The agency's commission is staffed with persons who represent the top business and civic leaders in northeast Mississippi whose interest in the State's overall development is a proven fact. The commission's chairman, Troy Norris, provided the commission unique leadership through his resourcefulness and imagination in organizing and coordinating the efforts of community agencies in support of the Urban Renewal's community development programs.

The communities' energetic and sincere involvement in the securing and implementation of each project, which became a component of the Corinth Urban Renewal Agency, was due largely to the chairman's ability to communicate with people, regardless of race or their economic or social status.

Probably, joint resolutions submitted in January 1964 by the Corinth Citizen's Advisory Committee and the Minority Housing Subcommittee of the Citizen's Advisory Committee are concrete examples of the attitudes toward and interest in the people of Corinth to join President L. B. Johnson in his program to fight poverty.

"Whereas the Minority Housing Subcommittee of the Corinth Citizens Advisory Committee of the City of Corinth, Alcorn County, Miss., is particularly aware of the need for housing for families living within the corporate limits of the city of Corinth, Alcorn County, Miss.; and

"Whereas said needs are such that it is advisable in the opinion of the members of this committee that a program as outlined by President L. B. Johnson, known as a program to fight poverty, be undertaken, which program includes a plan of governmental action to relieve poverty, to provide education for vocational occupations, to provide opportunities for gainful employment, and to provide a home for each citizen and his family; and

"Whereas it is the opinion of this body that said program is advantageous to all of the citizens of Corinth and to the general health and welfare of said people and of said municipality; and

"Whereas the Corinth Citizens Advisory Committee is now directing and supervising the community renewal program now underway in the city of Corinth, Alcorn County, Miss., and said Corinth Citizens Advisory Committee should be given the responsibility of and opportunity to direct and supervise all of the related activities which are a designated part of the program as outlined hereinabove;".

This writer concurs with the intent of the resolutions. However, he, with other members of this group are of the opinion that a wider representation of minority group members and representatives of the poor should and must be members of committees organized to sponsor projects and programs to fight poverty.

Because of the unique objectives of the program and due to the speed required for their implementation, sufficient guidelines for smooth operation were not readily made available to local agencies. Therefore, there were areas in which the process of trial and error had to be employed to get programs underway. Yet in spite of this, the Corinth program became a model for many of the programs which have been initiated throughout this and other States.

To comply with the new civil rights legislation, related to integration and nondiscrimination, continuous and sincere communication with all racial and ethnic groups was necessary. One among the accomplishments of the programs was the establishment of this communication. This led to the employment of minority group members by the Urban Renewal Agency for positions of responsibility, as the first effort of its kind in the northeastern part of the State. The leadership of the agency was felt in the desegregation of hotels, restaurants, and other public facilities.

The multitude of Federal programs, which have been initiated in the interest of the general welfare, are invaluable to both, the morale and economic development of thousands of communities throughout the country. Existing conditions of poverty, the limited material resources of most communities; and the need for extensive assistance in raising the level of education of the people, demand that there be no retreat in existing Federal programs, designed to alleviate these problems.

Therefore, to assure the taxpayers maximum results at minimum cost the writer supports any effort on the part of the Federal Government, to provide a Federal coordinator, who will be given the authority to eliminate duplicity in the operation of the special Federal programs.

62-551-66-pt. 1-15

URBAN RENEWAL AND DEPARTMENT OF LABOR JOINT EFFORT IN THE WAR ON POVERTY-A YEAR IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTH CORPS

President Johnson is joined by the Secretary of Labor and Members of Congress in honoring the 1st, 10,000th, and 100,000th Neighborhood Youth Corps enrollees at a White House ceremony. Shirley Rowland, a young Negro enrollee of the Corinth Urban Renewal Commission Neighborhood Youth Corps shown with Headstart Award at White House presentation.

INTERVIEW WITH ENROLLEES, CORINTH (MISS.), NEIGHBORHOOD YOUTH CORPS Gladys Gilmore, senior, Carnes Easom High School

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Gladys, how old are you?

NYC ENROLLEE. I am 17 years old.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. When did you first start work with the Neighborhood Youth Corps program?

NYC ENROLLEE. May 5, 1965.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. And where did you work or do you work, and what type job were you placed on?

NYC ENROLLEE. I am working at the Neighborhood Youth Corps office and I am working as a secretarial assistant.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Secretarial assistant? Now what do you do? What is the nature of your duties?

NYC ENROLLEE. Mostly general filing, enrolling time cards, and reconciling bank statements and filing canceled checks.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. In the course of this work do you think you have gained anything? Any knowledge or training as to this type procedure in this work? NYC ENROLLEE. Yes; I do.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Such as?

