Organizing a Public Welfare Committee in Spring County 9780231887601

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ORGANIZING A PUBLIC WELFARE COMMITTEE IN SPRING COUNTY

ORGANIZING A PUBLIC WELFARE COMMITTEE IN SPRING COUNTY EDITED

BY

M A R G A R E T F. B Y I N G T O N

PUBLISHED

FOR

T H E NEW YORK SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK BY COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS 1941

NEW YORK

COPYRIGHT COLUMBIA

UNIVERSITY

1941 PRESS, N E W

YORK

Foreign Agents: O X F O R D U N I V E R S I T Y P R E S S , Humphrey Milford, Amen House, London, E.C. 4, England, AND B. I. Building, Nicol Road, Bombay, India; M A R U Z E N C O M P A N Y , L T D . , 6 Nihonbashi, Tori-Nichome, Tokyo, Japan M A N U F A C T U R E D IN T H E U N I T E D S T A T E S OF A M E R I C A

INTRODUCTION a relief load of nearly 2 1 million individuals during the autumn of 1938, public welfare has developed into a major government function in less than a decade.... Emergency laws are now giving way to lasting legislation and administrative agencies equipped to deal with a permanent problem are supplanting those overexpanded or hastily organized agencies designed to meet a passing need. . . . Legislators and welfare officials alone, however, cannot be charged with the entire welfare burden; it must be shared equally with those who have placed them in office.... Citizen participation, long accepted in other fields of government such as public works and education, is finding a new focus in public welfare. It is being secured through organizations which are familiarizing the citizen with the work of local welfare agencies and giving him a voice in charting their progress.1 WITH

Social workers of today and of tomorrow need to recognize the importance of such citizen interest and to become familiar with the procedures through which it may be developed. The teachers of community organization in the New York School of Social W>rk believe that this knowledge is an important element in the training of students of social work and that it can best be imparted through an analysis of events in actual situations. In cooperation with the State Charities Aid Association, therefore, they have prepared this record as the basis for class discussions. The State Charities Aid Association is a private, non-partisan "State Charities Aid Association, " T h e Public in Public Welfare."

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INTRODUCTION

organization of citizens throughout New York State, concerned with aiding and improving the welfare, health and mental hygiene services offered by governmental agencies in this State. The Association was founded in 1872 at a time when there were no accepted State-wide standards in these fields. From the beginning, its purpose has been the promotion of humane, efficient and nonpolitical administration of public health and welfare services. Despite its name the Association is not connected with the state government, nor does it derive any support from public funds. Its activities are financed privately; and it donates the services of its professional staff to local committees without charge.2 T h i s record is based on visits to Spring County by t w o such representatives of the Association. T h e entries are chronological and for the most part are verbatim extracts from their regular reports to the central office. Condensation has been necessary to make the record of reasonable length f o r teaching purposes, and all names have been altered. M o r e interviews w e r e held than are here recorded. Activities of two important subcommittees have also been omitted, namely, the Committee on the County H o m e and the Children's Committee. T h e record focused on certain major problems of organization which teachers of community organization at the N e w York School o f Social Work believed to be vital subjects for class discussion, such as the following: What is the responsibility of citizens for the development of the social welfare activities of their community? How effective a device is a citizens' committee for helping them to understand, develop, and support the public welfare department? What stake do public officials have in such a committee? What successive steps might be taken in organizing a citizens' committee? By whom should they be initiated? 2 Ibid.

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On what basis should its membership be chosen? geographical, racial, organizational? Wis this committee, as organized, adequate for the type of activities it was to carry on? What is the relation of an outside organization to the local committee? What are its purposes in sending a worker there? What problems are likely to arise? How should the field worker deal with them? What would be the advantages or disadvantages of having a county welfare committee officially sponsored by the state Department of Social Welfare? When a nonofficial county public welfare committee is organized, what is its task: to inform itself? to study and to make recommendations? to take responsibility for getting its recommendations adopted? If the committee believes that a study of the local situation is needed, what information might be secured? By whom should the study be made? under what auspices? How may the information be used? Obviously, those teaching from the record will stress varying aspects of the problem and will utilize the material differently. But there is surely value in this direct day-to-day record of the problems, personalities, and delays which a social worker faces in helping to create such a committee, and of its possible achievements. MARGARET F . BYINGTON

New York School of Social Work February, 1941

IMPORTANT

INDIVIDUALS IN

MENTIONED

RECORD

Members of the Executive Committee as Finally Chosen Mr. George Brown, Centerville, President Mrs. North, Raleigh, First Vice-President Mr. White, Granville, Second Vice-President Mr. Jones, Hartford, Treasurer Mrs. Post, Chester, Secretary Mrs. Stone, Essex Mr. Gleason, Centerville (who had been temporary chairman) Professor Long, Racine Mr. Webb, Raleigh Mrs. Clark, Newton Mr. Hadley, Weston Mr. Waters Public Officials Mr. Foster, County Commissioner of Public Welfare Mr. Moore, City Commissioner of Public Welfare Mr. McCarthy, Spring County, Veterans' Relief Committee Mr. Rupert, Area Director, State Department of Social Welfare Mr. Potter, Chairman, Centerville Veterans' Relief Committee Mr. Burns, Member of the Board of Supervisors Mr. Reed, Director of Raleigh Home Relief Bureau

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IMPORTANT

INDIVIDUALS

Others Active in Organizing Committee Mr. Morelli, Italian Lawyer, Member of Coordination Committee Mr. Parks, Principal of Weston High School Miss Connor, School Nurse, Hartford, Member of Children's Committee Mr. Perrera, Italian Lawyer, Chairman of Children's Committee Other Members of Children's Committee Dr. Curtis Mrs. Black Mrs. Post Mr. Soran Representatives of Other Agencies Mr. Grant, Executive of Community Chest Father McMahon, Director of Catholic Charities Mr. Frank, Executive of Commercial Association Representatives of S. C. A. A. Miss Jane Doe Miss Ann Roe

I. O R G A N I Z A T I O N OF A P U B L I C WELFARE

COMMITTEE

has a total area of over I ,000 square miles and a population of about 150,000, 80 percent of whom are native born. It is typical of large sections of New York state, having one large city and extensive rural districts. Centerville, the county seat, has a population of nearly 90,000, of whom about a fifth are foreign born, the predominating groups being Italian and Polish. The major industries are textiles and metal products. There are twenty-four townships in the county and six incorporated towns, the latter varying in population from 3,000 to 12,000. Aside from small, scattered industrial plants the principal occupations of the county outside the two major centers are agriculture, including dairy products, and lumbering. Politically, this is a conservative county, mostly Republican in party affiliation, though in Centerville the votes are fairly evenly divided between the Democratic and Republican parties. SPRING COUNTY

The social agencies, prior to the depression, had been developed chiefly in Centerville, which has private family agencies (a Charity Organization Society and Catholic Charities), several institutions for the care of dependent children, a Y.M.C.A., a Y.W.C.A., clubs for boys and girls, and a Visiting Nurse Association. The County Hospital and County Tuberculosis Sanitorium are also located there. Some years ago a Council of Social Agencies and a Community

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Chest were organized in Centerville, and they are fairly active. Although the Community Chest has an Executive Director, the Council of Social Agencies has no paid staff. In some of the other towns local activities have been developed through the local unit of the American Red Cross, the assistance given by the Parent-Teachers Association and the school nurses, and the relief activities of churches. PUBLIC

AGENCIES

Spring County has a Board of Supervisors, consisting of a member from each town and from each city ward elected for a term of two years. It is primarily an appropriating body with limited legislative powers. The county Commissioner of Public Welfare is elected by popular vote for a three-year term. He is responsible to the Board of Supervisors for the administration of county funds appropriated for relief. He compiles a budget annually and submits it to the Board of Supervisors as a basis for the annual public welfare appropriations. The Centerville Department of Public Welfare is headed by a commissioner appointed by the mayor. He is responsible to the mayor and the Common Council for the administration of all city funds spent for home relief, medical care, and burials. The Home Relief Bureau of Raleigh, the second largest center, is headed by a director appointed by the mayor for an indefinite term. The director is in charge of the administration of home relief, medical care, and burials for needy persons living in Raleigh. He is responsible to the Common Council for the expenditure of local funds for these purposes. Each town has a welfare officer appointed by the town board for an indefinite period, some on a full-time and

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some on a part-time basis. They are responsible to the town boards for the administration of home relief, medical care in the homes, and burials. The Spring County Board of Child Welfare is responsible for the administration of aid to dependent children throughout the county. The board consists of six members appointed by the county judge for a period of six years. The county Commissioner of Public Welfare is a member ex officio. The Spring County Veterans' Relief Committee is the administrative authority for all relief to veterans and dependents of deceased veterans living in Spring County outside of Centerville. It is composed of eighteen members. The Centerville Veterans' Relief Committee serves as the administrative authority for all relief to veterans and dependents of deceased veterans residing in Centerville. All investigators in the Spring County Department of Public Welfare, the Centerville Department of Public Welfare, the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau, and the Board of Child Welfare are under civil service. Neither the county Commissioner of Public Welfare, the Centerville Commissioner of Public Welfare, the Director of the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau, nor the town welfare officers are under civil service. RELATIONS OF THE S. C . A. A. TO C O U N T Y

This record is primarily concerned with the creation in Spring County in 1937-40 of a citizens' Public Welfare Committee. It is well to note, however, that for a period of years the State Charities Aid Association had been active in the development of citizen interest in Spring County in a number of fields, especially in tuberculosis prevention and in the care

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of dependent children. From 1909 to 1916, for example, it was largely responsible for the development of a service for the care of dependent children. These children had been cared for in six local institutions, their board being paid by the county. In 1909 the S. C. A . A. was instrumental in securing an appropriation of $900 from the county for the salary of a children's agent. The next year this was increased to make possible the employment of a second worker. The early work of the Spring County agency was to assist the county Superintendent of the Poor to reinvestigate the cases of children who had been placed in institutions at county expense, to investigate the circumstances of all children for whom public care was asked, and to perform other functions as stated in the agreement entered into between the county Board of Supervisors and the Spring County committee of the S. C. A . A. The agent was to have the assistance of a committee of citizens, who would act in an advisory capacity. This committee was organized by the state office of the S. C . A . A . From 1 9 1 2 - 1 6 visits to the county were paid more or less regularly by representatives of the S. C. A . A. to supervise the work of the agents, to secure and establish new workers as the need arose and to interview members of the committee and seek to increase their interest in, and sense of responsibility for, the work. In 1916 the Board of Supervisors became disturbed at the mounting appropriations being asked for various children's services and decided to appoint a committee to investigate the situation. This committee was political in nature and based its inquiry on material secured in public hearings. As a result of its report the board decided not to continue the

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service under the S. C . A . A . but to employ a child-placing agent to be selected by the institutions. Later the county Commissioner of Public Welfare built up a staff selected locally, none of whom had special training. He turned to the central office of the S. C . A . A . occasionally for help in placing children in foster homes outside the county. During the period from 1916 to 1937 the relationship of the S. C . A . A . with the county in the field of family and child welfare was slight, though there had been occasional conferences with the Commissioner of Public Welfare. A PUBLIC W E L F A R E COMMITTEE IS PROPOSED

In 1937-38 a plan was developed by the S. C . A . A . for organizing public welfare committees in the various counties of the state. In July the worker, Jane Doe, was sent to Spring County to discover whether this county would be interested in organizing a county Public Welfare Committee. She spent the week of July 19-26, 1937, conferring with public officials and a number of laymen in Spring County with regard to the possibility of developing such a committee, with emphasis at the start on child welfare. ATTITUDE OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS TO A CITIZENS'

COMMITTEE

Miss Doe called first to see Mr. Foster, the county Commissioner of Public Welfare, who indicated his appreciation of the value of a citizens' committee interested in public services. Mr. Foster was very much in favor of public welfare work but also appreciated the place of the private agency in providing specialized services, which the public agency is not equipped to give. His staff had to "cover the ground" and therefore could not do intensive work. He would be in-

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terested in a committee whose primary interest was the public welfare field, although some people from private agencies should be drawn in so that they might become better acquainted with the public program. Mr. Foster thought that the children's field was the most neglected field in Spring County. The Council of Social Agencies wanted a survey made of the needs in the children's field, but he thought these needs were already known and that it was ncccssary only to dccidc whether public or private

agencies were to meet these needs and to see to developing such agencies. He thought it would not be hard to get additional funds from the supervisors for children's work but that appropriations for additional staff were not so easy to secure, unless the supervisors had some say in regard to appointments. Additional openings were considered opportunities to place people in whom officials were interested. A citizens' committee could be most valuable in taking a stand for the appointment of qualified personnel. Miss Doe then talked with Mr. Foster about the people in the county with whom she should discuss the situation. Included in his list were public officials, social workers, and citizens, living in various sections of the county. Mr. Foster asked that Miss Doe call to see him again before leaving the county to let him know how she was succeeding. Mr. Moore, city Commissioner of Public Welfare, was seen at his office. The city commissioner gives only home relief and hospitalization, other welfare functions being handled on a county-wide basis. He thought that, logically, the county should eventually administer all the services. Mr. Moore was familiar with the S. C. A. A. through the Legislative Bulletins and the S. C. A. A. News but was interested

