Willard named Affirmative Action head
■
Myra Willard Pho,° by Phil Wa,d‘,ain
A forma aerospace engineer has been appointed
directa of the University’s Office fa Affirmative Ac
tion.
Myra Willard, 40, was named to the post Dec. 28 by
University President Robot Clark. She will be the first
permanent directa of the office established last May to
promote recruitment and employment of minorities and
women.
Willard succeeds Lorenza Schmidt who served as
interim director of the office until her resignation in
September. Schmidt’s final report to University of
ficials charged Clark and other administrators with
failing to demonstrate a “real commitment” to af
_ firmative action.
However, Willard told a Eugene press conference
that the University does have a commitment.
“It is a real commitment,” Willard said, “I haven’t
gotten that involved in the University to tell the extent of
the commitment. But everyone on campus is aware of
the problem, and that is a sign that it is not just a com
mitment on paper.”
Willard was aware of Schmidt’s charges against the
University when she accepted the appointment.
“I recognized in it (Schmidt’s final report) the usual
frustrations and impatience of this kind of long range
job. You can’t expect results overnight.”
By STEVE SMITH
Of the Emerald
According to Dick Littman, University vice-provo6t
for academic affairs, Willard’s duties will include active
recruitment of women and minorities to fill positions
with faculty and classified staff.
In that position she will serve as a special assistant
to University President Robert Clark and attend regular
staff meetings.
According to Littman, Willard will work primarily
with the university’s vice-presidents rather than deans
and department heads.
“My job is to influence the vice-presidents,” she
said, “It is up to them to influence the others.”
The affirmative action office is budgeted $31,000 for
the year. Willard will be assisted by a secretary, two
work-study assistants and a research assistant. The
secretary and research assistant have been working in
the three month period the office was without a director.
The Affirmative Action office is located in Room 311,
Susan Campbell Hall.
Photo by Phil Waldstein
New Affirmative Action director
In addition to her duties as affirmative action officer
Willard will serve as a senior instructor in the Depart
ment of Personnel and Industrial Management of the
College of Business Administration.
Her 12 month appointment will carry a salary of
$17,750.
Willard began work in the aerospace industry 15
years ago as a chemical engineer. She later moved into
project management with Hughes Aircraft Co. and TRW
Systems Group of Redondo Beach, Calif.
While her primary duties with both companies in
volved chemical sterilization work with space probes
she also became involved with equal employment and
affirmative action programs.
Willard, her husband and three children moved to
Eugene in September from Los Angeles. She was
selected from a field of 60 candidates screened by a
special affirmative action task force established by the
University last winter.
Legislature opens today; student lobby set
By NAN HENDERSON
Of the Emerald
The season of change has
arrived in Oregon.
The 57th Biennial Legislative
Assembly officially will open in
Salem today. With the Democrats
in control of both houses for the
first time this century, it’s apt to
be a more extreme season than in
past legislative years.
Students in Oregon, most of
whom voted for the first time in
1972, probably had a great deal to
do with the Democrats gaining
BULLETIN
U.S. bombs
Da Nang base
SAIGON UPI- U.S. Air Force planes mistakenly bombed
the allied air base at Da Nang Monday in an incident
wounding or injuring 10 persons, military sources said.
Earlier, the U.S. command said the base was struck by
Communist rockets and there was no immediate ex
planation by it for the reports of the bombing. ‘We are in
vestigating the report,’ one spokesman said.
However, military sources said 34 bombs weighing 500
pounds each hit the airfield. One bomb, they said, made a
direct hit on a fuel tank and two other tanks caught fire.
control. And they could have a
great deal of influence within the
legislature, particularly with the
28 freshmen representatives and
one freshman senator.
Tax reform is sure to be the
biggest issue of the session—an
issue that will have some effect
on students. But other issues of
greater student concern such as
lowering the age of majority to
18, decriminalizing marijuana,
imposing more environmental
controls, revising existing land
lord-tenant laws and ratifying the
Equal Right Amendment will
also be key issues in the 1973
session.
And for the first time, the Ways
and Means Committee is ex-'
pec ted to consider the budgets for
each institution of higher
education separately.
Student leaders around Oregon
have been organizing since last
spring to present a credible and
well-informed student lobby
during the session. Last session,
few of the nearly 200 lobbyists
registered with the Oregon
Legislative Council were
students. This session student
organizations in Oregon hope to
pull masses of students to Salem
on occasion . and have some
student representatives in Salem
at all times.
The most well-organized
statewide student organization is
the Inter-Institutional Union of
Students, headed by University
senior Joan Eggleston.
In a recent interview,
Eggleston said at this time IUS is
working primarily on two student
issues: placing a student
member on the State Board of
Higher Education and repealing
the “Newbry Amendment”—a
measure adopted late in the 1971
session which states student
incidental fees can uuiy oe used
for “educational programs
authorized by the (State) Board
(of Higher Education).”
But she also said IUS will be co
ordinating legislative lobbying on
all issues of student concern.
IUS will be working with the
University Legislative Co
ordinating office. Both offices are
located on the third floor of the
EMU.
•
“One office should have people
in it constantly,” Eggleston
stated.
She urged students to visit the
offices for information or to
volunteer to lobby.
Student lobbyists will call
people, telegram, write letters
and go to Salem on the state
shuttlebus to talk with legislators
and testify in committee
hearings, Eggleston said.
She also said that IUS and other
, student lobbying groups need to
know the issues students care
about. “If students don’t do
anything else, they should at
least come up and let us know
what issues concern them,”
Eggleston said.
Libraries to be open five
additional hours this term
The University’s Library and Science Library will be
open for five additional hours a week during the winter term.
This restores all except five hours of the total eliminated
during the fall term, 1971, because of financial emergency.
The restoration of five hours to the schedule has been
made possible by more satisfactory work arrangements with
students employed under work-study, according to Donald T.
Smith, assistant librarian.
The schedule of hours, starting Friday, January 5, 1973,
for the General Library and Science Library are from 8 a.m.
to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday; from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday, and from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday.
The Reserve Book Room will be open from 8 a.m. to 12
midnight Monday through Thursday; from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and from 10 a.m. to
10 p.m. Sunday.