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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 5, 1975)
Wednesday, november 5, 1375 page 8 daily nebraskan Managers reflect on ASK READ WANT ADS By Dick Piersd Whatever happened to ASK? Many stu dents probably don't know what it was much less what happened to it. ASK is the Associated Students Ko-op, although it's history suggests it was a coop erative in name only. Business started in late 1972 with an AS UN loan of $2,450 to buy a machine to print membership cards, which went on sale in January, 1973. As editor of the 1973 Summer Nebras kan, Ken Kirk ran several stories on the Ko-op and became interested in its possibilities. Kirk took over as manager of the Ko-op in August of 1973. He said he started with only eight participating businesses. He immediately started soliciting to add more. Before long, there were 45 businesses offering discounts of 5 to 20 per cent to card holders, he said. The previous dearth of participating merchants was because ASUN senators who had been soliciting had little or no sales or business back ground, he added. Pressure raised At the same time, Kirk said, a campaign to sell mofe student memberships was star ted. There . was pressure within ASK's board of directors to raise the membership price to $10, but the price remained at $5, Kirk said. A provision was made stipulating that for every $5 membership sold, $1.25 would be used to advertise participating merchants, according to Kirk. Before long, ASK had paid back $700 of the loan and things seemed to be picking up for the Ko-op. "I notified the board that I would be quitting as manager at the end of the se mester," Kirk said. "By that time we had 600 memberships sold, but sales really slumped in November and December," Kirk said. "The participat ing businesses leveled off at about 50. The spring semester of 1974 perhaps marked the beginning of the end of ASK. 'Dumped in our laps' Ron Clingenpeel, who became ASUN president that spring, said ASK was "dumped in our laps without even a list of the board members." Clingenpeel said Kirk had the Ko-op in good order when he left but the absence of a manager plagued the program from then on. He said the salary commission offered to a prospective manager was not enough to attract a qualified person, and often a quorum was not present at beard meetings. The board decided that if a manager couldn't be found, the Ko-op should be dissolved and an effort made to repay the money invested, according to Clingenpeel. Urged to reconsider In the summer of 1974, Dennis Martin took over managerial duties. He said his purpose was simply to try and keep partici pating buisnesses until a permanent mana ger could be found. "Some of those businesses hadn't seen a cardholder in a year," he said. "People weren't even using them." ASUN indicated that senators weren't interested in selling cards if people weren't using them, he said. Scrapping the Ko-op is "commendable" because it is not helping students, Martin added. Tale of promises and predictions On Oct. 11, it was reported that ASK still owed ASUN $1,700. Clingenpeel said that 150 cards had been sold so far that fall. Wanted out On Oct. 18, a Daily Nebraskan check said the original 30 members that year had dropped to 26 and three more businesses wanted out. Managers of the three said they had not heard or seen anyone from ASK since 1973. JB's Big Boy restaurant was said to have had the highest amount of ASK card users in 1973. They said six people had used the cards for a discount - since the program started. The last Daily Nebraskan ASK article on Oct. 24, 1974, reported that ASUN First Vice President Sharon Johnson said 170 students had ASK cards. 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Bivouac for functional fashion. 1235 Q Gunny's Faculty and Permanent Employees: Pay Off High Interest Charge Accounts, Get A Low Cost Credit Union Loan A credit union loan is quick and easy to get if you are a permanent employee of the University of Nebraska and have a good local credit record, Complete the coupon below and mall it. An application will be mailed to you. Usually, your loan will be approved and you will be notified within a few davs after your application Is returned to us. i m esx gbi ess ca esi ms kbi espesi ssi iss bssi ess gsss ssa issi m vsm gbs es tsr l Please send ma mora Information about the University of Nebraska Federal Credit Union. j Pleasa send ma a loan application. Print Name. N.U. Depart .ent N.U. Room & Building Phona Zip .I am already a credit union member .I am not a member. Please stnd ma an application. ,l am a permanent University Employee, UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA FEDERAL CREDIT UNION 1520 R Street 1 Lincoln, Nebraska 685003 Phona: 472.2087 rtr mo5 leeaaeaiaBiKarataBiiaaaiaaaRiaiiatsiiQaH