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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 7, 2001)
011137 686-1166 •Delivery charges may apply •Not valid with any other offers •PLEASE mention the student special when ordering SUMMER WORK 52-year-old company with over 400 locations nationally has part time and full time openings in customer service and sales EE $12 -15.00 base - appt. • Internships Possible • Scholarships Awarded • Conditions apply • Flexible hours • Friendly work environment • Resume experience for all majors • Flexible around summer school • No telemarketing or door to door • No experience necessary, will train • Advancement opportunities Interviewing now for positions starting after finals Eugene. Portland. Beaverton... Vancouver.. Seattle. Kitsap Co... Everett. Bellingham. Wenatchee. .(541) 484-2807 .(503) 771-9931 .(503) 297-2503 .(360) 573-1868 .(206) 364-9140 .(360)613-9713 .(425) 290-8942 .(360) 756-9689 .(509) 663-2011 Tri-Cities. Olympia. Tacoma. S. King. Co. Anchorage. Spokane. Fed. Way/Kent Lewiston. Fairbanks. (509) 943-2246 (360) 236-0946 (253) 983-0170 (253) 520-1949 (907) 562-8880 (509) 892-1723 (253) 520-1949 .(208) 748-7777 (907) 474-1711 011951 All other Regional and National Locations www.workforstudents.com Recycle this paper i EMU continued from page 1 nity for input,” he said. “And most of the programs in the EMU rely heavily on student input.” He added state laws prohibit students from supervising Univer sity staff, and the laws also do not give students the authority to hire and fire staff members. Last week, Steven Sawada , the Cultural Forum’s regional music coordinator, said students are the ones who work closest with the programs and staff leaders and therefore can best determine how any decision will affect programs. Although they cannot have the ul timate say, students should at least be consulted about such decisions, he said. “This is seriously affecting us in a very negative way,” he said about Dievendorfs termination. University members have also expressed concern about closed meetings involving discussions about recommended changes to the Clark Document, which gov erns use of the student incidental fee. Again, students argued the is sue involves their money, and they should have had input before the recommendation was sent to Uni versity President Dave Frohnmay er’s office. Student leaders and staff mem bers involved in the meetings, however, said the committee in cluded people who were experts on the issues. The small number of committee members also helped them get more done in the short time allowed, they said. Not only that, but students still have the op portunity to offer input. But students said the closed meetings and refusal to disclose the reason Dievendorf was termi nated are examples of why they mistrust the administration’s in tentions. Several staff members also pointed to deeper problems they could not discuss. Sawada had previously also said the administration’s behavior ap peared “shady.” He said adminis trators should have known that suddenly deciding not to renew Dievendorf’s contract would raise suspicions. “This leaves so much room for rumors because no one knows why,” he said. Debate over the role of administrators Multicultural Center Director Er ica Fuller said some administrators appear to have their own agendas and do not want students and staff members to get in the way of these visions. “In many cases, the management has a tendency to force its agenda over the experience of those who actually work with the students,” she said. “They have a tendency to micromanage, and I think they overvalue their importance in the overall discussion.” But Associate Vice President of Student Affairs Anne Leavitt said the EMU is not run by just a few people. Rather, everyone has dif ferent roles they are expected to fulfill, which contributes to ac complishing the building’s mis sion, she said. And this includes the expectation that supervisors such as Lobisser will evaluate and review staff members. “I don’t think it’s an issue of power. I think it’s a joint responsi bility,” she said. “I’d like to see the building pull together by being fo cused on what the common work is. These current issues are making people lose sight a little bit of all the good work that has been done.” Dievendorf previously said she had not been given a reason for her termination, but she added that she believed her supervisors want ed to change the direction of the Cultural Forum. She also men tioned disagreements with super visors who she said wanted her to change her leadership style and “tell students what to do.” Lobisser said he does not want staff members to dictate what stu dents do, but that they still have a responsibility to be leaders. “I want students to be as em powered as possible, but I also want staff to lead ... otherwise, why have them?” he said. “While I expect my staff to listen to stu dents, I also ask them to bring their kind of knowledge and expertise to the process. ... They don’t have the option of being passive bystanders. They should be adding to the plate.” Fuller said although administra tors talk about empowering stu dents, their actions sometimes contradict this philosophy, making it difficult for students to trust them. “Administrators often forget who they’re working for,” she said. “If they actually believed there was a shared system where both students and administrators have a say in the matter, I would imagine there wouldn’t be such an incredi ble gap between them.” Collaboration is key Fuller said if administrators were more involved with pro grams’ daily activities, they would have more right to make program changes. “It would be OK if they were ac tually involved in the process,” she said. “But they are too far re moved and out of touch with re gard to what students, at least the ones I work with, are doing and what’s important to them.” Leavitt said students are only here for a few years and have short-term perspectives, while ad ministrators can view programs over a long period of time. She said the combination of these dif ferent outlooks is important, but sometimes more communication is necessary. “It’s that tension between the two perspectives — immediate and long-term — that makes that building able to serve students well. ... I think it’s a creative ten sion,” she said. “But when people raise issues on trust, we need to not just communicate about what the problem is, but communicate overall.” Student Sen. Andy Elliott said administrators are committed to implementing programs in the best interest of students, and these ef forts are meant to be helpful. But he said administrators’ percep tions of what is best sometimes dif fer from those of students, who feel “alienated” when decisions are made without their consent. Elliott added that students should never be asked to “turn a blind eye to the insensitive actions of administrators,” but should in stead strive to create an environ ment that does not include such actions. He said the ASUO Consti tution, executive and senate rules, and other governance documents should be reviewed and amended to ensure “students greater clarity of voice.” Even when administra tors and students disagree, stu dents must remember they pay the incidental fee and should “deter mine the benefits,” he said. “Administrators need not be seen as the enemy.... Unfortunate ly, that’s how they’re viewed by most students today,” he said. “The greatest good for students would be achieved if students and administrators worked together for a common goal. Such a situation is possible, but it will take some hard work to achieve.”
