CHAPTER TWO OF PROJECT ABC

49 boys entered prep school from Dartmouth's intensive summer program, and 49 are still enrolled, some as honor men, few as problems

ASSOCIATE DEAN OF THE COLLEGE, DIRECTOR OF PROJECT ABC

IT was a bright June morning in Charlotte, North Carolina, and we were checking out of our motel. The manager handed me change and a receipt. Almost as if to himself, I heard him say, "They're the first; we never had any before." I hesitated and looked back - "any" referred to the four Negro students traveling with us from Birmingham to Hanover for Project ABC.

He became bolder, "I've had complaints all morning long, and loud ones." I was not surprised to learn that his customers had resented sharing the pool and dining room. He continued, "But I guess it's got to come, and the sooner the better for all of us."

I admired this statement, however grudging, from a man whose accustomed social order was being dismantled without his knowing how it might be reconstituted, sensibly and lastingly. His attitude was in striking contrast to our reception the previous day in Birmingham where, with angry stares and hostile gestures, we had been barely tolerated. His words gave hope, he made the South seem less solid.

Though outright hostility did indeed diminish as we moved North, we knew that we were not taking these students to a promised land, particularly if by "promised" we meant that place where each person has equal opportunity to make his way. The responses to our integrated journey from Birmingham to Washington - in drugstores, gas stations, restaurants, motels, at fruit stands and historic sites - varied almost as much as inevitably they would from Washington to Hanover. Soon these youngsters would discover northern social and economic patterns discouragingly similar to those left behind, patterns scarcely less rigid despite the Negro franchise and presumed equality before the law. Unlike Alabama, where there was no uncertainty about their place, in their adopted North they would have to face each new person and each new situation, evenly and cheerfully, without knowing whether to expect outright opposition, sophisticated rejection, self-conscious acceptance, or genuine friendship. In part, their capacity for coping with each new unknown would be the test of Project ABC.

Nearly a year has passed since we made that trip to Hanover to offer our traveling companions and other ABC students an educational alternative. Nearly nine months have passed since they scattered from Hanover to enter 27 preparatory schools. They have now completed two terms; grade reports and teacher comments graphically define problems and progress and the distance yet to be covered.

ABC students have proved remarkably tenacious. Forty-nine of the original 55 entered preparatory school in September; 49 are still enrolled. Though months and perhaps years must pass before we can appraise our efforts intelligently, first reports are encouraging. In the fall term, ABC students studied 234 courses. They earned 53 honor grades; only eighteen courses were failed. Six students made Honor Roll. Teacher comments were heartening:

"I like the boy's spirit ..."

"Considering our fears at the beginning of the year, I regard this as a wonderfully satisfactory performance ..."

"I enjoy teaching him ..."

"He is extremely conscientious and consistently finds time for study beyond the regular study hours ..."

"Each essay that he writes is better than the previous one ..."

"A steady, conscientious student and a positive influence ..."

"Rarely have we ever seen such seriousness and industry in a student..."

All comments, of course, were not equally enthusiastic: "quite lazy"..."apparently satisfied with mediocrity" ... "effort and work have been a disappointment so far." That a few have not measured up to our hopes and expectations is cause for concern. We had tried so hard to identify students with desire and courage, students who, if given the chance, would aggressively help themselves; youngsters who defy aptitude scores, promising Americans with the long reach. On the other hand, we searched for risks; the fact that some indeed have had" difficulty adjusting to new standards serves only to underscore the risk.

It has been reassuring to find that school reports closely parallel ABC faculty evaluations. At the end of the summer, 35 students were recommended without reservation; of these, only one has been a disappointment. Twelve students were recommended with reserva- tions varying from serious to grave; of these, one has been a delightful surprise. Eight students were not recommended; of these, we are rooting hard for one whose preparatory school admitted him anyway. Our disappointment, our surprise, our underdog; a brief description of each of these three cases will illustrate some of the imponderables with which we are working.

IN early September, the ABC faculty recommended Don Doe to preparatory school "with admiration for his effort, enthusiasm for his fine personal qualities, and confidence in his future. ... He has an infectious grin, sly wit, and great sense of purpose.... This boy has never hesitated to tackle a difficult task. ... During the construction of the shelter at Butterfield Pond, Don was one of the best workers. ... I predict that he will succeed at preparatory school. ... His intellectual abilities are above average. ... He is strongly motivated and he will accept new challenges eagerly and competently."

