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Faculty members, college deans and department heads attended a hearing
Wednesday on the revised NU "Toward Excellence" plan.
Faculty ask changes in NU plan
By Harry Baurnert
UNL Faculty Senate President Rich
ard Gilbert said Wednesday morning
that the University of Nebraska's
updated "Toward Excellence" Five
Year Plan should be changed to indicate
which areas of the University are to
receive funding priority.
Ho spoke at a hearing on the updated
plan in the Nebraska Union attended by
faculty members, college deans and
department heads. They met to suggest
changes for the revised plan, which was
released last Thursday by Stephen B.
Sample, NU executive vice-president for
academic affairs. Sample chaired the
hearing.
Giibert presented resolutions ap
proved by the Faculty Senate Tuesday
evening. He said that if the updated
report is a planning document, it should
include budget recommendations.
Continuous planning
Ho called the plan "a response to the
legislature, not tne University's plan."
He said planning has to be a continuous
thing and that the three University
campuses should "define their mis
sion" to prevent unnecessary duplica
tion of programs.
The original five-year plan was
adopted in January, 1973, according to
Gilbert, and LB 1054, the University's
fiscal budget for 1973-74, the Unicamer
al asked for an updated version.
Otf.3r faculty members suggested
revisions in wording of certain sections
of the document, and some called for
more emphasis in specific academic
areas.
English professor Paul Olson made
three recommendations:
The revised plan should include a
section on administrators, especially in
the service section of the University.
Nontraditional education should be
given more emphasis, since "the
University has made some distinguished
efforts in this area."
The University should include as an
objective the recruitment of more
minority faculty and staff.
Central planning unit
After the hearing, Ken Orton, chair
man of the Educational Psychology
Dept., said there should have been
some kind of a central planning unit
when the plan was compiled. Instead,
he said, each campus was asked for its
contribution to the report, with no
"adjudicating agency" to look at each
separate plan and come up with a
centrally planned document.
Sample said he would bring the
suggestions before the University's vice
chancellors and President D.B. Varner
Wednesday afternoon for possible inclu
sion into the plan. The final version is to
be presented to the NU Board of
Regents at their Saturday meeting.
"One of our starting points was that
we realized we couldn't deliver a
document that would suit everybody,"
he said.
With regard to including budget
information Sample said a five-year
plan can't be specific, because of
economic changes and educational
trends.
Book
exchange
begins
Monday
The ASUN book exchange wiil start during
finals week and continue the first week of second
semester, according to Sharon Johnson, ASUN
first vice president.
Students can bring their books in, set the price
and after the exchange is over students who sold
books will be sent checks, Johnson said.
"!f they leave their address," she addsd, "we'll
send them the money over Christmas vacation."
At the beginning of second semester, there also
will be an exchange at Abel-Sandoz and the East
Campus Union, Johnson said.
During finals week the book exchange will be
held from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. in the north and
south conference rooms of the Nebraska Unions.
ASUN lacks quorum
It was not business as usual at ASUN's final
meeting of the fall semester.
Because not enough students attended, there
was not a quorum and no official business could be
conducted.
Al Bennett, director of the Nebraska Union,
spoke to the senators about plans for the East
Campus Union. He said that hopefully construc
tion will begin early this summer.
In other business, Bennett added that he and his
staff are concerned with the present state of the
economy.
Bake shop products have risen because of the
increase in the price of sugar, he said. This is one
reason Bennett said the Board is submitting an
across-the-board increase of 6-7 per cent in prices.
Commenting on the recent controversy over
converting some space in the Nebraska Union for
businesses, Bennett said, "I think the whole issue
got a little bent out of shape. We didn't think our
proposal was irrational or that it was irrationally
presented."
He said that he thought by now "it is obvious, at
least to me" that new revenue are needed to help
keep the Union out of financial difficulty.
Bennett added that if businesses are not allowed
in the Union in the near future, student fees will
probably need to be raised.
Allowing remodeling of the Union would take
away some of the pressure, Bennett said.
Senator Mark Hoeger asked Bennett what had
been done about a resolution brought up several
semesters ago which would allow liquor in the
Union and the Nebraska Center.
Bennett said it would be inappropriate for the
Board to play the role of advocate. A movement for
alcohol, Bennett said, should be taken by the
community.
ASUN President Ron Clingenpeel reminded
students that the student regents will be sworn in
Thursday at 5 p.m. in Secretary of State's Allen
Beermann office.
Clingenpeel said the public is invited and he
encouraged students to attend the ceremony.
Bargaining try failed
Teacher's union folds
The four-year-old American Federation of Teachers
(AFT) chapter at the University of Nebraska at Omaha
is disbanding after an unsuccessful battle to achieve
collective bargaining for professors.
AFT, affiliated with the AFL-CIO, will have no
members on campus next year, according to chapter
president Sheldon Hendricks, professor of psychology.
The rival American Association of University
Professors (AAUP), dormant for about eight years at
UNO, will reorganize in place of AFT according to
George Harris, professor cf economics and a former
president of the UNO AAUP chapter.
Hendricks and Harris credited the AFT demise to the
rejection of the federation as collective bargaining
agent by the NU Board of Regents in 1972.
Harris said, "AFT had only one goal in mind."
Harris foresaw "no flood of eager people rushing to
join AAUP. We probably won't have more than 12 to 15
per cent of the faculty as members."
AAUP picks up "not in response to any beef or gripe.
We don't see any burning issues right now; there
weren't any when 60 per cent were members ten years
ago," Harris said.
A nucleus of "about 35," who retained national
AAUP membership even though there was no local
chapter at UNO, will help reorganize the association,
according to Harris.
UNL's chapter of AAUP has "about 200" members
according to its president, John Scholz, professor of
chemistry and director of University Studies. He said,
"It's very much to our advantage to have a viable
chapter at UNO."
The AFT chapter at UNL will have an executive
council meeting Monday to discuss the effect of the
UNO folding according to chapter President Joseph
Julian, associate professor of sociology.
Julian reported that "there's not a heck of a lot of us
at UNL." He added that the UNO closing "will not be
good for us."