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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 1992)
_SPORTS Pg. 11 Ja&E Pfl.ie] I weather W—BBho.i I in News Digest 2 Quar^er^ac^ ir^~) Entertainment 15 83/BO Classified cloudy today, chance of "" showers increase tonight. h ■ - Jt | Tomorrow, continued clouds and cooler Athletic director trades Ducks for Huskers By Stacey McKenzie Senior Reporter EUGENE, Ore. — Bill Byrne stands in his comer office and points out the window and across the road to two football prac tice fields. The fields were a parking lot be fore Byrne became athletic director at the University of Oregon in 1984. But when he saw that a local club was making money off the university by selling the lot on game days, he convinced the county to lease the land to the university for $1 a year. Such improvements to the Univer sity of Oregon sent a signal to UNL Oregon’s Bill Byrne to head department Nov. 1; was appointed to position in June when it began its search for a new athletic director to replace Bob Dcva ney. In June, a search committee appointed Byrne to the position. Byrne was in Lincoln this week end, but he said that until he takes over at UNL Nov. 1, his mind will be more on the Ducks than on the Com huskers. One of Byrne’s last projects at Oregon—the Lcn Casanova Athletic Center—isnear completion. Hecalls it his “baby.” The state-of-the-art center is adia ccni to the football stadium and houses the university’s athletic staff. The SI 2-mil lion center is a mass of brown brick and sparkling glass. It gleams against the Oregon skyline as proof that Byrne knows how to create and raise money for quality athletic facilities. Before Byrne tackles his job at UNL, he said he would research Nebraska. The Nebraska Blue Book and a large folder filled with informa tion about UNL arc on his reading list. Some di (Terences in the two schools’ programs arc obvious, he said. Byrne had to open up offices in major Oregon cities and work with mayors to generate support for the university’s athletic programs. “I felt that we needed the entire stale to support this institution,” he said. UNL already has strong statewide support, he said. Although it is filling up more than it used to, Oregon’s football stadium is only a little more than half the size of UNL’s, Byrne said. UNL has filled its 73,650-seal See BYRNE on 8 Byrne Spamer lists recycling as chief priority By Chuck Green Senior Reporter Recycling old cans, boulcs and newspa pers and attracting foreign students arc among UNL Chancellor Graham Spanicr’s top priorities for the coming aca demic year. Spanicr announced plans for a campuswidc recycling program Friday during his Stale of the University address to UNL staff and faculty members at the Lied Center for Performing Arts. “My goal is to make UNL the state’s leader in recycling of paper, plastics, waste and other items,” he said. The comprehensive program would be based on national models, he said, and would rely heavily on recommendations of the UNL Re cycling Task Force. After the initial year, Spanicr said, costs of the program — including the salary of a newly appointed recycling coordinator— would be paid for with savings achieved by recycling. Spanicr also announced that UNL will pai ticipalc in a program that will encourage black South Africans to pursue their graduate studies at UNL. The program is sponsored by the United Nations Educational and^training Pro gram for Southern Africa. Funds for the program were set aside to provide initial financial support for the first students, who would join UNL next fall, Spanicr said. Spanicr said he also would place “a very high priority” on improving UNL’s deteriorat ing infrastructure. Several classrooms and other spaces on UNL’s campus were renovated over the summer. The renovation of spaces in the future, as well as health and safely issues. See SPANIER on 7 rTinrr ..-ul-———J Shaun Sartin/DN Happy Birthday, Nebraska! Nebraska’s first lady Diane Nelson and Governor Ben Nelson prepare to light the cake during opening ceremonies of the Q125 Birthday Bash at the Capitol Saturday afternoon. i Lied Center records surplus; will be applied to lower debt By Susie Arth Senior Reporter The Lied Center for Perform ing Arts has taken its first major step toward financial success, the center’s director said last week. Robert Chumbley announced Thursday that the Lied Center re corded a $71,8% budget surplus for the 1991-92 operational year. “A surplus of any kind, let alone a surplus as high as this one, in these economic times is extraordinary,” he (said. Chumbley said the year’s profits would be applied to the center’s debt, which has accumulated over previous years. ■ The debt has been reduced to $523,673, he said. Chumblcy credited increased ticket sales, his stall and support from the University of Nebraska Foundation for the financially successful year. In addition, the Friends of Lied, a fund-raising group, exceeded its goal of support for the Lied Center by $25,000, he said. Because the Lied Center depends on public support, Chumblcy said, it is difficult to predict whether it will be able to continue its financial suc cess. “The vast majority of income is based on the public’s whim to buy tickets,” he said. But Chumbley said he believed the Lied Center would continue to make financial progress. The Lied Center recently com pleted its most successful season subscription campaign, he said, with sales of $698,861 — a 44 percent increase over last year. New marketing and promotional activities give the Lied Center a chance to make money every year, he said. TheFriendsofLied’s membership has increased, and the group has planned fund-raising activities, he said. This support will help the Lied Cen ter remain viable. “The Lied Center is structured and functions in such a way to allow us the opportunity to do well financially every year,” he said. . . ' < :L: '.!