-- ' —. ■■■' ■
Newly designed DN
offers style, substance
BY SARAH BAKER AND
BRADLEY DAVIS
Change is good.
Although journalists are taught to avoid
cliches, sometimes they say things in the best
way. They clarify what things mean.
And it seems there’s no better way to
describe what’s happened to the Daily
Nebraskan. The DN has changed. The
changes are for the better.
The new size is one the Daily Nebraskan
hasn’t seen since the 1960s. To ensure the
Daily Nebraskan maintains its reputation as a
quality college publication - often rated
among the top in the nation - a complete
change was in order.
The broadsheet size, that of a “real” news
paper, carries a sense of professionalism,
credibility and an air of confidence. It feels
solid in the hand and while not demanding in
size, it commands presence. The changes in
size required making both editorial and
design changes.
The redesign, led by Daily Nebraskan
Managing Editor Brad Davis, was based upon
trends in newspaper layout and graphic
design seen in some of the best-designed
papers in the world.
With a better-organized layout it, readers
can more easily and efficiently navigate their
way through the newspaper.
The redesign, combined with the new size
of the paper, allows for bigger photos, more
in-depth coverage and more space to cover
more things.
The size also puts the Daily Nebraskan in a
new region of competition. Recently,
statewide and nationwide publications have
become available free of charge to some stu
dents on campus. The DN will be able to com
pete with the papers not only in its new size
but also with its complete daily coverage of
local and nationwide events.
The paper is printed on the Lincoln
Journal Star’s new multi-million dollar press
es, at the printing facility just a few blocks
away from the University of Nebraska
Lincoln campus. The quality of the press is
top notch and, when paired with the new size,
opens up a new realm of artistic and photo
graphic reproduction.
Throughout the entire redesign process,
die goal is simple: to raise the level of quality
at the Daily Nebraskan; to raise the level of
achievement, credibility and above all else,
the distinction of coverage provided.
If you have any comments or questions
about the redesign, or would simply like to
discuss its features, don’t hesitate to phone
the DN’s Managing Editor, Brad Davis, at 472
1764.
Coming this week:
A detailed explanation of the changes we've made and
why we've made them. Look for it.
Gallup move exposes need for greater
cooperation between Lincoln, Omaha
BY JOSH FUNK
In the wake of the Gallup
Organization’s decision to move
its operational headquarters
from Lincoln to Omaha, some
have questioned the health of
the capital city’s business com
munity.
As die Omaha World-Herald
and the Lincoln Journal Star last
week traded barbs as to whether
the capital city’s economy was
either reeling or booming, busi
ness experts say the cities would
be better off working together to
compete in the infamous global
economy.
“It’s not that either city is in
trouble, it’s that both have grown
so much that (together) they
could compete with Kansas City
or Minneapolis,” said Charles
Lamphear, director of UNL’s
Bureau of Business Research,
which does a quarterly report on
the economies of the state and
its communities.
One of the reasons Gallup
dted for relocating its headquar
ters was its need for access to
international flights. The com
pany will keep its calling center,
which employs many University
of Nebraska-Lincoln students, in
Lincoln.
Lamphear said that provid
ing air service to businesses will
be a challenge for both of
Nebraska’s two largest cities.
Lincoln Mayor Don Wesely
bristled at the notion that his city
was reeling as some people
interviewed suggested in a
World-Herald article.
“We are doing well, and
things are looking good for
Lincoln,’’ Wesely said last week.
The mayor acknowledged
that “poor air service and ques
tionable telecommunications”
hurt his city in the case of
Gallup’s moving.
“We have a task force work
ing on it, and we’re looking for
solutions,” Wesely said. “Overall,
the Lincoln economy is doing
exceptionally well, except for
Gallup.”
City economic development
officials point to the number of
projects and developments right
now as evidence of a healthy
economy.
During the past three years,
the Downtown Lincoln
Association estimates that $100
million of mostly private money
has been spent in the city’s core
alone, and the group’s president
said there were more projects in
the works.
