.
THE COURT; I mean the main case, the main issue.
But my reason for going ahead and making a ruling on
it Friday was, one, the State was insisting upon the
motion to dismiss, and, two, I felt the issues ought to
be crystalized. I didn't way to get this shooting off
in four or five different directions in this hearing
on something that would not necessarily be involved in
the Gainesville case.
All right, gentlemen, are you ready to call your
witnesses around and be sworn?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir, Your Honor.
I would like to indicate, in response to that, that
perhaps that is a proper mode of proceeding, because under
Rule 21 the Court has the power to severe claims against
other Defendants, and, so, in effect, the order could be
treated as a severance, the claims against the State
Defendants and other Boards throughout Georgia, as
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IP-
distinguished from the claims against the Gainesville
City Board and the Superintendent of Schools.
THE COURT: I am not going to hear anything about
the State case --
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: -- at this hearing today. That is the
reason I passed that order Friday. I probably could have
written a longer order giving in more detail my reasons,
but time was of the essence at that time, and the point
was to dispose of this matter so I could go on and have
this hearing today, and, if the other matter requires a
hearing, we will go into that later,
MR. MOORE: Very well.
We would like to call and have sworn at this time
the following named persons as witnesses for the Plaintiff
Dr. Horace E. Tate, Mr. R. D. Blakeney, Mr. Otis
Ellenburg , Mrs. Mary Trawick, Mr. L . C. Baylor, Mrs.
Willanell Green, Mr. David Massey, Mrs. Dorothy De La
Perriere, the Plaintiffs themselves: Miss Clara Belle
McCrary, and Miss Rosa Head.
THE COURT: Would all those witnesses stand and come
around.
Mr. Gunter, how about your witnesses?
MR. GUNTER: Please the Court, I have three witnesses
who are all members of the Board of Education. When this
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121A 13
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matter was delayed they went to get a cup of coffee, but
they are coming right back.
THE COURT: Will either side desire the rule?
MR. GUNTER: No, sir.
MR. MOORE; Yes, sir.
THE COURT: The only thing, I want the Clerk to
instruct the witnesses, and then when your witnesses --
well, yours are parties.
MR. GUNTER: All of my witnesses are parties,
THE COURT: Well, they can stay in the courtroom.
Would you instruct the witnesses, please?
THE CLERK: Yes, sir.
Nov/, ladies and gentlemen, you are instructed not to
discuss your testimony among yourselves, nor allow anyone
to discuss it with you or in your presence or hearing,
except counsel or either of them. You must retire from
the courtroom at this time to the witness room. Do not
come back into the courtroom until you are called in by
an officer of the court, The marshal will show you where
to go.
THE COURT: All the witnesses will have to go out,
with the exception of the Plaintiffs and the Defendants,
The Defendants and the Plaintiffs will remain in the
courtroom.
Mr. Marshal, will you escort the other witnesses to
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±22 A 14
the witness room or outside the courtroom and show them
where to go.
THE MARSHAL: Yes, sir.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, we are going to excuse Dr.
Tate.
THE COURT: All right, is that agreeable to you, Mr.
Gunter?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: Did you want to use him for anything?
MR. GUNTER: No, sir.
THE COURT: All right, Mr. Moore, you may proceed.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, the first witness we would
like to call, we would like to call for the purpose of
cross-examination the Superintendent of Schools, Mr.
Blakeney.
THE COURT: All right, sir, would you come around,
please, sir,
THE CLERK: Mr. Blakeney, will you take an oath, please
sir.
The evidence you shall give in the issue joined
between Rosa A. Head and Others and R. D. Blakeney,
individually and as Superintendent of Schools and Others,
shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the
truth, so help you God?
MR. BLAKENEY; I do.
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123 A.
MR. MOORE: All right, sir, just have a seat on the
witness stand.
- 0 -
R. D. BLAKENEY,
Called as a witness by the Plaintiffs for the purpose of cross-
examination, after having first been duly sworn, testified
as follows:
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Would you state your name, sir?
A R. D. Blakeney.
Q And where do you reside, Mr. Blakeney?
A 6l8 Holly Drive, Gainesville, Georgia.
Q And are you the Superintendent of the Board of
Education of the City of Gainesville?
A I am Superintendent of City Schools, Gainesville, yes,
Q And how long have you held that position?
A Will have been nine years July 1st.
Q And prior to coming to Gainesville were you associated
with the Board of Education?
A Yes, I was Superintendent of Schools in Thomasville,
Georgia, prior to coming here, for ten years.
Q And how long were you Superintendent of Schools there?
A Ten years.
Q Did you hold any position other than Superintendent
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O 1 2 4 4 t ?
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of Schools with the Thomasville Board?
A Prior to being Superintendent I was an assistant
superintendent. Prior to that I was a principal in that
school system.
Q Would you tell us what your duties are with the
Gainesville Board?
A I am the chief executive officer of the Gainesville
Board of Education and all that that implies. I am responsib]
for budgeting and administering the total school program and
for the recommendation of personnel to the Board.of Education
for their employment.
Q And would you give us your educational background,
sir?
A Yes. I have a Bachelor's Degree from Livingston
State University, Livingston, Alabama, a Master's Degree from
the University of Alabama, and further graduate study at
Columbia University.
Q In New York City?
A New York City, yes.
Q How many schools do you have in the Gainesville City
System?
A We have eight.
Q And how many of them are elementary schools?
A Five of those are elementary schools.
And would you give us the names of those five?Q
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A We h a v e t h e E n o t a E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l on E n o t a S t r e e t :
we h a v e t h e C a n d l e r E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l ; we h a v e t h e M a in S t r e e t
E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l ; t h e M i l l e r P a r k E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l ; t h e
F a i r S t r e e t E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l ,
£
Q And w h a t i s t h e s t u d e n t e n r o l m e n t i n y o u r e l e m e n t a r y
s c h o o l s ?
A I w o u ld n e e d t o r e f e r t o my n o t e s , I g u e s s , t o g i v e
t h e e x a c t e n r o l m e n t i n t h e s e s c h o o l s .
Q Would yo u do t h a t ? You c a n r e f e r t o a n y n o t e s t h a t
w i l l h e l p y o u t e s t i f y b e t t e r , Mr. B l a k e n e y ?
A Our m o s t r e c e n t r e p o r t shows t h a t we had a n e n r o l m e n t
o f 446 p u p i l s d u r i n g t h e c u r r e n t y e a r t h a t h a s j u s t e n d e d ,
446 a t t h e C a n d l e r S t r e e t E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l , 6 l 8 a t t h e E n o t a
E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l , 339 a t t h e M a in S t r e e t E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l ,
315 a t M i l l e r P a r k E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l , and t h e F a i r S t r e e t
E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l , 723.
Q And t h e F a i r S t r e e t E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l w ou ld be t h e
o n e t h a t v/e c o u l d d e s c r i b e and r e f e r t o a s a p r e d o m i n a n t l y
N e g ro s c h o o l , i s t h a t c o r r e c t ?
A Y e s , a t t h e p r e s e n t t i m e i t i s t o t a l l y — d u r i n g t h e
p a s t y e a r i t was t o t a l l y N e g r o .
THE COURT: What i s t h e t o t a l e n r o l m e n t o f t h e
e l e m e n t a r y s c h o o l s ? Do y o u h a v e t h a t f i g u r e ?
THE WITNESS: I d o n ' t h a v e t h a t f i g u r e s e p a r a t e .
L e t ' s s e e . A c c o r d i n g t o my f i g u r e s h e r e , u n l e s s I made a n
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125A. 13
e r r o r , we h a v e 2 , 4 4 1 e l e m e n t a r y p u p i l s , t h a t i s g r a d e s
one t h r o u g h s i x , and t h e n 1976 i n g r a d e s s e v e n t h r o u g h
t w e l v e .
THE COURT: A l l r i g h t . E x c u s e m e .
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Nov;, y o u a l s o o p e r a t e a j u n i o r h i g h s c h o o l , G a i n e s v i l
J u n i o r H i g h S c h o o l , i s t h a t c o r r e c t ?
A Y e s , we d o .
Q And how many s t u d e n t s do y o u h a v e i n t h a t s c h o o l ?
A I n t h e G a i n e s v i l l e J u n i o r H i g h S c h o o l , 6 1 9 .
Q And y o u o p e r a t e tw o h i g h s c h o o l s , t h e E . E . B u t l e r
H i g h S c h o o l and t h e G a i n e s v i l l e H i g h S c h o o l . How many s t u d e n t
do yo u h a v e i n t h e h i g h s c h o o l s ?
A I n G a i n e s v i l l e H i g h S c h o o l , 8 8 2 , d u r i n g t h e c u r r e n t
y e a r , and t h e e n r o l m e n t , t h e s e a r e n o t t h e a v e r a g e d a i l y
a t t e n d a n c e f i g u r e s b u t t h e e n r o l m e n t , and a t t h e E . E . B u t l e r
H i g h S c h o o l , 4 7 5 p u p i l s w e r e e n r o l l e d .
Q Nov;, t h e E . E . B u t l e r —
THE COURT: E x c u s e me.
How many i n t h e E . E . B u t l e r S c h o o l ?
THE WITNESS: B u t l e r , 4 7 5 w e r e e n r o l l e d , d u r i n g t h i s
L
c u r r e n t y e a r .
THE COURT: A l l r i g h t .
BY MR. MOORE:
q The Butler School is a school that could be referred
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1.26 A
to as a predominantly Negro or a black school, is that right?
A That's right. Only one white -- only one white
pupil.
Q And that student graduated this past June — this
June, rather?
A Yes, he did.
Q Can you tell us how many Negro . or black students you
have in.the Gainesville High School?
A I believe I have those figures. This report was not
made at the same time that these last figures were. The
report that I have just given was for the current school year,
and at the end of the year, this other report was taken in
October of this year, at that time at Gainesville High School
we had 21 Negro pupils.
Q Now, with respect to the junior high school, how many
Negro students do you have enrolled there?
A 113 a t t h e t i m e o f t h i s r e p o r t .
Q Now, let's go to the Enota Elementary School. How
many black or Negro students are enrolled there?
A At the time of this report we had six Negro children.
Q And the Candler Elementary School, how many Negro
students?
A Eight.
Q And for the Miller Park Elementary School how many?
A 25, or 10 per cent.
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1 Q And there is one other school?
A Main Street.
Q Main Street?
A 37, 1*+ per cent of that student body was Negro.
Q Now, with respect to each of these schools, I want
to ask you about the number of teachers for each school and
then ask you about the racial composition of the faculty.
How many teachers, elementary teachers, do you have
at the Enota School?
A I guess I will need to refer to some notes. I might
give you the wrong number of teachers. It is hard to keep
all of these facts in mind.
The Enota School you say, Mr. Moore?
Q Yes,
A If you will pardon the delay.
We had 22 during the current year, 22 teachers at
the Enota Elementary School.
Q How many of them are Negro and how many are white?
A 21 are white, one Negro,
Q And who was that person, and what grade does she
teach?
A Mrs. Lucy C. Brown, she teaches the fourth grade, or
did teach the fourth grade there.
Q Now, for the Main Street School, how many teachers
do you have?
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128 A
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A In the Main Street School we had sixteen, sixteen
teachers during the current year.
-Q And how many of them are Negro and how many are white?
A All of these teachers at this school are white. We
have transferred -- we will have two Negro teachers in that
school in the ensuing year as the plans are now, at least we
have two employed there, but none of them were Negro during
the current school year.
Q And with respect to Main Street how many teachers do
you have?
A We have just discussed Main Street.
Q Pardon me. I meant Candler.
A At Candler Street, 18,
Q And how many are Negro and how many are white?
A All of those during the past year were white. The
year before that there was one Negro on the staff there. We
will have two there during the ensuing year, we anticipate,
but none were there during the current year. The teacher --
the Negro teacher who was there resigned, and we did not have
one to replace her.
Q At Miller Park how many faculty members do you have?
A Miller Park, thirteen.
Q And how many are Negro and how many are white?
A All of the teachers at that particular school are
w h it e or were white during the past year. That school had be
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integrated. We had had a Negro teacher in that school, but
the teacher resigned and went to another school system, and we
did not replace that teacher.
Q At Fair Street how many faculty members do you have?
A At Fair Street during the past year there were 27,
there were 27 teachers, including the principal.
Q And how many were Negro and how many were white?
A Let me look here to be sure, if you will excuse me.
During the year we had four white teachers in this
particular school, and one of these teachers, one of the white
teachers resigned before school was out, and she was replaced
with a Negro teacher. We had four during the year.
Q And the principals in each of these schools are white
except for the Fair.Street School, is that correct?
A This is correct.
Q And the principal of the Fair Street School is Mrs.
Mary Treadwick.
A Trawick, yes,
Q Mrs. Mary Trawick.
Do you have any specialists attached to the elementary
schools, specialists and counselors?
A Vie have only one counselor in the elementary school.
The Fair Street Elementary School is the largest or has been
the largest elementar. chool that we have had, and Mr. George
Pryor is a specialist there, is a counselor.
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Q And at the Fair Street School you offer physical
education and music, is that correct?
A This is correct, yes.
Q And you have teachers of music and physical education
at the Fair Street School?
A That is correct, yes.
Q Each of those persons are members of the Negro race,
is that correct?
A This is correct.
Q In each of the other elementary schools you don't
offer physical education and music, is that right?
A We do not have physical education teachers as such
in the other elementary schools. We do offer physical educate
This is done by the regular classroom teachers. We do offer
music, have a part-time music instructer at each of the other
elementary schools.
Q Mr. Blakeney, is there any particular educational
reason why you offer physical education and music at the
Fair Street School and not at the others?
A Yes. There were -- particularly, it was the largest
school, and, two, we felt that the need perhaps was greater
at this school than at the other schools, so we tried to offer
we do have many children that we consider educationally
deprived at this school, so we did our best to offer the best
program possible to make up any deficit that might be in the
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educational background of these youngsters, so this is the
reason for having the counselor there and a full-time physical
education director, and, due to the space involved, the need
was greater, we felt, for having a physical educational
teacher at this particular school rather than at the others.
Q Well, now, Mr. Blakeney, you also have a library in
the elementary schools, is that correct?
A Yes. We have part-time librarians in the smaller
elementary schools and full-time librarians in the larger
elementary schools.
Q Give us the number of schools with full-time
librarians and the schools with part-time librarians?
A Fair Street, Enota and Candler all have full-time
librarians.
Q All right.
And that would leave Miller Park and Main Street?
A Part-time. One teacher works between those two school
Q Is the librarian in the Fair Street School a Negro?
A Yes.
Q And the other full-time and part-time librarians are
white, is that correct?
A This is correct. ^
Q With respect to the Gainesville SeniornHigh School
how many faculty members do you have there, sir?
A 28 faculty members at this particular school.
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W
T a T I
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Q And how many are Negro and how many are white?
A During the past school year we had only one — only
one Negro teacher on the faculty at this school during the pas'
year. I believe this is correct.
Q And what did that teacher teach?
A A teacher of social studies, I believe. Just let me
check this -- no. I was mistaken. Mr. Charles Goodman, a
Negro member of that faculty, and he was a teacher of science,
Q Do you have a librarian in junior high school?
A Yes, we do,
Q And do you offer physical education?
A We do offer physical education at the junior high
school.
Q And is there a counseling service there?
A There is a counseling service there, yes.
Q Now I would like to ask you about the high schools.
How many faculty members do you have -- strike that.
The principal at the Gainesville Junior High School
is Negro -- pardon me — is white, is that right?
A Yes, he is.
Q Now I would like to ask you about the high schools.
Tell us how many faculty members you have at the
Gainesville High School?
A At the Gainesville High School, 39 faculty members,
I believe, is the correct number.
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Q And how many are Negro and how many are white?
A During the past year there was only one Negro on the
staff there, Mr. Major Nelson, who was a teacher of mathemat
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And the principal there is white?
Yes.
Q And do you also have a library there?
A We have a library there, yes.
Q And a counseling service?
A
Q
Counseling service.
Now, with respect to the E. E. Butler School, tell us
how many faculty members you have?
A During the past year we had 26 faculty members there.
Q And how many were white and how many were Negro?
A There were five white teachers and 21 Negro teachers.
Q And did you have counseling service there?
A Yes, we did.
Q And a library?
A Yes.
Q And the principal is Mr. L. C. Baylor, is that correc
A Yes.
Q And he is a Negro?
A Yes.
q Mr. Baylor was formerly principal of the Fair Street
Elementary School, wasn't he?
A That is correct, yes,
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13 3 A Q
o* When did he become principal of the E, E. Butler
School?
A He became -- he became principal this year.
Q And before him was Mr. Ulysses Byas, is that correct?
A That is correct, yes.
Q And how long was Mr. Byas the principal of E . E.
Butler School, if you know?
A Mr. Byas was principal of the E. E. Butler School at
the opening of that school, when it was opened, I guess, in
the fall of 1962, and he was principal until Mr. Baylor came,
until the past year.
Q Now I would like to go into when you began your plan
of desegregation, since we have talked about integration and
the racial composition of the schools and the faculty. Did
you bring with you a copy of your original plan?
A Desegregation plan? I believe so.
MR. GUNTER: Are these what you are looking for, Mr.
Blakeney?
THE WITNESS: Yes, uh huh. I have this copy. This
was not the — this was the amended copy, I believe.
Let's see. Yes, February 3rd, 1969. This is the revised
plan. There was a plan prior to that, which is the
accepted plan, and prior to that we had a plan of zone,
and I do have a copy of this original plan.
MR. MOORE: May I see it, sir?
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134 A 28
THE WITNESS: I believe this is the original I
submitted.
MR. MOORE: Mr. Pressley, would you mark this, please
THE CLERK: You want to take that telegram back?
That will be Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 1 is Gainesville City School Plan for Desegregation.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No, 1.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Blakeney, I show you what has been identified as
Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 1, the Gainesville City School Plan
for Desegregation. Would you tell us when that plan was
submitted, sir, first submitted to the Department of Health,
Education and Welfare?
A I don't believe this plan was -- I don't believe this
plan has a date on it, and I am not certain of that particular
date. This is a copy and the dates are not on this. But it
is evidently -- this was to become effective in the 165-166
school term and so —
Q Excuse me for cutting you off.
A Yes.
q you would agree with me it was submitted after July
2nd, 1964, in compliance with the Civil Rights Act of 1964,
is that correct?
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135 A 29
A This is correct, yes.
Q Is it a plan that could be described as a freedom
of choice plan?
A It was a combination of a freedom of choice and zone
or attendance areas. It was a combination of the two,
Q Would you explain that to the Court so the Court will
understand the plan?
A Of course, around each school there was set up an
attendance zone. We had had attendance zones ever since I
have been in the Gainesville School System. So all students
would be assigned to the school in the zone in which they
resided at that time, and then any child who wished to transfer
from that zone, the zone in which he lived, to another school
in another zone within the city would be permitted to make
application for this transfer to the Board of Education, and
the Board of Education would approve those transfers and did
approve practically all transfers that were requested.
Q And how long have you operated under that plan?
A We have been operating under that plan since the 1965-
'66 school term.
Q And have their been any amendments or modifications
of the plan?,
A Yes. The plan has been modified twice since then.
Q And do you have copies of the modifications?
A Yes, I do.
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136A
Q May I have them?
A Yes.
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MR. MOORE: Your Honor, we would move to admit into
evidence this Plaintiffs’ Exhibit No. 1,
THE COURT: Any objection?
MR. MOORE: The plan of desegregation.
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
THE COURT: Let it be admitted into evidence.
SY MR. MOORE:
Q You do have a plan of modification?
A Yes, we do. This is the plan that was approved by
the — let's see the date. Excuse me one moment.
Q * 6 8 -1 6 9?
A Yes, 168 — *69. Let me see the date. This is the plan
that was approved. That is not an official copy. X m sorry.
That is a copy on which I had done some work.
THE WITNESS: Mr. Gunter, I believe you have a copy
of the plan that was approved. I seem to have picked up
a copy on which I had done some note work.
MR. GUNTER: Is that it?
THE WITNESS: Yes, yes, this is the plan right here.
This is it here. And this is the revised. That plan
was approved by Health, Education and Welfare,
MR. MOORE: Would you mark this as Exhibit No. 2.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs’ Exhibit for identification
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±37 A u
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No. 2 is a letter dated September 3, 1968, to Mr. P.
Martin Ellard, and attached thereto "Gainesville City
Schools, Plan for Elimination of the Dual School System"
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 2.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Blakeney, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 2, with a lette:1
from Mr. McMillan, Chief, Education Branch, Office for Civil
Rights, Department of Health, Education and Welfare, to Mr.
P. Martin Ellard, Chairman, Gainesville City Board of Education
has attached to it your plan of desegregation as modified for
the school year '68—’69? is that correct?
A That's correct, yes.
Q Now, other than this plan, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 2,
have there been any other modifications?
A Yes, there has been another modification.
Q When was that modification made?
A February 3*6, 1969, and this is that modification.
MR. MOORE: Would you mark this Plaintiffs' Exhibit
No. 3.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q If you would, Mr. Blakeney, will you tell us very
briefly what the modification was with respect to the 1968-69
plan?
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138 A 32
A That was to go into effect in '69-'70?
Q No. For *68-’69, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 2.
A Well, of course, this was to become effective as of
the fall.
Q No. I am talking about this one.
A Oh, this one?
Q Right.
A May I refer to this, please?
Q That is Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 2 you are referring
to now?
A Oh, yes, yes.
Q All right.
A This is the plan that was accepted by the Department
of Health, Education and Welfare.
Now, under this plan, in August of '68, pupils in
the seventh grade at E. E. Butler will be transferred to
Gainesville Junior High School, and this was done.
And the planned addition to the Enota Elementary
School was to be completed during the '68-'69 school term and
ready for occupancy in August, '69. That has been completed.
And then prior to August, 1969, the existing Fair Street
attendance area will be partitioned, and the pupils in grades
one through five residing in that area shall be assigned to
the other four existing elementary schools, which would be
Enota, Candler, Miller'Park and Main Street.
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133 A. 13____
And then we had proposed in August, '69, that all
pupils in grades six and seven would be assigned to either the
Fair Street Elementary School or the E. E. Butler High School
with the E. E. Butler High School being closed as a high
school.
At the beginning of '69-’70 all grades one through
five would be housed in the Enota, Candler Street, Main Street,
Miller Park Schools, grades six and seven housed together in
Fair Street or E. E. Butler.
So that is briefly —
And, of course, the staff was to be integrated. We
would continue to integrate the staff.
Q Now, in your plan for May — excuse me — the plan
for the year 1968-69, what provision did you make for faculty
desegregation?
A During the current year?
Q Right, the last year. We are talking about '68-'69.
A That is just completed?
Q Right.
A Well, we did, of course, all of the schools, all the
school faculties were not integrated. We did make an effort
to integrate all of the schools, the faculties. We did have
the faculty integrated at the Gainesville High School, the
junior high school and at the Enota School, at the Fair Street
School and the E. E. Butler School. We did have three schools
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140A it
in operation during the school term just passed that did not
have integrated faculties,
Q What alterations or modifications did you make in
the plan which you submitted on February 3rd, 1969, Plaintiffs1
Exhibit No. 37
A The alterations in this plan, of course, would be to
leave all of the elementary schools as they now exist, instead
of having grades one through five in each elementary school,
we had proposed that we leave all of the elementary schools
just as they operated during the current school year and that
grades seven and eight would be fully integrated at the
Gainesville Junior High School.
And then E. E. Butler and Gainesville High School
would continue to operate with grades nine through twelve
in each of these schools.
The plan, of course, was then too, during this -- the
next school year, to build an addition to the Gainesville
High School which then would be able to house all children
in grades nine through twelve at Gainesville High School,
which would include the students at both Butler and Gainesvill
High.
Q Now, Mr. Blakeney, according to the ATLANTA JOURNAL
of Saturday, June 1, 1969, Page 4, City Edition, a news item
carried from Gainesville by the Associated Press, it is
reported that the Department of Health, Education and Welfare
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35
has rejected the Gainesville School Plan. Is that correct?
A That's correct. We have been notified that the
revised plan which we suggested has not been accepted.
Q Do you know at this time the reason why it was
rejected?
A Yes. They felt, as they explained to us, that we
were delaying the total integration of the Gainesville City
Schools a year longer than they had requested previously.
Q And in what way were you delaying it, if you know?
A Well, of course, we would still be operating the E.
E. Butler High School, if our revised plan were accepted, we
would still be operating E. E. Butler as a predominantly
Negro school or perhaps totally Negro.
Q And is that because you would have students attending
that school from Hall County, from the County School District?
A No. All of the county children, all of the county
Negro children will have gone back, and we assume all of the
county children will be taken back into the county as of the
ensuing school year, 1969-70, so that did not enter into this.
q Now, these various plans that have been identified
here as Plaintiffs' Exhibits 1,2, and 3, they fully describe
the extent that you plan for desegregation of the school
system with respect to both students and faculty, is that
correct?
A Yes.
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1 jCI *?. A+J:~. t ........... _3_6___
Q All right.
And there are no other plans or provisions for the
desegregation of either the students or the faculty other than
those stated in these three plans, is that correct?
A That is correct.
MR. MOORE: We move -- we offer into evidence at this
time Plaintiffs' Exhibits 2 and 3.
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
THE COURT: Let them go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Blakeney, at this time I want to ask you about
the arrangements between Hall County and the Gainesville City
Board of Education for the education of students from that
county in your school district. Did such an arrangement exist;
A Yes. There was an arrangement, a contract between
Hall County and the City of Gainesville which was in effect
when I came into the school system, which will have been ten
years in July.
Q Do you have with you a copy of that contract, sir?
A I am not sure that I do. Perhaps Mr. Gunter has a
copy.
(Whereupon, Mr. Gunter tendered a document to the witness,)
-0-
THE WITNESS: Thank you.
BY MR. MOORE:
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37
Q I believe Mr. Gunter gave you a copy of the contract,
right?
A Yes, this is right.
Q. May I see it, sir?
A Yes.
MR. MOORE : Would you mark this, please, Mr. Pressley
as Plaintiffs ' Exhibit No. 4?
