The Daily' Nebraskan
Wednesday, Feb. 9, 1966
Evaluation
, No. 60
.Book
Be
Published
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1
I FT
m 1
V'" ' Vr
LIBEL . . . and the faculty evaluation book were discussed at a meeting of Dean
Ross's student affairs committee and a University attorney.
AWS Board Extends Visiting Hours
In Women's Residence Quarters
By Toni Victor
Junior Staff Writer
A motion that extends visit
ing hours on Monday through
Thursday in women's residen
ces from 7 p.m. to closing
hours and restricts women
from visiting men's residen
ces (except coed dorms) dur
ing this time, was passed by
the AWS Board at a meeting
Tuesday.
Letters will be sent to
women's residences by the
AWS Board advising that each
residence set up its own reg
ulations on visiting hours
from 7 p.m. until closing.
Vicki Dowling, vice presi
dent of AWS, explained that
out of consideration for the
house mother, who must be
present during visiting hours,
and to promote a study at
mosphere, the Board is sug
gesting individual visiting
hours for the women's resid
ences. These special hours,
however, will be under the
jurisdiction and enforcement
of the residence alone.
The 9:30 to 10:30 p.m. visit
ing hours in men's residences
was eliminted with the excep
tion of the coed dorms. Wom
en will not be able to visit
men's residences at this time
unless special permission is
granted.
The men's hours were elim
inated because the Board felt
Ross Tells Faculty That Evaluation Rook
Could firing Responsibility In Libel Suit
By Julie Morris
Senior Staff Writer
Announcement at the Fac
ulty Senate meeting Tuesday
of the rescinding of the ap
proval of a faculty evaluation
book by the Committee on
Student Affairs drew com
ment from only one faculty
member in attendance.
Edgar Pearlstein, professor
of physics, asked G. Robert
Ross, vice-chancellor and
dean of student affairs who
made the announcement, "Is
this lack of approval due
solely to fear on the part of
the committee?"
R o i answered that the
Committee on Student Affairs
is "in favor of the concept
and the proposal, but not in
favor of placing themselves
in a financially responsible
position."
Ross briefly explained to
the Senate the possibility of
the Committee members be
ing held responsible in a li
bel suit for statements made
in a faculty evaluation book.
"We are interested in dis
cussing other alternatives
with them (the students) at
our next meeting which will
be held Monday," he said.
The Faculty Senate voted
unanimously to accept the
committee report.
Later during the meeting
Ross made an additional
statement about the Commit
tee action on a faculty eval
uation book. He said that the
students saw the venture as
one of their "major" projects
for the year and realizes the
students may be "disappoint
ed and discouraged."
that the practice of visiting
the men's residences during
the one hour was not wide
spread enough to warrant the
inconvenience to housemoth
ers of being present at that
time.
A tentative senior key sys
tem, senior key question
naires, will be distributed and
considerations involving the
proposed system discussed at
special junior-senior meetings
in women's residences some
time this week, the AWS
Board announced.
The questionnaire asks such
questions as: "In your opin
ion, who should be eligible for
key privileges?" and "Should
a minimum grade average be
required of participants?" as
well as whether the student
is in favor of the system at
all.
The tenative senior key sys
tem being sent with the ques
tionnaires was prepared part
ially on the basis of inquiries
into key systems in use at
other schools.
The tentative system states
in part that in order for a girl
to be eligible such must be
registered as a senior, have
written permission from her
parents, and have a 2.0 over
all average.
A report on the survey of
parents regarding aws reg
ulations on closing hours,
"I feel that the students
are, in a reasonable and very
vigorous way, attempting to
place themslves in the main
stream of academic life,"
Ross said.
Ross also urged the faculty
to place themselves in a po
sition where they would be
able to assist and guide stu
dents. His remarks were re
ceived without comment from
the floor.
In other action at the Senate
meeting, Chancellor Clifford
Hardin discussed the Univer
sity budget problems.
He" said projected enroll
ment for the fall semester of
"1966 is "at least 16,009, that
might be conservative," and
that the present budget ap
propriations are being
strained to keep up with the
financial need.
' Hardin explained that the
increased enrollment comes,
not merely from new enroll
ments but because the "re
tention" rate of students is
up. He said that this year 78
per cent of last year's fresh
men became sophomores,
where the former figure was
about 62 per cent.
