Friends of the library's fountains, shown here in a 1938 photo,
are trying to restore the fountains that were shut down in 1942
when their brass and copper was needed for the war effort.
Fountains’ friends
revive old basins
For most people, the discolored copper plates and the
cracked concrete pools in front of the University library have
become part of the scenery — just a piece of the landscape as
they rush off to class
The old basins hold more than old rainwater and moss,
however They are the remains of a group of three fountains
that in years past sent streams of water into reflecting pools in
front of the main library
Little is known about the fountains They originally were
installed in 1937, when the front area of the library was used
for dances, with the band set up on the top of the stairs
By 1942, however, times had changed America had
entered World War II, and metal of all types was badly needed
for military use The fountains' brass and copper were
sacrificed to the war effort and the fountains flowed no more
But now, thanks to the efforts of friends of the fountains,
water again may flow in front of the library The University’s
Classified Management Advisory Council has recommended
that money from the Employees Benefit Fund be used to
renovate the fountains
The Employees Benefit Fund is made up in part by profits
obtained from vending machines in administration offices on
campus Money from the fund is used for various projects to
benefit students and employees The fountain renovation is
one such project
However, Muriel Jackson, assistant to Vice-President for
Administration and Finance Ray Hawk, says that the fountain
renovation is still in the planning stage
"We need to see how effective the renovation of the
Class of 1913 fountain is before the University moves forward
on the rest of the fountains," Jackson says
Workers from the physical plant currently are working on
the Class of 1913 fountain, located between Fenton and
Deady Halls, in order to make its reflecting pool hold water
Although no final cost for the project is available,
Jackson estimates that $1,700 to $2,100 may be used in
restoring the library fountains
Classified staff may strike
By ANN PORTAL
Of Vm Emerald
“Must we strike?”
In May, 600 University clas
sified workers wore buttons
asking that question
Today, the Oregon Public
Employees Union continues its
contract vote that will give
University administrators an
answer
The stakes are high in the
two-day election that began
Monday and concludes today. If
the proposed two-year contract
is rejected by a majority of the
1,200 University OPEU
members, they will go on strike
before the end of the summer
Results of the election will be
released July 20
"A vote to reject is considered
a vote to strike,” said Beckie
Bragg, president of the Univer
sity OPEU chapter and a
member of the collective bar
gaining team
Bragg said the contract may
be approved — by a "very nar
row margin” — but the classified
staff is geared up for a strike
"There are some people that
are real angry about the lack of
settlement,” she said
The strike would be the first
among the University’s clas
sified staff, which began collec
tive bargaining in 1973
However, the Central Nego
tiating Committee has recom
mended that union members
ratify the contract that includes
a $55 per month raise retroac
tive to July 1 and an 11 -percent
salary increase over the next 20
months for all OPEU members.
Workers in skilled trades would
receive an additional 4-percent
salary increase in July 1982.
"I don't think this is a fantastic
salary package, but I don’t think
we’re going to get more,” Bragg
told a meeting of the classified
staff Thursday.
"We feel that we squeezed
every last drop out that we
could.”
The state originally offered
OPEU members a total of $64
million for salaries and benefits
Six months of "real tense”
negotiations at the “central”
bargaining table — which
covers wages and benefits —
and the "coalition” bargaining
table — which covers higher
education working conditions —
increased the amount to the
current level of $84 million,
Bragg said
The state also agreed — after
receiving the results of a fact
finders report — to pay the full
cost of health and dental insur
ance
The University's union mem
bership has risen from 32 to 60
percent of the classified staff in
the last five months, Bragg said
In addition to "Must we strike?”
button day, the union rallied at
the capitol in April, picketed at
the University in May and
marched at the capitol again in
June.
Bragg said participation has
reached a level never seen
before at the University, which is
another reason members are
frustrated by what they see as a
poor result of their activities.
The new contract includes a
"fair share” provision that
would require all classified staff
to pay union dues, whether or
not they are union members
This clause was included
because non-union members
come under the same contract
as union members, and are
receiving the benefits of the un
ion's negotiations, Bragg said
Although there are nearly
17,000 OPEU employees in the
state, each agency holds its
own contract vote. So if Univer
sity members vote to strike, they
could be walking the picket line
alone, Bragg said
Even if 50 percent of the
agencies vote to walk — and
Bragg estimated that’s about
how many might — that wouldn’t
be enough to have a successful
strike, she said.
Yet Bragg told union
members to vote their con
science, as long as they know
the consequences.
“I was one of the people who
felt there was a pot of gold out
there. I don't feel that way
anymore," she said.
Enerqv class sparks interest
When it comes to teaching
about energy, a lot of elemen
tary and junior high school in
structors find themselves in the
dark
However, a University
workshop in energy education
for middle school teachers may
have shed some light on the
subject
The three-week workshop,
which ended Friday and was
funded by the Department of
Energy, was designed to help
Pacific Northwest teachers in
crease the energy awareness of
their students
University physicist David So
koloff co-directed the work
shop, which covered the laws of
thermodynamics, energy con
version and efficiency, and the
basics of solar energy
“Most citizens — teachers in
cluded — are under-educated
on the topic of energy," So
koloff says
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Sharon Boren, a teacher at
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