Hiring: Neiwert's pay similar to other staff
Continued from page 1
temporary employee using all
applicable guidelines.”
Miller, who signed two of
Neiwert’s employment documents,
said he couldn’t remember
many details of Neiwert’s hiring,
including why she was hired,
the employment needs of the
ASUO Executive staff at the
time, whether Creighton-Neiwert
recommended her sister-in-law or
the length of time Neiwert worked.
The Oregon Administrative
Rule governing family relation
ships and employment states
that “Discrimination in favor of
candidates who are related to
persons involved in, or with an
effective influence upon, the
selection process is prohibited.”
However, University Director of
Policy and Legal Affairs Randy
Geller stated in a letter to the
Emerald that Neiwert appears to
be in compliance with the rule.
The rules state, in part, that no
relative of somebody currently em
ployed by the University may be
denied equal access to a job based
on family relationship.
“No members of the faculty
or administration shall participate
in making recommendations
or decisions involving the employ
ment, compensation, promotion,
leave of absence, grievance
adjustment, termination, or in
the supervision of their relatives
without prior permission of their
immediate supervisor,” part of
the rule states.
* vuxuu, vvuu oaiu lit: U
heard about Jenny Neiwert’s
previous employment at the ASUO
but didn’t know details until
the Emerald contacted him
Wednesday, said Neiwert’s hiring
was “not something I would
have liked to have seen under
my administration.”
Rice said Creighton-Neiwert hired
both family members and friends
to work in the ASUO.
“She had her husband working
Jennifer Creighton-Neiwert
ASUO accounting coordinator
for her,” Rice said. “She had people
coming in and out that were
her friends ... She could easily get
them hired.”
Because no applications
were submitted — including from
Neiwert — for the position, the
Emerald was unable to determine
whether Neiwert had the neces
sary qualifications. The job, as
specified by an Oregon University
System written description,
requires either two years of general
clerical experience; an associate’s
degree in office occupations or of
fice technology; or graduation
from a private business school
with a certificate in office occupa
tions or office technology and one
year of general clerical experience.
Miller also said he didn’t
remember exactly what Neiwert’s
qualifications were.
Rice said she didn’t know
Neiwert’s qualifications but said she
knew that “(Neiwert) didn’t know a
darn thing. ”
Rice said Neiwert received about
a week’s training by former
University student Allyssa Walton,
who left the ASUO to attend law
school, while Rice received no
training for her position. After
Rice’s termination and Neiwert’s
week of training, Neiwert called
Rice at home to ask how to do
something, Rice said.
“She didn’t know what the hell
she was doing,” Rice said.
Rice said Neiwert was hired
without any application process.
Rice scheduled all interviews for
open ASUO positions at that time
and no official interview was
conducted with Neiwert, she said.
“All I know about Jenny is she
showed up one day in the office,”
Rice said. “There was never an
interview process, so she was hired
without any competition.”
Rice said about 300 applications
had been sent in for the position
that Rice accepted.
University Human Resources
Employment Manager Chris
Lonigan said temporary jobs do
not have to be advertised, an
exception to a University policy
that requires all state jobs to be
listed with the employment
department. Neiwert started in
August 2001 with a pay rate at
$10.74 per hour and finished in
January 2004 at $11.30 per hour.
The pay is similar to pay re
ceived by others who have similar
jobs at the ASUO, according to
employee history forms. From
February 2003 to September 2003,
current ASUO Programs Adminis
trative Assistant Brandy Ota
received $10.81 per hour. Former
ASUO Administrative Assistant
Shawn Rubino started in
October 2001 at $11.13 per hour
and finished in February 2004 at
$13.44 per hour.
Petkun — who is not Creighton
Neiwert’s boss but collaborates
with her — said he was glad
he spoke with Creighton-Neiwert
after he took office, and
they agreed to ban hiring family
members in the future.
“I’m glad it’s something we’ve
moved on from as well, and it
won’t be happening again,”
Petkun said, adding that he, ASUO
Vice President Mena Ravassipour
and members of the ASUO Student
Senate plan to look at the
ASUO Green Tape Notebook before
they leave office to clarify
some rules, including the rules
governing hiring processes.
jaredpaben @ daily emerald, com
Music: Recording unit can stand
alone or connect to computer
Continued from page 1
with his or her own recording.
“A lot of people want to be able to
create multiple tracks all together,”
Croal said.
Don Latarski, head of guitar
studies and adjunct instructor in
the University’s music school, has his
own recording studio at his home in
west Eugene. He has recorded five
albums of his own guitar music
and also records projects for
outside clients, including an
educational CD that helps people
understand how things sound to the
hearing impaired.