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 4 is a contract between the Board of Education of Hal
County, Georgia, and the Board of Education of the City
of Gainesville,
MR. GUNTER: That is a copy, an unsigned copy, I
believe.
THE CLERK: A copy.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 4.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Blakeney, I show you Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 4
and ask you if you recognize this as being a true, complete
and correct copy of the contract between the Hall County
Board of Education and your own Board of Education?
A So far as I recognize, this is a true and correct
copy of the agreement. There were some slight adjustments
made in this agreement, but this dealt with monetary transfers
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14 3 A 38
from one system to the other. There were some alterations
made in the method of payment when I first became Superintends
of Schools in 1961, I believe, but the agreements, as far as
taking -- the agreement was we would take all Negro children
from Hall County into the City, and soma whites, a certain
number of white pupils.
Q And this contract was entered into some time in
November of 1953) is that correct?
A I believe that's correct. This is when the contract
was drawn up.
Q And it was to run a period of twenty-one years from
that date, is that correct?
A That's correct.
Q Now, I notice in Item 1 here that the duration of the
contract is predicated upon the construction of a high school
building jointly by the Hall County Board and the Gainesville
City Board. V/as that high school ever constructed?
A There was no high school constructed that was
constructed by both boards. The Gainesville City Board did
build a high school, the E. E. Butler High School. I believe
we let the contract in i960. And, of course, there were no
county funds per se put into this building, only funds from
the State that accrued to those pupils that were residents
of Hall County that were attending schools in the City of
Gainesville. So this money that did accrue to them was used
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in building the E. E. Butler School.
Q Nov;, is there another contract that pertains to the
Negro students?
A Yes. I believe at the inception of those contracts
there were two separate contracts, one was drawn up specifical
for Negroes and one specifically for whites, I believe.
Q All right, do you have the contract specifically
with you for the Negro students?
A No, I do not. I do not have that copy. I thought I
had it with me, but I do not. I am sorry.
Q P l a i n t i f f s ' E x h i b i t No. 4 i s a c o n t r a c t e n t e r e d i n t o
i n N o v e m b er , 1953? f o r t h e e d u c a t i o n o f w h i t e s t u d e n t s f r o m
H a l l C o u n t y i n t h e G a i n e s v i l l e S c h o o l S y s t e m , i s t h a t c o r r e c t ?
A Yes.
MR. MOORE: We move to admit into evidence Plaintiffs
Exhibit No. 4 , the contract for white students.
MR. GUNTER: I have no objection.
If it please the Court, I would like to state here
that Mr. Moore had asked me to have these documents
available, in a letter he sent to me last week. I thought
that was the only contract.
Now, Mr. Blakeney, you do have a copy of the other
contract in your office, do you not?
THE WITNESS: Yes, we do.
MR. GUNTER: And we will make it available during the
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145A
day.
THE COURT: All right, sir.
MR. GUNTER: May I ask -- would you ask Mr. Ellenburg
to go get the copy of this contract, please.
THE COURT: If there is no objection to Plaintiffs’
Exhibit No. in, let it go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I n o t i c e i n t h a t c o n t r a c t w h i c h was e n t e r e d i n t o i n
N ovem ber , 1953? t h a t i t p r o v i d e s f o r t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n j o i n t l y
o f a s c h o o l b u i l d i n g b e t w e e n H a l l C o u n t y and y o u r b o a r d . Was
t h a t s c h o o l b u i l d i n g e v e r c o n s t r u c t e d f o r w h i t e s t u d e n t s ?
A I know of no jointly constructed buildings --
Q Right.
A — t h a t w e re c o n s t r u c t e d .
Q And the reason you make that distinction is because
of the source of the funds, is that correct?
A I was not, of course, superintendent when that
contract was drawn,
Q All right.
Was a contract for the education of the Negro students
from Hall County drawn at the same time as the one for the
white students'?
A Yes, they were drawn at the same time. As I recall,
there was a few days difference in the effectiveness of these
contracts due to delay in the building of the Fair Street Schoo
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Q Now, how long did you operate under the contract for
the white students, Exhibit No. 4? How long did — that is,
how long did you continue to receive students from Hall County
into your system pursuant to that contract?
A We have, through this current school year that just
finished, both Negro and white, we did receive funds through
Hall County for county children attending the Gainesville City
Schools, both white and Negro.
Q Now, did you receive an allotment of teachers from
the State Board of Education for the white students pursuant
to this contract?
A No. Vie received a State allotment of teachers from
the State Department of Education for students attending the
Gainesville City Schools, regardless of their residence.
Nov/, at the inception of this contract, as I recall,
there was a specific allotment made through the Hall County
Board of Education, but then the law was changed, and this,
of course, was no longer done. The State Department of
Education changed its method of alloting teachers, and they
allotted teachers on the basis of students attending the
school the previous year, and I have forgotten just exactly
at the time of the Minimum Foundation Law, when it was passed
and I am not certain of the date of that.
Q And did the contract for the black students operate
the very same way as the one for the v/hites, that is, your
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147 A
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State allotment, the allotment of teachers, the ADA arrangement
and things of that sort?
A Yes. They operated, insofar as the allotment of
teachers and the payment for these students, they operated,
I believe, the same.
Q How many white students will go back to the county
because of the discontinuance of the arrangements called for
in the contract effective the beginning of the school year
'69-'70?
A There are relatively few white students from Hall
County attending the Gainesville City Schools. I believe I
have a list of those.
There appears to be about 7k or 75 white students
from the county that attended Gainesville City Schools last
year.
Q Were they all in high school, or were they in the
elementary school, or were they mixed?
A No, they were mixed. This included the elementary
schools and the high schools.
Q And how many were in high school?
A According to the figures here, Gainesville High SchooL
I believe
q And for the elementary school?
A In the Gainesville Junior High School we had twelve,
twelve in the junior high school. And there were about 29,
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148 A
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looks like 29 elementary.
Q Were any of the elementary students -- strike that.
I know the answer to that question.
Are you losing — strike that.
Is there any reduction in staff as a result of the
white students going back to the county this yeari
A There is a reduction in staff due to children going
back to the county, not specifically because of white students
going back to the county. There is a reduction in staff
due to the loss of county pupils.
Q Now, let's talk about the black students from the
county. How many black students did you have in high school
from Hall County during the year *68-*69?
A In both high schools?
Q Yes, the total number?
A This figure might be slightly inaccurate due to
different times that these reports were made, but the last
report I have on the black students per se —
Now, do you want to include the junior high school
also?
Q Well, let’s talk about the two high schools first,
and then we will go to the junior high school.
A All right. There were 21 black students in the
Gainesville High School at the time of this report. But, now
I am not sure those were county. Excuse me You just want
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1.453 A
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the county pupils?
Q Yes.
A Now, I have only three black students from the county
attending Gainesville High School, according to my report.
THE COURT: How many?
THE WITNESS: Only three.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q And how many did you have from the county attending
Butler High School?
A There w e re 9 7 .
Q And in the junior high school how many black students?
A Black county students?
q Yes, sir.
A I am not sure. I am not sure that we had any black
county students in the junior high school.
Q Would the probability be greater that you had none
from the county in the high school than the probability that
you did have them in the high school?
A Now, in junior high? I didn't understand your
question. I'm sorry.
Q In the junior high school, yes.
A The probability would be more likely that we did not
have Negro children from the county attending the junior
high school.
Q How many students, that is, Negro students, from the
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county did you have enrolled in the Fair Street Elementary
School?
A Mow, the Fair Street Elementary School, looks like
168 in the Fair Street Elementary School.
Q And do your records show in what grades they were
concentrated?
A No. My records do not show at what grade they were
concentrated.
Q Couldn’t tell us whether there were more students,
say, in the primary grades than there were in the elementary
grades, four through six?
A Yes. There would be more in the primary grades
because, according to the plan of the county to desegregate
their schools, and taking back students, most of the upper
elementary students had gone back to the county, and most of
these would be in the lower grades.
Q How many county Negro students did you have attending
the other elementary schools in your school district?
A Now, how many county children attending other
elementary schools?
Q Yes, sir.
A Other than Fair Street?
Q Right.
A My records here show that we had two at Miller Park,
eleven at Main Street, four at Enota, and one at Candler
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151A
Street, and I am not sure whether all of these were white or
some were Negro.
Q Mr. Blakeney, could you tell us how many white
elementary school students you had enrolled from the county?
A I can tell you how many students were enrolled. I
can't tell you how many white, because I am not certain on
this report whether this is a mixture of white — I assume this
is the total number of county children in these elementary
schools, and this would include both white and Negro.
Q That was 168?
A No.
Q What was the total, then?
A Now, in the elementary schools other than -- now,
168 was the number of children attending Fair Street.
Q Right.
What is the overall total?
A Now, there were seven — the overall total here —
let's see. 196 and 13$', these are county children attending,
and eleven, according to my figures here that I have hurriedly
added, 194, 135 and eleven children attending county schools,
would be a total of 3^*
q The purpose of these children returning to Hall
County was to effectuate a desegregation or further
desegregation of the county school system, is that correct?
A This is correct. According to the plan which Hall
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County has approved by Health, Education and Welfare, they
were to take back the children that were attending the
Gainesville City Schools,
Q Now, as a result of the elementary school children
from the county returning to the county, you are going to
have a reduction in faculty in the elementary schools of a
total of four, is that correct?
A I have not calculated just exactly how many teachers
would be reduced because of elementary school children leaving.
We do not calculate it that way. We anticipate our enrolment
for the ensuing year, and then we divide that by 1 to 25,
usually, to determine how many teachers we will need. We do
not work it out on how many we will lose.
Q But you are going.-.t.Q..Jiaye.-a r.eduction in the
ejementary staff, in your school system, isn't that correct?
A Yes, we will. We will have, our total reduction in
State allotment for the ensuing year over the current year
that is just finished will be 17 less teachers alloted to us
by the State Department of Education than were alloted during
the school year just past.
Q And is the reason for the reduct ion. in.,..the. ..State
allotment the return of the county school_ students to the
county?
A Well,_it jl s_due to- losa..of pupils^ We will have
fewer pupils, we anticipate we will have fewer pupils attending
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the Gainesville City Schools by some 350 or 360, in that number
approximately that number, and this is the reason for the
reduction.
Q Are you going to have a reduction in the high school
staff faculty?
A Yes, there will be a reduction in both high school
and elementary due to a loss of pupils.
Q And how many faculty places will you lose in the high
school as a result of loss of students?
A I have calculated that figure, but I don't have that
as a figure per se.
Q Do you know the approximate number?
A No, I believe not.
Q Will the reduction in the sIze^of the staff in your
high schools be attributable to the return, of thê students to
the county?
A Chiefly, yes.
Q Does the return of the students to the county
preponderate over any other reason for the reduction in staff?
MR. GUNTER: I believe he answered his question. He
said "Chiefly, yes", and now he is asking him if it was
preponderately.
V/e think this is redundant. He is asking the same
thing.
THE COURT: I think the terms are synonomous.
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MR. MOORE: I think you are right. I withdraw the
question.
THE COURT: I take that to mean, for the most part,
that is the reason for it.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Are there any other reasons for the reduction in
faculty staff?
A N o w ..The only reason we are reducing the staff is due
to loss of pupils.
Q How many faculty places will be lost in Gainesville
High School as a result of the students going back to the
county?
A I have no calculated it in this manner, Mr, Moore,
and I would have to — I would have to have some members of
the staff calculate this.
Q All right.
A We anticipate that the faculty at Gainesville High
School will be approximately the same, because there are
relatively few county children in that school.
Q Is the same true for the Butler Street School?
A No. The Butler Street School will have lost, as you
noted from a while ago — from the figures a while ago, the
Butler Street School will have lost approximately 100 county
children.
q And so there will be a reduction -- you are positive
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±55 A. 5o
there will be a reduction in staff in that school?
A Yes. The staff will be smaller, of course.
Q Do you know how many faculty places will be lost?
A Well, I calculated that. I don't trust my memory
too well on that. But it looks, according to my calculations,
there was a worksheet that I used in calculating the number of
faculty members needed, it seems will have a loss of about
seven, from 25 down to about l8. That is the approximate.
Q And in what subject areas?
A Well, this is not necessarily by subject areas. There
are two areas where we would have more -- well, three areas:
industrial arts, commercial and home economics, those three
areas particularly, we had surplus of teachers. There are
other areas also where we would perhaps reduce the number.
But those three specifically I recall.
Q Could you tell us what those other areas are, where
you have reductions?
A We will reduce the English faculty also. There will
be a reduction there.
There will be a reduction in the social studies,
a reduction in science by one teacher, reduction in social
studies by one, a reduction in the English faculty by two,
and there will be a reduction in home economics by one, and
commercial by one, and I believe the industrial arts, we only
had one this year, and we will reduce that staff one this
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year, industrial 'arts, so we had only one teacher there, and
we will have to keep at least one.
Q And will there be any reduction in staff in the
Gainesville Junior High School as a result of the students
going back to the county?
A No. The Gainesville Junior High School faculty will,
because the student body, we do not anticipate a great loss
there, relatively few county children attending.
Q Now, how many faculty places will be lost in the
Fair Street School?
A It appears that there will be a loss of about six
places.
Q And in what grades or subject matters will there be
faculty losses?
A Well, we do not calculate them that way. We take the
number of pupils, and, of course, the assignment of teachers
is left to the principal to a great degree, and I couldn't say
exactly where these might be, because there might be some shif-;
in the teacher assignments.
I am sorry. I cannot give you that figure, because I
do not know.
Q Will there be faculty losses in the other four
elementary schools?
A These other elementary schools remain virtually the
same. We do not anticipate losses. We lost one teacher in
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he Miller Park School during the current school year. We do
ot anticipate any great loss of pupils in the other elementary
chools, so we do not anticipate a reduction in faculty members
Q Very well.
Now, for the school year 1 9 6 8 -6 9 , you employed, I thin<
0 or 37 new teachers, is that right?
A I don't recall 37. As I recall, and I am not certain
f this figure, I have not
Q I think it was 30 you said the other day.
A Around 30 or 32. Approximately 30 teachers last year.
Q And of those 30 teachers, all of them were white except
>ne, is that correct?
A That is correct.
Q And for the current school year you have publicized
.n your school bulletin that you would have 3 0 faculty vacancie
.s that right?
A Approximately — in the school bulletin we did state
-hat we would have — we discovered late in March that we would
possibly have approximately 3 0 faculty members or faculty
/acancies, and this did prove to be true, approximately that
nany.
Q And so far this year you have filled 20 of those
vacancies, is that right?
A I believe we have employed more than that.
q All right, tell us the number, please?
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A My l a t e s t f i g u r e shows we h a v e e m p lo y e d a b o u t 2 7 .
Q And t e l l u s t h e num ber t h a t a r e N e g r o and t h e num ber
t h a t a r e w h i t e ?
A We h a v e e m p lo y e d o n l y one N e g ro t o come i n t o t h e s y s t e
t h a t was n o t a l r e a d y i n t h e s y s t e m . H o w e v e r , we h a v e had o n l y
e i g h t N e g r o a p p l i c a t i o n s t o a b o u t 90 t o 100 w h i t e a p p l i c a t i o n s .
Q How many f a c u l t y v a c a n c i e s do y o u h a v e i n t h e
e l e m e n t a r y s c h o o l s a t t h i s t i m e ?
A I t l o o k s a s t h o u g h I h a v e a b o u t f i v e o r s i x v a c a n c i e s .
Q And i n w h a t g r a d e s o r c l a s s e s ?
A W e l l , t h e p r e f e r e n c e s shown a t F a i r S t r e e t , t h r e e
p r e f e r p r i m a r y g r a d e s , t h a t i s one t h r o u g h t h r e e , and M a in
S t r e e t , we a r e l o o k i n g f o r someone who i s m ore o r l e s s a
s p e c i a l i s t i n t h e s o c i a l s t u d i e s f i e l d , and a t E n o t a we l a c k
one t e a c h e r a t E n o t a , and t h e p r i n c i p a l h a s n o t g i v e n me a
d e f i n i t e a s s i g n m e n t t h e r e .
Q As t o w h a t g r a d e ?
A As t o w ha t g r a d e ?
Q Of t h e 27 t e a c h e r s y ou h a v e a l r e a d y h i r e d , how many
o f th em w i l l be a s s i g n e d t o t h e e l e m e n t a r y s c h o o l s ?
A N i n e o f t h o s e t h a t we h a v e e m p lo y e d s o f a r w i l l be
a s s i g n e d t o e l e m e n t a r y s c h o o l s , two o f th em i n p r i m a r y g r a d e s ,
and s e v e n w i l l be a b o v e , t h a t we h a v e e m p l o y e d , w i l l be i n t h e
f i f t h and s i x t h g r a d e s .
Q And how many o f t h e n e w ly h i r e d t e a c h e r s w i l l be
)
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assigned to the Fair Street School?
A As of the present time I believe we have assigned
only one teacher specifically to the Fair Street School, and
that in a primary capacity,
Q And was that teacher — strike that.
Is that teacher a Negro or white person?
A That teacher is a white person.
Q How many of these newly hired teachers have you
assigned to the Gainesville Junior High School?
A Looks like there are seven of these that have been
assigned to Gainesville Junior High School.
Q And how many of the newly hired teachers will be
assigned to the Butler School?
A We have no new faculty members assigned to the Butler
School as yet,
Q How many do you plan or contemplate will be eventually
assigned to the Butler School?
A We are looking for only one teacher at the present
time, and that is a teacher of home economics.
Q Hov; many of the newly hired teachers will be assigned
to the Gainesville High School?
A Well, of course, as of the present moment — all of
these assignments, you understand, are more or less temporary.
These assignments could be changed.
We have at the present time assigned eight, I believe
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is correct, eight that are now tentatively assigned to Gainesv
High School.
Q Do you know what fields they will teach in?
A Well, I have a list of them here.
Q All right, would you indicate it, please?
A We have one in -- here is one in mathematics, two
in English -- one in English and one in a combination of
English-Spanish, head of Mathematics Department, a counselor,
here is another math, that makes two math, one social studies,
one science. I believe that’s correct, now. One science,
one social studies, a math, a counselor, head of Math Departme^r
combination English-Spanish, English, and another mathematics.
Q And are — strike that.
Are each of these eight teachers going into your
high school white?
A Now, these newly elected teachers are white, but we
have transferred two Negro teachers from the E, E. Butler
School, a Mrs. Dorothy Baylor and Mr. David E. Thomas, both
have been transferred from — they were surplus at the E. E.
Butler School and have been transferred to the Gainesville
High School for the ensuing year.
Q All right.
I am only asking you about the ones you have hired
since March of 1969 for the school year. They are all white,
is that right?
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A They are all white.
Q And to what school is the one Negro teacher you have
hired so far going to be assigned?
A That teacher is tentatively assigned to the Main
Street School in the area of mathematics. This is a specialis
which they were looking for in elementary mathematics.
q Now, can you...— strike that..-------- ......... }
Can you tell us from what sources you recruit/ you
have been recruiting your new teachers during the last two
years?
A Well, of course, we visit college campuses. We send
out recruitment brochures which we put in the hands of all
the colleges, the State Department of Education. We manage
to drop these around when some of our people are visiting in
other school systems.
Several of our people are called on during the year
to evaluate, help evaluate other school systems, so we leave
these recruitment brochures.
Our teachers, and particularly o_ur._^rinci^als, are
constantly on the lookout for _prospective_ tea_ch,ers. They
call those teachers to the attention of the central office,
and we, of course, when we find an outstanding teacher, we
keep our eye on that teacher.
We do not employ a teacher that is under contract to
another Board of Education, but we might — we keep those
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162A 57
people in mind, and we look them up when they are not under
contract, if possible.
Q I want to back up just a second, Mr. Blakeney, and
ask you to tell us of the 27 teachers you have hired for this
ensuing school year, how many will be teaching for the first
time?
A I am not sure from my records here that I can -- that
I can tell you just how many people will be teaching for the
first time. I don't believe I have it indicated, and I am
not sure that I remember. Some of these people will be
teaching for the first time.
Miss Jenkins, a Negro teacher at Main Street, will be
teaching for the first time.
Mrs. Kathryn S. Baught will be teaching for the first
time in English. She has had an outstanding record.
And we have two, Mr. and Mrs. Calmes, C-a-l-m-e-s, who
are assigned to the Enota School, who are teaching for the
first time.
So far as I know, these are the only beginners. There
might be other beginners, but, so far as -- Mrs. Mae Braseltoi
perhaps, is a beginner. She has had some substitute work,
but I believe she is a beginner. I am not sure.
q Now, among the persons you have hired and tentatively
assigned to the elementary schools, can you tell us whether or
not any of them have a Master1 s_. Degree and a T - 5 certif ication
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from the State Board of Education?
A I cannot — I cannot accurately answer that question,
Mr. Moore, I am sorry. My records do not show the certificatic
here. The records are in the office, but I do not have all
those records with me.
Q Do your records show the degree, the graduate degree
each of those persons has?
A Yes, yes.
Q All right, sir.
Do you have any teacher that is going to come into
the system for the first time for the year '69-'70 who has a
Master's Degree?
A Do we have any teacher?
Q Into the elementary school?
A I am not sure of that. I don't believe we do, but I
am not sure.
Q All right.
Do you have any teacher who is going to come into the
system for the year '69-'70 who has had twenty-one years
experience teaching?
A I cannot answer that. I doubt we will, because we
usually, in employing new teachers, we usually try to employ
younger teachers. We like experience but preferably not too
many years of teaching. Age is a factor.
But, so far as I know, we have no new person coming
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59
into the system who has that much experience.
JJ~~~̂ 4mdngNthe teachers you have hired tentatively for
high school for the year '69-'70, can you tell us whether or
not you have any teacher who has a B.S. Degree.-inJ^ducation,
three years of graduate training and three years of experience*’
A Excuse me, I'm sorry. I am afraid I didn't follow
your question.
Q Among the graduate teachers -- pardon me.
Among the high school teachers that you are hiring
for your system this year, could you tell us whether or not
any of them have a B.S. Degree in Education, or Business
Education, three years of graduate study and three years of
experience, teaching experience, and hold a i-4 certification?
A Well, sir, if they had three years of graduate study
and just had a B.S. Degree, I don't follow this.
q Three — excuse me. Three hours of graduate study.
That is what I meant.
A Oh. I was thinking they were a little slow.
V/e have several people that are coming into the high
school with Master's Degrees. We have some people coming in
who just have degrees, but the exact number of years experience
I could not tell without having those applications before me.
Q How many students -- how many teachers will you have
with Master's Degrees new to the system this year?
A Again, I would have to depend on my memory, which I
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165 A 60
Jon't trust for all of these. We do have several, I know,
;hat are coming in with Master's Degrees into our system, out
just how many, I am sorry, I cannot give you the exact number.
Q And can you tell us the number that will have at
least three years experience, teaching experience, who will
be coming into your high.school?
A Again, Mr. Moore, of course, I didn't anticipate
these questions, and I cannot answer the experience and the
exact degrees and this sort of thing without having those
records before me, because I can't remember out of this number
MR. GUNTER: If it please the Court, I think Mr.
Blakeney has made this plain to Mr. Moore, and Mr. Moore
continues to ask him questions, and he says he cannot
answer them. :
THE COURT: Unless he can get that information for
you, Mr. Moore, I don't know that it would be worth going
over and over again, now, if he doesn't know.
MR. MOORE: All.right, sir.
THE COURT: If he can get the figures, you can do
that later.
By the way, how much longer do you anticipate your
cross-examination will take?
MR, MOOREj Probably another hour,
THE COURT: All right, let's take a recess at this
time, gentlemen, for about fifteen minutes.
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1.66 A uu
( W h e r e u p o n , C o u r t was r e c e s s e d a t 1 1 : 1 5 A. M . ,
1 1 : 3 5 A. M.)
-0-
AETER RECESS
r e c o n v e n i n g a t
61__
THE COURT: L e t Mr. B l a k e n e y come b a c k t o t h e s t a n d .
A l l r i g h t , Mr. M o o re .
-0-
R. D. BLAKENEY,
H a v i h g r e t u r n e d t o t h e s t a n d , t e s t i f i e d f u r t h e r a s f o l l o w s :
CROSS EXAMINATION ( C o n t i n u e d )
BY MR. MOORE:
Q M r . B l a k e n e y , w hen we l e f t o f f p r i o r t o t h e r e c e s s
t h e J u d g e t o l d me t o go o n t o o t h e r q u e s t i o n s , n o t t o a s k
yo u a b o u t t h i n g s t h a t y o u h a d no p e r s o n a l k n o w le d g e a b o u t .
I w o u ld l i k e t o a s k y o u now t o t e l l u s ^w h a t
i n v e s t i g a t i o n y o u made t_o__determine w h e t h e r o r n o t t h e t e a c h e r s
v o u h a v e n e w l y h i r e d f o r t h e s y s t e m w e r e e f f e c t i v e t e a c h e r s
o r n o t ?
A Any t e a c h e r we e m p l o y , o f c o u r s e , we g e t a l l t h e
i n f o r m a t i o n t h a t we c a n . When t h e a p p l i c a t i o n comes i n t o my
o f f i c e , t h e n I s end q u e s t i o n a i r e s t o p e o p l e who h a v e b e e n
*N
a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e s e p e o p l e . I f t h e y a r e new p e o p l e , we s e n d
i t t o t h e c o l l e g e s , and we g e t t h e i r i n s t r u c t o r s t o g i v e t h e i r
e v a l u a t i o n .
A l s o , we r e l y v e r y h e a v i l y , i f t h e y a r e new p e o p l e , t h e y
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167A
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do intern teaching in some other school system, so we ask the
person, the supervisor or the teacher who supervised the
candidate during the intern, teaching process, we ask for an
evaluation from those people, and we base this on their
college record, and, of course, the performance and the practic
teaching or intern teaching situation. We investigate them
rather thoroughly.
We like to know as much about their scholarship, their
ability to be articulate, and the use of the language, and, of
course, the knowledge of the subject matter^axeg in which they
will be doing their teaching.
