SPORTS
What a catch
NU senior Jenny Smith is looking to go down as
one of the best catchers in Husker softball history
both behind the plate and at the plate. PAGE 10
A&E
Pizza and paintings
Club 1427 recently added art shows to its seeming
ly ever-expanding repertoire, and local artist Bret
Gottschall is the latest artist on display. PAGE 12
March 12, 1998
We Vote For Spring
Partly cloudy, high 22. Cloudy tonight, low 10.
VOL. 97 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 121
COMMIT to govern with VISION
Matt Miller/DN
ASUN PRESIDENT-ELECT SARA RUSSELL celebrates her victory at Main Street Cafe Wednesday night.COMMIT’s Russell and First Vice President
elect Kelly Hoffschneider will be joined in office by VISION’s Eddie Brown, who defeated Chris Linder in the second vice presidential race.
COMMIT candidates take top two spots;
VISION’s Brown gets 2nd vice president
By Jessica Fargen
Assignment Reporter
Bittersweet.
That’s how members of COMMIT described
their split victory in Wednesday’s ASUN elec
tions.
The three executive candidates - Sara Russell,
Kelly Hoffschneider and Chris Linder - were
forced to split up as VISION’s second vice presi
dential candidate Eddie Brown defeated Linder by
53 votes, according to unofficial results.Claiming
48 percent of the vote, Russell became the new
ASUN president while Hoffschneider will take
over as first vice president.
Brown’s victory resulted in the first split
ASUN vote in eight years.
“It is a bittersweet moment,” Russell said of
the split vote. “Chris worked 20 times harder for
so many people. It’s difficult.”
About 150 people wearing red COMMIT T
shirts clapped and shouted “Speech! Speech!” as
the trio walked into the crowded Main Street
Cafe, 1325 O St., around 10 p.m.
Linder had tears in her eyes as she recalled
becoming best friends with Russell and
Hoffschneider during the campaigns.
She called the three a team and said that
despite her loss, she was happy her team had won.
Hoffschneider stood next to Linder as Billy
Joel’s “Piano Man” played in the bar, and he said
Linder would still be a part of the Association of
Students of the University of Nebraska.
“Linder is still going to help us,”
Hofifschneider said. “She’ll become our third vice
president if we can have it.”
Linder said she had just as much experience
and drive as Brown did, but that he knew more
people.
Having a second vice president from the
opposing party might throw a few kinks into the
ASUN chain, Russell said, but members will
work with the challenge.
One of the biggest differences between the
two parties was COMMIT’s proposed Campus
Coalition, with representatives from every stu
dent organization, and VISION's proposed presi
dent s cabinet, made up of about 30 to 40 student
organization presidents.
But that was not the only difference, she said.
A sincere concern for the student body, origi
nal ideas such as the Campus Coalition and NU
Week, hard work and experience were the decid
ing factors, Russell said.
“We have a past dedication to student govern
ment, and I think it showed through,” Russell said.
“We weren’t going for an office, we were going to
help out this university.”
Russell said she thought VISION candidates
were just not as genuinely concerned about the
university and that COMMIT was more
And the winner is...
Jon Frank/DN
approachable and more real.
As the three candidates walked in to the bar,
they split up to give hugs and shake some hands.
Russell hugged her mom, Carol, who gave
Russell a small gold charm - a gavel - to symbol
ize Russell’s victory. Her mom said she would
have just kept the charm in her pocket if her
daughter had not won.
Because she did, the new student body presi
dent said the first project she would like to get
started on was the Campus Coalition.
Hoffschneider said he wanted to concentrate
on the new senator orientation, where senators
will be educated on the ASUN bylaws, constitu
tion and parliamentary procedure.
Linder wished her former running mates well
during their time in ASUN.
“They will do awesome,” she said. “They’re
the best people for the job because they’re honest,
hard-working, and they know how to get things
done.”
13.5 percent
participate
in election
By Ieva Augstums
Assignment Reporter
ASUN elections this year produced unusu
al results in more ways than just a split victory
- there also was higher voter turnout.
More than 2,800 students - or 13.5 percent
of the student body - turned out Wednesday in
the best showing since 1993% It was the third
highest percentage in the last 10 years.
With 1.354 votes (47.91 percent),
COMMIT's Sara Russell and Kelly
Hoffschneider won the presidential and first
vice presidential candidacies, respectively.
VISION's Eddie Brown won the second vice
presidency with 1.316 votes (46.57 percent).
VISION's presidential candidate John
Wiechmann and first vice presidential candi
date Jill Maaske received 1.014 votes (35.88
percent). COMMIT’s second vice presidential
candidate Chris Linder received 1,263 (44.69
percent).
Write-in presidential and first vice presi
Please see ELECTION on 3
Visiting teacher
inspires plea at
ASUN meeting
■ The chemistry instructor’s
contract has not been renewed by
university officials.
By Amanda Schindler
Staff Reporter
Fifty students and colleagues amassed at the
ASUN meeting Wednesday evening asking for its
help to keep a beloved visiting chemistry instruc
tor at UNL.
The university has denied Bill McLaughlin a
contract renewal in the department of general
chemistry that would keep him here beyond his
original one-year visitation.
University officials have said the university
does not have the money to extend McLaughlin’s
contract.
He has less than a week to decide whether or
not to return to his former high school teaching
job in St. Joseph, Mo.
However, none of those officials were on hand
at the weekly Association of Students of the
University of Nebraska meeting to answer stu
dents’ pleas.
Please see ASUN on 6
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