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in hearing more of its history and development. He saw a definite need for a citizens' committee, and when Miss Doe remarked how little the average citizen knew about the work of the Public Welfare Department he laughingly exclaimed, "Are you telling me!" He said that he would be glad to serve on the committee or to cooperate in any way desired. He also suggested names of other possible committee members. Mr. Moore had served only since January, 1936. He seemed to be an intelligent, enterprising person, very much interested in informing himself. EXISTING CITIZEN

INTEREST

Mr. Grant, executive of the Community Chest, was seen next. He was interested in the possible development of a Public Welfare Committee, the lack of such a committee being a decided weakness in the public department. He quoted figures indicating that in the last ten years the percentage of the county budget spent for welfare services had increased many fold, and he felt that the public should be informed and concerned in regard to these services. Mr. Grant approved of the list of people whom Miss Doe planned to see and added names of citizens whose interest would be useful. Mr. Brown, who was next seen, was a man in his early thirties, and a member of a well-known law firm. He impressed Miss Doe as being very alert, clear thinking, and socially minded. He asked many intelligent questions about the S. C . A . A . and about how a citizens' committee would be set up and how it would function. He felt that such a committee would call for people who could give a good bit o f ' time to it and that such people were difficult to find. He had

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ORGANIZATION

often wondered about the value of the Emergency Relief Bureau Committee, on which he served, because none of the members had the time really to know the situations on which they were supposed to make decisions. They depended a great deal on the public official. Mr. Brown said that a citizens' committee should have its own background of information on which to base decisions. He wanted to know how M r . Foster felt about such a committee and, when told that he was interested in having one, said that he would talk it over with M r . Foster and see what his ideas were. He agreed to give the matter some thought during the summer and would see Miss Doe again in the fall if the organization was really undertaken. M r . Brown suggested six additional names of citizens in various communities in the county. FACTS ABOUT SOCIAL NEEDS SECURED

Miss Doe called on Miss Locke, who was active in the Children's Division of the council and was also a member of the Children's Committee of the Centerville Civic Club, of which Mrs. Towne is president. Miss Locke was very much concerned over the need for more adequate services for children. She spoke about the problems of children in street trades and in the pea and bean picking industry. The Children's Division of the Council of Social Agencies had made a study in regard to the needs of children and, on request of the Planning Committee of the council, was at that time considering possible resources for meeting these needs. Miss Doe got the impression that the thinking was in the direction of a new private agency. Miss Locke, however, agreed that the first step would be to expand the public services to meet all the needs that they were authorized to cover. She felt that a

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citizens' committee would be very valuable in this connection and cited the success that the Civic Club had had at times in rallying county-wide support behind needed measures. Later Miss Doe and Miss Locke visited Mrs. Towne. She and her sister were alive to the possibility of a citizens' committee supporting good public welfare administration. They suggested the names of a number of women who had been active in the Civic Club and also, at Miss Doe's request, named outstanding Roman Catholics who might be useful members. ATTITUDE OF PRIVATE AGENCIES TOWARD PLAN

Miss Doe felt that before proceeding further she should talk again with Mr. Grant of the Community Chest and learn more about the recommendations o f the Children's Division and whether the thinking was toward developing a private agency or expanding the public services. Mr. Grant approved the new names but felt that it was important that a number of younger people should be drawn in. He suggested possible representatives from Essex, where there is an active Parent-Teachers Association, whose president might suggest other individuals. Mr. Grant discussed the study made by the council. After a study on delinquency had been made by the Children's Division, the various divisions were asked to analyze further certain phases of the problems which it had brought to light. The Children's Division was asked to study in particular the population of the children's homes, the use of children in the pea and bean industry, and reports of how Centerville children earned money. When this division brought in a report showing drastic need for additional services, they were asked by the Planning Committee to out-

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line the resources which should be developed to meet these needs. Mr. Grant said that he had recommended to the division that they consult with experts in the child welfare field including the S. C. A. A. He himself did not feel equipped to make recommendations. He agreed, however, that developments in the public field should no doubt come before the organization of a new private agency. Miss Doe visited the office of the Catholic Charities and discussed with the assistant cxccutivc, a trained ease worker, the problems in the county in the care of dependent children. There was, she felt, need for expansion in the public field, especially for trained staff members. She also discussed the need for a close relation between the Children's Division of the Council of Social Agencies and any newly organized committee. Miss Doe saw Mr. McCarthy, Director of the Spring County Veterans' Relief, who was deeply interested in the problem of the veteran. In view of the large expenditure for charitable purposes, which called for informed public interest, he felt that a citizens' committee would be very valuable. There was undoubtedly need for an expansion of services for children, and the public department which was legally set up to do the job should be the agency to provide them. He suggested several people in Raleigh to see. Mrs. Asquith, a Home Relief Bureau executive, seemed to have a good grasp of the general situation and was very responsive to the idea of a citizens' committee which would be interested in children's work and would develop into a Public Welfare Committee. She had had a most gratifying experience with her E. R. B. Committee, which had been given permission to continue until January. They met regularly

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II

every month and were a splendid group which would make an excellent nucleus for a Public Welfare Committee. The mayor of Raleigh and the county commissioner sat in with the committee. COMMENTS BY THE COMMISSIONER OF PUBLIC WELFARE

Miss Doe returned to see Mr. Foster and told him of the contacts which had been made and the interest shown. Mr. Foster outlined some of his ideas in regard to a citizens' committee: the committee should not be too large to function; it should be representative of different interests and of various parts of the county; it should contain no members who were officially active politically; it should be made up of people who would really work; and it should be set up by an outside organization such as the S. C. A. A., because the vision of any group which develops locally is likely to be obscured by some particular line of interest. Mr. Foster remarked that he as county commissioner might come or go but that the committee would go on, and that therefore it was of extreme importance. He had been amazed at the public's lack of information and interest in the functions of the Welfare Department and said that people almost never came to him to find out what his department was doing. That year he was concentrating on building up the Old-Age Assistance Department. The next year he planned to concentrate on the children's services. He felt that the children's department could use at least six workers. ATTITUDE OF THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL WELFARE

Miss Doe called at the Area Office of the state Department of Social Welfare and talked with Miss Hand, assistant

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to Mr. Rupert, Area Director. She was very much interested to hear of the visit to Spring County and was pleased with the progress that had been made. Miss Doe also talked with Miss Clark, who was in charge of services to children in this area. She, too, was much interested in the development of a citizens' committee and the expansion of public services to children. She felt that both of the children's agents are quite overwhelmed at the demands of their job and that they would wclcomc qualified supervision. OTHER INTERESTED CITIZENS

Mr. Wilson was seen at his office at the Centerville Daily Herald. He was familiar in general with the S. C. A. A., so Miss Doe simply outlined to him the tentative plan for a Public Welfare Committee in the county. Mr. Wilson said that he was opposed to any large committee. The early Emergency Relief committees, he felt, were too large to function, and only when they got a committee of three were they able to accomplish something. These committees, however, had administrative functions, and Mr. Wilson recognized that a citizens' advisory committee was different. As far as he personally was concerned, however, he was through "carrying the torch" in the field of public welfare. He had been active on various committees during the emergency period and had been amazed at the general lack of interest on the part of the public. He was much concerned over the fact that grants by the Board of Child Welfare in Spring County were much larger in proportion to population than in many comparable counties. He had been thinking of the possibility of stirring up some interest in this matter but had decided to wait until the next figures were published. Mr. Wilson approved the

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names that had been considered in connection with the citizens' committee. Visits were also paid to the following citizens. Mr. Gleason, who is active in work for crippled children, would be interested in the development of a committee which could increase community understanding of public welfare services. Miss Stowell, a member of the Junior League, which is sponsoring day nurseries in the community, was very much concerned about the need for service in the children's field and said that conditions were even worse than was generally known, since the whole content of the study of the Children's Division was not made public. Investigation of children's cases and of foster homes was shown to be extremely inadequate. Miss Stowell felt that a citizens' Public Welfare Committee would be a very valuable development, and she would be glad to help in any way that she could. She gave Miss Doe a summary of the Children's Division study. INITIAL STEPS IN ORGANIZATION

There was a considerable period of delay before another visit was paid to the county early in November, 1937. The original plan had been to ask a dozen or so people to serve as the nucleus of a citizens' Public Welfare Committee and to meet in the near future for purposes of organization. However, when Miss Doe talked with Mr. Foster about the plan he said he feared that it might look to some people like a "setup" if a small committee were formed. His idea would be to have a large open meeting to consider the formation of a Public Welfare Committee with the idea that the chairman of this meeting would probably be authorized to take steps toward a permanent organization. He realized that much of

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the success of such a meeting would depend on having the right chairman, and he felt sure that he could get M r . Brown to act in this capacity. M r . Foster tried to get in touch with M r . Brown but was unable to reach him. He and Miss Doe then called on M r . Gleason and found him definitely in accord with M r . Foster's suggestion. M r . Gleason was very much interested in the whole proposition and eager to see it carried through, and he was willing to be of any possible help. Miss Doc conferred by telephone with the central office, and it was decided to proceed according to M r . Foster's suggestion. Miss Doe's time in the county was therefore spent in calling on as many people as possible to interest them in attending the meeting. M r . Foster said that when the state Commissioner of Social Welfare was in the county recently to speak to the Council of Social Agencies he had talked with him and had found him very much interested in the idea of a citizens' Public Welfare Committee. T h e state commissioner stated that the S. C . A . A . could be very helpful in setting up such a committee, and he mentioned the proposal in his talk to the council. M r . Foster and M r . Gleason thought a luncheon meeting would be best, and a tentative date was set for N o vember 30. T h e y also further discussed personnel in various towns in the community. M r . Foster arranged for Miss Doe to meet M r . Cross, Chairman of the county Board of Supervisors. M r . Cross was very much interested in the plan for a citizens' committee and thought that it would be a fine thing. Miss Doe called on Judge Stevens of the Children's Court. He was noncommittal at first in regard to the citizens' committee and asked numer-

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ous questions. He seemed to fear that such a committee might be hypercritical of public officials and might interfere with the details of public administration. He hesitated to sponsor or endorse an idea about which he felt he knew very little but assured Miss Doe that his attitude was not unfriendly. Miss Doe called in the evening on Father McMahon, Director of the Catholic Charities. He was an energetic person, apparently very liberal minded. He was much interested in the idea of the citizens' committee but felt that it would be a very delicate job to select a committee which would represent all elements in the county. The community was extremely conservative, and any progressive movement in the welfare field had an uphill struggle. Many of the mills in Centerville were closing and the prospects were for a difficult winter. Father McMahon expressed impatience over the way in which some committees had been appointed in the community. For instance, the committee which was appointed by the mayor to aid with the unemployment census did not have on it one representative of labor, nor was there one Catholic on the board appointed for the hospital, although over 50 percent of the population is of that faith. Father McMahon felt that the committee should include representatives of labor and also of the Polish group, which is large. He said that he would try to suggest some names and was willing to cooperate in the plans in any way possible. The Rev. Mr. Dodge of the Centerville Methodist Episcopal Church was an energetic young man with an alert mind and a real interest in the welfare of people in need. He approved the idea of a citizens' committee and offered to cooperate in any way he could. Mr. Dodge felt that the Catho-

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lies should certainly be represented. He suggested a number of clergymen and interested citizens whose leadership would be of value. INTEREST IS SOUGHT THROUGHOUT T H E C O U N T Y

Miss Doe then went to Essex (population 4,500), an important center on the northeastern boundary of the county, where she called on three individuals. Mrs. Stanley, the head of the local Red Cross, was responsive to the idea of a committee and promised to attend the meeting. Mr. Gibson, President of the Central Bank in Essex, was also seen. H e at first got the impression that Miss Doe was interested in the possibility of a new private agency, and he stated that he felt that the government should take care of all necessary welfare work and that taxes should be made higher on large incomes and inheritances. He seemed liberal minded and intelligent and, when he understood the objective of a citizens' committee, expressed his interest. He said he would try to attend the meeting, although he did not feel that he could consider membership on a committee if formed, as his health was not good. Mr. Webster, publisher of the Essex Times, was seen at his office. He expressed antagonism toward the present government program and would not be interested in a committee if its object was bigger and better welfare, but only if it meant a cleaning up of the present situation. He would be glad to give publicity to the meeting if material was sent him about it. In Weston (population 3,210) a number of visits were paid. Mr. Tyler, President of the bank, is apparently a very able person, to whom everyone turns in matters of public concern. A t first he thought the citizens' committee was not

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particularly needed, as both the county and the town were fortunate in having good administration of public welfare. There might be value, however, in a committee to support the continuance of such administration. He expressed his interest but could not consider serving on a committee as he already had too many responsibilities. Local representation should include the town welfare officer, Mr. Green, who is a very fine person; Mr. Clark, the supervisor; and three to five laymen, his idea being that if public officials were taken in at the beginning they would not feel unfriendly toward the committee. He also suggested a number of other people to be approached. Mr. Green, town welfare officer, was seen. His wife helped him in the relief work, and the attitude of both toward the clients seemed to be very sympathetic. Mr. Green, although Republican, was friendly in his attitude toward Mr. Foster. Miss Doe talked with them in general terms about the citizens' committee without suggesting that they might serve, and they were both favorable to the idea. In Gloucester Miss Doe saw Miss Town at the Hadley Company, where she was employed. In response to a brief outline of plans for a committee, Miss Town said that she could not take on anything new but that she was interested and would speak to others about attending the meeting. In Brocton Miss Doe called on Mrs. Allen, who lived in a prosperous farm home. She was boarding some children for the county and was highly recommended by Mr. Foster. She was very responsive and said that she would help in any way she could in connection with the committee. She seemed to grasp the significance of the plan and might prove a valuable member. In Hartford Miss Doe called on Miss Masters, who

