SNOW REMOVAL TO-DO LIST

• 25 miles of sidewalks and malls
• 12 streets
• 12,000 parking stalls in more than 150 parking lots
• start at 2 a.m.

Grounds Supervisor Susan Budler scoops snow on East Campus Monday as more than 5 inches of snow blanketed the city.

Photos by Richard Wright

Collaboration Key to Solving Violence, Sex Assault Problems

By Kim Hachiya, Public Relations

Relationship violence and sexual assault is a problem as old as civilization. Yet only recently have colleges become acutely aware of the need to address these issues on campuses, said Irene Anderson, director of the Oasis Center for sexual assault and relationship violence at the University of Arizona.

Anderson was at Nebraska Feb. 22-23 to consult with university officials developing a comprehensive plan for those affected by sexual assault, relationship violence and other acts of violence at the university.

More than 40 years ago a study of high school girls revealed nearly 2/3 of them had experienced sexual violence during their senior year, Anderson said. This indicates the problem is not new. But colleges are now becoming "painfully aware" of not only monetary liability surrounding student violence, but also the damage to a university's reputation resulting from media scrutiny in high-profile cases, she said.

UNL, she added, is sometimes held up as the poster child for student violence because of several highly publicized incidents involving student athletes. But UNL is not alone, she said. And the university in some ways received a gift in terms of raised awareness and growing attitudes of responsibility following those incidents.

Arizona established its Oasis Center in 1995, she said. Several benefits have emerged. The center is a one-stop place for students to get help; it offers educational training; and it has taken a leadership role in developing a statewide consortium of higher education officials involved in the area of violence and sexual assault.

Anderson said several troubling trends also indicate areas ripe for change. College women are at the highest risk for victimization during the first two weeks of their freshman year on campus, she said. Up to 95 percent of college rapes involve alcohol use and binge drinkers are more likely to become victims or participants. Some 84 percent of men whose behavior legally constituted rape did not see themselves as rapists nor did they view their behavior as traumatizing to their victims.

Intervention efforts, she said, must be aimed at curbing binge drinking and alcohol abuse. And when programs are developed for men, they must be taught by men, she said.

"It's essential to create programs and have as a goal effective treatment for offenders," she said.

Anderson cautioned that reliance on statistics depersonalized the problem because a number is someone else, not the woman who lives next door. It's important to dispel stereotypes of who victims and perpetrators are, she added.

Universities have a responsibility to create programs for their internal communities (students, faculty, staff), she said. But they also can be leaders in their surrounding communities. "You need to create a community that embraces non-violence as a core value," she said.

Collaboration between key players is the most important concept, she said. "Don't forget the importance of doughnuts," she said, explaining that by offering a comfortable meeting space with coffee and refreshments, she was able to pull in law enforcement agencies, women's advocacy groups and others who finally were able to work face to face to solve problems.

"Establish a quiet relationship of trust when building that coalition," she said. Good old-fashioned 1960s-style grassroots organizing is turning out to be a very effective tool, she noted.

Look at what's already in place and working, then build on that, Anderson said. If something isn't working, try a new direction.

For example, Arizona had long belief that the way to change behavior was through education. But that wasn't working. They shifted gears and evidence now shows that the way to change behavior is to change attitudes and beliefs.

Thus a new campaign aimed at alcohol education has the theme that "the best sex ever does not include alcohol."

Anderson said a new pilot program aimed at sorority women, deemed at very high risk, is a women's health advocacy project which places student health educators in each sorority house. These women, trained in issues ranging from HIV education to eating disorders awareness, are point persons in the sorority houses for information and confidential counseling. They began meeting bi-weekly at Arizona and developed a camaraderie that has crossed over the usual competitive boundaries.

Recently, Anderson said, the women reported they feel empowered by the program and are more organized against "predatory" behavior from fraternity men.

Anderson's visit to campus was sponsored by the Victim Services Prevention and Crisis Response Team.

Graduate Teaching, Research Assistants Eligible for Health Benefits

Beginning with the 1999-2000 academic year, all graduate teaching assistants and graduate research assistants with appointments that qualify for full tuition remission will receive, as an additional benefit, basic coverage under UNL's student health insurance plan.

That has been added to make Nebraska more competitive in recruiting outstanding students; virtually all major universities with which we compete provide these benefits, according to Richard Edwards, senior vice chancellor for academic affairs.

For graduate assistants paid from state-aided funds, the cost of this coverage will be paid centrally. For graduate assistants paid from grants, contracts, or other sources, those funding sources will be required to pay the cost of the benefit.

The basic student health insurance plan has a premium of $399 per 12-month year (commencing with the start of the academic year), and covers accidents and illnesses to a maximum of $50,000 per policy year. A student must be eligible to use the University Health Center in order to qualify for the health insurance plan, because health care benefits under the student health insurance plan are closely tied to the services students receive at UHC.

