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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 10, 1983)
| opinion Morality inaction it is not difficult to believe that the University’s image is foremost on the minds of the University administration strug gling to get money out of the Legislature. It is difficult to believe that the University Assembly, the faculty’s vehicle to influence University policy, does not believe in upholding the University's affirmative action policy which “affirms the right of individuals to equal opportunity in education and employment without regard to ... any other extraneous consideration, not directly and substantially related to effective performance, including sexual orientation.” It is even more difficult to believe that the faculty pre sent at the Assembly last week felt they should vote as representatives of the corporate body known as the Universi ty of Oregon, as Pres. Olum suggested, and not as in dividuals and citizens. But they did. The faculty, goaded by the administration, weasled out of a moral decision and voted to “postpone indefinitely” the motion to force the military science department to abide by University affirmative action policies. By not voting on the actual motion, a simple suggestion that the military science department abide by the University policy or leave — whether it presently discriminates against students or not — the group avoided having to deal with the image problem of kicking ROTC off campus, should it not comply. Moreover, the Assembly avoided portraying the more controversial image of upholding the civil rights of homosexuals. Vice-provost Paul Holbo, who made the motion to postpone indefinitely, said “If you are worried about ROTC students — vote to postpone. If you have a decent respect for the views of ordinary citizenry — vote to postpone." Economics professor Robert Smith, in an interview with the Emerald, said the motion would send the wrong message to Oregonians and the State Legislature in particular, “The message might be ‘UO kicks ROTC off campus,’ ” Obviously, the assembly thought either forcing the ROTC to follow University policy or supporting affirmative ac tion for homosexuals too controversial an action to take, too liberal an image to portray to a conservative state. Pres. Paul Olum in his statement on the motion conclud ed, “I believe that it is important for a University to be com mitted to basic principles of moral behavior in its own func tioning and in the way it treats its students and faculty and others.. However, Olum stopped short when the commitment had to be translated into corporate action: ”... all of us as in dividuals, and as citizens, should obviously do all we can to improve our society in these ways, but the University, as a corporate body, should not.” Olum voiced concern that other outside businesses and associations that the University deals with would have then to comply with University affirmative action policy. To that, the Emerald can only say, “Yes." If groups are going to teach in University departments, accept University facilities and money and consider themselves part of the University, then they should be obligated to abide by Univer sity policy. The bottom line on last Wednesday’s vote was, let the courts decide what policy the ROTC should abide by and let that stand at the University. The corporation known as the University of Oregon stops short of affirmative action when it may hurt our image, when it may conjure up images of the states radical college of the 60s, when it may lose us 32 scholarships and some votes for funding in the Legislature. Again, it is not incomprehensible that the administration presently does not want to take any controversial stands. This did not have to be the stand of the faculty. They were free to vote as individuals and citizens. Their overconcern with the University's image around the state isn’t doing much for their Image on campus. m TOWS N0W>_ *>,*>, m. IgS, kk not , mm wM, i -v >m wou-jam. <JM Wtf. CbaD 'nsT7t' like , wim fro® EKS eoras ™t‘t 't*<ia? I * STOP i 'n«R wr • / THE BISHOPS TWT A LETTER letters Public Affairs Your May 5 editorial regar ding faculty salaries referred to a study “Fiscal Stress in Higher Education: Faculty Salaries at the University of Oregon.” You indicated that the report was completed by two undergraduates of the “soon-to-be-phased out department of CSPA.” As a matter of information, the majority of the research was completed as graduate course work within the Depart ment of Planning, Public Policy and Management, in the School of Architecture and Allied Arts. The Public Affairs section of CSPA is now located here. This is a very useful and well done piece of work of the type which we encourage among students in the Department. As you stated in a recent editorial, student benefit from an interest and involvement In the affairs of the University, as well as contribute to maintain ing its quality. The Department intends to continue fostering such activity among our students. Dean Runyan hand, Hanning, Public Policy and Management Derided I’m responding to Wednes day's letter from David Sokoloff, the physics pro fessor, who sarcastically derided a physical plant worker about his work on the new wheelchair-bicycle ramp. David, perhaps if you spent less time looking out your win dow and watching other peo ple work you would think before you judge them. Either you know nothing about brickwork or you have less pride in the appearance of our campus than that bricklayer, because he is do ing a beautiful, craftsmanlike job that will last for many years. His work isn't nearly as embarrassing as your cute, elitist letter is. Why don't you help him some afternoon? You might learn something. Bari Baenzigar language arts Better lead With all due respect to my colleague, Dr. Fay Haisley, and to the May 5 Emerald front-page story by Sandy Johnstone, an obvious typo appeared in the lead. Obvious ly, in the interest of accuracy: .. S*ate Education ‘Top of the Heap' " should have read, “...State Education ‘Top of the Cheap.’ ” Henry Dlzney professor, educational psychology Alternative After reading the Opinion ar ticle in the May 5 Emerald on a need to increase professor's salaries to keep many from leaving, I had an urge to pro vide alternative viewpoints. First, the writer equates money with quality of knowledge and life. We must ask ourselvs why the quality potential professors are at tracted to the University. Is it for money alone? Does their quality improve as their salaries increase? Maybe the opportunities in our academic facilities attract them. Maybe Eugene costs less to live in so salaries can be lower than other Universities. Second, the article implies that the turnover of quality professors is one-sided; no one replaces them. I don’t believe that. I believe the University replaces the developed professors who depart with professors who have a potential to develop and to maintain our high quali ty. After developing, some stay and some go. A young, developing mind can be just as educational as an older, developed mind. Finally, I don’t know if pro fessors are struggling to live with their current salary. I have’t heard any complain. Maybe it's because their pro fession, unlike so many others, offers continual development and oppor tunities for achievement. If you increase their salary, you tempt their material self, not necessarily their academic self. A set amount of money used to improve their oppor tunities for academic develop ment would do more for their satisfaction than if it was divided among all the pro fessors. We are tested here to repeat, not create. Our think ing shows it. Peter Labadie Oregon daily m . emerald Tha Oregon Daily Emerald is published Monday through Friday except during ax am wee* and vat. «1 tons by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co . at the University of Oregon. Eugene. 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