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was apparently a leader in community activities. She was the head of the Red Cross and the Girl Scouts, was active in church work, and was on the board of the S. P. C. C. She did not feel that she should take on any additional tasks but thought the idea of a committee good and would try to interest some people in attending the meeting. Father Reardon, priest of the Italian Church in Raleigh, which also has a social center, was aware of the social problems in his community and wanted to learn more about the public welfare services. He promised to attend the meeting and to invite others. Mr. Webb, Chairman of the E. R. B. Committee and Director at the Raleigh Manufacturing Company, was seen at his office. He was an intelligent young man who was immediately interested in the idea of a citizens' committee. It was impossible for him to consider serving on such a committee since he was already involved in so many activities, but he said he would try to attend the meeting and to interest others. It seemed as if he would be a most valuable person if he had time to serve. Mr. Conning, editor of the Raleigh P r e s s , was cordial and proved to be an old friend of the S. C. A. A., as he had been active in the initial work of the Tuberculosis and Health Department in the county. He said that he would give publicity to the meeting in the news columns and would also discuss it editorially. In Chester Mrs. Luther was seen. She was active in the Parent-Teachers Association and the American Association of University Women and did not feel that she could take any active part in the work of the committee but would call it to the attention of others. Mrs. Post was also interviewed. She was a keen and rather socially-minded person, although perhaps not too sympathetic toward the relief program, as she

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feels it pauperizes the recipients. She was a member of the board of the Crippled Children's Hospital and had been a consumer member of the N . R. A . board. Mrs. Post was interested and said that she would talk to others about the plan. Miss Doe went to Racine, where Center College is located, and interviewed Professor Long, who had been suggested by a number of individuals. He proved responsive and helpful, mentioning a number of people connected with the college who should be notified of the meeting. PLANS FOR A PRELIMINARY

MEETING

On November 20, 1937, Miss Doe stopped in Centerville to confer with Mr. Foster about plans for the meeting, the date of which had been set for December 7. The program suggested by the central office included talks by Mr. Foster, Mr. Rupert of the Area Office of the Department of Social Welfare, and a representative of the S. C. A . A. Mr. Foster felt that a representative of the state department on the program might cause confusion as to the nonofficial character of the organization and also might prejudice persons who regard the state department's work as interference with local functions. While he himself considered the help of the state department representatives very valuable, this meeting should be entirely independent of any apparent connection with it. He would prefer not to be on the program but to speak informally from the floor. The letter of invitation to the meeting was to be sent out by the S. C . A . A . by November 29. Mr. Foster had not been able to reach Mr. Brown in regard to presiding at the meeting, but he felt that Mr. Gleason would be willing to serve and would be an excellent person.

20

ORGANIZATION

As Mr. Gleason was out of town it was decided that the S. C . A . A . should write him asking him to serve. Mr. Foster listed the local papers to which notices of the meeting should be sent. Mr. Foster agreed with Father McMahon's suggestion that the point of view of labor should be represented but said the trouble was to find just the right person. He thought that Father McMahon would probably be best able to suggest someone. Miss Doc called Father McMahon, who suggested

Mr. Craig of the Labor Temple, the state Vice-President of the A . F . of L., who was accepted in various labor circles. From the Polish group he suggested Mr. Ludovic, an assistant Federal district attorney. Miss Doe called Mrs. Miles, President of the Junior League in Chester, who promised to try to see that members of her group attended the meeting. Miss Doe spent December 6 working on final details for the meeting on December 7. Thirty reservations had been received. She telephoned a few other people whom she was particularly anxious to have attend. All of them had some definite reason for not being present but expressed sincere interest in the plan. FIRST M E E T I N G OF

CITIZENS

Although there was a blizzard lasting all day on December 7, fifty-nine people attended the luncheon meeting. The discussion which followed the address by a representative of the S. C . A . A . was interesting and animated and included brief talks by Mr. Rupert, Area Director, Mr. Foster, and Mr. Moore in favor of the organization of a citizens' committee. Mr. Cross, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, who spoke on the value of a citizens' committee, suggested that a speak-

ORGANIZATION

21

ers' bureau be organized so that the work of the Public Welfare Department might be presented before various groups. It was voted unanimously to have the temporary chairman appoint a committee to survey the possibilities and need of a county Committee on Public Welfare and to report at a luncheon meeting of this group and others who were interested sometime in the near future. Mr. Gleason agreed to serve as chairman. He and Mr. Foster planned to ask a few people to meet with them informally to help pick the committee. Eight communities were represented at the meeting. O f those present twenty-nine were social workers or public officials, including the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, the judge and the clerk of the Children's Court, and the Commissioner of Public Welfare. Twenty-eight were laymen, including representatives of the public schools, the League of Wfomen Voters, Civic clubs, the A. B. C., the Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary Club, and the press. RELATIONSHIPS OF T H E COMMITTEE

CLARIFIED

Following this meeting Mr. Gleason and the central office corresponded in regard to the next steps to be taken. Mr. Gleason had apparently not understood that what was proposed was a committee of the S. C . A . A., but he agreed that it would be very wise to have it so. It seemed inadvisable to attempt further action until after the holidays, so that Miss Doe did not visit the county again until January 4, when she called to see Mr. Gleason by previous arrangement. He was planning to get together with Mr. Foster, Mr. Wilson, and Mr. Brown to discuss people to be named on the committee. Mr. Gleason agreed that this committee should be chosen

22

ORGANIZATION

as a nucleus of a S. C . A . A . committee and agreed that names should be submitted to the S. C . A . A . office for approval. Miss Doe made suggestions as to possible members including representatives from seven communities. Many of the names were unknown to the chairman, who welcomed the addition to his list. She also suggested that the committee should include an outstanding Catholic layman, a representative Jew, and a member of the labor group. Mr. Gleason questioned the ncccssity for this but finally agreed when Miss Doe stressed the importance of having these large groups in the community represented. Mr. Gleason would continue as chairman of the "steering" committee until a permanent committee was set up, after which he felt that active leadership should be assumed by a younger man. He said that he would like definite suggestions from the S. C . A . A . as to program and activities for the committee. Miss Doe gave him a suggested constitution for a Public Welfare Committee and several programs which either had been adopted or were under consideration in other counties, which Mr. Gleason said was just what he had been wanting. Miss Doe said that when the "steering" committee was set up they would probably want to go over this material in order to formulate any questions, and then it would probably be well to plan a meeting with a representative from the central office. Mr. Gleason agreed to this and promised to keep the central office informed as to developments. On February 2, 1938, in response to a letter from Miss Doe asking what progress had been made, Mr. Gleason telephoned from his New York office that he had been ill and unable to take any steps in regard to the committee but he hoped soon to do so. He did not think, however, that it would be possible to plan another general meeting before March.

ORGANIZATION

23

A N E W S. C . A . A. REPRESENTATIVE TAKES OVER

A t this point a new field representative from the S. C . A . A . took over the task of working out with the county the plan for a citizens' committee. Action was unavoidably delayed, and it was not until April 27, 1938, that Miss Ann Roe went to Spring County, where she stayed for three days, returning again on May 2 for a ten-days' visit. Her purpose was to meet the temporary committee composed of Mr. Gleason, Mr. Brown, and Mr. Wilson to learn what plans they had made for continuing the process of organizing the Spring County Public Welfare Committee, to interview prospective members for such a committee, and to plan for a meeting to be held in the near future. APPROACHING POTENTIAL C O M M I T T E E

MEMBERS

Miss Roe, before visiting the prospective committee members, thought through and discussed with the temporary committee the approach she was to make to them. She began usually with a statement as to the history of the S. C . A . A . with especial emphasis on its efforts to increase citizen interest in, and understanding of, public welfare services. She emphasized in connection with current problems in social service administration the importance of a nonpartisan group, who would seek to learn what was happening in the field of public welfare in Spring County. She sought from the people interviewed indications of the extent of their awareness of the problems of the county and their interest in this proposal. The plan for the next meeting was then outlined and an invitation to attend was given. In considering which of these individuals should be asked to serve on the committee, Miss Roe had certain general tests in mind: interest in the field of public welfare; a tolerant

24

ORGANIZATION

attitude toward those who were in need of relief; an unbiased approach to the problem; previous or present contact with some social program; prestige in the community; a feeling of responsibility for providing community leadership; the geographical location, in order that the committee might represent the county as a whole. These tests were brought out informally in discussion with the various individuals, who suggested names for the committee and were further analyzed by the worker in her interviews. THEIR RESPONSE

Fifty-four individuals were visited by Miss Roe, and an analysis of them suggests the resources which exist in such a community. There were in the group members of organizations such as the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs; the Chamber of Commerce; the Junior League; women's clubs; the ParentTeachers Association; the League of Wfomen Voters; the League for Industrial Democracy; the Business Men's Association; directors of social agencies such as the Red Cross, the Y.M.C.A., the Y.W.C.A.; the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts; the House of the Good Shepherd; and the Council of Social Agencies. Among the business interests represented were insurance and real estate, banking, the press, manufacturing, housewives, physicians, lawyers, school superintendents, and farmers. Of these fifty-four, thirty-two expressed themselves as willing to attend the meeting and to participate in the program. There was evidence of interest and desire on the part of representative people in the county for a committee to study public welfare and to plan for a better and more adequate pro-

ORGANIZATION

25

gram. For the most part, to these people public welfare meant relief to the unemployed. Little was known about the other types of categorical relief, rural resettlement, or the State Employment Service. Interest was also shown in knowing about the specific functions of the county and city Departments of Public Welfare. In the area around Raleigh, Racine, and Weston, there was awareness of need for improving medical care for the indigent. Charges were made that the County Hospital was very poorly operated and that the county public health nurses were not giving very much service in the Raleigh area. Many persons cited individual cases in which relief was not justified and hoped that a committee might remedy this situation. An effort was made to indicate that specific cases could not be considered in such a large group, and not for some time to come, as the committee must first inform themselves about public welfare legislation and finances. This explanation was generally accepted, and it was agreed that it was more necessary to learn about the program as a whole. It was thought that this knowledge might clear up the misunderstanding about exceptional cases. WELFARE OFFICIALS INFORMED OF

PROGRESS

During this period Miss Roe discussed the organization o f the committee with Mr. Foster, the county commissioner. He was interested in the names suggested for membership and in general approved. Miss Roe asked for suggestions of men connected with industry who would also have a tolerant understanding of labor. He gave several names, though he questioned whether it was wise to invite participation of these men until after the committee was organized. Miss Roe

26

ORGANIZATION

talked with the town welfare officer at Racine to get some knowledge o f how local w o r k was related to the county department, and so forth. A s he wished to keep a harmonious working relationship with the county department, the following procedure was being used. A person in Racine wanting assistance applied to the welfare officer. H e reported this to the county department, w h o sent an investigator to visit the home. If this person was eligible for assistance it was reported to the town welfare officer, who accepted the recommendation o f the investigator and usually met the need as outlined in the family budget which had been set up by the investigator. N o cash relief was given; the town welfare officer issued grocery orders on certain stores, and paid rent, gas and light, and so forth, directly to the creditor. T h e town welfare officer stated that he discussed the problems o f specific cases with the county department, as he felt they were better equipped to advise him how to meet these problems. In general, people throughout the county felt that the county department was being administered in a fairly acceptable w a y though its effectiveness was limited by legislation, politics and lack of adequate personnel. It was believed, therefore, that any study could be pursued quite intensively before the question o f personnel or extreme inefficiency needed to be considered. T H E EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE IS CHOSEN

O n M a y 10, 1938, a meeting was held by the temporary committee to discuss nominations for the Executive Committee. It was felt that the president and secretary and two members at large should come from Centerville and that the rest should be as widely distributed as possible throughout

ORGANIZATION

27

the county. Mr. Foster was present and took an active part in approving or disapproving the persons considered for these offices, especially those from outside Centerville. The rest of the committee, however, seemed to pay little attention to his statements and accepted Miss Roe's recommendation about the people brought up for discussion. The following Executive Committee was finally accepted by everyone. For President, Mr. George Brown, of Centerville. Mr. Brown felt that he should not undertake this responsibility because of his other activities, but after much discussion he agreed to accept, saying that he would give up some of his responsibilities. Mr. Gleason offered his cooperation and assistance at any time, and Miss Roe repeated the offer of assistance by the S. C. A. A. For First Vice-President, Mrs. North, of Raleigh. Mrs. North was recommended by Mr. Foster, and Miss Roe had felt her a promising candidate, though she was not known to the other members of the committee. For Second Vice-President, Mr. White, of Granville. For Treasurer, Mr. Jones, of Hartford. For members at large: Mrs. Stone, of Essex; Mr. Gleason who had been temporary chairman; Professor Long, of Racine, who was chairman of the Mental Hygiene Committee; Mr. Webb, of Raleigh, who had been mentioned frequently by residents of Raleigh as an able person who should take an active part in the committee; Mrs. Clark, of Newton, who was not known by any members of the committee but upon Miss Roe's recommendation was accepted by everyone except Mr. Foster, who insisted that he be given time to investigate her standing in the community through his friends before he gave his approval. The other members

28

ORGANIZATION

felt, however, that it was not necessary to wait for his approval. Mr. Hadley, of Weston, was not known by the committee members but on the recommendation of Mr. Foster and Miss Roe was accepted by everybody. It was agreed that Mr. Brown or Mr. Gleason would notify the persons living in or near Centerville of their nomination, and Miss Roe was asked to notify the other persons. Mr. Meade would be asked to serve as chairman of the nominating committcc at the meeting. M i s s R o c was asked

to send post cards reminding all prospective members of the meeting, to reach their homes by May 16. It was agreed also that an announcement of the meeting should be given to the weekly papers in the county on May 12 and to the daily papers on May 16. It was agreed that at the meeting formal organization of the committee be achieved, a constitution adopted, and nominations for the Executive Committee be read and voted upon. The Associate Director of the S. C. A. A. would speak and explain the need for a county Public Welfare Committee and its purpose, emphasizing the fact that the committee, as a group, must study and view the public welfare program with an open mind and refrain from allowing its discussions to center around specific case problems. After the general meeting a short meeting of the newly elected Executive Committee would be held to discuss the plans for study to be pursued during the next six weeks and for meeting during that period. A special committee would probably be appointed to carry on the detailed planning of the study. MISS ROE C O M M E N T S ON T H E

SITUATION

In presenting her report to the central office of the S. C.