Hardin explained that the
possibilities of raising new
funds include a possible "de
ficiency appropriation" made
by the state legislature, a
raise in tuition that would be
about $18 to $20 per student
per semester or an "emer
gency fee" assessed of stu
dents as a "one-time only"
measure that might even be
refunded.
"To limit enrollment to fit
our pocketbook would prob
overnights and other related
rules was given by Miss Dowl
ing. Sixty-six questionnaires
were returned by the parents
polled. Miss Dowling stated
that the replies were gen
erally quite conservative and
that most parents felt the
present regulations were
satisfactory.
On the question of unlimited
hours, seventeen parents ob
jected because of health and
study reasons. Eleven parents
voted "yes" for senior keys
while forty-nine said "no."
When asked whether senior
women should have a quota of
late leaves, the vote was
nearly divided on the ques
tion, with 27 parents saying
"yes" and 28 voting "no."
The answers to both sets of
questionnaires will be taken
under consideration by the
AWS Board and a final vote
on the issue will be held on
February 21.
The Board passed a motion
to limit all campaigning for
AWS Board positions accord
ing to procedures set up by
the AWS Board. One member
suggested that these limita
tions specifical prohibit cam
paigning that involved expen
diture of money and mater
ials. The specific limitations
will be decided upon at the
next meeting of the Board. ,
ably mean denying enroll
ment to one-fourth to o n e
third of prospective, fresh
men," Hardin said.
"I hope within the next
three weeks we will have
some definite answers to what
we can do to meet this situa
tion next fall," he concluded.
A report from the Commit
tee on Scholarships and Fi
nancial Aids was questioned
by one faculty member. The
issue under fire was a state
ment of the Committee that
students may be considered
for financial assistance under
the Federal Work-Study Pro
gram "even though they may
not be classified as a poverty
family."
Edward Lundak, director of
aids, said that the aid goes
first to "poverty students"
those whose parents make
"$3,000 to $3,200" yearly.
Then if the University has
money available and open
jobs, the office is allowed to
extend Work-Study Program
aid to students with incomes
in the $5,000, $6,000; $7,000
brackets."
Union To Present
Film Discussion
Nebraska Union film society
will present its second "Film
Forum" Thursday at 7:30
p.m. in the west cafeteria of
the Nebraska Union.
Mrs. David Levine will mod
erate a discussion on "Bay of
Angels," "The Cool World,"
or other subjects pertaining to
the film society or cinema in
general
Neumeister Pledges Publication
Despite Committee Disapproval
By Jan Itkin
Senior Staf Writer
The Committee on Student
Affairs Tuesday passed a
motion withdrawing approval
of the ASUN Faculty-Evaluation
book, but Kent Neumeis
ter, ASUN president, said
that as far as 'he was con
cerned the book will still be
published.
Dr. William Torrence, asso
ciate professor of business or
ganization and management,
made a motion to rescind the
book's approval on the
grounds that individuals on
the Student Affairs Commit
tee can be held legally and
financially responsible in case
of legal action.
His motion stated that "the
Committee on Student Affairs
rescind its approval to t h e
ASUN, previously granted
on Jan. 13, 1966, concerning
the conducting of a faculty
evaluation program. This re
scinding motion is made due
to the possibility of legal lia
bility for libelous matter."
Approval had been granted
to the ASUN Faculty-Evaluation
committee to proceed
with plans for their book at
a previous meeting of the
Committee on Student Affairs
Jan. 13. This week, question
naires for the book were cir
culated to campus living units
by the ASUN committee.
- G. Robert RoSs, vice chan
cellor and dean of student af
fairs, suggested that concern
created over the book arose
after more people became
aware of the book due to re
cent articles in the Daily
Nebraskan and, for that rea
son, the special meeting had
been called to consult with
legal authorities about the
book .
Flavel Wright, a represen
tative of the University's le
gal council, was consulted
and presented certain legal
aspects of the book mainly
that if a faculty members is
dismissed from the Univer
sity and believes that the
Faculty-Evaluation Book was
responsible, he would have a
legal case.