"The city is probably our
most important partner in
everything happening down
town,” Polly McMullen, the
group’s president, said to dispel
the idea that government has
been unresponsive to business
needs.
Another criticism of
Lincoln’s economy was that
public sector employment dom
inated the landscape, but the
Chamber of Commerce said that
72 percent of the city’s workforce
was in the private sector.
Job growth figures also look
promising for Lincoln, with 4.8
percent growth projected
through 2004. Omaha is expect
ing 3.7 percent job growth for the
same period.
But in the future, both cities
may have to work together to
succeed, which Lamphear said
may be tough given the two
cities’ competitive relationship.
"After all it’s one metro field
between Lincoln and Omaha in
a national setting,” Lamphear
said.
Taskforce examines teacher oav
ByyBmMriMBii
Legislative task force has one
month to devise a plan that will
affect the fate of teachers’ pock
etbooks - and, some would
argue, the future of education in
Nebraska.
The task force was formed
after two bills that would have
increased teacher salaries in
Nebraska failed during the last
session of the Legislature.
“In terms of the information
we’ve put together, the task force
realizes there’s a real problem,”
said foe Griess, executive direc
tor of the Nebraska State
Education Association. “We cer
tainly have to do something
about beginning salaries. We’ve
also got to keep the (teachers)
we’ve got”
More than 1,000 Nebraska
teachers rallied befoif* an
Education Committee meeting
last January asking for higher
salaries.
Sen. Roger Wehrbein of
Plattsmouth, a task force mem
ber, said he and other members
have agreed there is problem but
haven’t come to an exact solu
tion.
The problem is two-fold, he
said: A teacher shortage exists in
certain areas across the state,
and that's probably because
teachers are not getting paid
enough.
Wehrbein said teacher
salaries need to be raised, but
task force members haven't
decided where that money
should come from.
Harrison Sen. Bob
Wickersham, also a task force
member, said he has been read
ing about teacher compensation
programs in other states for
ideas on how Nebraska can solve
its problem.
Compared with other states,
Nebraska ranks fifth in the
nation in student achievement,
an American Legislative
Exchange Council study shows.
But Nebraska teachers, the
survey shows, make $33,473 on
average each year, whereas their
national counterparts make
$41,575.
Teachers’ starting salaries
also are lower in Nebraska, with
teachers’ making $21,949, com
pared with their national coun
terparts, who make $25,735 in
their first year, the survey shows.
Griess said task force mem
bers have met four times and
will convene once more in
September before presenting
their final report and recom
mendations to the Legislature’s
Education Committee on Sept.
■ w
28.
The responsiveness of the
Education Committee will
depend on the kind of job the
task force does, Wickersham
said.
“It’s like a science experi
ment,” he said. “If we prepare a
report, and they can understand
the data, implications, ideas and
the problem we identified -if it
all fits together-then we’ll see.”
With 1,000 Nebraska teach
ers retiring each year for the next
10 years, Griess said it’s impor
tant for the state to deal with
recruitment and retention
issues.
Each year, about 1,500 col
lege students graduate with a
teacher certification.
But only 37 percent of those
graduates end up in Nebraska
public schools, he said. The rest
go to other states, private insti
tutions or other professions,
where the pay is higher.
“It's important to make
salaries competitive,” Griess
said. "If we pay them enough,
they will stay in their chosen
profession, and they will stay in
Nebraska. Most of them want to.
“But they’re very smart peo
ple. It doesn't take long to come
to the conclusion they can make
more money somewhere else.
Whistle-stop tour focuses on ag
■ Osborne, the former
Husker football coach,
throws his weight behind
solving the ag crisis.
OSBORNE from page 1
should provide price insurance
at the beginning of the planting
season to guard against low
commodity prices and shrink
ing farm incomes, he said. And,
he said, the government should
help farmers increase profitabil
ity by ending food embargoes,
expanding foreign trade, ending
the inheritance tax and increas
ing the production of ethanol
and other “value-added” agri
cultural products.
