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Wednesday, february 23, 1977 vol. 100 no. 00 lincoln, nebraska
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ASUN 'mood' led to turnovers
By Barbara Lutz
Lack of leadership and direction since the day after the
last election has caused a 50 per cent turnover in the
UNL student government this year, according to three
ASUN senators.
Sen. Charles Fellingham, chairman of the ASUN
Appointment Committee, said 14 senate seats have had
three senators fill each. A business college position has
turned over three times and there have been two second
vice presidents.
Fellingham said the resignations are caused by a lack of
interest, poor attendance, and time conflicts. ,
Three unexcused absences are grounds for removal, he
said. '
"The mood for the senate is set from day one," he
said. "The mood set this year was apathy, because of lack
of leadership, lack of direction and because the senate did
not speak to current issues on campus." .
Mueller-no comment
Bill Mueller, ASUN president, said Tuesday, "I don't
know if the turnover rate is any worse than in past years,
and .until I see those figures, Fm not going to comment."
Ken Christofferson, an Arts and Science College
senator, said many senators resigned because they were
"disappointed the senate was not getting more done,"
and because of poor leadership.
Scott Cook, an Arts and Sciences senator, said this
year's turnover is the highest during his two years as a
senator. Cook said persons elected "didn't know what
they were getting into." He said many did not realize
being a senator requires background in government and
a lot of work.
Cook also said a high rate of resignations was because
of poor leadership.
Risino costs cau
By Anne Carothers
The Nebraska Union apparently is not alone among -Midwest
student unions in having trouble keeping its
financial head above water.
A check of 10 student unions indicated "rising costs of
food, labor and utilities are causing problems for the
unions.
Last week, Nebraska Union Director Al Bennett said
increased student fee support is about the only way the
Union can recover from a $32,1 1559 deficit.
The food service operation has lost $21,500, Bennett
said.
Four other unions-the University of Nebraska at
Omaha, Colorado University, Kansas University and
Oklahoma University-also are suffering deficits, the
check showed.
Most of the 10 checked also either lost money or just
broke even with their food service. In some cases, money
lost in the food service was compensated for in other
areas.
Promotional campaigns
All of the unions also had some form of general pro
motional campaign. UNO recently launched a specific ad
vertising campaign to boost its food service, said Don
Skeahan, director of the Milo Bail Student Center.
Figures from the 1976 Uniform Financial Statements
of Bg 8 Conference unions indicate that food and labor
costs account for much of the unions' expenses.
The percentage of food costs for the Big 8 unions
ranges from 36.7 per cent to 47 per cent of the total food
service budget, figures showed. Bennett said UNL food
costs total 39.6 per cent of total food operation costs.
Employe wages ranged from 41.9 per cent to 49 per
cent of the total food operation cost with UNL at 41.9
per cent, Bennett said. .
Bennett said the Union has the lowest wage cost be
cause Ve run a tough house." He said the Union gets
the most use out of its employes.
The Union also has the second smallest total of gross
food sales, Bennett said.
PubEc settles for speed
The public is no longer willing to pay more for quality
food and will settle for fast foods, Bennett said. The
public is being priced away from their preference, he said.
W. H. Freeland, director of the Oklahoma Memorial
Union at the University of Oklahoma, said the Oklahoma
Union has had a good deal of competition from fast food
places off campus. : '
Other union directors said parking was a problem for
their unions. Freeland said parking is critical at OU and
the union is attempting to get a parking garage.
Dennett said Iowa State University and Oklahoma
State University both have parking ramps that have
proved financially successful for their unions. -
Eecr also is sold in the unions at ISU, CU, OU, Kansas
University and Colorado State University.
WZiam Weddel, director of the Charles A. Lory
Student Center at CSU, said his union has a tavern open in
the afternoon and evening which draws a good deal of
student business.
"There were no definite programs proposed by the
(ASUN) administration this year," he said. In past years,
ASUN has worked for a student regent and a student
lawyer, Cook said.
Greek slate won
Of the three executives elected last March, only Bill
Mueller remains. Elected first vice president Paula Haeder
and second vice president Dennis Martin resigned shortly
after the election, Martin expressed dissatisfaction with
the administration.
The so-called Greek slate won the election last year,
Cook said, but lost in the long run. The candidates for the
next election "know they can't win without quality
people," he said.