Wright explained that the
hypothetical faculty member
could sue either the staff or
individuals who issue approv
al of the book. He could not
sue the Board of Regents,
however, in that the Regents
Panel Topic:
Future Of
Republicans
Secretary of State Frank
Marsh, Lincoln City Council
man John Mason and Omaha
Attorney Robert Kutalc will
appear on a panel discussion
of the "Future of the Repub
lican Party" at 7:30 Thurs
day, in the Nebraska Union.
Sponsors of the panel are
the University Young Repub
licans. Each of the three panelists
will consider three or four
predetermined questions be
fore the meeting: is opened to
questions from the audience.
Mason, a Lincoln attorney,
beaded the Nebraska effort
in Gov. Nelson Rockefeller's
1964 presidential: bid. He has
been active in Republican af
fairs in Lancaster County
for some time.
Marsh has consistently been
his party's top vote-getter in
general elections and has been
Secretary of State for 13
years.
Kutalc served on the staff
of Nebraska Sen. Roman
Hruska for six years, resign
ing in late 1964 after assisting
in the Senator's re-election
campaign. His last two years
of service were as adminis
trative assistant to Hruska.
He has been practicing law
in Omaha since leaving
Hruska's staff.
are considered "an arm of
the state and the state can
not be sued."
The question arose as to
whether or not such a suit
could be won and Wright ad
mitted that the chance is
"slight" but added that "ev
en if the University had a
complete defense, the case
would be troublesome.' '
When asked what would
happen if the responsibility
for approving the book was
transferred to Faculty Senate,
Wright pointed out that, if
such were the case, Faculty
Senate could be held respon
sible since "it could prevent
publication if it so desired."
"It would depend then on
who was named in the suit,"
Wright continued and added
that only individuals who
were specifically named in the
suit would be responsible.
"I couldn't care less if oth
ers would also be held re
sponsible," commented Tor
rence. "Spreading the heat to
my colleagues and dragging
800 others into the liability
boat wouldn't relieve my per
sonal liability a bit."
Ladd Lonnquist, chairman
of the ASUN Faculty-Evaluation
Committee, noted, "My
lawyer said that a committee
concerned with the book could
not be sued as a committee
but that an individual name
ly myself would be held re
sponsible." Ross pointed out that any
individual could be held re
sponsible for the decisions of
a committee on which he was
a member.
The question then arose as
to whether the Subcommittee
on Student Publications could
Senate
Studies
Housing
A report on international
student housing will be pre
sented Wednesday to Student
Senate by Sen. Terry Schaaf,
chairman of the public is
sues committee.
The committee has been
working on the report since
September and has compiled
the report from interviews
with individuals connected
with the foreign student pro
gram and foreign students
themselves, according to Sch
aaf. "We wanted to see why a
problem of housing existed
and what could be done
about it," he continued. "We
have proposed recommenda
tions to the University, the
city and the offices of hous
ing and foreign students. If
ASUN passes our proposals,
we then plan to make sure
that the responsible parties do
something about the quality of
foreign student housing."
Representatives from the
city planning department and
the University housing office
will be present at the meet
ing, Schaaf said.
"One thing we're trying to
accomplish through the re
port," he added is to estab
lish channels of communica
tion between students and the
City Council," he added.
Scripts Ready
For KK Show
Scripts are available in the
placement office in the Ne
braska Union for parts in the
Kosmet Klub production
"How To Succeed In Business
Without Really Trying."
Tryouts for Che major parts,
three men and three women,
and the 16 supporting parts
will be Feb. 17, 18 and 19.
The show, which w i 1 1 be
held in Pershing Auditorium,
is March. 25 and 26.
be liable for what was print
ed in publications which they
had approved.
"I was under the under
standing that, as a member
of Pub Board, I could not be
held responsible for what
publications under our juris
diction printed," said Terry
Schaaf.
Wright answered that if
something could not be print
ed without approval, then
whoever gave the approval
held the responsibility.
"This is the first answer
we have ever received on this
question of liability," Tor
rence said.
Ross explained that P n b
Board did not serve as a cen
sor to student publications
but served "to approve a
staff, organization and
production rather than con
tents" and cited the Daily
Nebraskan as an example.
W'right replied that accord
ing to the law "Pub Board
still retains liability."
Neumeister said, "We were
fully cognizant of the possi
bility of libel, but thought that
the Chances of someone being
awarded a damages in such
a case were doubtful."
