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Published by League of Women Voters of Atlanta - Fulton VOL . XL DECEMBER , 1967 Mr. R. Earl Lan der s Administrative Ass istant Off ice of the Ma yor City Hal l Co1i1n\}fi ta , Ga . 30303 No . 5 Economic Opportunity Atlanta National Background The l 960's were a turning point in public awareness of large numbers of poor, living in the midst of a prosperous United States. The '60's were also important in terms of Federal involvement, seeing the greatest amount of anti-poverty legislation since the New Deal. The previous decade affected the mood of the nation . The Korean War ended, releasing resources for domestic needs. The Civil Rights movement and the Supreme Court's school desegregation decision emphasized equal opportunity for all persons. The labor market began to feel the effects of automation which eliminated many unskilled jobs. The nation discovered rural (often, regional) and urban pockets of poverty where families had experienced persistent unemployment and poverty through several generations. New attitudes towards poverty arose. The new goals were to lift people out of poverty and change the quality of their lives instead of providing custodial care for them . Attitudes of the poor had changed, too. In the past, many poor knew poverty as a temporary state . Today, many poor persons see no 'NOY ciut of poverty, regarding it as a permanent state for them selves and their children . The 1960 census provided the statistical infor~a tion for definition of the extent of poverty in the United States. In 1963, Michael Harrington in The Other America stated that if the poverty level was between $3000 and $3500 for an urban family of four, approximately SO-million persons would be living in poverty. Leon Keyserling, former Chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisors and author · of Poverty and Deprivation in the United States ( 1962) estimated in 1963 that 34-million persons would be defined as poo r using Government criteria, which at that time were $3000 per year for a family of four and $1500 per year for an individual. He felt that these were conservative estimates enormously below the Department of Labor's "modest but ade quate" budget in 1963 : $6,000 for families and $2750 for individuals. Keyserling estimated that more than 66-million persons, 35 ½ % of our population in 1963, were living in poverty or on the verge of poverty in "deprivation". Inception ol EOA Atlanta also was involved in studying the characteristics and needs of its growing population . In 1962, ~he Community Council of the Atlanta Area, an independent social planning body, completed a study of the city which ranked each census tract on a socioeconomic scale and determined which areas were found to be poor then, according to Federal criteria for poverty, and many of these poor lived in areas adjacent to Atlanta's Central Business District. Thousands were unemployed, under-employed, functionally illiterate, poorly housed, lacking adequate medical care. The Community Council with foundation assistance began a year- long pilot project, a demonstration service center in one of the neighborhoods. This project demonstrated the need for realistic services for individuals living in poverty-based on their own suggestions-and the need for coordination on the neighborhood level of all existing public and private services. Armed with this knowledge and anticipating passage of the Economic Opportunity Act, Atlanta's Mayor, Board of Aldermen, and the Fulton County Commissioners passed a joint resolution in mid-Aug ust, 1964, establishing the Atlanta-Fulton County Economic Opportunity Authority. Major provisions of the resolution were : l . Establishment of the Authority, composed of 13 unsalaried members, six appointed by the Mayor, si x by the Chairman of the Fulton County Com-__ mission, with a l 3th appointed by both to serve as chairman . 2 . Provision for subsequent incorporation of the Authority under Georgia laws as a non-profit, charitable, educational, and philanthropic corporation . 3 . Authorization to hire an Executive Director and other staff. 