NYC ENROLLEE. I have learned to put to use some of the things I learned in high school and to practice them. And I was exposed to many other procedures which I will probably need in my career.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Gladys, what is your personal opinion of the Neighborhood Youth Corps and how has it benefited you, in any way?

NYC ENROLLEE. I think the Neighborhood Youth Corps is a very helpful program because it has helped me in many ways. It has given me the opportunity to help finance my education in high school and it has eliminated some problems my parents were having in getting me the money I needed.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. You mentioned some of the problems your parents were
having in helping finance your school education. What does your father do?
NYC ENROLLEE. My father is a janitor in Bobby James blouse factory im
Ramsey.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Does your mother work or is she unemployed or what does she do?

NYC ENROLLEE. She is a housewife.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. I think you graduate in May; is that correct?

NYC ENROLLEE. That is correct.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. What do you intend to do after high school?

NYC ENROLLEE. My true ambition is to further my education, but due to my family's financial status I believe I will try to find a job with as high pay as I can possibly find.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Well, after this do you plan to try to save some money and go on to college or do you plan to just end your education at high school? NYC ENROLLEE. Well, if I become financially able I plan to further my education.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Well, Gladys, thank you, and I certainly wish you well in this endeavor. As a closing thought, do you have anything you would like to say in relationship to the Neighborhood Youth Corps, or anything at all that you would like to say at all?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes, I would like to say that I have enjoyed working on the neighborhood youth program and it has helped me greatly. I am glad I had the opportunity to work with this program and I will never forget what it has done for me.

Shirley Rowland, senior, Carnes Easom High School

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Shirley, when did you start work with the Neighborhood Youth Corps program-approximately?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, as I remember it was the latter part of February 1965. JAMES BILLINGSLEY. And at this time what did you do?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I did typing and as Shirley said I worked as a secretarial assistant, doing most of the same work she did, filing, and helping around the office.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. And you are still working with the Carnes Urban Renewal Agency; is that correct? And what do you do there?

NYC ENROLLEE. I am employed there as an IBM operator.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. An IBM operator? Such as-an example of doing what? NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I worked the key-punching machine and every week we punch, or rather we process, enrollee timecards.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. In other words you are a key-punch operator in a data processing setup?

NYC ENROLLEE. That is correct.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. When you went to work there, did you know the key-punch machine and what it was?

NYC ENROLLEE. No; I didn't know what it was when I first started to work. JAMES BILLINGSLEY. And how did you learn how to use this machine?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I received on-the-job training. The young lady that was working there when first started working, her name was Gloria, and she along with the head of the department, Mr. McArthur, taught me while I was working. JAMES BILLINGSLEY. They taught you how to operate the machine? NYC ENROLLEE. Yes.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Do you feel that you gained anything from this experience; you can operate the machine now and do you feel that you gained anything from this?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes; I definitely feel that I gained from this, because it is working with the key-punch machine and with IBM machines.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Data processing machines?

NYC ENROLLEE. Data processing machines. I feel that I have gained something that will forever remain with me and I want to go into this field after I have gone to college.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. You are graduating this year; is that correct?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. What are your plans after graduation?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, during the summer I anticipate on working in order to save some money toward financing my college education.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. You do plan to go on to college?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes; I plan on going to college in September.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Do you know where you are going or do you have plans along this line?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, presently I don't know but I want to go to Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Ill.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. What do you plan to take?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, as a major I plan to take up mathematics.
JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Do you like math; are you very good at math?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I always have liked math. From my freshman year up until my junior year-well, I made pretty good grades; I had an A- average. JAMES BILLINGSLEY. A-? Well getting back to your Neighborhood Youth Corps job, what do you think of Neighborhood Youth Corps?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, in my opinion, I think the Neighborhood Youth Corps program is very helpful and that it should be continued from now on because it helps the enrollees that work on this program in such a way that they just need it. It is needed very much.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Do you feel that, well, you have already said that you feel that you have gotten a great deal of training out of this program-training which you probably would have never gotten. Is this true?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes, it's true.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Do you feel that it has been a rewarding experience?
NYC ENROLLEE. It has been very rewarding.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Shirley, how other than let's say your on-the-job training, your job experience, and other things, is there any way in which you feel you are being benefited other than the training which you received?

NYC ENROLLEE. Yes, there are other ways. When you are in high school, you always have senior expenses and the money I made on this job went to finance my own expenses and my mother didn't have to pay for it.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. You said that you had expenses which your mother would not have to pay for; let's say your mother would have to pay for this, how would they normally go about doing this?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I don't know how they would have gone about doing it had I not been working.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. What does your father do Shirley?
NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I don't know what my father does.
JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Is your mother employed?