To our consternation and complete bafflement, Don's prep-school fall and winter term reports describe a totally different person: "Don continues to take life too much in stride. ... He seems unruffled by poor marks, undisturbed by poor performance. ... I'd like him to wake up! ... To show some sign that he's alive. ... I can't decide whether Don has very little aptitude, or whether his trouble stems altogether from his fatal habit of answering questions that were not asked. ... His classroom performance is barely acceptable. ... He should contribute more to class discussions. ...On the whole, the prognosis is gloomy."

How do we account for this apparent change? Has he been placed in a preparatory school in which the academic competition is too rugged? Has he been paralyzed by suddenly finding himself at the bottom of his class? Does he simply need more time to adjust? Does his lack of effort suggest lack of conviction about preparatory school education? We are exploring these and related questions with the hope that there are lessons in his experience that will enable us to avoid similar situations next year.

The second case is that of our "delightful surprise," a student whose summer performance frustrated ABC faculty and left them pessimistic about his chances for survival at preparatory school. I had warned his Headmaster: "With serious reservation, I am writing to recommend that you honor your contingent admission to Sam Smith this September. This decision was reached at our final faculty meeting only after long discussion and with considerable apprehension for Sam's success at preparatory school. Sam's work has definitely been below standard on all examinations. ... His ability in mathematics

is barely average. ... At one point I began to think that he was the one boy who was not making advances of any kind. ... Socially, Sam will have a great deal of trouble adjusting at preparatory school. ... Sam is conceited, he will bitterly and insensitively criticize those whom he considers his inferiors, he tries to collect followers and challenge the existing order, he is careless with his work, and he knows how to be insincerely gracious and well-mannered in the company of teachers and staff." There was one hopeful note: "Once Sam has assured himself of a place at preparatory school, few of the above traits will be demonstrated. ... He needs discipline and restraint, but he also thrives on responsibility."

Happily, at his preparatory school he has earned steadily increasing amounts of responsibility, and he is thriving. Last week his Headmaster told me, "You wouldn't believe the progress Sam has made, or the contribution he is making to our school." His teachers share the Headmaster's enthusiasm: "A good, solid, steady worker, Sam continues to do above average work. .. I am pleased with Sam's effort and achievement this marking period. ... I hope he will continue this positive and conscientious attitude. ... Sam has shown improvement in every phase of the work. ... His willingness to participate has been excellent."

And the Director of Admissions relates this story: "While Sam was proctoring an evening study hall, he became aware of a white student who was slyly substituting comics for classics. Tension increased as the student assumed a defiantly triumphant pose, and challenged Sam to exercise his authority as proctor. Sam, all eyes upon him, methodically rose and quietly approached his tormentor. With two fingers, he plucked the comic from his hands, gingerly carried it to a wastebasket, and let it drop. The room was silent." This story encouraged me to think that perhaps Sam's leadership qualities, not the color of his skin, had earned him his election as next year's basketball captain.

We Americans have special compassion for the underdog, and ABC was no exception. Three days before the end of the summer program Jimmie Jones wrote in his English theme, "By being a member of ABC I have found the answer to questions and bettered myself as a human being. I have thanked God for giving me the opportunity to get close to preparatory school life this summer. I know what kind of work is to be done and have gotten an idea of what will be expected of me after I enter preparatory school." A week later, after agonizing over the question of whether it would be fair to subject Jimmie to competition for which the ABC faculty believed him clearly unprepared, we reluctantly voted that he should not be recommended. I wrote the Headmaster accordingly, explaining that in our opinion, "Jimmie simply does not have the ability to progress successfully in a mathematics program of any rigor. ... Though we do not feel that we can responsibly recommend that you admit him, he certainly embodies those personal characteristics that tempt educators to 'take a risk. ... He is young and perhaps he simply needs more time to blossom. Whatever your decision, for us he was one of the most enjoyable surprises of the summer."

