Tueday, April 5, 1980; NJN News

The Ford Motor Company drops the other show its plant is closing. Can New Jersey a special program for gifted children be saved. We'll take a closer look. In sports an off season look at the Giants strength program. New Jersey is Cameron. Responding. But Dave made the announcement Ford workers have been dreading is in tonight and it is bad news. The auto giant has decided to close its mahl plant for good. The decision will throw thousands of people out of work and will have a devastating effect on surrounding communities. Reggie Wells was there today when the announcement was made. This plant which sprawls for nearly 15 acres in Marwat has for the last 40 years always employed a workforce of at least 5000. But today many of these workers thought the roof caved in on them. Thirty eight hundred hourly employees were told that

on June 15th the plant would close its doors and the employees would be out of work for good. Ford officials had told the union that if sales should happen to skyrocket in the next two or three years the plant might possibly be reactivated. But the unions are skeptical. One of the reasons for the activation of the MA plan is the tremendous impacts that we are having on imports on the American car sales. I think the whole bulk of the blame my eyes in the administration that is running Washington as I stated earlier I am convinced that this is going. That. These people enter in the Washington administration and in Jimmy Carter's administration have no concept of what's going on in this country for the first year the laid off employees will receive severance benefits from Ford their union and the federal government. Will provide them with.

Full pay for an entire year. But after that they're on their own and they all say the plant closing is disastrous. Right so my taking your wife away from you plan on retiring in Illinois and making $9 an over $9 an hour now you go for a job where you no job is going to be hard for you to find a job making $9 an hour. Very. You think I should be easy. When you said I am not as I do that is out of the question and a question you should be asking is is it going to be hard to find a job. Harry there is no jobs here. There have been reports that a Japanese auto manufacturer has been negotiating with Ford to buy this plant but for company officials in Dearborn Michigan had no comment. Meanwhile plant workers and area merchants seem to be resigned to the fact that this company is going to close its doors in two months and the plant could be vacant for a long time. In my watch I'm read Wells. We all know the old saying If at first you don't succeed try try again. Well now Exxon is rewriting that epigram to read if it forth you don't succeed. Exxon has announced it will begin drilling its fifth exploratory well off Atlantic City by the end of the

month. Exxon's new drilling site is less than five miles from a Texaco well where important natural gas discoveries have been made. We're all feeling inflation type money even higher prices and a slowdown in construction of new homes and apartments. But it's disastrous for the poor and displaced who are finding it harder and harder to survive. A case study from Jack oddity GLONASS Russell and her nine children have been living in two hotel rooms since a fire forced them out of their apartment in Jersey City in February. It cost fifty eight dollars a night and the emergency money she received after the fire has been stopped. Welfare officials say she's had enough time to find a place so she's run out of money and the hotel management doesn't want to hear any stories. They want their money or her family goes on the street. You know what you think you know I don't have anywhere to go you know. And being put on the street is not you know to be just being for them the street is you know.

You know just I'm with one of them tomorrow. That the deadline had been noon today but Hudson County Sheriff John Hill and I literally bought the family 24 hours more. He paid tonight's bill. In the meantime workers from Hudson County legal services the Urban League and even the National Organization of Women have jumped in in a desperate search to find the family a home. And the ruffles aren't alone. I think it's going to happen more and more especially with large families because of the shortage of large family housing in Jersey City especially for low income people. We all know that there's a housing crisis. It hits the poor with large families probably the hardest. Another part of the problem is more complicated. Like other cities in the Northeast Jersey City is trying to attract a middle class that makes sense it's good for the tax base but it also means an increasing shortage of low income housing and people like Mrs. Russell are caught in the squeeze. But the Russells don't have time to worry about the social trends

in Jersey City. They're living hour by hour day by day. No one is sure how many other families like the Russells are in this bind. They're only short that with federal spending cuts and an 18 percent inflation rate there will be more in Jersey City. I'm Jack Connelly. Negotiators in the past labor dispute have been named by President Carter that the three are veteran negotiators Arthur Stark will serve as chairman along with Thomas Christianson and Claire Freedman. She's in 1940 to Rutgers graduate the three are expected to report their findings May 12th. Pennsylvania's governor Dick Thornburgh joined Governor Byrne In a work session today at Morven. The two discussed how they will work together to solve problems that concern both states cannot ahead reports. Both governors admitted they haven't come up with any immediate solutions to their mutual problems but they feel that at least they're headed in the right direction and working together to increase world trade efforts for the Delaware River Port Authority. Both governors agree the DRPA has a

