OQlIU (fi)
Wednesday, September 6, 1 972
lincolh, nebraska vol. 96, no. 2
Regents divide
over proposed
budget change
by Chris Harper
To pare, or not to pare-that's the question
confronting the Board of Regents when they consider
the University's 1973-74 budget request at their
meeting Monday.
The board's two alternatives are NU President D.B.
Varner's $95.9 million proposal or Regent Kermit
Hansen's request for a $2 million cut in the suggested
budget.
Varner's budget would call for an 18.8 per cent
increase in state tax fund support and an $11.6
million raise over the 1972-73 budget.
Four regents say they favor Varner's original
request while three opt for Hansen's proposal. One
board member was unavailable for comment.
"If we are going to make forward steps we have to
accept this budget. We've got to go ahead with the
University's Five-Year Plan," according to Regent
J.G. Elliott of Scottsbluff. Elliott said, however, that
he is not sure what the Legislature would do to the
budget.
"It's awfully hard to predict what reaction the
Legislature will have," he said. 'There might be a
chance of the budget being cut, but I hope that they
see the need for the increase."
'The people in western Nebraska are very
interested in the success of the University," he added.
'They don't want to waste money but they would
like to see that Nebraska is strong and healthy so
that it is No. 1 academically in the Big Eight."
Hansen countered that the budget "may not be
realistic in terms of the Legislature."
"Anyone who makes policy decisions should have
at least one alternative," Hansen added. "An increase
from eight per cent to 11, 12 or 13 per cent is
nothing to be sneezing at."
Board president Ed Schwartzkopf disagreed with
the $2 million cut.
'The proposed budget is reasonable. It's already
been pared down. A budget cut will impair our drive
for excellence at the University."
The Lincoln board member said he believes the
University has a good opportunity to improve its
instructional staff next year. If the University will
provide additional money for faculty, Schwartzkopf
said, then it could attract more qualified teachers
from other universities hampered by tight budgets.
'The state of Nebraska has a golden opportunity
to upgrade the quality of the University at this time,"
he said.
The $2 million cut would not hurt the University,
says Regent Robert Koefoot of Grand Island.
"Varner's budget won't be approved by the
Legislature or the governor, so I believe we have to do
our work and make sure that the budget is accepted,"
Koefoot said.
Regent Robert Prokop of Papillion said he would
not support Hansen's proposal if the cut would hurt
the faculty.
Prokop said he believes the University is expanding
administrative personnel rather than faculty
members. He added that he believes many older
faculty members started teaching at a salary lower
than what younger instructors receive, and they have
not received a proportionate increase to offset the
salary increases afforded to younger staff members.
Regent James Moylan of Omaha said he supports
the $2 million cut but he also pointed to the
construction of the law school and library as priority
items in the budget.
Another board member, Robert Raun of Minden,
said he favors Varner's proposed budget, but is
"willing to look at the $2 million cut to see what
effect it might have on the University."
He said he believes that the projected strong
economic year for Nebraska will increase tax revenue,
and thus help the University. In view of this
economic situation, Raun said he believes "the right
kind of sales pitch for the budget may create a public
reaction that will be quite favorable."
Regent Kermit Wagner of Schuyler was not
available for comment on the budget issue.
Another increase this one for students' tuition
rates also will be considered Monday by the board.
In August the board voted to modify the 1973-74
tuition schedule and will select the new rates at the
September meeting.
Four regents said they favored a system that
would continue the present tuition schedule of $18
per hour for residents and $48.25 per credit hour for
nonresidents up to 12 credit hours. The change,
. ..
-v .,.y f I
9
'I
'it
Hansen . . . budget request "not realistic."
however, is that students enrolled between 12 and 16
hours will pay one-half of the regular tuition rate for
credit hours in that zone. In the past students have
been assessed no additional fees for these hours.
The NU administration originally proposed an
assessment system whereby students would have paid
full tuition for the4 former "free hours," with a $17
per hour resident fee and a $46 fee for nonresidents.
"I was impressed by the argument by ASUN
president Bruce Beecher concerning the impact of a
full tuition hike. He was effective in representing th
views of the students," Raun said.
Elliott and Prokop cited the need for additional
financial support for the University as their primary
reason for favoring the increase while Moylan,
Koefoot and Hansen said they were unclear about the
mechanics of the proposal.
Schwartzkopf said he favored the partial increase
if "this is one way to upgrade our institution. If we
increase the tuition and then increase the class size
then I can't go along with it."
Fund shortage kills NO VA
w
r:
'T
y V ,
Harding . . . "NOVA students became more
t a i a I 99
serr-q i reeling, independent, ana outgoing . . .
NOVA, a college credit-based volunteer
program established at NU last year, will not
be operating this fall.
Last week, ACTION, the federal service
agency which has control of the program,
notified NOVA that its funds will be cut
until January, according to NU NOVA
director Theodore Ernst.
Ernst said ACTION wanted NU to revise
its entire proposal for resubmission in
October, even though students had been
recruited to begin their work in low-income
communities across Nebraska this month.
Several bureaucratic obstacles have
existed since the pilot program began,
according to former NOVA director Gene
Harding.
"Faculty members found the program
hard to adopt to their departments, we
didn't recruit enough people or give them
enough time, and we had obstacles with
ACTION," Harding said Tuesday.
Ernst said there have been several
differences of opinion on what the 1972-73
program should be like, but there was no
indication until last week that ACTION
might cut NOVA funds.
Due to these obstacles, Ernst decided to
call back the new volunteers in his own
School of Social Work.
Teachers College students were notified
of the cut this weekend and met Tuesday to
try to get into fall classes.
"The University of Nebraska is
reconsidering its whole association with
ACTION," Ernst said.
Negotiations with ACTION are still open
for a possible January start. According to
Ernst, UNO may operate its own program
without the federal funding.
Harding, who turned over his position in
July, said he firmly believes that there are
enough people committed to NOVA to start
again in January.
"It is a great program, and a real los if it
doesn't start," commented Harding.
NU's NOVA was the first program funded
last year under University Year for Action.
The 40 students involved in the program
last year, Harding said, "are far more
self directing, independent, and outgoing
than they were when they started."
ACTION'S own investigation of the
Lincoln program, Harding said, showed that
the UNL students involved ranked at the top
of the federal evaluation scale among 12
similar programs at other universities.