The Headmaster decided to take the risk. At the end of the fall term, Jimmie was failing three of his four courses. He was "lost in History and having great difficulty in writing," and his Spanish teacher wrote, "Although Jimmie has been trying hard, only the utmost effort and extra work along with my help will give him a chance to pass for the year." His Headmaster was undaunted: "I think Jimmie will do better (as reflected in his fine effort grades - four B's, one A) as the year goes on. Certainly he should not become discouraged, for he is a fine boy - liked by all - and one whom we are going to help succeed." And help they have; extra tutoring was arranged for the winter, and at the end of the last marking period Jimmie was passing three of his four courses. Although he was not yet passing Spanish, he received an A Effort Grade. The road ahead will not be easy, but Jimmie has it - the spirit to try, the willingness to stretch. One of his essays written last summer suggests that it will ever be worth the struggle: "I have grunted and groaned because of what we go through here, but the fact remains that I understand..."

THE story of ABC has been the story of people caring; parents caring enough to permit their sons to enter an unknown, perhaps hostile, surely more distant world; ABC students caring enough to risk estrangement from their "own kind," to trade local success for stiff competition and possible failure; preparatory schools caring enough to offer financial aid to "risk" students while simultaneously taking those opportunities from applicants seemingly more qualified; public schools caring enough to cooperate fully while parting with their stronger students, thereby losing academic and social leadership that might otherwise positively influence other students, the school and community; finally, and surely most important, teachers caring about ABC students - teachers and tutors at Dartmouth, preparatory school teachers throughout the year.

Foundation support, Dartmouth training, and Headmaster commitment all help, but each has clear limits. Only patient, dedicated teachers working year after year can turn promising potential into competence. It takes skilled teachers, men willing to commit themselves to the total educational process, in the classroom, in the dormitory, on the athletic field. When the going is toughest, these are the men who make the difference. Knowing schoolmasters, and their commitment to helping individual students learn and grow, I dare to be optimistic. A part of these men and their tradition will go into each ABC diploma.

ABC has given us opportunity to re-examine educational theories about mental aptitudes and the learning process ...

John Jones, with a 96 I.Q., came to Dartmouth from a rural Southern town. He is now on the Honor Roll at one of the nation's most competitive secondary schools.

Steve Stone was turned down by one preparatory school because anyone scoring below the fortieth percentile on the Secondary School Aptitude Test could not possibly do their work. On this test, measured against the national preparatory school norm, Steve was below the twentieth percentile. Now, after two terms at a top-flight preparatory school, Steve ranks nineteen in a class of eighty-one.

Frank Fender, a seemingly unmotivated student with poor grades in a mid-Western high school, was admitted to ABC to see if an intensive eight-week academic program in a radically new environment could affect his attitude and achievement. (I was against the idea; I could tell from his photograph that he was a poor risk!) He quickly became an ABC leader, and recently one of his preparatory school teachers commented, "I wish we had a school full of boys just like him."

There is much to ponder and much to learn. Only through patient and systematic follow-up can we hope to reach meaningful conclusions about the value of the ABC-preparatory school experience. The U.S. Office of Education has encouraged us to embark upon this type of long-range study, and later this month we hope to receive word of their financial support. This will enable us to follow the progress of ABC students through preparatory school and college; it will permit us to study change - academic, personal, and family.

WHAT of ABC '65? Will it differ from last summer? Although we surely had our inadequacies, at the risk of sounding self-satisfied, we have concluded that we will make few changes in the academic program. We are, of course, stirring about with "good ideas" for this summer, and we are looking to other summer programs for the benefit of their experience. However, our quite special responsibility to the preparatory schools is unique, and every "good idea" will have to stand the test - will this innovation enable us more perceptively and accurately to represent a boy's desire and academic potential to his preparatory school? And we want to insure that ABC '65 will have its chance to grow without unduly being structured or limited by 1964 conclusions.

All of this is not to suggest status quo. There will be differences. Because it seems likely that more scholarships will be available at preparatory schools (in the last year, participating schools have increased from 27 to 63), we will increase the Dartmouth program to 65 students. An additional fifty scholarships have been pledged for girls, and with support from The Rockefeller Foundation, Mount Holyoke College this summer will conduct the female counterpart of Project ABC. Finally, because we believe that private institutions must share responsibility for improving public education, we are bringing sixteen high school teachers to Hanover for an ABC Teacher Institute. English and mathematics teachers are being selected from eight Southern high schools which gave up promising students to ABC and preparatory schools this past year. These teachers will work closely with ABC faculty and take seminars in their respective fields. Through this effort we hope, in some small way, to help public school students whose "better chance" depends upon the initiative, training, and dedication of their public school teachers.

