7 Superintendent Is Caught in Middle As His Schools Become a Battlefield School Superintendent Dr. H. C. Dial is in No Man's Land. His office and its telephone has become a racial arbitration center unintentionally. It's a transition that he didn't seek and he cannot hide the loneliness of bis now thankless job. Dial has engineered school desegregation at Smackover and has been considered one of the states most enlightened educators. His natural laughter now has turned half-hearted, and his eyes show the sadness of defeat. Since the spring of last year when he took the job as superintendent here to guide 4,950 students through the bumpy adjustment years of desegregation, Dial has been a marked man. He admits there were reservations in his mind that desegregation could work in the county, which was named in honor of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee, whose statue dominates the courthouse square. With 80 per cent of the schools' population black, the fear of white flight was a constant companion as he began mapping desegregation plans. He knew his plans would not be accepted by all sides. There's a sharp cultural shock in desegregating persons of social amenitles and more that were set apart by color and tradition, but he plowed into it, resolved to make it work. "I felt that I have to make a decision for a child without regard to race," Dial said, leaning back in his chair and joining his hands behind his head. "Because of this, I know I'm ostracized by the whites and I know I'm ostracized by the blacks. "I have said that I am going to operate this school system for -Maff Photo DR. H. C. DIAL all kids. This immediately alienates me from the extreme white community, where I say I am for equal opportunity for all kids. I "The blacks still had distrust. They didn't think I could. I think have. I have been stright down the line with all my decisions, but I'm still on the opposite end of the extreme blacks." Since January 13, the day 200 blacks students demonstrated against what they considered in justices, understanding of Dial's position has been twisted into hard feelings and mistrust in the black community. Black teachers, too, have lost much of the Lalth they once had in his deci. sjons. lice when blacks refused to move out of the halls and go to class or leave the Lee High School grounds. Blacks condemned this decision, saying he should have. called on black teachers to help. "I would have done it if they were whites kids," Dial said. As be explained it, his handling of any school problem has been in his mind for years, put there by reasoning and seasoning. It's part of this reasoning to confer with parents of children who have been suspended from school before the students are allowed back in school. Blacks view these conferences as further evidence of intimidation. "Like these conferences with parents, regardless of who they were, I would have had these conferences with parents," Dial said. "I would bave done the same thing with whites. I didn't look at them as black kids; I looked at them as kids." Education System Since racial barmony has dissolved in the schools, he believes the system as an educational vehicle has been partially destroyed, maybe forever unless there is a meeting of the minds soon. His own moderate thinking has solidified, leaning toward the right. Dial has urged Governor Bumpers in a better to remove those personnel of the Lea County Co-operative Clinic, who he says are instrumental in political activity involving racial conflict. "Dang it, don't get me wrong I'm not against the clinic," he said. "But I do believe that It was Dial who called for po- clinic and political activity should be separated." The administrator of the clinic is an articulate black man, Olly Neal Jr. Change May Solve Dial was asked if getting rid of Volunteers in Service to America workers, who staff the clinic partially, woud salve Lee County's racial problems. "I don't want to take anything! away from Olly Neal." he said. "He's a leader; but 1 this be definitely is influencing VISTA "I will say this, you could come in with a new administra tor and a cew set of VISTA, I think that would solve a lot of problems. The ones that are here are wrapped up, constantly, with this political movement." He said that VISTA workers I who come from the North and other parts of Arkansas see the poverty of blacks "and they feel sorry for them... and I think this makes it very easy for them to get wrapped up in trying to get instant justice. There's no denying on my part there are injustices toward them [black but I don't think you can get it overnight." On the school problem, Dial said that with calm and with each side trying to understand differences and develop teler ance for these differences, the situation would adjust itself within four years. "In an integrated situation, you've got to operate in an inte grated situation," he said. "You've got to have a system that works for all kids instead of trying to alienate them. "You can't throw the rebel flag in there one day and throw Black Power in there the next day. "What are you doing if you do that? 8 VISTAS Say Their Critics Two Volunteers In Service to America, one a pharmacist and the other a sanitarian, and a reporter squeeze into the Lee County Co-operative Clinic's pharmacy a converted closet in the rented house. Whites contend that these two whites and five others and a black