lot of potential and they plan on attending a Port Authority meeting to express their views. The governors also discussed improving mass transit for Philadelphia suburbs of New Jersey and how cleanup efforts underway at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania which is owned by General Public Utilities in New Jersey affects utility rates here whether when. Certain units go back. Oh it has a tremendous impact on rates that maybe choice New Jersey races. So we do have that direct interest. Another concern on Burns mind pollution blown into New Jersey from some industrial sites in Pennsylvania including U.S. Steel's fail us works plant in Bucks County for many years clouds of smoke containing red iron oxide and carbon dust have been floating across the Delaware into Borden town causing the city to join in a federal suit against the corporation for violating air pollution standards. Governor Burns said he and Thornburg have worked out what they called a complicated procedure to tighten anti pollution requirements at the

Fairless plant. What they're talking about is rather than looking at the plant on a stack by stack emission source by emission source basis to look at the plant in the overall as a means of complying with both EPA and our Department of Environmental Resources. The standard the discussion then turned political. Thornberg announcing he will support whoever wins the Republican presidential nomination including front runner Ronald Reagan. Governor Byrne responded by saying Thornburgh has a great career ahead of him. No matter what he does even if he does it with Ronald Reagan. This is the second time in the past 10 months that burn and Thornburg have gotten together to discuss their mutual concerns. Both governors agree that despite the differences in their party affiliation this two day meeting was successful and they plan on doing it again in the future at the governor's mansion in Princeton. I'm can't mount a hand. New Jersey supporters of presidential candidate John Anderson today began circulating petitions to get Anderson's name on the November ballot as an independent. It's the first such

movement in the country and it comes at a time when the candidate is still running as a Republican. Steve Taylor reports. John emissions problem is that if he runs as an independent he will anger Republicans who demand party loyalty. But if he stays Republican and doesn't get the party's nomination this summer he will have missed many state deadlines for filing as an independent. Officially the candidate is still thinking it over. But last night about 35 New Jerseyans organized the nation's first Anderson Independent push. We feel it is extremely important for us to open up the option of running as an Independent in the state of New Jersey. Should he ultimately come for that kind of a decision. The Andersen supporters insist that they don't know what he'll decide. But they are organizing a petition drive designed to set up an independent Anderson candidacy by New Jersey's April 24th filing deadline. The strategy involves getting enough signatures on these petitions so that when all the names are checked soon duplications eliminated. There are 800 qualified signers.

One Anderson supporter is William Schluter who is running for Congress as a Republican twice. So many people not only here tonight but. Everywhere I go saying that in the past few elections they're getting tired of voting against the worse of two evils. Many of the organizers still hope Anderson will get the Republican nomination but they say if the conventions nominate Reagan and Carter Anderson could win as an independent. I think people are dissatisfied with Carter and I don't think Reagan is the answer in Iowa Sanderson is the only and the only way out. I suspect a great many voters who consider themselves independents are moderate in their basic political philosophy and I think John Anderson is very close to the view of many if not most of those independent voters. I believe he would win. Going to put a party label on yourself would you kindly Anderson go and has a look. I'm Steve Taylor. Another one of those sure signs of spring is evident in Newark these days. We are referring to the blooming of the cherry blossom trees and the city has set up a number of events to talk

again with the show. Mother nature is putting on. Included are two and four mile run this Saturday and both bus and guided walking tours through branch park. And now here is the weather forecast for this day. Tonight will be cloudy and breezy with a chance of showers possibly some snow on those cherry blossoms. Lows in the mid to low 40s tomorrow will be partly cloudy windy and cool with highs in the low to mid 50s. And the outlook for Thursday sunny but cool. Oh. Thank

you. And now Bill Barry with baseball and football. Football is coming up here in baseball first today in Montreal seven Mets three Warren Marquis of the Expos had a couple of homers and I thought it was the fellas on Gary Maddox today 700000 a year Yankees play in Chicago tonight question which New Jersey college team has won back to back national titles the answer from Trista desperate in this report. The grounds for a college baseball team has done what no other division 3 baseball team has ever done. Won two national titles in a row. This year they're trying for their third second baseman senior Dondi Joseph was with the team three years ago when a national championship was just a dream. That was then. And now we're kind of getting used to it kind of like a train day. If we don't accomplish it kind of like a little upset about it. But not everybody on this team is a veteran.