The district should encour
age more of its young people to
stay by creating new jobs in
telecommunications and tech
nology, he said. To do this, he
said, the district needs more
high-speed Internet access and
broadband technology.
Osborne also said he would
do his part to stop the “steady,
progressive unraveling of the
culture,” as evidenced by high
rates of illegitimacy and drug
^ abuse.
“If we want to be a great
nation, we truly need to be one
nation under God,” he said. “We
don’t need to apologize for it.”
Although some friends told
Osborne he would not enjoy the
rough-and-tumble world of pol
itics in Washington, he rejected
that advice.
“If I survived in coaching for
25 years, I can probably survive
in politics as well,” he said. ”It
takes someone to step forward
and stick their neck out”
Reynolds said the federal
government must address the
overproduction that has caused
farm commodity prices to
plummet
“Let’s get the agricultural
economy going again,” he said.
“Everyone’s talking about it, but
nobody seems to want to do
anything about it”
Reynolds said the 1996
Freedom to Farm Act, which
removed government produc
tion controls and encouraged
farmers to produce the crops of
their choice, has not worked.
He said the government
should pay farmers who volun
teer to put some of their land
out of production. This would
help raise commodity prices
and boost farmers’ incomes, he
said.
“Agriculture has to do well
before the rest of the district can
do anything,” he said.
Hickman accused Osborne
of being a “carpetbagger” for
running in the 3rd district after
living in Lincoln for well over 30
years.
“A carpetbagger’s campaign
is based on a lie,” he said.
On issues such as gun con
trol, farm subsidies and the
income tax, Hickman said he
would vote to restrict the gov
ernment’s power.
“I will vote for small govern
ment on every issue, every time,
no exceptions, no excuses,” he
said.
Interim chancellor
gets standing ovation
CHANCELLOR from page 1
for die future.”
The Future Nebraska Task
Force Report A2020Vision, urges
members of the university com
munity to engage in conversation
about what type of university they
want to be.
"It dares us to embrace, in
everything we do, a culture of
achievement, an insistence on
excellence and an impatience
with those who ding to die status
quo for its own sake,” Perlman
said Another task force, the Life
Sciences Task Force Report sug
gests the university is not struc
tured to handle the important
advances being made in the life
sciences.
Perlman asked several vice
chancellors to develop a model
life science curriculum by Oct l.A
plan for implementation of the
program should be completed by
Mardi 1, he said.
To ensure the momentum
Perlman spoke about is capital
ized upon, he said, the university
should focus on recruitment and
retention of students, as well as
the diversity of the student body.
The university needs to con
tinue to recruit both in-state and
out-of-state students, he said.
Retaining students should
also be a priority, he said, especial
ly students of diverse back
grounds.
“We cannot be a great univer
sity unless our community is
diverse in its perspectives and in
its personnel,” Perlman said.
“This is not a matter of political
correctness or of liberal or conser
vative ideology. It is a matter of
fact”
Schafer said Perlman’s hon
esty and willingness to say “I don't
know” was refreshing.
“Chancellor Perlman has the
right demeanor and personality,”
Schafer said. “He seems to be the
right guy at the right time. I’d be
very happy if he stayed on and
they dropped that interim from
his title.”
Partisanship
focus of talk
DEBATE from page 1
should be covered under
Medicare.
But the harmony didn’t last
long. Stenberg said he thought
prescription drug benefits should
be need-based, while Nelson said
he supported benefits for every
one, regardless of income
In a question that sparked lit
tle debate, each candidate was
asked to name a Nebraskan that
they respected and emulated
Nelson chose the late U.S.
Sen. George Norris, from his
hometown of McCook, while
Stenberg picked HageL
Stenberg dosed the debate by
saying he represented a "typical”
Nebraskan that has the same
concerns as many others in the
state.
“We need to send the right
team to work in the right direc
tion for Nebraska,” he said
Nelson summe^ up his posi
tion by stressing his “centrist”
attitude and willingness to work
with anyone, regardless of party
affiliation.