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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 1998)
EDITOR Erin Gibson OPINION EDITOR Cliff Hicks EDITORIAL BOARD Nancy Christensen Brad Davis Sam McKewon Jeff Randall Bret Schulte Quotes s OF THE WEEK “Every year I say something or do something that I just shake my head and go ‘Man that was dumb.’ But if you’re not doing something, nothing is going to hap pen.” NUBasketball Coach Danny Nee^ on his regrets “I can drive all over the city every day, and I can easily find the quickest way to get there. I didn’t think that made me exceptionally bright, but apparently that disqualifies me for government service.” Tim Francis, a 12-year downtown resi dent, on the post office’s claim that it has had problems with the adjustment of traffic on P Street “I think I am a goddess.... I have so much more strength inside me than I do in my muscle mass. Every woman is a goddess, in a way. I hope they see that” Therese Alshammar, NU swimmer, on her tattoo, which reads “Diva,” meaning “goddess ” “If I didn’t have to coach, I think I’d plop my feet up on something and enjoy some great Big 12 football.” Texas Coach Mack Brown, on what he d like to be doing Saturday “It’s inspiring for the kids to see a 20 year-old who has been playing the violin since she was 4.” Gail McNair, Lied Center outreach pro gram director, on how to motivate kids “I was trying to find a situation just like this where I could step in and play.” Nebraska point guard Joe Holmes, on why he chose NU tended to have a different perspec tive on things than others did. But that didn’t matter. Bettering education was my focus.” Kent Schroeder, NU regent-elect, on why he thinks voters chose him “It even hurt to lift my eyeballs.” Mary Moeller, a nurse and speaker from Missouri, on chronic fatigue "i naie 10 mink oi six weeks ot tms stuff.” Rob Bruns, Abel 13 resident diagnosed with mononucleosis, on the disease “I don’t listen to what’s going on. I’m living in a bubble.” Joe King, frontman ofThe Queers, on his musical influences “That goal was so perfect. I knew where (the ball) was going. I was tired. I took two steps and just stuck my head out” Senior soccer player Becky Hogan, on the goal to win against Texas A&M3-2 “I don’t have control over that. The thing that I can tell you is that I think it’s important to know who you are. I know who Danny Nee is.” NU Basketball Coach Danny Nee, on criticism Editorial Policy Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Fall 1998 Daily Nebraskan. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, its employees, its student body or the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. A column is solely the opinion of its author. The Board of Regents serves as publisher of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. Tne UNL Publications Board, established by the regents, supervises the production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of its student employees. lean Policy The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Submitted material becomes property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published. Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any. Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St. Lincoln, NE. 68588-0448. E-mail: letters@unlinfo.unl.edu. Mook’s VIEW f{saw, urc net 7—? ®t suss b& wee: 1 it tube ismaait Ttt ft AMK MS TOY I CmBM0LL.MH \joc as ms veal igSFjjfc raa& mt at. J ■. I I o oo cc. * * x ^ j | I .. /^X Coe cc I | V K k k V • DN LETTERS Power to Peru - Part I I would like to address the recent editorial concerning Peru State College as a waste of taxpayers’ dollars. First of all, toe cost of moving toe college to a different location would not cost more than $100 million. It has been estimated at $96.5 million. Another discrepancy in numbers includes toe cost to renovate toe col lege. The Coordinating Commission for Post-secondary Education has esti mated toe cost to be around $37 mil lion. ;. The editorial also failed to note that Peru meets the needs of many students who are not allowed into toe University of Nebraska-Lincoln or private institu tions. Through open enrollment, PSC gives students an opportunity that they may not receive at other institutions in Nebraska. The college also serves a large nontraditional, commuter-based population. This population would not receive higher education if it were not for Peru. According to information provided by toe CCPE, if toe college is closed, 700 students from the service area would not be served by a small, open enrollment college.Two hundred of those students would be served by pri vate institutions WITH state support that could have gone to students within Nebraska’s public institutions. The other 500 students could not attend a nrnniupTcitv ----J’ I praise the editorial board for stat ing “a college cannot be looked at. through the eyes of a financial planner - it is not an economic boon nor a diploma mill - it is an insti tution of higher education for the good of all Nebraskans.” Higher educa tion betters Nebraska’s stu dents, communities, busi nesses and the integrity of ; / / education at all levels. There are no other “state colleges... near Peru.” We have a 19-county service area, not a six-county service area “as noted in the editorial. We do have community colleges in the area, but Peru services students seeking a four year bachelor’s degree, not a two-year associ ate’s degree. The editorial is correct when it states that faculty, staff and students would mourn | the closing of the college. | But is closing the college justified? 1 The answer is no. Without Peru State College, many people would go without affordable higher educa ticm. Some of these students would leave the state, possibly forever. With each person that leaves the state for higher education, so leaves a taxpayer. Closing the campus would mean ignoring the educational needs of southeast Nebraska. It is important that there be an institution of higher educa tion in the area. Otherwise, many peo ple will go without the opportunity of higher knowledge. Peru State College is not redundant. We serve students that couldn’t or chose not to attend the university. Neither you nor I can say which experi ence is better for an individual. We all have different learning experiences. Our experience just happens to be at a small, affordable public institution in southeast Nebraska. Russell Crouch Peru State College student senate president Editor s note: The figures quoted in the editorial were taken from the Coordinating Commission for Post secondary Education Web site, from reports issued to the commission and from subsequent news reports. Power to Peru - Part H The letters in response to Monday's editorial calling for the closing of Peru State College have managed to address personal and emotional issues but have neglected to point out die weaknesses in the argument presented by the Daily Nebraskan. The editorial’s statement revolved around the idea that the existence of Peru State does nothing but waste tax payers’ dollars. They claim that the $27 million supposedly needed to renovate the campus woidd come straight from the public’s pocket. However, they are ignorant of the fact that the funding used to erect and maintain buildings such as dorms comes from revenue bonds and not taxpayers’ dollars. Furthermore, an architectural consul tant representing a neutral third party recently gave a positive assessment of the condition of Peru State’s campus, described as dilapidated in the editori al. In addition, the editonal figures, from a recent Coordinating Commission report, state that Peru State graduates only one-fifth of its stu dents in five years as opposed to its “peer institutions” that graduate one third. What the Commission neglects to mention is that their definition of peer institutions includes every four year college, whereas proper compari son would only include rural, open enrollment schools that woul<i by nature, have similar size and goals. When held to this demographic, Peru State's performance would be reflect ed more accurately. Peru, as a community of fewer than 1,000, does, admit tedly. lack extensive services (only offering one gas station and one grocery store) but nearby Auburn has long pro vided ample service to the community and college. The bottom line is, two weeks ago when UNL’s financial security was in question with the threat of Initiative 413, the public was bombarded with endless rhetoric expressing disgust at placing a dollar value on educa tion, but now that UNL’s tax dol lars are secured, we are amazed at how quickly the pre-election argu ment has been dismissed and forgot ten. Neal Obermeyer junior broadcasting/psychology Mandy Snyder • junior English/Spanish
