SPORTS
Vaulting up
^ Nicole Wilkinson competed in the Nebraska
? women’s gymnastics team’s meet Monday night
J at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. PAGE 7
A & E
Moving to mariachi
In Omaha, where the Hispanic culture continues
to bloom, mariachi music is seeing a strong
revival. PAGE 9
TUESDAY
February 23,1999
Snow Time Like the Present
Snow, high 30. Cloudy and cold tonight, low 20.
VOL. 98 COVERING THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA-LINCOLN SINCE 1901 NO. 107
Women, minorities gaining ground
■ White men aren’t taking up as much space in UNL’s
faculty, but the battle for equality is still far from over,
many professors say.
By Shane Anthony
Staff writer
By taking an active approach, UNL
has hired more women and minority
faculty members, officials said, but
some non-white faculty members still
recognize the need for action.
According to data from Institutional
Research and Planning, the number of
non-white professors, associate profes
sors and assistant professors increased
from 106 to 114 in 1998, constituting
9.87 percent of UNL’s 1,196 tenure
track faculty members.
That compares favorably with 92
minority tenure-track faculty members
in 1992, which constituted 8.04 percent
of the faculty.
The number of women in tenure
track positions increased from 253 to
294 in 1998, compared to 224 in 1992.
According to Evelyn Jacobson,
associate vice chancellor for academic
affairs, a conscientious effort was made
to reach a wider pool of people.
“People are being much more
proactive,” she said.
Search committees, for example,
were actively seeking applicants instead
of waiting for potential employees to
respond, she said.
Miguel Carranza, an associate pro
fessor of sociology and ethnic studies, is
the chairman of a committee looking for
Please see FACULTY on 6
Diversifying UNI
Most administrators say the University of Nehraska-Lincofn has
made progress toward its goal of increasing diversity in hiring.
Totals of tenure/tenure-track faculty
1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998
Ethnic Minority Total 8.43% 8.38% 8.17% 8.95% 8.46% 9.53%
Female Total 19.86% 21.07% 22.09% 23.07% 22.59% 24.58%
Numbers include assistant professors, associate professors and professors.
Minority defined as: Asian, black, Hispanic, American Indian or a non-U.S. resident. Source: UNL
Jon Frank/DN
MINDY KELLOGG AND HER MOTHER, KRISTI GROOTHUIS, wait for the immune globulin
treatment to finish at BryanLGH East. Kellogg had to go to the hospital every day for
four to five hours for a week for this treatment to fight the parvovirus that is attack
_ ing her bone marrow.
T-iTHE
Fight
°FHER
Life
Story by Josh Fimk
Photos by Matt Miller
Mindy Kellogg should be worrying
about finding a date for her senior prom,
but she isn’t.
Instead she is worrying about losing her
hair.
If these latest treatments do not take hold the
17-year-old may soon have to undergo
chemotherapy in preparation for a bone marrow
transplant.
Doctors do not know exactly why Kellogg’s body
cannot replenish the vital elements of the blood flowing
through her veins.
A couple of weeks ago, Kellogg tested positive for the
parvovirus, which is attacking her bone marrow.
Without regular transfusions, Kellogg’s blood platelet
count hovers around 15,000 to 20,000, which is about
130,000 below normal.
Kellogg is constantly tired and bruises very easily.
She could bleed to death from a nosebleed.
According to doctors’ orders, Kellogg has been effec
tively under house arrest since late December except for
Please see MINDY on 2
Legislators
debate future
of Peru State
By Jessica Fargen
Senior staff writer
The fate of Peru State College was once again the subject of
arguments in the Legislature on Monday as senators heard testi
mony on a bill that would close the 132-year-old college.
LB714, sponsored by Lincoln Sen. Ron Raikes, would close
the college by Jan. 1, 2004. To ease the transition, the Southeast
Nebraska Higher Education Task Force would be created.
Raikes told the Education Committee that the task force would
identify the educational needs of the region, set strategies to meet
those needs and report to the
Legislature by December of
this year.
Raikes introduced the
bill in response to what he
saw as poor judgment on
behalf of the Coordinating
Commission for
Postsecondary Education. A
report by the commission
last year identified three
options for Peru: Improve it,
relocate it to Nebraska City
or close it.
The commission recom
mended to improve the col
a
I think its more
naive to think that
if Peru closed
these kids would
go to UNL.”
Sen. Floyd Vrtiska
lege at a state cost of about
$20 million. But Raikes relayed a senes of Peru statistics that
painted a picture of a struggling, inefficient college. Raikes
favored the third option - closing the college.
“This would be a big and difficult step, but I think it is sug
gested by the future we face,” Raikes said. “Reasonable people
with reasonable goals believe that it is sensible to consider that.”
The ffeshman-to-sophomore dropout rate is about 40 percent
at Peru compared to a 35 percent average for Wayne State College.
The five-year graduation rate is 22 percent at Peru, compared with
35 percent at Wayne, Raikes said.
Raikes pointed to other colleges in the area such as Southeast
Community College and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
But Table Rock Sen. Floyd Vrtiska, a staunch Peru supporter,
said Peru filled a need for nontraditional students, students who
work a lot and those who prefer a smaller campus.
“I think it’s more naive to think that if Peru closed, these kids
Please see PERU on 6
Read the Daily Nebraskan on the World Wide Web at dailyneb.com