Q And do you accept the certification of the State Boarc
of Education?
A Yes, we accept certification, Certification, of
course, is required by law of everyone who teaches, and
certification enters into it. This is a prerequisite which
does enter into every teacher's employment. It is required
that they have a certificate.
Q And you cannot employ a teacher without the
certification of the State Board of Education, is that right?
A We are required to have — each teacher who teaches
in our school system is required by the State to have a
certificate.
q Now, tell us what the difference is between the
practice teaching and intern?
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168A ©
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________-------------------------,
A Those terms are synonymous, meaning the same. Some
people call it "practice teaching" and some call it "intern
teaching".
Q And practice teaching is the year or semester of
teaching or observing the teaching that a student does while
they are in college pursuing an undergraduate major or minor
in education, is that correct?
A Well, it might even be graduate, but, before they
are certified as a teacher, if they are expecting to get a
degree in education per se, then they are required to have
intern teaching, and usually this is for a period of three
months. Teachers may be certified without having intern
teaching.
Q Now, that is true for the State of Georgia, but it
is not necessarily true for other states, such as Alabama,
Florida and Tennessee and Mississippi?
MR. GUNTER: We object to this as being irrelevant
and immaterial.
MR. MOORE: I am required —
MR. GUNTER: What the requirements of other states
are is not relevant. .
MR. MOORE: I intend to tie it up.
THE COURT: How do you intend to tie it up, Mr. Moore'i
MR. MOORE: We are going to show that he recruits
these other states, so I think it would be relevant.
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±63 A
THE COURT: Well, if he did recruit from other states
it would still have to meet, according to his testimony,
it would still have to meet the criteria of Georgia, would
it not?
MR. MOORE: Certification. But what I am asking about
is people who have gone to school in other states, whether
or not they have had to do practice teaching,
THE COURT: Well, he doesn't set up the certification
process. I thought he said the State did that.
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
But I am merely asking him if he knows of his own
personal knowledge if these other states require practice
teaching, and I am going to show that he recruits —
THE COURT: That would be a matter of law or regulatic
of that state, would it not?
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, he may very well know, and I
wouldn't have to prove it.
THE COURT: All right, go ahead. I will let you ask
him.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Could you answer the question, please?
A Yes. I know that Alabama has virtually the same
requirement, and Florida. Most of the surrounding states, as
I understand it, South Carolina, I am not sure of South Carol
but I do know Alabama and Florida, and I think Tennessee and
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170A
South Carolina all require their teachers do some type of
practice or intern teaching prior to being certified. That
is, full professional certification in the education area.
Q And you actively recruit in Alabama, do you not?
A We actively recruit in any state. Of course, we
employ people from various states in the union, and, if they
show that they have qualifications that we think will meet
the Georgia requirements, then we do not hesitate to employ
them.
We put in our contract that they must, they must be
able to be certified in the State of Georgia. That is a
condition of our contract.
Q All right.
Now, you yourself have gone to the University of
Alabama and to Stillman College for the purpose of recruiting
teachers, have you not?
A Yes, I have, on several occasions.
Q And to the University of Georgia?
A Yes.
Q You don't remember any other schools that you have
visited for the express purpose of recruiting teachers, do you;
A Oh, yes, yes. I have visited the University of South
Carolina, University of Auburn, Livingston University, Georgia
--------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- — — — ------------------6$-------------------
State, various schools, many schools that I have visited.
Q Have you visited Fort Valley State College, Savannah
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State College, Albany State College, which are divisions of
the University of Georgia, for the purpose of recruiting
teachers?
A I have visited Tuskeegee Institute, Stillman College.
I have visited Albany State prior to coming to Gainesville. I
have not visited Albany State due to the distance primarily
and since I have been in this area and most of the teachers
in that area are employed locally. I have not visited Savannah
State or Fort Valley State myself. I have had principals
in the system who are more familiar with those colleges than
I do to visit them.
Q So your answer is that you have not visited those
two schools for the purpose of recruiting teaichers?
A I personally have not.
Q Now, Fort Valley State College and Albany State
College and Savannah State College are predominantly Negro
State colleges, isn't that correct?
A Yes.
Q And each of those schools offer a degree in education,
isn't that right?
A Yes.
Q Now, have you ever visited Payne College in Augusta,
Georgia?
A I have not visited Payne.
Q And that is a predominantly Negro college, isn't it?
\ic
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A Correct.
Q Now in Atlanta, Georgia, there is Mo££hxxuse. College,
Spellman College,_Clark College and Morris Brown College which
are co-educational colleges. You have not visited those
schools either, have you?
A No. But the principals in our system, Mr. Byas used
to visit those. Mr. Baylor visited those colleges. They knew
the people better than I.
Q I am just asking about yourself.
A No, I have not visited those»._
Q And they are predominantly Negro colleges, aren't
they?
A Yes.
Q And they offer a major and minor in education?
A Yes, I believe so.
Q Now, in the City of Atlanta there is Atlanta Universi
isn't that right?
A Yes.
Q And Atlanta University is a graduate school, offering
a Master 1s Degree and recently a Ph.D. Degree in Education,
is that right?
A Yes, I believe so.
you?
Q Now, you have never visited that school either, have
A No, I haven't, not for the purpose of recruiting
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teachers.
Q And you have never given any of your principals^ any
specific instructions to visit any Negro or predominantly
black college to recruit teachers?
A ~CHiy yes.
Q All right, which one?
A When Mr. Byas was here, I have given him instruction
to visit those, and Mr. Baylor, those two particularly in this
system. I believe they are the only two that I have given
instructions to visit.
There is an understanding that any principal who
wants to visit a school, we encourage them to visit schools
where they have vacancies that they think they would be able
to find proper candidates, and they are encouraged to do this.
Q Now, the schools that you identified in your testimon
which you had visited are all State schools and predominantly
white schools, such as the University of South Carolina,
Georgia State College, University of Alabama, Auburn Universit;
Livingston, isn't that right?
A And, of course, I mentioned Tuskeegee Institute and
Spellman which are predominantly Negro.
Q Yes, I understand. They are both in Alabama, is that
right?
A Yes.
Q Do you have with you, sir, a copy of the brochure
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that you have been sending out?
A No, I do not. Our attorney has a copy.
MR. MOORE: Would you mark these, please?
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No, 5 is a brochure from the City of Gainesville, Georgia,
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 5.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I show you, Mr. Blakeney, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 5,
and I ask you if you recognize it as being the brochure sent
out by your Board of Education to recruit teachers?
A Yes, it is.
Q V/hen did you first start sending that brochure out?
A Last year is the first year, prior to the opening
of the 1968-69 school year.
Q That was the first year that you used the brochure?
A This particular one,
q Did you use one similar to that prior to then?
A Not — not as full as this one. We have sent — we
have sent to colleges salary schedules and certain other
things, but this is the only brochure as such that we have
used in recruitment.
q And did you use this brochure this year?
A Yes, we did.
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Q Now, would you --
A We are still using it.
Q All right.
Will you explain for us, Mr. Blakeney, why is...it..that
your recruitment policy Jaas only _xQ.sultnh.„_in. two Negroes out
of a total of 57 teachers who were hired for the last two
years being hired?
A We have had very few applications, in spite of our
efforts, from Negro applicants, and, of course, these people
are also applying to other schools systems.
It seems that the majority of Negro teachers go to
other areas of the state, and in our particular situation we
are very close to the metropolitan Atlanta area, and it seems
that most of the teachers apply in that area and relatively
few of them come north of Atlanta in this particular area.
As I said, we have only had about eight or nine
applications this whole year from Negro teachers, and, of
course, I cannot explain why we have so few who apply.
We have many of our Negro teachers who have been
employed by us, as soon as they can get positions in the
metropolitan area, they accept them quite frequently.
Q Now, Gainesville is about fifty minutes from Atlanta,
isn't it?
A It depends on the traffic situation. I would say
yes, usually, it is about fifty minutes, about an hour.
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And whether or not Gainesville is within the
metropolitan area would be a question of opinion, wouldn't it?
A Well, perhaps so. We don't think of ourselves as
being in the metropolitan area, or I don't, at least.
q And there are good race relations here in Gainesville,
aren't there?
A So far as I know. I think so, yes.
Q During the period when_vour s c h o o l s , .wex.g_racially
segregated and your faculties were racially segregated, you
had no difficulty at all in getting Negro teachers, did you?
A Oh, yes, we did, sure did.
Q Were you ever understaffed at the black high school?
A I don't recall ever opening school but one time since
I have been in Gainesville without having a teacher in each
classroom. We have opened without some specialists that we
would like to have had and that the Board had approved my
employing, but I was not able to find these specialists.
On one occasion, I guess it was in the 1967-68 school
year, we did open school, and I believe we had two or three
vacancies at Fair Street School at the time that school
opened due to the fact that we had lost a certain number of
Negro children to Hall County, and we were not sure how many
siblings would go along with them when they went to another
school, so we did not employ as many people as we would have,
and we found ourselves a bit short. I believe it was two or
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_____________________________________________________ 22_____
three teachers. We had to get very busy to try to find those.
We did fill them, as I recall, during the pre-planning week
and very soon thereafter.
Q Now, I want to talk to you a little bit about money.
Nov/, you have filed with the Department of Health,
Education and Welfare a plan of assurance that you will
comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, is that right?
A It is 441(b), I believe is the number of this document
It is considered an assurance, yes.
MR. MOORE: May we have a copy of that, please?
MR. OLIVER: I think that is it.
MR. MOORE: Yes.
Would you mark that, please, Mr. Pressley?
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 6 is a photostatic copy of a document entitled
"Assurance of Compliance with Revised Statement of Policis
for School Desegregation Plans 1'
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs Exhibit No. 6.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I show you a document dated July 21, 1966, entitled
"Assurance of Compliance with the Revised Statement of Policies
for School Desegregation Plans under Title VI of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964" which has been marked Plaintiffs' Exhibit
7
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- 178 A 73
No. 6. Do you recognize it as being a true, correct and
complete copy of your plan -- of your letter of assurance,
rather?
A Yes, this is a true copy.
Q Now, this was submitted to - - pardon me -- this was
submitted by your Board of Education through the office of
the State Superintendent of Education, Mr. Nix, to the
Department of Health, Education and Welfare, is that correct!
A Mr. Nix got a copy, as I recall, of that assurance,
and it went then from there to the Department of Health,
Education and Welfare in Washington.
Q And the reason you had to submit this letter of
assurance of compliance with Title VI of the .Civil ..Rights Act
is that your board receives Federal monies , is ̂ that__correct?
A I assume that it was because of the law, the Civil
Rights Law, that they required this assurance of, I believe,
all of the school systems in the Southeast.
Q All right.
Now, you receive money from the Department of Health,
Education and Welfare under Title I of the Education Act of
1965, as amended, don't you?
A Yes.
Q How mucK money do you receive under Title I?
A Well, I believe the most that we have received any
year is around $130,000, approximately that.
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-2k.
Q Only Title I?
A Yes, this is Title I.
Q $130,000 under Title I?
A Yes. I believe the current year, $106,000, perhaps,
plus about $34,000 for a summer program which is now in
progress, which would make around $140,000 all told.
Q For what purposes are you to use the Title I monies?
A Of course, Health, Education and Welfare does not
stipulate as to just what you use this for. We are using it,
our Title I money, for a kindergarten program InJ$ae..areas of
our city that have been declared as educationally deprived,
and we are also using it for a summer program for these stud err
who have not had the benefit of private kindergarten and have
not had the educational opportunities that other children have
had. We are doing this in the hope that we can give these
youngsters a background so that when they enter school with
other students they will not be behind and that they will have
a background which they need.
0 Now, the amount of money that you receive under Title
/ ______ j : . & t . —.m ill- ,1 __ _ - -
I depends upon the number of persons certified in yom^school
district to be indigent o r that correct?
A That is correct.
q The Title I monies you receive from the Department of
Health, Education and Welfare are not paid directly to your
Board of Education, isn't that right?
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A It comes to us through the State Department of Educatic
Q Initially it is paid to the State Department of
Education, and then they forward you a State check for the
payment, representing your amount of the funds under Title I,
is that right?
A I believe this is correct, yes.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor at this time we move and ask
to be received in evidence as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 6
the letter of compliance with Title VI.
THE COURT: Any objection?
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
What about Number 5? You did not admit that.
MR. MOORE: We move to admit that. This is the
brochure.
Number 5 is the brochure. Any objection to that?
MR. GUNTER: No objection to 5 or 6.
THE COURT: All right, let 5 and 6 go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q All right, you also received money under the National
Defense Education Act, is that correct?
A Yes,
Q And that is from the Federal Government, isn't it.
A Yes.
Q And from the Department of Health, Education and
Welfare?
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A Yes.
Q And how much do you receive under the NDEA?
A Approximately $10,000 this year, I believe.
Q And is that money also paid to the State Department
of Education?
A That money is distributed by the State Department of
Education.
Q Yes.
And that is the Federal Government, first, then pays
it to the State Department of Education, and then they pay it
to you, is that right?
A They, in turn, pay it to us on a formula that they
have, yes.
q And what is the formula?
A This I am not sure of, the formula. I am not familiar
with it.
Q All right.
Now, in addition to the Title 1 money and the NDEA
money, you also receive from the Federal Government lunch
program money, school lunch program money?
A Yes.
Q And how much money do you get for school lunch prograi
A This varies from year to year. I believe approximate!
$30,000 during the past year.
Q And is that money also paid first to the State
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Department of Education and then forwarded to your Board?
A Yes, it is.
Q You don't receive any Federal impact money or any
other Federal funds, do you?
A
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No Federal impact money.
Now, you are required under the State law and under
the regulations of the State Department of Education to
prepare annually a school budget, is that correct?
A This is correct.
Q And you prepare that budget and you submit it to the
State Department of Education, is that right?
A This is correct.
Q And in this budget is included the amount of money
to be paid in a given year to teachers as teacher's salaries,
is that right?
A Yes. In this budget is an item -- an item in this
budget, of course, is teacherd salaries, yes.
Q And there is a formula prescribed by law which —
strike that,
There is an allocation made to you, what they call
"State allotted teachers", is that correct?
A Correct.
Q And that is based on the average daily attendance
in the school system?
A That's right, of the previous year.
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Q And there is some type of formula for high school and
a formula for elementary school, is that right?
A Yes.
I believe 1 to 25 for high school and 1 to 28 for
elementary. I believe this is the correct figure.
q And you have been allotted approximately 177 teachers
by the State, is that right?
A For the ensuing year, yes.
Q And the total budget for the teachers that you will
receive from the State under ADA formula will be about si 5200,
is that right?
A I do not recall that figure. I do not have that
figure in mind, as to just what the salary part of the budget
will be.
Q Your annual budget is $2,000,000, isn't it?
A Approximately $2,000,000, yes.
Q And you get 70 per cent of your annual budget from
the State Department of Education?
A Approximately 70 per cent, I would say.
Q And I guess it would be about — $1,300,000 from
the State Department of Education, is that right?
A Not having a copy of the budget before me, X couldn t
answer that.
Q Is that reasonably fair?
A I am not sure.
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Q Now, the balance of your money, that is, the money
you don't get from the Federal Government and you don't get
from the State Government, comes from the local ad valorem
taxes, is that right?
A The majority of the money other than that coming
from the State Department of Education does come from local
ad valorem taxes.
Q And what other monies do you rec'eive for the operation
of the school system?
A We receive a small amount of money from rent on
property which is owned by the City, and we do receive from
have been receiving from Hall County a certain amount of
ad valorem tax money for students attending the Gainesville
City Schools from Hall County.
Q Now, the State Department of Education has the
power to approve or disapprove your budget, is that right?
A Yes.
Q And your budget has to comply with the State law and
be within the bounds of reasonableness as determined by the
State Board of Education in order to be approved, is that
right?
A That is correct. We have never had any question on
our budget.
Q Now, in your earlier testimony you indicated that
you were going to lose, I think, about 72 Negro students from
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the Butler Street School as a result of their going back to
the county, is that right?
A I am not certain of that figure. I show here about --
I show 97 students at the Butler Street School who have
attended this year from the county, and we assume that we will
have none of those next year, so it would be 97.
Q Now, the ADA formula, the average daily attendance
formula for high school is 1 to 28 or 1 to 25?
A 1 to 25.
Q Well, if the ADA formula is 1 to 25 for high school,
how do you explain the loss of seven teachers in the Butler
High School as a result of the Hall County students leaving
the system?
A We figure our average daily attendance, we look at
our needs for the ensuing year, and, of course, we allot
teachers to the system as a whole, and then we try to divide
those teachers according to needs at various schools. We
have to just anticipate the number of students that we will
have, particularly in a school like Butler where we are loosirg
a considerable number of students. We just have to estimate
the number of children that we will lose and the number of
teachers that will be needed during the ensuing year.
But, now, there were not seven. It was five.
Q Thank you.
Mr. Blakeney --
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A I might add that we had, of course, a very low pupil-
teacher ratio at Butler High School during the past year
because of the relatively small student body.
Of course, in order to offer the units that we would
like for those students to have an opportunity to study, we
have, of necessity, to allot more teachers to a small school,
that is, a lower pupil-teacher ratio, than we do at a larger
school. __ _— •" _____
Q Now, I want to talk to you about the "Board of Educati
and the way it is made...up and its function, so we can begin
to talk about the teachers in this case.
You have a twelve-man Board of Education, is that
correct?
A Yes.
Q And they are appointed by the City Commission?
A They are appointed by the City Commission.
Q And do you have before you the names of the twelve
members?
A I don't -- I think I have the names of the twelve
members before me, yes.
Q And what are their names, please?
A Mr. Jack McKibbon, Jr., Mr. Don Carter, Mr. Perrin
C. Reynolds, Mrs. Jack C. Lipscomb, Mr. Avery Nicholson, Mr.
Raymond T. Buffington, Mrs. Doris Henry, Mr. Clifford B.
Martin, Doctor V/. D. Stribling, III, Mr. G. Harold DeLong,
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© - 187A ©
________________________________________________________________ 82
Mr. Maynard Brown, Mr. Kyles Morehead. The Chairman is Mr.
G. Harold DeLong.
Q And you have two Negro members, is that right?
A Yes.
Q And who are they?
A Mr. Maynard Brown and Mr. Kyles Morehead, Sr.
Q And Mr. Brown, his wife teaches in one of the schools,
is that right?
A Mr. Brown's wife has been teaching in the school
system for several years. Mr. Brown has just recently been
appointed to the Board of Education in May.
Q And you have had Negro members since what year, sir?
A I believe 1953. 1 believe this is correct. I am
not certain of this.
Q And has the number of Negro members always been
limited to two?
A Since I have been in the system there have always
been two Negro members. Now, I am not certain that there were
more or less prior to that time.
G And the Mayor has a representative that functions
with the committee?
A The Mayor is an ex officio member of the Board of
Education. If he does not attend he does designate another
member to represent him.
Q And who is the person designated by the Mayor? What
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_!2_______
is his name?
A Mr. Joe Stargel has been the one that did attend at
the present time. Mr. Don Carter, Mr. Don Carter represents
the Mayor.
Q And the members of the Board of Education serve on
staggered terms, is that correct?
A This is correct.
Q And they have jurisdiction over school affairs for
the City of Gainesville, is that right?
A Yes.
Q Now, in order for theJij,ai^cil-£dnaaiimL^t9_aY^rride
your rec 1ox^eir,filQyment,
it would that a three-fourths vote of the membership by law,
isn't that right?
A No. That is not correct,
Q Well, tell us what is correct?
A A simple majority of the Board of Education can
overrule the Superintendent or the .principal,
Q But in the ordinary case, if the person who is to
have his contract renewed, has the recommendations of his
principal and the recommendation of his superintendent, he is
hired unless there is a majority vote against him, is that
right?
A Not necessarily. In the employment of people, quite
often -- we have a Personnel Committee of the Board of Educati
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and they advise with, the Superintendent and the Assistant
Superintendent, and usually I meet with this committee without
any other member of the staff, and on occasion I may have,
and I have on occasion suggested the employment of people, and
we would have a personnel committee member that would suggest
that maybe that would not be a wise choice, and we would not
recommend that person.
Q Very well.
How many members do you have on the personnel
committee?
A Well, as I recall, I believe we had five members,
five members £ejryjjig^rL™lJag_jiej^
Q And who are they?
A At the present time we have only four members, and
the chairman of the personnel committee has now been selected
as chairman of the Board, so at the present time we have only
three members of the personnel committee. It is Mr. 1 errin
C. Reynolds and Mr. Avery Nicholson and Dr. W. D. Stribling,
III.
""X-Q _ Do you have a group of persons who are attached to
the Board of Education and act as supervisors for the Board
of Education, such as Mrs. Willanell Green or Mrs. Dorothy
De La Perriere, Mr. David Massey and Mr. Otis Ellenburg?.
A Those people are members of the Central Office Staff.
q And Mr. Ellenburg is the Assistant Superintendent of
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A Is an Assistant Superintendent.
Q And would you tell us the functions of Mrs. Green
and Mrs. De La Perriere and Mr. Massey?
A Mrs. Green serves as a — T^n&ua-ge
arts. Mrs. Green also teaches Latin at Gainesville High Schoc
And she also serves as a consultant in the field of language
arts for the school system.
Mr. Massey is a reading specialist and serves the
total school system as a reading specialist. He also works
with individual students at times who have reading problems.
If there are very difficult problems, then Mr. Massey works
with these people himself and also works with a particular
teacher or group of teachers in helping them to overcome
certain reading difficulties.
Mrs. De La Perriere is Director of Art. We think of
her as Director of Art, not necessarily a supervisor, but
the Director of Art for the Gainesville City School System.
Mrs. De La Perriere does some teaching, but she works chiefly
with the other persons in the school system who teach art
and with the regular classroom teachers, because the elemental
schools, we expect teachers to give elementary pupils experier
in art. This is a part of the regular course of study.
Q And each of the persons you have just mentioned and
identified are members of the white race, is that right?
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A It so happens at this time they are. We have had
people in the central office who were not of the white race.
Q And when was that?
A Year before last. Mrs. Trawick, Mrs. Mary Trawick
was serving as a member of my staff as Director of Curriculum,
and when we lost the principal of the E. E. Butler School,
Mr. Baylor was transferred to Butler, and Mrs. Trawick was
placed, volunteered to accept the principalship of the Fair
Street School. I discussed this with her, and, of course, we
were happy for her to take it. She was willing to accept this
responsibility, so she was transferred from my office to Fair
Street as principal.
Q Now, Mr. Ellenburg, the Assistant Superintendent,
has a Master's Degree from the University of Georgia, is that
correct?
A Yes, and also six years of study, he has a six-year
certificate, which is one year above the five-year certificate,
or one year above the Master's.
Q And his degree is in School Administration, is that
right?
A His graduate degree is in the field of School
Administration and Supervision,
Q Now, do Mrs. De La Perriere, Mrs. Green and Mr. Masse;
have Master's Degrees?
A All of these people have Master's Degrees. Some more
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than that. Mrs. Green has a six-year certification, also.
Q, And i s f b i r . Massey's degree,’ substantive degree, in
reading?
A Yes. He is a specialist in this field.
Q His degree is not in School Administration?
A No. ^^.^lass,eyls_d^e£ree„.ls_not_in_School Administrat
Q And it is not in Counseling or Supervision, is that
right?
A No. His degree, his specialty is reading.
Q And Mrs. Green {does not have a degree in School
Adminis-t r at ion" nor' 'irr Couns eiing - or Supervision, is that right
A No.
Q And exactly what is her degree in?
A Her degree is, I believe her five-year degree is in_
English. I also believe her six-year certificate has a major
in the field of English. She is certified.
Q | Mrs. De La Perriere,; she is a specialist in art,
is that right?
A Correct.
Q And her Master's Degree is in art?
A Yes.
Q And it is not in school_jLdlOinistration or supervisior
or counseling, is that correct?
A This is correct.
Q Can you tell us how much experience Mr. Massey has
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had associated with the central office such as he is?
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A I believe this is ;Mr. Massey's!-- I believe this is
his third year. I am not certain of that, but I believe this
is his third year being attached to the central office in a
supervisory — in a consultant capacity in the field of reading
Q Would you give us the same information for Mrs.
De La Perriere and Mrs. Green?
A Of course, Mrs. De L a Perriere;, I am not certain of
the years that she has been — she is in the same capacity she
has been in since she has been with the ̂system as a consultant
in the field of art, and I believe it is either three or̂ four
years. These people are all about the same length of time in
this particular position.
Mrs. Green has been with the system for several years.
I am not sure of the number.
Q And what about Mr. Ellenburg?
A M r ... Ellenburg.’ lias been with_the system, I believe,
twelve years. He was here when I became Superintendent of
Schools,
Q And these are all the people that make up your centraL
staff, is that correct?
A No.
Q I mean the central staff with respect to relationships
with the schools and special programs?
Ci
A No
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Q All right, tell us who else there is?
A Mr. Mason is our Director of Music for the School
System, and Mr. Mason works with the total school program in
mus ic.
Q And he has a graduate degree in music?
A He has the equivalent of a graduate degree in music.
He does not hold the Master's Degree but has what we term
the equivalent. --- -- - '
Baylor, is that right?
A Correct.
Q And tell us what his background is, his educational
background?
New York University. I believe this is correct. This is in
the field of school administration,
Q Does he have a six-year certificate?
A He does not.
Q And how long has Mr. Baylor been with the public
school system of Gainesville?
A I am not sure. He has been with the school system
more than nine years. He was here when I came. I believe he
has been with the system ten years, but I am not sure exactly.
Q Was he in position of principal when you first came
to the system?
Q Now, tteqf principal of the Butler School is Mr. L. C.
A ( Mr. Baylor has a Master's Degree, I believe, from
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A Yes. He was principal of the Fair Street Elementary
School.
Q And/llrs. Trawick;, what is her educational background?
A Mrs,. Trawick has a Master's Degree, and I believe
she is -- she is certified as a school administrator, five-yea
certificate. She is also certified for supervision at the
five-year level. She has served as a principal prior to this
present assignment.