ORGANIZATION

29

A. A. Miss Roe gave the following impressions and recommendations: Miss Roe believed that Mr. George Brown would make a very good president. During the process of planning for the committee he had been rather quiet. However, when he was called upon by the chairman of the temporary committee or by Miss Roe for some help, he gave it very willingly. He seemed more keenly interested, as was everyone else, in the persons who were going to make up the committee than in organization details. Mr. Brown was deeply interested in the problem of public welfare and sincerely believed in the philosophy of a lay committee to take independent action concerning welfare matters after a careful study of the program in this locality. His ability to handle a group of people representing varying interests and different levels of knowledge regarding the public welfare program was difficult to estimate. Someone from the central office should have a frank discussion with him of the problems that might arise in conducting such a committee. This could more easily be done after there had been some display of the temperament of the group at the organizational meeting. It was recommended that the committee be reminded that they were not to serve as grievance boards for recipients of relief and that the program should be kept as broad as possible. It might also be well to emphasize what was meant by a study of public welfare as a whole, such as the various types of public assistance, causes of need, cost of relief, Public Welfare Law, Federal, state, and local, and its provisions, financial control, source of funds, and so forth. There was a member of the Executive Committee from the Spring County Tuberculosis and Public Health Committee, namely, Mrs. C. L. Stone, and a member from the

3°

ORGANIZATION

county Mental Hygiene Committee, namely, Professor Long. It was recommended that some policies be adopted in the central office regarding the working relationship of these various committees, so that, as public health and mental hygiene problems arose in the Public Welfare Committee, they might be accepted as the responsibility of either of these committees in pursuing the study of the problems. For example, there was already some feeling that there should be more county health nurses in the county and that better service should be given at the county medical hospital. T h e central office might therefore send out suggestions as to specific lines of function in regard to these problems until these committees got accustomed to working together. S. C . A . A . ACCEPTS PLAN

T h e plan adopted by the state office at this time was to encourage the final organization of the committee and to suggest as its initial task a study of the present status of public relief in the county, this study to be made by the worker for the committee. Such a study would make clear the nature of the local problems about which the committee might concern itself. INVITATION TO FIRST GENERAL

MEETING

O n M a y 9, 1938, the following invitation to the meeting was sent to one hundred and thirty individuals: You are cordially invited to attend a luncheon meeting at the Park Hotel on Wednesday, M a y 18th, at 12 o'clock noon. T h e purpose of this meeting is to organize in Spring County an unofficial citizens' Committee on Public Welfare. T h e Committee will be affiliated with the State Charities Aid Association which is a State-wide organization of citizens concerned with the promotion and improvement of public health and welfare work.

O R G A N I Z A T I O N

31

As a public spirited citizen of Spring County you are invited to become a charter member of this Committee. The principal purpose of the organization will be to assist in the development of humane, economical, efficient, and non-political administration of public welfare in our county, and to consider some of the basic causes which contribute to our present volume of public relief. On December 7, 1937, the need and purposes of such an organization were discussed at a public luncheon. The temporary chairman and an appointed committee have thoroughly canvassed opinion and carefully considered the matter. The unanimous decision is that such a committee be immediately organized. Attached to this letter is a brief outline of the plan and purposes of such an organization. At this forthcoming meeting you will have an opportunity to get a more complete picture of the proposed organization. The temporary committee sincerely hopes that you will attend the meeting on May 18th and that you will then decide to accept membership on the committee. Very truly yours, NORMAN V .

Luncheon 75c

GLEASON

Temporary Chairman

The Centerville paper outlined the plan in its issue of M a y 10. P L A N DISCUSSED B Y S. C . A . A .

REPRESENTATIVES

On M a y 17 Miss Roe returned to the county to complete plans for the meeting. She was accompanied by the Director of the Public Welfare Department of the S. C . A . A., who called with her on M r . Foster, county Commissioner of Public Welfare, to discuss with him tentative plans for a study and the persons who should be regarded as members ex officio of the committee. M r . Foster's attitude seemed to be very friendly, and yet it was noted that in speaking of any action that might be taken by the Executive Committee he included himself in that group. Although the matter of mem-

32

ORGANIZATION

bers ex officio had been discussed with him previously, he did not seem to be willing to understand the definition of that term and asked detailed questions so that it might be thoroughly explained again. They talked also with Mr. Moore, Commissioner of Public Welfare of the city of Centerville. Mr. Moore very willingly accepted the fact that he was to be a member ex officio and seemed quite enthusiastic about the possibilities of the work of this committee. Miss Roe talked with Mr. Potter, Chairman of the Centerville Veterans' Relief Committee. He stated that he was very much interested in the prospects of the work the committee could do, but he did not think that so much importance should be placed upon the citizens' learning about public welfare. He felt that they should become better informed about the social problems that arise in families receiving assistance. In order to support his argument he told of several troublesome cases. The way in which Mr. Potter and his staff had handled them was apparently contrary to any social work practice. He realized that they were handling these cases poorly but felt that the community did not offer sufficient resources for a more satisfactory service nor for the prevention of such situations. One solution would be a cooperative plan by which private agencies would do the case work service on families receiving veterans' relief. Miss Roe could not learn how large the veterans' load was, but Mr. Potter stated that if W.P.A. had not absorbed most of their employable men, it would be the largest they had ever had. Since the Veterans' Relief Committee has charge of administering relief to such a large number of people, their methods of administration should not be overlooked in the study.

ORGANIZATION

33

Miss Roe met briefly with the temporary committee to discuss the program for the meeting and plans for follow-up publicity. It was learned that Mr. Gleason was nominated as treasurer in place of Mr. Jones, who declined to serve. Mrs. Post, who had accepted the nomination for secretary, was recognized as one of the leaders in civic activities in Chester. Mr. Gleason had had no response from Mr. Hadley concerning his nomination as member at large of the Executive Committee. As Miss Roe was unable to get in touch with him later, his position on the Executive Committee was left open, hoping that it would be possible to get someone from that section to serve in his place. T H E GENERAL COMMITTEE IS INAUGURATED

Seventy-five persons attended this meeting, fifty-eight signed registration cards indicating that they wished to become members, and forty-three paid their membership dues of ( i .00 for the year. One of the staff of the S. C . A . A . spoke on the need for "Citizen Organization in Meeting the Public Welfare Problem," and another outlined the plan of the Public Welfare Committee Department of the S. C. A . A . pointing out that the services of this department were available to any county committee that wished assistance in making their study or planning their programs. Election of officers was held, and the slate proposed by the temporary committee was accepted. The constitution was submitted for the approval of the group, everyone having been given a copy previously, and was adopted. Following this a short meeting of the Executive Committee was held. They unanimously asked that the S. C.

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ORGANIZATION

A . A . give them the services of its staff in making a study and planning the program of work for the committee. It was planned to call a meeting of the Executive Committee for June i, 1939, to discuss the preliminary plans for the study and present information about the operation of the public departments which might be gathered before June 1. T h e secretary was instructed to send each member of the Executive Committee a copy of the S. C . A . A . publication, Public Welfare in New York State.

II. S O C I A L

S T U D Y AS F O C U S

DEVELOPMENT

OF P U B L I C

FOR

WELFARE

COMMITTEE IT WAS evident that Miss Roe should return to the county as soon as possible to get some information from the local city and county departments and the veterans' committees as to how they function within the public welfare law. It was believed that at that time they would suggest some problems which they would like the committee to study. After having outlined a rather complete plan for study in die central office, Miss Roe was to prepare it for presentation to the Executive Committee. This plan, as well as the suggestions made by local departments, should be presented to Mr. Rupert of the state department and discussed with him before the Executive Committee meeting. The logical start for the study would be that suggested by the Executive Committee, which should meet as frequently as possible so that it might be carried along with the progress of the study. A meeting of the entire committee should be held in the latter part of June to hear of the plans made by the Executive Committee and also some of the preliminary information about their local department. Miss Roe felt from the reaction of the group at the committee meeting and at the Executive Committee meeting that there was a great deal of interest in this committee throughout the county and that it could grow into a very useful committee if it were given some guidance and an opportunity to

SOCIAL

36

STUDY

express itself. T h e r e were many people w h o had not found it convenient to attend the meeting and y e t w h o were anxious to become members; for this reason it w a s believed that a second committee meeting should be held to give them an opportunity to attend and to become acquainted with the group. A l s o , the reasons given by the Executive Committee w e r e important enough to make it urgent that another joint committee meeting be held before the summer months. IS A STUDY THE BEST INITIAL

STEP?

W H A T MATERIAL SHOULD BE SECURED?

BY

WHOM?

T h e following is a statement o f the material to be secured in the study: 1. What types of relief are now granted in the county? 2. What is the present monthly cost of each type of relief and how many people are receiving it? 3. What has been the trend of relief costs during the past ten years? 4. How are the various public relief agencies in the county organized? 5. What procedures are followed in determining eligibility for public relief? 6. How are the amounts of relief grants determined and what do they include? 7. What information is available regarding characteristics of the relief population? Local information was to be secured by Miss Roe primarily through conference with the executive heads and case supervisors o f the various agencies. N o study was to be made o f case records, and no recipients or applicants for relief were to be interviewed. Statistics on annual relief expenditures were to be secured through the cooperation of the state Department o f Social Welfare through its Bureau of Research

SOCIAL

STUDY

37

and Statistics and from W . P . A . ; employment and payroll data were to be compiled by the state Department o f Labor; monthly figures on relief and work relief wages were to be taken from published reports o f the T.E.R.A., the state Department of Social Welfare, and the W . P . A . Figures on current monthly operations and on relief costs were to be secured directly from the heads o f the agencies. A s progress in making the study was reported back to the Executive Committee, it became evident that information relating to some of the questions included in the original plan o f study could not be secured immediately. For example, no comprehensive and up-to-date information was found concerning characteristics and reasons for dependency o f the home relief population. N o conclusive figures were secured on the division of the cost of relief between local, state, and Federal funds. STUDYING T H E COUNTY WELFARE

DEPARTMENT

Early in June, 1938, Miss Roe returned to the county for ten days to begin the study of the organization and methods of administration of the county Department of Public Welfare. A t several different times during this period Miss Roe talked with M r . Brown regarding the plans for the study and the preparation of a letter to be sent to each committee member explaining the action that had been taken by the Executive Committee since the first committee meeting. T h e treasurer, M r . Gleason, had written a letter which he felt had conveyed the plans and purposes of the Executive Committee very well. Mr. Brown therefore combined the letter Mr. Gleason had written with the draft prepared by Miss

38

SOCIAL

STUDY

Roe. With this letter were sent copies of the outline for study and of the constitution for persons who had not been at the first meeting of the General Committee. Miss Roe also talked with Mr. Brown about the work of the county departments in relation to the plan for their unification. Mr. Brown's thinking was that there was a great deal of duplication of expenditures and effort in the present setup, which a unified program might eliminate. COOPERATION OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS IN STUDY

Mr. Brown went with Miss Roe to a conference with Mr. Moore, city Commissioner of Public Welfare, at which Mr. Brown explained that the committee wished Miss Roe to make a study of the work of the department so that they might be informed about it. Mr. Moore was very anxious that such a study be made. Since he would like to give Miss Roe his personal time in securing this information, he asked that the study not be started until after July i. Mr. Moore expressed his feeling that the Centerville Department of Public Welfare should make some change in the near future in their administrative functions. He pointed out that the administration of home relief by the department in families where other agencies were also giving relief was becoming burdensome, and a unified county Department of Public Welfare would be a very wise and timesaving organization. Mr. Moore went on to say that if such an organization could not be realized, the next best plan would be that the city of Centerville be declared a public welfare district and thus have the right to administer also old-age assistance and aid to dependent children. In a rather confidential manner he discussed the veterans' program as he knew it and expressed

SOCIAL

STUDY

39

the opinion that it was a very expensive program to have when the other agencies were set up to take care of home relief and that veterans should not be given any concessions when it came to receiving relief because of unemployment. As far as he knew, the standards of relief were similar to those of the Centerville department. From Mr. Moore's attitude and the logical and intelligent expression of his opinions, it is believed that he can contribute a great deal to the usefulness of the committee. Miss Roe talked with Mr. Foster, county Commissioner of Public Welfare, and he very graciously offered the services of anyone on his staff to assist in compiling the information. He suggested that she talk to the case supervisor or head of each division and allow each one to tell the way in which he was handling his job. He also said that if there were any questions or difficulties along the way, he or his secretary would be glad to give advice and assistance. Miss Roe talked with Mrs. Crane, case supervisor of the Home Relief Division; Miss O'Donnell, deputy and supervisor of the divisions for old-age assistance and aid to the blind; and Mr. Harrison, Deputy Commissioner, who has direct supervision of all financial and statistical reports of the work of the Home Relief Department and of the interpretation of procedures and methods of administration to the staff, the public, and town welfare officers. SHOULD PRIVATE AGENCIES ALSO BE

STUDIED?

