College of Business Administration professors listen as Sen. Bob Kerrey speaks during a reception prior to Kerrey's lecture Friday morning at Kimball Hall Auditorium. Kerrey, along with Sen. Chuck Hagel, delivered the Faulkner Lecture on social security and entitlement reform. (Photo: Richard Wright)
Chancellor James Moeser responded Wednesday to inquiries about allegations of sexual harassment in the Department of Political Science.
"Let me first say that these are issues of grave concern and I will give them serious attention," said Moeser.
"I have received a report from the Academic Rights and Responsibilities Committee. I will consult with both the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and the Assistant to the Chancellor for Affirmative Action and Diversity Programming to develop a response within the 30-day time limit. This is an internal process and I will communicate my decision to the Political Science department. I will also make a public statement at that time, respecting my obligations to confidentiality of personnel issues.
"While I can't comment on this specific case, let me reinforce my commitment to engaging leadership among faculty, staff, and students alike to create a more welcoming climate on this campus."
Although it was an incredible amount of work, the recently completed partnership audit conducted by the regional Office of Civil Rights in Kansas City proved to be a valuable experience for the university, said Linda Crump, director of affirmative action and diversity programs.
The auditors visited with nearly 80 people during their five-day visit to campus, she said. The auditors' goal was to look over the university's processes, policies and procedures relating to racial harassment. The regional office plans to conduct a dozen partnership audits this year on racial harassment. Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, North and South Dakota comprise the Kansas City office's region.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln was not chosen because specific complaints were alleged, she said. Rather the office used a number of sources, such as newspaper articles and word-of-mouth, in deciding to visit Nebraska.
The auditors commended the university for some of its procedures, for its training opportunities and for the enthusiasm of the campus community in cooperating with them. They suggested several areas for improvement, which Crump says will help the institution progress.
While UNL has specific policies written regarding racial harassment, the auditors suggested they be refined to include a range of actual sanctions that could be invoked should a person or persons engage in racial harassment. The auditors also suggested that grievances be resolved more quickly so that timelines are more contemporaneous with the occurrence of events. And they suggested that informal reports to the Office of Affirmative Action be made as incidents occur rather than at the end of the year as is the current practice. Finally, the auditors suggested two types of mandatory training for students, faculty and staff. This would include sensitivity training and information to increase campuswide awareness of existing policies and procedures.
The university has until May 1 to develop a response to the auditors' recommendations, Crump said.
Some of the changes can occur immediately, she noted; others will take more time because committees will need to make policy decisions and several groups will need to sign off. The OCR understands that, she said, and will allow for a timely process as long as progress is being made.
Crump sat in on every interview during the audit. Among those who participated were representatives from student government, greek affairs, student judicial affairs, housing, human resources, multicultural affairs, the Mexican American Student Association, the Academic Rights and Responsibilities Committee, the Chancellor's Commission on the Status of People of Color, the Faculty Town Hall group, training groups, ombudspersons, several deans and directors, the vice chancellors and the chancellor.
She conceded it was a hectic week but well worth the time.
"It was a great opportunity for us to learn from experts in the field. They are trying to be proactive in helping creating the best environment for students on our campus. It was a win situation to have outside people with their level of expertise look over our policies," she said. "They made some very helpful recommendations and pointed out areas where we are on the cutting edge."
They also suggested that while the focus of the audit was racial harassment, their suggested remedies would apply to policies regarding harassment other than racial, she noted.
-Kim Hachiya, Public Relations
Leadership and collaboration are key to increasing the numbers of minority and women faculty at an institution, according to two scholars from the American Council on Education. The University of Nebraska has both attitudes, they said, and that bodes well for the institution's future.
Reginald Wilson, senior scholar for the ACE Division of Access and Equity Programs, and Deborah Carter, deputy director of the ACE Office of Minorities in Higher Education, presented two days' of workshops for deans, directors and chairs April 16 and 17.