Q Nov/, when you first started with the Gainesville
System you didn't have the procedure of the principals making
a principal's evaluation of the teachers at the end of the
school year, did you?
A Yes. They had a — they had the same type of
evaluation that we are using now. The form has been modified,
but the same procedure was used for several years prior to
my coming.
MR. MOORE: Do you have the evaluation in force?
THE WITNESS: If he doesn't, I have.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I am going to show you Plaintiffs' Exhibits No. 7 —
THE CLERK: You want these together?
MR. MOORE: Yes.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 7, "Gainesville City Schools, Principal's Evaluation,
E. E. Butler High School".
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MR. GUNTER: Excuse me, Mr. Pressley. These are four
evaluation reports on four individual teachers.
Isn't that correct, Mr. Moore?
MR. MOORE: That's correct.
THE CLERK: All right.
(Whereupon, the above documents we re marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 7.)
-0-
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I show you Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 7, which are
evaluation sheets of four teachers in your high school, Butler
High School. Do you recognize them as being such evaluations?
A Yes.
Q All right.
Now, can you tell us in which way the evaluation
sheet has changed in the last two years from the way it was
when you first started in the school system?
A I don't believe we have made any change in the last
two years.
Q There have been no changes in the last two years?
A I believe not.
Q All right.
But you indicated there had been no modifications,
is that right?
A Yes.
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Q When were the —
MR. GUNTER: He did not say "modifications in the
two years",
MR. MOORE: I am going to ask him.
MR. GUNTER: Well, that is a misleading question.
MR. MOORE: I am going to ask him something.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q When was the modification made?
A Oh, I think soon after I came into the school system.
I am not certain of the year. It has been several years ago
that we modified this in the hope that it would make it more
relevant when we got information from people.
Q And in what way did you modify it? What did you add
or take off?
A Not having one of the former ones before me I could
not say. There was some change in the terminology used, and
we did add some things. We took some things away. Some things
we thought were not relevant.
Q All right.
A But, as I recall -- I do not recall the exact changes
that were made, even though I was involved in the change, and
so was the whole administrative staff.
Q Now, under State Lav/ the principal of the, school, in
February of each year, is required to make an evaluation of
teachers to be recommended _bv the Drinc.i.nal^for March contract
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isn't that right?
A No, not that I know of,
Q But it always happens in February, doesn't it?
A No.
Now, in our particular system the Board ox Education
has aJBolJLc&J!sking that on or before March 10th that the
teachers who are not to have contracts for the ensuing, year
are to be^informed of this procedure.
Q All right.
A So that they be notified prior toJiarch.15th when
contracts are handed to teachers. We certainly wouldn't want
a teacher just to, when the other contracts are handed out,
not to be informed that she was not going -- he or she would
not get a contract,
Q On these circled areas you have scores from one to
five on here, is that correct?
A Well, 5 is, I believe you will note from down at the
bottom, that is an unknown quantity.
Q Very well.
A There are four areas there.
Q And the principal is supposed to circle one of these
areas, one of these numbers, is that correct?
A This is right. In evaluating a teacher he circles
one of these, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 if it is unknown to him or her.
Q Alid 1 is superior, 2 is above average, 3 is average,
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4 is belov/ average, is that right?
A That's correct.
Q And there is a general question for the principal
to answer: "Do you, as principal, recommend that this teacher
be re-elected", is that right?
A This is correct.
Q These entries were not made by you, is that right?
A No, no. I have a note at the bottom of that saying
"average", I believe.
Q I mean the entries on this were not made by you?
A Only this scribbled "average" at the bottom.
q This writing on the bottom is your writing?
A Not necessarily. That particular note happens to be.
Q All right.
I notice this also happens to be the evaluation of
Miss Head for the year just ended, isn't that right?
A This is correct.
MR. GUNTER: If it please the Court, Mr. Moore, you
said, "This happens to be the evaluation of Miss Head."
You asked me to produce the four evaluation sheets on
Miss Head and three other teachers, so it purposely is
the evaluation of Miss Head at your request.
MR. MOORE: We don't argue about that. Thank you,
BY MR. MOORE:
Q How did you arrive at the conclusionJshat it was
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£0 0 A. © 95
average?^
A The same way that I arrive at the conclusion about
all teachers that I recommend to the Board of Education. I
look at the evaluation o£_t;he principal. I also discuss,
particularly if there is a questIqjx.. ,I__aiscuss this v;ith any
member of my staff who may have_had^spme responsibility for
evaluating a teacher and. he ip performance, and then I draw
my conclusion from the information which I have.
On some occasions it is based on my knowledge, my
(having visited a classroom) or;my knowledge of the
performance, personal knowledge}
Most of the time I depend on the principal;and the
evaluation of memb.eTS^̂ f-iay-~s-'taff, Mr. Ellenburg, the other
people involved in the evaluation process, and then I draw
a conclusion from that. That is the only way I have to do
it.
Q Well, the reason why I asked you that, I notice Miss
Head has two “superiors" and I believe twelve "above averages"
and I believe twelve "averages", and I would like to know
how you balanced that out to come out with a conclusion of
"average"?
A Well, of course, we consider those. We also -- it
is my responsibility, as Superintendent of Schools, to
evaluate also the principal's evaluation, and this is my
responsibility, because I am responsible to recommend to the
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Board of Education, and I try to consider all factors involved:
Education, ability to speak in an articulate manner, ability
to instruct, and all of the things involved in the performance
of a teacher.
So, from my observation and from the knowledge I had of
this person I scribbled a note there at the bottom that said
"average*'.
Q During the year *68-'69 did you visit her classroom?
A Yes, I visited her classroom, for not any sustained
period of time. X do not have the time to visit classrooms
and do the supervision I would like to, but, due to my other
duties, I am not able to visit classrooms as often as I should.
However, X do try to visit all classrooms during the year.
q When did you visit her classroom, Miss Head's classro:
A I have no record, written record, that will indicate
to me a particular time or date that I visited Miss Head s
classroom.
Q Do you remember how long you were there?
A I am sure I did not stay very long. I don t recall
having been in Miss Head's classroom but a very short period.
Q Two or three minutes?
A Oh, this I don't know. I don't recall the amount of
t ime,
Q Was your purpose in going to her classroom to evaluat<
her teaching performance?
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A My purpose at this particular time, I was just visitii
this school, and when I visit tlx- schools I usually drop into
a certain number o f _classrooms . e a c h _ time just to look at the
situation. It may be the physical environment.
Of course, I take note of whatever is taking place
in that classroom at the time, the environment, the students
and their response, and any of the.things_that I think would
either help or might hinder the education of youngsters.
Q Did you make a comment that she was "average” before
or after you notified her that she wouldn't be rehired?
A Oh, I made this note before. I have made no notation
on these evaluation sheets since then.
The_pr incipals bring these .evaluation she.ets-to-me,
and I go o ve&_ t he.s e.. e va juat ion.- sheet s--W-i.t.h—the—p.r-incipals,
one by one, and we talk about them.
I go over these ̂ heet sjlt.h,-ihe.,Assxs±.ant_„Sa^erj-nt end
of Schools, and, where applicable, if they are involved in
other areas, such as music, art, reading, English, then I do
call on whatever supervisory staff member or consultant staff
member„we^.ha.ve,„to_help me in the evaluation process,
Q Is this space provided down here on the evaluation
sheet, is that one to be filled out by the principal or to
be filled out by you, "comments”.
A There is no specification as to the particular
person who will make a comment.
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On this bottom sheet, where it is reserved for
comments, this is there for anyone who may use these evaluation
sheets.
Q That would be the principal and yourself?
A Principal; a comment may be made there, I don't recall
that we have made any there, comments by the assistant
superintendent, the superintendent or any member of the
supervisory staff that might so choose that we would ask
questions, they would have a right to make a comment there if
they chose.
Q I notice here that there is attached, we have the
application of Miss Rosalind Carter at the E. E. Butler School,
who is also a teacher of commercial education?
A Yes.
Q Do you see that?
A Yes.
Q And the comment written on here, is that your
handwriting or Mr. Baylor's?
A That is my handwriting. I have written on here:
"Good. Compare favorably with any commerical teacher in the
system."
Q When did you first write this on here?
A I don't know the exact date that I wrote that on there
I presume, though, it was the time that I went over these
with the principal and with the assistant superintendent. I
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am not certain of the date, but it was prior to contracts bein
issued, contracts being issued for the ensuing year.
Q We also have the evaluation report of Mrs. Peggy
Glass at the Gainesville High School, Commercial and that is
Mr. Curtis --
A Segars.
Q -- Segars' signature there, right?
A That's right.
q And[Mrs. Glass is one of the white teachers, is that
right?
A She is a Commercial teacher at Gainesville High School--- -
and is white.
Q Right.
And I notice you didn't make an^ comment on the bottom
of her form.
A No, I did not. You will find many of the forms I made
no comment on.
Q All right. I am just asking you about these.
And we also have attached here her evaluation for
r>the year 1968 in which there is a comment on her form.
A That is correct.
Q We have the evaluation report for February, 1969,
from Mr. Segars at the Gainesville High School for Mrs. Judy
Presnell, is that right?
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A This is correct.
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Q And you didn't make any comment on her form either,
is that right?
A No, no comment.
Q And the same thing in 1968, you made no comment on
her form, is that right?
A That's correct.
Q Now, the reaaoj^tlial^QU made the comment on the
forms of the Negro teachers is because you were making a
conscious deci s of the Negro teachers from
the schaol • • systen,- is• that'Tight?
A No, that is not correct.
Q Well, why didn't you make a comment on the forms for
the white teachers, also?
A I am relatively certain that we would find on some
white teachers' evaluation forms some comments.
Q Just on these four.
MR. GUNTER: Please the Court, I believe he should be
allowed to answer the question. Now, Mr. Moore stopped
him. He was attempting to answer the question, and Mr,
Moore stopped him.
THE COURT: He can answer the question to the best
of his knowledge. Let him complete the answer.
MR. MOORE: Yes, Your Honor.
MR. GUNTER: If he wants to strike an answer as being
unresponsive to his question, he has the right to do that
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but he should be able to complete his answer to the question.
THE COURT: All right, I told him to go ahead and
complete his answer.
f ~~~ THE WITNESS: In reviewing the evaluation of teachers
\ and principals, the principals, when they bring them in,
\ and in going over it with them, if I need[_ to make a
c omment_..on~ihis—eva-lua tion r~I~do.
And, of course, we have no regard for race in making
these comments. This particular year we_,had to evaluate
the Commercial teachers, because we had an excess of
Commercial teacher g,._as anticipated for the ensuing school
year. So we had to look -,z jwe Had to look at these more
carefully.
But there was.nQ^aQrmnent^ it happene<
to be a Negro. It just so.happened That nao- comment was
made on the other two.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q And it is true, isn't it, that you made a tighter
evaluation of the Negro Commeycial.teachers than you did the
whites?
A No, of course, it isn't.
MR. GUNTER: Is this a part of the exhibit?
MR. MOORE: Yes.
MR. GUNTER: Why don't you put them all together?
MR. MOORE: We are going to put a paperclip on it.
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MR, GUNTER: A paperclip will get them separated.
MR, MOORE: Could I borrow your stapler?
THE CLERK: Yes, sir.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Since you had an excess of Commercial teachers,
wouldn't it have been appropriate for you to have recorded your
evaluation, as the Superintendent, of the.white teachers_on
their forms in the same manner you did with respect to the
Negro teachers^,-^-’
A As I consider it, they,.MSES-all,evaluatedJLja_exactly
the same manner, and, of course, there is a comment on those
two, but this was no design to evaluate Negro, teachers more
strenuously than we did the white teachers, because, personally
I couldn't care less, if they performed well.
MR. MOORE: I move to strike that last part, Your
Honor. I don't think that is really appropriate.
THE COURT: Why do you move to strike that?
MR. MOORE: He said personally he couldn't care less.
THE COURT: He said "unless they performed well".
THE WITNESS: As long as they performed well.
MR. MOORE: I think that part about "personally he
couldn't care less" is self-serving, and I move to strike
that, just that part of his answer.
THE COURT: Go ahead.
BY MR. MOORE:
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Q Now, I would like to ask you about Miss Rosalind
Carter,“who is at the Butler School. What is her educational
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background?
A I don't have Miss Garter's qualifications before me.
Miss Carter has, as I recall, Miss Carter has a degree and
several years experience teaching. She has performed, as we
consider, very, very well, and we respect her -- well, "respect
is probably not the right word. We have a high regard for her
performance as a teacher, and the note that I have their
indicates this, "Would compare favorably with any teacher".
Q Does she have a T-4 certificate or a T-5 certificate?
A She has a^T-4 certificate, as I recall.
Q And you don't know what college she is a graduate of?
A I am not certain of the college. I am not overly
concerned about the college from, which... they graduate or the
degree particularlyThe performance of the teacher in the
classroom is what is important Jo_us,
Q And how many years has she taught Commercial Education
at the Butler High School?
A I am not certain of that.
Q Do you know --
A I believe four or five years, but I am not certain.
Q Would you make a determination today from your
records whether or not she has been there more than three years
A Yes, yes, we could make that determination, if necessa
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ill that is necessary to do is to call the central office.
?hey have the records.
Q ' Mrs. Peggy Glass, do you know what her educational
background is?
A As I recall, she has a degree in Commercial Education
and some years experience, I am not certain of the number.
Q Do you know whether she has three years experience?
A She has — I would say she has at
experience
Q But you cannot say that she has more than three years
experience, can you?
A No, I cannot.
q Do you know whether or not Mrs. Glass has any graduate
tudy?
A I am not certain of this. I do not know.
Q Mrs. Presnell —
Let me ask you, does Mrs. Glass have â T-4- certificate
A Yes, she does.
Q f Mrs, Presnelldoes she have a college degree?
A Yes.
q In Commercial Education?
A Yes.
Q Does she have a T-4 certi fie ate ?
A Yes.
q Now, has she been teaching Commercial Art -- not
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Commercial Art, Commercial Education in the Gainesville System
for three years?
A Which one are you talking about now?
Q Mrs. Presnell.
A I believe so, three years.
Q Do you know whether she has been in the system longer
than Miss Head?
A I do not — I believe they have been in the system
the same number of years, three years, I believe.
Q And do you know whether or not Mrs. Presnell has any
graduate student to her credit.
A I do not know.
q Now, wouldn't it have been of .some importance to you
to examine the records of the Commercial E d u c a t i o n teachers
in do tormixiing... whether or not- they. have, had graduate training
before you notifiedone of theni that you v/ouldn^t rehire
them for the coming year7
A Graduate training per se is, as I said, relatively
unimportant. The p e r f ormanceinthe classroom is the thing
that matters most with us. We think that the same teacher
with graduate experience will perhaps be a better teacher,
but, quite often, the case is we will have a teacher with
graduate - an advance degree who is far less efficient in
teaching than one who has less formal education.
Q But the fact of the matter is you didn't examine the:
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°10A. 106
records —
MR. GUNTER: Please the Court, he did not testify
that. This is a misleading question.
THE COURT: He can ask him the question.
3Y MR. MOORE:
Q Well, let me ask you, did you,„e_xamine the^records?
A Yes, I ■examinedthe recordsof all teachers to
determine if they can be properly certified arid meet the
requirements ,of ...the. State-Department, of .Education,.*-and , if
they meet the requirements of the Regional Accrediting
Association, we happen to be one of the 19 systems in the
State of Georgia that is fully accredited by the Regional
Accrediting Association, so I examined to be sure these
teachers meet these qualifications and the requirements of
both the Accrediting Association and the State Department of
Education, so I do examine those to ascertain whether they
meet those.
Q Did you examine _ . t 9--when you
decided not to _rehj.r.eJliss.Head^
A This was not necessary. All of these people had
met the requirements of the State Department of Education
for certification. All of them had met the requirements
of the Regional Accrediting Association for accreditation.
So it was not necessary -- we were not evaluating their
graduate degreesioi’ their education. We were^evaluating
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performance.
Q In other words, you were not evaluating any objective
criteria of suitability to continue teaching, is. that right?
A ^Jo^that is not right,
Q What objective criteria did you use in Miss Head's
case?
A The same thing we used in the evaluation of all
teachers. Evaluating a teacher in her performance in the
classroom is something that is rather difficult to be
objective about, I would say impossible to be completely
objective, because so many of the things that are important
cannot be objectively evaluated, but, of course, we do
consider many things: The use of the English language, the
ability to express oneself, the proficiency in the teaching
area. All of these are considered, and when it gets down
to comparing two teachers, it is very difficult t o be. „
completely objective,;_,We have to examine all that we have
and then draw a conclusion.
f When you have three positions and four people and you havp
to make a decision, then, of course, )this Board of Education
would require me to pick the three teachers .that I thought
would perfQrm best under the existing conditions, and this I
did. I made a judgment on the basis of the knowledge I had.
Q What weight do you give the recommendation of the
principal?,..,;
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A Here, again, I cannot objectively evaluate the weight.
It is not a one, two, three, four situation necessarily as to
the weight that we XTOuld give each of the criteria that we
are using to judge performance.
Q Is.the reason that you made no comment ..on.the
evaluation reports of the white teachers because you give the
recommendation of the white principals greater weight than
you do that of the black principals?
A No, no. We do not give greater weight to the
recommendation of a white principal. Race doesn't enter this
at all, Mr. Moore.
Q Is it fair to say that you didyiot review and reassess
the evaluation given.by the white principals to the two
Commerc ial Education teachers?
A That is..not true. I reviewed all of these.
We find principals do vary in their evaluations, not
because of race, but just because of individuals. You can
take, I suppose, most any teacher who would be observed by
any two principals, and, regardless of race, their would be a
slight difference in the numerical values which they would
assess.
But race would not have any factor in it, so far as I
can see.
We do have some principalswho are -- I sometimes
use the word "severe" -- who are rather critical and some who
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are not quite so critical.
Q, Do you consider Mr. Baylor a rather severe principal?
A I consider Mr. Baylor a very good principal. I
consider generally that his evaluations are good. I would
say that his evaluations are certainly -- I have as much
confidence in his evaluations as I do, I suppose, in any
principal.
Q Do you consider him critical?
A I wouldn't say he was critical. I would say that Mr.
Baylor tries to be objective and is, I would say, very good
at being objective. Mr. Baylor did not, of course, have the
opportunity to observe all four Commercial teachers.
jq And Mr. Segars didn't have an opportunity to observe
all four Commercial teachers either, did he?
A No, he did not.
But Mr. Ellenburg and I did, and the other people
in the central office.
Q Do you consider Mr. Segars a critical teacher?
A Mr. Segars is a very thorough person. I consider Mr.
Segars also quite objective, and I have confidence in his
evaluations. I think he knows good teaching when he sees it.
Q Do you have confidence in Mr. Baylor's evaluations?
A I certainly do. If I did not, I would not recommend
that he be there.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 8 is a photostat!
___________________________________________________ 109________
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copy of a letter dated March 10, 1969, to Otis M. Ellenburg,
Jr., from Rosa A. Head.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 8.)
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THE CLERK; Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 9 is a photostatic copy of a letter dated March 19?
1969, to Miss Rosa A. Head from R. D. Blakeney,
Sup er int end ent.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No, 9.)
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BY MR. MOORE:
Q Do you consider Mr. Baylor's evaluation to be as
objective as you do those of Mr. Segars?
A I would think that their _evaluations. arc...pretty close
to the same...
Q In view of your testimony that both principals are
objective, what explanation do you want to make, if you want
to make any further explanation, for making comments on the
applications or the evaluation reports of Miss Head and Miss
Carter?
MR. GUNTER: If it please the Court, may I interpose
an objection that Mr. Blakeney has already answered this
question, and Mr. Moore is going over it again. It is
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___________________________________________ _______________________________ ____ ________________________________________________________________ 111 '_____________
repetitious. He has stated why he put the comments on
the evaluation sheets and how he arrived at his evaluatio]
He is asking the same question.
THE COURT: I think it has been asked.
MR. MOORE: I asked him if he wanted to make any
further explanation.
THE COURT: All right, move along. Ask the question.
BY MR. MOORE;
Q Is there anything you want to add to your explanation
in light of your testimony?
A I believe not.
We certainly want to be sure at this time, if I had
an explanation, a lot of people are conscious of race, and
so we try our best to be objective and try our best to
forget about race in evaluating teachers.
So, we have no further explanation as to why, other
than I think I have given you, I jflati e ,,_deci4 ion on^ttie basis
of knowledge that I.had.gathered from those people that had
advised me concerning., those teachers.
Q Now, you do consider Miss Head to be an effective
teacher, don't you?
THE WITNESS: Pardon me, Miss Head.
A (By the witness) Yes, Miss Head J^oiild^have been
offered a contract under- normal conditions had we had the
same number of openings in Commercial that we had during the
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_______________________________________________________ _112_____
current year. Miss Head had done what I considered an
average job of teaching Commercial Education.
Q So your only reason for not rehiring Miss Head was a
reduction in the student enrollment,,is that correct?
A We -- the reason -- as I have explained earlier,
̂had, in our estimation, the need for only three Commercial
teachers, so on the best evidence that I had I mactg.
judgment on the three best teachers that we had that could be
the most effective in our situation, and we did not offer a
contract to the one that we considered the least effective.
This does not mean that she could not do an effective
job in a Commercial area. It just means that we considered
the other three a little bit better.
Q But what I am getting at is: The reduction in the
number of Commercial teachers is attributable to the loss of
students from, the system,.is that right?...
A This is ..right.
Q I show you Plaintiffs1 Exhibit No. 8, which is a
letter from Miss Head to Mr. Ellenburg, and a copy to you.
Have you seen a copy or the original of that letter?
A I have seen a copy, yes.
At this time Miss Head had told Mr. Ellenburg that
she wasn't coming back anyway, so this is the reason for this
letter, as an explanation.
q She wrote to you and said she would like to be
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considered for employment?
A She wrote Mr. Ellenburg, and this was passed on to me.
Q And this was on March 10, 1969?
A I assume so.
Q And on March 19, 19695 in Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 9,
you responded to Miss Head's letter of March 10, is that rights
A Yes, this is correct. This is my letter to Miss Head
explaining to her that it was necessary to reduce the number
of Commercial teachers, and, if a vacancy in the Commercial
Department were open, then she would be considered for it.
Q Now, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 8, a letter from Miss
Head, I would like for you to look at that letter, please.
A Yes.
q You would agree, wouldn't you, that that letter is
the writing of an articulate person, wouldn't you?
A This letter is generally correct, yes. I see nothing
wrong with the letter.
MR. MOORE: Is there any objection to this letter?
MR. GUNTER: These are the same ones I saw the other
day?
MR. MOORE: Yes.
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
MR. MOORE: We move to admit this into evidence,
Plaintiffs' Exhibits 8 and 9) a letter dated March 10, 193
and a letter dated March 19, 1969, from Mr. Blakeney.
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£18A lib
THE COURT; There being no objection, let them go into
evidence.
MR. GUNTER; Excuse me again, Mr. Moore. I do not
believe you have offered Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 7. Do
you intend to? Those were the evaluation reports.
MR. MOORE: Not at this time.
MR. GUNTER: All right.
MR. MOORE: I will tell you when I intend to offer
them.
MR. GUNTER; Well, we are skipping exhibits.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, the reason I didn't offer
them, I would like to examine Mr. Baylor.
THE COURT: You don't have to offer them at this time,
if you don't want to.
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Are there any other positions in the Gainesville
City School System that Miss Head could hold?
A Miss Head is not certified in,any area, other,.lt.han
Commercial Education. She has notr̂ a^ijj|^sjr_.anz^PfiaA*ion
other than Commercial^Education. There are nojggsltions
open in the Gainesville City Schools for which Miss Head
could qualify at this time.
Q Was she considered for any position other than
Commercial Education?
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A She was not considered for. any position other than
Commercial Education, because she has no certification in
any other area.
Q And v/as she considered or compared with the white
teachers in the system?
A She was compared .with the white Commercial teachers
in the system, yes.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, if we are going to take a
luncheon break, I was going to start in on something else
with this v/itness.
THE COURT: I thought when I took my other recess
you said you would be about an hour, and I was hoping to
finish this witness' testimony before lunch.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, I think the other aspect
of the case I am going to question him about is rather
extensive.
THE COURT: All right.
We will take a recess until 2:00 O'clock.
(Whereupon, Court was recessed at 1:00 P. M . , reconvening at
2:00 P. M.)
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AFTER RECESS
THE COURT: All right, Mr. Moore. You may proceed
v/ith your cross-examination,
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116
‘ R. D, BLAKENEY,
Having returned to the stand, testified further as follows:
CROSS EXAMINATION (Continued)
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Blakeney, before we go on to another subject I
would like to just ask one or two questions further about
Miss Head.
Now, did you observe the other teachers in Commercial
Education, during the year 1968-69?
A Yes. Because of the proximity of the Gainesville
High School to my offices, and because of the fact this is a
larger school, I assume that I have spent a bit more time
in the Gainesville High School than in the E. E. Butler Schoof
and I have visited those teachers on occasion.
Q Can you tell us'how much time you spent visiting the
classroom of Mrs. Glass'?^
A No, I cannot. I did not visit Mrs. Glass with the
particular thought in mind of evaluating her effectiveness
per se.
Q For what purpose did you visit her classroom?
A I visit classrooms from time to time to determine
what is going on in that particular classroom and if I am
happy with what I see. I am concerned about not only the
teaching, but the physical environment and the equipment and
how it is used. I am concerned about all of these things whej
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I visit a classroom.
Q How much time did you actually spend in Mrs. Glass'
classroom?
A I could not tell you the number of minutes I spent
in Mrs. Glass' classroom or in any of the teachersJ~classroom^
Q Did you visit the classroom of Mrs. Presnell during
the school year of 1968-69?
A Yes, I have visited the classroom of Mrs> Presnell.
Q And for what purpose?
A Same purpose as I visited the others, to see.what
is going on, see how it looks, the teaching situation, the
number of pupils involved. And, of course, I am also
cognizant of the teacher's performance as I observe it the
short time that I am in the room.
