Law School woes
For the past 15 or 20 years, at least, Ne
braska has been decrying the loss of its young
people and its talented people. One of the
goals of Governor Tiemann's Administration
(and probably his predecessors also) has been
to keep young people in the state by increas
ing job opportunities. It seems inconsistent,
therefore, that the state administration, the
Legislature, the Regents and the University
administration are doing little or nothing to
better provide for an institution which DOES
keep young, talented people in Nebraska.
I refer to the University of Nebraska Law
School. In the past decade, the law school has
tripled its enrollment. But in those ten years,
the school has added only one member to its
faculty and still occupies the same old build
ing. In 1969, the law school could have ad
mitted 300 qualified students from its GOO
applicants. In the end, 163 freshmen were
admited to the overcrowded and understaffed
school. In the overall University, the student
teacher ratio for freshmen is 20 to 1 and in
the graduate schools 12 to 1. But in the law
school the ration is 23 to 1. Some classes have
as many as 90 students and a public address
system must be used. Library space is so
limited that the' school has trouble meeting
National Bar Association standards for seat
ing space for students. This is the situation in
the law school which supplies greater Ne
braska with 80 per cent of its lawyers.
Obviously it is difficult for the law school
to maintain the standards of a good law school
with the high student-teacher ratio, overflow-'
ing library and generally poor facilities. While
law schools at other midwestern universities
arc planning new plants, the NU law school
is cluttered with materials for improvising
on the improvisations of the remodelling job
of 1948. The building needs of the University
seem infinite and a new law college is in
future plans. The question is, when will the
Legislature appropriate enough money to
meet this need. And in the meantime, what
are the state's attorneys doing to speed up the
process?
University budgets in the past two bi
ennia have been far below the University's
needs. But people in a key position to affect
the Legislature's appropriation for the law
college have not done enough. The Nebraska
Bar Association has done far too little to aid
the institution which provides new members
for its profession. Tiie bar association should
be lobbying for more appropriations, and pos
sibly raising funds to supplement those ap
propriations. Both the Nebraska Bar Association and
the Lincoln Bar Association have taken steps
toward helping the law college. Each has
appointed a committee to investigate the pos
sibility of building a law complex from tax
funds which would house the law college, Ne
braska judiciary and combine the University
law library with the state law library now
in the Capitol. These committees are free
agents, in a sense, and will probably approach
all the governmental bodies involved in order
to get a maximum of money and cooperation.
The success of their investigation is important
to the University and the state. The Nebraska
Law College will not attract and keep young
people in the state if it cannot maintain high
standards.
Jim Pedersen
1M AMD QREfjR?
limes are changing: r ,
Occasionally, In political
circles, motions are introduced,
that, due to the craftiness of
their wording and the techni
ques used in presenting them,
appear to be one thing when
they are, in reality something
entirely different.
This type of motion, with its
vague wording and oblique
referencesw is used to obtain
legislation on matters the in
troducer feels are best not
talked about. Matters that, if
argued on their own merits,
would stand little chance of
being written into legislation.
This week in the Council of
Student Life Ed Icenogle in
troduced a resolution so
blatantly obv ious and dishonest
that I not only scoff at his
abilities as a politician, but I
seriously wonder about his
right to sit on so a responsible
body as the CSL.
His resolution would enjoin
University organizations or
administrative officers from
collecting monetary fines or
interfering in the expenditure
of personal finances and other
resources of an individual, and
also the collective monies
voluntarily contributed t o
organizations. It also enjoins
them from probating the rights
of groups or organizations
recognized by ASUN, CSL, or
the Board of Regents. Among
these rights Is the right of
peaceful assembly for any
purpose. It further enjoins f
restricting the right of free 1
solicitation of new members.
Now I will not contend that I
cannot be seduced, but I would '
like to think I am not easily
tricked. This resolution says,
when it is examined, that
I.F.C., recognized by the Board
of Regents as t h e regulating
board of the fraternities, can
not discipline a fraternity for
violating state laws, University
or IFC policies. They cannot
prevent fraternities from con
ducting dirty rush, nor can they
discipline any violation of the
new pledge contract. This
document strives to protect the
pledges' rights during initiation
periods.
What makes Icenogle's action
particularly damning is the
pending IFC action against his
own fraternity for violation of
the pledge contract. For him to
use his position on the CSL In
this manner shows a distinct
lack of integrity.
To me, it is reprehensible
that a man who less than a
year ago spoke out for a strong
pledge contract would turn
around and strike at it in this
manner.
I can see only one reason he
would act this way, and that is
to strike a crippling blow at the
Greek system itself. I feel
while pretending to act for his
own house that if the Greek
system is to prosper, enlighting
of pledge programs, improving
Rush procedures and the
elimination of old style hell
weeks are necessary. For these
things to occur, IFC must have
the right to punish violaters
and to remove this right is to
abandon any hope of progres
sive reform within the system.
Icenogle may well believe
that if he can stymie these
reforms he can throttle the
system, but I contend that if
over two thousand men volun
tarily choose to affiliate they
have the right to live with their
system. They also have the
right to improve their system
and If Icenogle believes he can
place himself above the wishes
of these two thousand men his
conceit Is beyond any in my
experience.
DAILY NEBRASKAN
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PAGE 4
THE DAILY NEBRASKAN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1970
