Oregon daily _ _
emerald
An Independent Student Newspaper
Vol. 74, No. 55
Thursday, October 19,1972
HEW receives
optimistic reply
The University is achieving its goals and “moving constructively
to get action results” in its effort to eliminate sex and race
discrimination in hiring practices, according to a report to the U.S.
Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) Regional Civil
Rights Office in Seattle released Wednesday afternoon.
The inch-thick report, sent to HEW officials Monday evening, is in
response to a letter sent to University President Robert Clark on May
15 of this year by HEW Regional Civil Rights Director Marlaina Kiner.
Kiner’s letter outlines several deficiencies in the University’s em
ployment practices as they relate to women and minorities. The
University was directed to take “additional corrective action” and to
make a report on its progress.
The University established an Affirmative Action program on Oct.
15, 1971 in response to HEW charges that University hiring practices
were discriminatory and in violation of federal anti-discrimination
regulations.
Lorenza Schmidt, former interim Affirmative Action program
director, leveled sharp criticisms at the University in September
charging that the University had not progressed with the program.
University President Robert Clark responded in the report saying,
“The tone of the report of the Affirmative Action Officer seems to have
been premised on the erroneous opinion that the University had
achieved “zero” results in the hiring of minority persons. This turned
out to be a conclusion drawn from incomplete data.” “The report is
more positive,” Clark added, “but does not warrant our becoming
complacent.”
Executive Dean John Lallas said Wednesday that the report does
not respond directly to the details of Schmidt’s criticisms. “The report
will stand on its own,” Lallas said “After reading it, the conclusions
should be obvious.”
The recent progress report to HEW outlines several features of the
University’s progress toward meeting the agency’s demand to meet
government regulations.
The report says the University “has met and exceeded the com
mitment made in October 1971 for the appointment of an Equal Em
ployment Opportunities Officer.”
Schmidt was hired in that capacity for the period of May 8 to
September 15 of this year. The University offered the Affirmative
Action Director position to a minority for the academic year at a
salary “exceeding $18,000.” The appointment was declined. Four
qualified candidates have been interviewed for the position in the past
few weeks and a final selection is expected shortly according to the
report.
(Continued on Page 7)
Photo by Jerry Benterou
Members of a theater mime class play a game of football—without the football.
OSS in storm center
By MICHAEL PETRYNI
Of the Emerald
Vernetta Caldwell, new director of the office of
Supportive Service (OSS), has the uneasy distinc
tion of doing her job while at the same time being
thrown into the eye of a storm.
The storm is the discontent surrounding the
conflict of “centralization” versus “self
determination” of services in the aid-to
disadvantaged-students programs that operate
under the auspices of the OSS.
( Analysis
That discontent has led to the Native American
Student Union’s unanimous vote to dissolve the
Native American Program and recent criticism of
the OSS by two other program directors.
Caldwell, appointed to her position by University
Vice-President Gerald Bogen last August, sees her
job as springing out of two considerations, "(1) OSS
is here to coordinate the programs, find funding,
and oversee or (2) we can lose the programs.”
Right now Caldwell is working to prepare the
grant proposals for the funding of the programs.
“That is my primary job,” she says.
Caldwell says that consideration has to be given
to just what it is going to take to get that funding.
“There is no one here to seek funds for the
projects,” she says. “It is very hard to write a
budget proposal. We have forms for information
and the directors can’t even give us the in
formation.”
She says she sees the OSS as an information
gathering center for the programs, information
such as ethnic backgrounds, retention rates of the
students, parental data, etc.
In addition, she says the OSS needs to oversee the
goals of the programs, implementations of the
goals, and the services offered.
“When we go to the state legislature for funding,
they are going to question us and they are going to
want answers,” she says. “Answering ‘I don't
know.. .1 think.. .’is not going to work.”
The same is true for HEW funding, she says, but
also “HEW doesn't want a loose organization. They
want minority programs under one umbrella, which
was part of the reason HEW didn’t fund the
programs last year.”
Pointing out that “financial aid is no longer a
priority for minorities and the blacks,” she con
tends it is going to take "centralization of services”
to get funding.
(Continued on Page 7)
Ethnic studies program blasted in letter
By CLAY EALS
Of the Emerald
The University’s yet-to-be
implemented Ethnic Studies
Program came under severe
attack Tuesday from a person to
whom the University offered the
job of program director.
Alex Kuo, who was offered the
job and who declined it, said in a
letter dated Tuesday that the
University’s program is “in
sane”’ because of its proposed
inter-departmental nature.
Kuo’s letter was addressed to
University vice provost Marshall
Wattles.
Kuo now directs the Ethnic
Studies Program at Central
Washington State College in
Ellensburg, Washington. The full
text of his letter appears below.