Q You weren't in Mrs. Presnell's classroom for more tha
a couple or two,, or-three .minutes, is that correct 2
A I wouldn't say that that is correct.̂ I :jdon't recall
the amount of time spent in any of these classrooms.
.q But, in any event, it would be a very short period
of time, is that right?
A A relatively short period of time. From time to time
X may stop and have a conversation with a teacher, particular
in the Commercial area, about the equipment, how it is being
used, how effective it is, and this sort of thing. ....
could have spent much more than five minutes or ten.minutes
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118
in this classroom.
Q Could you give us an estimate?
MR. GUNTER: Please the Court, he has already answer*
he cannot give any amount of time that he has spent in
any of these classrooms.
THE COURT: I don't know how much materiality that
has to this case, Mr. Moore, but, if you want to ask the
witness his best estimate, I will allow you to ask him,
MR. MOORE: I would like to know his best estimate
of the amount of time he spent in Mrs. Presnell's
classroom observing.
THE COURT: If he can give an estimate.
THE WITNESS: I don't know how many times I have been
in Mrs. Presnell's classroom this year. I would say,
I am relatively certain I have been in her.classroom
three or four times during the year, but as to how long ,
I was there at any one time I cannot tell you.
BE MR. MOORE:
Q Did you visit the classroom of Miss Rosalind Carter?
A Yes, I have, of course, visited Miss Carter since
she has been in the system several times, and this past
year, the reports I have gotten and what I have observed,
Miss Carter is doing all right, and she was doing fine. I
did not spend much time in her classroom this year.
Q Now, the State requires you to pay teachers according
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119
to the amount of experience that they have had teaching, isn'v
that correct?
A Up to a certain point.
Q In other words, there is a definite pay scale based
upon teaching experience?
A And certification, teaching experience and certificatl
Q So you could look at the pay scale of a particular
teacher and her certification and tell us how long she had
been teaching in your system, is that correct?
A Not without a salary schedule before me.
Q Do you have a salary schedule before you?
A I believe so,
MR. OLIVER: Mr. Moore. There is one included in
part of your Exhibit No. 5, that brochure.
MR. MOORE: I think there is one in the back of
the employee's handbook.
THE WITNESS: Yes, I have a copy of the current
salary schedule that we used during this school year.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q And what is the salary of a teacher with three years
experience?
A In what certification?
Q T-4 certification.
A Certification, with a T-4 certificate, beginning the
third year, would be six thousand sixty dollars. This was —
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this would have been the salary this past year. It will be
more than that next year, but that is what we paid this past
year.
Q Do you have records before you which show the salariesI
paid to Mrs. Presnell and Mrs. Glass and Miss Carter and Miss
Head?
A No, I do not.
Q Can you get such records?
A Of course. Those records are public records, and
they are in my office, and they would be easy to secure.
Q Would you get that Information for us overnight in
the event we come back tomorrow?
A Oh, yes.
Q As to the pay scale of each of these four teachers?
A Yes.
Q In Commercial Education, and the number of years that
they have been.teaching in your.system, for each of them?
A Yes. They are all paid according to the number of
years experience not in our system but the number of years
experience teaching, and the certification.
Q I would like to know, when we come in tomorrow, the
number of years each of these teachers has been teaching in
your system,
MR. GUNTER: We will have that for you, Mr. Moore.
THE WITNESS: This has nothing to do with the salary
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necessarily. The experience they had in other systems
would also be counted in on this salary schedule.
BY HR. MOORE:
Q Now, do you know Miss Clara Belle McCrary?
A Yes, I know Miss Clara Belle McCrary. I have been
knowing her ever since I have been in the school system for
nine years.
Q And she is or was a teacher at the Fair Street School,
is that correct?
A Yes, yes.
Q And when you first started in the system she taught
the third grade, is that right?
A I arn not certain of the grade Miss McCrary taught
when I first started in the system. She was assigned in the
system when I came, and I do not recall what she taught.
Q And she has also been assigned to the Fair Street
School?
A Since I have been in the system, yes.
Q And last year she taught the fourth grade at Fair
Street, is that right?
A Yes.
Q How many fourth^grarie^classe.S--Hid_t,hey_have at F air
Street last year?
A I do not recall the exact number. If it is signifies!
I have a list of those.
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Q Would you give us that?
A F ive.
Q How many. third grado cLasses did-, you-have?
A Excuse me. I did not understand you.
Q How many third grade classes did you have?
A Three.
0 Now, Miss McCrary has an A.B. Degree from Clark
College in Atlanta, Georgia, doesn't she?
A I believe that's correct.
Q Pardon me.
A I believe that's correct. I do not have her college
record before me, but I believe this is correct.
Q And she has a Master's Degree from Atlanta University
in Atlanta, Georgia, is that correct?
A I believe this is correct.
Q And she has taught in your system for a period of
21 years, is that correct?
A I believe she has 21 years experience. I am not
sure that she has been in our system 21 years.
Q During the time she has been in your system she has
only missed one day from work, is that correct?
A I do not know.
Q There is a library named for Miss McCrary, isn't ther2
A Yes.
q That is a branch of the Hall County Public Library?
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A Yes.
121
Q And it is known as the McCrary Division of the Hall
County Library, is that correct?
A I believe they call it the McCrary Branch of the
Hall County Library.
Q And that branch, that branch of the public library
is located directly across the street from the Fair Street
School, isn't it?
A Yes.
Q From the old Fair Street School, rather?
A Yes, yes, it is.
Q Now, Miss McCrary's supervisor — pardon me —
Miss McCrary's principal, Mrs. Trawick, recommended
her for employment for the year 1969-70? is that right?
A This is correct.
Q Nov;, you ̂ decided not to rehinaJ aiss McCrary, is that
correct?
A The Board of Education has that prerogative.
Q Is that based upon _your recommendation?
A The Board of Education -- I recommend to the Board.
The Board of Education may take my recommendation, or they
may refuse to take my recommendation. They have that legal
prerogative.
Q Did you recommend to the Board that it not rehire
Miss McCrary?
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124
A Put it this way: I did not recommend Miss McCrary
for employment for the school year 1969-70.
Q Very well.
I show you a letter of March 6, 1969, and ask you if
you recognize this letter?
A Yes. I wrote this letter. This is my signature.
This is the original.
Q And this is the letter directed to Miss —
MR. MOORE: Have you seen this?
MR. GUNTER: Yes.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q -- directed to Miss McCrary --
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
Number 10 is the original of a letter dated March 6, 1969,
to Miss Clara Belle McCrary, signed by Revis Blakeney,
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 10.)
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MR, MOORE: Your Honor, we move to offer this into
evidence as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 10, this letter.
THE COURT: Any objection?
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
THE COURT: Let it go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q And this letter, Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 10, you stat e
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your reasons for not rehiring Miss McCrary, is that correct?
A May I see this letter again?
THE COURT: Wouldn't the letter speak for itself?
THE WITNESS: Yes.
MR. MOORE: Would Your Honor like to see it?
THE COURT: No. It will be in evidence. I will see
it.
THE WITNESS: I might state here there are reasons
other than those stated in that letter.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q But they weren't stated in that letter?
A They weren't stated in that letter. They were stated
t o M i ss KcC r.ar y. in.,per son.
Q Was that after she wrote you a letter on April 1,
1969?
A Oh, no, that was before. That was before March the
l$th that I explained this to her.
Q March 15th of what?
A This year. This was before March 10th.
MR. MOORE: Would you mark this, please?
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 11 is a photostatic copy of a letter dated April 1,
1969, Gainesville City Schools, signed by Clara Belle
McCrary.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
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only as Plaintiffs Exhibit No. 11.)
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BY MR. MOORE:
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Q I show you Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 11 and ask you
whether or not you received the original of that letter?
A Yes, I received the original of this letter.
MR. MOORE: We move and offer into evidence at this
j. i P
time Plaintiffs' Exhibit No, 11, the' letter of March 1,
1969, from Miss McCrary to the Gainesville City Schools.
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
THE COURT: Let it go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q I think you indicated you had a conference with Miss
McCrary andothers. Was this on March 4th, 1969?
A I believe so. March the -- the afternoon of March
4th.
Q Where was that conference held?
A That conference was held in the principal's office
at the Fair Street School.
Q Was it held at your request or at the request of
someone else?
A It was held at my request.
Q And who was present?
A The principal, Mrs. Trawick, was present when we
arranged the conference, and then she left, and Mrs. Jennie
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Harris and Miss Clara Belle McCrary were left with me in the
office.
Q Would you identify Mrs. Harris, please?
A I don't see Mrs. Harris.
Q I mean for purposes of the record. Is she connected
with the school system?
A Oh, yes. Mrs. Harris is a teacher at the Fair Street
Elementary School.
Q Is she a Negro teacher?
A Yes.
Q And what grade did she teach?
A Last year I would have to look to see. I don't
remember the exact grade that she taught.
She was a teacher of first grade.
Q And was her contract renewed for the coming school
year?
A No. Mrs. Harris has a conditional contract. She has
agreed to take a different assignment next year, and she is
now, I believe, enrolled in school to prepare for her next
year's assignment.
Q What assignment would that be?
A As a teacher of mentally retarded children in the
Fair Street Elementary School.
Q Did she lose her teaching position because of a
reduction in the size of the school, reduction in the enrolls
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232A 128
in the school, rather?
A Mrs. Harris, because of the reduction in enrollment,
it was necessary for us to reduce the number of people that
we would offer contracts to, and in reducing the number we
tried to pick those people that we regarded as the most
effective people, in our opinion, that we had. And, since we
could not offer everyone contracts, we tried to pick those
that were least effective that i.we would not offer contracts
to. And, as a result of this, of course, Mrs. Harris is one
of the people considered least effective.
Q All right.
To be responsive to my question, you did not offer
Mrs. Harris a contract because of a reduction in the size of
the enrolment, is that correct?
THE COURT: I believe he has answered that question.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, I want to —
THE COURT: He said he didn't offer her a contract.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, I don't want to belabor the
point, but I am going to have to start objecting to the
witness interposing a non-responsive element to his
answer.
THE COURT: Well, he could have answered it yes or no,
but eventually he went ahead and answered the question anc
gave his reason why.
He always has a right to explain his answer. It may
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not have been exactly the way you wanted it, but I think
he said he didn't offer her a contract, and that is what
you wanted to know. That is the information you were
seeking, was it not?
Go ahead.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q What was Mrs. Harris' certification?
A Mrs. Harris has, as I recall, a T -b certificate.
Q And how many years of experience?
A I do not know. We do not consider the years of
experience necessarily important.
Q She was the other person who was present there at the
conference in the principal's office?
A Yes, yes.
Q And was the purpose of this conference to explain to
these two teachers why they would not be offered contracts
for the coming year?
A This is correct, I wanted to explain to them in
person that we did -- that we^were reducing the staff of
necessity and the reasons why these two were picked.
Q Very well.
Give me every reason that you gave Miss McCrary why
she was.not being rehired?
A As I recall, there was onlyrone,reason that. I gave
Miss McCrary, and I hope Miss McCrary will excuse me, but it
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__________________________ '____________________________ 130
was our considered opinion that she was not as effective a
teacher as the teachers that we would want to retain in our
system, and this was the reason I gave her, that we did not
consider that she was an effective teacher and for this
reason we were withholding her contract, we were not offering
her a contract.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification No. 12
is a letter to Miss Clara Belle McCrary, undated.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 12.)
-0~
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification No. 13
MR. MOORE: They are the same. This is the second sheet
THE COURT: Do you want them separately?
MR. MOORE: No.
MR. GUNTER: Do I understand this is two exhibits?
MR. MOORE: One.
THE CLERK: Just one.
MR. GUNTER: Number 12.
THE CLERK: T h a t ' s r i g h t . L e t me p u t i t t o g e t h e r .
P l a i n t i f f s ' E x h i b i t f o r i d e n t i f i c a t i o n No. 12 i s a l e t t e
d a t e d A p r i l 7 , 1 9 6 9 , t o M is s C l a r a B e l l e M c C ra ry .
(W h e reu p o n , t h e ’ab o v e d o c u m en t was m a rk e d f o r i d e n t i f i c a t i o n
o n l y a s P l a i n t i f f s ' E x h i b i t No. 12.)
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BY MR. MOORE:
Q Following receipt of Miss McCrary's letter to you,
you then replied, is that correct, and this is your letter
of April 7, 19697
A This is correct. This is my letter to Miss McCrary. .
Q In which you indicate to her that she is not being
rehired because you consider her not to be an effective
teacher is. that correct?
A This is correct.
"I explained to you" -- I said, "We of necessity
must make judgments and choose those people which we consider
most effective in the teaching situation."
And we did not consider her satisfactorily effective.
MR. MOORE: We offer Number 12 in evidence.
THE COURT: Any objection?
MR. GUNTER: No objection.
THE COURT: Let it go into evidence.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Now, you refer to "we didn't consider her effective".
About whom are you speaking? Identify the people, please.
A I'm, when I say "we", I'm thinking of all the people
who were involved in the evaluation of Miss McCrary, and that
involved the two p r i n c i p a l s . B a y l o r , who had_keen^Miss
McCrary's supervising .principal,,for,,.several.years, Mrs. Trawi
who had been for one year,.Mr.^Otis Ellenburg, my assistant
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superintendent of schools, they were involved in the evaluati<
Also the other people who were involved: llrs,. De La Perriere
and Mr. Massey; also the '^Personnel Committee of the Board of
Education. This was discussed with them before making this
decision.
Q And I believe you testified earlier that you
recommended that she not be rehired?
A I testified earlier that I did not recommend Miss
McCrary., for re-employment^for . the ensuing...year.
- Q.. Now, what do you mean by "effective”?/
A I mean by -- of course, that is a term that would take
a long time to explain satisfactorily, but, as succinctly as
I can put it, one that does a satisfactory job of instructing
youngsters in a classroom.
Q Anything else?
A Of course we could elaborate on this for a long time.
Q I am just asking you is there anything else that
makes an effective teacher?
A Yes, there are other factors involved. Some of them
may -- the importance of those things, of course, varies, but
we have to consider first, of course, a person must be
certified. The person must be -- we do expect them to be of
good moral character. We do expect them to be educated people
and to be able to be articulate, to express themselves well
and to be able to know the techniques of teaching and to use
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them properly.
Q Now, what evidence do you have that Miss McCrary was
not doing a satisfactory job of instructing in the classroom?
A Well, the evidence I have, I called, as I stated
before, I called Mrs. Trawick and Mr. Baylor into my office.
I explained to them that we were going to have fewer pupils
during the ensuing school year than we had had during the
current year, that we would not be able to offer everyone at
that time under contract contracts for the ensuing school
year. Therefore, it was necessary for us to refuse to offer
contracts to some people, and we had already -- we had alread
refused to offer contracts to several people, and we still
had more people than we anticipated we were going to need.
I asked them, in their opinion, who were the least
effective teachers in the Fair Street School under Mrs.
Trawick's supervision at the time, and it was the opinion of
both Mrs. Trawick and Mr, Baylor that Miss Clara Belle
was one of the least effective teachers in the Fair Street
School.
Q In what way was she less effective than the other
teachers in the Fair Street School?
A That is the statement that Mrs. Trawick and Mr. Baylc:
made to me, and," of course, there were several things that
were discussed.
, ) One, was that Miss McCrary, in their opinion, and in
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2381 _13*±-
the opinion of other people who supervised her, was reluctant
to take suggestions from supervision and make the changes
that we considered necessary for good teaching.
We did not consider that she was as effective with
students, that the presentation in the classroom was --
THE WITNESS: If you will pardon me, Miss McCrary.
A (By the witness) - - was dull and was not attractively
presented, and children were not motivated to learn, and that
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the techniques used were not as goo_d as those of the average
teacher in our school system.
Of course, our responsibility is to try to give every
child under our supervision the very best teaching that our
system affords.
Q Did Mrs. Trawick give you any examples, any instances
v\
where Miss McCrary had refused to follow supervision? )
A Well, it was discussed, of course, her ins1stance
on remaining in the classroom in which she had remained in the
old building with the other fourth grade classes located
elsewhere.
U l)Of course, it was discussed the suggestions made by
the art -- the Director of Art and the Director of Reading,
and suggestions made that were not carrj^ed^jit^^t^_ir
satisfaction, and, in the opinion of the Director of Reading,
she was not —
Q I am not asking you about the Director of Reading. I
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am asking you about Mrs. Trawick. I am asking you to tell us
give us examples of instances where Miss McCrary refused to
follow instructions. • •
A She did not give me -- Mrs. Trawick did not give me a
count of specific times when she refused to carry out
instructions. She evaluatedjier.as., o n e of...the^weaker^teachers ,
I believe she stated it this way, one of the weaker teachers
in the Fair Street School.
Q Did Mrs. Trawick give you any evidence o.r_any examples
11where Miss McCrary was defective in moral character?
A Oh, no. There has never been any questTorf of Miss
McCrary’s moral character by anyone that I know of.
Q Did Mrs. Trawick give you any examples of any^
instances where Miss McCrary appeared to be an uneducated,
’“ illiterate woman?^
A Mrs. Trawick never suggested that Miss McCrary was an
illiterate woman.
j X ] Q Did Mrs. Trawick give you any instances or any
examples to show that Miss McCrary was an (inarticulate woman
or teacher?
A No, I believe not. I don’t recall her discussing this
Q Did Mrs. Trawick give you any examples where the
(techniquesfallowed by Miss McCrary were improper, teaching
techniques, that is?
A As I recall, we did discuss her reluctance to take
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suggestions but no specific point of where she refused to
take a particular instruction.
Q It is true, isn't it, Mrs. Trawick gave you no
examples where Miss McCrary's teaching techniques were improp
that I recall.A
Q Now, with respect to Mr. Baylor, who was her former
principal, I want you to give us any specific evidence or
examples that he gave you that Miss McCrary was defective
in good moral character, education, ability to articulate
and the use of proper teaching techniques?
A I don't believe we discussed specific examples of thi
particular technique as opposed to this one. I don't think
our discussion went into that. .
Q Did you discuss any technique?
A ¥e discussed in general teaching effectiveness and
people, as I recall, with potent.ial fnr Irnp-rnypTOfint, and this
sort of thing, but no specific examples of techniques that
were not good.
Q Mrs. De La Perriere, she was one of the persons you
consulted about Miss McCrary, is that correct?
A Mrs. De La Perriere?
Q Yes. Is that P-r-a-y-e-r?
A No, it isn't, J ,
MR. GUNTER: D-e, L-a, P-e-r-r-i-e-r-e, I believe.
MR, MOORE: Della-prayer?
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137
THE WITNESS: She pronounces it (Della-prayer) .
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Did Mrs. De La Perriere give you any examples where
Miss McCrary was defective in good moral character?
A No.
Q Did she give you any —
MR. GUNTER: He has already answered that, Mr. Moore?
MR. MOORE: All right.
MR. GUNTER: That no one, as far as he knows, has evei
questioned Miss McCrary's moral character.
MR. MOORE: Can we just stipulate that?
MR. GUNTER: He has answered the question. -
MR. MOORE: All right.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Would the same be true with respect to education,
articulation and techniques of instruction?
A Yes. In techniques of instruction, Mrs. De La Perrier
was critics.]_of her"TecUniques~of instruc 1 ron. She was also
critical of her to the point of ignoring instructions on the
teaching of art, and she felt that she just ignored the
instruction.
Of course, it is the responsibility of all elementary
teachers to give instruction in the field of art, and Mrs.
De La Perriere felt that Miss McCrary cons is t ently ignored
her suggestions and did not carry out the instructions, that
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118
she gave her, carry it over to the children and give them
instructions in proper art form and technique.
Q Did Mrs. De La Perriere give you an example of the
instruction she had attempted to give Miss McCrary that Miss
McCrary didn't follow?
A Just in general. She said that, as I recall, she
ignored her instructions in the field of the teaching of art,
and I did not delve into whether they were going to use
charcoal or fingerpaints or this sort of thing. The general
idea was that she just paid_,relatively.littLe,,.attention to
any instructions which she gave.
Q You got no — you received no evidence from Mrs. De
La Perriere that Miss McCrary refused to teach art, did you?
A I, as I told you before, she told me that Miss
McCrary simply ignored her instructions in the field of art.
Q I am not asking you about instructions. I am asking
you whether or not she refused to teach art?
A She did not say that she refused to teach art. She
said she did not teach -- she didn't believe -- ste_j3aid„_.ihat
she did not carry out the art xnstruqtiona ,„jan(L..the. ant.. .-•
instruction in her classroom was the poorest in the school
system. This is the statement Mrs. De La Perriere made, that
Miss McCrary did the poorest job of teaching art of any
teacher in the Gainesville- City School System.
Q Very well.
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Did you receive any information from Mr. Massey or
Mr. Ellenburg that was derogatory of the good character of
Miss McCrary?
MR. GUNTER: May it please the Court, he has already
answered this question. This is the third time. I
objected to the second time, saying he has already said
there was no, so far as he knows, there was no question
by anybody of Miss McCrary's good character in this
community.
MR. MOORE: We can save some time and go on to what
education, articulation and techniques of instruction --
THE COURT: You make your statements to the Court.
MR. MOORE: Pardon me, Your Honor. I was trying to
say, Your Honor, if we could just stipulate that no one
had given him any derogatory.information about Miss
McCrary's education, articulation and techniques of
instruction.
THE COURT: Well, I'don't know whether he can stipulai
that or not.
MR. GUNTER: No, I cannot stipulate that, Mr. Moore.
THE COURT: The thought is going through my mind that
a lot of this information that has been elicited from
this witness probably could have been stipulated prior
to trial and we could.have saved some time, but now that
we already have it in the record, there is no point going
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back over it.
MR. MOORE: All right.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q With respect to education, articulation and technique^
of proper instruction, did you receive any derogatory
information about Miss McCrary from Mr. Massey and Mr.
Ellenburg?
A I think I object to the word ’'derogatory".
Q Substitute "unfavorable".
A Yes, I did. Mr. Massey rated Miss McCrary as a weak
teacher of reading, and, of course, the essence of an
elementary education program is the teaching of reading, and
this is, when you have a weak reading teacher, you have a
weak elementary program, and Mr. Massey rated her a$„..a.j/ery_
weak teacher of reading, and, as I say, this is most essential
at the fourth grade level,
Q What did-Mr. Massey base that upon?
A Based upon his kftjservation, based upon the observation
of her in her classroom, the'observation of results which
they observed, as I recall, from the, students, and based upon
the ^yidence he saw in visitingand in discussing this with
her principal and with ..other people who had supervised her.
He discussed this with Mrs. Trawick, the principal,
so he had visited with the principal on occasions, and he
based this on what he saw and what evidence he saw of teachin
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A» ^
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Q Did Mr. Massey view any test scores, reading test
scores of the fourth grade students who were taught by Miss
McCrary during the school year 1968-69?
A I believe in the deposition you took from me, Mr.
Moore, we told you at that time we did not test the fourth
grade per se. That is not one of the years in which we test.
Q Isn't it true, Mr. Blakeney, that this information
that Miss McCrary was a weak teacher of reading is based upon
tests that were given the students in the fifth grade?
A Oh, no, no. This was based upon the judgment of Mr.
Massey, who is an authority in the field of reading, in our
considered opinion, and upon his discussion with other
people who supervised Miss McCrary.
Q Did he ever relate to you that he had personally
visited Miss McCrary's class?
A Oh, yes. I have discussed with him --
Q Did he show you any rating sheets or charts that
indicated the dates upon which he visited the class?
A No.
Q The length of the stay?
A No. This is not ordinarily considered important
to me, as to the exact date when a visit is made, unless I
have in question whether this visit was made, and, of course,
I have no reason to ever question Mr. Massey on these things,
so it was just not important to me as to the date of these
-ns
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& 4 6 A
visits, so I have no record of the visits that visitations
are made to any classroom. I do not require this.
Q Did he discuss with you the reading level of these
fourth grade children when they entered Miss McCrary's class?
A He discussed with me this, that Miss.McCrary...said_
_________________________________________________ lll2 _____
that she was ...teaching all ■ children- on - trie fourth grade level,
and h e s aid, of course, this was impossible, because, if she
were trying to do this, all these children were not at the
fourth grade level and should have been taught at the various
levels, whether it be first or fifth or sixth, that she state
to him she was teaching all of her pupils on a fourth grade
level, and, of course, this is contrary to what we consider
— well, it is contrary to good techniques of teaching
reading. You teach the child at whatever level of reading
he has attained at that particular time.
Q Did you have any information that they had not
attained the fourth grade reading level?
A I have no evidence in my office that they have not
obtained this.
Generally speaking, though, I review the tests each
year, and we do find -- it would be most unusual if we had
any class in any school where every pupil would be at the
exact grade level in which they found themselves assigned.
Q As a matter of fact, the fourth grade students at
the Fair Street School has never been tested at any time, thi
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year or the year before, is that correct?
A Oh, yes. These children had been tested but not at
the fourth grade level.
Q And isn't the curriculum structure so as to teach
at the average level of the attainment of the student in a
particular class?
A No. We, as I said, our philosophy is to take the
children where they are and move them as rapidly as we can
from that point. If we find children in the fourth grade who
are reading on the first grade level, we expect them to be
taught on the first grade level and gradually try to bring
them up as rapidly as possible.
Q Would Miss McCrary be in the best position to know
at what level the students were?
A So far as position is concerned, yes. She was in
the classroom with them, she should have known better, and
this Is the problem, the fact that she thought all of them
were on the fourth grade level.
MR. MOORE: Would you mark this, please.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 13 is a principal's evaluation on Miss Clara B.
McCrary.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 13.)
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BY MR. MOORE:
Q I show you here the evaluation report on Miss MeCr;
dated February l b , 1969, by Mrs. Mary D. Trawick. Have you
seen this before?
A Oh, yes.
Q This is a true and correct --
A It is.
Q This is the original, isn't it?
A Yes.
Q Of the report?
A Yes.
Q And I notice on here that Mrs. Trawick says, in
answer to the question: "Have you observed the teacher
teach" and she said, "Yes", and then the next question:
"Is he open-minded and receptive to suggestions", and it
"Yes" f ..that ,.X$. a. correct entry, isn't it?
