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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 15, 1997)
SPOUTS A S E Finale Roots rocker December 15,1997 Nebraska All-American Lisa Reitsma’s career Perhaps best known as the lead singer of came to an end Saturday as NU lost in the Pacific Lincoln’s Shithook, Phil Shoemaker has a storied Regional. PAGE 8 history running much deeper than that. PAGE 7 VOL. 97 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 76 It’s a ! Capitol Christmas ^r*,,n ■ F : J 1 » J 1 ■ 1 1 .WFffHVIIIIIIIIII I llllllll ■HIIIIM I l I— I II—I IIIIIH—■! Ryan Soderlin/DN GOV. BEN NELSON, with the help of a group of Lincoln children, lights the Christmas tree at the State Capitol Sunday afternoon. Sunday’s ceremony, which was presented by Lincoln’S Pinewood Bowl, KFOR-AM (1240) and the Lincoln Jaycees, was tho 50th Nebraska State Christmas free Lighting Ceremony. Please see story on the back page. Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at http: / h i . ~ ’ . ' NU may encounter revenue cutbacks ■ Regents prepare for the potential loss of $50 to $150 million. State and federal funding for NU has been declining steadily. By Brad Davis Senior Reporter In the era of downsizing anc cost-cutting, the University oi Nebraska could be faced with a loss of $50 million to $150 million in its operating budget by 2015, NL President Dennis Smith said Saturday. Streamlining operations and reducing costs to prepare for this possible revenue loss were the topics of the NU Board of Regents retreai Friday and Saturday. Roger Benjamin, president of the Council for Aid to Education, pre sented the results of a two-year stud} to the regents Friday in the Wici Alumni Center. The study was compiled by the Committee on National Investmem in Higher Education and document ed the group’s findings that costs foi higher education were rising “much faster than funding.” NU Provost Lee Jones agreed citing the state’s declining contribu tion to NU. Jones said NU received 21.7 per cent of the state’s general fund in 1989, compared with an expected 16.3 percent in 1999, which the state Legislature already has approved. NU’s state and federal funding is expected to continue its decline with more government-supported groups vying for their piece of the tax pay ers’ pie, Lt. Gov. Kim Robak said Friday. Smith said a $150 million rev enue loss would make it difficult just to maintain the status quo. Because of that potential loss, Regent Nancy O’Brien of Waterloo said, NU would not talk about flourishing in future meetings, but instead would discuss “whether or not we can survive.” O’Brien said regents and univer sity administrators needed to exam ine their budgets with an open mind, holding “no sacred cows.” Several of the regents said there was a need for systemwide change, although NU chancellors presented cost-saving plans implemented for only their respective campuses. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Richard Edwards presented UNL’s programs for Please see BUDGET on 2 Kwanzaa recognizes traditional principles By Kelly Scott Staff Reporter While the end of December marks the Christmas season for many, the end of December marks more than just Christmastime for Venita Kelley. Kelley, an associate professor of communications and African and African-American studies at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, thinks about the coming of Kwanzaa week as much as she does Christmas. Kelley is one of the many African Americans in Lincoln who celebrate Kwanzaa Dec. 26 through Jan. 1. Kwanzaa week, Kelley said, is a celebration of values - who people and their families are and who they want to be. “Kwanzaa has to do with honor ing and reclaiming traditions that were taken away from African Americans, often taken by law,” Kelley said. Kelley said she had practiced Kwanzaa for five to seven years in earnest, but since moving to Nebraska and away from her family, she had )ww.unl.edu /DailyNeb not. While celebrating Kwanzaa week is important, she said, Kwanzaa is about more than just a week. “You practice Kwanzaa every day. Every day is about living the princi ples of Kwanzaa,” Kelley said. The seven-day celebration of Kwanzaa, a Kiswahili word meaning fruits of the harvest, is mainly about the family, Kelley said. “It means the first fruits of the harvest, which was a time of family gathering. Kwanzaa is a celebration of a family’s future and present,” she said. On each evening of Kwanzaa week, a family celebrating the holiday gathers and lights one of seven can dles placed in a candle holder. Three candles are red, three are green and one is black. The candles alternate in color in the holder with the black can dle in the center to symbolize balance, Please see KWANZAA on 6