The University’s Ethnic
Studies Program, authorized for
fall implementation by the State
Board of Higher Education
Text of Kuo’s letter
Dear Dr Wattles
Thank you tor your September 19 and 28 letters and the otter of
appointment
As you have known since our first meetinq, I hold some deep rooted
reservations about the effectiveness of an interdepartmental ethnic
studies program, and grave suspicions about the apparent intent of
an institution irrevocably locked to such a structural approach, fiscal
recession regardless
As i have indicated previously, we know that within a fixed
enrollment ceiling in both public and private institutions, the creation
of a new program economically means the redistribution of existing
funds, resulting in allocations tor the new, and a cut back for existing
departments that are perhaps experiencing lower enrollments
reflecting changing student interest and societal needs. We also know
that under normal circumstances all minor and major policies in
voivmg both curricular and faculty matters either rest at the
departmental level, or are initiated there As such, new in
terdepartmentai programs that have to depend on existing depart
ments other priorities, generosity, and bureaucratic deW/s are at
best insecure, inefficient. with no autonomy, participation or even
representation >n governance, and at worst, fragmented, surrounded
by political intrigue, and short lived
i beheve that the intent to add an interdepartmental ethnic studies
program at the University of Oregon eventually leading to a cer
tit .cate program out of a biftrre conglomeration of existing and a
tew now courses shows that it is not ready to extend any serious
academic, economic, or moral commitment to the development of
i fhn.c studies
That one of the very top administrators referred to the director of
«'thn*c studies as University of Oregon s ethnic studies conscience
three t.mes »n one hour s meeting, is sufficient evidence that some of
the leadership in the central administration are not cognizant nor
have accepted their responsibility in developing an ethnic studies
proqram, but are ready again to continue on their old "good faith"
approach That I was taken to lunch at Sambo's by two other central
administrators seals my conviction that the University of Oregon, at
the administrative level at least, is totally insensitive to the attendant
needs of such a program Furthermore, the denial of the opportunity
to confer with President Clark in my negotiation visit scheduled at
least one week in advance is indication enough that a direct com
munication line with him is at best an unfruitful imposition on
established protocol, and at worst impossible I must re emphasize
that a mutually willing direct communication line kept open between
the president and the director is a requisite to the successful
development of a program as highly political and controversial as
ethnic studies
Should the university become serious in its initiation of an ethnic
studies program, I would be most interested, indeed most willing, to
•ecomo part of it In the meantime, however, l would seriously en
courage a self examination of intent motive objectives of its ap
parent insanity m creating an interdepartmental program in ethnic
studies while only giving the director three graduate assistantships to
work with if people's motives cannot be changed, then at least ap
propr.ate some funds so that the effects can be changed I cannot see
wasting one year of my life (within the program's proposed
organization, a good director's tenure would not exceed one year)
piaymg the University of Oregon's ethnic studies conscience, ac
ceptmg the responsibility that should and must be everyone's Such
responsibility cannot be given away, nor abstractly (abstractly
because *t was never identified nor realized in the first place)
relegated to the resident banana
it is with deep regret, then, that i must decline the appointment
Sincerely,
Alex Kao
during the summer, has yet to get
off the ground becaus«
the University hasn’t found a
program director.
Kuo was offered the job several
weeks ago, but formally turned it
down in his letter.
A University search committee
is currently considering second,
third and fourth place candidates
for the directorship.
Vice Provost Wattles was in
Denver Wednesday and could not
be reached for comment on Kuo’s
letter However, Paul Simonds,
chairer of the University’s ethnic
studies committee, was con
tacted Wednesday, and said he
thought Kuo was "way off base.”
Replying to Kuo’s charges that
the interdisciplinary approach to
the University’s Ethnic Studies
Program is "insane,” Simonds
said:
“I’m confident this approach
isn’t insane It may not be suc
cessful, but many new things
aren’t when you first try them
out.”
Simonds said he doesn’t think
Kuo's attack on the program’s
interdisciplinary nature is
justified "Here, there is fairly
strong backing by the faculty for
ihe program,” he said, and that
general faculty support will help
to insure the success of the
University’s Ethnic Studies
Program.
The University’s program is
designed so that "many people
have every opportunity" to be a
part of the program, he said.
Simonds said Kuo did not ad
dress the reality that the
University’s program is only
funded for $33,000. "A program
he talks of would cost a couple of
hundred thousand to start with.
The University isn’t going to
commit itself to that much at this
time.”
When contacted Wednesday
night, University President
Robert Clark said he had not seen
a copy of Kuo’s letter. Clark did,
however, respond to Kuo’s attack
on the interdisciplinary approach
to the University's Ethnic Studies
Program.
"That kind of approach, that
the faculty committee (the
Ethnic Studies Committee)
developed, is a sound approach,"
Clark said
He said most programs that
are not interdisciplinary have
"some professional outlet” after
a student graduates. "But there
is no professional outlet for ethnic
studies ”
Consequently, “One needs to
have an ethnic studies program
which is tied to the discipline,”
Clark said