OCTOBER 4 - 10,1987 THE
•
az e
om Coral • W tt
Frazier H. Kimpson cur­
rently holds the position of
Deputy Director of the
unicipal Parking Depart­
ment, City of Detroit
Prior to his appointment
with the city, he was former
director of the Detroit office,
Michigan Youth Corps and
erved as the DMHS repre­
sentative to the Governors
Commission on Welfare
Reform.
13th Distrl�t
Democratic
. Party chair
Kimp on currently serves
as chair of the 13th District
Democratic Party.
Frazier H. Kimpson is a na­
tive of Detroit, married and
the father of four.
He received his bachelors
degree in math from
Morehouse college in Atlanta,
Georgia, and his masters de­
gree from the University of
Detroit. He has spent his life
teaching and working on civic,
political and community
projects.
Deputy Director
ualcl I Parkin
Jl.llUllphn,.nt, could you tell u
a Uttle about the trueture of
De at and its func-
�"'''QlOD: The unicipal
Parking Department is divided
into two divisions. Parking en­
forcement, with a staff of
civilians who write tickets, and
processing and collection. The
Municipal Parking Depar -
ment operates on a budget of
23 million dollars. There is
also an auto parking division
that manges several garages
and parking 10 for the city.
W tt: What re t e funds
coil ted, u ed for?
m on: The funds
generated go into the general
fund and thus can be used for
any number of things.
men
hi e?
imp on: I'm just sorry the
strike exists. Everyone loses in
a trike. A strike not only ef­
fects the lives of students, but
also the lives of the teachers
and principals. The youth of
Detroit are the key to the fu­
ture ot this city and to the fu­
ture of America.
m on: Tho federal
government has cut many
programs designed to help
specific targeted populations
of children, who have specific
problems, from the learning
disabled to the illiterate. Cer­
tainly educating our young
people and adequately com­
pensating those with the
responsibility of educating our
young people has not been
made a national priority .
Strikes are not unusual. There
are many educators in various
cities who want higher wages.
Their wages should allow
them to meet their financial
responsibilities. Most impor­
tantly, the salaries of teachers
and other workers should be
negotiated at the bargaining
table.
Watt: As fonner Detroit
Director of the Mlch
Youth Corps, your goal to
prepare young peop for th
o lace. t oold you
y Is the best means of et­
ti miDority youth Into the
mainstream of the orkpl ce?
Kimpson: The key factor in
getting young people better
jobs is education. We must
concentrate on the schools.
Parents must become more in­
volved in education, not just
by dropping their children off
at the door of the school.
---
•
m
son
Mostly I would say I was in­
fluenced by my teachers, the
teachers I had within the
public school system.
Teachers used to really
preach the theme of going to
college trying to better your­
self and thereby paving the
way for others. They under­
stood that the survival of our
race depends on how well we
help the enxt generation.
When you constantly hear this
from people you respect, you
believe it.
Watt: Ho do you feel the
public ehool s tem ha
chan d from the time hen
you re student within the
ystem?
very particular, in fact they are
becoming more stringent. A
student must show courtesy.
and respect during an inter­
view. The Youth Corps also
provides vocational training.
The young people in the
Corps had a wide variety of ex­
periences: working on con­
struction sites with plumbers,
bricklayers, wire workers;
working in offices as typists,
clerks and administrative assis­
tants; orking in hospitals.
Police cadets worked with the
police department. They per­
formed a variety of duties
such as walking senior citizens
to the store or to the bank.
We also had some students in
the school sytem and various
city departments. And, we had
not one complaint. The only
criteria that a young person
must fulfill to become a aprt
of the Youth Corps is the per­
son must be between the ages
of 18 and 21, a resident of
Michigan and unemployed.
Wi tt: Could yo cement
bri Oy on t goal you et
for you If to your
present I
Kimpson: I was born on
the east side of Detroit, better
known as the Blac Bottom
during my time. It used to be
the area for Black poor
families. My father was' a
migrant worker from
Oglethorpe, Georgia. There
were 12 children in my family
and we all attended public
schools. As far back as I can
remeber I wanted to go to col­
lege. My parents had instilled
IIEducation is the key to the
survival of the Black race,"
Kimpson: The public
school system is excellent. It
has changed in that it has had
to meet the demands of
children. Meaning, there is
now a different population of
parents. Parents today are 17,
16 and under. The school sys­
tem is trying to meet this
need. There is always alot of
work to do in educating
children. The public school
system is developing new tech­
niques as are the teachers.
Teachers are always looking
for new methods through fur­
ther education, workshops,
etc. I think teachers deserve a
medal.
Parents need to give tod y's
students more guidance than
in the past.
The Michigan Youth Corps
had a number of summer train­
ing sessions to help students
develop job seeking skills.
They were instructed in how
to speak, what to wear --- your
basic employability skills. The
program has been very suc­
cessful. The young people who
worked for the Youth Corps
have a very high job success
rate. Employers want students
with prior wor experience.
They're looking for omeone
with a history of coming to
work on time and ready to
work. I have found that
employers are more than
happy to hire Youth Corps stu­
dents. It takes courage and
confidence to find a job. A stu­
dent must be able to fill out
applications without errors.
Personnel director today are
certain goals within me. They
felt that even if I only reached
half my goals I would have ac­
complished something.
I knew pretty early on that
I wanted to be a teacher.
Teaching means giving some­
thing bac to the community.
Education is the key to the
survival of the Blac race.
Education, I feel, is vitally im­
portant because the American
system has made it so. If you
want to make it in our society,
you must have some formal­
ized training.
I was average, however, all
the way through high school.
And I found college very dif­
ficult, but I had an inner drive
to finish and succeed. This
drive gives me the impetus to
seek help. I participated in
various tutoring programs,
sought help from other stu­
dents and didn't let myself get
behind
form r repre-
to th 0 rnor'
\VI Ifare
Kimp 00: I was part of the
staff of the Commission for
three months. Members were
chosen from the community. I
was a representative from the
labor department. My job was
to help organize workshops
and retreats. I was also re­
quired to do some writing and
compiling of testimony. The
commission is reviewing the
entire welfare system. The
major thrust of the commis­
sion is to get those who can
work off welfare ---those who
have skills and want to work.
Contrary to popular belief,
recipients want to work. Many
want to find jobs. However,
they have not had the oppor­
tunity nor training. Most also
need childcare. All these is­
sues will be examined. It
should be very interesting to
read.
Watt: ch ir 0 th 13th
Di trict Democratl Party
could you tell u a littl about
th pon ibilitie uch a
p itio en iI?
/
a
s of
p 00: The 13th District
is one f 1 Congressional dis­
tricts. hey are all under the
umbrella of the Democratic
Party. Delegates to the state
and national convention ar
. selected from these district . I
deal with social i sues that ef­
fect the lives of the p opl
within the district. inf rm
ourselves on all issu im­
aginable. I have pl nned no­
drug rally for next ye r. I ?av
also instituted a sub--coffiltt e
of the 13th District known a
the Young Democrats. I Iso
plan to pic an element ry
school class at Christm nd
play Santa Claus. As chair I
speak to high school civic cl -
ses and I try to inspir our
young people. I vie this all
part of the no-drugs cam-
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