This year's team we have a lot of new people in a defensive position so there are some learning situations that say we are suffering growing pains for him. One player who is definitely suffering some pain as a right fielder Steve merry at 6 feet 180 pounds he was also a defensive back for the football team but he says that sport wasn't as rough on him. I really haven't got injured that much in football but baseball this year. I ran through the fence in the first game and down throughout I was not myself out because I'm going through this baseball boom tougher than hopefully winning another national title won't be so tough in Glassboro I'm Trista guess Chris and Glassborow is 12 and 5 thus far this year when college scored a rider over Philadelphia textile 5 4 in 12 minutes how about some offseason football news the Giants do not list the often subline as a draft priority and the NFL draft is exactly two weeks away an off season strength and flexibility program has primarily help the returning office of linemen and some free agents who have been brought in this is Gordon King the number one draft choice

out of Stanford two years ago kings an office of tackle who has yet to reach his potential gordie six six to seventy five. He still figures to be a force to be reckoned with and he feels the offseason program under the direction of Coach Jim Williams has certainly helped his progress. And I notice from a personal standpoint my strength my flexibility is up and so forth and I've also noticed that it's really improved just about everyone that's been participating. It's all supposed to help you in the trenches next season now. You've had some problems that's been canned the first couple of years you've been talking board games a bust as a first round pick. Gordon King's going to be traded. Where do you stand right now. I feel very confident going into this season that I have in every season I've been in no way ever regarded myself as a bust because I just feel I have too much ability to let that ever happen. Injuries have sort of curtailed my participation of course and that's something this whole thing will help me out of. It's I've always lifted weights in the past but never maybe as

seriously as I have here so I think this is a really good in my joints and shape and give me an overall good muscle tone so I'm looking for a. Healthy injury free season in 1980. Yeah I saw it and it's good to see some football again I'm ready for the season but I've got to wait a little while health care. Thank you Bill. And we'll be right back with cats a closer look at all that ahead. This States a so-called thorough and efficient law guarantees every public school student in

New Jersey a decent education and schools are required to find out just how thoroughly and just how efficiently their students are being educated. They find out by giving basic skills test another exam such as a California achievement tests thousands of Trenton's students will be taking that California test. The CAT exam next week. And as Susan these last reports they're gearing up for it in a special way. This may not look like the ideal place for students to improve their basic skills but don't want the costumes or the music fool you. These people and dancers are trying to convey an important educational message. Beat the cat in 1980. Every year some 16000 Tretton students from kindergarten through 12th grade take the cat better known as the California achievement test. It measures knowledge in areas like computation problem solving and language skills. All highlighted unique show put on a grant elementary school

let me know POINT ME MORE WHERE. You are but a lot of punctuation isn't the only thing many trend students seem to have problems with. School officials on happily report their test scores are well below the national average. A big reason for programs like the one today and judging by students we talk to the message got through. Clear cause more crime because we play about in there and we could just think you have never been to do your best. Creation and you don't know reading signs. You never want to get a job in the front row like I said and like I'm not so good in school now but if I study for you know like the test

I think I'll be in I think a lot in my life. Continuing the theme that learning can be fun. The grand finale appropriately included a musical salute to. All. What else. Yeah like. In Trenton I'm Susan these last and last June we presented a two part closer look series on gifted and talented children. Tonight correspondent Gus Henning Berg and Newark has a follow up report. They are the brightest and the most talented. And up to now New Jersey has made a special commitment to the education of our gifted and talented kids. But now the state may go back on that commitment. What. These Union City fifth graders among the estimated 70000 New Jersey schoolchildren identified as gifted and talented. Governor Byrne has

proposed eliminating the hundred thousand dollars state budget item which provides special enrichment programs for the so-called GNT. Boosters of special education for gifted students say the state funds are vital as seed money for much larger federal financial support of GNT programs in New Jersey. An effort has been mounted by the New Jersey Association for the gifted to get the state funds restored. This is our main domino Springfield as president of the association. Her enthusiasm for such special programs would seem to be understandable since all five dominant children ranging in age from nine to 15 have been tested and labeled gifted and talented. But as I talked with them recently the dominant children didn't seem to feel their brightness afforded them any special status. I just learned just not to flaunt it and you know. If you if you don't make it too big of a deal and people don't ask you about it. Do you believe that your normal people.

