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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 24, 1990)
WEATHER INDEX News Digest.2 Today, sunny, breezy and warmer, southwest Editorial .4 wind 10-20 miles per hour, high around 80. To- soorts 10 night, mostly dear, low in the low 50s. Tuesday, . , , ' . partly sunny and breezy, high in the low 80s. Art.*Entertainment. 2 — V01^90 No 20 Foundation votes to divest from S. Africa By Ryan Steeves Staff Reporter After months of public pres sure, the NU Foundation an nounced Friday that, in accor dance with state law, it would divest of companies doing business in South Africa. Terry Fairfield, foundation presi dent, said the organization ’ s Board of Directors voted unanimously to di vest. Fairfield announced the policy change at a press conference Friday afternoon and later at a dinner of the foundation’s trustees. The foundation is a non-profit, private organization that solicits money for the university. Fairfield confirmed that the new policy would affect only one founda tion investment: a stock worth about $1 million in Abbott Laboratories, a health care company. He said that directors felt it was necessary to divest because their origi nal position not to divest had placed the university at risk with some con stituencies and financial sources. It was not the directors’ intention to do that, Fairfield said. “The last three years have been very good and very positive for the university,” he said, “And we want to see that that continues.” The partial divestment probably will not veil the foundation from the public eye. Some groups, such as the Anti-Apartheid Coalition of Nebraska, are calling for it and the university to divest from all companies doing busi ness in South Africa. Under Nebraska law, state agen cies can invest in firms doing busi ness in South Africa as long as the firms meet criteria aimed at develop ing equality between blacks and whites. Arthur D. Little Inc. of Cambr idge, Mass., evaluates the companies and places them in four categories according to how well they comply with the criteria. Firms in Category I are considered to be making good progress toward equality and are exempt from Ne braska’s list of forbidden companies. Those in the last three categories -- IIA, IIIA and IIIB -- are on the state list, and agencies cannot invest in them. Fairfield said the foundation will wait until October to divest. A new rating comes out then, and it’s likely Abbott will jump to a Category I firm, he said. The foundation also has invest mentsincompaniescurrentlyinCate gory I that could fall into latter cate gories, Fairfield said. In that case, the foundation “probably” will divest of those companies, he said. Those wanting to verify that the foundation is following the new pol icy will have to trust the organization. Fairfield said the foundation will not disclose investments in its portfolio. The new policy and the precarious ratings system present problems for the money-wary foundation, Fairfield said. Investment strategies usually are long term and are vulnerable to the ratings, he said. “If you have rankings every quar ter and one firm goes from IIA to I, I to IIA, you have to buy, sell, buy, sell, regardless of whether the market is up or down,” he said. The ratings are annual, however, and some campus groups and leaders say the key word is sell. Joseph Akpan, president of the Nigerian Student Organization, said that although he is pleased with the foundation’s announcement, he hopes the organization goes further. Akpan said he wants the univer sity and tiie foundation to totally divest But even more importantly, he wants them to develop useful programs for black South Africans such as scholar ships and exchange programs. Fairfield said the foundation is considering financing such propos als. The NU President’s Special Com mittee on South Africa is working on the proposals and could have some concrete suggestions in a month to six weeks. tiytHWl OT lw«rtv. historic Apollo 009 spoco modulo on Restoration plans uncertain [Apollo 009 damaged By Dionne Searcey Staff Reporter Years of exposure to Nebraska weather have damaged the Apollo 009 space capsule more than two trips through space did. The white paint on the outside of the spacecraft is faded, chipped and cracked. Pm of the outer shell has broken off. The windows are dirty and scratched and, inside, wires are tangled and equipment is covered with rust.