A That is a correct entry.
Q And this information was on this report when you
first saw it, wasn't it?
A Yes, it was on there when I first saw it.
Q Now, I notice that there is some information --
there are some remarks written here, some comments:
"Weak (if necessary to" — do you know what this word is righ
here?
A Yes. It is quite evident it is- "reduce".
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Q
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n•s*
•- '’This is one"?
A
Q
A
there.
Yes.
Is that your writing?
This is my writing. That is my comment.
All right, when did you put that on there?
I do not know the exact date that I placed it on
I assume it was placed on there at the time, the day
I went over these evaluations with the principal. I assume
that this is the time, or, else, when I had a conference with
Mr. Baylor and Mrs. Trawick concerning this person.
q And Mrs. Trawick, the principal, rated Miss McCrary
either average or above average in every category, is that
correct?
A This is correct.
Q And she rated.her above .average. . ia.iisKUl, in
teaching" with respect ...to recognition of and provision for
ind i v idnpl„,d if-fer e^ges .didn't she?
A Yes, yes, she rated her Number 2, which would have
been --
MR. GUNTER: May it please the Court, I think we
are just wasting more time, because the exhibit speaks
for itself, how she is rated, and he can introduce the
exhibit.
THE COURT: Is the exhibit in evidence?
MR. GUNTER: No objection to the admission.
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MR. MOORE: I introduce it in evidence.
THE COURT: All right, sir.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, may I have just a second to
look through these exhibits?
THE COURT: Aren't these papers that you said you
had asked them to turn over to you?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
THE COURT: It looks like this thing might be
expedited if you stipulated these things.
MR.'MOORE: This is the first time I have seen them
THE COURT: You have had an opportunity to see
them before now, haven't you?
MR. MOORE: When we took the depositions they
didn't have them, and this is the first time we have
been together since Wednesday.
MR, GUNTER: I told Mr. Moore on last Wednesday
that I would produce these today. I mention I did not
have them then, and I got them as soon as I could. I
didn't want to risk mailing them to Atlanta to him. I
told him I would produce them here this morning. And
this is the first, since 10:00 o'clock, 9:30, that he
has had to look at them.
THE COURT: When I take a recess you can look at
them then. I am trying to conserve time. I have today
and tomorrow, but Judge Smith has got to have this
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147
courtroom Wednesday.
MR. MOORE: It shouldn't take me more than about
five minutes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: All right, go ahead.
MR. MOORE: Thank you.
THE COURT: Mr. Moore, it is not time ordinarily
to take a recess, but since you want to do that, and I
thought I told you to go ahead with something else —
MR. MOORE: I thought you meant --
THE COURT: Mr. Gunter is out of the courtroom, and
you can't proceed without him, I will take about a
fifteen-space or twenty minute recess now, and you can
go through the papers.
(Whereupon, Court was recessed at 2:50 P. M., reconvening at
3:08 P. M.)
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AFTER RECESS
THE COURT: Gent-1 emen, are you ready to go forward?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
Would you mark this?
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification No. 1
principal's evaluation of teachers in grades one through
four of the City School System of Gainesville.
(Whereupon, the above documents were marked for identificatio
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. l4.)
n A
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BY MR. MOORE:
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J M
Q I hand you Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 14, Mr. Blakeney
and ask you if you recognize it as being photocopies of
evaluations of the principals of all the teachers in grades
one through four in your school system last year?
A Yes. I had these copies made at your suggestion,
Mr. Moore. These are copies of them,
Q And they are for the year '68 —
A 167— * 68, * 68 —169«
Q A n right. And do you know offhand how many
teachers you have in grades one through four in your system?
A No, I do not.
Q Do you know a teacher by the name of Mrs. Nannell
Fortson?
A Yes, I do.
Q And she teaches in the Fair Street School?
A Yes, Mrs. Fortson teaches in the Fair Street School,
Q Is she a Negro person or a white person?
A Mrs. Fortson is a Negro.
Q I notice on here there is a note written under
"comments" by someone to the effect that she has no degree
and a degree is required for re-employment?
A This is correct.
Q Do you have any knowledge of any. other teachers in
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your school system who do not have degrees?
A Vie have, as I recall, one other teacher without a
degree.
Q And do you know her name?
A Mrs. Parks, I believe.
Q Is she Negro or white?
A She is white.
Q And in what school does she teach?
A Enota Elementary.
Q In what grade?
A Oh, I am not sure of that. First or second grade.
I would have to check to see.
Q Would you please do so, please?
A I might add there is a requirement on Mrs. Parks
that she get at least six hours each year working towards the
degree. This is a requirement of the Regional Accrediting
Association, so this is required of her. They have so many
years to get these degrees, and they are expected to work
toward it each year until they get it.
Nov/, this is the Enota School. Mrs. Parks is a
teacher of s'econd grade at Enota School,
Q And Mrs. Nannell Fortson is a teacher of fourth
grade at Fair Street School?
A This is correct.
Q Do you know Miss Elizabeth Groves?
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A Yes, I know Miss Elizabeth Groves.
<2 And she was employed as a teacher in your school
system last year, is that correct?
A That's correct.
Q What grade was that?
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A VMiss Groves-was a teacher of third grade in the
Candler Street School.
Q And she is a white person, is that correct?
A Yes, sir.
Q Nov;, I believe you tried to get Miss Groves placed
in each of the four white elementary schools for the school
year commencing '69-'70, is that correct?
A No.
Q Well, tell me what is right, then?
A Miss Groves, in discussing this with the Personnel
Committee of the Board, it was the opinion of the Personnel
Committee that some of the patrons of the Candler Street
School had lost confidence in Miss Groves1 teaching, and she
had quite a bit of criticism which we felt did destroy her
effectiveness in this particular school, to some extent,
so we felt that Miss Grovesjwas a satisfactory teacher but,
due to this, that it would be we] 1. that., she .not. be re-employe-
in this same school further. So when we did effect a
transfer, or asked the principals about this, Mrs, Irawick,
the principal at Fair Street School, said she would be happy
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151
to have Miss Groves, she believed she could be an effective
teacher in her situation, and we granted that, but Miss Grove
resigned this position.
Q Pardon me?
A Miss Groves resigned the position. She had been
assigned to the Fair Street School but resigned the position.
Q You also approached the principals of the other
three white elementary schools before you approached Mrs.
Trawick about employing Miss Groves for the year —
A No, I did not. Anytime teachers are considered,
the principals, all of the applications are in the central
office, and we have two meetings a month, and, quite often
we have called meetings, and these applications are presented
to the principals, and they ask for a teacher from time to
time. Sometimes they do not get the ones assigned which
they would like to have assigned.
But Mrs. Trawick did ask for this. I didn't ask
any particular principal to take Miss Groves. Mrs. Trawick
said she felt Miss Groves would do a satisfactory job and
asked she be assigned to her school, and she was.
Q Now, you made no effort to achieve a reassignment
of Miss McCrary, did you?
A Miss McCrary had the same opportunity, 1 mean her
name was considered along with Miss Groves'. No principal
asked that Miss McCrary be assigned, and I did not ask any
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principal to let me assignjier to their,.school.
Q Did Miss Groves have as much experience in the
system as Miss McCrary?
A I am not sure. About the same, I would say.
Q Did she have a Master's Degree?
A As I recall, Miss Groves did not have a Master's
........................................ ................ .. ...15.2__
Degree.
Q Can you identify, for the purposes of the record,
please, each teacher in the elementary. school_,^grades one
through four, who has a Master's Degree and 21 years experien:
other than Miss McCrary?
A No, I cannot.
Q Do you know whether or not there are other teachers
in grades one through four with a Master's Degree?
A I do not recall. Some are working on Master's
Degrees. I do not recall another teacher in one through four.
There may be. I am not sure.
Q Are you able to recall any teacher, one tnrough
four, who has 21 years of experience?
A I am not sure of the years of experience without
the records.
Q Now, taking the entire elementary school system,
one through six, how many teachers do you have with a Master £
Degree?
I have oA I do not recall. I cannot give you this.
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257 A
with at least a six-year certificate. I do not recall how
many have Master's Degrees.
Q It would be fair to say there are not more than
five teachers in the entire elementary school system with a
Master's Degree, is that correct?
A Classroom teachers, I would say
Q Yes.
A — this is probably correct.
Q And there are not but three other teachers in the
school system with 21 years experience?
A I am not sure of the —
Q Mrs. Aderholt, Mrs. Sumner, and one other lady have
more experience than Miss McCrary, is that correct?
A I have not re v ie w e d the records to ascertain the
number of years experience. I consider it relatively
unimportant.
q isn't it true, Mr. Blakeney, that you, as a profess
school administrator, have r.o other reliable tool uP Q ^ J ^ lch
to base a decision that a teacher
those commonly in use; Certification and experience?
MR. GUNTER: Please the Court, I object to the
question, because the question has been asked before,
and the witness has answered the question before and
stated the number of factors that he gave consideration
to in the effectiveness or non-effectiveness of the
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teacher, and Mr. Moore is merely asking the same question
over again.
MR. MOORE: That is not correct.
Mould you read the question back?
THE COURT: I will have to hear the question. This
noise outside, you will have to speak a little louder.
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir.
REPORTER: "Isn't it true, Mr. Blakeney, that you,
as a professional school administrator, have no other
reliable tool upon which to base a decision that a
teacher is effective or not except those commonly in
use: Certification and experience?"
THE COURT: I overrule the objection.
You may answer the question, please, sir.
THE WITNESS: I do not...consider certification and
experience as being the only ̂ criteria by wnich we judge
the effectiveness of a teacher. Many other factors are
considered, and the certification and number of years
experience, certainly this could be important or
unimportant, but relatively unimportant.
BY MR. MOORE-:
Q In making a decision to renew a teacher's contract
for an additional year, what weight, if any, do you give to
certification and experience?
A Well, relatively little. As I said earlier, the
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certificate is a pre-requisite. According to law and the
regulations of the State Board of Education and the regulatioi
of the Accrediting Association, they must be certified so
this is a requirement, in order to have a licensed to teach
they must have a certificate, so this is a pre-requisite.
This, of course, is considered. They must have this.
But this does not necessarily mean that this
person is a capable teacher in the particular situation in
which they find themselves at a particular time, and
experience is no — no experience is required. Sometime a
teacher with some five or six or seven years is very
important. Usually teachers do improve over these first few
years of experience. Of course, many continue to improve;
many do not.
Q Would it be fair to conclude, Mr. Blakeney, that in
your system great weight is given to the subjective
evaluation of the effectivenej_s,.,--Qf..4Uiĝ t̂ eacher with respect
to offering them a contract for re-employment?
A The evaluation, yes, of the4r-~fiejiformanc.e. We do
give greater weight to this than anything else. This is
important. If vie consider,.in our judgment, that the person
is an effective teacher, then, this is the most important
factor considered in continuing _a c on true t •• w i th them.
Q I would like to know how did you determine that
the reduction in faculty should occur at the Fair Street Schc o]
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rather than at some'other school?
A We did not — we did not consider it in that way,
Mr. Moore. We looked at the total school, the total school
system, and the number of pupils that would be attending the
school system next year. And, of course, at this particular
moment, and at the time that the contracts were given, we
were not sure where these children would be attending schools ,
because changes could be made by the Board of Education, or
we could have requests for transfers which would materially
affect the number of pupils involved or the number of pupils
in attendance at any particular school, so we have to estimats
those things.
We do estimate that the Fair Street School would
be considerably less because we have close to two hundred
children, county children, attending that school this year
that will not be there next year.
Q And do you have a choice period in your plan?
A Yes. The children have been given choices to go
from one school system to the other. However, under the
approved plan which the Board had approved by Health,
Education and Welfare, there would have to be no choice
period because children would be assigned on the basis of
attendance zones, and there would be no freedom of choice.
So since that plan had been approved at the time we were
working on this, we assumed that there.would not be a freedom
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£ 6 1 A ( )
of choice period, and we have not held a freedom of choice
period up to the present time.
Q Now, since you have been operating under your plan
of desegregation, have you taken any steps to review the
qualifications of teachers within your system so as to overcon
the prior assignment of teachers under the racially segregate!
school system?
A State that question again.
MR. MOORE: Will you read that back?
REPORTER: "Now, since you have been_operating
under your plan of desegregation, Jhave von taken any
steps to review the qualifications of teachers within
your system so as to overcome the prior assignment of
teachers under the racially segregated school system?"
A (By the witness) I would say we haven't evaluated
teachers on that basis. We have evaluated teachers system-wi!
and the assignment of teachers is not based on -- if they
are qualified to serve in this system, they are qualified
to serve in any school in the system.
Of course, if they are not qualified to serve in
one school, they would not be qualified to serve in another.
Q Is your answer that you have not evaluated them
for that purpose?
A We have not evaluated teachers v/ith the purpose in
mind of
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For desegregation? Is that the question?
Q Yes.
A Because we just evaluate teachers on the basis of
their ability to teach, as we see it, and their assignments
are made not on the basis for desegregation. We do have in
mind a plan to mix the teachers, of course, to desegregate
the faculty, to assign white teachers to predominantly Negro
schools and Negro teachers to predominantly white schools,
and so forth.
Q Was it your opinion that dtiring the school year
1968-69 that you had only four white teachers who were
qualified to teach in the all-black Fair Street School?
THE COURT: I didn't hear that question.
MR. MOORE: I asked him was it his opinion that in
the year 1968-69 he had only four white teachers who were
qualified to teach in the all-black Fair Street school?
A (By the witness) Oh, no. Vie had many teachers who
were qualified to teach. Any elementary teacher in the
Gainesville City System would have been qualified to teach in
an all-black school.
Q Why didn't you reassign them?
A Vie have had some -- of course, we try to make
assignments. Vie want the teachers to be happy in their
assignments. Vie feel they are more effective when they are.
Vie assign these people -- of course, there is some reluctance
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______________________________________________________________152______
on the part of white teachers, who have never taught in an
all-black school, there is some reluctance on the part of
Negro teachers who have never taught in an all-white school,
so we have moved along kind of slowly with this process,
because we like for the teacher to feel that he or she would
be happy in this particular assignment.
Q And I notice that you only assigned one black
teacher to the various schools in your system during the year
'68-'69, and is that because you had an opinion that only one
or two black teachers would be happy or satisfied or competent
to teach in an all-white school?
A No. We had assigned to Gainesville High School
Major Nelson in the high school and Mrs. Brown in the Enota
School, and prior to that we had Mrs. Williams at the
Miller Park School. We had other assignments made. We had
Mrs. Howard, who was assigned to the Fair Street School, a
white teacher, who resigned due to moving out of the city.
There is no question there were only those that were qualifiec
Other Negro teachers were consulted about assignments in whits
schools and were reluctant, and they were not assigned.
q you do not administer any teacher tests in your
school, such as the'National Teacher's Education tests, NTE?
A No, the NaTionaTTeacher ’ s Examination is not
given in our school system. This is not a requirement for
teachers.
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Q Are there any tests whatsoever given teachers in
your system?
A V/e give no tests to teachers in our system. We
administer the NTE at times, but this is at the teacher's
request. The Board of Education does not require this.
Q And, Mr. Blakeney, do you have vacancies now in
the primary and elementary school?_
A We have two or three vacancies at the primary level,
We assume that the primary level in the Fair Street School,
because we have assigned three primary teachers from the
Fair Street School, three Negro teachers who were teaching at
the primary level, we have assigned those to predominantly
white schools for next year, so this does leave vacancies,
three vacancies.
Q And you presently have a vacancy in the third grade
at Fair Street, is that correct?
A I am not sure that it would be assigned to the
third grade. I have talked with Mrs. Trawick about this.
She said she needed the three teachers to take the place of
those that v/e have transferred.
were transferred?
A Well, I will have to — I will have to look that
up. I don't trust my memory.
Mrs. Doris Evans, of course, has been transferred.
And what grades do they come from, the ones that
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She was a fourth grade teacher. She has been re-assigned.
Wait a minute. I have a copy of these assignments.
I have it here in my notes someplace. I have in my notes here
someplace the transfers.
'We have assigned to the Enota Elementary School Miss
Gloria Young and Mrs. Maynard Brown. Of course, Mrs. Maynard
Brown is already there. Miss Gloria Young last year taught
second grade at the Fair Street School and has been assigned
to the Enota Elementary School,
And then Mrs. Doris Evans, whom I mentioned a momen';
ago, has been transferred to the Candler Street School.
Miss Gloria Copeland was a first grade teacher at
Fair Street School and has been assigned to the Miller Park
School.
Miss Adell Williams, Miss Williams is a teacher of
first grade and has been assigned to the Main Street
Elementary School.
So those are first grade teachers.
Q Has anyone been hired to take Mrs. Evans’ place?
A Not specifically to take Mrs. Evans' place.
Q So there is a vacancy in the fourth grade at Fair
Street?
A Not necessarily. That will depend on the assignment
of the teachers that are there, which is --
Q But you -- pardon me.
_______________________________ .161__
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A -- which the principal and I will get together on
that. We usually take the principal's suggestion as to the
assignment of teachers in most cases.
Q But you have not assigned a teacher to the fourth
grade vacancy created by Mrs. Evans being transferred to Enotc
A We are not sure there will be a fourth grade where
Mrs. Evans is. Vie have lost a good many pupils.
MR. MOORE: That's all we have from this witness,
Your Honor.
THE COURT: You rnay go down, sir.
MR. GUNTER: If it please the Court, does the Court
not want us to examine him now? I thought we might do
it witness by witness, or we will wait until we start
presenting our case and put the superintendent back up.
THE COURT: Well, unless there is an agreement to
the contrary you would have to do that. He called him
as an adverse witness.
MR. MOORE: We have no objection,
MR. GUNTER: We would prefer to put him up later.
THE COURT: All right, you may go down, sir.
(Whereupon, the witness was excused from the stand.)
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MR. MOORE.:. Mrs. Mary Trawick.
MR. GUNTER: Are you calling her for cross-exarninat
as an agent of the Board of Education?
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MR. MOORE: Yes.
.163.
THE CLERK: Mrs. Trawick, v/ill you take the oath, please,
The evidence you shall give in the issue joined
between Rosa A Head and others and R. D. Blakeney,
individually and as Superintendent of Schools, and other
shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the
truth, so help you God?
MRS. TRAWICKs I do.
THE CLERIC: Just have a seat on the witness stand,
please.
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MRS. MARY B, TRAWICK,
Called as a witness by the Plaintiffs, after having first
been duly sworn, testified as follows:
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mrs. Trawick, will you state your name, please?
A Mary B. Trawick.
Q I may have a soft voice, but, if you have a louder
voice, will you speak up.
Where do you live?
A I live at 703 Myrtle Street, Gainesville, Georgia.
Q And are you connected with the Gainesville Board
of Education?
A Yes, I am.
Q And what is your connection?
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© ?68A. ©
164
I am principal of the Fair Street Elementary School
Q And when did you become principal of the Fair Stree
School?
A In August, 1968.
n And were you connected with the Gainesville City
School System prior to that time?
A Yes, I was.
Q And what was that connection?
A I was Curriculum Director.
Q And how long did you hold that position?
A Six years.
Q And before then were you connected with the Fair
Street -■- with the Gainesville City Schools?
A No, I was not.
Q Did you have a position in education prior to then?
A Yes, I did, prior to going -- spending six months
in Africa.
Q When were-you in Africa?
A Well, from '59 to ' 60, June of '59 to October of
ON O •
Q And with whom were you associated before going to
Africa?
A With the Clarke County School District.
Q And what was your position?
A Curriculum Director.
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Q And how long have you been in education as either a
principal or curriculum director?
A Oh, some thirty-two years.
Q And has that always been in Georgia?
A Yes, it has.
Q Has it always been in the area of Clarke County
and Hall County?
A No.
Q All right, what other systems have you had experienc
with?
A I worked in Morgan County and Jasper County, and
also Oconee and Oglethrope County.
Q Mrs. Trawick, would you be kind enough to tell us
what your education is?
A I have an A.B. Degree from Savannah State College,
M.Ed. Degree from Atlanta University, and I studied three
summers at New York University and one summer at Hampton
Institute and two summers at North Carolina College in Durham,
North Carolina.
Q The M. Ed. Degree is a Master of Education?
A That1s right,
Q Savannah State is a predominantly Negro college?
A Yes, it is.
Q And so is Atlanta University?
A Yes, it is.
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Q Do you have a six-year certificate?
A No, I don't.
Q Are you working towards that?
A Yes, I was.
Q All right.
Can you tell us, Mrs. Trawick, how you secured the
appointment as principal of the Fair Street School?
A Beg your pardon?
Q Can you tell us how you secured the appointment as
principal of the Fair Street School?
A Mr. Byas, who was the principal at Butler, left the
system, and we were supposed to have closed Butler this year
because of our working with HEW, and I went to Fair Street
for one year as principal because Mr. Baylor was to come back
to Fair Street this year providing Butler was closed.
Q Did you volunteer to take the principalship or
were you selected by --
A I was selected by the superintendent.
q Do you know who succeeded you in the superintendent
office as a member of his staff?
A The position was left open, because I am to return
to the position.
Q All right. Do you know Miss Clara Belle McCrary?
A Yes, I do.
Q How long have you been knowing Miss McCrary?
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A Seven years. I have been here seven years, and I
met her when I first came.
Q And you know her as a teacher at the Fair Street
School?
A Yes.
Q When she first -- strike that.
When you first came to the system Miss McCrary
taught the third grade out at Fair Street, is that correct?
A Yes, she did.
Q And she was later moved to the fourth grade?
A Yes, she was.
Q Do you know of your own personal knowledge when she
was moved to the fourth grade?
A No, I don't remember.
Q Did you participate in any way in the decision to
move her from the third to the fourth grade?
A No, I didn't.
Q Mrs. Trawick, during the -- strike that, please.
Among the faculty members at the Fair Street School
do you have anyone who has been on the faculty longer than
Miss McCrary?
A No -- I have been there only a year, and I found
Miss McCrary there. I don't know of anyone on that faculty
that was on there longer than she. I can't think of anyone.
Q And do you know whether or not there is anyone on
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' ______ __________________________________________________________________ _______________________ _________________168
the faculty of the Fair Street School who has a Master's
Degree other than Miss McCrary?
A Yes. V/e have two other teachers with Master's
Degrees.
Q Do you know who they are?
A Yes. One is Mrs. Julia Sykes, and the other one is
Mr. David Thomas.
Q And do you know what classes or grades they teach?
A Mr. David Thomas this year taught the physical
education, health and physical education, and Mrs. Sykes is
our librarian.
Q Speaking of libraries, do you know of Miss McCrary's
work with Hall County Library?
A Yes, I do.
Q And the branch, the McCrary Division or the McCrary
Branch of the Hall County Library is directly opposite the
old Fair Street School Building?
A
Q
Yes, it is.
And that library is used to supplement the library
that you have at school?
A Yes, it has supplemented it.
Q And you know of Miss McCrary's work with the young
children in the library, don't you?
A Yes, I do.
Q And you know she has been very effective in that
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library teaching young people to read-, is that correct?
A Yes.
Q As a matter of fact, she has— bean—a.-very_.fi.ffective
teacher of reading in her_worJs. .at-fhaJE'-air Street School,
hasn1t she?
A Yes, she has been...efi ective-for-'the^l-asty-I—think^
19 years she has been there. No one has said anything about
her.
Q Is Miss McCrary one of your most-liked teachers at
the Fair Street School?
A She is liked by the children and her co-workers, toe
Q She mixes well with the other faculty members?
A Yes, she does.
Q You would say that her devotion to the school system
and to work with young children is total and complete, would
you?
A I didn't quite understand that.
MR. MOORE: Would you read that question back?
REPORTER: "You would say that her devotion to the
school system and to work with young children is total
and complete?"
THE WITNESS: To- —
REPORTER: "Total".
A (By the Witness) Total and complete?
q Yes, her devotion to the children?
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A Yes.
Q Mrs. Trawick, during the school year 1968-69 did
you have any occasion or any instance, where. Miss McCrary ,.woulc|
not follow your plans of instruction or suggested changes or
plans of proceeding with respect to. the .curriculum?
A Maybe on one occasion, not for myself, but on one
occasion I think the art,...instructor had "gone to" her room but
Miss McCrary was using some reading material -where-we had
only one set of records, and I think she n o§.sibiy, didn't
follow directions there because the art instructor went into
her room to work with her, but she was trying to finish with
these records in order to get them on to another fourth
grade teacher,
Q During the year ’68-'69 there was introduced in your
curriculum a device known as "decoding for reading", is that
correct?
A Yes. This is the material which I am speaking aboul
the "decoding for reading",
Q In this "decoding for reading" they put a book on
a record, an ordinary phonograph record --
A Yes.
Q -- is that correct?
A Yes.
Q And you play this record for the children?
A Yes.
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275A 171
Q And then you ask the children to recognize words
later on, is that correct?
A Yes. They are more familiar with it than I am.
Q Than you are.
But the problem out at your school is that you had
at least four fourth grade classes?
A Five.
Five fourth grade classes?
Yes.
But you had only one set of records?
One set of records.
Q And you say on this instance.when .the. art... teacher
or the art instructor came in that Miss McCrary wanted to
finish using the records so it could be passed on to someone
else?
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Q
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A Yes.
q How much time in the school is devoted to -- strike
that, please.
For fourth graders how much time is set aside weekl
or daily for art instruction?
A Well, frankly, the teachers are supposed to do art
all the way through, but our art consultant only came in once
a week, on Fridays.
Q All right.
A And she did not — she was not able to get to all
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276A. 172
A
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of the classes but maybe about every five or six weeks.
Q, She would get around?
Yes, she would get around.
Rotate to the classes?
Yes.
Q And you would have art instruction only on the time|
when the art teacher came?
A Well, the teachers taught their own art. They
followed up what she started.
Q But the art teacher would come around, and she woul|
introduce such concepts as fingerpainting --
A Yes.
Q — and laminations and things of that sort, is that
right?
A Yes.
q And the classroom teacher had to follow it up?
A That is right.
Q Do you know how many hours a classroom teacher
devoted to art instruction?