Carter said she tried to leave participants with the feeling that the workshop is just the initial step. "There's much more work to be done," she said. "Now they need to dig in their heels and do it."
Wilson said that the audience questions were similar to those he has heard during his 18 years of presenting diversity workshops. The limited knowledge of the issue of racial inequality was not surprising, he said.
"Faculty in particular focus on their disciplines and there is not much of a tie to their institutions. Physic professors, for example, talk only to other physics professors; sociologists talk only to other sociologists. Amazingly, there is very little discussion with each other outside of their disciplines," Wilson said.
That limited outlook means often faculty are unaware of historical problems in hiring practices that have led to discrimination, Wilson said. Thus many of his presentations concentrate on history, background and demographic materials.
Carter said that by introducing people to the concept of "white privilege" an awareness occurs. White privilege is the concept that because the majority of the nation is Caucasian, whites are granted privileges as a matter of course and leads them to not understand the degree to which discriminations, subtle or overt, occur on a daily basis. For example, few whites have had the experience of being closely scrutinized and watched when they enter a store because the shopkeeper assumes they will not shoplift. Many African Americans, however, report this experience because shopkeepers assume they have entered the store to steal.
"Whites do not have to think about this issue. But people of color do not have the option of ignoring this," she said.
Carter said there are encouraging signs at Nebraska. First, she said, the legislative mandate to increase the hiring of minority and women faculty has "clearly gotten everyone's attention." And, she said, the leadership at the university is determined to find success.
Wilson said the answers are not easy. "What is frustrating to many is that they cannot do it alone. There needs to be institutional support, institutional leadership and a group spirit across disciplines to say that this will occur," he said.
Carter noted that institutions that have been most successful in diversifying their faculty have had strong leadership. "The fact that the leadership is there (at Nebraska) bodes well for the future of this university to achieve a level of change," she said.
Wilson noted that sometimes the level of resistance drops once success occurs. "There sometimes is resistance and anger but after institutions have hired minority faculty, they find the world doesn't come to an end and these people are competent scholars and excellent colleagues. They find there are considerable riches in hiring minorities," he said.
Carter said several myths about minority faculty must be dispelled before success in hiring is achieved. Minority faculty are not less competent (an attitude that reflects white privilege), she said. Other myths, she said, are that minority faculty don't exist, they are too expensive to hire and that they wouldn't want to work at Nebraska anyway so why try to hire them. These are attitudinal obstacles, she said.
Strategies that have worked at other institutions, she said, were to "grow your own" faculty by hiring your own graduates and learn through exit interviews why faculty have left. The latter strategy is particularly effective in addressing climate issues, Carter said.
-Kim Hachiya, Public Relations
University employees with five, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 and 50 years of service will be honored at an awards program beginning at 11:30 a.m. April 28 in the Lied Center.
All employees are invited to the stand-up luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m. The formal recognition ceremony begins at 12:30 p.m. in the Lied Center main theater. Afterwards, employees can pick up their service award recognition items and enjoy desserts and refreshments.
A list of those employees being recognized appears in in the center of today's Scarlet.
For more information about the service awards, contact Michele Strickler at 472-8033.
The second in a series of five science sleepovers organized by teachers from three Lincoln elementary schools will take place May 1-2 at the University of Nebraska State Museum.
A total of 62 fifth- and sixth-grade girls from Rousseau, Sheridan and Zeman schools will participate in the event, which is funded by the Lincoln Public Schools Foundation. Each sleepover focuses on one of the Wonderwise Women in Science kits developed by the NU State Museum in cooperation with Nebraska Educational Telecommunications and this event will focus on the kit titled "Sea Otter Biologist."
After a 5:30 p.m. dinner and social in Elephant Hall May 1, the girls will observe sea otter behavior, examine the properties of oil and how it affects marine mammals and birds, try to radiotrack an otter and build a kelp forest.
