Three Student Groups to Initiate Literacy Campaign in Selma, Ala.

Student volunteers will conduct an adult literacy campaign this summer in Selma, Ala., in the heart of the southern "black belt." The immediate aim of the project is alleviation of widespread functional illiteracy, but the ultimate purpose is to make more Negroes qualified to vote.

According to The New Republic there are 30,000 Negroes and 25,000 whites in Dallas County, where Selma is located, but about 130 Negroes and 7,000 whites on, the voting rolls. The sponsors of the project say that of 13,681 illiterates in the county, 10,735 are Negroes.

Establishment of the project was announced recently by the three sponsoring organizations, the National Student Association, Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, and Northern Student Movement.

Funds Being Sought

Funds are now being sought to finance the students' training and living expenses, and to purchase teaching materials. About $10,000 is needed to support six volunteers and the project director, Mary Varella, a former SNCC worker, according to Joel Sharkey, NSA National Affairs Vice President.

The student teachers will be selected at the end of this month from among applicants now being solicited. Those chosen will undergo a rigorous training program for the rest of the school year, including participation in NSM tutorial projects and seminars in the teaching of literacy to adults.

Seima Typical

Selma was chosen for the project because it has the typical black belt problem of massive functional illiteracy among Negroes, and because the Negro population has been awakened by a voter registration drive SNCC is conducting in the area.

SNCC's voter registration drive has provoked violent reactions among whites in Selma. A SNCC newsletter dated Dec. 30 warns that students interested in working in Selma "must be prepared to spend time in jail."

The sponsors of the literacy project, however, do not expect a great deal of trouble. They will not work through the SNCC organization in Selma, but through a Catholic missionary group, Sharkey said. He noted that Miss Varella has visited Selma several times, and is attempting to enlist the support of white moderates for the project.

The summer project will not merely be a one-shot effort, Sharkey said. In addition to teaching literacy, the students will also instruct local people in the techniques of teaching. In this way, it is hoped, the project will become self-sustaining, and even spread beyond Dallas County, Sharkey said.

At the conclusion of the pilot project this summer additional funds will be sought to maintain the campaign, Sharkey said.