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Wednesday, January 31, 1968
University of Nebraska
Vol. 91, No. 53
Jaywalkers ouimode automobiles;
City Council vacates 14th Street
Closing date delayed
until summer for
problem street
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Students on 14th Street hurry to avoid cars. The street will close to vehicular traffic from "R" to Vine this summer.
Draft law expected to decrease
number of grad students next fall
By Mark Gordon
Senior Staff Writer
University academic departmen
tal chairmen are anticipating a de
creased number of graduate stu
dents to be enrolled in their re
spective departments as the new
draft law goes into effect.
The new law, passed by the pre
ceding session of Congress, states
that men receiving a B.A. degree,
completing their first year of
graduate work or receiving an ad
vanced degree will be ineligible
for deferment after this year.
In preparation for next fall's
graduate student enrollment, the
University's graduate college and
Office of Institutional Research
has distributed a 13 question sur
vey to its graduate students.
Draft Survey
"We're surveying the present
as nearly as we can the draft
status and future plans of each
person currently enrolled," said
James Olson, dean of the gradu
ate college.
The survey, which Olson expects
to be completed by Feb. 5, will
indicate the degree objective,
marital status, draft status, work
assignment and year each gradu
ate student plans to complete his
current degree objective.
"I assume we will have a re
duction in the number of gradu
ate students here," he said, "since
the national reduction of graduate
students would have its local ap
plication here."
Year's Plan
Although he was unable to say
what the precise effect of the new
draft law would be, Olson said the
survey would "be used as a means
to help us plan for next year."
Olson said 2,030 students were
enrolled in the graduate college
during the first semester of the
current academic year.
Although all departmental chair
men are cautiously awaiting next
fall, some feel the situation is
more critical in their departments.
Mathematics
"The new draft law may crip
ple the mathematics department
because much of our undergradu
ate teaching is done by graduate
assistants," said Edwin Halfar,
chairman of the mathematics de
partment. He said all of the 50 current
graduate assistants are involved
in teaching and since only five or
six are in the upper age bracket
with families, the department is
particularly vulnerable.
He said possible alternatives to
meet the expected shortage of
graduate students include tele
vision teaching, larger class or a
restriction on the size of the
classes.
English
"The new law will threaten us
and we're quite apprehensive
about what it may do next year,"
said Dudley Bailey, chairman of
the English department.
He said he didn't expect the
teaching situation to be affected
greatly since the department em
ploys a majority of persons who
have already received their mas
ter's degrees and aren't likely to
be drafted.
He said it's not likely many of
the 100 students enrolled in the de
partments Doctor of Philosophy
program would be greatly af
fected by the law, but "theoreti
M.A. program could be called."
"Who knows what's going to
happen," Henry Gr ether, dean
of the college of law said
"There are a lot of different view
points, but some of it has to do
with what happens in the war
from now until next September."
He said ail but nine of the 300
law students are males and that
he suspected most of them would
be classified 1-A, although many
are enrolled in the ROTC pro
gram. Richard W. Tyler, chairman of
the department of romance lan
guages, said the expected short
age of teachers wouldn't be as
acute in his department since
almost half of the 24 current
graduate assistants teaching are
girls.
Zoology
Unlike the romance languages,
"the law could possibly affect us
rather seriously." said Thomas
Thorson, chairman of the depart
ment of zoology and physiology.
"There is really no place to go
since we depend on people apply
ing," he said, "They won't all be
taken, but there will probably be
more reliance on girls, people be
yond draft age and those unsuited
for the draft."
AS UN's study of pass fail system
shows changes needed for success
BY Jan Parks
Senior Staff Writer
The present pass-fail program i
only an initial step toward im
proving the University's grading
system, according to Craig Dreez
en, chairman of the asun commit
tee on Education said Tuesday.
Without improvements, the pres
ent pass-fail program will con
tinue to be inadequate, he said.
Dreezen noted that only 92 stu
dents from the University's stu
dent population of 18,000 partici
pated in the pass-fail program
last semester, and he said, "the
present pass-fail program is not
as good as it should be."
