Ducks trounce the Bulldogs in women’s basketball I 9
An independent newspaper at the University of Oregon
www. dailyemerald. com
Since 1900 \ Volume 107, Issue 67 | Tuesday, November 29, 2005
Records
detail end
of class-slot
priority
The UO stopped holding slots for
minority students after a student
expressed concerns over the policy
BY JARED PABEN
NEWS EDITOR
The University changed a controversial poli
cy that reserved slots in certain low-enrollment
classes for minority students before the federal
government opened an investigation, according
to documents obtained by the Emerald from a
Freedom of Information Act request and an
Oregon public records request.
The documents, obtained first from the U.S.
Department of Education and later from
General Counsel to the University Melinda
Grier, reaffirm administrators' statements that
they changed the policy in reaction to a stu
dent grievance in the spring, and that the
decision was not prompted by the education
department’s investigation.
The education department’s Office for Civil
Rights is still reviewing the University’s
new policy.
The University’s previous policy reserved at
least 10 slots in 18-student English and math
classes for minority students and required other
students to meet with an Office of Multicultural
Academic Support counselor on the first day of
classes to enroll.
The new policy allows priority pre-authoriza
tion for students involved in several OMAS-af
filiated programs, and some of those programs
cater to students of all races. The new policy
gives counselors and instructors the discretion
to admit other students to the priority pre-au
thorization process, according to a copy of the
policy. It also allows students who aren’t al
lowed priority pre-authorization to register be
fore the first day of classes. This policy went
into effect for this term.
In an Aug. 22 letter from Grier to an investi
gator at the Office for Civil Rights, Grier stated
the University developed the new policy at the
end of spring term, and officials reached a con
sensus on the final details of the priority pre-au
thorization period over the summer.
“During Spring 2005, the University learned
a student had concerns about the priority
OMAS, page 5
Mistrial delays electrician's lawsuit
Former University employee Cindy Boynton-Bums is suing UO,
which she says retaliated against her complaints of discrimination
BY KATY GAGNON
NEWS REPORTER
A Lane County Circuit Court judge has de
clared a mistrial in the case of a former Uni
versity electrician who is suing the Universi
ty on claims she was retaliated against after
she complained to her bosses about gender
discrimination.
Judge Lauren S. Holland declared the mis
trial on Nov. 16 after determining she had a
conflict of interest because the University, on
the day the trial began, offered Holland a
teaching job at the Law School. The trial was
rescheduled for May.
Former University employee Cindy Boyn
ton-Burns, who is seeking $300,000 in noneco
nomic damages, first filed a lawsuit against the
University in August 2000, claiming the Uni
versity retaliated against her after she com
plained about a “sexually hostile work envi
ronment,” her attorney David Force said.
The case went to trial in April 2002, but Hol
land dismissed the retaliation claims, saying
Boynton-Burns did not provide enough evi
dence of a connection between her complaints
and the lack of work that led to her dismissal,
according to the appeals court judge’s opinion.
After the initial trial, the plaintiff filed an
appeal. The Court of Appeals ruled in her fa
vor, sending the case back to the trial court.
Boynton-Burns was retaliated against
when the University refused to interview her
for an electrician position she applied for in
1999, Force said.
Force said the University claimed Boynton
Burns did not have relevant work experience;
however, Boynton-Burns was the only appli
cant who had worked at the University before
and was the most qualified for the job.
But in 2001, the University hired two jour
neyman electricians who had not worked for
the University before, he said.
Assistant Attorney General David Kramer,
who is representing the University in the case,
could not be reached for comment Monday.
Between February 1995 and May 1999, the
TRIAL, page 5
Kate Horton | Photographer
(Above):
University
student
Elisabeth
Foitle came
home from
Thanksgiving
break to find her
car, parked in
her driveway on
East 16th
Avenue and Mill
Street, broken
into for the
second time
this year.
University
of Oregon
Key
$ Thefts from vehicles
# Vehicles stolen
Reported vehicle crimes
Nov. 24 - Nov. 28
E 19 Ave
SOURCE: Eugene Police Department
Chris Todd | Graphic Artist
Car thefts,
break-ins
double
in 2005
Police warn homeward-bound
students to keep their vehicles
safe during the winter break
BY KATY GAGNON
NEWS REPORTER
Car thefts and break-ins in the Universi
ty area have doubled in the last year, and
with winter break approaching, Eugene
police are urging students to be extra
careful when leaving their vehicles during
the vacation.
Since the beginning of the year, thieves
have broken into cars throughout Eugene
in record numbers, and police expect this
number to increase during the holidays.
During the break, cars will be parked in
the same spot for an extended period, which
can make them targets by thieves who tend
to work in one area, Eugene police officer
Randy Ellis said. Also, patrols in the area
will be decreased during the holidays be
cause more officers will be requesting time
off, he said.
Thieves are seeing items from outside the
car and they break windows to steal them,
THEFT, page 8
Dueling masters tangle with student test-taking plans
TestMasters
Tr© and tnos*cemprvheetivft l SAT preparation ccura*
Courtesy
Two similar Web sites offer test-preparation classes: Test Masters (left) is based in Texas and offers
courses in various standardized tests, and TestMasters, from California, offers classes on the LSAT.
Test preparation companies sharing the same name clash because of issues such
as how students can distinguish between them and the quality of their services
BY KELLY BROWN
NEWS REPORTER
What a difference a space makes.
The New York State Consumer Protection Board
has issued a warning against Test Masters, a test
preparation company based in Texas, saying the
name is too similar to TestMasters, a California
based company that offers Law School Admissions
Test preparation courses.
Seventeen students who took the Test Masters
prep course at Hunter College in New York said they
thought they were enrolling in a TestMasters course,
according to a press release from the NY CPB. They
have since filed complaints with the NY CPB,
according to the release.
TestMasters offers classes here in Eugene, and
Test Masters has advertised classes in the area.
Jon Sorenson, the spokesman for the CPB, said
that although CPB did not examine what each pro
gram offered, the names seemed similar enough to
cause problems.
“We never did try to evaluate one product over
another, but it’s clear that the one company has the
reputation and is the one that students, at least the
ones that we talked to, were seeking when they en
rolled,” he said.
He added that the board issued its warning to help
LSAT, page 6