Editorial
IFC probe reveals
sordid coffee scam
Watch out. The Incidental Fee Committee in its in
defatigable search for fiscal waste, has ferreted out yet
another torrential abuse of funds. The discovery that the
EMU staff gets coffee and tea, not at half of the retail value,
not at a third of the retail value, but absolutely free, sent
shock waves throughout the campus community Friday.
James Randall, the IFC chairman, used his precise
mathematical abilities and investigative techniques to
evaluate the magnitude of this scandalous waste. By
multiplying the retail cost of a cup of coffee, which he
estimated to be 55 cents per cup, and estimating the number
of people who guzzle the IFC’s •'liquidated'’ funds to be 30
people, and by assuming each person drinks two cups a day,
five days a week, every week of the year, he came up with a
grand total of $8,580, or rounded off, a staggering $9,000 per
year. He graciously clarified that it was a "ballpark" figure.
"Nine thousand is just a guess,” he said.
Of course, employees probably don't drink coffee or tea
during the four breaks between terms when the EMU is clos
ed, and certainly less of the beverage is consumed during
summer term when the EMU has restricted hours and fewer
eiiipioyctjs.
And, well, of course the estimates were based on a sup
posed retail value of the coffee. Duane Partain. the EMU
food service director, said that the actual cost of providing
coffee for employees is about $630 per year. And incidental
ly, he said that even based on the retail value, the total
would be $1,920. And perhaps it should be mentioned that
the average price of a cup of coffee in the EMU is 48 cents
and that if employees had to pay for coffee they probably
wouldn’t drink as much. Randall was close to the amount of
people that take advantage of the benefit, though. A greedy
herd of 51 employees are eligible for the handout, but not all
of them drink coffee or tea. ,,
But not to detract from the IPC’s noble effort driven by
the committee’s skillful and conscientious leader. The cof
fee isn’t funded by incidental fees (the food service makes
money and contributes the profits to other EMU programs),
but as Randall pointed out, students pay for it indirectly. We
appreciate Randall’s ability to expand his authority. Just
because he is the chairman of the Incidental Fee Committee
doesn't mean he should limit his professional activities to
the administration of incidental fees.
And Randall is no slave to status quo. Most employers
provide coffee for their employees and consider improved
employee attitudes and performance a result of money well
spent. But Randall remains undaunted. He perceptively
pointed out that students don’t get free coffee, which is un
doubtedly directly related to whether or not employees
should get free coffee.
And how did EMU Director Adell McMillan respond to
Randall’s charges? Her sole defense to the IFC’s piercing at
tack was that allowing the staff to consume free coffee raises
employee morale and allows the staff to interact with the
students. Sure. The old coffee-achiever defense. And even
though the EMU is efficiently run by helpful and friendly
employees, Randall reminded us that the EMU staff is in
credibly overpaid. Some of those people actually make
enough to pay taxes on their income.
We encourage the IFC to continue its hard-hitting in
vestigations. For example, rumors have it that Panhellenic
refuses to reuse paperclips. Why, that could add up to
$5,000 per year. And, incredulous as it sounds, widely cir
culated gossip suggests that the Commentator insists on
leaving three-inch margins on all of its office memos a
disgraceful waste of paper.
Oregon Daily
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Save services
To campus activists and
others interested: It is a good
thing to show solidarity in sup
port against apartheid. That is
an archaic system which should
be abolished.
However, on the home front,
have you heard, or done
anything, about the Gramm
Redtnun Amendment? In short,
this is a federal budget balanc
ing act. While our federal
budget could use balancing,
another way needs to be found.
Half the budget, represented by
military contracts, social securi
ty, payment on the debt, etc.,
will be left alone. The remain
ing half is our social and sup
port services. The people who
can least afford to be cut from
the budget are special educa
tion. vocational rehabilitation,
maternal and child health and
social services, work-study and
other college financial aid, etc.