Miss Roe discussed the advisability of studying types of cases carried by private agencies with Mr. Foster, who stated he was having a difficult time in working out details of cooperation with the private agencies. He would be glad if

4°

SOCIAL

STUDY

Miss Roe could get private agencies to define the type of cases they were carrying and those they would turn over to the department. He had recently adopted a policy that no other agency might read the records of the department, but that they might secure information through personal conference with local workers. It seemed to Miss Roe wise not to study the functions of the private agencies, though unbiased and sufficiently comprehensive information for Centcrville could probably be sccured from the Council of Social Agencies. Miss Roe had two or three interviews with the Executive Secretary of the Family Society. She was keenly interested in the work of the committee but wished the S. C . A . A . would include a study of the private institutions for children in Centerville, which are doing a very poor job. Because of the strength of the boards of some of these institutions in the community, they could probably be influenced only by a strong county committee. Miss Roe explained that it was necessary for the committee to have a general understanding of the public welfare program before studying specific problems. When the question arose as to the kind of care which county charges were receiving, an opportunity would develop for a study of institutions. A tentative plan was made with Mr. Brown for a meeting of the Executive Committee on June 20. A t this meeting Miss Roe could present information regarding the cost of relief for the last ten years. Plans for a general meeting would also be discussed. MISS ROE OUTLINES NEXT STEPS

It seemed that the public welfare officials of Spring County

SOCIAL

STUDY

41

had accepted the plan of study and had expressed a sincere interest in it. Therefore, the next steps would be to continue the study of all the agencies in the county as rapidly as possible and to compile the information for the consideration of the committee. While making this study it would seem best to keep in mind the advisability of encouraging the committee to consider a plan for a unified program. A week later Miss Roe made a brief visit to the county to interview some more prospective members from the village of Weston and to attend the Executive Committee meeting to present to them some information regarding the study of the Public Welfare Department. It was also planned to present the proposed constitutional amendments that were being supported by the S. C. A. A. at the Constitutional Convention. ACTION ON AMENDMENTS TO STATE CONSTITUTION

Miss Roe discussed with Mr. Brown, President of the committee, the proposed constitutional amendments, in which he was very much interested. He had asked Mr. Morelli as a member of the Constitutional Convention Committee on Social Welfare to discuss the proposed amendments at the Executive Committee meeting. Miss Roe also showed Mr. Brown the graphs which had been made from figures secured from Albany regarding the expense of relief in Spring County since 1928. Mr. Brown thought these charts and graphs were very important but questioned how much use the committee could make of them. He was trying to picture some plan which the committee might follow in their program for the next year which would be beneficial to the public welfare program and would also conserve the interest

SOCIAL

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of the committee members. Miss Roe suggested that if the committee had background information about the present program, questions might arise which they wished to study further, or recommendations might be made for a change in the method of administration. Miss Roe then discussed plans for the committee with four men who showed varying degrees of interest in, and understanding of, the public welfare problems. O f these M r . Parks, district Superintendent of Schools, of Wfcston, seemed to her to be a keenly interested, level-headed, and well-informed person, and if possible he should be asked to accept membership on the Executive Committee. He seemed to be well respected in the community and although he held an elective office, he was not strongly tied up with either political faction. REPORT ON EARLY FINDINGS TO EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

T h e meeting of the Executive Committee o f the Spring County Public Welfare Committee was held on June 23, 1938, in M r . Brown's office. Four members attended, namely, Professor Long, Mrs. Stone, Mrs. Post, and M r . Brown T h e other members stated they could not attend this meeting but would be anxious to know what business was carried on and would be willing to assist in any way they could. M r . Morelli's discussion of the constitutional amendments was followed by a general discussion. T h e three principles involved in the constitutional amendments were recognized as important by the committee, and they passed a motion that they should send some communication to the chairman of the Constitutional Convention to the effect that they were willing to support these principles.

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Miss Roe then reported on the information she had secured regarding the county Department of Public Welfare. They seemed to be glad for this information but felt that the method of presentation was too detailed for the committee as a whole. The chairman questioned whether this material should be presented to the committee at a general meeting or whether a report should be prepared and sent to them in advance so that they could be ready at the meeting to suggest the points which they wished studied further. It was decided not to hold a general meeting until September. In the meantime Miss Roe should continue the study and prepare one or two bulletins giving the material in whole or in part. Later the Executive Committee would decide what method of presentation should be used at the General Committee meeting. Miss Roe suggested that a subcommittee might be appointed to study different phases of the program and report to the General Committee. STUDY OF C O U N T Y

SERVICES

During July, 1938, Miss Roe spent three weeks in the county in order to study the organization and methods of administration of the Centerville Department of Public Welfare, the Veterans' Relief Committee, the Board of Child Welfare, the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau, the county Veterans' Relief Committee, and the Crippled Children's Division of the Children's Court and to attend an Executive Committee meeting on July 28 to present parts of the study and to determine a plan for the committee to follow in the use of the material presented in the study. Mr. Brown accompanied Miss Roe to a conference with Mr. Potter, Chairman ot the Centerville Veterans' Relief

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Committee. Mr. Potter agreed to cooperate with the Public Welfare Committee in making a study of the functions of his agency. He pointed out some of the major problems which they were facing in administering relief to veterans, which were county-wide and which he felt needed some study and solution in the near future. One of these was the lack of adequate medical services for dependent persons in the city of Centerville. His agency was studying this problem in connection with the city Department of Public Welfare and hoped to secure sufficient evidence of the need for change to present to the Common Council. Mr. Brown was quite impressed with these criticisms and agreed with Mr. Potter that a new plan should be sponsored and developed. He was careful, however, not to promise the use of the committee for this purpose but agreed that the committee might study this problem further. CRYSTALLIZING P R O B L E M S FOR

DISCUSSION

On this and other occasions Mr. Brown showed his readiness to regard objectively the weaknesses of public welfare in Spring County and to plan to bring them to the attention of the entire committee when the opportunity arose. It was agreed that while many problems needed to be brought to the attention of the committee, it would not be possible for them to consider more than one or two at one time. The two most important problems at the moment were apparently the advisability of a unified department and the need for better services for child welfare in the county. It was decided that subcommittees should be set up to study these two problems, the Executive Committee perhaps serving as the committee on the advisability of a unified department. Mr. Brown

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would, at the Executive Committee meeting, present these two alternatives to the committee. Previous to the Executive Committee meeting the sections of the report that were completed should be mailed to the different members, and they should be asked to read them. Mr. Brown would stress with the Executive Committee the importance of their reading the entire study and being as familiar with it as possible. ENLISTING TAXPAYERS INTEREST

A further conference was held with Mr. Frank, executive of the Commercial Association. Because of a request from Mr. Moore, Commissioner of the city Department of Public Welfare, the association was interesting itself in the cost of administration of public welfare by the several different agencies in order to determine the financial gain to the taxpayers of the entire county in establishing a unified county Department of Public Welfare. It was recognized that the cost was quite heavy under the present plan of administration, particularly to the persons living in Centerville, which contributes a great deal to the income of the county. This association had been very active in the past in budget planning for Centerville, and at the budget meeting in December the subject of uniting the city Department of Public Welfare with the county department was discussed. Many of the members of the Common Council were willing that this unification be put into effect and called Mr. Foster, county Commissioner of Public Welfare, to their meeting to ask his opinion. He very definitely stated that he was not in favor of it. As a result of this statement some newspaper publicity censured him, and he gave a reply to the papers. The Commercial

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Association was determined again to bring the subject up for discussion at the budget meeting and believed that it would be necessary for Centerville to insist on considering the advisability of unifying the county department. In the next few months it expected to collect sufficient data to support this argument. Miss Roe suggested to Mr. Frank that the Public Welfare Committee might appoint a committee to study this plan from every angle in addition to the financial one. M r . F r a n k

again stated that he would be willing to supply any information the department collected to such a committee and would like to serve as a member of it. Miss Roe believed he could contribute a great deal to such a committee and would be valuable since the community accepted him as an able person in his field. STUDY OF H O M E R E L I E F AND

VETERANS

Mrs. North, Vice-President of Spring County Public Welfare Committee, accompanied Miss Roe to the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau and introduced her to the director, explaining the study which the committee wished the secretary to make and the use that would be made of the information. She had known this agency and its director for a long time and had a very good relationship with him, so that he very readily expressed his willingness to cooperate with the committee. She also accompanied Miss Roe to the Spring County Veterans' Relief Committee and introduced her to the director, whom she knew also. She explained the purpose of the study and asked the cooperation of the agency. The director expressed his willingness to supply any information that was requested of him for the use of the committee.

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During this period Miss Roe visited each public welfare agency and talked with the executive regarding the work of the agency. The outline approved by the committee for these studies was used as a guide for securing information. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE DISCUSSES INITIAL

FINDINGS

A meeting of the Executive Committee of the Spring County Public Welfare Committee was held on July 28, 1938. The members who attended were Professor Long, Mrs. North, Mrs. Stone, Mr. Waters, Mr. Webb, and Mr. Brown. Mrs. North served as secretary. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the portion of the study which Miss Roe had completed and had sent to them in advance. The members of the committee had read this report and seemed to think it was very clear. They were anxious to have additional information as to how the various types of services were being administered in Spring County and about some of their weaknesses. The agencies that were recognized as being least necessary and probably least efficiently administered were the Veterans' Relief committees of county and city. This brought up the question of qualifications of the staff of the county veterans' committee in respect to receiving state reimbursement for administrative costs. The committee was aware of the fact that these persons had not as yet qualified for state reimbursement but was under the impression that some action was being taken by the county veterans. When Miss Roe assured them that no action had been taken up to that time, Mr. Webb said that he would assume some responsibility in urging the county veterans to submit their qualifications as soon as possible. Mrs. North said that only one man of their entire staff had even finished high school and that she felt that they were entirely unqualified to fill

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those positions. Everyone on the committee felt that something should be done immediately about this situation. They were willing to allow Mr. Webb to see first what influence he might have on the agency. POSSIBILITY O F COUNTY U N I T

SUGGESTED

Mr. Brown then explained to the committee the possibility that they should center their attention on the advisability of unification; he pointed out that Mr. Moore of the city department had already requested some assistance from the Commercial Association in compiling information to prove the excessive administrative costs under the present system. The committee responded very readily to this suggestion, and many of them contributed facts that they had learned regarding the duplication of effort and the seemingly inefficient method of handling the county-wide problem. They then gave Mr. Brown the power to appoint a subcommittee to study the advisability of a unified county Department of Public Welfare. Mr. Brown asked Mr. Webb and Mr. Waters to serve on this committee, other appointments to be made later. Mr. Brown then pointed out that, while there were many problems that might well enlist the committee's interests, he felt it would be wise to try to consider only two or three at a time, a suggestion which met with the approval of the committee. He asked Miss Roe to point out the problems in administering child welfare services. The committee then decided to have a subcommittee to study this part of the public welfare program and gave Mr. Brown the authority to appoint one. Copies of the section on "Cost of Relief' for the past ten years, with tables and charts, were then discussed

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with the committee, who showed an enthusiastic interest in knowing more about this item. It was agreed that the entire report could not be presented at a meeting of the General Committee, but a copy should be sent to each member. T h e Executive Committee would then meet to consider what points should be discussed at the General Committee meeting. P L A N S FOR S U B C O M M I T T E E S

DISCUSSED

Miss Roe formulated the following steps to be taken by her: 1. Suggest names to Mr. Brown of persons who would be valuable as members of the two subcommittees. 2. Be prepared to present at the next meeting of the Executive Committee some of the detailed problems which the two subcommittees might study, so that these committees will consider themselves to be an arm of the large committee assigned the task of studying specific problems and bringing back their findings to the General Committee for action. 3. Discuss with the Executive Committee the advisability of appointing persons to act on these subcommittees, particularly the children's committee, for a definite period of time, preferably one year, with the possibility of their being reappointed if their interest is sufficient to make service of value to them and to the committee. 4. Complete the writing of the study and send a copy to all members. 5. At the meeting of the Executive Committee decide on a definite plan of presentation of this material and the date of the next general business meeting. ORGANIZATION OF C H I L D W E L F A R E

COMMITTEE

Miss Roe returned to the county for the latter part of

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September, 1938, and a week in October. She called on Mr. Brown and discussed with him the following plans: to send the completed study to members of the Executive Committee; to hold a meeting of the Executive Committee on October 11 for discussion of the report; to formulate at this meeting some problems pointed out by the study to be recommended to the General Committee for further study; and to decide on the membership of the two subcommittees so that they might announce their plans soon.

