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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (March 5, 1982)
Friday, March 5, 1982 Eugene, Oregon Oregon daily Volume 83 Number 115 emerald Extension service reaps vocal support Photo by Mark Pynes Melissa Rose, a sophomore at Junction City High School, spoke in support of the county's agricultural extension program. r By Marian Green Ot II># Emerald Cowboy hats and boots were appropriate attire at the Lane County Budget Committee meeting Thursday night, where more than 300 county residents — mostly ranchers, farmers and 4-H participants — jammed Har ris Hall protesting the proposed elimination of the county's ex tension program from the 1982-83 budget The meeting continued a Monday night county budget committee hearing on the 1982-83 proposed $107 million budget The Lane County Extension Service which provides many agriculture-related services, in cluding grass seed certification, is one of three programs target ed for elimination in the 1983-84 year s $107 million budget. The Oregon Coastal Zone Man agement Association and U S Fish and Wildlife Service for predator control are the other two Under the budget proposal, the county also plans to ask voters to increase its $4 17 mil lion tax base by $10 million on May 18 The service, run by Oregon State University, gets 15 per cent — approximately $150,000 — from the county for operating and administrative expenses and receives the balance of about $850,000 from the state and federal -governments, said Mike Stults, an agent for the extension’s agriculture pro gram More than 50 people signed up to give testimony in support of the extension service — especially its 4-H program "It's a super discount for the county." said Susan Chatwood, a 4-H leader with four children participating in the program "It helps to keep children educat ed ' They're keeping their heads and their hands busy, and when they're busy, you don't have to put as much money in the juvenile delinquency program.'' Chatwood said more than 8,000 Lane County children are 4-H participants. Melissa Rose, a sophomore at Junction City High School, said she's gained responsibility and self-assurance skills from her four years in the 4-H program She said many 4-H members are student body leaders and class presidents. Scott Bender, a Junction City County Commissioner Otto t’Hooft, who also sits on the budget committee, said the decision of whether to continue to fund the program is a difficult one “If we actually do face a $10 milion deficit, what would you do if the decision comes down to, say, law enforcement or ex tension service9” He added, however, "you are high on the priority list of the committee " Commission Chairman Ha rold Rutherford said the com mittee probably would recom mend restoring the program. “This is the type of service the county should be providing, where we have the opportunity to multiply each dollar," Ruth erford said farmer, said his 10 years in 4-H started him off on his farming and ranching career. "I'm very proud to be a farmer,” said Bender, attired in a plaid shirt, Levi’s, cowboy boots and a 'Northwest Ag Show" hat. ”l started with a rabbit and now my net worth is about $20,000 “This is what they (Lane County) get out of it. They get me with $20,000, and I’m being taxed " Defense department funds finance research By Debbie Howlett Of the Emerald Some research administra tors at the University are speaking out in detense of the burgeoning defense budget Pres Ronald Reagan is asking of Congress The big-bucks defense bud get is a boon to the financial situation of University re search. say at least four ad ministrators, because it allows the military to increase its ex penditures everywhere in cluding research grants An article in a University re search newsletter reads. Aid for defense research and development climbed 22 per cent in the last two years, non-defense research funds dropped 16 percent Announcements like this have caused University facul ty, hungry for research money, to sit up and take notice of the growing availability of funds through defense grants We re trying to keep as much of the Federal govern ment's money coming in as we can,' says Charlene Curry, the University's research informa tion officer “It's not that I'm so en amored with the defense department,'' says Curry, "it's just that that's where the mon ey is.” Out of a $2 1 million physics research budget, an estimated 20 percent comes from the Graphic by Max DeRungs Department of Defense, says Bernd Crasemann, head of the physics department Not only do the research funds seem to be less con stricted, the defense depart ment's guidelines on applica ble research projects also have loosened Curry says that the Mansfield Amendment'' was a major foothold to easing those restrictions The Mansfield Amendment allows "a potential applicabili ty'' for the research project, rather than immediate results Despite the looser federal guidelines, the University has tightened its stance on what they will allow to be funded, says Aaron Novick, head of the University biology department "The faculty passed legisla tion in the late sixties and the early seventies not to allow classified research at the University," Novick says "It poisons the nature of the University — you can't have a University and have secret re search," Novick says. Novick also says that the “majority" of the faculty are opposed to "building bombs" at the University "There's no sympathy on this faculty for secret research — maybe there are one or two that feel it's okay but not many more " The prohibition of classified research, both for the govern ment and the private sector, is not unique to this university. Rod Frakes.the associate dean of research at Oregon State University, says that he isn’t sure if there is an actual rule, but standard policy prohibits classified research for defense grants However, Frakes says that a few people are screened for classifi cation of some private re search If not bombs, then what kind of Department of Defense funded research goes on at the University? Curry says that the grants supplied to the University by the defense department are proposals that “build on something that’s already there ” One example of research “that's already there" is a project by research associate Dale Grace. “Dale raises grasshop pers," says Curry “I’m not sure specifically what he does, but I believe that he studies their movements for use in tanks. They can walk up the sides of walls and the Army would love to have a tank that could do that." Crasemann says that he believes some people may be opposed to grants supplied by the defense department because they can't justify it morally. "I respect people's views,” he says,"but obviously you reduce your chances for funding.” "I have been here since ’53," says Crasemann, adding that he's had a grant from one source or another every year since then Outside support comes from many areas, $30 6 billion worth across the nation, says Crasemann. Of that amount, 44 percent is from the defense department. At the national basic re search level, which is the type of work done at the University, the defense department per centage drops sharply Only 10 percent of the $4 6 billion spent comes from the defense department The University’s share of that 10 percent amounts to about $175,000. In 1979-80, defense grants at the University totaled almost $188,000, in 1980-81, the pe riod in which Pres Ronald Reagan stepped into office, that figure dipped to about $176,000