Lest we begin taking ourselves and our efforts too seriously, it is important that we continue to recognize the limits of ABC. It is a small program, and it is not aimed at the more central problem of how to improve public education to the point where young Americans everywhere have the opportunity to realize the potential of their talents and energies - as surely our Creator must have intended. While working toward this distant goal, we must exploit, now, every educational asset available to deserving students. For disadvantaged youngsters, preparatory schools offer one immediate alternative.

This effort is not without its rewards. Occasionally, amid doubts and uncertainties about the wisdom of tampering with human lives, an ABC student comes to our rescue:

DEAR DEAN DEY,

I've been making unproductive efforts, but I'm finally sitting down determined to write and send this letter to you. The one I started before this one was done on a typewriter; and I use a sort of "peck and pray" process when I type, so it didn't come out very well. But, like I said, I will get this one off!

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed receiving those newsletters from you. They sure helped to relive memories of last summer. And I'm sure that I speak for everyone who was in the Program last summer when I say that it was one of the most wonderful, unforgettable and significant events that have taken place in our lives.

I'm really hoping to return to Hanover for awhile this coming summer. Would that be alright? Do you know if any of the other ABC students will be returning to visit also?

Preparatory school has been quite a new experience for me. But all in all I've really enjoyed it' here. I've met so many different people; been exposed to so many new ideas, experiences, and situations.

Many things that I used to think were important and essential to me I have found sometimes not to be so august after all ... and vice versa also!

I've learned to develop a clearer and more perceptive way of thinking about or viewing all kinds and types of problems - and people. I guess I've got a lot more road to travel too, but looking back, even now, it kind of surprises me to see the changes I've made.

I'm running track this spring - and we practice all we can — which is every day! I'm planning to run the 440, and perhaps the mile. And for field events I've got my mind on the javelin, high jump and perhaps the shot put. I've been waiting ever since fall for track season - and I'm going to put all out!

Academically I'm not all "A's" but I am hoping to reach the Honor Roll this term. So far I've only been one, or a little more few, scant points away. If I can just raise my algebra mark I think I've done much in the way of reaching it.

Art is still a major interest of mine. Right now I'm working on a figure (statuette) in clay. I'm in the art class here at school and it is really great to be able to create as we are being taught to do. So far I've done ten paintings, two collages, one sculpture (in spun glass), and numerous drawings. I really feel quite strongly about art and if I didn't feel drawn towards other vocations I'd probably think of it more seriously. But as it is, it offers me enjoyment and creative pleasure — so I'll just keep it that way. I did get an award to study art at the Museum of Fine Arts, which I did February 27th through April 3rd on Saturday afternoons. The classes were very informative and interesting. I received the award through nomination by my art teacher, Mr. Moscartolo. Mr. Moscartolo is an alumnus of Dartmouth, and I think you may know him also.

I am also in a few of our school activities; I have written for the "Jabberwock," and designed one of its covers (the school magazine). I joined our school singing group, "The Gatesingers," a few months ago, and I had belonged to the Debating Club much earlier, but I had to give it up because it took up too much time.

Guess what! My sister, Patricia, is going to be in the ABC program at Mount Holyoke College this summer. I'm so glad!! I know it will be just as wonderful for her as it was for me!

I guess I've about begun to blur your eyesight by now - but I simply had, and still have, so much to say. I wanted to let you know how I was and how I'm getting along.

Leonard Rankin (r) on his way to class at Mt. Hermon School.

John Watson (r) with basketball coachWilliam Schmidt of Tilton School.

Harold Robinson in classroom at Andover.

Philip Duke taking part in a politicalrally at Solebury School, Pennsylvania.

Lonnie Crews (l), ABCer at Mt. Hermon

Tom Ficklin, a student at Choate School.

Larry Miller at Governor Dummer.

Alan Wade (l), ABCer from New York City, with classmates at Tilton School,

Donald Gay, a Governor Dummer student.