The evening will include a sea otter presentation by Trish Freeman, zoology curator at the NU State Museum. Freeman will be part of a panel of women scientists from the University of Nebraska who will visit with the girls and share their stories of how they became interested in science. Just before sleep, the students will visit Ralph Mueller Planetarium, where they will participate in a program specially prepared by the planetarium's coordinator, Jack Dunn.
The sleepover will end at 8 a.m. May 2.
The Wonderwise Women in Science kits were funded with grants from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to Judy Diamond, assistant director for public programs at the NU State Museum. Each kit focuses on an individual scientist and each includes an activity book, a video of the scientist in the field, a CD-ROM and materials to support the activities. Wonderwise is designed to motivate girls to pursue scientific activities and careers. The kits are available from Great Plains National and can be ordered by calling 1-800-228-4630.
The University's Year 2000 Task Force will meet at 1:30 p.m. April 29 in the Nebraska Union. Future meetings as well as university status reports for the Year 2000 can also be found on the web http://www.unl.edu/year2k. Call 472-7690 for more information.
Effective May, 1998, the ATM in the Campus Recreation Center will be affiliated with Martell State Bank (cash only).
Just a reminder to Campus Recreation members that the center will be closed for its annual maintenance week May 10-16. Additional hours will be available at the East Campus Activities Building that week. Inquiries: 472-3467.
Members of the Prairie Astronomy Club have expanded the celebration of Astronomy Day (the international recognition of amateur astronomy) with special events both May 1 and 2. May 2 is the official Astronomy Day nationally. Activities will be held in the lobby of Mueller Planetarium, as well as in the University of Nebraska State Museum (Morrill Hall) auditorium, Hyde Observatory and the UNL Physics and Astronomy Department's Student Observatory.
Activities have been added in Lincoln for the 10th annual Astronomy Day. At 7:30 p.m. May 1, there will be a special talk in the University of Nebraska State Museum's auditorium. Richard Pirko of Youngstown State University in Ohio will speak on the Russian space program and the "Race to Space." Pirko has been a participant in the "Friends and Partners In Space" program and has made extensive visits to Russia in studying the historical background of these events. Admission is free. That evening the Physics and Astronomy Student Observatory on top of the Stadium Drive parking garage will be open to the public from 8:30 to 11 p.m. Admission is free.
May 2 activities will resume in the lobby of Mueller Planetarium in the museum at 10 a.m. There will be displays of telescopes, computer astronomy and astrophotos by members of the Prairie Astronomy Club. Throughout the day there will be special demonstrations of such things as telescope mirror making, and learning the constellations. All these events are free. That evening, Hyde Observatory in Holmes Park will be open its regular Saturday hours of sundown till 11 p.m. for more viewing (weather permitting).
For more information call Jack Dunn, 472-2641.
Spring Affair '98 - "Prairie in the City," will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 25 in State Fair Park.
"Prairie in the City" is the theme for Spring Affair 1998 and will offer programs and demonstrations exploring this new prairie aesthetic, featuring garden designs and ideas ranging from the naturalistic to the sophisticated. As prairie gardeners have brought native plants into the urban landscape, a new appreciation of these plants' unique qualities has developed.
As always, the Spring Affair plant sale will be brimming with the highest quality perennial plants. This year's sale will have a special emphasis on hard-to-find prairie plants, along with popular perennial newcomers and your old favorites.
Spring Affair is sponsored by the UNL Botanical Garden and Arboretum, the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum and State Fair Park Arboretum. For more information please call 472-2679.
You are invited to read and respond to second drafts of two discussion papers prepared by the Office of Academic Affairs These discussion papers have been revised based on campus feedback on the first drafts; the revised versions are now available on the web. They can be found directly at: http://www.unl.edu/svcaa/Dis cuss.html or by linking from the UNL homepage, to Academics & Research, to Academic Affairs, to Discussion.
Each paper has an e-mail link to an individual closely associated with its development. The feedback we have received to this point has been very helpful and has shaped the papers significantly. We cannot effectively plan or implement these steps without further discussion and dialogue, so we are asking you to review these second drafts and again send us your feedback.
