Black employees to join suit vs. U. over scholarships

The African American Association of Faculty, Staff and Administrators will join a public interest group's imminent lawsuit against the University, claiming it does not provide enough scholarships to needy Philadelphia high schoolers. "We believe the University is not fulfilling its responsibility as is laid out in the legislation and contracts," AAAFSA Tri-chairperson James Gray said this week. "We do not see a significant presence of Philadelphians as students at this university." The Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia is planning to file suit against the University, charging that it is not holding up its end of an agreement with the city to provide "Mayor's Scholarships." General Counsel Shelley Green said earlier this week that the University had not been served with the complaint. A series of city ordinances and agreements since 1882 require the University to give out the monetary equivalent of 125 full scholarships each year to Philadelphia students in exchange for land. On August 1, 1977, the University consolidated all the previous ordinances and agreed "to establish and forever maintain at least 125 four-year full-tuition scholarships, or their equivalent." But the University and PILCOP disagree over whether the University should provide a total of 125 scholarships in any one year, or should set up 125 new four-year scholarships each year. "The heart of it is 125 four-year full tuition scholarships to be awarded annually by the mayor," PILCOP attorney Tom Gilhool said last week. "In any given generation there should be 500." Gray said his group support's PILCOP's effort to increase the number of scholarships to 500. Hackney said at last week's University Council meeting that he had met with Mayor Goode in June "to review our implementation of these scholarships, and both the University and the City agree that we are meeting our commitments."

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