4 . Appropriation of City and County funds for organization prior to receipt of Federal funds. 5 . Authorization to apply for, receive, expend, or dis pose of governmental funds. 6. Establishment of a Technical Advisory Committee of representatives from local government and community organizations . 7. Establishment of a Citizens' Participation Committee of residents who are or have been adversely affected by existing socio-economic conditions. 8 . Implementation of a program mobilizing and util izing all public and private resources to combat poverty. With assistance from the Community Council, the Authority prepared an application for Community Ac tion Program (CAP) funds under Title 11 of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 which it submitted on November 16, 1964. Atlanta was among the first urban areas funded ; the initial grant was ann ounced on Novembe r 23, 1964. This grant prov ided $ 1,0 80,000 in Federal funds, to be matched by $ 120,000 in local funds, and covered the period from November 23, 1964 to September l, 1965. Publ ished Fehrun r y, Apri l, Jun e, Augu st, Octob e r nncl Decemb er b y the L eiigue or Wom en Voter s of Atlnnta-F ul ton Coun ty . P ub li s hin g Head · quarl e rs--;-140L Penchtre7 St. , N.E. , Sui te 300, Atln.nta , Gn . 30309. Ente r e d ns second cla ss mu tter at Atlunta, Ga., und er Act of Mu r ch 8, 1 79 , l eague n1e mh ers h 1p; $6 , wh ic h 11.1clud es subsc ription to FA CT , . Pres ide nt, M:rs . L. Gl e n Pnr hnm ; Ed itor, l\fr s. F. P. Ro . s mnn , assisted by ~!r s . H um nn R esotu-ces Chnirmnn. idn e v D av is, · �In June, 1965, as directed by the resolution, the Authority was rechartered as a private, non-profit corporation and renamed Economic Opportunity Atlanta, Inc. The articles of incorporation stated, "The purpose of the corporation shall be to mobilize and utilize all public and private resources .. . toward the elimination of poverty through developing edu cational and employment opportunities, improving human performance, motivation and productivity, and bettering the conditions under which people live, learn, and work . .. " EOA s Board of Directors 1 When the policy-making Board was first created by the joint resolution mentioned earlier, it was com posed of 13 appointed members. Enlarged to l 5 members, in June, 1965, as a condition of OEO's 1966 CAP grant to Atlanta the Board was enlarged, in late Spring, to include four representatives of the poor, to be elected by and from residents of low - income neighborhoods qualifying for EOA programs. On February 15, 1967, the Board again amended the charter to change the composition of the Board to its present form . (See o rganization chart ) The Board has retained its original members and added more representatives of the areas served by EOA ( l / 3 of the members now are from these areas ) . Advisory Committees 1 Block Organizations Originally, two advisory committees existed : the Citizens Participation Committee-SO persons affected by poverty, who would prov ide information on needs of the poor and help plan ; and the Technical Adv isory Committee-SO representatives of local agencies concerned with poverty, to help coord inate and plan programs and to prevent duplicat ion . In 1966, elections were held in the neighborhoods to choose representatives to serve on neighborhood and city-wide advisory committees and the EOA Board . Each EOA target area is divided into 20 or more "area blocks' ~. People living within these blocks are encouraged to participate in organizing block clubs, electi ng officers, and determ ining their own agenda . The goals include involvement of more residents and citiz~nship education . In 1967 11,528 persons voted in EOA ne ighborhood elections. Each block organization chose one representat ive to serve on its C itizens' Neighborhood Advisory Council. Each CNAC selected three representat ives to serve on the Citizens' Central Advisory Council (CCAC ) , which replaced the Citi zens' Participation Committee, and one to serve on the EOA Board of Directors. The Tech n ical Adv isory Committee exi sts unchanged . EOA