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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1971 LINCOLN, NEBRASKA VOL. 95 NO. 9
I
ASUN hears advocate plan ?
by Carol Strasser
ASUN was prepared to act on a campus
ombudsman proposal at Wednesday's
meeting until a less-costly plan for a
"student advocate" was introduced from the
floor.
ASUN Sen. Bill Behmer introduced an
ombudsman proposal written by Ed Anson
that was different in concept and cost from
the proposal submitted by the ASUN Legal
Rights Committee. To give Senators time to
consider both proposals, action was delayed
until next week.
John'Humlicek, speaking for the Legal
Rights Committee, said ASUN should push
for creation of ombudsman position since
the University Board of Regents Monday
appointed Thomas H. Majeski as
ombudsman at University of Nebraska at
Omaha.
Majeski served as part-time ombudsman
and art professor last year and will now
become full-time ombudsman.
THE PROPOSAL introduced by
Humlicek calls for the appointment of an
ombudsman who "bridges the gap between
student services and student complaints."
The ombudsman would listen to complaints
from students, faculty and administrators;
investigate the complaints; act as negotiator
and mediator between dissatisfied members
and use persuasion to rectify grievances.
The ombudsman would be selected by a
committee of student and non-student
representatives, serve two years and be paid
the salary of an associate professor,
approximately $15,000 a year, Humlicek
said.
Anson's proposal calls for a "student
advocate," a full-time""' student in good
academic standing, appointed by ASUN and
paid only a nominal fee, if salaried. There
are alreadv committees to represent all
groups of the community, Anson said, but
the students need an advocate who will
"take their side in disputes."
THE LEGAL Rights Committee will be
researching sources of financial support for
its own proposal in the next few weeks.
Final funding for ASUN's budget hasn't
been established yet, ASUN Pres. Steve
Fowler told the Senate. However, a
preliminary budget of about $32,000 was
introduced at the meeting so that several
committees would know what their budgets
would be, he said. The Senate will act on
the budget next week. '
The Senate will be conducting interviews
in the next four weeks for a Senate vacancy in
Teachers College, two in Graduate and
Professional Schools and one in the College
of Home Economics.
SEVERAL SENATORS volunteered to
work with Gerald Bowker, Director of
R "ustration and Records, on a plan to
e ninate the long registration lines.
According to Fowler, a memo asking for
such recommendations by Oct. 15 was sent
to Bowker by C. Peter McGrath, interim
UNL Chancellor.
Next week ASUN will act on resolutions
calling for the Council on Student Life to
investigate alternate structures for the
Student Health Center and also to hold
several ASUN meetings on East Campus.
Last week ASUN passed a resolution
reaffirming its support of the PACE
scholarship program and asking students to
Turn to page 3
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ACTIVITIES MART..."Just sign on the dotted line and
we'll get in touch with you very soon..."
Nebraskan opens
East Campus office
The Daily Nebraskan now
has office space on East
Campus in room 206,
Department of Information.
A drop-box for publishable
notices is located outside the
door. East Campus writer,
Terri Bedient, will be in the
office from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Monday thru Friday.
The Daily Nebraskan will
publish any notice of general
interest if submitted by 4 p.m.
at least two publishing days
prior to the date of desired
publication.
Brown leaves after decade of change at UNL
by Sara Schwieder
Students may come and go,
but Russ Brown has been on
the ground floor of many of
the developments of the last
turbulent decade in higher
education at UNL.
As dean for Student
Development, Brown has
fielded Nebraska's offshoot of
the Student Power Movement
and the new demands placed
upon the U niversity
community by political and
social ferment.
He is leaving NU this week
to become Vice-President for
Student Affairs at the
University of North Dakota.
His UNL duties w i 1 1
-" .. - --f h
r
temporarily be divided
between Harry Canon of the
Counseling Service and Hal
Smith of the Nebraska Union
until a successor is named. Ely
Meyerson is interim Dean of
Student Affairs.
ONE OF BROWN'S
primary concerns has been
helping minority students
attend the University and
helping them adjust.
"The minority student
question involves more than a
'you can come if you want to'
attitude," he said. "There
really needs to he an
educational effort to stimulate
people to understand how
racism operates. Much racism
is institutionalized and unless
people are aware of it they
support it unwittingly."
Brown feels the University
is not only responsible for
opening opportunities to
minority students and being
hospitable to their needs, but
must educate people to the
presence and effects of racism,
lie mentioned a need for
increased commitment in this
area.
BROWN HELPED organize
the Stillinan Exchange, which
sends four NU students to
all-black Stillinan College in
Tuscaloosa. Ala., in exchange
for four Stillman students
every semester. Brown thought
the Stillman program had been
"generally successful" but said
it needs to be more fully taken
advantage of.
Brown used the word
"personal" frequently in his
conversation. Perhaps that has
been the by-word of his
office, because his approach to
p e o p 1 e --s t u d e n t s in
particular-is tailored to the
individual and his problems.
"One of the most satisfying
aspects of this kind of work
has been a good relationship
with students and 1 think
they've been mutually
satisfied," he noted.
One reason he's moving to
the University of North
Dakota is to take advantage of
a smaller campus.
"IT WILL BE easier to
develop and maintain a
personal touch with students,
which I've tried to do here. It's
something 1 feel is important."
Brown indicated NU is. at
the brink of change. It can
move in the direction of a big,
impersonal university and
follow the course of many of
the enormous and unwieldy
land-grant institutions, or it
can "go the other way."
Brown's version of "going
t h e other way" is not
necessarily limiting enrollment
at NU, but developing small
communities within the
University on the model of
Centennial College.
"The advantage of the
Centennial College-type
program is its size. It's a total
experience and has been quite
successful. When you gain in
size, you lose involvement.
BROWN SEEMED pleased
with the direction in which,
higher education is headed,
describing increased student
involvement in the educational
structure as "positive." He said
Nebraska has benefited from .
the Student Power Movement
on both coasts because
Nebraska has been able to
avoid the more violent
aspects-as at Cornell-in favor
of the experience.
He singled out and praised
the NOVA program, which
puts students to work in the
community for University
credit.
"NOVA potentially
provides an effective handle
for modifying the
curriculum.. .it helps bridge the
gap between the theoretical
class experience and the real
world. 1 hope the opportunities
expand beyond NOVA to the
entire University. Brown
generally favored loosening up
the curriculum by adding,
independent study, projects
and NOVA-type projects, but
added that the mechanisms for
innovative curricula already
exist. He said the University
needs to set up a means so
every student knows his
options and can take
advantage of all the
opportunities open to him.
AS FOR FACULTY
evaluation. Brown said it is
undesirable on either side.
"The process of grading is
foreign to the educational
process... whether it be the
faculty member grading the
student or the student grading
the faculty member."
The faculty is another
group Brown singles out for
special praise.
"I think the faculty here at
NU has done a fine job helping
students. There are many
knowledgeable and dedicated
people on the staff that are
concerned about the student
and his problems," he said.
'Sometimes students don't
give them the credit they
deserve."