Mr. Brown questioned how effective the committee's recommendations would be if they should wish to effect changes in the methods of administration of public welfare. Miss Roe explained that it was hoped that before definite action was taken by the General Committee one of the subcommittees would discuss the recommendations with the officials and gain their cooperation in attempting to follow out the recommendations. VISITS TO POSSIBLE

MEMBERS

Miss Roe then visited three individuals who might be asked to serve on a subcommittee to study child welfare services. She called on Mrs. Lamb, who had attended the first meeting of the Spring County Public Welfare Committee and expressed interest in its purposes and activities. She had lived in Racine about five years and had tried from time to time to give volunteer service in the educational fields in the county but had not had much opportunity to do it. She obtained her master's degree in psychology and has had experience in psychological testing of children brought to the juvenile court. She stated that she would be glad to serve as a member of the Children's Committee and, when the opportunity

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arose, to make an evaluation of the activities of the Children's Court in relation to children who became public charges. Miss Connor, school nurse in Hartford, was asked to serve on the Children's Committee but stated that she was too busy with her school work and with her responsibilities for the social problems in the families of the children. She also was not sure that her philosophy of public relief was the same as that of other members of the committee. She had come to the conclusion that relief was being given too freely, that many families had become dependent in more than economic ways since relief had started, and that it was time that some plan be devised to help these families restore their independence. Miss Roe assured Miss Connor that the committee was an avenue through which she could express her opinions and philosophy as well as her knowledge of the weaknesses of the Public Welfare Department and that because these weaknesses existed a Citizens' Committee was most necessary. Miss Connor said that she would accept membership on the Children's Committee with the reservation that she be allowed to resign if she felt she was not in harmony with the group in respect to the treatment of public welfare problems in the county. Mr. Perrera, a young Italian lawyer in Raleigh, who was graduated from Yale, seemed to have established himself quite well in his profession in the community and had several times offered his services to Mr. Brown in working out plans and activities of the Public Welfare Committee. Mr. Perrera stated that he was very much interested in the administration of public welfare and would be glad to serve on the Children's Committee so that he might better inform himself of the activities of the Public Welfare Department.

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MATERIAL

STUDY

DISCUSSED WITH

PUBLIC

OFFICIALS

Miss Roe had now completed a draft of the information secured in the study, and she showed M r . Foster a copy o f it. His immediate reaction was that it should not be printed until all of the public officials had read it and made suggestions as to how the material should be presented. Miss R o e assured him that only facts as given by the various agencies were presented in the report and that no opinions or evaluations o f the work done were made. Nevertheless, he thought some suggestions might be necessary. H e pointed out, for instance, that the budget chart in the introduction was incorrect, as the Board o f Child Welfare would never grant aid to dependent children to a family where there was an ablebodied man and a mother, and even if they did they would never give $11.20 for food. Miss Roe agreed to clear this with the Department o f Child Welfare. She left a copy o f the study with M r . Foster. Miss Roe asked M r . Foster about his plans for enlarging the staff o f his Children's Division. He stated that he hoped within the next three or four months to select a member of his staff to attend a school o f social work for six months, when she would be prepared to assume the duties of a children's worker. H e was definitely expected by the board o f supervisors to select a person from the county. M r . Moore, Commissioner, also received a copy o f the study from Miss Roe. A f t e r he read it he advised her that he had only very minor suggestions to make. H e spoke o f the need to employ a qualified case supervisor but was handicapped by the Common Council who did not approve o f his employing anyone outside o f Spring County. H e stated that the city Civil Service Commission had not completed the grading of the examinations given in June to his workers.

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Only five members of his staff took this examination, and he was not sure that all of them had passed it. Miss Roe talked with Mr. Reed, Director of the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau. Mr. Webb of the Executive Committee accompanied her to this conference. They discussed with Mr. Reed the recommendations as to problems for future study, which the Executive Committee was to present to the General Committee. Mr. Reed seemed convinced that these were major problems in the method of administration in the county. While most of these difficulties arose in the work of the county Veterans' Relief Committee, of which he is secretary, it was his opinion that they could and should be corrected in the near future, and he was willing to offer the services of the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau where they were needed. A copy of the report was left with Mr. Reed, and he later stated that he had no suggestions or corrections to make. Miss Roe, accompanied by Mr. Webb, had a conference with Mr. McCarthy. The recommendations which were to be presented by the Executive Committee to the General Committee of areas for further study were explained to him, and he also recognized them as important problems to receive correction if possible. He stated that before the first of December his staff was planning to submit their qualifications to the state department, so that during the coming year the county could receive reimbursement for their salaries. He pointed out that the only reason they had not done so earlier was that they resented filling out applications for jobs which they already had. He stated also that they were working on plans to improve their resource checking, which would probably include a cooperative system with the Raleigh Home Relief Bureau. Mr. Brown advised Miss Roe that he had talked over with

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the other public welfare officials the contents of the report and the recommendations to be presented to the committee, with which they seemed satisfied. Mr. Potter, of the Centerville Veterans' Bureau, particularly stated that he was glad that these matters were going to be studied and hoped that other problems such as medical care would soon be considered. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE CONSIDERS USE OF MATERIAL

The Executive Committee met on October 9, 1938. All of the members had read most of the report and seemed well satisfied with the contents thereof and were inspired to attack immediately some of the problems presented. Mr. Brown announced the members of the two subcommittees on children's services and on the problems of community organization for public welfare, the latter to be known as the "Coordination Committee." This committee agreed that the report should be issued to the members of the entire committee before the meeting and set as a tentative date the week of November 7. It was also decided that no publicity be given to the report until after the General Committee meeting. In discussing how the material of the report should be given to the committee two suggestions were made, the decision as to their use to be left to the president. One was that he give a short resume of the material in the report with an opportunity for discussion and questions which might be directed to the president or to the representatives of the S. C . A . A . The other suggestion was that a group of the committee members be asked to take part in a panel discussion of the material in the report, bringing out specific questions which might be in the minds of the group, the answers to be presented by the members of the panel.

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COORDINATION COMMITTEE CONSIDERS REPORT

Mr. Webb called a meeting of the Coordination Committee on October 17. An enthusiastic discussion was held for two hours. Mr. X, a member of the Veterans' Relief Committee who was present, recognized the weakness of this agency but believed it would be difficult to dissolve it in the near future because of the political strength of the veterans' group. It was agreed that the ultimate goal of the committee would be to reduce the cost of administering relief by unifying all agencies. Before the committee could submit such major recommendations it would have to build up public confidence through making minor improvements. The committee asked Miss Roe to prepare: (1) a list of problems in detail for further study by them; (2) a chart showing staff, cost of administration and case load of all agencies as indicating the nature of the responsibility which would be assumed by a central agency. It would also be useful in discussing the situation with individual public welfare officials. They recognized that the town welfare officers presented a distinct problem, since in order to decrease the cost of administration they would have to be eliminated. They did not think it would be advisable, however, to have Miss Roe interview all of the town welfare officers, as it was believed they would be too much on the defensive and feel they were being criticized regardless of the way in which the purpose of the conference was explained. They thought that the members of the committee in each town might talk with their town welfare officer, using an outline devised by this committee and thus secure comparable information. Mr. X stated that he was well acquainted with the town welfare officer in Granville and would make an effort to talk with him before

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the next meeting to see what information he could gain and what attitude the officer had toward such a conference. N o date was set for the next meeting of this committee, but it was agreed that when Miss Roe was ready to present her material the chairman would call a meeting. MISS ROE A N A L Y Z E S ATTITUDE OF COMMITTEE

From the impressions gathered from meeting with the Executive Committee and the subcommittee it seemed that this group was ready to receive the study of the public welfare agencies and to take some action as soon as possible to recommend improvements to the various public welfare agencies. T h e persons in this group were thoughtful and sincerely interested from a civic point of view in improving public welfare in Spring County. M r . Foster's hesitancy in wanting the report to be printed might have several interpretations but none that would affect the work o f this committee to a very great extent. It was agreed and thought best by M r . Brown that his cooperation be secured in these first steps so that the recommendations of the committee might be more effective. T h e program for the Coordination Committee should be carefully worked out, and their enthusiasm should be preserved but not allowed to press matters too quickly. If possible the study should be one which committee members could carry on themselves. WHAT PROBLEM SHOULD FIRST RECEIVE

ATTENTION

Miss Roe spent a day in early December, 1938, in the county discussing with M r . Brown plans for a meeting of the General Committee to be held early in January. She also talked with M r . Moore about the activities of the Coordina-

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tion Committee and tried to sound him out as to which problem would be more beneficial to him for the committee to consider first. He stated that he was more interested in initiating the cash-relief system of disbursement within the very near future. He also hoped that it would not be long before there could be a unified county department or that the city of Centerville could apply to be made a public welfare district. Miss Roe enumerated the various problems that the Coordination Committee were going to consider, and asked Mr. Moore if he would be willing to talk to the committee at their next meeting about his plans for initiating cash relief and the advantage it would have in the administration of public assistance in the city of Centerville. He stated he would be glad to meet with this committee at any time. MISS ROE'S COMMENT

Because the report of the study of public welfare in Spring County had been delayed, Mr. Brown had lost some of his intense confidence in the S. C. A. A. and in the possibility of a citizens' committee contributing to welfare planning in a community without full cooperation on the part of local officials. It was therefore important that the association should make every effort to plan soundly the future activities of this committee so that this degree of confidence could be rebuilt. HOW PRESENT THE MATERIAL SECURED

Miss Roe spent a day in the county at the end of December to attend the meeting of the Executive Committee to plan a General Committee meeting at which the study Public Welfare in Spring County would be discussed. Seven members of

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the Executive Committee agreed to take part in a panel discussion which would more or less summarize the points of the study. An outline of the panel was presented at this meeting and was discussed in detail. The interest in the study seemed to be much increased since the last meeting, as this group, in becoming more familiar with the facts of the study, were beginning to recognize underlying problems in the methods of administering public welfare in Spring County and wished to study them further and to rccommcnd changes to be made. Mr. Gleason was primarily interested in improving the County Home and asked to be placed on that committee rather than on the Children's Committee, to which he had been appointed. The general meeting would be arranged for January 12, 1939, or as soon as possible. Miss Roe would not rake part in the panel discussion but would be available to assist in answering questions which might arise during the general discussion. Either before the meeting or soon after, a meeting of each of the subcommittees would be called and some plan made with them for further studies.1 Miss Roe spent ten days in the county at intervals between January 5 and January 19, 1939. The Executive Committee met twice before the general meeting to read and discuss the panel outline. Professor Long was requested by the group to act as chairman, since Mr. Brown could not be there. lit should be noted at this point that a 66-page report of the study Public Welfare in Spring County was prepared in the central office of the S.C.A.A. and given fairly wide distribution throughout the county. It is an effective presentation of the material secured with charts and pictorial statistics. It is obviously impossible to include the report in this study. In general the report gives in statistical form the figures as to case loads and costs secured from the state departments and the descriptive material as to functions and procedures secured by the worker in her visits to local welfare officials.

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DISCUSSION OF MATERIAL AT PUBLIC WELFARE COMMITTEE MEETING

The meeting of the Spring County Committee on Public Welfare was held on January 11 at the Y.W.C.A. Auditorium in Centerville. About forty-three persons were present. This group included about ten public welfare officials, five social workers from private agencies, and citizens from Raleigh, Centerville, Chester, Racine, Granville, Hartford, and Newton. The panel discussion was presented in a very easy and confident manner by the Executive Committee. The recommendations of the Executive Committee were read by the secretary, and the president was authorized to appoint subcommittees. The meeting was then opened for consideration of any phase of public welfare which the groups might wish to discuss. It was suggested that there be a committee to study the facilities at the County Home, since a citizens' group could contribute a great deal by knowing the situation at the County Home and seeing that a proposed new structure would be more adequate. A discussion followed as to the advisability of cash relief in a home relief program. Commissioner Moore, of Centerville, was asked to give the conclusions he had reached in his study. Miss Roe contributed information she had collected, and ten other individuals gave their views on the subject. The speakers were in general either very much in favor of it or very much against it, those against it basing their argument on the knowledge they had of a few cases of more or less unstable and incompetent people. It was finally decided that the Coordination Committee should secure more information about the value of cash relief and present some recommendation to the General

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Committee later. The need for better medical and public health services was also brought up, but further study was postponed until some other problems had been considered. Although this group was comparatively small in relation to the total membership, it was quite representative and showed sincere and active interest in the improvement of public welfare in the county. The public welfare officials also took part in the discussion, and their points of view were respected. W i t h twenty-three persons on the various sub-

committees, it would seem that more persons could be drawn in when definite recommendations were to be made but that this group itself was large enough to do the real thinking and planning for the activities of the committee. DISCUSSION O F C O U N T Y U N I T

PLAN

At a meeting of the Coordination Committee on January 18, 1939, problems of cash relief and a centralized Department of Public Welfare were considered. The Commissioner of Public Welfare of Centerville was present and discussed these problems freely. While he favored cash relief, he thought it would be difficult to finance it this year because of the financial condition of the city. In regard to the centralized county department, the Commissioner stated that Centerville would like to be declared a public welfare district and have the responsibility of administering old-age assistance, aid to the blind, and aid to dependent children as well as home relief. He felt that the Common Council would favor this plan before they would the centralization of the administration of relief in the county department. However, he thought either plan would be better than the present one. It was planned, therefore, that the Coordination Committee meet again sometime during the week of