Administration The administrative staff is in the process of chang ing its organizational structure. Its present structure is shown in the organization chart which follows : O·RGANIZATION OF Economic Opportunity Atlanta, Inc. un der Office of Economic Oppo rtunity Notional - Regionol - State - -- Policy-Makin g Board in a ccordance with F eb. 1967 ohart er a mendm ent ould consist of 42 member s with 1-yr. terms : 12 member s or 1/ 3 of total Board t o be elect ed by democratic procedure from t arget a1·ea s ; 12 r epresenitatives of At lanta / Fult on County comm u nity gro ups a nd m a j or public agencies concerned w ith poverty; 12 representat ives of Atlanta / Fult on ·· Co unty poverty-concerned groups, such as organ ized labor, busin essmen 's associ ati on s, ma jor r elig ious, minorit y, r acia l, and ethn ic organi zat ion s and private socia l servi ce agencies; [ Se1eCJt ion of represent at ives is made by t he gr oups or a gen cies ; design ations of gr oups a nd a gencies to be r epresented is by the Ma yor of Atlant a a nd the F ul t on County Commission Cha irm an, in consultati on w ith EOA.] 3 representatives each from Gwinnett an d Rockd a le Countiesone to r epresent county officials and public agencies , one r epr esenting major community gro ups, a nd on e a r es ident of a r ea ser ved, to be select ed democr aticall y. (Plus a ny other counties which choose t o join EOA ) EOA's adm inistrat ion has had the reputati on of being consistently strong and dynamic. Mr. C. 0 . Emmeri c h se rved a s Executive Directo r until hi s un expected d eath in June, 1967 . Mr. Thomas " J im " Parham wa s c hosen by the Board a s the new Exec ut ive Directo r. A small a d m ini strative, p lanninq , a nd c le rical staff is located a t l 0 1 Marietta St . NW. Program The heart of EOA's p rogram a re th e Ne ig hbo rhood Se rvice Ce nte rs, whe re existing se rvic es and pro g ram s a re coo rd ina t ed a t locations within the lowin come neig hbo rhoods. Fourtee n Ne igh borhood Se rvice Ce nters (NSC ) we re esta bl ished d ur ing EOA 's first two yea rs . Two of these a re the Gw inne tt a nd Rockdale County o ffices; t he other 12 a re located in At la nta a nd Fu lton County. T hey are : Centra l City, East Present A ministrative Staff E xecut ive Director Direct or of Finance - - -- - A ssoc. Adm . for Operati ons 14 Neig hborhood Ser vice Center s Direct ors E x t ensi'O n Area Ma nager s Social Ser vice Supervisors Inta ke and Referr al Worker s Aides Cleri cal Staff I 1- I - Direct or of Community Relat ions Assoc . A dm. for P lann ing I Assoc . Adm . for Gener a1 Services I I Contract Direct or, A gencies Merit System Ce ntral , Edgewood, Nash -Wa shing ton , North Fulton, Northwest ( Pe rry Homes ), Pi ttsbu rgs, Price, South Fulton, Summe rhill -Mec han icsv ill e, West Central , and We st End . NSC staff me mbe rs conducted approx imate ly 33 ,000 interv iews dur ing the f irst two yea rs, and a ccord ing to EOA fi gures, had hel d a tota l of 142,305 inte rv iews a t t he end of A ugust, 1967 . T he ce nters provide as their ma jor se rvi ce an in fo rma ti on and refer ra l service which fin ds people who need he lp a r. d gets them t o the approp riate se rv ices. Th ey offer li mited general counseling , commu nity partic ipat ion and o rgani zati on th ro ug h bl ock groups, neighborhood EOA e lecti ons, neighbo rhood comm ittees wo rki ng to so lve problems ; and some e m pl oyme nt as Neighborhood Aides (2 14 before 1967 budget cut, 145 now ) . Aides find fam ilies in need of hel p, direct them to the Cente r, and main tai n cont a ct with the m . �The needs of residents who come to the Center are determined through counseling, and they are referred or taken to the approprkate service. The three main categories of service offered to citizens by the NSC are Employment (Manpower ) Services, Education, and Social Services. Of all individuals coming to Ne ighborhood Centers in Atlanta, 72 % wanted jobs. In addition to services offered by the NSC staff, other programs are channeled through the Center, and other agencies in the city have representatives