Students enrolled for seven or more credit hours during academic year terms are automatically eligible for UHC services by virtue of the University Program and Facilities Fees (UPFF) that they pay. A student enrolled for fewer than seven credit hours must pay the UHC fee in order to enroll in the insurance plan; the fee is currently $92.12 per academic year semester and $75 for the summer. Any student enrolled in the basic plan may elect to pay an additional premium of $105 to secure catastrophic coverage to a maximum of $950,000. Dependent plans are also available on an optional basis.

Program details, definitions, and restrictions will be forthcoming from the Office of Graduate Studies, but for those departments currently recruiting new graduate students who will become assistants next year, the information contained above should be sufficient to allow you to go ahead and inform those whom you are trying to recruit.

For more information about the student health insurance plan or a brochure that could be sent to a prospective graduate assistant, contact Bev Heiserman at the UHC business office, 472-7435.

Combined Campaign Totals Boosted by 12 Percent

Final results for the 1998 Combined Campaign for Health and Human Services were celebrated at a reception Feb. 23. UNL employee contributions increased by 12 percent over 1997's totals and the mean gift amount was $110.

Karen Craig, dean of the College of Human Resources and Family Sciences and campaign chair, said $256,134 was pledged or donated to the campaign, an increase of $26,755 over the previous year.

A total of 2,339 people contributed to the campaign, representing 179 campus units and six auxiliary units, such as president's office, alumni and NU Foundation.

Donor participation level was 40 percent, falling below the 50 percent participation goal, she said.

Thirty-eight units achieved 50 percent or higher participation with an average gift of at least $105; 106 units had 50 percent or higher participation; 20 had 100 percent donor participation and 86 had rates falling between 50 and 99 percent.

Craig said 75 units met the goal of an average gift of $105 or more.

Emeriti faculty had a 99 percent return rate and an average gift size of $179.

Craig said six units reached "special peaks of excellence."

Business and Finance/Operations Analysis had a mean gift of $162 and 67 percent participation rate. Vice Chancellor for Research/Technology Transfer and Patents had a mean gift of $170 and an 83 percent participation rate. Central Administration had a mean gift of $182 and a participation rate of 65 percent. Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs/Career Services had a mean gift of $234 and a 71 percent participation rate. IANR Vice Chancellor's Office had a mean gift of $504 with a 67 percent participation rate. Academic Affairs/Marketing Department had a mean gift of $762 with participation rate of 55 percent.

Units with 100 percent giving participation were: (less than 25 employees) Academic Senate, Budget Office, College of Nursing, Director-University Services, Distance Education, Ethnic Studies, Foundation Seed, Humanities Research Program, MidAmerica International Agricultural Consortium, Inc., Military Science, Naval Science, Payroll, personnel Data Entry, Purchasing, Teaching and Learning Center, Tractor Testing Lab, Vending Services, Vice Chancellor for Reseach; (25-50 employees) Civil Engineering; (51 or more employees) College of Dentistry.

Fourth Annual Nebraska Rural Poll to Examine Preferences, Expectations for Future

By Molly Klocksin, IANR news writer

This year's Nebraska Rural Poll will ask rural residents their thoughts about rural Nebraska's future: what they want and expect agriculture, their communities, families and governments to be like in 20 years.

The poll is the largest annual survey of rural Nebraskans' views on their quality of life and current policy issues. Letters were mailed Feb. 19 notifying 7,000 households in Nebraska's 87 rural counties they've been randomly selected to participate in the scientific poll.

Besides asking traditional questions, the fourth annual poll will ask rural residents their preferences and expectations for rural life 20 years from now, said John Allen, the University of Nebraska rural sociologist who conducts the statewide poll.

For example, this year's poll will ask rural Nebraskans whether they'd prefer that most Nebraska farms be owned by non-family corporations in 20 years and whom they expect will own most Nebraska farms.

State senators and representatives of NU, state agencies, rural advocacy organizations and others who advise Allen on the poll suggested adding this new dimension to the poll to give policy-makers a clearer picture of rural constituents' preferences and visions, the NU Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources researcher said.

This year's poll also will track Nebraskans' views about specific legislation and whether it has increased or decreased the quality of education in local school districts. It also will ask their attitudes toward consolidating some county services.

"While we've been able to identify the perceptions of individuals of legislation while it was being developed, we now are going to have the opportunity to look at the impacts on a local level," Allen said.

The poll's ample sample size will allow analysis of residents' preferences and expectations based on community size, geography and other factors, he said.

Poll information could help shape public policy for the new millennium from a rural viewpoint, Allen said.

The annual poll is conducted by the Partnership for Rural Nebraska and IANR's Cooperative Extension Division, Agricultural Research Division and Center for Rural Community Revitalization and Development.