Atty. General Ponders PBH Corps Ideas

A report written by PBH on the government's National Service Corps has gained recognition from the Attorney General's office in Washington.

The report, expressing the opinions of PBH on the structure and goals of a National Service Corps, was sent to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy '48 last week. On Thursday, Robert Choate, project director of the National Service Corps, flew to Boston in order to spend a day at PBH discussing various aspects of the proposed program.

An official of United Community Services in Boston has stated that the National Service Corps will come before the House of Representatives in April, and that it will probably have only a fair chance of passing. The same source revealed that the Corps, should it pass, would use 1000 workers the first year and 5000 by the third year.

Confusion With Powell

Chances of the bill's passing may be hurt by its being mistakenly connected with Rep. Adam Clayton Powell (D-N.Y.), who is chairman of the House Education Committee. Powell is a sponsor of the so-called Domestic Peace Corps, a Harlem project which has recently come under Congressional fire. Several persons have confused the privately-run Domestic Peace Corps will Kennedy's National Service Corps, and this confusion is expected to add to the difficulties of the success of the bill.

The PBH report criticized any factors which have caused "the amount of responsibility and effectiveness which can be attributed to a volunteer to be under-estimated in volunteer organizations throughout the United States." It then cited a large number of specific programs in which volunteers on a national scale could be effective.

PBH officials also pointed out that effective volunteer work can be accomplished not just by college students but by high school volunteers, professional people, and retired citizens. In all cases, emphasis in the report was placed on local running of volunteer programs, rather than federal administration.

An officer of PBH pointed out, "Of course we're flattered with the attention our report received. But our main concern is that the ideas in it are finally implemented throughout the country."