Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (April 13, 1994)
Bowen questions funding of EMU officials’ conference By Edward Klopfenstefn 0<V>*> D*>y firw#r( Every year. EMU Director Charles Miller mid other selected EMU offic ink travel to some part of the country for the Assoc lation of College Unions Interna tional conference. This year, the conforem e is in Hawaii and the ASUO president is questioning why student fees should help support travel to such a lush vacation spot "It's terribly ironic and just too perfoc t that they are going hi Howmi on some conferenc e," ASUO President Eric Bowen said, adding that many student groups can't afford Hawaii-based conferences Imh ause of the cost Miller and at least one other oflli ial are bringing their families on the trip, extend ing their stay by up to a week A mix of KMU ami incidental Fee funds are paying for each official to attend the conference, with the officials paying for the expense of their families out of pocket Other offii ials attending the conference include Frank Oeltner, assix late diris tor of the KMU; Susan Kacette, assistant director and business manager for the QjU{ Debby Martin, program assistant lor the (Cultural Forum; and Sue Peder sen. (linn tor for the Ke< real ion Center (ieltner is officially taking vacation time in Hawaii with his family after the conference, according to the EMU accounting offic » Mary l.uii Mansfield. administrative s>i retarv for Miller said she didn't know if Miller was taking vacation time for his stay in Hawaii after the end of the c onfer ence, but added tfiat it's customary for Miller to inform her of his vacation time after he takes his vacation. Miller kept news of the conference quiet, said Margaret Chatfield. KMU Board chairwoman Although the Hawaii lo< ation surprised many on the board, she said Miller generally doesn't go before the board to discuss conferences he's attending 'If it was in a hell hole, rio one would have thought about it." Chatfield said "But since it's in Hawaii, it s a stink " She found little problem with the con ference sin< e th«* F.MU budge! allocates funds for staff development The price tag for the four day confer ence is just under $5,000. according to information front Miller's office Round-trip plane fare was about $410 per person No figures were available on most of the hotel costs, hut according to a memo to Miller Miller was splitting the cost of a condominium with another student union director from a different school. The cost of the condominium is about $40 a dav and is being charged to the KMU for the dates of the conference, according to the memo HARASSMENT Continued from Page 1 begun, ami Professor George kolas' "Original Mark and Image Making" (.lass ventured to tin* Willamette Kiser, where most of the ( lass sessions wore to take place kokis, a professor of i (•ramie s, laid out the ground rules for a creative exercise after the student intrndui lion at the lieginmug of class lie said we were to journos to the past, to the begin ning of human evolution and wo were to get in touch with our primal feeling from behaving like opes." Gray said I he purpose of the exercise, she said, was to dis cover the motives of their primitive am estors when they first (routed art ('•ray said kok is told members of the class that they i ould act communally or go off on their own to defend their territory The exorcise took place on the Aut/on Stadium side of the Willamette River near a stream, a ( luster of thin, hire li like trees and a cluster of old growth trees Cray, a returning student, was skeptu al of the exer case "He wanted ns to climb trees I didn't like it, espe cially when the students were doing it limbs were snapping." (inn said. (Irav ' hose to go off on her own and keep to herself hv the honk of a little stream The afternoon sun < ante out. then went away It started to rain (•ray then moved even farther from the group, to the shelter of a grove of old growth Also seeking shelter from thr rain, the other students moved closer to where (■rav wa*. Leaning against the tree, she dot ided to take the exert ise seriously and fell into a meditative state f rom a distance that Crav desi rihes ns :t() feet, she Watched tlu> others acting out the si enorio "They were fun to watt h." she said All id a sudden, a man jumped out of a nearby bush She did not heat him creep up on her. "In another split second hi' was on me. in my fat e." (.rav said i he man, who yyas acting the part ol a "lion" in kokis creative exert ise. pounced on Gray, pushing her against the tree Chest to t best and fact* to face with Gray, the "lion" tightly gripped her shoulders and growled The man. who Kokis later icit*ntifti>d only a-- "Kric." wore a lion costume Gray. who had never seen him before, said. "It doesn’t look like Dorothy's lion.” Cray de« rihed the costume as a dirty yellow-hooded sweatshirt with strings of yellow' yarn hanging from the hood The word "LION" was painted across the chest What tlie "lion" and Kokis did not know is that Gray had suffered abuse in the past and had not healed com pletely She viewed the lion's playfully intended attack as an attempted sexual assault — an attempted rape. When Gray pushed the man off her and screamed, "fur k you' Krux k it off'" he asked her if sfie wasn’t in the "Origins of Mark and image Making" class Then he < ontinued to play-at t as a