Report Prepared
He explained that a pass-fail
evaluation report, prepared by the
Committee on Education, will be
presented to the Student Senate
this week to the Chancellor, Vice
Chancellor and Dean of Faculties,
and to the college advisory boards.
"The report contains informa
tion from questionaires which were
presented to 70 of the 92 students
who were enrolled in the program
last semester and to 300 Univer
sity students who have never par
ticipated in the pass-fail program,"
Dreezen said.
"The purpose of these question
aires was to find out exactly why
more students didn't participate
in pass-fail' and what students
thought about the protgram."
Electives Used
Responses to the questionaires -showed
that 54 per cent of the
students not participating in pass
fail indicated that they did not
participate because as juniors or
seniors (only student of junior
standing or above are allowed to
participate in pass-fail) they had
used most of their elective hours.
Hours that fulfill major, minor,
or college requirements are not
eligible for the present pass-fail
program.
The questionaires showed that
74 per cent of those who had nev
er taken pass-fail courses were
dissatisfied with the present pro
gram because the requirements
for enrollment in pass-fail are too
strict and because too few courses
are offered under the pass-fail
program.
Students Dissatisfied
For the same reasons, 57 per
cent of the pass-fail participants
were dissatisfied. "Nearly all of
the students who filled out the
gram expanded',' Dreezen stated.
Asked about their reaction to
taking a pass-fail course, 82 per
cent of the participants an
swered favorably. Most partici
pants said that pass-fail allowed
them to learn without worrying
about grades, Dreezen said.
"This is the rationale behind
pass-fail," Dreezen explained, "to
allow students to take personal
initiative to learn without fear of
sacrificing their grade point av
erage." System Carries Prestige
Dreezen said that the committee
had contacted 25 of the "prestige
schools"' that had a pass-fail system.
"Most of these schools have
more liberal requirements for stu
dents to enroll in pass-fail
courses," he said, as he pointed
out that most of these schools al
low sophomore as well as junior?
and seniors to participate in the
pass-fail program.
The chairman said that the
sentiments of most teachers who
the committee contacted were in
agreement with teh need for an
expanded pass-fail program.
Expansion Makes Benefits
Dreezen admitted that the Uni
versity's four point grading sys
tem has certain advantages, but
he felt that an expanded pass-fail
program would be very beneficial,
especially in courses such as art
and music.
"Too often students are reluc
tant to compete with music or art
majors because they feel that
taking courses in these areas will
hurt their grade average." Dreez
en said, "Consequently many stu
dents miss an opportunity to ex
pand their education."
(Editor's Note: This is the
first of a three-part series con
cerning the expansion and de
velopment plans of the University.
Tomorrow's story deals with the
actual plans for future develop
ment.) By Jim Evinger
Senior Staff Writer
The automobile has finally
yielded to jaywalkers and cross
walking pedestrians of the Uni
versity student body.
At five o'clock Tuesday after
noon, a Lincoln city ordinance
was scheduled to go into effect va
cating 14th Street, which bisects
the campus north and south be
tween the Nebraska Union and
Administration buildings. The clos
ing runs from R to Vine Streets.
The effects of the action will be
felt for the rest of the Univer
sity's future.
Though the three block long
strip will not actually be closed
to vehicular traffic until this sum
mer, the acquisition of the prop
erty from the City by the Univer
sity is an initial step in imple
menting a comprehensive plan of
campus expansion and develop
ment. Vacated
According to Robert Obering,
city engineer, the city vacated the
strip Tuesday, as agreed to be
tween the city and Board of Re
gents. Only when the city gives
the University a deed to the prop
erty will the street actually be
closed. This is likely to take place
this summer, according to Mayor
' Schwartzkopf's office.
It was University Chancellor
Clifford Hardin who testified be
fore the City Council on Jan. 7
that the University needed a defin
ite commitment from the city on
its intentions on 14th Street and
that closing the street was a mat
ter of urgency.
The University's plans for ex
pansion state the premise that
"there can be no sound develop
ment of the Universty that does
not include closing 14th, 16th and
17th and some of the cross streets,"
Hardin testified.