Latarski said the main unit of
music recording is a digital audio
workstation, or DAW, of which there
are two kinds. One is a stand-alone
DAW system, which looks like a
mixing board but contains a com
puter and a CD burner. List prices
for DAW systems that handle 4 to 12
tracks of audio input range from
$400 to $1200, and DAW systems
that handle 16 to 24 tracks range
from $1500 to $5000, according to
the Musician’s Friend Web site, a
music equipment retailer.
“The benefit of going with a
system like that is that all you need to
supply is your microphones and, of
course, your instruments,” Latarski
said. “They’re very convenient and
they do sound good.”
Barton said in the e-mail
that he and his girlfriend use a portable
digital eight-track recording studio
made by Boss to make CDs of “indie
folk songs and the occasional
weird cover.”
“We have both learned over a
period of time how to use it to
tweak sounds to satisfactory
results,” Barton said.
The other option, Latarski said, is
to make a DAW by adding hardware
to an existing computer, laptop or
desktop. To do this, an interface that
converts sound back and forth
between analog and digital modes is
connected to the computer using a
USB or Firewire cable. The list
prices of these interfaces range from
$250 to $2,000, according to
the Musician’s Friend Web site.
Microphones, required for sound
input on all types of recording
equipment, start around $60 and go
up to $1,000.
Croal said he is in the process of
setting up a home recording studio.
His equipment currently includes
MXL condenser microphones, a
G4 Dual 1.24 gigahertz computer
and an M-Audio Firewire 1814
to transmit the audio from the
microphones into the computer.
Once the audio recording is in the
computer, Croal said, it can be
saved as an MP3 sound file.
“A lot of people do that with
MP3.com, put their stuff out there
and claim to be a band trying to get
discovered,” he said.
Generally, the computer method
also requires software for editing
recorded music.
“The software allows you to do
all the editing and the splicing,”
Latarski said. “It also allows you to
apply all your special effects, which
would be equalization, reverb, com
pression, and pitch shifting.”
However, Latarski cautioned that
equipment is not enough to make a
quality CD.
“Without that training or a lot of
experimentation, it’s really hard to
make a good product,” Latarski
said. “It’s like another musical
instrument. You really need to
practice with the technology. ”
Latarski teaches a University
class on music recording every year
fall term . Class meetings are held at
his home studio and focus on the
technical aspects of how to operate
recording devices rather than on
individual projects. Class space is
extremely limited, but Latarski
said many books are available to
educate people further about
recording technology.
evasylwester@dailyemera.ld. com
Diversity: Students applaud administration's effort to
answer questions on 'complex issue'
Continued from page 1
you and help you find an answer.’”
After summarizing the first forum,
different leaders responded to student
concerns, speaking about projects
already in progress or being completed.
Martin discussed the Gender
Equity Team, a group that has
already succeeded in changing
the equal opportunity statement
to include gender identity and
expression. The GET is also in the
process of finishing its surveys and
mapping of gender-neutral restrooms
and facilities.
Mojica discussed the Bias Response
Team’s role on campus and the
different strategies it has to fight
different forms of discrimination.
Some of the BRT’s solutions for
different discriminatory problems
include having classes taped for a
student who feels uncomfortable in
a classroom environment and using
student advocates to support
students going through anti
discriminatory processes.
Vincent said that after attending
the first forum, he and the rest
of the staff working on the diversity
plan added a sixth initiative,
which would focus on keeping
the campus climate safe for all
diversity groups.
As well as discussing initiatives
already in place and in progress,
the forum examined ideas brought
up at the first forum that
needed more discussion. Forum
participants talked about speaking
with University Housing, talking
with the orientation staff
regarding different possibilities
for educational opportunities,
looking at whether diversity
and classroom climate issues are
covered on the teacher evaluation
form and doing more research on
multicultural requirements.
Loschiavo talked about changes
that are not possible. Most of what
he addressed regarded the balance
between First Amendment rights
and hate speech.
“This is a really complex
issue," Loschiavo said. “There are
competing interests between free
speech and hate speech. We have to
protect the rights of everyone to say
what they feel like they need to say.
When you take away rights
from one group you take it away
from all.”
The evening ended with students
talking directly to administrators
about suggestions, concerns and
questions regarding different topics
brought up during the evening.
Students said the mood after the
forum was positive.
“It’s great that the administration
came back with working models,”
LGBT Issues Coordinator Stacy
Borke said. Borke also works at the
ASUO Women’s Center and for
the Bias Response Team. “Seeing
the administration here is
very promising.”
Vincent said it is important for
students to know that campus
leaders are working for them.
“It’s important that we as campus
leaders are checking back in so that
they know we have heard them,”
Vincent said.
Petkun said that while the forums
are a good starting point and a good
place for people to speak their
minds, “forums shouldn’t be
the only place that students feel
comfortable voicing their thoughts
and opinions.”
Future forums and symposiums
are in the planning stages.
Some possibilities include forums
on free-speech or campus climate
and safety issues.
abolsinger@dailyemerald.com
021545
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