Mr. Chairman, I believe Senator Fulbright has filed a statement with this committee with reference to the importance of education in support of his bill and I concur essentially in the thinking of Senator Fulbright on this problem.

Senator YARBOROUGH. Thank you, Dr. Ford. Does this complete your statement?

Dr. FORD. Yes, sir.

Dr. FULLER. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank you for letting me be the executive secretary of the group of three, because this gives me an opportunity to introduce a man who has already been introduced by the Senator from West Virginia.

I just want to add one word, that in our association together at the Harvard Graduate School of Éducation, back to a little more than 20 years ago, we dealt with school law and school administration together at that time. It is a real pleasure to introduce again the distinguished commissioner of education of New York, Jim Allen.

Senator YARBOROUGH. Well, Dr. Fuller can be excused for wanting to get into the act.

I see Senator Randolph is back and I will yield to him, but I have a little question which I will ask now, a little side issue on this state

ment.

I notice here, Dr. Allen, in your statement about the University of the State of New York, you say it is the oldest continuous State educational agency in America. I don't want to arouse any State rivalry here, but down in North Carolina, the State university has a sign, Uníversity of North Carolina, created in 1794. I believe the sign says "Oldest State university in America."

As I say, I don't want to arouse any State rivalry here. I notice you say State educational agency and you point out that it means nary things in the State of New York.

Will you proceed, please?

STATEMENT OF JAMES E. ALLEN, JR., COMMISSIONER OF

EDUCATION, NEW YORK

Dr. ALLEN. Mr. Chairman, Senator Randolph; my name is James E. Allen, Jr. I am commissioner of education and president of the University of the State of New York. I appreciate this opportunity to appear before you and to express my views with respect to Senate bill 580.

I want to thank Senator Randolph in particular for his very generous introductory remarks. Senator Randolph was a great friend and confidante of my father, was a teacher of mine, and counselor. I do not hold him responsible for all my faults, by any means. He is

a great friend of education. So it is a privilege to have him present while I have the privilege of appearing.

I will skip some parts of my statement, Senator Yarborough, and ask that the whole statement be included in the record.

Senator YARBOROUGH. It is ordered that Dr. Allen's entire statement be printed in the record.

Dr. ALLEN. I might also point out that I am speaking here as the commissioner of education in New York and not as a member of the Council of Chief State School Officers.

Dr. Fuller has already presented very fully the views of the council. but as presented in the papers of Mr. Ford and myself, there is a great divergence of opinion, healthy divergence, within the council, which I think is one of the strengths of the American system.

The University of the State of New York is the oldest continuous State educational agency in America and consists of all of the ele mentary and secondary schools, colleges, and universities of the State-public and private.

Senator, it was founded in 1784. It is a corporation headed by a board of regents. It is not a university in the generally accepted sense in American education. It follows the French system of educationcomprising all of education within the State.

It includes also the museums, libraries, historical societies, and other educational and cultural institutions chartered by the State. The head of the university is the constitutionally created body, the regents of the University of the State of New York, of which I am the execu tive officer.

This year there are nearly 3 million students enrolled in the public schools of New York State, and approximately 750,000 in the nonpublicly controlled schools. The 200 colleges and universities in the State presently enroll approximately 480,000 students.

New York State has long been a leader in education. The people be lieve in and want good education. Governors of both major parties have usually been advocates and strong supporters of education. The legislature, too, has seldom failed to give top priority to the welfare of our schools and colleges.

In my opinion, New York State is particularly fortunate in the soundness of its legal and administrative structure for education wherein all of education in the State, from the kindergarten to the graduate schools, is under the general supervision and control of the State board of regents.

This system facilitates sound planning and coordination, provides protection against partisan political control, and makes it possible to maintain a unity of educational purpose in the State while at the same time fostering a wide diversity of opportunity and of institutional growth and development.

I make specal mention of this unique structure for the government of education in New York State because I earnestly believe it is one of our greatest assets and I am concerned to see that the development and administration of Federal policies result in strengthening, not weakening, this structure.

Senator YARBOROUGH. Will you yield to a question there?
Dr. ALLEN. Certainly.

Senator YARBOROUGH. I notice with great interest your statement that all education-does that include the private schools?

Dr. ALLEN. Public and private; yes, sir.

You see, the board of regents, by law, is head of this corporation which is the University of the State of New York, which charters all institutions, public and private, which sets the standards for all institutions-the general standards for all institutions-public and pri vate. In other words, the regents approve the degree programs for Columbia University and Cornell University as well as for the public

institutions. The regents are authorized by law to supervise and visit-the word is "visit"-the private institutions.

In actual operation, of course, the private institutions are independent, they operate on their own. The regents simply constitute what Learned Hand once called the overarching superindependence of education in the State. It is a unique concept in the Nation. I believe, a very old one, and one which I am very proud of, in these days in particular, when I think we have to build all of education together, build the universities and colleges on the strength of the elementary and secondary schools and vice versa.

Under this system, it is possible for us in New York today to pull together the entire education structure in planning.

Senator YARBOROUGH. It is a very interesting system.

Thank you.

Dr. ALLEN. I am impressed in this connection to note that the U.S. Commissioner of Education, Mr. Francis Keppel has said-

The policy of the Federal Government, in planning its part in the effort we must make as a nation, must be such that, at the end of any program the institutions are stronger and freer than they were at the start.

