_ Eric Pfanrier, Editor, 472-1766
Oailv Bob Nelson,.EditorialPage Editor
ra£6 TV Victoria Ayotte, Managing Editor
* * ? p I jf |Tfl l^k 4 1 Ti Jana Pedersen, Associate News Editor
4J- ^ fc/X WkJAmMJ, K. Emily Rosenbaum, Associate News Editor
University o« Nebraska-Uncoin Diane Brayton, Copy Desk. Chief
Brian Shellito, Art Director
■.---: —lirr rnn~ii m j
Sleight of hand
UNL salary increases illusionary
The Legislature’s Appropriations Committee needs to be
straight with the University of Nebraska and the citizens
of the state.
No one denies that a prudent state budget is a necessity this
year. But in outlining its plans for the university, the commit
tee has attempted to play a numbers game to disguise just how
Draconian its budget for NU would lx;.
So far, the committee has maintained that its preliminary
budget proposal would include 4 percent faculty salary in
creases for NU.
But University of Ncbraska-Lincoln Interim Chancellor Jack
Goebel said that isn’t so.
In a memo to UNL faculty and staff members, he said the
committee’s proposal, because of earmarked budget items,
actually provided no salary increase. To finance the 4 percent
raise, UNL would have to gut the rest of its budget to cover a
more than $5 million shortfall.
Not that a 4 percent raise would be ideal. It would still fall
short of inflation and move UNL no closer to its target faculty
salaries.
In addition, 4 percent for UNL is unfair, because it pales in
comparison to the 6.5 percent and 8.7 percent raises approved
Saturday for the Omaha and Kearney branches of the NU
system.
I nose pay hikes were approved ny me rsu noara 01 Kcgerus i
because it hail no choice; UNO anil UNK have collective bar
gaining unions lor salary negotiations.
UNL has no such bargaining agreement. But that doesn’t
mean it should be shortchanged in the upcoming legislative
salary bailie.
UNL employees deserve raises comparable to those at other
state institutions. That means increases of 6 percent or more,
not 0 percent or even 4 percent.
ITie slate has a duly to provide lair and equitable treatment
for all its university employees. UNL should not be punished
because il lacks a collective bargaining agreement.
Fair salaries must not be allocated at the expense of service
to the state. Obviously, if both salaries and programs arc to
continue receiving funding, something will have to give. That
something needs to be the Appropriations Committee’s pre
liminary proposal. In times of economic disaster, its despera
tion move would be justified. But Nebraska is not experiencing
an economic disaster; programs and salaries ought to be
financed at satisfactory levels.
Obviously, pay raises won’t continue at the double-digit
levels of the last three years. The UNO and UNK agreements
recognize that necessity. UNL faculty and staff members
should receive raises in the same level. Anything less would be
unrealistic, unfair and unnecessary. '
Students’ views misrepresented
There is an irony in the attitude
that shapes the views of those who
run this university. Earlier this se
mester, a student w-as arrested for
having spray-painted ami-war slogans
on the sidewalks of this campus. This
act was viewed as felonious, a de
struction of public property.
Many people would agree that this
act was wrong for a number of rea
sons, mainly because the idea that
this university is a public institution,
and thus there should be room for the
expression of all sorts of political
views. But those expressions should
be limited so that no one group can
dominate the campus, thus leaving
the impression that any one view re
flects that of the campus, or more
dangerously the university.
Now I think it’s ironic that in the
same semester, six students have hung
a yellow ribbon in Architecture Hall.
Granted, the ribbon would not inflict
the same sort of physical damage that
a can of spray paint would, but it docs
carry the same sort of symbolic dam
age.
The yellow ribbon symbol has been
a rallying point for Americans when
our people arc in a state of conflict,
such as the Iranian hostage crisis, and
now the Persian Gulf war. The yellow
ribbon has come to symbolize sup
port for the troops, often being trimmed
with the American flag or more rib
bon in the ever popular American
patriotic colors.
My own preference during this war
hdfbeen the wearing of the yellow
ribbon, along with buttons such as
“No Blood For Oil.” As a caring human
being, 1 worry for our women and
men stationed in the gulf, but I’m also
intelligent enough to see the hypoc
risy and outright lies of President
Bush and his oil scum buddies who
have been playing an deadly game
with both the lives of Americans and
the indigenous people of the Middle
East.
The yellow ribbon, combined with
a green ribbon, has been a symbol
used nationally by people dedicated
to peace. It symbolizes support for
our troops, but not the illogical, in
sane and immoral policies of the Bush
administration.
