Box 9, Folder 5, Document 3

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NEWS:OF THE CORPS

Atlanta Urban Corps
30 Courtland Street, N. E.
Atlanta, Georgia 30303





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Volume IV
INTERNS MAN A WALK-IN CENTER

Located in the recreation area of Trinity
Methodist Church, 265 Washington Street, is
the Walk-In Counseling Center directed by the
the Atlanta Youth Council, The Center is a new
project which is dedicated to serving the im-
mediate personal problems of the 13=21 year age
group. Three Atlanta Urban Corps interns are
managing the program.

In an interview with Loyd Sanders, intern
from Morehouse College, it was learned that
Sanders, Bill Patterson (Univ. of Indiana),
and Jo Ingle (Georgia College at Milledgeville)
spend some seventy hours per week counseling
young people whose problems range from general
feelings of dejection..and)Lagk of ‘perponal
value drug addiction and illigitimate preg-
nancies,

As the problems of the Center's clientele
vary in degrees of urgency and acuteness, Loyd,
Bill and Jo have learned through sessions of
debriefing that each must be handled quite
separately, The interns are fully aware of
their own limitations in the field of counsel-—-
ing although all three are upper-level psychology
majors at their respective colleges, Therefore,
the Center relies heavily on the relationship
it has established with various social service
agencies which are prepared to offer professional
assistance in the treatment of more severe cases
of adolescent problems.

Loyd. praised Georgia State College's willing-
ness to donate professional time at a moment's
notice, Hours of psychological testing and the
like are administered by Georgia State profes=
sionals who can be at the Center within five
minutes after having been contacted, Great
assistance has come too from Mr. John Cox, director
of the Atlanta Youth Council, Mr. Lewis Dinkins,
assistant to Mr, Cox, Mrs, Yvonne Bingham, coun-
selor from Atlanta University, and Mr. David
Veddinton, director of the Walk-In Center,

Of concern to Sanders and to the other two
interns is the location of the Walk-In Center.
Trinity Methodist is located under the shadow of
City Hall itself, and though the Center is grate-
ful to have the comfortable space in the Church,
it seems that the Walk-In program might be far
more effective were it located in the area of the

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city were young people live and feel most natural.
As Loyd pointed out, "Who is going to just 'Walk
in* to 265 Washington Street and bare their souls?"
Sanders feels that the Center might more effec-
tively be located in the Capitol Homes area,

For the present,mhowever, the Center is oper-
ating with as much effectiveness as these three
interns can foster, A campaign is on to publi-
cize the program so that young people can learn
where they can come for personal counseling and
professional help. Loyd, B811 and Jo man the
Center from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. six days per week.
They find that most young people respond to the
Center's program in the evening and thus have
geared their working hours to meet the needs of
the people whom they serve, If the Walk-In Center
proves successful in its initial operation it is

hoped that an expansion program Will result in

branch offices out in the areas of the city where
counseling for adolescents is so desperately needed.
At the Walk-In Counseling Center are three Urban
Corps interns who are applying their experience
and educational training to a real need of the
city, who are realizing their limitations and
finding ways to supplement their own service cap-=-
acities, and who are creatively planning for a
more effective program. Theirs is a job of
responsibility and relevancy,
ATLANTA URBAN CORPS REPRESENTED IN NEW YORK
In a five day trip to the national office
of the Urban Corps in New York City, Sam Williams,
director of the Atlanta Urban Corps, learned of
the operations of other Urban Corps throughout
the nation and represented our Atlanta progran
reporting on its progress, its problems and
successes.

At the meeting were directors from
eight different Urban Corps and representatives
from six other cities which at present do not

have Urban Corps but are considering establishing
the Urban Corps program.