clinic administrator have caused Marianna's racial ills. "Any attempt to upgrade a standard, such as health as we are trying to do, is viewed as a threat to the system," the pharmacist says. "I think we are guilty of trying to get people to care about themselves and that's the worst sin we've committed. Pride comes in small steps." The VISTAS said their lives in Lee County aren't at all what critics say and that one of their biggest disappointments has been that critics never have visited them or watched their work in caring for the county's poor and ill. They also said: VISTAS are isolated from the social life of both the black and white communities. Therefore, they have associated closely with each other. Middle-class blacks and whites share a common criticism of poor blacks and whites: Both see welfare as a drain on their tax dollars. VISTAS are mistakenly identified with the sit-in demonstrators, etc., of the 1950s. They say they don't engage in political activity. As the sanitarian put it: "We don't do it. To be effective, you have to be on -- the streets day-in and day-out, talking and talking. We just don't have time to do it and do our jobs " In the last 21 years, housing has improved and black parents now are more concerned with the education of their children. "They seem to forget that we work with whites, too. Just look into the clinic any day." "It's really an economic thing." As the reporter leaves, the pharmacist begins filling a prescription and says: "The reason I came, the reason anybody comes, is to help somebody. I didn't come down here to run anything. It's only for service, really." The national VISTAS will be phased out of the clinic by year's end. Medical Plan Nearly 300 federal physicians, nurses and health workers will help care for the poor and medically ignored in 122 urban and rural areas in 39 states, including the Shaw section near downtown Washington, starting in July. Washington Post U.S.Health Plan To Help Needy By Victor Cohn Washington Post Staff Writer Nearly 300 federal doctors, Central Health nurses and health workers and in Newport will help care for the poor and and Buchanan medically ignored in 122 ginia. urban and rural areas in 39 states, including the Shaw section near downtown Washington, starting in July. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare said it will assign 152 physicians, 20 dentists, 72 nurses and 44 other health professionals to the newly selected areas in July. Earlier in the year it assigned 68 professionals to 18 urban and rural areas in 13 states. It did so after Rogers and Magnuson charged administration foot-dragging in implementing the idea. By the end of 1971, Rimple reported, nearly 500 communities had applied for help. The program is to be funded with $15 million this fiscal year and a like amount budgeted for Vir-next year-far from enough. Consortium There will be fees based on The government yesterday announced this first mass assignment for its new National care. Health Service Corps, forced on the Nixon administration in late 1970 by a Congressional coalition headed by Sen. Worren Magnuson (D-Wash.) and Rep. Paul Rogers (D-Fla.). The hope, said Dr. H. Mc. Donald Rimple, the corps' newly named director, is to create new "models of care." HEW indicated. to care for some 5,000 communities that lack health services. All fees collected will help : stretch the care. Among other areas named:¦ Brentwood, Calif.; Louisville, Ky.; Kalamazoo, Mich.; Ashland and Greenwood-Delta. Miss.; Kansas City, Mo.; Galmaking "A change in America's health environment." The corps will not solve the lup and Santa Fe, N.M.; Utica i and Staten Island, N.Y.: Phila The corps-which will also nation's overall shortage of serve in Baltimore and at health personnel, he admitted, delphia and Pittsburgh, Pa.; } three Virginia sites- will see but will try to alleviate some the federal government giving of the worst problems, such as its first free, direct care to those that exist in doctorless ton and Monroe, W. Va. medically needy Americans, rural communities. other than special groups like Some of the salaried doctors Rimple said, to encourage The Shaw Community civil service doctors recruited Health Center at 1707 7th St. for the purpose. Teams will be NW will get three doctors and matched with the community, five nurses. Corps members will also them to stay after completing serve in Baltimore's O'Donnell their service-two years for Heights section (at the PHS doctors, many of them doing this instead of military Comprehensive Children's and service. Youth Clinic of Baltimore City Hospital), at Baltimore's North Austin, Galveston and Harlin- t деп, Texas: Elkins, Hunting- i By RICHARD D. LYONS Sperial to The New York Times WASHINGTON, May 23 The National Health Service Corps, the new Federal organization created to place medical personnel in areas short of health services, made its first! Other professionals have major assignments today-288; been assigned to communities medical professionals to 122 in 38 other states and the Discommunities throughout the trict of Columbia. Most of the country. which has its headquarters in National Medical Rockville, Md.. said the 122 Association. from over 500 that had submitted applications for aid un-i der the terms of the Emergency!! Health Personnel Act of 1970., The act authorized $10-million in the fiscal year 1971 to! create the corps, $20 million. for