Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1994)
T^\ <4 yT T Weekend Preview W s4 I I %/ ^ ■ Special Star Trek page celebrates new movie, Page 8 T I J _ I Sports Weekend I I I ■ stewart one of 3 flnall8ts for Butkus Award, Page 11 ^^1 ft I I I ^ II I PAGE 2: U.S. may send military aid to Bosnia COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA SINCE 1901 VOL. 94 NO. 63 Term limits opponents file motion By Matttfw Wilto Senior Reporter Opponents of term limits have filed an ap peal to the Nebraska Supreme Court saying thaj the measure voters approved Nov. 8 is uncon stitutional. The measure's opponents are appealing Lancaster County District Court Judge Paul Merritt’s Nov. 7 decision to leave the issue on the Nov. 8 ballot. Wednesday's motion was filed by the same people responsible for that challenge: Tim Duggan, John Hascnauer, State Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha and Lincoln City Coun cilman Ken Haar. The measure, which would limit the terms of federal, state and local elected officials, was approved by voters 68 percent to 32 percent. Duggan filed a successful lawsuit challeng ing a 1992 term limits amendment approved by voters. The slate Supreme Court threw out the amendment in May because the petition did not have enough valid signatures to be on the ballot. On Aug. 30, Secretary of State Allen Becrmann said his office had verified 104,000 of 131,000 signatures from a petition to get the measure on the 1994 ballot. Becrmann's verification put the measure on the ballot - • Chambers, who has said term limits sup porters would be politically shooting them selves in tire foot, said he expected Merritt's ruling “We knew the lower court would rule against us, and it would end up in the supreme court,” he said, v The new lawsuit alleges at least 12 techni cal deficiencies in the petitions circulated by term limits supporters. The suit claims the measure is unconstitu tional because it requires more of elected offi cials than the Constitution, Chambers said. The suit also claims the measure’s wording is flawed, contradictory and therefore invalid, he said. In Merritt’s Nov. 7 ruling, the judge called the measure “hurriedly and somewhat care lessly drafted.’’ He did, however, say the mea sure was in compliance with Nebraska law and would remain on the ballot. Assistant Attorney General Dale Comer, Todd Frazier of Nebraskans for Term Limits and Jay Bartel, also an assistant attorney gen eral, will represent the defendants, Beermann, Guy Curtis, a petition sponsor, and Nebras kans for Term Limits. Comer said the defense would probably have to deal with Merritt’s word in the appeals pro cess. The defense gave Merritt a brief that counters the criticisms, he said. Nebraskans for Term Limits drafted the original measure under appeal. The Court will review Merritt’s actions and rule on the constitutionality of the term limits measure, Comer said. The Aauocintcd Prune contributed to this report Green piece Jay CaMaroa/DN Polish artist Jedrzsi fttspak works an a sculpture mads from living plants and natural landscapas fttspak Is visiting the United States and Is crafting Ms sculpture In fruit of last Canyui. Artist plants sculpture at UNL By Jiff Randall Staff Reporter For Polish artist Jedrzej Stcpak. art can be a matter of life and death. MMy sculpture is always changing," said Stcpak, who visited the University of Nc braska-Lincoln this week. “It lives and dies, just like people." Stcpak's work is made from living plants and natural landscapes. During his one week stay at UNL, Stcpak is crafting a tem porary sculpture in front of East Campus. Wendy Weiss, associate professor in the textiles, clothing and design department at UNL, helped bring Stcpak to the univer sity. She met the Polish artist at the annual International Symposium of Artist Weav ers in Lodz, Poland, in 1992. Weiss said that when she discovered Stcpak was visiting the United States, she jumped at the opportunity to bring him to UNL. “It was important to me to bring him in," Weiss said. 1 ms is a rare opportunity ior students to work and study with an interna tional artist.” Stcpak is a member of an influential group of young Polish textile artists, Weiss said. She said textile art had grown consid erably since the 1960s, when the “fiber revo lution” spread this art from flat tapestries to a field with almost limitless forms and materials. - Stcpak said his work had made a shift in both purpose and form. He began working on posters, tapestries and stage design and now works with natural landscaping, inte rior design and sculpture. He said willow was one of his favorite materials. He became interested in willow about 15 years ago when he attended a wil low workshop in his native Poland. He first used willow for building furniture, he said, but then expanded the way he used it. Working with natural materials brings a different effect to his art, Stcpak said. “My work is here for just this moment, and then it changes,” he said. “It’s not like “My sculpture is always changing. It lives and dies, just like people. ” m JEDRZEJ STEPAK Polish artist bronze or stone, or other permanent mate rials.” Slepak's visit to the United States was supported by the Konsciuszko Foundation in New York. He wants to show and dis cuss his work around North America, he said. Stcpak’s travels in North America have taken him to New York, Ohio State Uni versity and, now, Nebraska. He intends to visit San Francisco and Mexico City next, See SCULPTURE on 7 Engineering dean: One other scholarship was cancelled Minority award ended last year By BH—l Hwrp Senior Reporter The Walter Scott engineering scholarship wasn’t the only scholar ship to be put on hold more than a year ago, said an engineering associ ate dean. John Ballard said another award, the Peter Kiewit Sons Inc. Minority Scholarship Fund, which goes mostly to engineering students, also was dis continued last spring. The Scott Scholarships are given by Walter Scott Jr. in his father’s name. The younger Scott is the cur rent chairman of Peter Kicwit Son Inc. Kegeni nooen Allen has said Scott put the scholarships on hold to influence the debate over forming a new engineering col lege at the Uni versity of Ne bra ska at Omaha. DEBATE Scott has said he halted the awards because they were unequally distributed between the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Omaha campuses Michael Faust, a spokesman for Scott, said Wednesday that neither decision was meant to influence the regents’ December vote on the engi neering issue. The minority scholarship fund, which is awarded to more than just engineering students, was being phased out in favor of a larger fund, he said. Faust said the old program was for disadvantaged youths. He said that direction would continue in the new program, which was developed along with an inner-city Omaha school. The new program will increase the amount of awards tenfold, Faust said. The discontinued minority fund awarded more than $10,000 annually, he said. Ballard said five engineering stu dents were on the Kiewit minority scholarship. Those engineering stu dents receive about $8,000 ot that $10,000, he said. In the past, the engineering col lege provided lists of candidates to the company. Kiewit officials then chose scholarship winners, Ballard said. The college was notified in the spring to stop awarding the Kiewit minority scholarships because the focus had changed. The corporation gave the college no further informa tion about the scholarships’ new fo cus, he said. Ballard said students already re ceiving the renewable scholarship would be unaffected by the change. About five or six students have Walter Scott scholarships, Ballard said. More than $16,500 in Scott scholarships is awarded annually. Ballard said the money for the awards came from an endowment See ENGINEERING on 7