The revised papers are:
Plan for Increasing Diversity in the Faculty: http://www.unl .edu/svcaa/Activities/Diversity2.html. The first draft was completed Nov. 26, 1997; it was revised on March 18, 1998.
Enhancing our Undergraduate Program: http://www.unl .edu/svcaa/Activities/Undergrad2.html. The first draft was completed Oct. 23, 1997; it was revised on April 8, 1998.
Several further papers will be forthcoming in this series. They will be added to the Academic Affairs website under "Discussion" as they are ready.
Milo Mumgaard, Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest, and Vicki Stippel, Families Achieving Independence and Respect, will discuss "Nebraska Welfare Reform: Issues and the Role of the University," with interested faculty from noon to 1:15 p.m. April 29 in the East Union.
To subscribe to the all-university Welfare Reform listserv, send an e-mail message to listserv@unl.edu with the following in the message field (not subject field): SUBSCRIBE WELFAREREFORM.
For more information, call 472-5517.
The Elton Aberle Recognition Dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. May 16 at the Ramada Plaza Hotel, 141 N. Ninth St.
Reservations must be received by May 11. Cost of the buffet dinner is $20/person, paid in advance. Send checks payable to UNL-Office Account Fund/Vicky Kobes to: C-203 Animal Science Department, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, P.O. Box 830908, Lincoln, NE 68583-0908.
Letters of congratulations for a "Book of Letters" should be sent to the same address by May 11. Please use a 1 1/2" left margin to aid in binding.
For more information, call Vicky at 472-9398.
The Department of Human Resources and Bureau of Sociological Research thanks the University employees who have returned the postcard indicating the number of child care age and after-school care age children they have, as well as indicating whether they are married to a University employee or University student.
On April 15, letters and postcards were mailed from Human Resources to all UNL faculty and staff asking for your help in determining the level of child care need at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This census of employees is an attempt to assess the proportion of employees who actually have children of child care age. You were asked to return a postcard to the Bureau of Sociological Research which indicated:
(1) how many children you have 5 years of age and younger - to determine the percentage of employees with child care age children
(2) how many children you have age 6 to 12 - to determine the percentage of employees with after-school care age children
(3) if you are married to a University employee or University student - to help us avoid double-counting the number of children reported among all employees returning the postcard.
It is important that all employees return the postcard, even if they have no children, because this is the only way to determine what proportion of University employees have children 5 years of age and younger or children 6 to 12 years of age. In addition, this is the only measure of what proportion of University employees are married to other University employees or University students, regardless of whether there are children present in the household.
If you have already returned the postcard to the Bureau of Sociological Research, thank you. If you have not completed and returned it in campus mail, please do so now. If you have misplaced your postcard, or if you did not receive one, please call the Bureau of Sociological Research at 472-3672.
An evening of exotic dance, splendid costuming, fast-paced action and dazzling martial arts will be presented at 7 p.m. May 2 in Kimball Hall. Tickets are $10 and are available by calling the Asian Community Cultural Center at 477-3446, the Lincoln Interfaith Council at 474-3017, or may be purchased at Kimball on the evening of the performance.
Combining the explosive acrobatics of Taiwan's premiere Youth Fu Hsing Chinese Opera with the graceful beauty of Lincoln's finest Asian dancers and the ever-popular Lion Dance Troupe, the evening's entertainment will take the viewer to six countries on the mysterious Asian continent.
The Fu Hsing troupe will perform 3 mini-operas and a fabulous demonstration of martial arts. Chinese mythology, folk stories and battlefield intrigue will be woven together with music provided by expert craftsmen on traditional Chinese instruments.
The Youth Fu Hsing Chinese Opera Mission is a training academy for students of the classical Chinese theater form. The opera troupe is on 24-day tour that will visit San Francisco, Minneapolis, Omaha, Lincoln and Branson, Mo., before returning to Taiwan. While the Opera is in Lincoln they will visit Park and Norris Middle schools and Lincoln East, Southeast and Lincoln High schools.
