50 turnout
by Sara Schwieder
Regent Kermit Hansen of Omaha
turned to an empty chair and asked it
these questions Monday night at
Harper Hall:
"Do you believe wholeheartedly in
supporting state schools?"
"Do you think a University
education should be more than courses
oriented to a job?"
The chair, of course, didn't reply,
but Hansen's point was clear. The
chair was supposed to have been filled
by Clifton Batchelder of Omaha,
Hansen's Board of Regents opponent
in Tuesday's general election.
Batchelder declined an invitation to
debate with Hansen Monday night.
"I think the answer Batchelder
would have to give to these questions
is 'no,' " Hansen said.
Hansen said he and Batchelder are
"poles apart" on issues concerning the
concept of the University and the role
of the administration. He also attacked
Batchelder for "trying to restrict this
University."
"I believe in giving every youngster
who is willing to learn an education,"
Hansen told a group of about 50
students. 'There should be a career
thrust, but more importantly, we've
got to have an atmosphere in which
intellectual pursuits of all kinds
maytake place."
Hansen said Batchelder favors a
vocationally-oriented institution.
Hansen cited examples of the
quality of the University
administration in rebuttal to adverse
comments Batchelder made to the
press about administrators.
"I am a supporter of the
Students asked questions . . .
to hear Hansen debate
administration because I think they
have demonstrated excellent
leadership," Hansen said emphatically.
After Hansen's remarks, the floor
was opened to questions from
students, which are listed below with
answers given by Hansen and Regent
Ed Schwartzkopf, who also attended
the meeting.
"Would you be in favor of having a
student, in an advisory capacity only,
on the Board of Regents?"
Hansen said there already is a
Student Advisory Council which meets
with the regents for an hour before
each monthly meeting.
"Would you be in favor of an
elected student on the board?"
"I see nothing wrong with it,"
Hansen said. "I support it." But
Hansen said there are certain technical
aspects that must be solved for a
student to be a member of the board.
He thought an amendment would be
necessary to change the six-yee term
to a two or three year term for a
student regent who would graduate in
four years.
He also suggested that the State
Constitution could be modified so the
governor could appoint a student to
the Board of Regents for perhaps a
two year term.
"Will you explain the jealousy
between UNL and UNO?" When
Hansen said he didn't know where the
jealousy between the two campuses
stemmed, a student offered an answer.
"I used to go to UNO," the student
said. "It seemed like 90 per cent of the
money and all the good facilities are
here, so I transferred to Lincoln."
Schwartzkopf said the merger
between the two institutions took
place only a short while ago and that
people "must consider where Omaha
U. was when we merged." He pointed
out that UNO's budget for this year
increased 19 per cent, while UNL's
increased only 5.3 per cent.
"When will there be academic
equality between UNO and UNL?"
The student said he meant "equality"
in that credit for courses would be
interchangeable between the two
campuses. Several students said they
had lost credits earned at UNO when
they transferred to UNL, or the credits
they had didn't satisfy graduation
requirements at UNL.
"If we don't have transferability
now, something's wrong," Hansen
said. "We want the same courses on
the same levels at both campuses."
Hansen said increased traveling
between the campuses would improve
both campuses. Schwartzkopf said the
greatest benefit of the merger is that
we're "getting the best of both," and
using staff and buildings to their best
advantage. He cited the School of
Nursing as an example: After the
Medical Center Nursing School merged
with UNO's nursing school, Nebraska's
nurses ranked first in the nation.
. . . Regents Schwartzkopf and
V) (7
0
Regent Hansen ... "I am a supporter of the administration because I
think they have demonstrated excellent leadership."
"What's the board's stance on co-ed
visitation?"
Hansen said he would leave it to the
student to "develop his own life
patterns as long as he doesn't disturb
others." Schwartzkopf said a survey
taken of parents was requested by
students when the visitation issue
came up last spring. Parents were not
in favor of visitation, so the board
abided by the rules and didn't permit
it.
"Why don't you allow alcohol in
the dorms?"
"This is our home," one student
told the regents. "Why aren't we
allowed to have the liberties that we
can have off campus?" Students said
that if they are 19, they may legally
use alcohol everywhere but in their
it.
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Hansen offered answers.
empty chair
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"own homes"-the dorms.
Schwartzkopf said he wasn't in
favor of alcohol in the dormitories
because he didn't "want to encourage
brpaking the law" by tempting
18-year-olds to drink because some of
their friends of legal age would be
permitted to have alcohol.
One student said: "The laws are
there, just let us live by them."
Schwartzkopf suggested the students
devise a plan for alcohol in the
dormitories. Hansen said, "We ought
to work it out."
A student asked about plagiarism
charges against Regent Robert Prokop,
and both Schwartzkopf and Hansen
said they disapproved of it, but that
"he is elected by the people, so let
them judge it."
fWSfjy)
weary
page 9
daily nebraskan
Wednesday, november 1, 1972
