Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (April 25, 1973)
doiu Wednesday, april 25, 1973 lincoln, nebraska vol. 96, no. 104 Candidates debate revenue sharings, police, NE radial By H.J. Cummins Questions on city police policies and federal revenue sharing were added to the usual inquiries about district council elections and the Lincoln Noitheast radial highway at a candidates forum Monday night at the United Ministries in Higher Education (UHME). Four city council and two Lincoln Board of Education candidates fielded questions from an almost exclusively student audience of about 50. Council candidate Sue Bailey, a housewife, said the council's only control of the Lincoln Police Department (LPD) is "budgetary". The City Council now finances a college pay incentive plan whereby police are rewarded with higher wages for college credits earned. Bailey said she supports its continuation. Council candidate William R. Thierstein, a Lincoln attorney, said he believes "the citizen must be educated, too." Council candidate John Robinson Jr. said he has some budgetary disagreements with LPD. Asked about the right of off duty policement to carry law-enforcement authority, Tierstein said police can work beyond their 40 hour week; it's when harrassment occurs that something must be done. Bailey said she doesn't believe off-duty policemen should carry the authority of their office with them. As for their performance in law enforcement, she said, "We do not pay policemen enough to indicate we want them to be first rate." Robinson said all states are endowed with police power and that the LPD policy is for policemen to see their job as continuing 24 hours a day. On federal levenue sharing, council candidate Nancy Childs said she believes the council will have to pick a few projects to finance with the $1.7 million coming to Lincoln, rather than offering minimal aid to many. Bailey said revenue sharing should be spent more A ... OK Vl t. -....4 A If M X' V Vr City Council candidates forum. fielded questions from about 50 students at a Monday night for social programs than capital construction projects. Theirstein said that he would like to see lists of priorities submitted to council members from each of the fund-seeking groups. The four reiterated their stands on election of Lincoln City Council members by district. Bailey, Childs and Robinson favor it, Thierstein said he will let the voters choose. They were asked their opinions on City Charter Amendment Two, which would require unanimous council approval of any street construction costing more than $15 million which is fully locally financed. That would include the proposed Northeast radial highway. Thierstein said he fears the amendment because "it's placing too much power in one person's (a council member's) hands." Robinson said everyone had to remember that the writers of the city charter amendment originally wanted a simple public vote on the radial but, "because of a lack of responsiveness on the pait of the government, the charter amendment was a last ditch effort." Childs said she's against the highway, but she is also against the amendment because of its possible effect on future projects. Bailey said she dislikes the amendment because it has de-emphasized the real issue, that of insuring careful consideration in all street planning, and has become an issue in itself. However, she said she favors it and is against construction of the radial. Lincoln Board of Education candidate Wallace Continued on p. 2. Mackey: Indian tuition 'treaty' may be broken by Mary Voboril Just another broken treaty - that's what Robert Mackey, state Indian commissioner, said the Indian tuition waiver issue may become. And if anticipated funds do not arrive, reports indicate Indian students may stage some sort of protest. In an April 12 keynote address for Indian Awareness Week Mackey had said he, Gov. J. James Exon, NU President D.B. Vainer and State Sen. Richard Marvel had "hammered out an agreement about tuition." He indicated all UNL Indian students would receive tuition waivers, apparently beginning next semester , But at the April 14 Board of Regents meeting, Varner said the University had not adopted a "tuition free" policy for Nebraska Indians. Instead, Varner said, the University position was that if the Legislature appropriated the requested $150,000 for UNO and $100,000 for UNL, "it would be possible to provide tuition waivers for all Indian students who qualify for admission next year." However, last week Mackey 's office released a statement saying Mackey has "received a verbal commitment, as of April 3, 1973, from Varner and Exon that the Indians of Nebraska will receive financial assistance, or financial assistance will be available," next fall. In his Indian Awareness Week speech, Mackey had said he would not "let anyone back down" on the agreement. "The commitment made by Marvel and Varner sard (tuition waivers) would not require extra legislation," Mackey said. "We will hold them to that. We have not shared in the financial assistance that has been afforded other minorities. (The University) has treated us badly over the years." He said Indians have "all kinds of ways" to hold the University to its commitment, as he stated it. But he would not elaborate on any specific ways. A financial assistance bill containing appropriations to UNO and UNL for tuition waivers to Indian students was killed when the Legislature voted not to consider any fiscal matters other than the governor's budget. "They an: not going to get away with this," said Mackey, a fjanlee ;;,iotix. "It's our land tin; Univeisity is Mtlmg on. I tie Univeisily of Nebraska is almo'-t t In- only land grant educational institution in the country that does not provide Indian students with free tuition." However, a check by the UNL Office of Minority Affairs with the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in Washington indicated that land grant colleges have no definite policy requiring them to provide free tuition to Indian students, although most do. Because the bill including tuition waivers for Indian students died, Varner said the University will now "revert to its former position. We will try very hard to provide free tuition (to Indians), but we cannot guarantee it. We will do our very best to provide free tuition from whatever sources we can find." Vainer made a distinction between "free tuition" and tuition waivers. "No tuition is ever free. Someone somewhere always has to pay for it," he said. However, he said the money for tuition waivers for Indians would have to come from the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aids, But Jack Ritchie, director of that office, said that at this time no money had been given to his office specifically for Indian students for next semester. "I personally have not been notified that we will provide tuition waivers for Indian students," Ritchie said. "And if we do, I don't know where the money is going to come from." If no money is available from Ritchie's office, Mackey said the University "will just have to find some." Karen Buller, UNL counselor for Indian students, said she was first elated and then distressed at the progress of the Indian tuition issue. She said equal opportunity grants, a major source of financial assistance for Indians, had been cut by $2.5 miilion. Mackey had reported that BIA assistance to Indians, another major source of aid, had been cut by $22 million across the country. Buller said most Indians now numbering 23 at UNL-could not affoid to attend the University without substantial financial aid. "Indian students will be very upset if the promised money doesn't come through, especially in light of the federal cutbacks," Buller said. "It will bring great shame to the University if the Indian students get so upset they have to take some action. She said the Indian students have been talking about some from of protest should the money from the University not come through, but she was "not at liberty to say" what form the action might take. However, she said Indian students "are willing to make a personal sacrifice." Neihardt to read selected works Nebraska Poet Laureate John G. Neihardt is scheduled to read from his wuiks at '.j:30 p.m. Thursday in the Nebraska Union. The 92 year old poet is currently working on the second volume of his autobiography, All Is But A Bryinnifiy.