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February 6 and invite the county Commissioner of Public Welfare to give them his opinion of the value of a centralized department in Spring County. In the meantime, Miss Roe was asked to secure from all the agencies the amount spent for relief, the number of cases, the number of employees, the number of investigators, and the cost of administration during the three highest months in 1938 and the three lowest months. This would give the committee a basis for comparing costs of administration for each agency and of the cost of a centralized unit carrying the same load. They also asked that Miss Roe find out the experience of other counties and cities. These men felt that this committee should be adequately informed about arguments for and against a centralized department and, when the time came to have this change made, eight or ten people would be prepared to go out into the various sections of the county to speak regarding the proposed plan. Miss Roe then talked with Mr. Brown, the president. He stated that he would make an effort to appoint the members of the other two committees in the very near future and plan to have them meet. It was also hoped that an Executive Committee meeting could be held the week of February 13 to fill the one vacancy from Weston, to accept the resignation of Mr. White as vice-president, and to fill this vacancy. The Executive Committee could also make plans for further activity. It was hoped that the General Committee could meet at least every two months and thus be available when any major improvements were recommended by the Executive Committee. FURTHER DISCUSSION OF COUNTY

REORGANIZATION

Miss Roe spent ten days in the county between January 30 and February 14, 1939, to attend the meetings of the

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Executive Committee and the Coordination Committee, as well as to collect material for the discussions at these two meetings. The Coordination Committee met on February 6 in Mr. Morelli's office in Centerville. The group was notified of this meeting by the chairman, Mr. Webb, but only Mr. Webb and Mr. Morelli were able to attend. They felt that this committee should soon make some recommendations to the General Committee in order to justify its existence. T h e y

had in mind ultimately recommending a unified Department of Public Welfare in Spring County, but they were disturbed because up to this time they had been unable to formulate basic reasons for the change. Mr. Morelli, particularly, expected that Miss Roe, as a representative of the S. C. A. A., would outline a concrete plan of a unified department in Spring County, which would lower the cost of administration and increase efficiency in the administration of relief. Miss Roe explained that the S. C. A. A. as such was not advocating any definite plan for reorganization of the public agencies in Spring County, but, insofar as the citizens' group wished to make recommendations or to study the problems which stimulated thinking along these lines, the S. C. A. A. would lend its services to collect data which would support the recommendations. After discussion as to the methods to be used in learning the attitude of the heads of die various public welfare agencies toward a reorganization of these agencies in the county, as well as learning what problems were to be anticipated in the process of reorganization from other counties which have made a similar change, it was decided that a series of additional meetings of this committee would have to be held. Miss Roe was asked to secure an organization chart of the

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new setup in another county and figures as to the number of persons employed and the cost of administration in their old setup compared with the new. Figures which Miss Roe had secured from agencies in Spring County regarding the cost of relief and administration during the six months of 1938 were discussed. It was believed that it would be easier for the committee to understand these figures if they were set up in charts and they asked that Miss Roe have them made for the next meeting. It was also planned to ask the head of each agency to attend a meeting of the Coordination Committee at which he would be asked specific questions regarding the possibility of reorganizing public welfare agencies and the effect this would have on the work of his agency. The committee asked that Miss Roe set up a list of leading questions that could be asked by the committee of each agency head. All of this information should be sent to each member of the committee at least a week before the next meeting, so that they could digest it and be prepared to discuss it at a dinner meeting which would be followed by interviews with two or three agency heads. Before these plans were finally accepted, Miss Roe reminded this committee that at one time they thought it would be wise to begin by recommending improvements in the agencies as they then existed. After these were accepted the community would be more willing to accept its recommendation in such a large issue as that of a unified department. At this point, however, they felt that since a unified department would be in the process of realization so long, the movement should be immediately launched and minor improvements could be introduced along the way. MISS ROE'S COMMENT

Miss Roe believed that when this committee began inter-

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viewing agency heads, they would sense the intensity of the problems which must be confronted in order to build up general approval for a unified department and might then wish to change their approach toward it. These men, moreover, were very busy and did not like to anticipate spending too much time at a meeting on this subject. Conferences were held with Mr. Brown re changes in personnel of the Executive Committee and subcommittees. Mr. Brown had recently discussed with M r . Foster the problem

of employing a child welfare supervisor. Mr. Foster said definitely that he didn't want just another worker in his Children's Division but wanted somebody capable of supervising the entire division. He would rather not have the position created by the Board of Supervisors until he had a person available to fill the place. In conference with Miss Roe Mr. Foster stated that he did not think the committee was well enough informed to recommend that a child welfare supervisor be employed and was doubtful as to whether such a recommendation would have any meaning. Miss Roe attempted to point out to him some of the weaknesses in the children's program which the committee had recognized and felt constituted sufficient reason for such a recommendation, but he did not seem to be convinced. Mr. Brown believed, however, that it was the opportune time for the committee to make such recommendation in spite of what Mr. Foster had said. PROPOSAL FOR CHILD W E L F A R E

SUPERVISOR

A meeting of the Executive Committee was held early in February, 1939, at which Miss Roe was asked to give a report of the progress of the study. The committee approved

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the plans of the Coordination Committee. The chairman announced the appointment of a subcommittee on the County Home, and there was discussion of the personnel of the subcommittees. Mr. Brown then explained to the Executive Committee the plan of recommending a child welfare supervisor. The discussion centered around the lack of training and ability of the workers in all the divisions of the department. The committee was coming to recognize the value of training personnel in public welfare. The following recommendation was finally agreed upon: that this committee send a letter to the Board of Supervisors and the Commissioner of Public Welfare recommending that a permanent position in the County Department of Public Welfare be created for a child welfare supervisor; that a person employed for such position need not necessarily be from within Spring County but should have graduateschool training and experience in the children's field. It was planned that Mr. Brown and Miss Roe would take the letter to the chairman of the Public Welfare Committee of the Board of Supervisors so that he could be aware of the personnel of the committee and the purpose of the recommendation. It was decided not to hold another General Committee meeting until one of the subcommittees was ready to make a report. Miss Roe then visited two men who had been nominated for service on subcommittees. Mr. Strong was a man in his early forties. Until three or four years ago he was quite active in welfare planning in the city of Raleigh and had been Commissioner of Public Welfare for two years, as well as a member of the T.E.R.A. Committee. He was very much interested in the purpose of the citizens' committee and wished

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that he had more time to devote to public welfare problems. However, he stated that he would be glad to serve on the County Home Committee, as he thought it was a field that needed to be studied and he knew very well the members of the Board of Supervisors from Raleigh who were on the County Home Committee. Dr. Curtis was familiar with the work of the S. C . A . A . from early years, though he had not been very familiar with the child welfare field in the past few years. He would like very much to serve on the Children's Committee and stated that he could give any amount of time provided he was notified several days in advance. Seven days were spent by Miss Roe in the county between February 28 and March 21, 1939. The purpose of this visit was to complete plans for a meeting of the Coordination Committee and the Children's Committee and to accompany Mr. Brown at an interview with M r . Burns, the Chairman of the Welfare Committee of the Board of Supervisors. ATTITUDE TOWARD CHILD WELFARE WORKER

Mr. Burns had been a member of the Board of Supervisors for about five years. He knew very little about the activities of the citizens' committee and had not seen the study which had been published by them. He was given a copy and in leafing through it found parts of it which described agencies and their functions with which he was not familiar. Mr. Brown attempted to explain to him why the committee wished to make a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors that a child welfare supervisor be appointed. Mr. Burns's immediate reaction was that it would mean creating a new position and providing money for a salary and that the first consideration of the Board of Supervisors to such a recommendation

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would be whether or not the present staff administering child welfare services was competent and whether the creation of a new position would decrease the cost of the program. He could not understand why two full-time workers and one part-time worker would need a supervisor, nor could he understand why the program could not go on in the same way as it had been functioning in the past. Mr. Brown advised him that a Children's Committee was going to conduct an intensive study of the services in the county department and would have some detailed statistical information within the near future showing just what was being done and how. Mr. Burns stated that with this information he would be much better able to see the need for a child welfare supervisor, and he asked that he be given a copy of the study when it was completed by the Children's Committee. COORDINATION COMMITTEE MEETS WITH PUBLIC OFFICIALS

Mr. Webb was unable to attend the Coordination Committee meeting, but Miss Roe talked with him later regarding it. It was planned to have another meeting of the Coordination Committee on March 30, at which time Mr. Moore and Mr. Potter would be interviewed. Miss Roe gave Mr. Webb some questions which would suggest the content of the interview with them. He agreed to tell them about the meeting and the purpose of the interviews and perhaps mention some of the major questions to be asked them so that they might be prepared to give an answer. He was of the opinion that the committee would not receive very much help from these persons in making a decision as to what type of reorganization would be most beneficial for Spring County, but he did think it was a courteous move to advise them of the thinking

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of the committee before publicity was given to any specific recommendation. A meeting of the Children's Committee was held on March 21. This group showed extreme interest in the problem which was presented to them for study. They had all had some experience with the children's program in the county, either as lay members of a board of a private agency, through the schools, or through collateral services, so they knew something of the characteristics of the program. They also seemed to be fairly well acquainted with Mr. Foster. T h e y all entered freely into the discussion and contributed intelligent suggestions. It was believed that this group would prove to be a useful one and would meet the expectations of the General Committee. They expressed a desire to do whatever work was necessary on their part to formulate recommendations to the General Committee. Each member seemed challenged with the opportunity to serve the community in this way. The same interest and enthusiasm prevailed at the meeting of the Coordination Committee which was held on March 9 as was shown at the previous meetings of this group. Each person continued to feel a conscientious responsibility toward producing some valuable results of their efforts. COORDINATION COUNTY

COMMITTEE

RECOMMENDS

UNIFIED

DEPARTMENT

At a meeting held on M a y 16, 1939, the committee made its recommendations, the following paragraphs being excerpts from its report to the General Committee: The Committee on Coordination of Welfare Services believes that it would be advisable for Spring County to centralize responsibility

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for administration of all public welfare activities, throughout the county, in a single unified County Department of Public Welfare. This centralization of authority and responsibility would permit the county to realize the maximum benefits of coordination of public welfare services in the interest of economy and efficiency of services. In the committee's opinion such a unified agency should include at least: 1. A Division of Public Assistance which would be responsible for administration of Home Relief, Old-Age Assistance, and Aid to the Blind with a single set of investigators each dealing with all three types of cases in a definite district: 2. A Division of Children's Services to administer Aid to Dependent Children and Child Welfare Services with a single set of investigators especially skilled in dealing with children: 3. An efficient intake service to deal with applications from all types of cases: 4. A central county-wide system of checking resources of applicants for all types of public assistance: and 5. A consolidation of accounting, disbursing, statistical and other clerical services. With such consolidation the County would assume financial responsibility for meeting the local share of the entire cost of relief services. The committee believes that insofar as the cases handled by the Veterans' Committees are eligible for other types of assistance (especially those financed in part with Federal aid), they should be transferred to the unified County Department of Public Welfare which should provide adequate service for all groups without discrimination in respect to any special class. The Committee also believes that the special services for veterans eventually might be provided by special veterans' workers in a unified County Department. T o put this recommendation into effect the plan to establish a unified county-wide service would have to be approved by the Board of Supervisors and receive the concurrence of the

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Gammon Council of Centerville. Final approval would have to be given by the state Department of Social Welfare with respect to details of organization and operation. In presenting this recommendation to the general committee, the Coordination Committee outlined the principal advantages of the plan as follows: 1. Virtually eliminate the difficulty in handling the present cooperative cases between categories. 2. Eliminate the overlapping of areas covcrcd by several workers

or agencies and thus decrease loss of time and cost of travel. 3. Make possible the establishing of a county-wide resource checking service to relieve the investigators of this responsibility and allow more time for home visits and investigations. 4. Permit information secured in home relief investigations to be readily useful in cases transferred from home relief to other types of assistance. 5. Tend to bring about more uniformity throughout the county in the way the needs of relief recipients are met. 6. Permit improved special services such as intake, medical care, home economics and rehabilitation with maximum economy of personnel. 7. Permit more flexibility in the number of filing ind clerical and other employees which necessarily must fluctuate with case loads. This cannot be done as economically in seven different smaller agencies. 8. Provide a central file of all records available for clearance at all times. T h e committee stated its convictions that a unified department, if properly organized, would make possible a combination of jobs and a better distribution of time, which would save the taxpayers of the county as much as $ 50,000 annually in administrative expense without lowering the standards of assistance to persons actually in need. A n accompanying statement outlined points at which savings could be made.

