Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 1977)
Day care: A crying need or costly luxury? By BRENDA TABOR Of the Emerald Child care is no longer solely a women s issue, but women stand to lose if adequate child care is not made available That s the con tention of a panel of women who recently discussed the "Politics of Day Care," the second part of the ASUO television senes "Logos ASUO Pres Jan Oliver moder ated the half-hour show that will be aired at 12:30 p.m Sunday Appearing on the panel are Rochel Kaiz, staff member of the Child Care and Development Center (CCDC); Margi Hendrik sen, a Eugene lawyer, and Myra Willard, University Affirmative Ac tion officer The series is being produced by Eric Bellman and di rected by John Loeber Oliver opens the show relating a question students have con fronted her with—"why should I have to pay for someone else s children?" (Student incidental fees now partially fund the CCDC). Willard said the University has had to shift programs to provide services for older students be cause state laws prohibit discrimi nation on the basis of age — and one of the services they must pro vide is child care. "Child care is no longer a women's issue, but is everyone's responsibility," Katz said. Hendriksen agreed "But women are the ones that will lose out without child care. It will have a greater impact on women," she said According to state law, Willard noted, education is necessary to upgrade women, but first child care must be provided to free them. “Education — is it a privilege or a right?' Oliver asked. Some peo ple think that parents with children shouldn't receive aid, she said. "They say, we worked our way through school and waited to have children until afterward ." A child care bill has been intro duced into the Legislature that would provide payments for child care as part of qualifying student-parents financial aid package. Children up to 12 years of age would be covered if their parents were enrolled in either a two-year or four-year program. “It is my position," Oliver said, "that any person who had children and became successful had aid." Similar types of aid can come from the Gl Bill, aid for dependent chil dren or from a spouse, she said. Even with the aid provided by the new bill, student parents will still need to take out loans and work part-time, Katz said. The bill is aimed at low income parents. It would take the respon sibility for child care off students at the University, she said Oliver said some persons op pose giving child care aid to graduate students. Currently, child care aid is only available for two years of a student's educa tion. “To refuse graduate students this support would be to say that a master s degree is a luxury," Wil lard said, "while it is necessary for many entry-level positions." There is also a feeling that free ing women to get more educa tion will add to the current unemp loyment problem But other members of the panel don t believe women will leave their homes en masse if the bill passes Center’s bills get high as drug surveys return Postal workers will have a holiday today to celebrate George Washington s birthday and the coordinators of the Drug Informa tion Center s (DIC) student drug survey wish that holiday would continue through the end of the month According to DIC staffers, some University students are over-zealous in their support of the U S Postal Service Drug information surveys which were mailed to dormitory residents were intended to be returned through the campus mail system Unfortunately, some students are returning the questionnaires through the U S Postal Service, which means the DIC will have to foot the bill for the postage due According to Joe Coss of the DIC, this could mean an additional cost to the DIC of over $100 The DIC mailed nearly 4,500 drug surveys earlier this month to University students living both on and off campus Although response so far has been good, the DIC asks that students living on campus return their surveys through campus mail—which, incidentally, will be delivering mail today. Booklet lists state statistics By JEAN ANDREWS Of the Emerald The University recently re leased a 97-page booklet, "Oregon Economic Statistics 1977," put out by the Bureau of Business Research. The $5 booklet analyzes and shows trends in such diverse areas as population, education, weather and labor The consumer price index for 1970-75 is also listed, as well as banking and fi nance, agriculture and other statistics Eaton Conant, director of the Bureau of Business Research, says, "This booklet is the only one of its kind for Oregon We have a permanent mailing list of 300 to 400 and get calls for data from people who know we publish it." Conant says both public and private institutions need informa tion found in the booklet The 700-900 books printed go to gov ernment agencies, unions, banks, insurance companies and other businesses The book is also used for market research. Research assistant, often stu dents, do much of the work in volved in putting the book to gether According to Conant all of the tables printed come from other sources, such as the U S. Bureau of the Census, the Internal Re venue Service and the Oregon Employment Division. Often permanent tables must simply be updated Conant says. Basically, what we do is organize sources and put them to their best use for the publication." Conant is considenng increas ing the amount of publicity for the economic statistics booklet. "We should try more publicity on a sample basis and check the re sponse," he says. “I'm sure the demand for the booklet would in crease by at least 50 per cent if more people just knew about it." The statistics have been com piled and published yearly until now. In the future the booklets will be printed every two years. "Oregon Economic Statistics" is the principle publication of the Bureau of Business Research, but the bureau also performs other services on campus. "I get at least a call a day from someone re questing statistical information," says Conant. The bureau also as sists faculty members in distribut ing papers they have written and supplying mailing lists. ,M German AUTO SERVICE VOLKSWAGEN reliable service tor your foreign car MERCEDES • DATSUN • TOYOTA GUENTER SCHOENER Bus Ph 342-2912 2025 Franklin Blvd Eugene. Ore 97403 Home Ph 746-1207 Women who want an educa tion will be able to do so, but I don't think it will cause a revolution," Willard said. "It will free women to do what they want to do now.” Hendriksen said the bill would create more jobs at day care cen ters. Willard said the bill would also aid parents in a “Catch 22,” who are barely supporting their families but don’t have enough money to upgrade their education and provide more support for their families, and become locked in a cycle. "There will be more people on the job market, but not because they don't deserve to be in the job market,” Willard said. "The bill will enable those who need to work to better provide for their families.'' Maybe the parent who is better able to work will be able to do so,” she said. But Oliver said another myth still remains that the state will build centers "where children all dres sed in khaki uniforms will be toilet trained in lines,” if the bill passes. In reality, Katz said, parents will be able to use any state-certified day care center. Fears that child care under mines the nuclear family are grow ing. Hendriksen told the other members that rather than threaten the nuclear family, good child care serves to strengthen it. “As a soc iety, we should be ashamed that children, often under the age of six, are left alone because there is no one to care for them while their parents work." 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