Letters
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All signed letters to the editor should be 500 words or less and will be
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WEdNEsdAy, Appi! 26, 2000
right to not publish any letter.
Editori
Yes on Clackamas bond
This is are-print of the Editorialthatraninthe Oregonian April 13,2000.
Support education, vote yes
Editor-in-Chief:
JohnThorbum (x2447)
Managing Editor:
Megan Oldenstadt
Design Editor:
Timothy A. Bell
Feature Editor:
Shelbi Wescott
A & E Editor:
Angie Daschel
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Sandy Lupo
Associate News Editor:
Diana Scrivner
Sports Editor:
Mandy Good
Opinion Editor:
Salena De La Cruz
Business Manager:
Karl Katzke (x2578)
Cartoonist:
Joel Gunderson
Chris Lundgren
Staff:
Mike Pollock
Erin Bernard
Steve Nielsen
Tam Oliver
Toni McMichael
Jason Lingel
Maggie Jirasek
Matt Shempert
Secretary:
JoAnne Gale
Advisor:
Linda Vogt (x2310)
Goals:
The Clackamas Print
aims to report the news in
an honest, unbiased, pro
fessional manner. The
opinions expressed in The
Clackamas Print do not
necessarily reflect those of
the student body, college
administration, its faculty,
or The Clackamas Print
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The Clackamas Print is a
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right 2000.
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CCCp Rt N T@C I AC k AM AS . CÇ . O R . U S
In recent months, The Print has covered various stories regarding the upcom
ing bond measure. For those readers who are unaware of such stories, if
passed, the bond would renovate most of the campus, adding wings con
necting Streeter and Dye, as well as adding a new building for the arts, music,
and English/communication departments.
Now, to be frank, the passing of the bond will not have much impact on
most if not all of thestudents at Clackamas today. Changes on campus would
not even begin to take place for two years. Your little brothers and sisters,
your parents, anyone who attends this college in that time will reap the
rewards of an improved community college. So, why vote? This is an age-old
question. Here’s the answer: It is time to start investing in a prosperous future
for the students of tomorrow. To succeed in today’s career world, a state-of-
the-art education is required. It is the feeling of the staff of this newspaper that
a state-of-the-art campus is needed to achieve that education.
Over the past few months, a number of students have brought the credibil
ity of our college’s administration into question. As evident in some of the
letters published this week, the school spends more money than is budgeted
for each year. According to College President John Keyser, this is not a debt
Funds are spent from dwindling reserve funds due to the state's failure to
provide support for growing student enrollment
At first look, the budget differences are appalling. At second glance, we
must look deeper.
This is a government-funded community college that owes money...
to its own bank account. If you look at other colleges in Oregon, if not
America, you’ll notice the same practice of spending more money than
they anticipated year after year. Is this different from how the federal
government works? This question raises the age-old argument of “Ev
erybody does it so it’s okay.”
This statement provides endless ammunition for opposition. That ideal
is looked at as a bad one. It is, however, the world we live in.
So, what can you do?
You can either say, “No, I’m not going to give money to a college that
loses money every year,” or “Yes, I’m going to support students and
education because it's critical to attain a prosperous future.”
On a national scale, saying no is like saying, “I’m not going to pay for
education or health care because there’s a national deficit.”
Is this the stance you want to take?
For the first time in more than a decade, Clackamas Community College will
ask voters in May to approve a bond issue. Voters should say yes.
The 35-year-oid institution is facing rapid growth enrollment has gone up 25
percent in the past five years with no ra@l prospect of the oressure easing any
time soon. Two-thirds of the metropolitan regrcm’s (^pected grSIWth in the next
25 years is projected for Clackamas County. The colleg^wid» head-count is
about 27,000 this year.
The college’s last bond issue was approved in 1989. The college’s board
promised to make the $10 million in bonds last the school for 10 years. In
retrospect, that was a rash promise, but Clackamas Community College kept the
promise. The credibility the school’s officials earned in that effort should work in
the school’s favor now.
The current proposal is for $47 million in bonds to pay for renovating five
existing buildings on the Oregon City campus. College officials say the up
grades would strengthen the school’s programs in science, nursing, computer
science, computer-aided drafting and other areas. Those improvements would
cost $ 15.5 million. Another large allocation $ 14.5 million would go to build and
equip a multipurpose classroom building. If approved, the bond would cost
homeowners about 20 cents per $1,000of assessed value, or about $31 a year for
the owner of a home valued at $150,000.
Over the years, Clackamas Community College has emerged as something
more than an educational institution in the North Clackamas-Oregon City area.
Roughly half the county’s population has taken some kind of course through
the school, but CCC also has become a central civic institution, serving as a
meeting place and catalyst for community discussions.
Approval of the bond issue in May’s primary election would help the college
maintain its status as an important part of the growing Clackamas County com
munity. We urge voters to pass.
—>
Say 'no' to administrative
spending on bond 2000
“Bond 2000.” What do you think of
when you hear that phrase? The ad
ministration of Clackamas Community
College wants you to think of a building
for the music, theater, and art depart
ments. My question is: after 30 years of
waiting why now? Why didn’t the ad
ministration use the millions of dollars
they have recently spent on a new sher
iff training center facility, located near
the Town Center mall which remains
unfinished due to lack of funds, to up
grade the music, theater and art depart
ments? What happened to the money
collected from this year's substantial
raise in tuition that has been pillaged
from 27,000 students? Why do they
have their hands in your pockets again?
