Clinton’s school plan gets approval
WASHINGTON (AP) — The
House voted overwhelmingly
Wednesday in favor of President
Clinton’s $420 million school im
provement plan, which would es
tablish voluntary national teaching
standards.
The 307-118 approval came af
ter supporters, addressing concerns
that the federal government would
assume too great a role in local
school decisions, stressed that the
bill’s provisions are voluntary.
Democrats and the House’s only
independent favored the proposal
by a 249-2 margin. The majority
included 57 Republicans, while 116
GOP members opposed it.
The Senate still must act on the
measure.
Rep. Thomas Sawyer, D-Ohio,
said it “will provide states and local
communities with models that they
can adopt and, more importantly,
adapt to theirowneducational needs
as they define them.”
“This bill does very little to set
goals for American education and
even less to make those goals
achievable for the states,” argued
Rep. Cass Ballenger, R-N.C. “In
reality, the bill creates new and
more cumbersome layers of bu
reaucracy.”
Clinton’s “Goals 2000: Educate
America Act” would establish vol
untary national standards for
schools.
It provides broad criteria for
what students should learn in En
glish, mathematics and other sub
jects and whether schools have
qualified teachers and suitable text
books.
States would submit their pro
posed standards to a national panel
for approval. Existing plans could
also be considered.
Another national board would
identify essential occupational
skills and create a voluntary system
of setting standards and certifies
tion procedures for job training
programs. > ;
The legislation represents a
“major departure from the way the
federal government has assisted
education in the past,” said Rep.
Dale Kildee, D-Mich., who man
aged the bill on the House floor.
The bill was adopted by the
House Education and Labor Com
mittee without any Republican
backing.
“This is not the bill that was
approved by the Education and
Labor Committee,” said Rep. Steve
Gunderson, R-Wis.
“Everything is voluntary,” said
Rep. Bill Goodling of Pennsylva
nia, the ranking Republican on the
Education and Labor Committee.
“If states want to adopt goals that
have been prepared by experts in
the field ... then they can, but they
don’t have to.”
Goodling said the sponsors had
allayed his fear that Congress would
be setting standards that would force
states to spend billions of dollars to
meet.
The House defeated, 300-130, a
proposal to refocus the legislation
and allow parents to pay for private
and parochial schools with tax
money. Proponents said the pro
posal would provide needed com
petition for public schools, but op
ponents said it would undermine
them.
Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich.,
said the proposal would “encour
age, lest we forget the term, com
petition” among schools.
Goodling said if the federal gov
ernment spends money on private
schools, it will eventually “deter
mine what you do in your schools
and then you are going to have no
purpose for being.”
Thursday Evening
Special 8 to 10 PM
Three That’s Three
Delicious ^
Cookies for $1
I
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120 North 14th
KHey Tknperley/DN
Nebraska women’s basketball coach Angela Beck talks Wednesday morning at Nebraska
Union to a group of students and coaches about gender equity issues.
Beck
Continued from Page 1
1972, women’s participation in sports
had increased. But she said the num
ber of women in coaching and admin
istrative positions had declined.
The amendment, Title IX, is de
signed to put an end to gender dis
crimination in the classroom and on
the athletic field in schools that re
ceive federal funds.
Since 1972, the number of females
participating in high school athletics
nas increased more than threefold.
Beck said. The increase reflects the
growing opportunities
letics for women.
offered in ath
Thc gender equi ty report also states
that benefits and resources available
to women athletes, coaches and ad
ministrators should be equal.
Despite the apparent inequity of
Nebraska athletics, Beck said, UNL’s
athletic department is makingprogress
toward a more balanced system.
“In terms of coaching and academ
ic services offered to female athletes
at UNL, women receive exactly the
same benefits as men,” Beck said. “I
think that is one thing that UNL is a
front-runner in.”
Beck said women athletes were
treated the same as men in terms of
practice time, travel allowances, hous
ing and dining facilities, training op
portunities and equipment and sup
plies.
