Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1998)
EMU: Manager says theft, vandalism are problems ■ Continued from Page 1 said he worries about the safety of students and staff who remain in the building after hours. Although the EMU officially closes at midnight, student groups such as KWVA campus radio and the Oregon Daily Emer ald continue working in the building after hours every night. Other groups frequently request permission to work on special projects in their offices after mid night. Miller said the ability for stu dents to use the building after hours is one of the things that (’Except small 'S cones and tinies. Expires 6/15/98) 002637 Campus w SUBSHOP Mon.-Fri. lOam-lOpm Sat. llam-9pm Sun. 12pm-9pm 1225 Alder 345-2434 Not valid with any other discounts or coupons. One coupon per customer. HOMEY HILL FARMS» makes the EMU unique. “It’s rare to have a student union that al lows access to students after hours,” he said. “It’s also rare to have student offices open at the desire of the occupants.” However, while he considers the EMU’s accessibility an asset, Miller is concerned about the safety risks. Late at night when the building is mostly empty, staff and students who stay late are at risk from people who may be hiding in the building, such as the couple arrested by OPS. Because the EMU is open to the public all day, anyone can enter the building. Students of all ages as well as professors and staff members use the building, so it is impossible to distinguish between people who need to be there and people who are there to sleep or hide out. “This is a large public build ing, and many people feel very comfortable being here,” Miller said. “We’re an ideal target. It’s easy to look normal in this build ing.” Winitzky agreed. “It’s not a tough building to get into. There are so many places for people to hide, where they can duck in and hang out and wait for the build ing to close.” Another part of the safety prob lem is that so many keys to the building are given out that it is difficult to keep track of them all. Because there is no established method of ensuring the return of these keys, some of them, which date as far back as the 1970s, have been declared lost and may still access some doors. There is no way to know who may now be in possession of these keys. In addition, the building’s 78 exterior doors are frequently left propped open with newspaper or tape over the locks, and some times they are merely overlooked when the building is being closed for the evening. For in stance, on May 1, the loading dock door and a kitchen door in the Skylight were found un locked by custodians, Miller said. “If someone leaves the build ing and doesn't close a door properly, everyone in the build ing is at risk,” he added. Kraiman, who is often in the building during late hours, said he continually finds people who shouldn't be there who say they have gotten in through an un locked or propped-open door. Although he has never felt per sonally threatened by those peo ple, he is concerned about the students on his staff who work late hours. “1 don’t like the idea of them being subjected to that,” he said. OPS has been quick to respond to problems in the EMU, Winitzky emphasized. When they receive a call, “their turn around time is minutes.” Howev er, because the graveyard crew responds to calls all over cam pus, they may not always be im mediately available. Students as well as staff mem bers have noticed safety prob lems in the EMU. “Students have complained that they’re scared, and they wouldn’t use places [in the EMU] because they felt [those places] had become a habitat for non-stu dents,” Miller said. Some of the areas mentioned were the Inter national Lounge, the Taylor Lounge, the second-floor lobby and the Skylight. Former ASUO President Bill Miner said he, too, is concerned with the safety of students who stay late in the EMU. “As a man, I feel pretty safe. But I have a lot of female staff members, especially people who stay after dark, and I don’t feel safe for them,” he said. “I know that in the past we’ve had some incidences of female students be ing harassed in the EMU at night.” Miner added that he is not aware of any harassment tak ing place this school year. At KWVA, DJs who work at night are instructed to take cer tain safety measures, said hip hop director Eugene Chism. “We always keep the door locked,” he explained. “We’re not supposed to let anyone in, and we can’t prop the door open.” Chism said while he has never felt physically unsafe, he has re ceived threatening phone calls and has seen people “snooping around" the EMU. Thus far, no one has ever been attacked and physically injured in the EMU that Miller is aware of, he said. However, theft has been a security problem in the building. Miller estimates that within the past 12 months, a big screen television was stolen from the recreation center, four or five computers were taken from stu dent offices and several back packs and video cameras have disappeared from various