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Thursday
Febuary 1,2001
Volume 102, Issue 85
Weather
today
RAIN LIKELY
high 50, low 40
Since 1900
U N IVERSITY OF OREGON
E U G EJi
R E G 0 N
Plagiarism: A game of g
Number of faculty reports of
Academic Dishonesty from the Office
of Student judicial Affairs
Though the numbers look tike they’ve dropped this
year, they actually have not. There have already been 33
i. reports since fall term 2000 of cheating. If this pattern
continues, this is likely to be the highest year for cases
of cheating so far.
Katie Miller Emerald
95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00 00-present
Cheaters can get virtually caught
Plagiarism is
easier
thanks to
the
popularity
of the
Internet,
but now the
Web also
helps catch
the culprits
By Brooke Ross
Oregon Daily Emerald
Thanks to computer technology, University
professors now have a weapon to combat Inter
net plagiarism, and cheaters are more likely to be
caught.
Tracking-and-analysis Web sites allow profes
sors to enter whole papers or key phrases of a
student’s essay, said Melissa Delarosa, vice pres
ident of business affairs for iparadigms Inc., the
company that founded the Web site www.tur
nitin.com. She said based on the professor’s
search, the sites return all matching information
and essays, giving the professor proof of
whether or not the student has plagiarized.
“Cheating has always existed in different for
mats, but if students know they’re being moni
tored, they’ll be likely to write their own work,”
she said.
Chris Loschiavo, director of Student Judicial
Affairs, said tracking Web sites may be the way
to decrease incidents of plagiarism, a University
problem he said is not improving.
“If you ask students, they’ll say a lot of them
cheat,” he said.
Loschiavo said a survey conducted in 1993
showed 91 percent of University students have
cheated at least once in their college careers. He
said although the survey is a few years old, aca
demic dishonesty is still a problem — he said he
dealt with 30 cases during fall term alone.
Delarosa said her company’s Web site was cre
ated to help stop the growing problem of Internet
plagiarism. There are literally hundreds of paper
mills, which are Web sites where students can
purchase essays.
She said the site offers a submission report
Turn to Plagiarism, page 5A
Black history
digs up area’s
racial ghosts
■The community celebrates
Black History Month with a series
of events at the Eugene Public
Library and on campus
By Lindsay Buchele
Oregon Daily Emerald
Today marks the 25th year America
has recognized February as “Black His
tory Month,” yet those who embrace
black culture and history, such as Port
land State University professor Darrell
Millner, say they are still struggling to
eliminate the bias and prejudice socie
ty has concerning blacks’ role in histo
ry.
“All people learn about history,
whether they study it or get it from pop
culture,” Millner said. “But almost all
people learn a corrupted and inaccurate
version of the role African-Americans
play in history'.”
Millner and others will be taking part
in “A Celebration of African-American
History” at the Eugene Public Library.
Business librarian Scott Herron said
that the programs, which will be held at
the library from Feb. 4 to Feb. 12, will
include a musical workshop by blues
musician Deb Cleveland, a speech by
Millner on blacks’ role in Oregon histo
ry, a Martin Luther King Jr. exhibit and
general displays profiling black history.
The University’s Black Student
Union will also be hosting events in
February, including the Harlem Nights
Black Diamond Affair Feb. 16 and a
Black Achievement Night Feb. 20, both
of which are open to students. There
will also possibly be a photo display,
BSU resource coordinator Kim
Hutchinson said.
Events, such as those put on by the
Turn to Black History, page 5A
a aii
people
learn about
history;
whether
they study it
or get it
from pop
culture.
Darrell
Millner
professor
Portland State
University
_ft
Resigned ASUO staffer calls Breslow’s demands extreme
Student parent
Kathleen
Workman
claims last
year’s
Executive
allowed her
more job
flexibility
By Lisa Toth
Oregon Daily Emerald
When Kathleen Workman, one
of the primary coordinators for the
ASUO Child Care Subsidy, re
signed from her position Jan. 23,
conflicts with the work schedule
set by ASUO President Jay Bres
low had reached a breaking point.
Workman earned wide respect
during the past two years as the
ASUO non-traditional-student ad
vocate. Workman said she left her
position because of the demands
Breslow placed on her, which con
flicted with her responsibilities as
a student and a single mom. Bres
low’s mandatory staff meetings on
Monday nights and weekend staff
retreats didn’t allow Workman to
cook dinner or spend time with
Whitney, her 6-year-old daughter.
But Breslow said he requires his
staff to attend only one weekly
meeting and meet their job de
scription requirements. He de
scribed the office as a low-stress
environment.
“My leadership style is that I
hire wonderful people and let
them do their jobs,” Breslow said.
Workman’s resignation oc
curred only hours before Child
Care Subsidy asked for a 1.5 per
cent increase in its budget at the
Programs Finance Committee
meeting. Child Care Subsidy,
which pays a percentage of child
care expenses for students who
qualify, left the meeting with a 1.5
percent decrease instead.
Breslow said Workman’s resig
nation was unfair not only be
cause she resigned right before the
meeting, but because she didn t
arrange any other student parents
to come to the meeting in her
place.
While he said there weren’t
problems in his working relation
ship with Workman, Breslow
mentioned she was having a rocky
semester. Breslow said he didn’t
want his staff to get the sense that
Workman didn’t have to be in the
office.
“Everybody has to be in the of
fice doing productive things,”
Breslow said.
Last year, Workman had the
same position in the ASUO Exec
utive office run by Wylie Chen
and Mitra Anoushiravani. Work
man said they understood the re
sponsibilities of being a parent.
“I would be as involved as I
could, 1 would help out as much
as I could,” Workman said. “But
they never once questioned it if I
said I needed to be at home with
Whitney.”
Workman said her decisions
this year were continually judged
by Breslow, despite her battling
personal problems such as filing
for a divorce, and child custody is
sues. Workman said Breslow re
quired her to put in 15 office hours
a week, but Chen and Anoushira
vani were much more flexible by
allowing Workman to complete 95
percent of her work from home.
According to Breslow, it has
been difficult to keep staff mem
bers in the office this year, and
Workman’s resignation was unfor
tunate.
Turn to Workman, page4A
(( My lead
ership style
is that I hire
wonderful
people and
let them do
their jobs.
Jay
Breslow
president
asuo yy