The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, September 21, 1989, Image 1

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September 21, 1989__University of Nebraska-Lincoln Vol. 89No."l8
AS UN resolution calls for
disclosure on R os kens firing
By Jana Pedersen
Senior Reporter
The Association of Students of the Uni
versity of Nebraska voted Wednesday
to approve an amended version of a
resolution asking the NU Board of Regents to
disclose the reasons behind dismissing former
NU president Ronald Roskens.
The bill’s sponsor, general studies Sen.
Steve Thomllson, said he moved to amend his
resolution after speaking with UNL Faculty
Senate President James McShane.
“It is not the intent (of the resolution) to
move the university toward a lawsuit,’’ Th
omlison said. “But this is astancc ASUN could
take. We could stand on an issue for once that
students have asked us to.”
Previously, the resolution stated that ASUN
protested the regents’ refusal to disclose the
information. As amended, the resolution slates
that ASUN requests the regents to “recon
sider” the refusal and inform students if they
are legally able.
Before ASUN voted to amend, McShane
called the resolution “troubling.”
“I find it troubling because over and over
again I find the board is not in a flexible
position,” he said.
Until the regents’ legal counsel or Attorney
General Robert Spire make a decision on the
legality of revealing the reasons for Roskens’
dismissal, McShane said, the regents have an
obligation to remain silent.
“I’m rather proud that our board has the
sense to keep their collective mouth shut de
spite all the grief it has brought them ...” he
said.
The resolution, as amended, said the regents
should disclose their reasons “as soon as the
attorney {general or the courts legally permit.”
Spire is deciding whether the regents broke
the open-meeting law when they dismissed
Roskens July 31.
At the present time, keeping quiet about the
issue is the only way for regents to avoid a
lawsuit, McShanc said.
He said that as he understands current Ne
braska open-meetings laws, personnel matters
cannot be made public unless the employee
involved discloses the information.
If the regents disclose personnel informa
tion, he said, it could seriously affect the ability
of the employees involved to find other jobs.
The employees then could file lawsuits and
claim damages of expected lifetime earnings,
he said.
The figure from a successful lawsuit of that
nature could cost much more than the $250,000
the regents are paying Roskens, McShanc said.
The only person who can disclose informa
tion about Roskens’ dismissal is Roskens, he
said.
Roskens claims that he can’t disclose any
information about his dismissal because that’s
‘‘just politics,” McShanc said.
See ASUN on 3
Hall president fails attempt to
prove RHA constitution invalid
By Victoria Ayotte
Senior Editor
Che Residence Hall Association Judicial
Board Wednesday quelled a student’s
suit to prove the RHA Constitution of
1987 invalid.
Judicial Board Chairwoman Lisa Line said
that Jay Noble’s claims that the constitution is
invalid were unproved. No evidence exists to
show that the 1987 constitution was not ratified
properly, she said.
Noble, president of Neihardt Hall, charged
that the RHA Constitution of 1978 superseded
any bylaws or constitutions passed since that
time.
J. Matt Wickless, RHA president, argued
that the RHA Constitution of 1978 was re
placed with bylaws passed in 1981, 1984 and
1986. These bylaws were the same as new con
stitutions, he said.
If the 1978 document were still valid, the
process by which RHA approved the 1987
constitution would have been improper. The
1978 constitution said that any new constitu
tions would have to be ratified by a two-thirds
vote of the Residence Hall Association, which
consists of all students who live in the halls.
Noble said that although the 1987
constitution was approved by the RHA senate,
it was not ratified by the association’s mem
bers.
Wickless said he thinks the 1987
constitution was ratified properly, but the local
complex governments re-ratified it in the last
three weeks to ensure the document’s validity.
No records exist from when the 1981 bylaws or
the 1987 constitution were approved to show
how they were ratified.
_ See RHA on 6 -
UNL stresses recruitment
of female faculty members
By Pat Dtaslage
v... ngf iaaiww ~
The percentage of female vs.
male faculty members at
the University of Ne
braska-Lincoln is “lower than
we’d like it to be,” but not
“shameful,” according to Brad
Munn, affirmative action officer at
IUNL.