Do you realize at the state
level, without federal incen
tives, P.L. 94-142. the Educa
tion For All Children Act. is just
ink on paper? Do you unders
tand the implications of cuts in
these and other areas? Do you
care? If you do. and would like
to write to the conferees in the
House of Representatives and
Senate, feel free to contact me.
The time is short and letters
must be sent.
If we don't do something,
there will be nobody left to
speak for those who may not be
able to speak for themselves.
Debi Place
Student and Parent
CKinnan
1
Coffeegate
Adell has the Mr*. Folger’s
Blues.
Flashed on the front page of
the Emerald was another abuse
of 1FC funds. Hits time it’s
$9,000 worth of coffee for 35
years. Yes. fellow students, this
is a rip-off by the administrative
unit of the EMU. Will we as
students allow Coffeegate to
continue?
Adell, the students of the U of
O want no more of your Java
Jive. If you find nothing wrong
with the staff of the EMU get
ting coffee during their breaks
and lunches, then you will not
mind students getting free cof
fee during their breaks and lun
ches. Well Adell. if you mind
students getting their liquid caf
feine for free, then a fair com
promise to end abuse of power
is by having the price of yearly
coffee consumption by your
employees taken out of your
salary.
Yes, fellow students, lets
dock Adell’s salary to cover the
cost of her employees, and the
cream and sugar they use as
well. To cover a history of cof
fee abuse condoned by Adell,
lets garnish her wages until the
funds that have been skimmed
by Adell’s cronies during this
coffeegate conspiracy put the
IFC back into the black.
1 espresso horror in the
thought that the student body
will allow itself to take two
lumps and not stir up any trou
ble for the half and half bunch
headed by the EMU
administration.
Blake Louis Sliter
Political Science
Quite a gouging
This letter concerns the ‘‘cof
fee scam” (ODE, Oct. 24) cover
story.
It really warms my heart and
renews my faith in student
government to see that James
Randall is doing such a
scrupulous Job in overseeing
the uses to which our incidental
fees are put. So EMU staffers are
getting free coffee and ripping
students off to the tune of
$9,000 a year, are they? Well,
let’s see...$9,000 divided by
roughly 15,000 students comes
to (GASP) 60 cents per student,
per year. Quite a gouging, isn't
it?
Can’t you just see the people
who are don® in by the ex
cessive coats of college educa
tion. attributing their woes to
that crushing 20-cent per term
burden. Meanwhile.. the
"highly paid” EMU staffers are
chuckling over this egregious
scam as they drive off in their
Porsches
Mark Davis
Graduate Student, Biology
One-sidedness
What is it with you people? If
adults wish to pollute their
minds with fantasies of warriors
and flying- machines, that's
their„prerogative.
1 don’t like tomatoes. In fact.
I'm mildly allergic to them. My
problem with tomatoes doesn't
give me the right to run around
town tipping over produce
carts. If others wish to eat
tomatoes, it’s OK. If people
wish to watch "Rambo." it’s
OK. I'm reasonable enough to
concede that what other people
do with their time is none of my
business.
When a movie is brought to
campu:, it is often a function of
popular demand. I'm afraid the
"one person, one-vote” system
is a reality you'll have to learn
to live with.
You over-zealous, save-the
world types characteristically
exhibit a one-sidedness that af
fords you all of the choices
while the rest of us remain vic
tims of your "better” judgment.
I shudder to think of the irrita
tion and inconvenience we
might suffer if you could clearly
express yourselves. As it is.
you’re little more than an
irksome distraction.
Alex Gardner
Biology
Letters Policy
The Emerald will attempt to
print all letters containing fair
comment or. topics of interest to
the University community.
tetters to the editor must be
limited to 250 words, typed,
signed and the identification of
the writer must be verified when
the letter is turned in. The
Emerald reserves the right to edit
any letter for length or style. let
ters to the editor should be turn
ed Into the Kmerald office, Suite
300, EMU.
Wednesday, October 36, 1985