areas. Winitzky also mentioned that he has seen an increasing amount of graffiti and property deface ment, especially in bathrooms and stairwells. “Six or seven years ago, I spent several hundred dollars a year on graffiti removal and property damage," he said. “Last year I spent about $6,000.” The money comes directly out of the EMU fa cilities budget, he added. Although the EMU board is looking at ways to increase the building’s security, such as a new key system, these measures are expensive and could be a long way off, Miller said. In the mean time, students can help reduce theft and safety problems in the EMU by merely being aware of their surroundings. Students who stay late shouH remain in their office as much as possible, should never walk around the building alone and should always keep their office door locked, he said. And ir the see anything out of the ordinary, they shouldn’t hesitate to report it. “Good awareness has averteu potential problems in the oast Winitzky said. “We need ail the eyes and ee ■ ve ca , get ’ anthropplogv art hi sv history cliff notes computers design drama neat ion film. hobbk. inv< -cl men Gash {or tes tboote.P^S?' sWty a'^s' magazines We buy books 1 at fair prices ever^ ’ a{H^eyear at both locals. ■ • Smith tamlly^ce 1974 alternate6 sm“ .4 ca mpte ‘^ Texi & General Books I One block from campus 768 E. J 3th 5vt 345-1651 Smith Family B o oks t o r c* General Book*. i across -nm: the I'ost Office 525 Willamette St. 343-4-1" Plan: Implement may take several years ■ Continued from Page 1 our faculty and staff, but also on resources,” according to the pro posal. Georgeanne Cooper, a member of one solution teams, said the project was and will continue to be beneficial for many. “The whole process was fun,” she said. “It enabled parts of the University and community to come together for solutions. This needs to continue through imple mentation and beyond.” The goals created in the Process for Change project are not necessarily new. The Univer sity’s mission statement says the “University is a community of scholars dedicated to the highest standards of academic inquiry, learning and service.” It also describes the Universi ty’s commitment to undergradu ate education, with the “goal of helping the individual learn to question critically, think logical ly, communicate clearly, act cre atively and live ethically, anu the University’s commitment to graduate education to "develop creators and innovators who will generate new knowledge an,t shape experience for the benefit of the community.” The Process for Change project accompanies the Governors Task Force on Higher Education and the Economy, which has “recommended significant changes in both the governance and the finance of higher educa tion to make it better able to re spond to the needs of studen's and the state.” For more information on Process for Change, visit the Uni versity’s Web site at www.uore gon.edu. Celebrating 99 years of publishing & 26 years as an independent newspaver TT^ Oregon Daily 1 1 Emerald j The Oregon Daily Emerald is published daily Monday through Friday during the school year and Tuesday ano Thursday during the summer by the Oregon Daily Emerald . Publishing Co. me at the University of Oregon, Eugene : Oregon A member of the Associated Press, the Emerald op erates independently of the University with offices in Suite 300 of the Erb Memorial Union. The Emerald is private prop erty. The unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable bylaw _NEWSROOM — S46-SS11_ Editor in chief: Sarah Kickler Managing Editor: Nicole Krueger Community: Michael Burnham, editor Tncia Duryee, Jesse Sowa Entertainment: Evan Denbaum. editor. Shannon Sneed Higher Education: Teh Meeuwsen, editor. Ben Romano, Amalie Young Perspective: Michael Schmierbach, editor. Chris Hutchinson, illustrator. Jonas Allen, Kameron Cole. Hannah Dillon, Jeff Shaw, columnists Student Activities: Kristine Rudinskas, editc Michael Hines, Doug Irving Chris Kenning Sports: Alex Pond editor, joel Hood Rob Moseley Tim Pyle Copy Oesk: Holly Sanders, copy chief. Bnan Deka, Kelly Schulze, Snannon.Sneed News Art: Matt Garton editor. Pamela Siriann Cara Strazzo Photography: Amanda Cowan, Rose Fung, Laura Goss, Nick Medley, Kristen Sullivan On-line: Jake Ortman, editor Nicholas Stiffler, webmaster Freelance: Cart Yeh, editor _ADVERTISING — 34^71? Becky Merchant, director. Yuiin Chi, Leigh-Ann Cyboron, Bnan Diamond, Chris Erickson, Lindsay Knaak, Andy Lakefish, Justice Rhodes, Erick Schiess, Rose Soil, Chris Suydam, Emily Wallace. CLASSIFIEDS — 346-4343 Anne Nielsen, manager. Heather Moye Angela McGrath, Gillian Bentley _BUSINESS — WLSS.___ General Manager Judy Riedl Business: Kathy Cartoone, business sttnervisor Connolly, receptionist. Distribution: John Long, Joy Sears, Dave Jvall _PRODUCTION — _ Michele Ross, manager. Tara Sloan, coordinator. Shawna Abele, Joselyn BicKford, Laura Daniel, Susan Head, Leah Lekas, Laura Lucas, Leanne Nelms, Bmndt Nelson, Broc Nelson, Katie Nesse, Sylvia Tewes