Agreement
The agreement the city and the
Board of Regents signed calls for
traffic to be handled on an interim
basis by routing southbound traffic
from 14th Street to 16th Street by
way of Vine Street. Northbound
traffic will be routed on 10th
Street and 17th Street.
The agreement states that the
University will not ask for the va
cating of 16th and 17th Streets un
til the scheduled Northeast Radial
and Holdrege Bypass are com
pleted. In the meantime, under the
agreement, the University will not
object to the creation of special
assessment districts to facilitate
the resurfacing of 16th Street from
Y to R and 17th from Court Street
south to R.
The University also agreed to
cooperate in the construction of a
third traffic lane at the south edge
of Vine Street between 14th and
16th Streets.
1920
As vital and recent as the clos
ing of 14th Street is to University
expansion plans, several major
suggestions made in 1920 regard
ing future University development
and expansion have not yet been
accomplished.
Relocation of the Rock Island
Railroad, and control and develop
ment of the strip from 10th to 17th
Streets, between R and Q, for stu
dent housing, college shops and
other complementary facilities,
still remain from 1920 as major
objectives today.
In 1926 under the "Seymour
plan" the Stadium Mall from the
Stadium to 14th Street, the Quad
rangle Mall from 12th to 14th
Streets, the Library Mall to the
Coliseum and the vista from R
Street to the Columns, wera
created.
The opencss and the grand scale
of the malls have preserved space
for inward expansion of the aca
demic core and maintenance of a
pedestrian campus.
In 1964 the University retained
the firm of Taylor, Lieberfeld and
Heldman, Inc., educational consul
tants, to undertake a detailed space
study of the Univei sity, and to
determine the needs to accommo
date a projected enrollment of 25,
000 students.
In 1966 the Houston firm of Cau
dill, Rowlett Scott, architects,
planners, and engineers, was em
ployed by the University to im
plement the 1964 study through
the development of a comprehen
sive campus planning study.
Improvements
In addition to simply accommo
dating more students, the design
ers were made with the intention
of improving the physical plant
both city and east campuses.
The extensive analysis in the
Taylor, Lieberfeld and Heldman
report clearly defined the major
problems of the University as de
ficiencies in building space and
land, and in campus and urban
environments. The problem is
complicated by the division of the
east and city campuses, and by
the amount of land available for
the development on east campus.
"The unlimited area for growth
on that campus has tended to dis
perse new development, continu
ing the pattern of a low density,
spacious, almost rural-like charac
ter," the Houston firm's report
states.
Area
"The city campus is hemmed
in on all sides and is beginning
to build high-rise buildings in or
der to provide the necessary fa
cilities," the report continues.
The report cited the inherited
grid system of city streets which
interlace the campus area, not
only fostering circulation prob
lems, but also hindering the pos
sibility of using the valuable right-of-way
for building sites and
open space for pedestrians.
The environmental deterioration
both academic and residence, and
the industrial use, including rail
road facilities, in the area is an
other barrier to growth.
Proposals
In seeking to solve these inher
ent problems Caudill, Rowlett. Scott
proposed eight concepts, all of
which were based on the idea of
either centralized or decentralized
concentrations of functions and
facilities on the two campuses.
The concept adopted will main
tain a unified University on the
city campus, with the exception
of Agriculture and Home Econo
mics. The College of Law. Dentis
try, special agricultural facilities
and the department of continuing
education are included in the east
campus design.
The findings of the Taylor, Lie
berfeld and Heldman report were
the basis for the adopted concept.
Those findings include: 1. An an
ticipated enrollment of 18.000 stu
dents by 1967-68; 20.000 by 1970
and 25.000 during the 70s; 2. A
rapid expansion in the graduate
and selected professional schools,
more than in the undergraduate
divisions; 3. Plans should antici
pate space for housing up to 50
of the student body, not including
requirements for fraternities and
sororities, when .enrollment
reaches 25.000 : 4. Space require
ments will approximate 6.3 mil
lion net square feet, compared to
the 3.3 million net square feet
available in 1964-1965.
Previous Expansion
In the 1920 expansion, Bessey
Hall, Social Sciences and Teach
ers College buildings were completed.
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