the fiscal year 1973. Thel original intent of the healthli planners at the H.E.W. Depart-! ment was to set up about 150teams of health professionals.) with from two to six persons: lin each group. Feacral officials have been) cautious in estimating how Allegany, Chenango, Schoharie. areas are rural, but included are such major cities as Puladelphia, Pittsburgh, Newport News, Va., Galveston, Tex., and Kansas City, Mo. The doctors, dentists, nurses, and other personnel will start work in July in localitics in Dr. DuVal explained that in cluding Staten Island and the whole state of Alaska, outer some of the areas to which personnel are being assigned, ing services to residents in such as the city of Louisville, urban slums and rural regions. health care services will be of Created under a law signed fered "to pockets of the popby President Nixon 17 months ulation" that are being inadeago, the new organization will.quately cared for. meet only a small part of the any of the communities already have Federal health prodemand for health services. grans run by the Office of since at least 5,000 American Economic Opportunity or the communities are without ade- Public Health Service, through, quate health care. "We are assigning the peresonnel to areas that are under stafied with health protes for example, such organizations as the Indian Health Service. Dr. DuVal said that the corps would be used "as another way of staffing" groups such as the Indian Health Service. sionals, even though some of The volunteers joining the a draft obligation for the dura- In announcing the new assignments, Dr. Duval also appointed Dr. H. McDonald Rim most of those seeking treatment the services will be given free. Funds that are collected may be either retained to provide additional care within the community or returned to the FedJeral Treasury. Because of the Administration freeze on hiring new! Federal employes the corps was slow in starting. The first ascame signments earlier this! year when 68 workers were appointed. May 24, 1972 THE NEW YORK TIMES, WEDNESDAY, MAY 24, 1972 Director of New Health Agency Hubert McDonald Rimple Special to The New York Times WASHINGTON, May 23Hubert McDonald Rimple, appointed today as director of the new National Health Service Corps, has spent all his 15 years as a doctor serving in the Federal medical bureaucracy, including stints in New York City. A career officer in the United Man in the News States Public Health Service, he has been assigned to direct an organization that is partly designed to solve the shortage of health personnel in an estimated 5,000 American communities where health care services are inadequate. "The National Health ServIce Corps is not attempting to deal with the problem of the over-all shortage of health personnel, but rather to alleviate some of the more acute problems," he said. The Department of Health, Education and Welfare, the corps' parent organization, has already assigned more than 350 doctors, dentists, nurses and other health personnel to about 150 communities, ranging from urban slums to rural counties, that have shortages of health serv ices. "Manpower assigned to these areas are carefully matched with the community to encourage them to remain after completion of their period of service," Dr. Rimple said. Dr. Rimple was born in Trinidad on Dec. 16, 1921, studied in London and came to the United States in 1947 to attend Columbia University. He received a Bachelor of Science degree from Columbia in 1952, became a naturalized citizen the next year and then entered the Howard University College of Medicine her, graduating ine 1957. He served internship and residency on Staten Island and in Detroit, specializing in internal medicine. For over six years Dr. Rimple served at the United States Public Health Service hospital on Staten Island, becoming coordinator of outpatient care clinics and assisting chief of internal medicine. Back in the Capital Dr. Rimple returned to Washington four years ago to become deputy director of the health care facility service at what is now the Health Services and Mental Health Administration. Until a year ago, he was deputy director of the Hill-Burton program, which grants Federal funds for the construction and refurbishing of health care institutions. Then he was as signed as acting director of the National Health Service Corps. The physician, who is 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds, lives in the Washington suburb of Bethesda, Md., with his wife, the former Georgia B. Fulton, and two daughters, Donna, 16, and Krista, 8. Mrs. Rimple, a native of Brooklyn, met her future husband when she was a student at City College and he was at Columbia. His sponsor in this country was her music teacher. Dr. Rimple is an elder at St. Mark's Presbyterian Church in the neighboring suburb of Rockville, Md. He is fend of playing golf and he works about the house at carpentry and gardening. Mrs. Rimple said that a family joke was the description of her husband as "the man of all seasons" because of his interest in painting landscapes depicting different seasons of the year. Dr. Rimple has painted a score of oils, some of which were exhibited at a community showing two years ago. He has taken some professional art courses. Asked to describe her husband, Mrs. Rimple said, "He's a pretty easy-going person who believes in everybody, until he finds them out." |