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The committee recognized that the position of executive of such a department would require a person with high administrative ability as well as an understanding of how to meet human needs. The official charged with responsibility for organizing a unified county department should have die full support and cooperation of the community in solving die many difficult problems which would be involved, and at the same time he would have the cooperation and advice of the state Department of Social Welfare and other agencies. FINANCIAL PROBLEMS INVOLVED

The committee called attention to the fact that a reorganization of welfare agencies in the county would involve a readjustment of city, town, and county budgets. Under the present state law the local cost of a county unit for relief administration must be financed with county funds, and relief expenditures cannot be charged back to the various subdivisions of the county. This means that the entire cost of relief under a county unit plan would be apportioned throughout the county in proportion to equalized property evaluations rather than according to the amounts expended on cases chargeable to the various subdivisions. In this situation the ability of many cities to continue to finance home relief is seriously restricted. Centerville has not yet reached the full limit of borrowing and taxing powers. It is, however, operating on an increasingly narrow margin which eventually will make it necessary for its share of local relief costs to be met through county rather than city taxes. These facts and conclusions were submitted in mimeographed form to the General Committee with the following statement: The Committee on Coordination urges that the County Public

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Welfare Committee undertake to have this recommendation adopted by Spring County. It suggests that the committee make specific plans to keep in close touch with reorganization as it proceeds in order to give any possible assistance to the authorities in putting the plan into effect so as to bring about the maximum benefits of coordination. In a visit the first week in June, 1939, the plans for the meeting of the General Committee were worked out. It was agreed that summaries of the plan and recommendation be distributed to all members of the committee and other interested persons in the county. Miss Roe would confer with members of the General Committee in some of the outlying towns to interest them in attending the meeting and to prepare them for the recommendation to be made. It was also planned to hold a dinner meeting o f public officials w h o would be personally invited by members of the committee. GENERAL COMMITTEE CONSIDERS COUNTY

UNIT

O n June 1 o, about forty persons attended a meeting which included officials of the various agencies. M r . Brown presided and gave a full report of the work o f the Coordination Committee, outlining its purpose and the w a y in which the members gathered their information. H e pointed out the lack of uniformity between the various public services as to number o f personnel, the duplication of investigations, and overlapping of territory. H e read excerpts from letters which had been written him from commissioners of other counties in the state pointing out the advantages of a unified system in these counties. H e then read the report o f the Coordination Committee, which had been approved by the Executive Committee. Among questions from the floor was the following: " D o any agencies feel that they have enough investigators?"

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If not, would not this plan mean more efficient distribution of work rather than a reduction of staff? Mr. McCarthy of the Veterans' Relief Committee said he had heard that in counties having unified systems the service had become so expensive that the counties were unable to meet other needs. Mr. Walters, a member of the Veterans' Relief Committee as well as of the Public Welfare Committee, explained the veterans' point of view and justified their lack of cooperation in this plan by pointing out the specialized service which they gave. In the recommendation the committee had suggested that at least $50,000 a year could be saved in administrative cost. Some of the members of the committee questioned the advisability of making so definite a statement, and Mr. Foster pointed out that it would be impossible to estimate savings because the relief load varied. Mr. Potter said this could be done only on the assumption that the relief load would not be any larger than the peak during the past ten years and that the administrative heads would make every effort possible to improve the efficiency of the work. A motion was then made that the committee's recommendation should state that a considerable savings in administrative expense could be made but that it should not specify a definite sum. This motion was carried, and it was recommended that every effort be made to keep this figure out of the press. There was some discussion as to details of centralization, but Mr. Brown advised that the committee was not in a position to outline them but must rely on experts in the state Department of Social Welfare to work them out. C I T Y OFFICIALS CONSIDER THE PROPOSAL

A dinner meeting followed, at which were present mem-

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bers of the Executive Committee and the Coordination Committee plus the mayor of Raleigh; Mr. Strong, of Centerville, counsel to the city commission; Mr. Goss, city engineer; Mr. Tuttle, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors; Mr. Williams, Chairman; and three other members of the Welfare Committee of the Board of Supervisors. Mr. Brown conducted the meeting and, after outlining the purpose of the Public Welfare Committee, read the recommendation of the Coordination Committee. A v e r y favorable reaction came

from this group. They stated that they realized that there were too many agencies engaged in administering public welfare and that from a business point of view a more efficient job could be done if only one agency existed. The town welfare system however had existed for many years. If under the new system the cost of relief were distributed equally among the various towns, the taxes in many of them would be increased and it would be very difficult to convince the townspeople of the advantages of the central unit. The officials from Centerville and Raleigh favored the recommendation but stated that any action must be taken by the Board of Supervisors. Mr. Tuttle, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, agreed that for official action he would call a meeting of the Welfare Committee during the summer and ask members of the citizens' committee to present their recommendations. PROCESS OF EDUCATION

Publicity was prepared regarding the action taken by the committee and was released next day by the city papers. It was also planned with Mr. Brown that further publicity be released during the months of July and August to explain the operations of the various agencies and the reasons for the

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recommendation of the citizens' committee. Additional meetings could be held by the citizens' committee to interpret their plan and thus gain some support in the Board of Supervisors in the fall. On June 14 Miss Roe talked with Mrs. Barnes, President of the League of Women Voters, and six other members of this group regarding the recommendation of the Public Welfare Committee for a county unit. They were given copies of die public welfare study and of the recommendations. During the coming year they expected to study taxation and for their September meeting would consider this plan for a county unit, asking members of our committee to speak. They hoped then to take some official action in favor of the plan and to make this action public as well as taking it before the Board of Supervisors. Miss Roe also talked with some of the members of the Granville committee and with Mr. Warren, who is a young lawyer in Granville, regarding the plan of coordination. It seemed to them that, while the plan was a sensible one, it would be difficult for the townspeople to give up the local welfare officer. If persons in their town wished to complain about the amount of relief being administered, there would be no one particularly interested in local welfare problems. It was suggested by Mr. Warren that in pushing the organization of a county unit, a promise be made that a person living in a rural area would be employed on the staff to supervise the administration of relief in the towns, so that the townspeople would feel they had some direct representation on the staff of a central county department. PROBLEMS TO BE SOLVED

On September 1 1 , 1939, Miss Roe again visited the coun-

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ty, at which time a meeting of the Executive Committee was held. Present at the meeting were Mr. Brown, Mr. Proctor, Mr. Gleason, and Mr. Long. In planning to continue interpreting to the public the recommendation of the committee for a county Department of Public Welfare, the committee recognized that there were three major problems: (i) the political strength of Centerville, which is primarily Democratic, versus that of the rural areas, w h i c h is primarily Republican; (2) the age and apparent strength of the Board of Child Welfare, which will be difficult to dissolve under the new plan. (This board might be continued as a volunteer group to review cases requesting aid to dependent children, while the administrative responsibility would be transferred to the Commissioner of Public Welfare); (3) the increase in taxes in some of the towns which undoubtedly will arise when the entire public welfare cost is distributed equally among all the towns. Information will therefore have to be prepared pointing out compensations under the new program to justify or overcome these problems. It was planned to invite a newspaperman to become a member of the committee, so that publicity can be continuous and approached in a more spectacular fashion. PROPOSAL FOR TOWNSHIP

MEETINGS

District meetings in the various townships were suggested to learn the reaction of people outside of Centerville and Raleigh, as well as to have an opportunity to interpret to them the committee's reasons for recommending a county unit. It was planned that the committee members in Chester, Racine, Weston, and Granville be approached to arrange a date and place for meetings in those communities and to encourage a group of fifteen or twenty people to attend. Some-

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one from the central committee would present the report. Mr. Gleason would write Mr. Monroe in Granville to arrange a meeting there in the near future. In order to enlist the interest of the entire committee more continuously in the projects, as well as in the broader aspects of public welfare, it was planned that regular meetings be held every three months. If there were not sufficient business to present to them, outside speakers could be invited to talk on such subjects as the new social security amendments, public health, relief, and medical care. It was suggested that the president appoint a program committee to arrange the meetings and to secure the speakers. Mr. Brown asked that the committee accept his resignation from the presidency as his duties connected with his business had increased, and he no longer felt he could devote the necessary time to the work of president. He would, however, be willing to remain on the Executive Committee and to take an active part in this work. During November and December, 1939, several visits were paid to the county. Two meetings were held of the Executive Committee and one of the Children's Committee and conferences were held with Mr. Gleason concerning the County Home study.2 THE NEW CHAIRMAN

In November a conference was held with Mr. Dawson, iFrom this point on there was a fairly continuous activity on the part of these two committees, with resultant improvement of the public service. The entries indicate the variety of points at which the participation of a citizens' group may be useful. Miss Roe made frequent visits to the county to assist them. She made a study of the case load in Centerville and Raleigh in cooperation with the state department, the material thus secured being presented to the committees as the basis for further discussion. Owing to the need for brevity the remaining items in the record are limited to efforts to interest the county as a whole in die need for a unified county administration of public relief.

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who had been asked to become chairman of the General Committee. He questioned whether the committee was really going to be able to accomplish anything. He could see the value of a citizens' committee and the need for improving the administration of public welfare, but he was not sure whether the committee could carry out plans in spite of the political and economic situation and whether enough people in the county would be willing to take a firm stand behind their recommendations and opinions. H e nevertheless would be

willing to act as chairman. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE CONSIDERS NEXT STEPS

Mr. Dawson was unanimously elected to take the position of president on January i, 1940, and Mr. Gleason was authorized to notify him officially of his election. Mr. Gleason, Mr. Brown, Professor Long, and Mrs. North were present. Mr. Gleason presented the County Home study in full, and discussion was held as to what should be done further about it at this time. Mr. Gleason was of the opinion that Mr. Foster should be given an opportunity to make whatever improvements he could when the new building was completed. Mr. Gleason did not feel that the committee was sure enough of their position to present any definite recommendations to him. It was agreed that Mr. Gleason should visit the state Department of Social Welfare and talk with the person in charge of institutions there about the proper standards for a county home in relation to diet and recreational and occupational services. The Executive Committee also discussed plans for district meetings throughout the county. Miss Roe reported thit she had called on one or two representative people in Weston

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who were interested in having a local meeting to hear about the work of the committee and some of die reasons for recommending coordination. Mr. Gerard agreed to assume major responsibility for finding a place and getting a crowd together and submitted a list of names of persons he felt should be invited. Mr. Bissell, of Centerville, and Mr. Jones, of Weston, were elected to membership on the Executive Committee. Mr. Bissell, a reporter on the Centerville Times, was a graduate of Center College. It was believed that he could prepare publicity for the committee which would not offend anyone and yet which would be effective enough to attract public attention. Mr. Jones was part owner of the Wfeston textile industry. He was a comparatively young man and had been at one time mayor of Weston. He was extremely interested in the welfare of underprivileged people, especially of persons who were not eligible for public assistance but were unable to supply all their needs themselves. MEETING IN CANTON

A meeting of a group of citizens in the town of Canton, which includes the village of Racine, was held on March 15, 1940. There were twenty-six persons present and Mr. Foster, Mr. Gleason, Professor Long, and Mr. Brown. Mr. Brown conducted the meeting and gave a very complete review of what the committee had been doing and why it was organized. Mr. Gleason pointed out that this meeting was held to give this group the opinion of the Public Welfare Committee and to secure their ideas as to how they thought public welfare was being administered in their locality and what they considered was society's responsibility to people on relief.

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The discussion indicated agreement that coordination in the various agencies was needed but that there was danger that a central organization might become top-heavy. Some persons present believed that the town should continue to hire a local welfare officer, who would assure the client of prompt attention and the community of the local control which might not be possible with a county unit. One person pointed out the importance of having taxpayers and citizens organized and well informed. R e l i e f

clients are informed and they get together and plan how to get the kind of relief they want. Thus, in order to protect themselves, the taxpayers must be sufficiently well informed to combat any excessive demands. Another person stated that because there are cooperative cases it seems evident that there is need for coordination to assure uniform planning in these cases. It was further pointed out by Mr. Warren that citizens must change their thoughts and attitudes about the relief question before the law and system can be changed. Over the past ten years they had tried to administer relief wisely, thinking it was temporary, but they still found themselves with a large problem leading to no constructive results. It was necessary, he said, to know what kind of persons were on relief rolls and to plan special programs for the different age groups. Other questions were asked by this group: What is the ratio of the cost of administration and relief? Have unemployment insurance benefits affected relief costs? Could investigators have a coordinated case load without eliminating the town welfare officer? What other counties have tried the county unit and what are the results? How much has this plan

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been developed in the thinking of the Board of Supervisors? Would the cost of administering a county unit be spread unfairly on the towns with assistance to the cities? MEETING IN WESTON

A regional meeting was held on April 8, 1940, at the Town Hall of Weston and thirty-five persons attended. The chairman was Mr. Jones, and he was assisted by Messrs. Dawson, Brown, and White in discussing the activities of the committee. Questions raised by the group related generally to problems of coordination and cost of relief. Is it possible to secure adequate attention for all problems of families under a county unit plan? If outdoor relief in Centerville, the local share of which is now paid by the city alone, is transferred to the county budget, will not part of the city relief costs be borne by the towns? The reply was that taxes would be increased in some towns and decreased in others. The changes would be due to equitable redistribution of relief costs in other parts of the county rather than to a shifting of Centerville's cost of relief. Centerville pays 59.4 percent of the total county taxes while its relief expenditures in 1939 were approximately 55 percent of the county total. Can you assure us that a county unit will reduce the number of investigators? No, because there are too few now; but the efficiency of their work can be increased, which will save in relief expenditures and cost of transportation. There is every reason to believe that the number of clerical persons can be reduced if a county unit is organized properly. Without the town welfare officer, within a year the relief load will increase. What will take his place? A single investigator assigned to a specific area plus a voluntary committee to supply

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information and advice and to assist in determining what the standard of relief in a family should be. In summing up the discussion it would seem that the group believed more efficiency and planning was needed in the administration of public welfare. However, the elimination of the town welfare officer and local control over home relief would not necessarily produce efficiency and economy. A county unit plan would tend to increase town taxes, which again would be a big pricc to pay for improved administration

of public welfare.