Cook, said he is running for a third term and does not
care if there will be a Greek slate this year. But "it will be
the best thing for the candidates," he said.
' Because the Greek slate had no program and was just
used to get candidates elected, it will be a campaign
issue this year, he said.
Christofferson said he was on the Greek slate, but said
he did not know what he was getting into.
"I am working against it (the Greek slate) this year, by
trying to discourage it whenever I can," he said.
Christofferson said he does jiot think Greeks will
support the slate like they did last year.
"A lot of houses thought it reflected bad on the Greek
system," he said.
Fellingham said he is also running for reelection.
"To run an effective campaign, we have to assume there
will be a Greek slate," he said. However, he said Jayne
Anderson, coordinator of sororities, fraternities and
cooperatives, has said she knows nothing of a Greek slate
this year.
so problems for M
Cause has not yet been determined for a Saturday
morning fire that gutted a 10th floor room in Smith Re
sidence Hall causing smoke and, water damage to sur
rounding rooms.
State Fire Marshall Pete Stumer spent one and a half
hours in the gutted room Tuesday afternoon trying to
determine the origin of a fire that began in that vacant
room Saturday morning.
Joe Zannini, assistant director of housing in charge
of maintenance operations, accompanied Sturner and said
the fire marshall reached no final conclusion.
Sturner will return to Smith Hall today with an assis
tant from his office to complete his investigation, Zannini
said. Sturner had no comment on his Tuesday afternoon
findings, Zannini said.
"It is important for students to know what caused the
fire," said housing director Richard Armstrong.
"A lot of good things have come out of this. To
know that one room could contain that fire is a con
solation to us." Hat from the blaze caused the bricks
in room 1015 to crack, but the fire was confined to room
1016. - . :
Armstrong said he also is happy with the fire evacua
tion procedure in the residence halls. Students and staff
responded well to the emergency, he said.
The emergency call made in response to the fire alarm
triggered by the student assistant was monitored by the
Telecommunications Dept. in Nebraska Hall, according to
director Ruth Michalecki.
4We treat every call as if the building were burning
down," Michalecki said, explaining her office has no way
of knowing if an alarm is false or a real emergency.
Chances are nine out of ten that a fire alarm from the
UNL campus is a false alarm, Lincoln Fire Chief Dallas
Johnson said.
"People over there have got to grow up," Johnson said.
Tie three sections of. fire hose and the hydrant wrench
taken by students during an early morning incident on
16th street two weeks ago could have been the same
equipment needed to extinguish the fire at Smith Hall,
he said.
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Daily NebraAn photo
Nebraska Union is only one of several unions in the Big 8 to use promotional campaigns encouraging union use.
Frank Burge, director of the Kansas Union said the
union also sells 32 per cent alcohol beer but is not busy
at night.
Bennett has pushed in the past for alcohol being legal
ized on the UNL campus. He said the possibility of cam
pus drinking will be considered when planning long range
changes Jhe food service.
. '"'"J.-"." .. rio alcohol hurli :
He said alcohol not being legal on campus has hurt the
Union's catering service. People are not going to pay for a
catered meal when they cannot have wine with it, he said.
Several college union directors said their faculty mem
bers eat at the unions rather than at a separate faculty
club.
Bennett said that although many faculty members eat
at the Union anyway, the Union is trying to arrange for
the Faculty dub to use the Union's Colonial Room since
the Faculty Gub dining room will be closing this spring.
The union directors interviewed tail the number of
people eating at the unions still is high.
Bruce Schafer, director of the University Memorial
Union at CU said. The problem is not getting people
to eat in the Union but is the rising cost of food."
Bennet has said that although the Union is suffering
a deficit, it is not dying. He said it is not in any more
serious trouble than other unions in the Midwest.
In its survey, the Daily Nebraskan talked with dir
ectors of the unions at CSU, UNO, and every Big 8 school
except the University of Missouri. Nebraska Union dir
ector Bennett provided figures from the 1976 Uniform
Financial Statements of Big 8 unions.
News: Marijuana legislative bill hearings draw much
support p. 6
Ditertalnment: Fleetwood Mac proves that it is a pop
rock band in its latest album p. 8
Sports: Husker worsen basketball pLryers force a playoff
with UNO Ssturdiy, after wr.ring Uonday p. 10