Really. Know you. Were a little smarter than maybe most but. Certainly not any differently stuff stuff you know and you know. My friends treat me just the same. I mean they pick on me just as much as any man who's just not smart. And I pick on them. Q But it sounds like you're asking for the best of all worlds on the one hand you're saying I want to be treated normally just like everybody else and on the other hand you're saying I want to GNT program especially. When you have it both ways. Oh yeah yeah yeah. Mrs. Dolman herself thinks the proposed cut in state money is a penny wise pound foolish proposition. Well the fighting to get $100000 in back in the budget in terms of public education. That's that's petty cash that's petty cash so she don't get it back. What if you lost lives lost everything because I'm $2000 is all that is there for gifted and talented education the people that are involved probably will find other jobs. That isn't the problem but with them they will

take their years of expertise. The advisory council that's writing rules and regulations and came up with the guidelines all the paperwork that's been involved will be gone. There will be no more educational improvement center gift and talent of course major positions will be eliminated and that will touch a small have nobody will have any place to go for help. Well that the budget process is a political process. It's not an educational process. The governor takes things out of the budget from those areas where he believes there is no political constituency to make him put it back. All right do you interpret his taking all of this money out of the budget to mean you all are politically impotent and it looks that way. However we are I don't know that. It's there again to get it going to make it on their own. You know that's not really all that critical but it is critical to make love and we're really fighting.

Let me let me interrupt you just just now you made the comment that people believe the gifted children can make it on their own. Now to what extent do you think that kind of attitude is responsible for the governor's willingness to just take it out of the budget. It's probably the major factor. What people don't hear about they do hear about the kids that do go on and do well but they don't hear is the percentage of high school dropouts who are gifted they are bored silly. And they just never do in life what they could and should be doing. They don't hear about the child who get so completely turned off and is completely underachieving and they don't realize the number of troublemakers in the classroom that are bored and they're the ones that if they were given the proper kind of stimulation they wouldn't be the troublemakers they wouldn't be the goof offs. And I gather you presume that it is the responsibility of the public education system rather than the parents to try to handle these problems of the gifted child or there's no place else to have them handled.

I get many calls from parents who have looked into private schools and they said that isn't the answer either. And Iraq as a nation advocates the legislature has said we will have these programs. It's easy to run from your school district if they don't have what you want but stay in there and fight for the parents group. Go to your board meetings. Get out run for the bridge of self you know be influential because it's the only way it's going to work. New Jersey star on deficient education laws require local school districts to provide enrichment programs for GNT. The law however is not enforced. Only about 12 percent of kids designated gifted and talented receive any special instruction. Perhaps the worst feature of the threatened pack. Is that whatever limited progress has been made in special education for the gifted will now be lost. And future opportunities for them made more uncertain.

The power to restore the state funds now rests with the legislature's joint Appropriations Committee which held hearings on this question last week Karen. Thank you Gus. Jazz and its history are taken seriously at Rutgers University and Institute of Jazz studies there has been growing since 1966 and today the Institute got a big boost with the acquisition of the Smithsonian Institution's jazz Oral History Program designed to allow musicians to tell their own stories. Sandra King has more. The Smithsonian has sent along seventy nine completed interviews each at least on an hour's long interviews with the aging greats of jazz greats like Alberta Hunter. Now 85 years old and still singing. For the old who were only there. All. Three other old timers whose recorded memories help make up a new collection showed up in

person today to talk a bit and play their music was. Between them and their years in jazz tone nearly one hundred eighty. Sonny Grier played with Ellington and he Durham was part of the basi band and snap mostly was the mom of the originals with Fats Waller. It's not recalled an incident from those old days in Shreveport Louisiana. It was all too typical for black musicians. The place that we were there only came up and introduced us to the Louisiana audience and the way he introduced me ladies and gentlemen you are getting ready to hear it live. When your. Best nigga bands in this country what was your reaction. My reaction I would be mad as hell. You are history program is only one of the institute's facets. It's 50000 recordings comprise the largest permanent collection in the world. Now also our box sheet music historical documents and memorabilia we have

really the lines less well or have a kid or a straw hat. Well apparently Russell's clarinets and Ben Webster's tenor saxophone Royale just trumpet one of Miles Davis trumpets. Then we also have Lester Young's tenor but that's on loan to the Smithsonian. He knew where I'm Sondra. And that's the newest four guys having worked in New York and Bill Perry here in Trenton. I'm Karen St. goodnight for the New Jersey nightly news. New Jersey Nightly News is a joint presentation of New Jersey Public Television and w one of their team.