By choosing to display the yellow
ribbon, these students have made a
bold statement that reflects on the
entire university system. Their sym
bol speaks of not only a support of our
troops, but of support for the atroci
ties enacted by George Bush. This is
a biased and unfair representation of
the attitudes of those who work for
and attend this university. These stu
dents reportedly displayed the ribbon
with the tacit approval of the Depart
ment of Architecture.
If this act of expression is accept
able, then perhaps we all should stock
pile spray paint. Take the ribbon down,
or use it to blindfold justice.
James A. Zank
senioi
art and English
MICHAEL STOCK
Utensils 101: forks and fluency
Once upon a lime, about 20
years ago when my mother
was going to this revered uni
versity, she took one of those wonder
ful calculus classes that math is known
for. Her instructor continually pro
nounced “four” as “fork.”
“The square root of sixty-fork re
lics upon . . . .” And so he would
cpntinuc. Mom knew that “fork” was
a number, and that was fine. But it
was irritating and distracting. And
the number “fork” was not the only
utensil mentioned that semester.
I’ve heard forks and spoons men
tioned in a class or two during my stay
at the university as well. The problem
of faculty fluency is not a new one.
The chance for a solution is, how
ever.
The problem remains. A solution
awaits.
State Sen. Rex Habcrman’s bill
waits in committee. The senator from
Imperial’s bill, LB214, calls for the
creation of an “evaluation process
designed to ensure that all faculty
members of public postsccondary
■ ni't it > it ■ '\nc a r a PI ■ i/\nt ■ rt Cmvllnl*
language."
Thiscvaluationistobcdoncannu
ally, calling closer attention to crite
ria demanded by personal interviews,
observations and evaluations by co
workers, alumni and students.
Stan Liberty, University of Nc
braska-Lincoln interim vice chancel
lor for academic affairs, said the uni
versity’s current 3-ycar-old program
eliminates the need for Haberman’s
bill.
This 3-year-old program, however,
is two years away from completion.
And even in completion, the program
only tests T.A.s and not professors.
Granted, professors undergo inten
sive interviews — but no fluency
tests. Also, the interviews arc run by
the university, for the university, just
like the T.A. fluency program. •
Haberman’s bill takes the respon
sibility of determining fluency away
from the university and places it on a
third party — the Nebraska Coordi
nating Commission for Postsecondary
Education.
The bill requires fluency of all
faculty members, and lets an unbi
ased parly determine fluency.
And it would be a law, no less.
However, djsi
missing everv com
plaint of fluency, as
an example, of the
ethnocentricitv that
plagues our campus
is onlv an effective
wag to Close. XQUe
eves to the problem.
while manx stu
dents' sleepless
nights continue.
Many UNL officials say that there
is no problem with fluency. Liberty
told the NU Board of Regents Satur
day that students who diagnose their
professors as not fluent in English
may have a case of ethnocenurism.
However, dismissing every com
plaint of fluency as an example of the
elhnocentricily that plagues our campus
is only an effective way to close your
eyes to the problem, while many stu
dents’ sleepless nights continue. Not
every complaint can simply be dis
missed as the problem of a preju
diced, closed mind. Not without a
guilty conscience, anyway.
This is the first year that the cur
rent program has been required of all
T.A.s. Obviously, a number of in
structors have slipped through the
two years’ worth of cracks that have i
yet to be filled.
Last semester, in my introductory
language course, I had a problem
understanding my instructor. He had
a problem catching the “guest” of
what I was saying, too.
Apparently, I was not the only
one.
Several students and their parents
raised complaints to the modern
languages department and to the
Division of Continuing Studies. Rep
resentatives of the modern languages
department and the Division of Con
tinuing Studies soon visited the class.
Students in the class were ques
tioned. We filled out those annoying
little bubble-forms until our pencils
were worn to nubs. He underwent
interviews and question sessions from
each of the departments. Our grades
also were evidence of the fluency
problem.
Our instructor isn’t teaching this
semester.
bui wc arc sun required 10 uikc me
next level in our language classes,
and we’ve got some catching up to
do.
My instructor slipped through the
university’s patented testing system,
and, in effect, the university has
admitted it by not allowing him to
teach. Meanwhile, wc suffer the con
sequences of learning a little bit less
from one of the few who slipped
through. On the brighter side, I do
know a great deal more about uten
sils.
The point remains that some of the
complaints arc well-founded and jus
tifiable. Haberman’s bill would en
sure that every instructor, new or old,
would be tested. The university would
know for sure who should be teach
ing, any remaining complaints could
be only ethnocentric demands and the
university’s education standards would
be raised.
Sure, we would learn a little bit
less about utensils, but how many
times have you taken the time to cat
dinner in class?
Stock Is a Junior English major and a
Daily Nebraskan arts and entertainment
reporter and columnist.