But Beck said conditions were not
equal for men and women at UNL.
„ “I am grateful for what they have
provided, but I am not stupid enough
to say it is equal," she said.
“I would never say we are treated
equal because I’m not stupid enough
to say that we are equal, but we are
treated better than most other pro
grams and are on equal ground in
academic services."
Booth
Continued from Page 1
As Republicans talked amongst
themselves and occasionally enticed
passers-by to kiss them, about six
students arrived nearby wearing pink
triangle “safe place” st ickers ana hold
ing a sign that read “Queers Approve
of P.D.A.”
One of them, Scott Roewer, a jun
ior music education major, said he
and his friends supported the College
Republicans’ public puckering.
“We’re just showing that we ap
prove of them displaying their sexual
ity,” he said.
Christopher Becerra, sign in hand,
said he agreed with Roe we r. But
Homecoming Week should include
homosexuals, the general studies
freshman said.
“They said heterosexuality is
pushed aside during Coming Out
Week,” he said. “But homosexuality
is pushed away all the time.”
Most students walking through
Broyhill Plaza seemed to pay little
attention to either group. Freshman
Dave Weisser, sitting on the edge of
Brovhill Fountain with a friend, took
it all in.
“I think it’s kind of funny,” he said.
“Ah, college.”
Welfare
Continued from Pafle 1
Children, Food Stamps and Low In
come Energy Assistance programs—
be discontinued.
Current welfare monies should be
used to support a new procedure that
would focus on the transition to self
sufficiency as well as ongoing assis
tance and support, the report said.
The first aspect of the plan had
three objectives:
• Order a contract between wel
fare recipients and the state that would
get recipients off ADC within two
years.
• Enhance individual responsi
bility by “cashing out” all benefits,
including food stamps, and approach
the implementation of electronic deb
it cards.
• Combine services and decrease
the number of case workers assigned
to each welfare recipient.
The plan’s second aspect is aimed
at assuring long-term services for the
disabled and others who require con
tinuing social services.
Task force member Mary Dean
Harvey, director of the Department of
Social Services, said the proposed
changes might be difficult to adjust to
at first. But if the current system isn’t
fixed, she said, it would end up cost
ing more in the long run.
’There are a lot of th ings we can be
doing differently,” Harvey said.
“We*re not talking about reinvention
and invention, we're talking about
redirection.”
Harvey said she’d never talked to
a welfare recipient who wouldn’t rath
er be working.
“When you expect great things
from people, they tend to live up to
them, ’ Harvey said. “If you expect
little from them, they live down to it.”
The answer, Harvey said, is to put
more responsibility on the recipient
not to rely on government as a safety
net.
“Some people may say ‘Why do I
have to stand if I can fall and I know
you’ll catch me?’ We need to get
away from that,” Harvey said.
The task force also recommended
incentives for recipients in transition
from welfare to self-sufficiency and
for health care and child care.
UNL Rodeo Club
Presents:
INTRAMURAL RODEO
When: SUNDAY, OCTOBER 17th 11:30 a.m.
Where: 33rd & Leighton (east of Audio-Visual)
Events include:
— *Calf tying •Human barrel race
•Dummy roping *Goat tying
•Wild cow ride • Steer riding
•Steer wrestling
NO EXPERIENCE NECESSARY!
5 people to a team Entry fee: $5.00 per person
(3 guys A 2 girls)
Individual event prizes & overall prizes awarded.
UNL UNIVERSITY PROGRAM COUNCIL PRESENTS:
Lied Center For
Performing Arts
October 21 - 8 PM
Fridays 9-11 p.m.
2
226 S. 9th sir. Lincoln, NE 68508
tradition continues....
<4
$10 UNL STUDENTS AND $15 PUBLIC
Tickets on sale Sept. 27 at the Lied Center Box Office or call 472-4747 to order by phone.