PROGRESS IN NEW YORK

New York State has made significant progress in education in recent year. You may be interested in a few facts:

Expenditure for the public schools have increased from $1.3 billion in 1957-58 to an estimated $2.2 billion in 1962-63, an increase of nearly 70 percent. For the same period, State aid for the public schools increased from $514 to $960 million, an increase of nearly 88 percent. State aid for education is expected to reach $1 billion in the next school year.

In higher education, we have embarked on a billion-dollar construction program to provide for doubling of enrollment in our State university units by 1970. We lead the Nation, I believe, in the field of financial assistance for college students, with nearly 100,000 students receiving scholarships or scholar-incentive grants and over 40,000 students utilizing the liberal loan policies of the New York State Higher Education Assistance Corp.

This program of aid to needy students not only helps to achieve a higher level of education, but helps to provide a wide diversity of choice to students.

With respect to quality we can boast of leadership on several points. In the Westinghouse science talent search, a nationwide competitive scholarship program, New York State pupils won 35 percent of the scholarship winner awards and 32 percent of the honorable mention awards in 1962, while New York State has only 10 percent of the Secondary pupils in the Nation.

In the national merit scholarship program, another national program, awards are allocated among States in proportion to a population measure.

In this test the index of quality in a State program is not the number of scholarships won, but the qualifying score a pupil must attain to win a scholarship in his State. In 1960 only two States had qualifying scores higher than New York. If the qualifying score had been the

same in New York State as in the average State, the number of New York State winners would have more than doubled.

The number of students in our high school studying the more advanced courses in mathematics increased by more than 70 percent from 1945 to 1960. In science a similar increase has taken place. These gains are nearly three times the increase in total high school enrollment.

In the associated placement program, a nationwide program that provides bright high school students with opportunities to take college level courses during the upper years of their high scohol work, 20 percent of all high schools offering such courses and 25 percent of all pupils in the Nation taking such courses are in New York State.

I could go on with instances of achievement of which we in New York State can be proud. But I am not here for that purpose. I cite these facts simply to show the scope of education in New York State, the great investment in education that has been made by the citizens, and to emphasize how much is at stake, and how much of the future welfare and hopes of the people rests upon the development and progress of our education system.

UNMET NEEDS IN NEW YORK

Our pride of accomplishment is exceeded only by our feeling of concern for the vast array of unmet educational needs in our State. Let me turn now to a brief enumeration of some of the more serious of these needs.

Enrollments in our public schools are continuing to rise at the rate of more than 60,000 pupils per year, creating a continuing shortage of teachers and classroms which we have thus far not been able to overcome. Last year 72,000 boys and girls were forced to attend curtailed daily sessions. Thousands are in classes too large for proper individual attention; far too many are in schools badly needing renovation and repair.

Despite local, State, and National programs for up-dating teachers in service, these programs are too meager to make the impact so urgently needed. I know of nothing more urgent in education today than the need to provide for teachers in service the opportunities for raising the quality of their preparation made necessary by the demands of the changing times.

Teaching materials are rapidly being improved but the pace is painfully slow. Up-to-date, first-rate teaching and learnings materials in all areas of the curriculum are essential if learning opportu nities are to be equal to the needs and abilities of the students. Large sums of money are required not only to produce such materials but to place them at the disposal of teachers and students.

The educational problems in our cities are especially critical. A recent report of a study of New York City schools by State and National educational specialists credited the city's schools with many fine achievements, but pointed to the "staggering problems" they face, and to their struggle against incredible odds to provide education of high caliber. One competent observer has called the educational problems of New York City "so tremendous that they almost defy description"; another has referred to them as "social dynamite.” The

president of the board of education in an address before the board of estimate and the city council in New York on May 2, 1963, stated that the funds allocated by the city for education were not sufficient to make even a "modest dent" in the accumulated school problems of the city. The funds necessary for making a massive dent in the city's school problems must be forthcoming-and soon.

The educational problems of our large cities, such as New York City, are no longer solely the responsibility of local government, nor of State and local governments.

They are a national responsibility created in part by national conditions. The results of neglect of education in these cities reach far beyond local or State boundaries, and their problems must receive the increased attention of the Federal Government as well as that of State and local governments.

Of special concern to New York State, and to the Nation, is the problem of unemployed youth. Our statistics show that unless something is done to change present trends we shall have by 1970 in New York State an estimated 786,000 more young non-high school graduates than the number of jobs available for them. This is truly social dynamite.

SHORTAGE OF EDUCATED MANPOWER

At the same time we shall have an estimated shortage of 243,000 in the numbers of college-educated persons for the jobs requiring that level of education.

To help solve these serious problems of imbalance between education and jobs, the schools will have to upgrade instruction all along the line and provide the kind and quality of programs that will keep more students in school through at least high school graduation. In New York State our successful school to employment program-that is a program for 15-year-old's in the school is making a significant conribution in this direction. But the funds presently available for it are woefully inadequate.

There is a serious need for modernizing and expanding opportunities in vocational education, particularly for industrial-technical training at the secondary school level. Efforts to secure the funds necessary to implement our State plan for vocational education have thus far failed.

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION IN NEW YORK

New York State ranks 12th among the States in percent of population 25 years and older having completed at least 4 years of college. The median school years completed by this age group in New York State is only 10.7. On this score we rank 28th. It is reported that the umber of adults in this State with less than 5 years of school is nearly 00,000. A massive effort is needed to raise the education level of these members of our society.

While New York State citizens have made, as I have pointed out, a relatively strong effort to support their schools, that effort will have to be substantially increased in the years immediately ahead. Estiates indicate that expenditures for public schools will continue to increase by approximately 10 percent annually over the next few years. The State and the localities have done much in the past to provide