Munn said there are many
women faculty members ife some
departments, such as the humani
ties and social sciences. But in
areas such as agriculture, cl»emis
try, physics and engineering, there
are few women and minorities, he
said.
Colleen Daniels, academic sys
tems coordinator in the Office of
the Vice Chancellor for Academic
Affairs, said efforts are being
made to actively recruit women
and minority faculty members.
To attract women faculty mem
bers to academic areas where diey
are underrepresented, Academic
Affairs provides additional funds
and extra incentives, including
money tor moving expenses and
computers for those who want
them. Money for such perks nor
mally comes out of individual col
lege funds, which sometimes are
limited.
Academic Affairs provides
support for recruitment efforts.
Individual colleges actually do the
recruiting.
UNL is not hiring faculty in
some colleges, she said. Demo
graphics show that much of the
faculty is middle-aged, earning
tenure and staying at UNL, which
means positions are not opening.
Murai said applicants for fac
ulty positions usually are chosen
from those who have received
doctoral degrees. There is a lack of
women students in the doctoral
programs in the science, math,
business and technical fields, he
said.
According to Jim McShane,
president of UNL Faculty Senate,
the low number of women faculty
members is a problem.
See FACULTY on 6
mama
David Hanaan/Dally Nebraskan
Lowell Brown, of 1919 Sumner St., and Wayne Ingram, 628 Eldora Lane, have
been picketing near the capital since May in protest of the defunct Common
wealth Savings and Loan. Commonwealth investors still are suffering from
their losses in 1983 when the Lincoln bank went default. Brown said he lost
$117,000.
Women s protection against diseases,
pregnancy could be on market soon
By Emily Rosenbaum
Staff Reporter
A condom for women, designed
for contraception and protec
tion from AIDS, currently is
under Food and Drug Administration
review and could be on the market
within a year.
“This condom allows a woman to
protect herself,” said Mary Ann
Leeper, senior vice president of Wis
consin Pharmacal Co., developers of
the condom.
It is the first product to give
women the chance to help protect
themselves from both sexually trans
mitted diseases and pregnancy,
Leeper said.
The WPC-333 vaginal condom is
a polyurethane sheath with two flex
ible polyurethane rings. The ring at
the closed end of the sheath is in
serted into the vagina and is anchored
under the pubic bone.
The other ring remains outside the
vagina after insertion, protecting the
labia and base of the penis during
intercourse.
Like the male condom, WPC-333
is intended for one-time use and does
not require fitting by a doctor.
Leeper said the product gives
broader coverage than the male con
dom and is less likely to tear because
it’s made of polyurethane.
“It’s less disruptive than the male
condom because the woman inserts it
before intercourse,’’ she said.
‘It’s less disruptive
than the male
condom because
the woman inserts
it before inter
course.'
—Leeper
Leeper said the biggest problem
the company may have to face in
marketing the condom is compla
cency among the public.
Although “sexually transmitted
diseases are on a rampage,’’ Leeper
said, not enough people are taking
precautions, such as using condoms.
Another problem with the female
condom may be the way it looks,
Lecpersaid.
Phyllis Mostrom, coordinator of
the sexually transmitted diseases
program at the University Health
Center, said she isn’t certain how a
female condom would be accepted by
the public.
Despite the AIDS threat and other
sexually transmitted diseases, con
doms aren’t widely used, she said.
People often think that condoms
interrupt spontaneity, Mostrom said.
“It’s easier not to use it,” she said.
In a series of clinical studies,
WPC-333 was compared to the male
Condom. The results were presented
Au£25.
The results showed that the vagi
nal condom had a 0.6 percent leakage
rate while the male condom rale was
3.5 cent.
leaks were caused by pinholes
and tears from manufacturing failure
or stress during use.
Another study of the female con
dom will be,performed next month to
determine its effectiveness as a
contraceptive, Leeper said.