The administration prides themselves
on the fact that the last time they asked
for a bond sale was in 1989. What they
won’t tell you is that they have been
selling the school out from under us by
peddling “Certificates of Participation,”
a euphemism for the word “bond”. These
have put our college in over 22 MIL
LION DOLLARS worth of debt. Now
they say they need even more money
because enrollment is up 25%. Actually
it is much less, but the growth percent
age of administrators is high. In fact, it
is higher then the growth percentage of
instructors (who seem to be disappear
ing rapidly). Does this school exist to
facilitate the careers of bureaucrats or
to educate citizens? Don’t let them use
your family’s money to cover their mis
takes.
The administration still has not ac
counted for the $313,000 of misappro
priated funds, which put them in viola
tion of local budget law. Can you trust
them with 47 million dollars? That is a
lot of money to give to bureaucrats who
do not feel accountable to the public. I
have a suggestion for the administra
tion. If you need more money to cover
your mismanagement of public funds why
don’t you cut back on your department
instead of raising property taxes again,
and again, and again, or is that not an
option?
Say NO! To out of control ASG and
administrative spending, say NO! To
downsizing our faculty and social sci
ence department, and vote NO! On Bond
2000.
I support the arts. If students want
their funding we are willing to help.
Glenn McCarthy
Student
Series of events; students
mobilize into action
I want the same thing all of you do. A
better higher education facility to teach
our children and improve our communi
ties. Many of you are aware that an
alarming chain of events has mobilized
many students for action. Yet It is im
portant to point out that we do not want
to destroy anything, just make it better.
I believe most of us are on the same side
and the possibilities are endless if we work
together. The entire administration is
not corrupt nor is all of ASG unrepresen
tative. I believe the majority of us want
to improve this college, we just have dif
ferent views of what that improvement
entails.
This is a college not a high school.
Movements against corporate and admin
istrative control over public institutions
are taking place across the nation in all
different colleges. Just because we are
community college students and the ad
ministration treats us like we are stupid
does not mean we cannot mobilize and
take action. We will not ignore harass
ment of instructors nor allow misuse of
college facilities to engage in that activ
ity. We will not ignore millions of dollars
being put on the shoulders of the com
munity without asking questions. We will
not go away if denied access to public
records, nor will we ignoré a student gov
ernment that is run by the,administra
tion: Rather than attack the people who
are asking questions, why not ask your
self why you are not involved?
Many of you have no knowledge of
what l am talking about and a few of you
know a little. I challenge you to get in
volved and let your voices be heard. We
all have something to offer and we need
to unite to improve. We have been work
ing with student groups at PSU and get
ting, organized for this purpose, and we
need the help of all students, members of
ASG and faculty to make this college a
better place.
Luke Precourt
Student
OCA sponsors attack on
academic freedom
I stayed out of the fray over Donald
Epstein, but I feel compelled to speak on
the broader topic of academic freedom.
There is a real and immediate threat to
academic freedom on the CCC campus
that does not, whatever Dr. Epst.ein’s
apologists say, come from recognizing
hate speech as wrong.
The OCA (Oregon Citizen's Alliance)
is sponsoring a direct attack on academic
freedom, tentatively scheduled for the
November ballot.
One major irony emerged from the
discussion over Dr. Epstein’s comments.
He and many of his defenders said that
he needed to make anti-gay comments
in his classes to provide balance because
all students ever hear is “the other side.”
Right. How many CCC students have
gone even a week in public school with
out hearing anti-gay remarks? “You fag
got.” or “That is so gay.” are the mildest
comments. It gets much worse from there
and you don’t have to be gay to hear it.
Of course, it is much worse if you are
gay, or suspected of being gay. Ask those
students about “academic freedom” some
time. Ask them how free they feel to
express their opinions or even to just be
themselves. The attempt to deny gay
students and faculty their academic free
dom isn’t limited to ignorant or hateful
remarks. It isn’t even limited to gay stu
dents and faculty.
The latest OCA-sponsored ballot mea
sure reads, in part: “Notwithstanding any
other law or rule, the instruction of be
haviors relating to homosexuality and bi
sexuality shall not be presented in a pub
lic school in a manner which encourages,
promotes or sanctions such behaviors.”
This measure explicitly includes com
munity colleges. It pointedly does not
define “behaviors relating to homosexu
ality” nor what it means to “sanction
such behaviors.”
Would a teacher be able to say that
Walt Whitman’s gayness informed his
poetic sensibilities or his world-view?
Would a teacher be able to mention the
gay men killed by the Nazis during the
Holocaust without implying, or even stat
ing explicitly, that they deserved their
fate? Could a support group for gay and
lesbian students continue on campus?
Could the Clackamas Print print this let
ter?
The OCA measure provides that any
school deemed in violation would lose
“all or part of their state funding.” One
comment, by one faculty member, could
jeopardize all of the school’s state fund
ing if that comment were deemed to sanc
tion homosexuality. It’s hard to imagine
much that would have a more chilling
effect on academic freedom than that.
Students and faculty truly concerned
about academic freedom will want to
speak out against this measure and work
hard to see that it is defeated.
Doretta Schrock
Student
Students trying to
improve the college
It has been expressed on campus
that the work of Glenn McCarthy,
Luke Precourt, Saida Johnston, Jen
nifer Rankin, and a few other indi
viduals have been working against the
college trying to bring down ASG or
the administration. This is simply not
true; in fact they are trying to im
prove the college for the students and
instructors alike. They are trying to
bring to light the enormous amount
of money that is being spent through
ASG and with the help of James
Gould’s audit on ASG they have come
closer than ever in finding out were
the money is going. It is their belief
that the money could be spent more
productively with in the college.
Caleb Gandy
Student