Wednesday, february 18, 1981
lincoln, nebraska vol. 106, no 28
Regents' conduct of meeting prompts request
By Mary Louise Knapp
The tabling of a resolution by ASUN President Renee
Wessels at the last NU Board of Regents' meeting which
asked the board to reaffirm its request for an 18 percent
budget increase has prompted ASUN to ask the regents to
conduct their meetings according to rules of order,
Wessels said.
Wessels explained her resolution was not a new policy,
but merely a request for a reaffirmation of the Regents'
request for the budget increase.
Wessels said she was concerned the Regents might have
changed their position on the budget increase, and there
fore felt the need for a reaffirmation of the Regents'
position.
Wessels said she presented the resolution at the last
Regents' meeting, and it was seconded by student regent
Flo Langford of UNO. She had raised her hand to speak
to the motion, at which point Regent Robert Koefoot of
Grand Island moved to table the motion, she said.
Wessels said under Robert's rules of order, she should
have had the right to speak to the motion before the move
was made to table it.
Regent Robert Prokop of Wilber, who is the chairman
of the Board of Regents, said the Board has no formal
rules of order, and therefore, as chairman, he has the right
to conduct the meetings as he sees fit.
The motion to table passed by a vote of 6-1 -1 , with
Regent Robert Simmons of Scottsbluff voting against it
and Regent Kermit Hansen of Omaha abstaining.
Simmons said he voted against tabling the motion be
cause he felt the issue should be discussed, but added he
is opposed to the request for an 18 percent budget increase.
Hansen refused to comment on his abstention.
Wessels said that Regents John Payne of Kearney
and James Moylan of Omaha advised her before the meet
ing not to introduce the resolution.
Payne said he discouraged Wessels from bringing up the
resolution because "I did not think it had a ghost of a
chance of passing."
Payne declined to comment on Thone's 12.5 percent
budget increase recommendation.
Wessels said UNL President Ronald Roskens had said
he was "pleased" with Gov. Charles Thone's recommenda
tion for a 12.5 percent budget increase, and was concern
ed the Regents had adopted this position.
UNL President Ronald Roskens said in a statement
that "Although his budgetary recommendations do not
fully fund the request of the Board of Regents we appre
ciate the positive attitude of Governor Thone toward the
University's needs. It is obvious that the Governor shares
our concern for the future of Nebraska's only public uni
versity. His budget message relating to the University is
evidence of such support within present economic condi
tions and anticipated available revenues.
We will, however, during public hearings before the
Legislature's Appropriations Committee, present our total
needs on the basis of the previously submitted university
budget request."
State Sen. Steve Fowler-of Lincoln, a member of the
Legislature's Appropriations Committee, said he was "a
little puzzled" upon hearing the motion to table the reso
lution. In a letter to Prokop he asked whether or not the
Regents intended to support their original request. Prokop
replied that the Regents intended to continue their sup
port for the request, but it was not necessary to bring the
request up again in the form of a resolution.
"It would not have hurt for them (the Regents) to have
taken that action, " (to support the resolution) Fowler
said.
Fowler said he was satisfied with Prokop's reply.
Wessels said she was disappointed with the Regents'
decision to table her resolution, saying it was due to a lack
of leadership and willingness to stand by their decision on
the budget request.
"We need a spokesperson who will explain the need for
an 18 percent budget request," Wessels said. "We expect
that type of leadership from the administration and the
Regents. Sadly enough, that leadership is indeed lacking."
Instructors leaving university system
before reaching retirement age of 70
By Tricia Waters
More instructors are retiring or leaving the NU system
at age 65 than a university analyst predicted last year.
In 1979, analyst Lauren Drees estimated how much it
would cost the university after the Legislature raised the
retirement age for instructors from 65 to 70.
Drees determined that 92 instructors would reach age
65 by 1982. Using a figure from a 1978 Iowa study, Drees
estimated that 62 percent of the 92 would continue work
ing until age 70, costing the university about $3 million
more.
Of the original 92 instructors studied, 11 of 14 who
reached 65 in 1979 left the university. In 1980, 9 of 20
left.
In the entire university system, Drees said, only five
instructors are in their late 60s.
By the time they reach 65, most instructors are full
professors, averaging about $25,000 a year, Drees said.
When they retire, they are replaced by associate pro
fessors who may average about $16,000 a year, he said.
The difference between the two salary levels would
cost the university about $3 million, Drees estimated.
Professors working a few years longer before retirement
would delay the university from replacing them with
instructors at a lower salary, he said.
Last October, the university started a part-time teach
ing program, Drees said. At the age of 55, teachers could
begin working part time. However, the university isn't
pushing it, he said.
Some state colleges are pushing early retirement to
"get new blood," Drees said.
At other colleges, older teachers are preferred because
they're wiser and more experienced, he said.
Lloyd Teale, associate professor emeritus of modern
languages, said he taught for more than 37 years
before retiring in 1974. He said he stayed at UNL because
he liked the students and his colleagues.
At 75, Teale is the chief academic counselor for the
School of Journalism.
1 mm)M
Photo by Mark Billingsley
Kevin McGaslin had the right idea Tuesday
afternoon when he decided to get outdoors,
where the temperatures topped 70.
Wallace C. Peterson, an economics professor, has
taught at UNL for 30 years. He said he had other job
opportunities, but stayed at UNL because it's a good place
to work.
Peterson, 59, said that he hasn't thought about retiring
yet.
New ASUN party to wage administrative fight
Mary Louise Knapp
Students and employees of UNL must
band together to fight the "sexist, racist,
and classist" administration, said candidat
es for a new party running in the ASUN
elections.
The Feminist-Socialist party, which an
nounced its platform Tuesday, believes
that it is necessary to form a state and
national student union to resist the ad
ministration, said the party's presidential
candidate Eric Johnson.
Johnson, 23, is a graduate student in
mathematics and an ASUN senator from
Lincoln.
4? tsT'
Photo by Mitch Hrdlicka
The ASUN Feminist-Socialist party, left to right: Eric Johnson, presidential candi
date; Tim Rinne and Jan Deeds, both senatorial candidates.
He said that a Nebraska State Student
Association, working in conjunction with
the United States Student Association,
would be a preliminary step in achieving
that goal.
Johnson said that a Nebraska SSA
would be better able to fight the Reagan
administration's proposed cuts in financial
assistance for students if it joined the
USSA.
A State Student Association focused
on legislative lobbying would be unable
to resist the power of UNL's Central Ad
ministration, Johnson said.
The Feminist-Socialist party proposed
abolishing the UNL's Central Adminis
tration, which it views as an 'inherently
autocratic, corrupt, and self-serving gov
erning body."
ASUn is now constitutionally unable
to act against the central administration,
Johnson said.
All ASUN can do now, under the
present constitution, is "plan fooiball
rallies and pick which games students can
go to," he said.
"Many corporations and industries use
the university for the purpose of higher
profits," Johnson said. He said that the
party opposes the proposed new veter
inary college because "it will not help
Nebraska fanners."
Instead, he said, it will make the beef
industry more costly and inefficient.
Jan Deeds, a graduate student in edu
cational psychology and a senatorial can
didate, said that the party will use student
fee money to publicize every reported
incident of sexual harassment and
sexual assault at UNL
The party will fight for a "meaningful"
affirmative action program, including fund
ing for day care services, recruitment of
women students and employees and on-the-job
training for managerial positions,
the platform stated.
Continued on Page 2
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Jan. 28 P2gel0