in the Center, either on a voluntary or contract basis. A number of EOA's programs are contracted by EOA to other groups or agencies in the city, and then administered by these contracting groups. SUMMARY OF PROGRAMS I. Administered by E OA: Neig hborhood Service Center s : Coordin at e EOA ser vices in n eighbor hoods served. Neighborhood Youth Corps (out-of-school progr a m): J ob-t raining, employment for youths 16-21. Men's J ob Corps (recruit ing): J ob-t rain ing at training cen ters for out-of- school unemployed boys 16-21. Recruit ing from 8 counties•. VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America ): Domestic Peace Corps. ACEO- Atlant a Con cen t rated Employment Progr am: N ew program designed t o t rain and place 2,500 consistently unemployed or under-employed people in permanent jobs du ring the next year. Businesses, agencies, a r e to provide jobs. Par ent and Child Cent er: Planning grant r eceived to desig n a parent education program for low-income families, including planned parenthood, parent-child relat ionships, hou se hold skills, a nd use of communit y faci'Hties. (EOA pla nning ) Price Area Health Center: New center to provide complete medical services, except ho&pitalization, for 22,000 people in Price neighborhood. (Now being organ ized by EOA, Fulron County Medical Assn., Emory School of Medicine ,and 15 health and planning agencies working to establish ce-nter.) II. Cont ract ed by E OA to ot her groups or agencies : Headstart : Summer program for pr e-school ch ildren from low-inC'ome homes (Atlant a Board of Education and privat e pr eschoo1s) Day-Care Centers : Supervised care for children in order to release parents for job training and job opportunities (Private or ganizations) Manpower Placement: Counselor in each Neighborhood Service Center to provide job placem ent and r eferrals to other services (Georgia State Employment Service ) Atlanta Employment Evaluation a nd Service Center : A centralized service, first of its kind in the na tion, to diagnose a nd evaluate work potential a nd training needs of difficult cases and follow up job prog ress (Vocational Rehabilitation ) "--- - - Legal Ser vices : P r eviously, Legal Aid lawyers worked part-time at Neig hborhood Service Cent er s. Presently, a central Legal Assistance Cent er is located in t he Fulton County Court House; two n ew Legal Aid centers operate in low-income neighborhoods (L€gal A id Society) Planned Parenthood : Family planning service (Pla nned Par enthood A ssn .) Multi-Service Centers for t he Aged : Recr eation , social service, and day care for families living in the three hig h-rise apartments for the aged built by Atlanta Pub1ic H ousing Authority (Sen ior Citizen Services of Metropolitan Atlanta) Foster Grandparent : Provides children in institutions with adult affection and companion ship while g iving older citizen s useful, satisfying jobs. (Senior Citizen Services of M et ropolitan Atlanta) Neighborhood Youth Corps (in school): Training and employment of low-income high school youths to provide work experience and money to enable them t o r emain in schoo1 (Atlanta and Fulton County Boards of Education) Project Enable: Group education for low-income parents to incr ease s elf-h elp motivation (Atlanta Urban L€ague) Research Prog rams- 1) Evaluation: 18-months eva1uation of Atla nta's CAP, under con tract t o OEO (Emory University Center for Research in Social Ch ange) 2) Electronic Data Processing Progam: Pilot stud y for automated acco unting and financia l work (Electronics Data Systems Gorp .) III. Indep endent Coop erating Progra ms : Youth Opportunity Center : Counseling , t est ing, r eferr al to other a gencies for remedial ed ucation or training ; for employm ent needs of youths 16-21 (Georg ia State Employment Service ) College Work S tudy P rog ram : P art ~time employment to keep youths from low-income families in co11ege (8 Atlanta area colleges) Project U pward. Bound : To r educe drop-•out rate of 11th a nd 12th graders by providing r emedial a nd interest classes a nd encouraging t hem t o seek further education (3 colleges : Morehouse, Morris Brown, Emory U niv.) Women's Job Corps : Job-tr a ining at training center s for out-of-school, unemployed g irls 16-21; local r ecruitment (WICSWomen in Community Service ) Crime Prevention : Po·l ice wo rk in ea.ch Neig hborhood Service Center to become fri ends with residents and help them with t heh- problem s (Atlanta Police Depa rtment) MOTA- Manpower Development and Training Act of 196 2: J ob training for needed skills (Georgia St at e Employment Service and Atla nta Boa r d of Education) Project Hire-H elp Initiat e Renewed Employment : Employ ment service for t he worker 50 and over (Georgia State Emp loyment Service) Golden Age E mployment Ser vice : same as above (Atlanta section, Na ti onal Council of J ewish Women) Adult Ba sic E duca tion : I nstruction in r eading a nd w riting for adults over 18 who ar e unable to fun ction on a n 8th grade level, to improve their emp'loyment p otential (Atlanta Board of Educat ion ) �Programs discontinued due to lack of EOA funds: Project Bees-Biz, community schools, homemaker services during emergencies, home management train- ing, four Public Health nurses, recreation programs conducted by Recreation Technicians at Neighborhood Centers, Small Business Development Center, Volunteer Task Force. Total FUNDS administered by EOA (figures from EOA *) Total Federal Local 12-1-64 thru 12-31-66 (2 years including initial CAP grant) $13,408,151 $11,504,109 $1,904,042 ) 7,693,874 1-1-67 thru 12-31-67 plus funds to mid-1968 for some programs 15,699,248 1,994,626

All OEO grantees a.re required to have a CPA-approved accounting system and to submit regular professional, independent audits.

Economic Opportunity Atlanta, Inc. suffered a 38.2% budget cut in 1967, due to Congressional r eductions. A 32 % budget cut is expected for 1968 due to changes in the way appropriations are handled even if Congress provides adequate funding. Evaluation The Center for Research in Social Change at Emory University is under contract to OEO for an in-depth 18 month evaluation of Economic Opportunity Atlanta, Inc. - one of seven such evaluations in the nation. Research has not been completed, no fihal judgments have been made, and the report itself will be confidential until released by Washington OEO. In August, Dr. Fred Crawford, Principal Investigator, released a short review of his first year's work in which he stated that Atlanta's Neighborhood Service Centers have had some impact in the community, particularly in changing the lives of individuals by enabling them to participate more fully in our socio-economic system. One of EOA's strongest accomplishments is involvement of residents of poverty neighborhoods in the activities of the centers, including their representation on the EOA Board. He also emphasized the importance of citizens becoming interested in exercising their voting responsibilities and registering to vote. The evaluating staff has given its suggestions for changes for g reGtCi effic!ency and effectiveness t8 EOA, and the changes are being implemented. Dr. Crawford stated, "Viewed in terms of transition and growth, EOA is making progress toward accomplish ing the goals established under the War on Poverty. . .. EOA should be continued, refined, and expanded to maximize its efforts to reach the total poverty population in this metropolitan area." Conllict Poverty causes complex pro blems and attitudes. In the initial enthus iasm created by anti -poverty efforts, many persons expected immediate and dramatic solutions and have been impatient with slow progress. OEO and EOA provided a structure within government which gives the poor a voice. Conflict has S TATEMENT OF OWNER SHIP, MANAGEMENT AND CIRCULATION (Act of October 23, 1962; Section 4369, T itle 39, United States Code ) 1. D ate of Fil ing: October 11, 1967. 2. 'fi t le of Pub lication: E'ACTS. 3. ]frequency of I ssue: B i-monthl y . 4. Location of k nown Offi ce of Pub li cntio n: 1401 P eacht r ee St., N.E., S ui te 300, Atlanta, Georgia 30309. 