After hearing reports from the directors of
Urban Corps in cities such as New York, Boston,
Dayton, Detroit, and San Francisco, Sam concludes
that the Atlanta program is unique in its empha=
sis on the educational aspect of the intern exper=
dence, Only in Syracuse, N. ¥. does there exist
a like effort to involve an educationally sound
learning experience for Urban Corps interns,

In that city's Urban Corps program fairly suc=
cussful attempts have been made to develop








academic course-credit for Urban Corps intern-=
ship experience. Generally, however, Urban
Corps in cities other than Atlanta are basic=
ally programs for summer employment with very
little emphasis placed on educational rele-=
vancy or student administration.
FALL URBAN CORPS PROGRAM BEING PLANNED

Under the direction of Dave Whelan, the
Placement and Development branch of the Urban
Corps is in the process of planning its
continuing program. City and agency super-
visors have expressed great satisfaction
With the work that Urban Corps interns
have accomplished this summer and are anxious
to employ more students throughout the year,

Students may continue their involvment with
the Urban Corps in any of several ways. ‘The
program always welcomes volunteers, those com-=
munity minded students who will be able to find
time during the school year to devote a partial
work week to city problem areas, For those
students who qualify for College Work-Study
funds, the Urban Corps will be able to find
both full-time and part-time jobs. There also
may be funds available for a limited number of
, students who need to work during the school
year but who are not eligible for C.W.S.P,
funding. Another way by which students will

be able to work with the Urban Corps program
beyond its summer 1969 schedule is through

college accreditation of the Urban Corps intern=
ship program. Several colleges have already
agreed to offer course credit in the form of
special courses, sociology, independent study
and the like to their students who work during
the school term with the Urban Corps. Two
major Atlanta schools will give credit for
Urban Corps internships and/or related courses
which will be transferable to the other colleges.
There will be those students who will want to
take a quarter off from regular course work and
devote ‘an entire three months to Urban Corps
work.

Just as students are urged to continue
their involvement with the Urban Corps continued
program so institutions are urged to involve
their faculty members and staff as advisors and
consultants ‘to both Urban Corps students and

— Snpiojins agencies, a



Dave indicates that if enough Urban Corps
staff is available this fall there will be
provisions made to establish an office of
community projects, This office will aid indi-
vidual students and student groups in finding
comunity projects or the in=training equipment
for already existing projects which students
might sponsor or assist;

The expansion plans of the Urban Corps
are still quite flexible and any comments or
, SWesestions from students; faculty, and others
interested in the program are welcomed. Appli-
Cations )for fall participation will be made
avaiialable in the near future,





INTERNS ATTEND HUNGER AND MALNUTRITION HEARING

Representing the Urban Corps at the Hunger
and Malnutrition Hearing July 11 and le were
interns Ralph Martin and Charlie Browmm. Charlie
described the hearing in terms of its attempts
to bring to the attention: of Fulton County
officials the inadequacies of the county's
surplus food prograii.

At present the Food Warehouse is open to the
public between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
As Charlie pointed out, it is during these hours
that the people who aré dependent on surplus
food for existence need to be on the job. The

food program has only one distribution point

which often makes it very difficult for people
who live in the large metropolis of-Atlanta to
get to the warehouse, When asked if there might
be other points of distribution made available
and more appropriate hours scheduled, officials
of the program admitted that the feasibility

of such planning had never been discussed,

At the hearing it was learned, too, that
the food program makes no attempt to meet the
special diet problems of its customers. Re=
ferred to by the officials as "recipients,"

a term which to Charlie connotes degradation,
the people who depend on surplus food usually
are people who are sick or undernourished in
the first place.
people who have received strict medical orders
for special diets, eg. sodium diets for heart
patients, whole milk requirements for cancer
patients, and who have been unable to meet
these diets because of their dependency on a
food surplus program which is deaf to their
needs, Charlie notes that there is no inter=
action at all between Grady Hospital and the
Food Warehouse which could alleviate this
situation.

Another disturbihg fact is that the Warehouse
makes food pick=up available only once per month.
Food issues weigh 130 pounds for an average
welfare family thus making transportation nec-=
essary, Charlie has recognized the fact that
taxicabs cost approximately $3.50 for an average
trip to the warehouse, and for each package an
additional $,75 is charged. For a family de-
pendent on surplus food, such money just for

Several cases were heard of

—the transportation of that food seems outrafeous

to this intern,

The Hunger and Malnutrition Hearing was spon=
sored by the Health, Education and Welfare
Department and chaired by Mr. Maynard Jackson.
Personal testimony was given by people who know
the effects of hunger in Atlanta, Panels
discussed the problems and directed their con-
ments to Fulton County officials, It is hoped
that from the uneovering of such inadequacies
as those of the Comaodity Foods program some
relief will be found for the hungry people of
our city.