"It would seem to be a pret
ty stiff risk," Torrence com
mented. Schaaf explained that of
about 20 universities having
similar faculty-evaluation
books, he had not learned of
any legal actions comparable
to the ones suggested as pos
sibilities. Insurance to cover lawsuits
resulting from books of this
type were discussed and Ross
pointed out that of the three
international insurance
groups contacted, all refused
to insure the project but first
had quoted policies beginning
at "$100,000 deductible."
The question of how far li
ability did extend concerning
ASUN To Decide Action
On Future Of Handbook
Student Senate Wednesday
will decide on which of five
steps it should adopt concern
ing the Committee on Student
Affairs' withdrawal of permis
sion to publish the Faculty
Evaluation Book.
Kent Neumeister president
of ASUN, and Ladd Lonn
quist, chairman of the ASUN
Faculty - Evaluation commit
tee, cited the following alter
natives: The project could be
dropped.
The project could be mod
ified by publishing only the
favorable rating, by not pub
lishing the evaluations but
turning them into the instruc
tors, or by having instructors
ed.
Omaha Seniors
To Visit Campus
Over 600 seniors from Oma
ha area public and parochial
high schools will find out
about college life first hand
at the University's Senior In
formation Day, Saturday.
Students will learn about
course work by actually par
ticipating in classroom ses
s i o n s . Classes in history,
psychology, languages, sci
ence, journalism, mathe
matics, art and music will be
offered. Lunch at the Nebras
ka Union and a tour of the
residence halls on campus
will conclude the program.
Students from the following
schools will attend:
Bellevue, Boys Town, Mil
lard, Archbishop Ryan, Ben
son, Central, Holy Name,
Burke, Marian, Mercy, North,
Cathedral, St. Joseph's, West
side, Papillion, Gretna and
students from other schools
who were unable to attend
previous programs.
publications was brought up
by Dr. Robert Larson, assist
ant professor of chemistry.
"How far does this ex
tend?" he asked. "How far
can we actually go within lim
its of proper procedure?"
Ross suggested that the
committee usually acted on
the assumptions that govern
ed the Daily Nebraskan and
Cornhusker, but that an eval
uation book involved "other
terms."
Wright pointed out, "You
realize that the potential risk
involved cannot be possibly
eliminated if the book is pub
lished," and that the book
differed from a newspaper in
that newspapers receive dif
ferent types of consideration
from their readers than do
annual reports.
Neumeister said that the
nacessity for receiving admin
istration approval to publish
when individuals on the board
"held vested interests in the
project" (such as liability to
law suits) was an "antiquated
idea," and that as far as he
was concerned, the book
would still be published.
Torrence wished the stu
dents luck and hoped they
would continue to "work with
the good taste and judgment"
they had previously assured
the Student Affairs Commit
tee would be used in writing
the book.
Ross urged the students to
feel free to come to the com
mittee for any advice they
may need and to discuss any .
alternatives they might pro
pose. "In all fairness, it should
be clearly understood," Tor
rence stressed, "that the de
cision was reachd on the ba
sis of new information. As
reasonable men, we have no
alternative. The change was
not one of sympathies but one
of practicality."
The project could contin
ue without official sanction. .
The project could be ap
pealed before the Board of
Regents.
Or the project could be
done on a commercial basis.
"I am sure that the Student
Senate will take appropriate
action," Lonnquist said.
"Personally I'm more de
termined than ever to have
the book published," he con
tinued. "I was tremendously
disappointed in the decision
of the Student Affairs Com
mittee, but not entirely dis
couraged." He urged students to pro
ceed in filling out their ques
tionnaires "in the hope that
they will be utilized" in pub
lication. "Fill them out and then re
turn them to the ASUN com
mittee," he stressed. "We an
ticipate an enthusiastic re
sponse to the questionnaires.
The evaluation book can be
considered everybody's pro
ject." Swanson Files
For Third Term
Clarence Swanson has com
pleted his filing for re-election
to a third term on the
University's Board of Re
gents. Swanson, 66, of L i n c o 1 n,
represents the First District
which includes Lancaster,
Johnson, Pawnee, Cass, Otoe,
Nemaha and Richardson
counties.
He is president of Hovland
Swanson's, a Lincoln ready-to-wear
firm.
Swanson was first elected
to the Board of Regents in
1954 and was re-elected in
1960. He is currently president
of the group.
.....
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