__ The spacecraft, which was donated to UNL in 1972, has sat outside Morrill Hall for 18 years. Plans to restore the craft have been de veloped, delayed, then resurrected. Bob Carpenter, UNL campus architect, said officials are beginning to re-examine restoration plans for the craft but are uncer tain about what needs to be done. Hugh Genoways, director of the Nebraska Stale Museum, said that “from the mu See APOLLO on 6 Retired professor continues labor of love after 54 years By James P. Webb Staff Reporter At 14 pages, the r£sum6 of Elvin Frolik, professor emeritus of agronomy, is big ger than some undergraduate research papers. Thai’s no small wonder for the 81-year-old DeWitt native whose career began with a de termination to find a job during the Great Depres sion. Since then, he has worked in a series of ag;ri cullure-related jobs, in cluding a span of 54 years at the University of Ne braska-Lincoln. His involvement in the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Re sources is just as vigorous today as when he joined the faculty in 1936. As a member of two private organizations, he supports the insti tute’s programs by fund raising and by lobby ing the Nebraska Legislature. He also has started a fund in his family’s name with the NU Foun dation emphasizing the quality of students at the college. And from his office at 202 Agricultural Hall on East Campus, Frolik researches the history of the college, what he calls his “labor of love.” What began as an interest in the mid-’70s has led to a 500-page book titled “College of Agriculture of the University of Nebraska Lincoln, The First Century.” The book, co authored by Ralston Graham, covers adminis trative units, major programs and topics of special interest from 1874, the first year stu dents entered the college, to 1974. Frolik said the most remarkable part of the college’s history is the hardships it endured during its development. The reason the college was established was not because people were demanding it, but because of federal money available to universities under the Morrill Land Grant Act of 1862, he said. “I suppose the biggest thing is that some people didn’t think of agriculture as quite proper. ... The College of Agriculture had to establish itself both with the people of the state and with the academic circles within the university.” See FROLIK on 3 UNL studies athletics By Alan Phelps Staff Reporter To help with a study aimed at developing uniform standards for participation in NCAA championships, Nebraska’s athletic department is taking slock of its game plan. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has begun a voluntary self-evaluation of all aspects of ns athletic program to help the NCAA set up a nationwide certification program for athletic departments. The NCAA will use the report, due in early 1991, with reports from other universities to set standards to judge schools for participation in NCAA championships. This program then will be presented to NCAA membership for pos sible adoption in 1995. The study also will help UNL, said A1 Papik, Nebraska assistant athletic director for administrative/academic services. “We’ll get to know ourselves a little belter and this should make us more effective and efficient,” Papik said. Teachers College Dean James O’Hanlon, UNL spokesman for the project and ultimate author of the report to the NCAA, agreed. “It’s like a Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval,’ ’ O’Hanlon said. ‘‘The program will set a series of goals or standards to strive for. ’ ’ Papik said UNL Chancellor and NU Interim President Martin Massengale, who is chairman of the NCAA Presidents Commission, encour aged UNL’s involvement. Massengale said the program is a way of telling the NCAA that UNL respects and rec ognizes the rules. He also said it will benefit the university because it allows UNL to ask inter nal questions. Papik agreed. “I think that any time a department does an in-depth self-study, they find out a lot about their organization, structure, services, strengths and weaknesses that normally aren’t detected,” Papik said. ‘‘We’ll have something to compare what we’re doing against.” The only other Division 1-A school cur rently in the pilot study is the University of Califomia-Los Angeles, Papik said. The NCAA is looking for about 40 schools, with at least one school in each major conference, he said. The program, which began in mid-Septem ber, will continue for the next three months as -* 4 It's like a Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval. The pro gram will set a series of goals or standards to strive for. OHanbn dean Teachers College -f » athletic department staff members, coaches, student athletes, faculty members and adminis trators examine areas of the athletic program. They will study academic, financial and ad ministrative issues, the institutional mission, commitment to compliance with NCAA regu lations, conductof student athletes and coaches and the student-athlete experience. The study will be extensive, Papik said. ‘‘There are 20 to 30 questions we must answer about each area,’ ’ he said. Results from interviews of students, faculty, alumni and coaches will be sent to the NCAA to compare with results from other pilot schools.