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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 1979)
n friday, august 31, 1979 lincoln, nebraska vol. 103 no. 6 Black cheerleader added u of Ye By Sara Martens Copyright (c) 1979. Daily Nebraskan. Several UNL Yell Squad members have charged the athletic department with ordering the last minute addition of a black female member to the squad in order to im prove future recruitment of black athletes. Head Football Coach Tom Osborne said Thursday that having a black cheerleader would help with recruiting. However, Osborne also questioned the fairness of squad member selection, as did ASUN First Vice President Hubert Brown., According to some members of the squad, the tradi tional eight-woman portion of the squad has been increas ed to nine, with the addition of a member who failed to make the final JO during last spring's tryouts. The woman was added, the squad members say, after Athletic Director Bob Devaney and Osborne directed that a black woman be on the Yell Squad for "recruiting reasons." The yell squad has taken its objections to Devaney and is awaiting a decision on a proposal that would make the girl an alternate for this season and a full member next year. Devaney was unavailable for comment Thursday. "I'm not the one that said she had to be there, but I did express concern over it," Osborne said. .He said he did not know the new member, but said he saw the need for a minority member of the Yell Squad, considering that one-third of the football players and 60 percent of the basketball players at UNL are minority group members. , . . - . OSBORNE SAID comments from the general public and football recruits made him aware of the need. ul know we didn't lose a given recruit," Osborne said, because of the absence of artaYlrtrTeerieader: But a num-1 ber of recruits felt black cheerleaders would make" the university more attractive, he said. . If the athletic department's reason for adding a black member was only to help the recruiting of-hlack athletes in the future, Brown said, "(it) would lower my opinion of Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne." If a black cheerleader was added as a "token," Brown said, that would' be "superficial lip service to attract black athletes." Brown is the. former president of the Afro American Collegiate Association. Rather, Brown said, die university should make condi tions on campus better for blacks. "It is the principle, not the fact of having to add a black, that upsets us," a squad member said. "Their (the Athletic Department's) method of selection was absurd." ' Squad members contacted asked that their names not be used. Two members and a former member of the squad complained about the timing and the method of the addition. IIS quad move quaes tiom Three other members referred questions to their adviser. . The UNL Yell Squad tryouts were in March. After seeing more than 100 girls, the selection team narrowed the field to 10 girls they decided had the most "poise, style and ability," said lorn Tcckmeyer, a former member of the Cornhusker Marching Band, who represented that organization on last spring's selection committee. THE SELECTION committee is, comprised of a band member, a representative fronl Corncobs, Tassels and a non-returning senior member of . .the Yell Squad, and Bill Murphy, the squad's adviser.; Murphy is chairman of UNL recreation. : Tcckmeyer was unsure if the;new, member had tried out last spring. "If she, was in the final 10, I would remember that," he said. Yell squad members said the girl had tried out, but she failed to make the final cut. "It's unfair to the "other girls who made finals and causes credibility problems for the squad in the future," a member said. '" Osborne said, "My first concern is the selection pro cess. It appears that once someone is on the team, they're on for good. I'd like to see a review of the selection pro cess, but the point is now that no one has been knocked off," Osborne said. Brown, questioned the selection process when inform ed of the controversy. . "If in fact this did happen, maybe it (the selection process) is not fair. Perhaps the judging was deficient. A couple of girls involved are very qualified," Brown said. CURRENT MEMBERS are evaluated throughout the season to determine if they will remain on the squad. If they pass the evaluation, they are not required to compete in tryouts, members said. Tcckmeyer said the selections are as fair as possible, but "obviously it is out of control of any individual involved ; it went a lot higher," he said. "What I can say now is that I was just a judge. Others carry more weight, but we thought we had a good system," Teckmeyer said. Members of the squad also have expressed concern about the limited time she has had to prepare for the squad's first performance on Sept, 15. "We only have two weeks. She has to learn all the things the other girls have had one-and-a-half months last spring and all this summer to learn. It's virtually impos sible," a member said. "It's unfair to her, us, and an injustice to the crowd or film crew that may watch us." "There is no prejudice against her as a person at all. She's a great girl and has worked hard. It's the way the administration handled it that upsets the squad." When contacted, the new cheerleader refused to com ment. Adviser Murphy directed all questions concerning the controversy to the athletic department and Devaney. . . . f, Jk4 m ore pancing proeiems 1 1 foreca st if center is built By Randy Essex and Barb Richardson If a new alumni center is built in the metered parking lot north of the Nebraska Union, it ,will have a "significant impact on the parking situation" at UNL, accord ing to John Duve, UNL parking coordina tor. The center , would displace about 200 parking stalls, Duve said, and would force Alumni Ha giyen " By 1521 Hayes The UNL Central Planning Commit tee has given its approval to construc tion.of an alumni center oh the metered, parking lot north of the Nebraska Union. , . .... The proposal will be forwarded to Chancellor Roy Young, who will review the site selection. If Young approves the site," it will be forwarded to the NU Board of Regents. . " However, ASUN President Bud Cuca introduced an amendment that requires the t planning committee to continue searching for an off-campus site for 90 . ; Included in the alumni center resolu tion was another amendment to convert the faculty parking lot between the Union and the metered lot Into grassy pprpval land within three to five years. . The committee approved the resolu , tion 10-1. Cuca, the lone dissenter, pro ; tested the site choice because it would i eliminate about 204 parking spaces, he ;said; ' ; - Cuca also protested the building's projected utilities cost. According to Jack Miller, executive vice president of the Alumni Associa tion, the yearly utilities bill for the cen- -ter would be approximately $2400. Cuca said he felt that the projected" utilities cost took too high a share of the association's yearly budget. . "I know the university won't pay the -utilities bill, Cuca said. I sure don't want it coming out of my pocket or other students pockets." . - Cuca said he didn't want to see stu-: i dents penalized. , ; v- his office and the Parking Advisory Board to decide How to make up for the lost spaces. - One possible solution, offered by ASUN Sen. Jim Davidson at Monday night's meet ing, would be construction of a parking garage -east of the Union, Duve said. Davidson said Duve told him the structure would be proposed to the chancellor if the alumni center location is approved. However, Duve said Thursday that his -primary reason in contacting -Davidson was to encourage ASUN to appoint a stu dent to the Parking Advisory Board. Duve said the parking garage is only one solu tion, and students should have input in the final decision, should such a decision be necessary. .. : But ASUN President Bud Cuca and First Vice President Hubert Brown both said students have "never been able to win on the board, tni that is the reason there was not 'a student on the board last year. ; CUCA SAID ASUN would prefer to have the alumni center located elsewhere, but , if ,it Is :zvp?y?& for ths center of campus, the possibility of appointing a student to the parking board would be considered seriously. 3-; '. Brown said the matter is being dis cussed, but no decision on the appoint ment has been reached. He said that although the alumni house : and parking are "adjacent issues ! most of the concern involves the alumni house. . ."r- ... " - "Students r at SeHeck" (Quadrangle) should really be up in arms if they put the alumni house next to them. They (Selleck residents) would have a three-block walk when they move in," Brown said. Duve said if the university is faced with the problem 6f building a new parking ; facility, a garage east of the Union would be one of three options available. New lots could be built" on J the V perimeters of campus, he said, or students could park in the fairgrounds and be bused to campus. - ' t'"4- UNL Business Manner Ray Coffey said Thursday that experts say the location east " of the Union would be the most logicaL . . . . Continued ca Frs 9 ' O o 09 I
