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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 15, 1972)
Wednesday, march 15, 1972 lincoln, nebraska vol. 95, no. 85 ASUN candidates lose to 'West Side Story7 by H. J. Cummins Questions about student apathy began a debate turned nevs conference Tuesday night when " Schramm Hall residents chose West Side Story over ASUN presidential candidates. Student Cause (SC) candidate Bruce Beecher suggested one solution to the problem would be a speaker's bureau to inform students about student government legislation. He said he believes students would be more active if they were better informed about legislation, some of which, he said, "directly affects many of them." Roy Baldwin disagreed with Beecher's plan, saying he was involved in a similar program last fall that dissolved because nobody came to listen to the ASUN senators explain legislation. Concerned Student (CS) candidate Bill Schwartzkopf complained that one reason student input is so low is that ASUN "has really become centralized - it's a self -perpetuating entity." He said student government has not accomplished anything this year and, when pressed for an example, he named the ASUN educational reform committee as one that's been ineffective. Steve Christensen, presidential candidate of the Student Interest Party (SIP), said he would try to "involve more students in the decision-making process." He suggested town hail meetings for important votes and Baldwin quipped, "Fine, as long as they don't conflict with West Side Story. " Schwartzkopf and Christensen said they oppose the proposed constitution as it now reads. The constitution would narrow the number of senators to 15 from 35, with the chairperson of the senate being chosen by its members. Schwartzkopf said the smaller body would deprive students of representation. 'The change would not have been necessary if the executives had delegated authority as they should have this year," he said. But he emphasized that he's not very pleased with the current constitution, calling it "a mass of contradictions." Christensen said he Wants to see a constitution that will give more power to students. The Council on Student Life (CSL) should be a subsidiary of ASUN he said, or better yet, he added. dissolve it and have "Faculty Senate take care of faculty problems and student senate take care of student problems." Beecher said he favors the proposed constitution, but has reservations about the clause that allows two-thirds of the body to recall any senate appointees. 'The beautiful part of CSL is that it's apolitical so it can make more independent decisions," he said. Baldwin, who helped frame the new constitution, called it "a realistic document" under which "a group of people at the top can carry out the day to day work of student government while representing the people." He said he pictures the arrangement as one similar to labor unions and added that, in his opinion, it will really expand the number of people making decisions since, now, "it is basically the seven members of the executive committee that decides what's going to go on. He also said he believes the senate's recall power will make appointees more responsive to senate, and student wishes. Christensen and Baldwin said they favor adding NEBPIRG support - through voluntary student fees -to students' tuition statements. The other two candidates said they favor NEBPIRG, but hesitate to keep adding voluntary support programs to the tuition statements. All four candidates said they favor legalization of beer on campus. Other scheduled ASUN presidential debates include: Wednesday 8 p.m. Burr Hall Thursday 3:30 p.m. Hyde Park, Nebraska Union 8 p.m. Cather-Pound Tuesday 8 p.m. Abel-Sandoi C y vr '- f t, f" cf.- v if a ASUN presidential candidate. . .spoke at a "debate turned news conference" Tuesday. City-Wide Tenants tell CSL of housing hassle In an attempt to communicate some "very, very deep frustrations," the Poorhouse Coalition sent a letter to NU President D.B. Varner demanding that University officials keep promises made to the coalition last February. At a meeting between the Poorhouse Coalition (coalition of low-income groups in Lincoln) and University officals Feb. 4 to discuss the campus impact on Lincoln housing, the coalition was told that meetings of the Regents' Committee on Housing would begin immediately. However, no meetings have been held, Bea Richmond, president of the City-Wide Tenants Association and member of the coalition, told the Council of Student Life Tuesday. Contact after the CSL meeting, Ed Schwartzkopf, chairman of the Regents' committee, said the committee hasn't met because "we have nothing to meet about." The committee has applied for federal funds to finance a city and University housing study, and "there's no question that we need the study before we can apply for federal funds for housing," he said. The coalition says it has the necessary studies. Schwartzkopf says the studies aren't comprehensive enough. Richmond and Bill Arfmann, VISTA volunteer and member of the coaliton, asked CSL to endorse the coalition's Declaration of Responsibility which calls for the activation of the Regents' committee. The committee is charged with overseeing a survey of city and University housing, the first stage in attempts to remove the conflict over housing between students and low-income families. The University failed to keep promises to hold meetings within the community to discuss the University's five-year expansion plan and to consult the coalition in plans for a community relations committee, Richmond said. CSL formed a committee to prepare a statement based on the coalition's Declaration of Responsibility, Varner's response to coalition demands and Faculty Senate recommendations. The Faculty Senate Tuesday adopted recommendations from its Committee on Low-Income Housing which request the University - Recognize its obligation to house its students, both single and married. - Take immediate steps to secure sufficient and appropriate housing for its students. -- Encourage students not to compete for low-cost housing in the community. - Adopt an advocacy -leadership function and serve as a catalyst to bring together various resources "to achieve a coordinated, socially sensitive and systematic approach on the part of all parties to resolve low-income housing problems. - Work with governmental agencies and other groups to inform them of the low-income housing a. Ut feJ c,ia niaaf in fftrmi 1 1 at inn anH piUUICIII OIIVI aa9Hi Bbi iiw fit iviiiiuivuiiji carrying out action programs. Student Court denies election postponement The spring ASUN election will not be postponed, the Student Court decided Monday night in ruling against ASUN presidential candidate Steve Christensen's suit against ASUN president Steve Fowler. . Christensen had asked the court headed by Mike Rumbaugh, to postpone the election because ASUN executives' nominations to next year's Student Court were not presented to the ASUN senators 30 class days before the election. "You can't just selectively enforce the constitution," Christensen said before he filed, the - suit seeking to postpone the election two weeks. Student Court ruled in agreement with ASUN's representative Bill Kitlion that delaying the election because of late appointments would enable the executives to postpone elections indefinitely by refusing to turn in appointments. Rumbaugh also stressed the importance of out-going executives appointing the new court so the newly elected student government doesn't begin by filling the Student Court with its friends. ASUN