A I couldn't say definitely.
Q Another thing I would like to ask you about, Mrs.
Trawick, do you know Mr. Otis Ellenburg?
A Yes, I do,
Q And he is the Assistant Superintendent of Schools?
A That is right.
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_ 123
During the school year 1968-69 did you have a
project in social studies for the entire school system?
A Yes, we did.
Q And in that project the teachers were supposed to
instruct the children in how to create replicas of their
C.itv, _ buil dings in their city, rather, und...Qth.on.. things,
through the use of art material, and to then give it some
type of conceptual description; do you remember such a project
A Yes. lie had a social science fair, and we had
social science projects. Each class had a project, and
sometimes individual students had projects.
Q Do you know what project Miss McCrary's class had?
A I don't remember what project she had, but she did
have a project.
Q Did Mr. Ellenburg come to the school and review her
project?
A Yes. Mr. Ellenburg was one of the judges for the
projects, as I remember. I know he was -- Mr. Ellenburg did
not judge the social science projects. Two teachers from the
high school judged the social science projects. That was a
science project. We had a science fair. There was a natural
science fair and a social science fair. It was the natural
science fair, I believe, that Mr. Ellenburg judged, I believe.
Q Do you remember whether or not he judged or observe 1
the project that was conducted by Miss McCrary's class?
~y
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278A ©
17Lf
A Well, all of the classes, they went into -- they
judged all of the projects in the school.
Q Did Miss McCrary's class win a prize?
A We didn't have prizes as such. We had ribbons,
blue and red and white ribbons. All of the classes that did
not place for blue or red we put white ribbons on their
projects for participation,
Q Do you know what color ribbon Miss McCrary's class
received?
A I don't remember.
Q At any time during the school year '68-'69 did you
have occasion to see either Mr. Ellenburg or Mr. Blakeney,
the Superintendent, in the classroom in which Miss McCrary
taught?
A I remember going to the classroom with Mr. Ellenburg
when we put these ribbons on, I think I had the ribbons, and
I believe I put this ribbon on, and that is the only time I
remember his going into her classroom.
Q All right.
A Now, he is in the school sometimes, he can go into
the schoolroom without my permission.
Q Was Miss McCrary there at that time?
A Yes, she was working, as I remember, and we just put
this on the table where the little project was, and we didn't
ns1
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stop her
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2 73 A 171
Q All right.
Were her children in the classroom?
A Yes, the children were there.
Q Was her project acceptable to you?
A I don't remember, because we had 29 projects in the
school -- well, more than that, and I don't remember whether
it was a good -- well, I just don't remember. I couldn't
say whether it was acceptable or not.
Q Do you remember having a conversation or being
present during a- conversation at the Fair Street School
around,March if, 1969, in which Mr. Blakeney and Mrs. Harris
and Miss McCrary were participants?
A Do I remember —
Q The conversation or a discussion?
A Well, I was there, but I didn't sit in on the
conversation. I know that he had a conference with both of
them.
Q Did you know what the conference was about?
A Yes, I knew what the conference was about.
Q And that was about re-hiring each of these teachers?
A This is right.
Q But you took no part in the conference?
A No, I didn't. I had a meeting with the other
teachers, and I went to a teacher's meeting.
Exhibit 13. This is the
■v
Q I show you Plaintiffs'
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f'r ’■>v ' . 280A ©
___________________________________ ____ ________________ 126_____
principal's evaluation of Miss Clara B. McCrary. Did you
make the entries on this?
A Yes, I did.
Q And did you make the entry here under "Comments"?
A No, I didn't.
Q Do you know when that entry was placed on there?
A No, I don't.
Q Did you have any discussion with Mr. Blakeney betwe
February the ikth, 1969, and March 6, 1969, about Miss
McCrary?
A Yes, we did.
Q And about your evaluation?
A Yes , we did .
Q Did you at any time say to Mr. Blakeney that Miss
McCrary was a weak teacher?
A Not -- I don't remember.. I remember this came up
with the three of us, and we were talking about reducing,
we had to reduce our faculty because we are losing around
163 or 167 youngsters, and we talked about withholding,
withholding contracts, and, if we withheld a contract, who
were the persons, and I remember this name came up, Miss
McCrary's name came up.
Q Did you recommend that Miss McCrary*s_contract be
withheld?
A No, I didn't. I recommended Miss McCrary.
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Q Did you recommend Miss McCrary highly?
A This is her recommendation right here.
Q All right.
Do you consider that a high recommendation?
A Yes, I considered this as fair. She made_high in
some things, as most teachers do, and not -so high in some
things.
Q All right.
Now, I believe that you have a vacancy in the
fourth grade at your school at this time, is that correct,
because Mrs. Evans was transferred someplace else?
A Yes, we have a vacancy in the fourth grade.
Q Now, has that vacancy been filled?
A No, it hasn't.
Q Have you engaged in any conversations or discussion
with any other person for the purposes of filling that
vacancy?
A Only the Superintendent and I have conferred.
Q All right.
A We have not filled the vacancy, have not been able
to find --
•Q Do you — strike that,
. Would you accept Miss McCrary if the Superintendent
will recommend her re-hiring?
A Yes, I would.
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Q Do you know of any reason why Miss McCrary would
not be an effective teacher at the Fair Street School?
A I couldn't so very well answer that question.
"Do you know any reason that she wouldn't be an
effective teacher?"
Q Right.
A That is a very difficult question to answer. Do
you mean because of what has come up?
Q I don't mean about her not being re-hired. I mean
do you know of any reason.related to education of.children
and the conduct of the school why she wouldn't be. an effective
teacher?.... .
A I think she can be.an effective teacher.
MR. MOORE: That's all.
THE COURT: All right, Mr. Gunter.
MR. GUNTER: I understood him to say he called her
as an agent of the Board of Education for the purposes
of cross-examination, and I am going to have to put up
all these witnesses again, and that is what I will do.
MR1. MOORE: If he would like to examine her now,
I have no objection.
THE COURT: Well, I thought he called her as his
witness. I didn't know —
MR. GUNTER: I asked him to begin with.
But I will go ahead and examine her now, if it is
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179
all right with the Court.
THE COURT: All right.
- -0-
DIRKCT EXAMINATION
BY MR. GUNTER:
Q Mrs. Trawick --
A Yes.
Q -- you came to the Gainesville School System from
Clarke County, you have testified?
A Well, I was in Africa just before coming to the
Gainesville System.
Q Right.
What were you doing in Africa?
A I was there with my husband, who is with the
Agency for International Development.
Q, The Agency for International Development?
A The Agency for International Development, that's
right
Q Is he still there?
A Yes, he is
All right
And you came to Gainesville in the Superintendent's
office in what year?
A In 1961-62, I believe it was.
Q And what were your duties in the Superintendent's
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384A
.18.0____
office, Mrs. Trawick?
A Well, I was Curriculum Director, and I worked then
with the Fair Street Elementary and Butler High School.
Q And you were retained in that capacity in the
Superintendent's office until you became principal of the
Fair Street School?
A This is right.
Q In '68-'69?
A That is right.
Q Now, at what time did you — do you remember the
first time Miss Clara Belle McCrary's name came up in regard
to the possibility that she would not be re-employed for the
year 1969-70?
A Her name never really came up for not being re-emplo
Her name came up very early about withholding the contract,
because we felt that, as the conference went, that she was
less .eXl,PJlt,ivn,-than--snme-other teachers, and ii, never really
came up, so far as I am concerned, that she wouldn't be
re-hired, but the contract would be withheld until maybe there
were places, because we didn't have places when the contracts
went out for "so many — for the teachers, for all the teachers
because many of the teachers had to be cut off because we were
losing so many youngsters.
Q Now, did this conversation that you have testified
about take place some time prior to March 4, 1969?
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2 8 5 X
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A Yes, I am quite sure it did. It was between the
time we evaluated the teachers and the time to send out
contracts.
Q Yes.
Now, you said the discussion, came. ..up as to whether
Miss McCrary was less effective than ot her teachers?
A Yes.
0 This was discussed?
A Yes, it was discussed.
Q With whom did you discuss this?
A With .Mr., Bllenburg and Mr.....BLakehey- and Mr. Baylor.
Q Now, Mr. Baylor is the Negro principal of E . E.
Butler High School?
A Yes. And he has been Miss McCrary’s principal for
the last, oh, six or seven years or eight years.
Q He occupied your position --
A Yes.
Q — prior to your going as principal of Fair Street
School?
A Yes, that is right.
Q Now, did you meet with the Personnel Committee of
the Gainesville Board of Education?
A .Yes, 1 did.
Did Mr. Baylor meet with the Personnel Committee?
Yes, he did.A
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286A 1 8?
Q Did all the principals meet with the Personnel
Committee?
A Yes, they did.
Q All of you were present at the same time?
A Yes.
Q Mrs. Trawick, were the principals ..ever given any
instructions either by the Superintendent or the Personnel
Committee with respect to the quality., of. teachers or upgrading
the quality.of teachers, in. the system?
A Yes, this was discussed.
.Q When?
A At this Personnel _C_oimitt.ee,,,M.ee,tixig. I don't
remember, but the night we met with the Personnel Committee,
we talked about upgrading the quality of education in the
city system.
Q Was that meeting -- that meeting was held prior to
March 4, 1969, was it not?
A I believe it was.
Q Now, was any other teacher discussed with you by
either the Superintendent or the Personnel Committee with
respect to her effectiveness or lack of effectiveness as a
teacher, any other by name other than Miss McCrary?
A Yes, there were.
Q Who was she?
Mrs. Jennie Harris was one of them. Well, I believe
H
A
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£87A
she was the only other one. We had one other teacher whose
contract was withheld, but it wasn't for the same reason.
Q Who was the other person whose contract was withheld
but not for the same reason?
A Mrs. Fortson.
Q Mrs. Fortson?
A That's right.
Q What was the reason for her contract being withheld?
A Well, Mrs. Fortson doesn't have her degree, not yet,
Q And her contract was withheld?
A Yes.
Q ■ Is she white or Negro?
A She is Negro.
Q Nov/, is there any other teacher whose effectiveness
was discussed by name, or lack of effectiveness discussed by
name?
A I don't remember any other teacher's effectiveness.
You mean in Fair Street School?
Q Right.
' A No.
Q Or’ any other that you might have been asked your
opinion on?
A No, no, I can't -- I don't remember. I couldn't —
I don't remember any other teacher.
Q Now, Mrs. Trawick, when did you first learn from
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288k 184
Mr. Blakeney or any other person that Miss McCrary's -~
Is it Mrs. Harris?
A Yes.
for the following year, when did you first learn about this?
Was it before March the 4th, 1969? or on that date?
A Well, I still -- I am still saying that I knew when
Mr. Blakeney had the conference with them that their contracts
would be withheld because we didn't have places for them,
but I didn't know whether they wouldn't be renewed if we had
places for them.
Q All right, now, what distinction do you make
between "withheld" and "renewed"?
A The distinction I make is that if enough people
resigned, then they possibly would be given contracts. And
not renewed, I would think in terms of being dismissed.
but the contract was being withheld, and, of course, they
would not have gotten a contract if there were not places
for them.
Q Now, Mrs. Trawick --
MR. GUNTER: Will you identify this as Defendants'
Exhibit No. 1,
Q and Mrs. Harris' contracts would not be renewed
These two people never came up as being dismissed
THE CLERK: Yes, sir.
Defendants' Exhibit for identification No. 1 is
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1852&3X
EMPLOYEE'S HANDBOOK, GAINESVILLE CITY SCHOOLS.
(Whereupon, the above document was marked for identification
only as Defendants' Exhibit No. 1.)
-0-
BY MR. GUNTER:
Q Mrs. Trawick, I hand you a book here that is marked
Defendants' Exhibit No. 1, and I will ask you if that is the
employee's handbook that is given to every teacher in the
system?
A Yes.
Q Now, do you know whether this book -- it sets forth
the rules and regulations of the Board of Education, does it
not?
A Yes, it does.
Q And do you recall the date on which it
must be informed that their contract will not be
it is not going to be?
A Yes.
Q What date is that?
A March 10th, I believe.
Q March 10th?
A Yes.
Q Of each year?
A That's right.
Q
says teachers
renewed if
1, $
All right.
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186
Now does this provide for any teacher who does not
have the contract renewed by March 10th, does it provide for
any procedure for this teacher to take?
A Yes, it does, as I remember.
Q What procedure do the rules require that a teacher
may take if their contract is not renewed by March 10th in
any year?
A As I remember, they are supposed to ask the Board
for a hearing, if I remember it well.
Q This is the Board of Education?
A Yes, it is the Board of Education.
Q Now, Mrs. Trawick, Miss McCrary had a copy of this
employee’s handbook, did she not?
A Yes, she had it at her disposal.
Q And she was familiar with it?
A Yes.
Q Do you know whether or not Miss McCrary took the
matter up with the Board subsequent to March 10th or not?
A Miss McCrary, I don't think, took it up with the
Board, but the Welfare Committee, I think, of the G.T.E.A.
talked with the Superintendent about it.
Q The Welfare Committee of the G.T.E.A.? That is
Georgia Teachers and Education Association?
A Yes.
Q Is that the local Welfare Committee?
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A Yes, the local Welfare Committee.
Q Well, now, who are those? Did this local Welfare
Committee talk with you about this matter?
A No, they didn't, — yes, I think one member of that
committee talked with me about it.
Q Who was that one member?
A I don't remember.
Q Do you remember --
A It might be — it possibly was the president, she
was in my school, and she was — she talked about — she
talked with me about it. Mrs. Whelchel was the president of
the G.T.E.A. at that particular time.
Q Do you recall what this conversation was?
A No, I don't. But I do know that they asked Mr.
Blakeney for a meeting, and they did meet with Mr. Blakeney
and talked about it.
Q Were you present at the meeting?
A Yes,. I was.
Q What took place at this meeting, Mrs. Trawick?
A Well, they asked Mr. Blakeney about the persons
who were not re-hired, and he told them the same thing -that I
have told you, that we didn't have places for them at that.... ............ .. 7_.
particular time, and this ineffectivenes s..came _up much.later
with Mr. Blakeney, I think, because we had two conferences
with him: The Welfare Committee had a conference with him,
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188
and then the persons in charge — the persons in question,
the principal and I met with Mr. Blakeney one afternoon, and
this is v/hen the ineffectiveness .came out, because it wasn't
told beforehand, because Mr. Blakeney, didn't mention it to
them in the very beginning.
Q All right.
Now, when this took place did Mr. Blakeney tell the
G.T.E.A. Welfare Committee in your presence that there were
five white teachers' contracts who were not re-offered becaus:
of their ineffectiveness?
A I don't remember our discussing the other teachers
whenever we talked about this. I don't remember his discussii
the other teachers in this Welfare Committee Meeting.
Q Was Mrs. Harris discussed in the Welfare Committee
Meeting?
A Yes, she was discussed, because she was one of thos<
persons whose contract was being withheld, because we didn't
have places for them, for her at that particular time.
Q Were any white teachers' contracts being withheld
discussed?
A Not in this meeting with the G.T.E.A.
Q All right, how many meetings did the G.T.E.A. have
with Mr. Blakeney, so far as you know?
A I was in the second meeting when Mr. Blakeney came
to the school with the entire faculty -- well, the entiiover
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G.T.E.A., and that is the second one. Of course, this is
where they confronted him and asked him several questions
about why, and I think then the point came up that there were
other teachers who were not re-hired in this system because'
of their ineffectiveness.
Q Did Mr. Blakeney state there were black teachers
and white teachers who were not re-offered contracts?
A Yes, in this second meeting, as I remember.
Q Did he state how many?
A I believe he did. I believe he told us five, I
think. I am not — I am not sure of the number, but I know
it was more than —
Q This would have been two Negro teachers and five
white teachers who were not offered contracts?
A Yes.
Q Now, who is the art consultant or art —
A Mrs. Dorothy De La Perriere.
Q Mrs. Dorothy De La Perriere?
A Yes.
Q How long have you known Mrs. Dorothy De La Perriere'
A Some four -- I think Mrs. De La Perriere has been
in the system, I am not sure, around four years, I believe
this may be her fourth year in the system as art consultant.
Q Have you worked with Mrs. De La Perriere?
A Yes, I have.
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190£S4A
Q Mrs. De La Perriere, her day in Fair Street School
was every Friday, is that right?
A That is right.
Q Did Mrs. De La Perriere spend the whole day on
Friday at Fair Street School?
A Yes, she does.
Q What does she do primarily?
A Mrs. De La Perriere really teaches art to youngsters
in the classrooms, and then at the end of the-day she
consults with the teachers who would like — well, this past
year she consulted with teachers who wanted her help, at the
end of the day. Beforehand she had an in-service meeting
with the teachers.
Q Did she conduct in-service training with other
teachers prior to the beginning of the school year?
A I don't remember prior to the beginning of the
school year. She did it on Friday afternoons after teaching
children all day. She worked with teachers then in a group.
Q And she did in-service training for teachers --
A Yes.
Q — on Friday afternoons after school was out?
A Yes.
Q How long did this in-service training instruction
usually last?
A About thirty minutes.
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Q About thirty minutes.
This is where all of the elementary teachers would
come in together?
A This is right.
Q Now, did Mrs, De La Perrijere_ever... make... any_ comment
or criticism to you jabout__Miss McCrary since you are Miss
McCrary's principal?
A Yes, . At this particular time, when this "decoding
for reading" came up, she was ~~ Miss McCrary was using the
records, and, of course, she couldn't go into her room at thi;
particular time because she -- she went to have art with
her children, ,and,, of course, Miss McCrary was using the
"decoding for reading", and this was the only time that she
mentioned the fact she couldn't get into the room.
Of course, I counseled with Miss McCrary and told
her she didn't come but so often. But she had these records,
and she said she had to get them on to another teacher.
Q Now, Mrs. Trawick, has Mrs..Qe La Perriere on any
occasion other than that .ever talked to you about-Miss
McCrary's lack of teaching art?
A I don't remember, her talking with me any other time,
Q Now, what about Mr. Ellenburgthe Assistant
Superintendent, has Mr. Ellenburg ever talked with you or
criticized Miss McCrary?
I don't remember Mr. Ellenburg criticizing MissA
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CSSA
192
McCrary. I just don't remember his doing it, because, as we
went into this room and came out, we would go down the hall
to another one. This is the only time I remember that we even
went into Miss McCrary's room together, was this particular
time, this science fair, and he was one of my judges for it.
Q You do not recall any conversation between you and
Mr. Ellenburg about Miss McCrary on any other occasion?
A I don't recall other than when we worked with Mr.
Blakeney in re-hiring teachers, really hiring teachers, sendir,
out contracts.
Q Did Mr. Ellenburg discuss Miss McCrary with you
about that?
A Not directly to me. .Jib just mentioned the fact
she didn't seem to be an effective teacher in the classroom,
because he had been in her classroom, in and out of her
classroom, but not really discussing^ it with_me.
Q Now, Mr. Moore asked you about a fourth grade
vacancy next year. Do you know whether there will be a
fourth grade vacancy at Fair Street School next year?
A Well, one of my fourth grade teachers has been
transferred. We don't have a teacher.
Q Do you know how many fourth grades you will have
at Fair Street next year yet?
A Not directly, because I am working on that now,
trying to place the teachers. We are losing so many childrer.
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I don't remember quite how many of them were fourth graders.
Q You do not know how many fourth graders you will
have next September yet, do you?
A No. I have that information in the office. I
know how many will be going back to the county, but I don't
have those figures right now.
Q All right.
But it will really, be September, won't it, Mrs.
Trawick, before you know the exact number of fourth grade
students you will have at Fair Street next year? You can
estimate how many there will be --
A Yes.
q — but you don't know how many there will be?
A No, we don't know. We can only estimate.
Q Now, Mr. Moore asked you the other day, in taking
a deposition, about Miss McCrary's isolation as a fourth
grade teacher in an old part of the building?
A Yes.
Q Wfll you explain to the Court why Miss McCrary
teaches in the part.of the building in which 'she teaches?
A Y es. She requested to stay in the old building,
and I think I mentioned the fact that ŝhe could do us a
service there, she knew most of the people in the community,
and our school is very public, and people walk all the way
through the school, and she was placed there at the door, she
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O ■ p s s a Q
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was at the door and could help us with that problem of
people just walking through the building, so she requested
to stay there.
Q Nov/, did you assign her there, or did she request
to stay there?
A She requested_tostay there.
Q All right, hers is the only fourth grade that is in
that part of the building?
A This is right.
MR. GUNTER: Let me have Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 13,
MR. MOORE: Here is 13.
3Y MR. GUNTER:
Q Nov-/, Miss McCrary — excuse me.
Mrs. Trawick, this exhibit marked Plaintiffs'
Exhibit No. 13, that evaluation sheet, you turned a similar
sheet like this in on every teacher —
A Yes.
Q -- under your supervision?
A This is right.
Q And this is the sheet that you turned in on Miss
Clara B. McCrary?
A This is right.
Q Now, you turned in a sheet on every other teacher
in the same manner?
A Yes.
*</■/
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195
Q Of course, you made different marks on here?
A That's right,
Q Can you tell me, based on the teachers that you have
can you give me your judgment as to the effectiveness of Miss
McCrary as against the other teachers under your supervision?
A Well, I couldn't — I couldn't do that, because
Miss McCrary is effective in some areas where another teacher
would be effective in another, and it would be real hard for
me to be able to judge, because no two persons are the same.
They wouldn't get the same type of evaluation,
Q Do you know how long Miss McCrary has been teaching?
A No, I don’t really know how long she has been
teaching, but she has been teaching ever since I have been
here,
Q Miss McCrary enjoys a fine reputation in her
community, does she not?
A Yes, she does. -
q Is it your judgment, Mrs. Trawick, that Miss
McCrary is willing to change techniques and procedures in
teaching?
A I have seen evidences that she is willing to_change
techniques of teaching.
Q So it is your judgment that she is not inclined
to do the way she wants to do?
A Well, I couldn't really answer that question.
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MR, GUNTER: All right, no further questions.
THE COURT: Any further questions from this witness
MR. MOORE: One thing I would like to clear up
which might save some questions.
Mr. Gunter, v/hen you referred to a rule in your
Exhibit D-l, were you referring to Rule 3, Sub-Section
(d) on Page 11?
MR. GUNTER: I don't think so. Yes.
MR. MOORE: Then we are in agreement it was Rule 3?
Sub-Section (d), and it is Page 11 in your book?
MR, GUNTER: That's right. I don’t know whether it
is (c) , (b) , or what.
MR. MOORE: All right.
MR. GUNTER: It is under (d), "Rights and privilege
of teachers," It comes under that.
MR. MOORE: All right.'
-0-
RE-CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mrs. Trawick —
A Yes.
Q -- have you made a request of the Superintendent
since March 4th for Miss McCrary to be employed to fill any
vacancy in your school?
A Yes, I have.
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301 A. 197
Q And why did you make such a request?
A Because we had several teachers who resigned.
n You had seven teachers?
A Several, not seven.
Q Several?
A Yes.
Q Mrs. Trawick, would you recommend Miss McCrary for
employment in any other elementary school in the system?
A In any other elementary school?
Q Yes.
A Yes, I think if she could teach children in one
school she could teach children in another school.
Q Thank you.
A I hope so,
MR. MOORE: All right, thank you very much.
THE COURT: Any further questions?
MR. GUNTER: Yes, just' one moment, Mrs. Trawick.
-0-
RS-DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. GUNTER:
Q When did you make this request of the Super intend err
that Miss McCrary be offered a contract?
A I am not sure, but it pwas-af ter-we had...a jthird grade
teacher next door to Miss McCrary that, resigned, and she was
given a contract, but I am not sure what day it was. I couldn
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2 0 2 A.
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say.
Q Did you make this -■
A It was after --
Q Did you make this request in person to Mr. Blakeney1;
A Yes, I made the request in person to Mr. Biakeney.
Q Were you at his office or was he at yours?
A In his office.
Q In his office?
A Yes.
Q And what did he tell you?
A He told me he thought that he might have a little
trouble with that because he had -- somebody^— - some Board
member, I think he told me, had_said ̂ something. He didn't
discuss it any further. I didn't discuss it any further
with him.
Q Now, was this before or after Miss McCrary had
’brought the lawsuit or the announcement had been made she
was going to file a lawsuit against the Board?
A This was before, because.Jin..— D4akeney had told me
once he was going to give her a ccritract, - bu'c He ..thought he
would have a. little. trouble -because, someone had said ..somethii
and this was beforehand, and, of course, w h e . I asked him
after this came up he said he couldn't because the Board had
voted against it.
q Now, was this —
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© utort. ]_g<2
A And I asked him again afterwards.
Q After the announcement of the lawsuit?
A Yes. He said the Board had voted against it, and
he was sorry, he couldn't do it at that time.
Q Mrs. Trawick, do you think that Miss McCrary would
be an effective teacher in Fair Street School after having
brought a lawsuit against the Board of Education?
A I - - I couldn't -- I couldn't answer that question.
I am not sure
MR. GUNTER: All right.
THE COURT: Do you have any further questions, Mr.
Gunter?
MR. GUNTER: No, sir.
THE COURT: Do you have any further questions?
MR. MOORE: No, sir.
THE COURT: You may go down.
(Whereupon, the witness was excused from the stand.)
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THE COURT: Gentlemen, let's take a short recess
at this time, about ten or fifteen minutes.
(Whereupon, Court was recessed at 4:25 P. M,, reconvening
at 4:40 P. M.)
THE
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AFTER RECESS
COURT: All right, call your next witness.
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304A.
2 Q 0
MR. MOORE: My. David Massey.
THE CLERK: Mr. Massey, will you take an oath,
please, sir.
The evidence you shall give in the issue joined
between Rosa A. Head and others and R. D. Blakeney,
individually and as Superintendent of Schools, and
others, shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing
but the truth, so help you God.
MR. MASSEY: I do.
THE CLERK: Just have a seat on the witness stand.
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DAV1D MASSEY.
Called as a witness by the Plaintiffs for the purpose of
cross-examination, after having first been duly sworn,
testified as follows:
CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. MOOREj
Q Would you state your name, please?
