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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 5, 1996)
MONDAY WEATHER: Today - Partly sunny, warmer. North wind 10 to 15 mph. Tonight - Becoming cloudy, low around 20. February 5, 1996 Moeser just wants to listen and learn By Julie Sobczyk Senior Reporter . For James Moeser, being a listener and an observer are among his top ! 1 priorities at UNL. And he will be gin those tasks to day as he becomes the University of Nebraska Lincoln’s 18th chancellor. “My first prior ity istoget toknow me university ana Moeser to listen before I make any announcements,” Moeser said. He should have many opportuni ties to look around and listen, he said. As he looks ahead to his first week on campus, Moeser said, his schedule is full. “The first few weeks I’m going to primarily be getting more fully ac quainted and learning,” Moeser said. “There’s a lot of people to get to know.” And business will be non-stop for much of the semester, he said. “The number of people I have to see and the number of places I have to go is large,” Moeser said. “It will be several months before I can say I’m in a normal routine.” Moeser said he may run into some minor road blocks in getting that rou tine established, such as getting lost or having his last name mispronounced (it’s pronounced “MEE-zer”.) “I’m sure both will happen, al though no one has said my name wrong yet,” he said. “The media has been good with phonetic spellings.” To help him get into a groove, he said, he’s looking to Joan Leitzel, who served as interim chancellor, for guid ance, “Joan Leitzel has done a wonderful job,” he said. “We’ve been in touch over the past few weeks, and I think we’re already in the mood of working together.” By listening and learning his first few weeks, Moeser said, he’ll be able to tackle major issues at UNL. One way to commit to education excellence, he said, is to build a stron ger honors program at UNL. Another priority is to make UNL the university of choice for Nebraska’s high school students, Moeser said. Creating more undergraduate scholarships and increasing the num ber of National Merit Scholars who attend UNL are other ways to succeed in excellence, he said. Moeser will be joined in Lincoln by his wife, Susan Dickerson Moeser. “I want to continue to expand the academic excellence at UNL. I want UNL to be seen as efficiently run, and a university that cares about its students. ” JAMES MOESER Chancellor She also was looking forward to com ing to Nebraska, he said. Moeser said his wife would be look ing into a position at UNL’s School of Music next fall. Both Moeser and his wife are music lovers and avid organ ists. Before coming to UNL, Moeser was provost and vice president at the University of South Carolina. He was on the music faculty at the University of Kansas, where he served 11 years as dean of the School of Fine and Performing Arts. Although he spent many years at Kansas, becoming a Nebraska Comhusker fan won’t be too difficult, he said. He watched NU play basketball against the Kansas Jayhawks last week end on TV, he said, and he didn’t have a hard time cheering for the Huskers. “It won’t be hard becoming a Husker,” Moeser said. Vice chancellor plans for long stay at UNL By Julie Sobczyk Senior Reporter Melvin Jones says he’s ready to get down to business. And he will — starting today as UNL’s new vice chancellor for busi ness and finance. “I’m looking for it to be a very productive working relationship and moving UNL further to the forefront of academic institutions,” Jones said. Jones will take over at the Univer sity of Nebraska-Lincoln for Paul Carlson, interim vice chancellor for business and finance. Jones was vice chancellor for fi nancial affairs and treasurer at Marquette University in Milwaukee for 4 1/2 years. As he begins his duties, Jones says no single area stands out as a top priority. “All priorities arc important,” he said. “I’ll be involved with managing the financial operations and buildings and ground facilities.” His first week on the job will be a little hectic, he said. He has meetings with incoming chancellor James Moeser and other members of his staff. “It will be a gefto-know-yoti*Ses sion,” Jones said. ‘‘I’ll get to plan directly with the new administration of Chancellor Moeser.” Making the transition from Marquette to UNL won’t be too diffi cult, he said. “I’m excited,” Jones said. “It’s the kind of school spirit — the students, faculty and staff — that people all around the country look to.” And Jones’ wife, Colleen, will be joining him in Lincoln this summer. She is now a business professor at Suffolk University in Boston and will join the UNL faculty next fall. Living apart from his wife for four years has been difficult, Jones said. “Commuting marriages are always quite difficult,” he said. But, he said, the couple tried to spend four or five days of the week together. While he’s been at Marquette, Jones See JONES on 3 Candidate would strive for minority involvement By Julie Sobczyk Senior Reporter Creating a campus that welcomes minorities should be a top goal for UNL, an affirmative action and diver sity director can uiuaic said. Phyllis Powell, executive director of affirmative ac tion and assistant to the president at the University of Houston, visited the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Powell last week. “Bringing minorities and women on campus for faculty and staff posi tions is a priority, as well as bringing minority students,” Powell said. At Houston, she said, her biggest accomplishment was turning a small affirmative action office into one that was larger, efficient and successful. “I was charged with an office that had only an interim director and a secretary,” Powell said. “I laid plans for affirmative action and diversity on a campus where that was nonexist ent.” Key issues at UNL are similar to those in Houston, she said. More minorities and women need to be a part of the campus, she said, and UNL is ready to move in that direction. “There are people here who are receptive to the idea of affirmative action and diversity,” she said. “They can say ‘We need to improve, and we’re looking for someone to be a resource and give direction.’” If chosen as the new director, Powell said she would need to make more evaluations before implement ing affirmative action or diversity projects. “I’m not a person who will come in on Monday and change everything by Tuesday,” she said. “I’d need to as sess issues and make a thrust on cam pus where we can be seen.” See POWELL on 6 Tanna Kinnaman/DN tfcii.uvnriBiaiei uiv/maiKmuiwciyieeimywiiupuunMWUuynisyieeimyuiiubuiHiiaiiv, Joy Creations Card Co. Prefsterisco-ownerof the company, which reflects Midwestern life in its designs. Nebraska greetings Senator combines business with art By Ted Taylor Senior Reporter Ask Sen. Don Preister of Omaha the best way to say “Merry Christ mas,” “Happy Birthday,” or “I Love You,” and he’ll probably draw a blank. He’d rather leave that to you. That’s why the greeting card company he’sco-owned since 1988 leaves the insides of its cards blank. “By leaving the insides blank,” he said, “we allow the people who buy the cards to put their own emo tions into the card. We want them to be part of the creative process.” The company called Joy Cre ations Greeting Cards is based in Omaha. The 60-design line of cards fea tures reproductions of original art work that primarily reflects the beauty of life in the Midwest. Most of the work is done by Nebraska artists. Co-owner Mary Ann Krzemien said the cards had given her and Preister the opportunity to get the word out about Nebraska artists. “Doing this gives Don Preister and myself, and the three area rep resentatives, great pride in present ing work of some of the outstanding artists in the state,” she said. “We’re convinced that you don’t need to look to the West Coast or the East Coast to find great talent.” But Preister said environmental issues also had a great deal to do with the inception of the company. “It started with a concern with the environment and the artist,” he said. “It just worked out that we were able to combine the two con cerns.” Each card is printed with soy ink on recycled, acid-free paper with the hope that it will be framed in stead of sent to the landfill. Proceeds from the sales go to the Nature Conservatory and assist with planting trees, Preister said. “We’re not just using the re sources,” he said, “we’re also re See PREISTER on 3