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JEREMY VETTER, a senior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln,
is the first UNL Rhodes Scholar student in more than 20 years.
Excellence otivates Rhodes Scholar
BtChad Lorenz
Senior Reporter
UNL senior Jeremy Vetter likes the
Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel and the
Rolling Stones... and economics, po
litical science, history, physics, phi
losophy and psychology.
Classic rock ‘n’ roll is not one of
Vetter’s majors — but the others are.
Vetter, UNL’s first Rhodes Scholar
in 20 years, says that of all his inter
ests, his love for the music of the 1960s
and ’70s best typifies his idealist per
sonality.
“I don’t think I’d be a very good
representative of my generation,”
Vetter said. “I’d probably better repre
sent my parents’ generation minus
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me drugs.
Vetter’s personality and attitude
were the valuable traits that won him a
Rhodes Scholarship. Vetter was one of
32 college students in the United States
honored as a Rhodes Scholar this year.
While Vetter’s 4.0 GPA and 216
credit hours were a vital line on his
Rhodes Scholarship application, his
love of learning and extracurricular
accomplishments made him stand out
from the other applicants.
‘It’s not something you can just feel
entitled to because of good grades,”
Vetter said.
“They won’t choose you unless
you’re a leader or involved in social
issues.”
,:i Like die social activists of Simon
and Garfunkel’s era, Vetter considers
nimseii among people who warn iu
change the world, he said. He’s been
dedicated to participating in human
rights campaigns, such as domestic
abuse awareness and protests against
the death penalty.
Before he graduates in May, Vetter
wants to form Allies, a group of het
erosexual UNL students who support
gay and lesbian rights, he said.
He also serves as a delegate for the
United Methodist Church in the Na
tional Delegation of Churches and as
president of the UNL student honors
board.
While Vetter’s idealistic personal
ity got him involved in many activities
outside of school, 1m said another part
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Please see RHODES on 6
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UNL might invest
in Lincoln dly block
By Erin Schulte
Senior Reporter
Cars go in. Cars sit. Cars go out.
Should a block in the heart of downtown
Lincoln be more exciting than that?
The city of Lincoln says “yes,” and plans to
sell Block 35, which is now a pay-by-the-hour
parking lot between 10th and 11th and P and Q
streets.
The city is looking for a developer and the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln hopes to work
with whomever buys the property and turns it
into a hotel, apartment complex, offices, movie
theater, restaurant or other proposals from which
both the city and university benefit.
“That’s pretty expensive real estate to sit as
a parking lot,” said Kim Todd, interim execu
tive director of university relations. “We want
to continue to enhance the quality of downtown.”
City officials agree.
Polly McMullen, assistant to the mayor, said
parking needs were a priority, “but is surface
parking the highest and best use of such a valu
able block in the downtown?”
Block 35 is hot property — and UNL wants
in.
It won’t be buying Block 35, but because
the university community contributes to down
town business, and Lincoln’s downtown has the
potential to attract people to the university, it
wants to invest in whatever goes up in Block
35, Todd said.
McMullen said the city understands the
university’s interest.
I “Block 35 is a very important block to the
city because it’s transitional between the down
town and university campus,” McMullen said.
“It’s natural for UNL to be very interested.”
But UNL’s financial backing will depend on
-• whom is chosen by the city to develop the block,
«
If we have needs in mind,
they feel fit withJkeir*^
development, it’s for the
benefit of all of us”
Kim Todd
interim executive director
of university relations
and what they want to put there.
“It all depends on whether they see the uni
versity as being able to provide the market for
whatever they want to build,” Todd said. “If we
have needs in mind they feel fit with their de
velopment, it’s for the benefit of all of jis.”
Melvin Jones, vice chancellor for business
and finance, sent a letter to Mayor Mike Johanns
stating the university’s needs, including:
• Housing for faculty.
• A visitor’s center.
• Offices for research faculty.
• Parking or restaurants conducive to the fine
and performing arts district
Redeveloping Block 35 was the first initia
tive listed in a downtown development plan
named “Downtown 2001: The Heart of the City,”
which was adopted by the Lincoln-Lancaster
County Planning Commission and the City
Council earlier this year. The plan lists several
other goals:
• Renaming P Street “Market Place” and
making it a pedestrian-oriented street with shops
and restaurants.
Please see DEVELOPMENT on 6
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j it. ■
BRENT HOOD, a sophomore biosystems engineering major, took advantage of the
first day of Dead Week and found a quiet place to study Monday afternoon among the
stacks at Love Library:
North Platte youths near
From The Associated Press
NORTH PLATTE—From his van
tage point on North Platte’s streets,
Rick Ryan sees young people on the
verge of turning ganglike words and
attitudes into real-life gang violence.
The North Platte police lieutenant
sees youths wearing the clothes and
flashing the hand signs popularized by
big-city gangs.
They’re taunting each other, they’re
carrying weapons, and occasionally
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they’re daring each other to use them,
he said.
The kids know what’s going on,
Ryan said. But too often their parents
don’t
“When you talk to the parents about
it, they become defensive, saying it’s
just a group,” he said. “When you tell
them about the activity, they say it can’t
be, you can’t compare this to Omaha
or L. A. '
“It scares me to death, what we have
a potential of going on here, and the
parents don’t see it.”
Ganglike activity sputtered three
years ago after authorities put some
young criminals behind bars-. Now it’s
growing again.
*Tve seen some type of activity that
speaks of a loose-knit organization
here,” said Lincoln County Attorney
Kent Turnbull. “But, fortunately,
they’re like the gang that couldn’t shoot
straight and have no influence from
outsidegangs.
“That’s what scares me. All that
seems to be needed is an outside per
son with gang influence to organize.”
Some gang influence has come into
the city from families who move from
larger cities, says Henry Madrid
Mirabal, the North Platte Public
Schools’ truant officer.
“What I’ve noticed in the last 12
years I’ve been here is there are par
ents who moved from Los Angeles,
Denver or Chicago, and when they
were young, (they) may have been
members of gangs,” he said. “And they
moved here because they didn’t want
their kids to be involved in gangs.”
Parents have more power than they
realize to steer their children away from
gang behayior, authorities said.
Community crusades to censor the
gang culture usually backfire because
they give gang leaders the reputations
they crave, said Sgt. Ron Stallworth,
gang intelligence coordinator for the
Utah Division of Investigation.
Parents reinforce the message of the
gang culture if they themselves abuse
drugs and alcohol or resort to crime and
violence, Stallworth said.
“My position is to be a responsible
adult, a responsible parent.”
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