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$30 reduction, a small step and bad trade
The State Board of Higher Education made a
sound decision for the future of higher education
in Oregon when they decided on their nominal
tuition reduction for next year.
The state board, in a meeting last week,
agreed on a $10 reduction in incidental fees each
term. Such a reassessment of the incidental fees
will decrease total tuition by about $30. The state
board's action has been called a break with recent
trends to increase incidental fees.
The $30 incidental fee reduction is the result
of a $1.5 million overpayment by the State System
of Higher Education to Oregon’s self-insurance
fund. The $30 amounts to a refund for students
statewide.
But before you think that the rapid escalation
of educational costs in the state have slowed —
remember that tuition increases determined by
the last legislative session are still in effect. This
means that resident tuition and fees at the
University amount to nearly $1,386. Non-resident
tuition and fees are set at $4,011.
These increases include the $49-per-term
surcharge — so there has been very little gained
from the $30 reduction. In fact, it appears to be
more of a bad trade in the long run.
The state board seems willing to change its
tuition policies for the 1983-85 biennium, and
eliminate the $49 tuition surcharge. Whether or
not the state board is willing is quite meaningless
as it would take the addition of $11.2 million in
state funds to the higher education budget. Ac
complishing that is next to impossible with Gov.
Vic Atiyeh in office. Atiyeh has not been agreeable
to supplying mgner eoucauon wnn sucn vasx —
but nonetheless essential — sums of money.
Talk of the state board dropping the
$49-per-term surcharge remains just that . talk.
A number of valuable ideas on '•rational"
tuition policies were kicked around by the state
board. They consist of setting tuition to more
accurately reflect a percentage of the cost of
instruction It is important for the board to engage
in an ongoing evaluation of tuition with an em
phasis on keeping the cost of higher education
realistic.
We are thankful to the board for the $30
repayment to students through reduced incidental
fees _ but we urge the board to continue to work
toward making the cost of education in Oregon
more affordable
letters
Misleading and unfair
In her letter "vicious propaganda” (June 2nd)
Helene Johnston levels several unfair and misleading
accusations at Ron Hunt and the Emerald which war
rant a response.
First: it is incorrect to assert that the Emerald has
failed to represent various views on abortion. Obviously
Johnston is upset because Mr. Hunt chose to cover a
viewpoint which she doesn’t share while she ignores
that several articles have appeared from a pro-abortion
perspective. Why didn’t she demand "equal time” when
the pro-life viewpoint was ignored?
Second: Johnston criticizes organizations against
abortion because they present their point of view over
the pro-abortion bias and she feels they have a re
sponsibility to present both sides objectively. Well, I
notice pro-abortion groups aren't known for objectivity
and fairness during their rallies and presentations. Also,
instead of attacking those who set up a video tape film
on abortion, which I might add included interviews with
pro-abortion activists, she should try to understand the
concerns they have.
Third: Should the Emerald censor all coverage of
events sponsored by religious organizations — as
Johnston suggests? Come on now, freedom of press is
protected by the First amendment and shouldn't be
curtailed because of some policy called "separation of
church and state” which isn’t even found in the Con
stitution
Michael Cross
Senior, political science and psychology
Mock senate moves to live
I thank the Emerald for giving the U S. Mock Senate
class press coverage But it seems we were damned
with faint praise and a number of bad jokes.
The Mock Senate, because it is student run, is
subject to critical review by the University administra
tion and by students as well. To make a mockery of the
mock Senate is to cut the students’ nose off to spite
their faces; or more simply, it erodes student credibility.
Rather, I like to recognize the hard work the vast
majority of students put forth. I include the leader,
Richard Mathisen, the steering committee staff, the
committee chairmen, the executive officers, the lob
byists, the press, the party leaders, the Senator
(Republican and Democrat), and Professor Klonoski,
who endorsed the course and watched our proceed
ings for several hours.
It is no simple task to get a course such as this off
the ground. Unlike other classes where 100 students to
gather hundreds of pieces of information It is like
having 100 courses occuring at once I know I listened
very hard to my fellow colleagues during committee
meetings and on the floor.
U.S. Mock Senate is a class for those who want to
learn how our government operates, who comprises the
factions controlling legislation, how to work with others
as a function of ideological reasoning and purpose, the
principle of parlimentary procedure, the qualities of
good public speaking, and how to do effective research
on matters of consequence
I move that U.S. Mock Senate be allowed to live on
at the University so that what we have learned may be
passed on to the students next year
Alan Herskowltz
Senior psychology
Cheat and win
Hey! Listen up Here’s a way you can cheat and get
away with it Just run for office in the ASUO!
During and following the elections of last month,
the various candidates running on the S.P.A ticket
discovered an amazing thing They could threaten and
harrass their opponents, misuse various ASUO agen
cies, and commit other flagrant violations of election
rules, and still remain in office Neat trick!
They discovered that if you cheat and get elected,
you’re home free Even if you get caught! How, you ask?
It’s simple When (or if) you get nabbed, just go before
the ASUO Constitution Committee, sit around for a
month, and then, if they find you guilty, just pay them
$36 and they’ll let you keep your office (as happened in
the ASUO elections of Oct ’79 Look it up!) But don’t
worry too much about the money, they’ll probably let
you off for nothing!
Either way, you win! And those poor dummies who
were stupid enough to follow the rules? Well, they're still
the losers.
Maybe next year the good guys will learn the lesson
of the S P A too CHEAT and WIN!!
T. Kyle Dodge
Senior, political science
Language barrier
A June 2 article which appeared in the Emerald
entitled "Language Barrier Hurdled" raised a number
of negative impications which if not challenged breed
racism, and at minimum widens the chasm between the
speakers of English with an American accent and those
speakers of English with other than an American
accent.
The most serious import of the article to the readers
is that GTFs and professors born and raised outside the
U S. have difficulty articulating their specialties to their
students Although this might be true in some cases,
difficulty of communication and articulation at the
university level is also prevalent among some GTFs and
professors who speak the language with an American
accent.
I was left wondering what purpose the article
served
Dr. M. Reza Behnam
Director, Institute for
Advanced Middle Eastern Studies
staff
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