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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 26, 2005)
Mayor Kitty Piercy holds city session | 8 Oregon Daily Emerald An independent newspaper www. da ilyemerald. com Since 1900 \ Volume 106, Issue 871 Wednesday, January 26, 2005 UO Senate conducts emergency meeting BY PARKER HOWELL SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Undeterred by a low turnout, the Student Sen ate sought students’ opinions at an emergency meeting Tuesday evening about whether inciden tal fee money should help bankroll extended li brary hours next year. Only three students who aren’t senators at tended the forum. Senators have hesitated to authorize money to fund half the cost of 24/7 service at the Knight Li brary during Dead Week and Finals Week each term next year, concerned that using student money might be a “slippery slope” toward stu dents funding more services. Discussion at Tuesday’s forum continued this theme, with students saying the Senate should dip into the surplus as a last resort. The library has offered students a place to cram around the clock since spring 2003. But this year, University librarian Deb Carver has said the library will no longer be able to shell out $4,000 a term for security. Library records show that the extended library hours are used about 4,000 times per term. Carver previously told the Senate that funding the extra hours falls outside the library’s core mis sion, adding that the library never intended to pay long term for the service, which primarily benefits students. But EMU Board of Directors member Gabe Shaughnessy said students shouldn’t foot the bill. “I think it’s ridiculous they’re asking us to pay for it,” he said. “If Frohnmayer is putting together a $600 million capital campaign, that’s a good place for them to look. ” Senator Lisa Lam said it would be helpful if the library publicized the funding problem. Senator Austin Shaw-Phillips agreed, saying the Senate has taken heat over the library issue. “We’re like their patsy,” he said. Senators discussed sending postcards to Uni versity administrators advocating for the service. But Shaw-Phillips said it’s already clear most students favor it, saying the best option now is to help the library look elsewhere for funding. parkerhowell@dcdlyemerald.com For education’s sake Gov. Ted Kulongoski's budget proposal would increase higher education spending $14 million BY ADAM CHERRY NEWS REPORTER The biannual battle for funding is under way in this year’s legislative session, and the University and student associations have a special opportunity to hold the line on high er-education budget cuts. Gov. Ted Kulongoski recommended an increase in funds for higher education of more than $14 million from the state's general fund. If passed, the added funds would be the first increase since the 1999 2001 biennium and would reportedly limit tuition increases to between 5 and 7 per cent annually for resident students. An annual 5 to 7 percent tuition increase is much closer to normal than the increases of more than 10 and 9 percent over the last two school years. “We will only ask to go above (increases of 5 to 7 percent) if we don't get the governor's budget,” Senior Vice President and Provost John Moseley said. “Our top priority is to get the students funded.” Sources say the governor's budget is a step in the right direction, but still not enough to fix the state's education problem. “We believe in a seamless education that runs from birth to graduate school,” state House Rep. Phil Barnhart, a Democ rat, said. “Oregon is not anywhere near * the kind of program we need to do an ex cellent job in education.” Barnhart said the general fund allocation for higher education in the governor's budget is slightly better than current funding. Higher education hasn't fared well in previ ous legislative sessions. “We actually have fewer dollars per student to spend on your education today than we had 10 years ago,” Moseley said. “The state has basi cally pushed a major part of a college education off on the students.” A pay freeze for all state employees has affect ed the salaries of university faculty and staff in the Oregon University System, making it more difficult for the University to attract employees. Kulongoski hopes to lift the freeze — he granted pay increases of about 1 to 2 percent per year in his budget proposal. “It’s not enough,” Moseley said of the pay in creases. “I think it’s the best he could do under the circumstances, (but) I think the governor would say that it’s not enough. ” In 2003, the legislature passed a bill that re quired the OUS to pay more than $14 million, primarily in student tuition and fees, back to the state to help balance the budget, a move that Moseley characterized as an “attack on tuition.” “I think that was the most unfair, egregious thing that happened in the Legislature, and it was done, basically, under the table,” Moseley said. “We didn't even learn about it until a month after the session was over. The U of 0 had to basically write a check back to the state for $4.1 million of your money.” State funding has decreased consistently. In the 2003-2004 school year, the percentage of state appropriations making up the Universi ty’s budget hit an all-time low of about 13.9 per cent. That was down from more than 30 percent in the 1980s and a more recent peak of 20.2 percent during the 1999-2000 biennium. OUS’s share of the Oregon general fund has sunk from 12.2 percent in the 1987-1989 bienni um to 6 percent in the 2003-2005 biennium. Over the same period, the number of students in Oregon public universities has increased by 23 percent. And since 1990, OUS students have gone from paying 29 percent to 56 percent of their own education cost in tuition and fees. “The state has got to understand that it's not going to get the level of services it’s been used to,” Moseley said. “Oregon is making some bad choices right now.” Moseley cautioned that further funding short ages could alter the landscape of Oregon’s econ omy for the long term. EDUCATION, page 8 UO senior receives award for military excellence Jared Paben | News editor ROTC cadet Evan Hessel was one of 270 cadets nationally who won the George C. Marshall Award, which earned him a ticket to a four-day seminar on military leadership and national security in Lexington, Va., April 12-15. BY SHELDON TRAVER NEWS REPORTER A University senior and ROTC cadet was selected to receive the George C. Mar shall Award for military excellence Cadet and anthropology major Evan Hessel was one of more than 270 ROTC cadets selected nationally to receive the award and attend a four-day seminar on military leadership and national security in Lexington, Va., April 12-15. Each uni versity's cadet program chooses one stu dent based on leadership skills, academic achievement, integrity and how much the cadet gives back to the program. University ROTC Battalion Com mander Lt. Col. Bill Fox looked at a pool of 12 seniors and recommended I lessel for the award. "Of the 12 cadets, he was above the rest in all respects," Fox said. He added that Hessel went out of his way to pro mote ROIC at his former high school in Beaverton and makes time to instruct freshman cadets. He also looked at 1 les sel's scores on a special training event, called the Leadership Development As sessment Course. "He was a team player and gave back to the program," Fox said. Hessel said he was surprised to hear he had won. "It definitely came out of left field," Hessel said. "These cadets represent the very best of a highly selective organization," accord ing to the George C. Marshall Founda tion Web site Hessel said this is an opportunity for him to meet many of his peers as well as military leaders and historians. Discus sion panels will include topics on current military operations, media on the battle field and the israeli-Palestinian conflict. Hessel is active both with the ROTC and on campus. In addition to working part-time as a lifeguard at the Student Recreation Center, he is an advisor for Lane County Search and Rescue and maintains a 3.51 GPA. He spends an ad ditional 10-20 hours per week with the ROTC in physical training, classes, prac tical exercises and occasional weekend training, such as the land-navigation course his group completed on Satur day and Sunday. Hessel's friend and Cadet Battalion Commander Paul Sherwin said the award is seen as quite an honor among cadets at universities nationally. 1 le said ROTC commanders don't make the de cision without a lot of thought and con sideration, and he believes I lessel was a good choice. "1 le works very hard for other people," Sherwin said. "I thought he very much deserved it." Hessel will formally receive the award May 20 at the annual military ball. ROTC, page 7