NYC ENROLLEE. No, she is not. She is a housewife.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. So you feel that you have received from the Neighborhood Youth Corps income which has helped you greatly with recent expenses and other normal expenses and so forth, incurred by students attending high school! Shirley, are there any other general comments which you would like to make about the Neighborhood Youth Corps?

NYC ENROLLEE. Well, I think that everything is pretty well covered and I can say that I have enjoyed very much working with this program and it has benefited me and I know if it is continued it will continue to benefit those with whom it comes in contact.

JAMES BILLINGSLEY. Thank you very much Shirley, and I wish you lots of luck in going with Southern Illinois and we will be seeing you some more. NYC ENROLLEE. Thank you.

(A report on the Corinth, Miss., urban renewal project is being writ ten in comprehensive form to be completed in July 1966. An intro ductory summary of this report follows:)

CORINTH, MISSISSIPPI: CITY IN TRANSITION

INTRODUCTORY SUMMARY

In 1964, in a booklet prepared by the City of Corinth, Mississippi, for community renewal program, the city school superintendent, Julian Prin wrote: "In spite of, or even in the face of, some of the best planning, blight p sists in developing. The blight pattern may easily be repeated in any city whe

people are relocated from a renewal project and no concern is given toward 'upgrading' the people relocated."

Prince's statement had far-reaching effects. Two years before, the Corinth Urban Renewal Agency had applied for its first urban renewal grant. The application was received during a tense period of political animosity between the State of Mississippi and the Federal government resulting from racial strife in the State. Because Corinth offered some unique qualities as a community, the city was singled out as an outstanding city; the objective was to prove that a city in Mississippi could carry ont urban renewal and related federal programs and still meet the spirit and word of the government's anti-discriminatory regulations.

In the two years from 1964 to 1966, Corinth more than acquitted itself. It developed a concept for coordinating a vast number of federal programs so that they not only removed slums and blighted areas through renewal projects, but attacked the very causes of blight and poverty. It employed federal aids from almost every department in Washington, coordinating and administering them through the Corinth Urban Renewal Board.

The objective of this report is to show how Corinth achieved this broad concept in human relations. It will describe how the city overcame problems relating to the State and Federal governments through strong local citizen participation; how its broad concept developed; how its leadership was "drawn out" during times of crisis; how the socio-economic factors related to the city affected the overall program; how it found and trained its staff; how its board and the Citizens Advisory Committee prepared themselves for the programs; and how, through its recently completed community renewal program, it hopes to continue its fight to upgrade the entire city.

It details the methods taken by legal advisors to remove or bypass statutory barriers; how it dealt with the more "touchy" aspects of urban renewal through a carefully planned public relations program; how, through exhaustive surveys, Corinth uncovered some universal truths about blight and poverty and how it related these truths to federal programs which were available.

As a result of this sweeping concept, the Corinthians in the past two years, working with and through the Corinth Urban Renewal Agency, have achieved the following: It contracted for, and has begun to execute, a broad urban renewal slum clearance project; built sixteen units of 221(d)(3) housing; received approval for thirty units of public housing; completed a 487-acre General Neighborhood Renewal Plan to do away with substandard housing in South Corinth, and a 167-acre General Neighborhood Renewal Plan in West Corinth; has recently completed the first phase of a two-year Community Renewal Program; successfully executed a half-million dollar Headstart Program and an elevenCounty Neighborhood Youth Corps Program credited with reducing high school drop-outs on a broad scale; instituted manpower training, vocational training, and worked with local industry to set up on-the-job training; built a new Municipal Building and a million dollar hospital. Working with the Office of Economic Opportunity and the war on poverty, it completed a $48,089 Community Action Redevelopment Program and processed thirty-two Small Business Administration poverty loans.

One of the greatest problems experienced by the Corinthians in achieving this record of community action was coordinating this broad range of programs across different departmental lines in Washington. At a recent State Housing Subcommittee meeting, Corinth Urban Renewal Agency Chairman, Troy Norris, testified in favor of proposed Demonstration Cities legislation as a possible method for overcoming some of these problems. But the report will also show that in the end, any program requires strong local citizen participation, local political support, tenacity, strong public relations, and an informed and sympathetic press, dedicated local leadership which is willing to take risks and devote time and effort to these programs. Time, effort, awareness, understanding and optimism are the keys to Corinth's success.

Senator DOUGLAS. The subcommittee will recess until 10 o'clock tomorrow.

(Whereupon, at 11:53 a.m., the subcommittee recessed, to reconvene at 10 a.m., Thursday, April 21, 1966.)