The Asian Night Gala is a fundraiser for the retirement of the Asian Community and Cultural Center's mortgage.
University of Nebraska sponsors and supporters of the Youth Fu Hsing Chinese Opera Mission's visit and performance include the College of Fine and Performing Arts, Kimball Hall, International Affairs and the Nebraska Union.
Local performers in the gala event include Gary Yuen, associate professor of plant pathology who created and developed the Asian Community and Cultural Center's Lion Dance Troupe, and dancers from the Vietnamese Student Association who will perform the Fan Dance.
There will be a public reception for the Opera Troupe starting at 7:30 p.m. May 1 in the Nebraska Union ballroom. There is no charge and the pubic is invited.
Two funds are available for community members to aid the Ray Koziol family.
The Lincoln Bowling Council established a fund at Havelock Bank to help with expenses the family may incur. Donations are accepted at Havelock Bank or any bowling center in Lincoln.
Memorials for the surviving Koziol children's education may be sent in lieu of flowers in care of St. John's Catholic Church at the rectory, 731 Skyway Rd., Lincoln, NE 68505.
Koziol is operations manager at the Nebraska East Union and assistant director of Nebraska Unions. His wife, LeAnn, and four sons were involved in an automobile accident April 15 at 70th Street and Pine Lake Road.
Son Kevin, 8, was dead at the scene, LeAnn died a few hours later and son Aaron, 4, died April 21 from head injuries. Son Brian, 6, remained in critical condition at Lincoln General Hospital Tuesday. The Koziols' oldest son, Matt, 10, was treated and released after the accident.
Did you know that it's not proper to tuck your napkin under your chin at dinner? Have you heard about the astrological significance of "Carhenge" in western Nebraska? Do you know why NU researchers are surgically implanting tracking devices in rattlesnakes? If you'd seen a recent episode of "Life Nebraska Style" you could say "yes" to all these questions.
"Life Nebraska Style" is a weekly, half-hour television magazine that spotlights interesting people and activities at the University of Nebraska. It's jointly produced by UNL Public Relations and IANR's Communications and Information Technology's Electronic Media unit.
This week on "Life Nebraska Style":
"Life Nebraska Style" airs at various times throughout the state. Here's where you can find it in your area:
Alliance, Ch. 8, Mon. & Tues. 1 p.m.; Beatrice, Ch. 9, Tues. 5:30 p.m.; Broken Bow, Ch. 38, Tues. 2 p.m. and Friday 11 p.m.; Columbus, Ch. 8, Mon. through Fri. 10 a.m. & 7:30 p.m.; Crete, Ch. 10, Wed. 7 p.m.; Fremont, Ch. 19, Mon. 7 p.m. and Fri. 6:30 p.m.; Grand Island, Ch. 6, Mon. 2 p.m., Tues. 12:30 p.m., Wed. 10:30 a.m., Thurs. 5 p.m., Fri. 5:30 p.m., Sat. and Sun. 12:30 p.m.; Hastings, Ch. 3, Mon. 10 a.m. and Tues. 8 p.m.; Hebron, Ch. 20, Mon. through Fri. 6:30 p.m.; Ithaca, Ch. 13, Mon. noon, Thurs. 4 p.m. and Sat. 8 a.m.; Lincoln, Ch. 21, Mon. 11 a.m., Wed. 8 p.m., Fri. 4 p.m. and Sun. 6 p.m.; McCook, Ch. 17, Tues. 7 p.m.; Norfolk, Ch. 2, Tues. 1:30 p.m. and Wed. 10:30 a.m.; North Platte, Ch. 18, Tues. 6:30 and Thurs. 10 a.m.; Omaha, Ch. 23, Mon. 9:30 p.m.; West Point, Ch. 17, Wed. 11:30 a.m. and Fri. 3:30 p.m.
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