lion and chase the other stu dents up trees. Gray said Gray said that when Kokis returned to the group tow aril the end ill the class period, he hopped around excitedly, asking the question, "Any wounds' Any wounds'" So began the misunderstanding that eventually led to Gray s termination of her n< ademu studies at the Uni versity and a triple lawsuit "He looked so small, like a little troll." (.ray said of the man w ho until this point was her mentor My respect for him had diminished so greatly Infuriated, she yelled a! Kokis, who was her ai ademu adviser. "Yeah. I'm really angry " Gray screamed at the student who played the lion. "You had no right to touch me " Gray si reamed again at Kokis, "You never said there was going to la- a lion Gray said Kokis had deliberate ly planned the oxen is»* that w ay But (.ray did not act opt that explanation Gray said. "1 told hint, there has got to he boundaries You ( an t have a strange man attacking women We are afraid all the time, in our bathtubs, in the grocery store parking lot s< hool is supposed tube a safe haven from all that crap " Kokis declined comment for the story at the ady h e of l Iniversitv offu ials, yxho also de« lined to comment on specific s of Devon (.ray s case Both Kokis and the offi cials said that < onfidentiality issues prolix ting Gray do not permit them to speak to reporters about specifii s I hi' lion Mos a student in the class, hut was not pre sent (or the student introduction before Kokis led the group to tlie river It was not the first day of i lass, but Gray had missed the first day and had never met him or seen him The course guide for the fine arts department includes this description of the class under the heading "Instructor's comments" "This class takes place out doors — by the Willamette River— very active, physical — much play-ac ting Gray M'as unaware that play-acting included events that she viewed as sexual assault. She said her right — under a University affirmative action law requiring a safe learning environment — had been violated, and that the University had in essence said that educators can have m i ess to her body. After she had yelled .it Kokis and the student playing the lion, one of the other students, (irav said, asked if she would have had the same reaction if the lion had been a woman Gray said she told the student that she would have not had the same reaction had the lion been a female, that being attacked by another woman w as not the same i attar k by a male. The class i ontinued to discuss the incident, and Gray claimed she felt her mind floating away in a process she desi rilied as disussot union, a pro« ess used hy abuse sur vivors in order to handle trauma. She had used it before. "It .ill got into that monotone intellectual stuff." she said of the class' disc ussion of her attack Gray did not view the incident in intellectual terms She later began tiysee everything connected to that day as ,i serpent with a lion's head The serpent seemed to grow and grow with each new frustration that came along with prtx easing her grievam e with the University. I he skv was darkening as the class headed Ink k across the river toward the i eramit s studio, which is lo< ated near the art building (the Millrace Studio). Gray said none of the others, Kokis included, walked near her "I wanted to tie a professor, too, someday, and if 1 had ever hurt a student in that way, I would have heen bond ing over backward and saving. I'm so som" Gray said. I! he had reai ted that way, I probably would have healed a lot faster." Uftiversi ty of Oregon Center for Asian and Pacific Studies presents 1994 Asia-Pacific Film Tour Best of the HaioaVi International Film Festival April 14-16, 1994 All showings free and open to the public. Bt st New Films from Asia and thf Pacific (all feature films to lx- .shown .it the Bijou Theatre, 4^2 E, 13th) i iiuimuv, zipni n, i:3U pm Boatman of the Rivet Padrtu India, 1092 Friday, April 15,1:50 pm Sopyonje Korea, 1W Saturday, April 1:30 pm Southern WHnJs Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand. 1W2 Panel Discussants: liffin 1 Arboleda, CAPS Nancy Lutz, Anthropology Alan Wolfe, Hast Asian Languages it Literatures Mavthakul Kiatgrajai, Kasetsart University Indigenous Culture in Film and Video: Spotlight on Hawai'i (both videos to be shown at 1(X) Willamette i iali. UO campus) Saturday, April 16, 7 pm Act o) War USA. 1093 Saturday, April lb, 8 pm Kahv olawe Aloha Aina USA, 1W2 Special Guests: Puhipau & Joan Lander, directors Co-sponsored by the Eugene-Springfidd Asian Council, Oregon Council tor the- Humanities, Oregon Film and Video Office, and the University ot Oregon Foundation. Cultural Forum, Humanities Center, Southeast Asian Studies, Center for the Study of Women in Soootv, Women's Studies Program, and Office of International Attairs For more information, contact the Center for Asian and Pacific Studies, 110 Geriinger Hall at (503)546-1521. ~^tec>3c 1~^ecv^c[c ** Tlvis 'T °PC1 BECOME A STUDENT MARKETING MANAGER Outgoing, goal-onented student needed for marketing position Learn management skills and marketing strate gies while implementing on campus promotions ★ Excellent pay ★ Flexible hours ★ All work on campus ★ For the 1994-95 school year ★ Expense paid training conference ON-CAMPUS INTERVIEW Tiesday, April 19,1994 Sign up n the Career Planrwig & Placement Services Apn) 4-18
