The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current, February 27, 1992, Image 1
Nebras_i Leafin’ through his notes Dan Wisnieski, a senior agriculture major, prepares for his botany lab in the atrium in Manter Hall. *--1 No special treatment given regent’s son, officials say By Sean Green Senior Reporter __ The University of Nebraska-Lincoln made no special considerations when it used a state plane to fly a Teachers College professor to McCook to supervise the son of an NU regent, officials said Wednesday. Larry Andrews, a professor of curriculum and instruction at UNL, flew to McCook five times to supervise Regent Don Blank’s son, a UNL senior who is student teaching in McCook. The cost of using the plane was S3,442.40. The university did what it would have done for any student, said Neale Copple, an assistant to Jack Goebel, the interim chancellor at the time the plane was used. “Any lime money is spent to contribute to instruction, I think it’s legitimate,” he said. “This case involved a professor who volun teered to do the supervising but didn’t have the lime to drive 250 miles to McCook.” Copple said no special treatment was given in the case because it involved a regent’s son. However, he said he didn’t think a plane had ever been used in that exact set of circum stances before. Blank said he now understood why some students with parents in administration went to different schools from where their parents See BLANK on 2 Baldwin enters pleas - of insanity to charges By Jeremy Fitzpatrick Senior Reporter Andrew Scott Baldwin entered a dual plea — not guilty by reason of insanity and not responsible by reason of insan ity — to two assault charges at his arraignment Wednesday in 2nd District Court. Judge Paul Merritt Jr. scheduled Baldwin’s trial for April 6. Baldwin, a 22-year-old student at the Uni versity of Ncbraska-Lincoln, was charged with first- and third-degree assault after allegedly beating Gina Simanck, 23, and attacking a police officer Jan. 18. On Feb. 18, he was ruled psychologically competent to stand trial. Following Baldwin’s plea, Lancaster County Attorney Gary Lacey asked Merritt to set bail for Baldwin at $500,000. Baldwin’s attorney, Hal Anderson, said the request was too high and asked for a bond between $30,000 and $50,000. Merritt said he would determine bond Monday. Lacey said there was little challenge to facts that “certainly make it clear Mr. Baldwin did the acts complained of and has said as much.” A high bond was required, he said, because Baldwin did not have any tics to the Lincoln community, such as family, a job or financial resources, that would deter him from leaving. Lacey also said Simanck’s family had told him she was concerned that if Baldwin was released on bond, she would be in personal danger. “This is a very serious case,” he said. “It’s one in which a young woman was hurt in a very serious way.” Anderson said a $500,(XX) bond was unreal istic. “1 can assure the court lhat if bail is set at $500,000, Mr. Baldwin can’t meet it,” he said. He said Baldwin had no intention of con tacting Simanek, and gave the judge a letter from Dr. Louis Martin, a psychiatrist at the Lincoln Regional Center, that said Baldwin did not pose a significant threat to the community. Anderson said that if Baldwin was released on bail, he would be willing to submit himself to the St. Joseph Center for Mental Health in Omaha and accept its judgment of his condi tion. He said Baldwin would remain at the center as long as doctors recommended. When doc tors released him, Anderson said, Baldwin would continue outpatient treatment. After Baldwin was released, Anderson said, he would live with fellow football players Mike Grant and Jon Bostick for further super vision. Baldwin lived alone before the Jan. 18 See BALDWIN on 2 Women unfairly represented in UNL faculty, officials say Regents establishing gender equality goals Editor’s note: This the fourth part of a series on faculty salaries at UNL. By Cindy Kimbrough Senior Reporter Over the past decade, equity between men and women’s salaries at UNL has been an issue gaining increasing attention. But several university officials said the is sue may no longer be pay equity, but rather the shortage of women among UNL faculty. Mary Beck, chairperson of the Chancellor’s Commission on the Status of Women, said equality in faculty salaries was not the most important issue of the status of women at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. According to a commission study, which took into account years of experience and serv ice, tenure, rank and department, women fac ulty make an average of $600 less than men a year. But that amount is not a large difference, Beck said. When considering past differences, such as ; a $600 disparity in 1978, she said, women have fared well. A $600 difference now is not as large an amount as it was then, she said. Current differences in salary easily could be solved by giving proper attention to salary distribution so women are granted raises com parably, she said. Stan Liberty, interim vice chancellor for academic affairs, said that given the level at which women were employed, their salaries were unequal. The number of women in administrative positions is very small at UNL, Liberty said. “Where you tend to see the higher salaries at UNL, you don’t tend to sec any women,’’ he said. Liberty said he believed the pay gap had been almost completely closed, but he said he would continue to check on it every year. Richard Wood, NU general counsel, agreed and said two regression studies on faculty sala ries at UNL indicated little to no significant inequity in faculty salaries. The regression studies were done in 1989 and 1990 and took into account numerous variables, such as edu cational background and number of years at UNL. Wood said the regression study completed in 1989 showed almost the same difference in See GENDER on 2 Bill would permit all students to get loans. Corrections Wednesday's Daily Ne braskan an article on ASUN budget cuts to the University Programs Council in correctly quoted CFa Chairman Rob Broomfield as saying CFA did not cut any programming costs Rather, he said CFA did not cut any programming costs from UPC's Chicano special Events Committee Stinkin’ in Lincoln Page 5 ! \\ \ ‘ Husker women beat Okla homa State Page 13 INDEX Wire 2 Opinion 4 Diversions 5 Sports 13 Classifieds 15 By Jeremy Fitzpatrick Senior Reporter_ _ Government loans would be available to all students wish ing to attend college, regard less of income, if a bill now on the "fast track" in the U.S. Congress is passed. The proposed IDEA loan program would allow undergraduate students to borrow up to $5,000 a year, and graduate students would be able to borrow up to $15,000 a year. Under graduates could not borrow more than $25,000 and graduates not more than $30,000. IDEA is a direct loan program, which means that the federal govern ment would loan money directly to students through colleges and univer sities, without banks acting as mid dlemcn. Money would be withheld from z person’s paycheck by the Internal Revenue Service following gradualior to pay off the loans. Repayment would be based on income level after gradu ation — students who made more money after college would have tc repay their loans faster than those who made less. The program originally was pro posed by Sens. Paul Simon, D-III. and David Durenbergcr, R-Minn., bui stalled in the U.S. Senate because ol controversy over a provision that would have replaced the current govemmem student loan program — in which government loans are handled through banks — with IDEA. But after negotiation, Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., endorsed a com promise version of the plan Tuesday which he introduced in the Senate. The compromise would keep both programs and test the IDEA plan in 300 schools in 1993-94. If the pro gram was successful, it would be offered to all schools in 1997-98. David Carle, Simon’s press secre tary, said the IDEA program would be part of the economic recovery package that President Bush asked Congress to pass by March 20. He said the bill’s inclusion in the recov ery package put it on the “fast track” to pass through Congress. John Beacon, director of scholar ships and financial aid at the Univer sity of Nebraska-Lincoln, said he would not comment on the IDEA plan be fore it had been passed in its final version. Philosophically, he said, he ap proved of direct-lending programs because they make loans available to a large number of students. “It reaches out not just to the stu dent who shows financial need,” he said, “but it also makes money avail able at a pretty good interest rate to middle income families.” However, Beacon said he was concerned that making large loans more readily available to students might create problems in the future. He said students who took on $5,000 a-year loans might have difficulty paying them off after they graduated. “Arc we setting pooplc up for having to pay back large loan amounts?” he asked. Beacon said he also questioned whether the governmcntcould handle the paperwork and processing involved with handling the IDEA program.