Senator charges police with discrimination
sLJLJ*6"- Chambers calls inquiry racist, inappropriate
Nebraska Sen. Ernie Chambers
has requested a meeting with
University of Nebraska-Lin
coln officials to discuss possible dis
crimination against a graduate stu
dent.
But one UNL official said the cir
cumstances merely involved a rou
tine police investigation.
In a letter to UNL Chancellor Gra
ham Spanier, Chambers outlined an
incident last week in which UNL
l
graduate student Phil Bales was con
tacted by police for questioning in
connection to the disappearance of
UNL freshman Candice Harms, 18,
who was last seen Sept. 22.
Chambers said police contacted
Bates solely because he is an African
American.
The letter asked for a meeting with
Spanier, NU President Martin
Massengale and other university offi
cials to discuss the implications of “an
incident I hope is never repeated at
UNL,” Chambers said.
Chambers said Bates received a
call last Friday from a UNL police
officer who said she was fol low ing up
on a lead for the Lincoln Police De
partment.
She asked Bates if he was enrolled
in acertain anthropology class. When
Bates said he was, the officer told him
that Harms had been seen talking to an
African-American male in the class
before her disappearance, and re
quested that Bates come to the police
station to be interviewed and have hi;
picture taken.
Chambers said Bates refused tc
come to the station and said he woulc
contact his lawyer.
James Griesen.UNL vicechancel
lor for student affairs, said Bales wa:
one of four or five African-Amcricar
male students enrolled in the clas:
who were contacted by police.
George Bush answers questions from the audience at the Des Moines Convention Center ° n rimar°
Tuesday.
Bush praises farmers for growth
President urges
voters to choose
reliable candidate
By Jeff Zeleny
Staff Reporter
DES MOINES, Iowa —
President Bush assured sup
porters Tuesday that the
U.S. economy was improving and
not in demise as his opponents
charged.
Speaking ’to more than 2,500
supporters at the Dcs Moines Con
vention Center, Bush announced a
2.7 percent economic increase in
the July-Scptcmbcr quarter. The
past six consecutive quarters also
have shown economic growth, he
said.
“If you listen
to the Clinton
Gore ticket, the
only way they
can win is to con
vince America
that we’re in a
deep recession,”
he said. “The Democrats keep tell
ing us everything’s going to hell,
and they’re wrong.”
Bush praised farmers in the M id
west for their part in the economic
growth. Increased ethanol sales and
agriculture exports have played a
part in the growth, he said.
Bush fielded questions from the
audience during the “Ask George”
rally. He said he wanted to attack
issues and get rid of political road
blocks created by the gridlockcd
Congress.
“I will be re-elected and not
have any politics on the side,” he
said. “No more campaigns and no
more debates.
“The Democrats and Rcpubli
cansmuslsitdown with one another
with a two-by-four in one hand and
a very open approach in the other to
move the country forward.”
A questioner challenged Bush
on his environmental policy. The
president said his administration
had enforced Environmental Pro
tection Agency standards better
than any in the past.
But, Bush said, environmental
goals can create problems. Envi
ronmentalists want to save forest
owls, he said, but aren’t concerned
about the loss of jobs.
“We have to find a balance be
tween growth and sound environ
mental practices,” he said. “We’ve
gone loo far with regulations.”
Bush also answered questions
See BUSH on 6
He said the students were called
after police received a report that
Harms had been seen sitting beside
and talking to an African-American
student the day before her disappear
ance.
“The fact that the student was Af
• rican-American was only one part of
l the description,” Griesen said. “If the
description would have been for a 6
foot-6 blond guy, police would be
; looking for him.
I “If someone would have said I was
See CHAMBERS on 6
NU budget
firm despite
dim future,
official says
By Shelley Biggs
_ Senior Reporter
The University of Nebraska -
Lincoln will try to stick with
previous budget plans as long
as possible, even though the slate’s
economic outlook is growing more
dismal, officials said.
The Nebraska Economic Forecast
ing Advisory Board
pi inf'CT Friday predicted an
additional S52 mil
lion increase in the
budget gap over the
f S nexl ibrcc fiscal
Gov. Ben
Nelson said the
forecast meant the Nebraska Legisla
ture must trim SI36.3 million from
the state’s budget for 1993-94 and
1994-95.
Jack Goebel, vice chancellor of
business and finance at UNL, said
university officials involved in the
budget cutting process still were con
centrating on how to cut the 1.4 per
cent decided on earlier this year and
would not address the new forecast
yet.
Scott Moore, chairman of the
Legislature’s Appropriations Com
mittee, said the new forecast could
affect UNL this fiscal year if the state
ran out of money in January or Fcbru
ary.
“It is riot going to be fun,” he said.
As far as the university’s ability to
handle another decrease in the state’s
budget, Moore said, it would be easier
for East Campus to take on additional
cuts because of its planning proce
dure.
“City Campus hasn’t taken on it’s
share of the budget planning yet,” he
said.
Goebel said there were no current
plans of how the university would
deal with the increase in proposed
state budget cuts.
No one gains from part-time
instructors, professor says
Susie Arth
Senior Reporter_
n increase in the number of part-time
instructors across the country is hurting
- students, instructors and schools, but
UNL is not following those trends, an officiar
said.
Linda Pratt, president of the American As
sociation of University Professors and an En
glish professor at UNL, said the national trend
of hiring part-time instructors was beneficial to
no one.
“Good educational programs require a long
term commitmeni on the the part of faculty ,
members,” she said. “The increasing reliance
on part-time instructors disrupts this commit
ment.”
The U.S. Department of Education reported
that there were more than 3(X),()(X) part-time
instructors in 1989. They made up about 37
percent of the 898,200 instructors in colleges
across the country.
In 1976, there were 199.1(H) part-time in
structors, making up only 31 percent of the
633.2(H) instructors in the nation’s colleges.
These figures do not include teaching or
See INSTRUCTORS on 7
ITIMECARD
In 1991 UNL I
had 242 ¥ ■
part-time
employees, I
16% of the I M
1508 I ■
instructors. I m
aoufceilnflUiutional fteBflarcft i
TIMECARD
Nationwide
part-time
instructors
make up
17% ot the
instructors
at major
research
universities.
Scott Maurer/DN