5. Location of the Hencl~unrters or General Bu s iness Offi ces of the Publis hers: Same a a bove. 6. Names and Addresses of Publis her, E di tor n nd Ma.n ug ing E di to r : P ub lis her , League of Women Voters of Atl ,•nta-Fultou Coun ty, (Add m s above). E ditor : i\frs. F. P . Ros ma n, 1455 H ea r st Dr., N.E., Atlanta, Georgia 3031 9. 7 . Owner: Non-profi t Organiza tion li sted abo ve. 8 . Known Bond holde rs, 1\1:ortg ugees, nnd other securi ty ho ld e1·s ow oing or holding 1 percent or more of totu l umount of bond s, !llortguges nr other securiti es: None. 9. Pnrag r a.p hs 7 and 8 includ e, in cases where t he stockhold er or security holder appear s upon t he books of the company as t ru stee or in a n y other fidu ciary r ela tion. th e name of t he per on or corporation for w hom s n r h tru stee is ncting, 11.Jso t he stutemeuts io t he two puragrnphs show t h e uffi n nt's fu ll knowledge u.nd b elief as to the circumstances and onditions und er wh ich stoc kholders and secu r it )• hold er s who do not appear u po n t he books of t he company as trustees. ho ld stock nod secur ities in a eapacity ot her t han t hat of a bo n n-fide owner. Nn mes nod nd dresses of individuals who nr e stockholcler s of n corpor ation w hich often resulted with existing agencies over programs, funds, and personnel. Some established institutions and political groups have regarded the participation and the votes of the poor as threats. Controversy has resulted from direct Federal funding of local agencies, which has left the program relatively free of strong political influence up to the present. Criticism often has been aimed at administrative costs, although these are comparable with those of similar organizations. For instance, the national Office of Economic Opportunity spends 3 % of the entire OEO budget for administrative costs less administrative ,.,overhead" than the National Red Cross or the Salvation Army. Benefits EOA has enjoyed good community relations and support, and good press coverage. The Mayor of Atlanta supported adequate funding, stating that EOA was a major factor in keeping communications open and preventing rioting here last Summer. Many of the poor have registered to vote for the first time, thus finding a voice in the political process. Fu!tc n County launched a perma~ent year-rcur:d veter registration program, including Neighborhood Service Centers among the 35 new registration centers. The EOA staff is selected without discrimination and is well integrated racially at all levels. The Board is integrated racially, economically and socially, with all its members sitting down together on an equal basis to discuss community problems. EOA has served as a structure through which the city has accepted many federal grants. The economy · of the City of Atlanta has received a significant boost from the over $ 2 5 -million in federal money which EOA has brought into the city ove r the pa st three years, not to mention the economic "muliplier" effect which touches off additio nal rounds of employment and subsequent spending. itself_ is a s tock ho lder_ or l1older of _bond , mortgage or other seru n t1es o f th e pub h sh m g corpo ration ha,ve b een includ ed in para.gra ph s 7 nncl 8 w hen t he interests of su ch individua ls are equiva lent to 1 perce nt or more of t he total amoun t of t he stock or securi t ies of tho publi shing corporation. IO This item must be com1,leted fo r all publi cations except those whic h do not carry advertis ing othe r t han t he publi her's own nncl whi ch a.re nurned in sectio n 1 32.23 1, 132.232 and 132.233. Posta l Manu"I (Sectio n 4355a, 4355 b an d 4356 of Title 39, Ou ile<l St/Lies Code). Avernge No Co pi es S ing le I ssu e each issue during nen rest to pr eceding 12 mos. fi ling d11te 'l'ot.nl No. Copies Printed ( not press r un ) 2,258 2,5 00 Pui cl irc•1l:lt,ion: 1) a Jes t hr u denier s nnd rrn-ri ers, street vendo rs and coun ter sa les 425 520 2) Mail sub scriptio n l ,4 37 1,598 'l'ota l Pnid ircu latiou 1,8 62 2,1 1 3 l~ree Di tribution ( including s ,imples) by Mail, arrier or other men n 0 0 ~l'otnl D istribution 1,862 2, 1 13 I certify that th e and c·omplete. tntemcnts m11d e by me above are correct FRANCTES H. ROSSi\f.<L', Editor �