A David Massey,
Q Where do you reside, Mr. Massey?
A On Rosedale Drive in Hall County.
Q Are you connected with the Gainesville City Board
of Education?
A Yes, sir. I serve in the position as Reading..,..
Coordinator.
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SOSA
201
Q And how long have you been in that position?
A Two years, sir.
Q And prior to that were you associated with the
Gainesville City Board?
A Yes, sir. I taught reading at Gainesville Junior
High School for about seven years.
Q And before that did you have any position in educati
teaching?
A Yes, sir. I taught reading in Chatooga County for
one year.
Q What is the length of your professional experience?
A Nine years.
Q And where did you receive your education?
A I received a Bachelor of Science Degree in English
and Speech from the University of Tennessee, and a Master's
Degree in reading from the University of Georgia.
Q And you are what they call a reading specialist?
A Yes, .sir. „J[ am certified by the State Department
of Education as_a» reading .specialist,.-
Q Do you know Miss Clara Belle McCrary?
A Yes, sir.
Q And you know she is a fourth grade teacher at the
Fair Street School?
A Yes, sir.
Q Did you know her when she was a third grade teacher?
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SG6A
A No, sir. I have only known her the past two years.
Q The past two years, is that correct?
A Yes, sir.
Q I believe during that time, Mr. Massey, that Miss
McCrary presented to you certain lesson plans for her class?
A Well, technically they were not presented to me.
They were turned in to the office under the principal's
guidance, but I did read them, yes, sir.
MR. MOORE: Would you mark those all together. I
have one more. These are lesson plans.
THE CLERK: Plaintiffs' Exhibit for identification
No. 1 5 , lesson plans.
(Whereupon, the above documents were marked for identificatioa
only as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 15.)
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BY MR. MOORE:
Q Mr. Massey, I show you Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 15
and ask you if you recognize them as being lesson plans which
you have reviewed submitted by Miss McCrary?
A Yes, sir.
Q And on the various plans do they show pencil marks
where you have made comments on them?
A Yes, sir, most of them do.
Q During the two years that you have had supervision
over the reading program of the public school system of
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30? A O
203
Gainesville, did you find Miss McCrary to be_ a~£onsc.lent.ious
teacher?
A Yes, sir, I found her to be conscientious in that
she works lonj^jand hajrd.
Q You say she works long and hard?
A Yes, sir.
Q And during the school year 1968-69 did you have
o ccas ion to visit her . class room?
A Yes, sir. I made one formal visit to her classroom
during this school year.
Q Do you remember when that was?
A No, sir. It would have been in the first half of
the year.
Q That is before Christmas or after Christmas?
A That would have been Joefcre JthiL semester break
which would have been in January.
Q January?
A Yes, sir.
Q And was that for the purpose of informing her about
a "decoding for reading" program that you were going to
inaugurate?
A No, sir, it was not. This was a separate organizati
that we worked on.
Q Would you tell us what the purpose of that January
visit was?
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3Q8A 20k
A The purpose of this meeting -- as part of my duties
us...r.oading coordinator I do periodically visit in the
classrooms in all of the elementary schools. I had done this
with Miss McCrary several times last year, and I did it one
time this year. The real purpose of this i s uto- - a s ce r -tain
how they are doing as far as reading instruction goes and
to try to find ways in which I can make suggestions for
improving the reading instruction.
Q And is this to improve the reading... instruction .of
the teacher?
A _ '".„,Ye,s, ..sir.
Q And this is not to evaluate the performance of the
students, is that correct?
A Well, certainly to do enough evaluation to help
the teacher you would have to look at the way students are
reacting to the instruction, but, as far as using a standard!?;
test to evaluate students, no, sir, this was not done.
Q And this was in January, '69?
A Yes, sir.
Q And —
A Or at least -- at least, I believe we said the firs;
semester. I cannot pinpoint it as to an exact date.
Q And how long were you in her classroom on that
occasion, Mr. Massey?
A Sir, I do not remember exactly. Normally these —
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205
SOS A
normally this type visit takes from twenty to thirty minutes,
so I would assume this one would fall in that same category,
Q And during this time you are in discussion with
the teacher or just sitting?
A Just sitting quiet as she taught reading around the
table with students/
Q And after you had observed her for these twenty
minutes or so did you have any discussion with her?
A No, sir, I did not. She was still engaged in
teaching,
Q A n d o u left the room without discussing it?
A That's correct, and went to another,
Q Have you at any time had a discussion with Miss
McCrary about her teaching methods based upon that observation
A The main recommendations that I have made have
been written on the lesson plans. I do not, as a general
part of my position, hold reviews with teachers. If this is
necessary, I usually refer it to the principal, and the
principal then is responsible for taking whatever action is
necessary, ,
Q And you found Miss McCrary to be an effective
teacher, didn't you?
L A No, sirV1 -Not just in thejarea of__reading, I speak
only of the area of reading, but there are several principles
that go along with a good readin|^pro^Rai!i.,v̂ e r e vX̂ 9J??i4.-.̂ .er
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310A ©
206
weak.
Q .-/hat were those?
A One of these principals involves having the classroc
organized in such a way so as to permit efficient inn.ij;jl£tion,
Now, I found that Miss McCrary did have a group around
a table in the lefthand rear side of her room that she could
give reading instruction to. However, my basic impression
was that while she was doing this, with a small group of
six or eight students, other students in the room were not
engaged in educational activities and that they were not
behaving in a manner that was conducive to learning.
Q Is there anything else?
A I, also, in the encounters that I have had with her
class over the past two years, and in just looking in the
door and so forth, I have reason to suspect that properand
sequential skill instruction is not taking place.
Q What do you mean by that, "skill instruction is
not taking place"?
A In the field of reading there is a common term
that is equated — that is applied to reading instruction as
it was taught, oh, a number of years ago. It is usually
called "The Barbershop method" where you just read orally,
and the majority of the reading I have encountered in these
two years of association with Miss McCrary have been of an
oral nature.
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Q
0 . 311 A. q
207
Oral reading is only good for two purposes.
What are those purposes?
A These two purposes are diagnosis, to see if a studer
is able to read, and you are looking at his skill development
alone, and the other is to entertain the other members of
the group.
Q Is there anything else?
A I also have had reason at times in the past to
suspect she was not properly differentiating instruction.
Q What do you mean by that?
A By this I mean that all students do not need the
same instruction. Certain students need specific instruction
and on particular levels.
In a class such as Miss McCrary would have in the
fourth grade you would probably find the reading range, oh,
I would suspect probably from second through fifth or sixth
grade, and you have to differentiate according to the ability
level of the student.
Q And these are suspicions of yours, is that correct?
A Well, this about the differentiated instruction is
not necessarily a suspicion in that I think in the past Miss
McCrary had insisted upon teaching all students on the fourth
grade level the last month of school. At least this was on
the lesson plans.
Q It was on the lesson plans?
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208312 A
A Yes.
Q Miss McCrary's lesson plans showed that she was
aware of differences among and between students, didn't they?
A I do not recall how many groups she had exactly
here.
For example, this one really only shows one group.
But I am sure that she did have groups, because I have
observed them in operation within the classroom.
Q But you don't have any concrete evidence that you
can rely upon --
A I have no statistical data, no, sir.
Q And you have no concrete evidence of any descriptioiji
to lead you to the conclusion that Miss McCrary did not
differentiate betv/een the abilities of students?
A I have only my professional observations and the
reading of her lesson plans, yes, sir.
Q Now, on some of the occasions when you peeped
through the door, observed through the door, Miss McCrary
was teaching other subjects, wasn't she?
A Not normally, because reading is usually taught
first thing in the morning, and when I go to an elementary
school I try to get there early in the morning where everyone
is teaching reading.
Q And you don't mean to tell the Court that you can
stand outside the door and look through a window for a matter
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313 A
209
of minutes and observe an evaluate what is going on inside
the room, do you?
A No, sir. But you can tell such things as whether
or not the class is organized in such a manner as to permit
instruction to take place: If students are working, or if
they are roaming around, if they are or are not disciplined
when she is working in a corner with a group.
Q You saw no evidence that the students were not
disciplined, did you?
A Well, I saw evidence that they were not_di_sc ip lined
jis ..far as doing their, school work. I do not mean to imply
they were fighting, but they .-’Were walking around, gather ing
in groups and talking. This was when I was actually listeninj
and they were working on things that were not concerned with
the educational process. ^
Q Now, perhaps they were — perhaps you would agree
with me they were working differentially?
A No. That would ,be individualized instruction.
When you talk about instruction, this implies the fact that
they are engaged in an educational endeavor. V/hen they are
just walking and talking and not doing anything, it is not
differentiated instruction. It is chaos.
q Isn't all activity among children from kindergarten
from pre-school, rather, through fifth grade learning
regardless of what its nature is, whether it is play or wheth
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it is academic?
A Yes. '
Q Isn’t that true?
A Yes, I suspect it is true.
But I also suspect they were not doing the
assignments in other areas that were written on the blackboar
for them to do at this particular time.
Q You have no knowledge whether or not they had
already done those assignments or not?
A No, I do not,
Q So you are guessing, isn't that right?
A Well, this is my opinion, because this was early
in the reading lesson that I arrived.
Q But you opinion is based upon a guess, is that righ
A My opinion is based upon my observations while I
was in that room as a professional person.
Q Now, during the year *67-168 how many times did you
visit Miss McCrary's class?
A I have kept no record of this. I would say two or
three times.
Q And for what period of time?
A Approximately the same.
Q Twenty minutes?
A Twenty to thirty.
Q Did you have an occasion when you went to her
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class to tell her about the "decoding for reading"?
A That was this year, sir, and this was organized
in such a way, I had a meeting with all of the teachers who
would be involved with this, and then I made arrangements for
them to go to Main Street School to observe the "decoding
for reading" being used by other teachers. .
Q Did Miss McCrary go?
A Yes, she did, as I recall.
Q Did she offer a "decoding for reading" session in
her class?
A Yes, she did.
Q Now, you know of Miss McCrary's work with the Hall
County Public Library System, don't you?
A I just briefly know it. I am not really aware of
what all she has done, although I understand she has rendered
a service in this area.
Q You have no knowledge of the fact she has supplement
the opportunity of these young children to be exposed to books
and to reading through her work at the library?
A I would assume, yes, sir, she has done this, and I
do think that this is one of the positive points in her work,
in that she is able to bring something relative to children's
literature to her students that many classroom teachers cannot
Q In that extent she is rather unique for the
Gainesville School System, isn't she?
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A She would be, yes, sir, she would be unique in that
she is one of the few persons who has worked in a library
in ̂this araa-.— ___________________
Q Now, have you had any discussion with Mr. Blakeney,
the Superintendent of Schools, about Miss McCrary?
A Yes, sir, I have had some discussions with him this
year.
Q And when was that?
A I really do not — I have no idea. He could come
nearer pinpointing it, I suspect, than I, because I had a
meeting with him in his office some time this spring, and I
could not pinpoint the date at all, because I had no reason
to put it down.
Q Was it around March the 4th?
A I cannot be sure. It would be a guess and conjectu
on my part.
Q Was Miss McCrary present?
A No, sir.
Q Who was present?
A As I recall, Mr. Blakeney, myself and Mrs. Willanel
Green were there.
Q And did you call the meeting, or did Mr. Blakeney
call the meeting, or who called the meeting?
A I believe Mr. Blakeney requested the meeting.
q And do you know the purpose of this meeting?
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A I assume it had something to do with teacher
evaluation, but I did not know with whom at the time, no, sir,
Q Did you then evaluate a teacher?
A Yes.
Q And who was that teacher?
A The teacher that I evaluated was Miss McCrary.
Q Did Mrs. Green evaluate Miss McCrary?
A No, sir, because she had had no contact with her.
Q Did you evaluate any other teacher?
A As I recall, there were some other teachers discuss 3
at this time. I do not -- I believe some of the white
teachers whose contracts were not offered were discussed at
this time, if I recall correctly.
Q At this time?
A Yes, sir.
Q Now, at any time since February 14, 1969, have you
had a conversation with Mr. Blakeney or Mr. Ellenburg
respecting the qualifications of all the elementary school
teachers with respect to their ability to be effective instrrc
of reading?
A Would you repeat the question, please?
MR. MOORE: I had better call on the Reporter.
REPORTER: "Now, at any time since February 14,
1969, have you had a conversation with Mr. Blakeney or
Mr. Ellenburg respecting the qualifications of all the
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the elementary school teachers with respect to their
ability to be effective instructors of reading?*'
A (By the witness) We are always asked to name the
teachers that we feel are doing outstanding, .jobs .and those
who are not doing a strong job. We are not normally asked
to evaluate teachers-in the sense that we go and do a standarc
evaluation on them. The evaluation that we do is done insofai
as trying to be of service to the teacher and indirectly to
the students. So any evaluating that we do is normally at
the request of the administration on a teacher to see if we
do concur.
that we -- the teachers that we consider to be especially
weak, and this was done. If you term this as a part of the
A It is also taught in junior high school under
special teachers.
Q All right, I was only asking about one through six.
A All right.
q You have not evaluated every teacher in the system?
Now, we are andhave been asked to name the students
evaluation, then the answer is yes.
Q All right.
Now, in the elementary school, Gainesville, reading
is taught in every class, one through six?
A' That is correct, one through seven.
Q Pardon me
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A I have not evaluated -- In fact, I do no evaluation:!
in the sense that I do a formal writ te.nr.evnl.ua.tion,. Jjut I
hgve visited practically every elementary classroom J.n_ the
system over the past two years and have done the personal
evaluation such as I have done here in attempting to be of
service.
Really I.am a teacher helper, to try to help them
do a better job and to serve their students better.
Q The fact of the matter is that you made no total
overall evaluation of the capability of all teachers in the
elementary school to teach reading, is that correcti
A J l have made no formal evaluation, no, sir, but I
have made the same informal evaluation as I have in all cases,
q Now, have you been asked to give your report of
the informal evaluation of the teachers?
A I have been asked to name those that I considered
were doing outstanding jobs and those I considered who were
doing very poor or weak jobs, yes, sir.
Q So your answer would be that you have not —
A Right.
Q — * evaluated all of the teachers?
A In a formal manner, yes.
Q Did_ Nr. J31akeney ask you for any evaluation of any
teacher other.than MissMcCrary?
A As I recall, a number of names were introduced to
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me, yes, sir, but I do not recall their.,, names,.
Q Did you understand this meeting to be specifically
about Miss McCrary?
A Sir, I have already stated that I did not know the
reason for having the meeting prior to its being called.
Q During the two years that you. .have.. been.in your
present position did you give Miss McCrary any particular type
of_help or assistance?
A The major assistance that I have given her is in
supplying some materials and .making the suggestions on the
lesson plans.
As I recall, I did provide her with some Reader's
Digest reading skill builders on different levels to assist
in meeting the needs of the students, and then the "decoding
for reading" materials that she has had. I have not had a
formal review in that this is not a part of my job,
Q Mr. Massey, do you have any personal knowledge of
any particular difficulties that a teacher, such as Miss
McCrary, would have in a school like the Fair Street School
in teaching reading?
A What do you mean by "personal knowledge", sir?
Q Well, do you know of any particular handicaps that
students generally have?
A Yes, sir.
Q And what are those handicaps?
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A Well, the handicap primarily is based on the fact
that many of them are not ready for school when they first
come.
Now, we have had a kindergarten program under way
under a Federal grant for several years. This kindergarten
program, and I am quoting the statistics without having lookec
at them recently, but this kindergarten program, as I recall,
on the Metropolitan Reading Readiness Test shows that a
much smaller percentage of students at Fair Street are actual:
ready for first grade instruction than we have in the other
elementary schools,
Q And there are a number of reasons —
A So the environmental background would be a factor,
yes, very much so.
Q Coming from homes where people are not —
A Yes, sir.
Q -- book read or learned?
A That's correct, sir.
Q And being poor and black?
A Well, coming from the environment that would not be
conducive to academic pursuits.
Q And it takes a teacher with a great deal of love
and concern for the children to really be effective in that
type of situation, doesn't it?
A Yes, sir. The slower the student the better the
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teaching must be.
Q And it requires more of the teacher's energy and
involvement?
A Yes, sir, and greater differentiation of instruction
MR. MOORE: You may examine, if you would like to,
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DIRECT EXAMINATION
BY MR. GUNTER:
Q Mr. Massey, what recommendation did you give to the
Superintendent of Schools of Gainesville with respect to the
effectiveness or ineffectiveness of Miss McCrary as a
reading teacher when you were asked for this recommendation?
A My recommendation was that I found her to be a
very weak reading teacher , based on the points that I have
previously made: The lack of differentiatjd^instyiTc'tion,
the sequencing and introduction of reading skills, basic
reading skills, as opposed to the "barbershop method". These
were the main things, and the lack of organization in the
classroom which was conducive to overall reading instruction.
Q Do you know of any elementary school teacher that
is less effective in the classroom in reading than Miss
McCrary, in your experience and knowledge of the elementary
school teachers?
A I have visited the majority, perhaps not all, but
the majority of all the elementary school classrooms, and I --
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323A
It Is my pr.o£s&s.ioaa3y-QP in ion -that— she— is - the^weakne s's..xead ing
teacher that I have visited.
MR. GUI';TER: No further questions.
THE COURT: Any further questions?
RE-CROSS EXAMINATION
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Your opinion is also based upon your suspicions of
what was going on or wasn't going on when you peeped through
the classroom door from time to time, isn't that correct?
A This is my professional opinion, and this would be
involved in it, yes, sir.
Q Based upon hunches and suspicions?
A And observations.
Q And when you say "weak", what do you mean ..by. that?
A When I say "weak" I refer to the fact that I do not
fe§l_that...she was meeting the, needs of the.students on the
three points that I have just made, and I do not feel that
this is an atmosphere that is conducive to students learning
to read with facility.
Q And there is professional disagreement about the
methods to be pursued to teach reading, is there not?
A There is some disagreement. However, you will find
that most all reading specialists agree that an eclectic
approach is best, meaning that you pull in the particular
parts of a particular system that lend themselves to the
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students with whom you are working.
Q Eclectic in terms of methods and in terms of --
A
Q
A
Materials.
Materials?
Yes, sir.
Q Right.
And Miss McCrary certainly was an eclectic teacher
in terms of materials, wasn't she?
A She did use different materials, yes, sir.
Q As a matter of fact, she uses more different types
of materials than any other teacher in the school system,
isn't that right?
A
Q
No, sir.
Name the teachers that use more?
A I can name you many teachers who use more, sir.
Q Name me one.
A
Q
All right, Miss Martin at Miller Park School,
What does she use?
A She. used the Imperial Primary Reading Program. She
used the "decoding for reading". She used the Reading for
Instruction. She used the SRA kits. She used the Program'
Reading kits, the Language-Master and the phonics, to mention
a few of the things, plus Language Experiences in Reading.
Q All right, were all of these materials available to
the Fair Street School?
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A They were available to a limited extent there as
they were in all the other schools. These were purchased
under a Federal grant, and they must go to the Title I school£
Q I didn't ask you about the Federal grant. I asked
if they were available to the same extent as in other schools1̂
A They were available to a limited extent.
Q Tell me what the extent of limitation was,
A The extent of limitation was that, for example, on
the Language-Master, we only had one, and in order to take it
to another school it had to be picked up and transported,
as I did to Fair Street later in the year.
Q What is the Language-Master?
A The Language-Master is a small compact tape recordei
for language stimulation that has cards you run through it.
On this card you can have anything from words and pictures to
sentences. The student hears it pronounced and read correctly
and he has a chance to record it and compare his with the
original,recording. It is primarily used to teach sight
vocabulary.
Q It is an audiovisual aid?
A Tha't's correct,
Q And you only had one Reading Master?
A Only had one Language-Master.
Q Only had one Language-Master?
A Yes, sir.
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Q And it got to the Fair School last, is that right?
A It was only in two schools all year. It was at
Miller Park, and then it was transported to the Fair Street
School.
Q How long was it in Miller Park?
A It was at Miller Park more than half a year. I
transported it to Miller Street when I was able to find a
teacher who was interested and willing to take it and really
give it a thorough try. In this case it was Mrs. Fralil
Cheek.
Q Do you know when this machine was made available to
Miss McCrary?
A This machine was not made available to Miss McCrary
in the sense it was brought to her room,
q She was advised to go to someone else's room and ge‘
it?
A No, sir.
Q So would you still think it was fair to fault Miss
McCrary for not using this machine?
A No, sir, I did not not fault her for not using this
machine.
Q Now, you spoke about "decoding for reading"?
A Yes, sir.
Q Now, how many of those outfits did you have?
MR. GUNTER: Now, Mr. Moore, didn't he testify that
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she used the machine?
MR, MOORE: Which one?
THE COURT: Address your remarks to the Court, plea;
gentlemen.
■MR. GUNTER: If it please the Court, I think it is
an unfair question: "Why do you fault Miss McCrary'for
not using the machine", when the witness has already
testified that Miss McCrary had used the machine.
THE COURT: I believe the witness testified that
he did not fault her for not having used the machine.
THE WITNESS: No. She did not use this particular
machine. She had the "decoding for reading" but not the
Language-Master, even though it was in the school.
BY MR. MOORE:
Q Now, with respect to this "decoding for reading"
machine which I am interested in —
A Right, sir.
A There was a set of this at Miller Park. There was
a set at Main Street. There was a partial set at Candler
Street. There was a set at Fair Street.
Q And when did you first bring the set to Fair Street?
Q One machine in the school for 700 students, is that
right?
A Yes, sir
Q -- how many of those do you have?
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The set to B'air Street was brought just as soon as
the publisher would deliver it, which I believe was in
Q January of last year?
A They were ordered far prior to that, but they were
not able to make delivery.
Q All right.
Was there just one set for the entire school?
A This was bought for all students in grades four and
five at Fair Street School,
Q How many students did you have in grades four and
five at Fair Street School?
A I am not qualified to answer this. I do not know.
Q And it was used on a rotating method basis among —
A There were two workbooks per set. Each student
had his copy. Each teacher had a teacher's manual. There
was only one set of records, although we ordered three
additional ones, which they would not sell it separately.
Q The records are the critical thing?
A Yes, sir, the records are the critical thing.
Q Without the records it is kind of difficult to use
the books?
A Yes, sir. Most of the instruction is on the records
Q What is the SRA kit?
A SRA technically is a publishing company, and it is a
3 a
multi-level material that normally allows you to provide
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differentiated instruction in that it gives you reading
paragraphs and selections from grades two through about grade
nine, and you give a pre-test to determine what level students
should be taught, and then you assign them to this kit accord 5
to this.
Q Now, were pre-tests given to the fourth graders
that Miss McCrary had?
A Not that I know of, sir.
Q Was an SRA kit assigned to her class?
A It was not assigned to her class, although there
are several in the school.
Q But none was assigned to her class?
A No, sir. However, you do not assign these materials
to particular classrooms.
Q In the white schools did each class have a set of
materials, SRA?
A No, sir. They are, again, in the school to be
checked out and used by the teachers.
Q It is true, isn't It, Mr. Massey, that the Negro
schools have less equipment than the white schools?
A It depends upon your definition of "equipment".
Q V/ith respect to such things as audiovisual reading
aids?
A I suspect that they have less audiovisual equipment
I could not tell you the reason, because they would get an
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allotment based upon the enrolment the same as the other
schools do.
Q, But it would be your opinion as an employee and as
an observer of reading classes that the Fair Street School
had less audiovisual equipment than the other schools?
A I really -- I really cannot answer this in the sens-
that I have looked at it this closely.
Q Gan you tell us how Fair Street compares with the
other schools with respect to books for fourth and fifth
graders, third graders?
A Fair Street, I believe, and Mrs. Trawick would have
to verify this, I believe the Fair Street School does have
the Allyn and Bacon Basal Series from the first through the
sixth grades, and there is system-wide adoption. This is a
basal program that all systems use.
However, one thing in many cases they do not have
is the activity or workpads or workbooks to go with them,
because these have to be purchased by students in all of the
schools, and many times these students do not have the money
to make this purchase.
Q And as a result of a lack of equipment or money
with which to purchase equipment students might very well have
idl%,to be idol during a period of time in class?
A If you are referring to workbooks as equipment, it
is possible. However, each teacher was given a copy of the
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33 IA
teacher's edition of the workbook in Fair Street School, and
many of them either wrote exercises on the board or illegally
used a Thermofax stencil to copy some of them to use in their
class.
MR. MOORE: That's all.
THE COURT: Any other questions?
MR. GUNTER: No further questions.
THE COURT: All right, sir, you may go down.
(Whereupon, the witness was excused from the stand.)
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THE COURT: How many more witnesses do you have,
Mr. Moore? I didn't count them this morning.
MR. MOORE: Your Honor, I can shorten this to an
extent by calling the Plaintiffs, probably one or two
witnesses I might ought to call, but I think they will
be minimal in terms of -- as to what they are going to
contribute.
THE COURT: You can call the Plaintiffs tomorrow.
MR. MOORE: I was going to say, if the Defendant
will call them, I will get a chance to examine them
anyway, and that may well shorten the proceedings. I am
just going to — right now, Your Honor, I think I will
call the Plaintiffs, and I may call one other witness.
I am going to call the two Plaintiffs.
THE COURT: Can you give me some idea, I can't hold
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you to it, naturally, but can you give me some idea how
long you think the direct examination will take on each
one of the Plaintiffs, or whether one will take longer
than the other?
MR. MOORE: Yes, sir, I think it should take a total
of about an hour and thirty minutes for both plaintiffs,
that is for both, an hour and thirty minutes.
THE COURT: Well, let's take a recess, no point
putting them on now, because it would be too late, and I
hate to interrupt the testimony of witnesses while they
are on the stand, if I can help it, so let's take a
recess until 9:30 in the morning, and we will start
promptly at 9:30 and try to complete the case tomorrow
and give everybody an opportunity to be heard. If
necessary, we will run late tomorrow afternoon.
(Whereupon, Court was adjourned at 5:l5 P« reconvening
on Tuesday, June 24, 1969, at 9:30 A. M.)
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