The experimental programs, not necessarily pilot in nature, have allowed us to find new strategies, new materials and new media. If these findings are disseminated throughout the system, think of how much curriculum gain you would have.

I don't know about other school systems, but Cleveland depends on the homeowners' taxes, and that doesn't give you much for new kinds of innovative programs.

Senator NELSON. Let me ask you a question. The parents that complain in that respect, are they satisfied with your answer?

Mrs. BRANCHE. The thing we keep saying to them time and time again is, "You should be grateful your family does not qualify, because your income would be so low, and I don't think you would want to take that dive in income level."

But interestingly enough, in Follow Through, many families are refusing to move away because they are so delighted with what is happening to their families. The parents don't want to leave it, and they want to be a part of it.

We have said to parents that there are nursery schools available to children, and perhaps if they become involved enough in their State education programs, that maybe some day we will have programing for all children.

I would rejoice at the thought of being able to provide kindergartens for every child, and prekindergartens for every child whose family thought it would be valuable, but funds just aren't available now.

We have sent folks to the moon, and I guess we may or may not send somebody to Mars. We have harnessed the raw materials that nature has provided to serve mankind, for some reasons we have not been able to deal meaningful with the human problems, and we have just got to find some way to permit ourselves to curb the erosion of human resources. The yet unborn have no political affiliation.

We have got to find ways to protect them, prepare for them, and promote their full potential when they do arrive, or we are going to see isolated aliens in our society, and that is exactly the way many parents see themselves.

The disciplines of all agencies must be cooperatively engaged in this kind of human slippage which rapidly becomes a billion dollar burden of unfulfillment.

We have been in a sort of band-aid program. We give a compensatory program here and a remedial program there, but we refuse to get down to the real, basic problem of prevention rather than cure. Yes, it is expensive, but it is a lot less expensive than what you have to pay for the dropout rate at the other end of the scale, and we won't know whether we have changed that until the kids get that old, but we hope so.

We feel this bill would go a long way in this respect.

The Cleveland school system would be delighted to cooperate in any way possible, to multiply, operate, or coordinate with any other agency or system.

Eventually the kids get to public schools, and they go there in large numbers, and it is the responsibility of the schools to find meaningful, better ways to do a better job than we have been doing in the past.

I think I can also say that parents of Cleveland, certainly, and we have 3,000 strong who all feel they are members of our Advisory Com

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mittee on Early Childhood, who are represented by a citywide committee that they would wish me to say they are pulling for their kids all the way. They don't care about the name as long as you would openly provide a program and a new lease on life for their children. One mother said, "You know, I am beginning to think that maybe life will be a little better for this kid than it was for my others," and I don't think you can get a better testimony than that for money that is being used on little kids.

Senator NELSON. I want to thank you for your kind, thoughtful contribution.

Senator, do you have any comments?

Senator MONDALE. No; I don't. It was a fine statement, and from a different standpoint, from a person who is in the front lines of the existing programs, and sees firsthand what occurs, and I am personally grateful to you for your support.

Senator NELSON. Thank you.

Mrs. BRANCHE. Thank you.

Senator NELSON. Our next witness is Dr. H. J. Geiger, professor and chairman of the Department of Preventive Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Mass., and project director of the Tufts-Delta Health Center, Bolivar County, Miss.

STATEMENT OF DR. H. JACK GEIGER, PROFESSOR AND CHAIRMAN, DEPARTMENT OF PREVENTIVE MEDICINE, TUFTS UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE, BOSTON, MASS., AND PROJECT DIRECTOR, TUFTS-DELTA HEALTH CENTER, BOLIVAR COUNTY, MISS.

Senator NELSON. Mr. Geiger, the committee is glad to have you back again. We appreciate your willingness to let us impose upon your time to comment on Senator Mondale's proposal.

You may present your statement in any way you desire.

Dr. GEIGER. Thank you for the opportunity to appear again.

I would like to begin the testimony with three pictures and a graph. One is a picture I inflicted on Senator Nelson some time ago, and I brought it back today because I don't know any other way to communicate to you the full horror of being an infant, black, and poor, in the Mississippi Delta.

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