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DOBBS of the Chattanooga Central Labor Union, HOLLIS REID, Legislative Representative of the Railroad Brotherhood, LEWIS JONES of Fisk University, Recent additions ‘to ‘the Executive Council ‘are JOE” GEORGE MAYHEW, Vanderbilt University, and F. C. PIEPER, Louisiana CIO - Regional Director. Of these additions JOE DOBBS has been reported to be. active in the Commnist Party at Chattanooga for the past four or Five © oe years while the others are know to be liberals but not known ‘to be connected | vith the Communist Party. 7 - a SOURCE OF FUNDS . . The school operates” on a budget ‘of: approximately $12, 000 per year of which one-third comes from the bank account nainveined in the Amalgamated Bank of New York, the source of which is unknown but believed to be from various benefits and concerts sponsored by the High= ~ lander Folk School in Washington and New York City. Another one-third is derived from various foundations and prominent educators and political leaders) among which are the W, C. Whitney Foundation, Robert Marshal . oundation, John Hammond, WALTER FRANK, ELEANOR ROOSEVELT and MARY C The balance of the contributions comes from various Liberals, labor mnions,- front organizations, and persons interested in labor, Most of these... . aaa ot latter donations are of $10 or less, The total number of contributers ae is approximately five hundred Personse a Q a . wa wo woo 2 oo e - Pat - Qe a INDICATIONS OF COMMUNIST INFLUENCE IN THE ‘PROGRAM OF THE SoHo ao ‘A study of the program of the Highlander Folk School . indicates that the school followed the Commnist Party line to a certain © degree. The school was organized at a time when the Commmists and Socialists had a program for united front organizations for persons who were dis- | #3. satisfied with the country's political and economic conditions. At the = time that the Communist Party advocated the policy of the United Front © *- Progran, it is impossible to determine how much influence | the ‘Party exerted ; over the ‘schools mo ’ “ wt Ts 4. = — a _ The members of the Highlander Folk School staff Us Vusgay backed front organizations such as the Southern Conference for © Human Welfare and the Tennessee Conference for Democracy, and individual .- members were active in Labor's Non-Partisan League, Southern Negro Youth Congress, and many other organizations. At this time the school was a - meeting place for various persons who were employed by the Tennessee Valley Authority at Knoxville, Tennessee, and was frequently visited by such well-knom Communists as ROBERT HALL of Birmingham, Alabama, and TED WELLMAN of Chattanooga, Tennessee. In Monteagle during this period there was formed a Young Communist League chapter.