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(11/15/00 6:46am)
The future of the University was the recurring theme Tuesday at the University Faculty Council meeting, as members discussed everything from a new computer turnover system to the effect of the community college program on IU.\nTo keep pace with constant technological advances in computing systems, the University announced at the meeting that it completed a three-year revolving cycle for all faculty and staff computers.\nMichael McRobbie, vice president for information technology and chief information officer, said this announcement might make IU "the first university of this size anywhere in the world to have achieved full life-cycle funding for all its desktop computers."\nIn December 1998, the board of trustees and IU President Myles Brand approved a five-year strategic plan for University Information and Technological Services. The plan included a list of 10 major recommendations, at the top of which was this cycle funding program.\nUnder this plan, 10,000 faculty desktop computers have already been replaced and all 15,000 are less than three years old. The funding for these computers comes from a "life-cycle funding pool accrued over the three years of the computer's service," McRobbie said.\nAlso at Tuesday's UFC meeting, a representative of the Indiana State Commission for Higher Education fielded questions from the council members.\nCommission member Dan Reagan, a political science professor at Ball State University, presented the Commission's goals for their interaction with IU and answered questions, mostly about the community college system.\nReagan continually stressed that although the Commission is sometimes seen as an adversary to IU, he wanted to improve this relationship.\n"I'm concerned, in these stressful times for higher education, that too often we are divided," Reagan said. "So we can help dispel some of the stereotypes they have about us."\nReagan is a representative of the Commission whose head, Stan Jones, reportedly had a battle with Brand over the community college system earlier in the year. At a UFC meeting in March, Brand called Jones "delusional" and publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the commissioner and the community college plan.\nSome of these tensions appeared to resurface at Tuesday's meeting.\nWhen Reagan said, "We went to IU, and IU wasn't interested," in response to a question about why Vincennes University was picked to partner with Ivy Tech instead of IU, Brand shot back with his own response.\n"That is false," Brand said. "Stan rejected our offer."\nBrand then reiterated his previous statements about the community college system, saying the problem with the plan was when "there is duplication -- where state funds are not being used to their fullest"
(11/09/00 4:59am)
As Florida officials recount every vote from Tuesday's presidential election, almost 800 miles away IU professors are discussing the potential effects of this historic race.\nThere are several political issues at work in this intensely close race between Texas Gov. George W. Bush and Vice President Al Gore.\nThe candidate who wins the popular vote might not win the Electoral College vote, therefore losing the election, only the third time in history and the first in the 20th Century. Legal activity from both sides is possible after the recount, delaying the naming of the president-elect. Charges of voter fraud have run rampant during this election cycle as well. \nBut Gerald Wright, professor of political science, said he hopes these matters are quickly resolved to ensure a smooth shift in leadership. \n"There are a lot of decisions that have to be made, and instead of having a president that is putting together an administration, we're having ones that may potentially be tied up in fits of political maneuvering," Wright said. "There will be so much pressure on the candidates to come to a resolution."\nThe recounting of the ballots is mandatory under Florida state law because Bush and Gore were separated by less than one-half of 1 percent of the vote. Florida officials said they expect to be finished tabulating the numbers by the end of the day Thursday. \nDepending on the outcome, both the Republicans and Democrats could potentially seek legal action. \nLaw professor Daniel Conkle said if legal proceedings drag on for several weeks after the election, the next step in the process is unpredictable. He said any legal questions would first arise from state election laws. Then the candidates could move on to federal and constitutional claims.\n"You have various sorts of unanswered questions because this situation, to my knowledge, has never arisen," Conkle said. "I hope that the worst case scenario doesn't happen, but I am worried that it might."\nThe scenario Conkle is referring to is if the legal issues are not resolved when the Electoral College convenes in December, the United States could be left with no president-elect. If the proceedings continue further, no legal precedent exists for the vacancy of the presidency on Inauguration Day.\n"All of this is quite problematic given the issue of time," Conkle said. "If ... the president of the United States is not determined in a timely fashion, we have some very serious issues and potential problems."\nWright said the election is rapidly moving into uncharted territory. He said the only presidential race he is aware of with the chance for a recount was in the 1960 contest between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy.\nConkle said rumors were circulating in Illinois that voter fraud had turned the state over to Kennedy late in the day. He said Nixon did not follow up on the rumors, putting out the chance for legal proceedings. \nWright said whichever candidate is elected president will still not have won a majority of American votes. He said this is another issue that needs to be addressed in the American electoral system. \n"All this maneuvering would be to elect a candidate that does not have a popular majority, and he will lack a certain legitimacy," Wright said. "Everyone appreciates the need for a rapid and clean decision."\nWhile all the speculation continues in the coming days, the families of the two candidates are taking a slightly different approach to the situation.\n"We thought it would be close," Jeb Bush, governor of Florida and George W. Bush's brother, said in a press conference. "Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine it would be this close"
(10/23/00 5:45am)
During his eight decades at IU, late University Chancellor Herman B Wells used to walk through campus frequently, admiring the beauty of the school he helped shape.\nNow a likeness of Wells, who died March 18, will always be among the woods surrounding his Owen Hall office.\nSaturday morning, University leaders unveiled and dedicated the Herman B Wells Sculpture and Plaza, located between the Rose Well House and Owen Hall.\nThe life-sized sculpture of Wells shows him sitting on a park bench, with his hat at one side and his other arm raised, as if engaged inconversation. \nSculptor Tuck Langland, art professor at IU -South Bend, said the piece represents Wells in his prime, during either his late sixties or early seventies. During the sculpting process, he said something greater then the physical materials shone through.\n"Somebody began to emerge in my studio and look back at me everyday," Langland said. "He made the people around him feel good about themselves. It makes people who never knew him feel good about themselves."\nUniversity administrators at the ceremony included Trustees President John Walda, IU President Myles Brand and IU Foundation President Curtis Simic.\nBrand, who called Wells a "long-term guiding light" spoke about the former president's accomplishments and his lasting impact on the Hoosier community.\n"He transformed a small Midwest college into a research university of world-wide renown," Brand said. "The values by which he lived are as valid today as 75 years ago."\nSimic and Bloomington Chancellor Kenneth Gros Louis mentioned Wells' disdain for public recognition. Even though Wells disliked the attention, this also added to his charm, they said. \nSimic said when they first approached him about the project his modesty was evident.\n"In typical fashion, he responded by saying, 'They can certainly find something better to do with the money.'" Simic said. "We convinced him that his likeness situated here would help protect the campus trees for future generations. \n"He responded by saying, 'Good. Now, can we get rid of that bust in front of Kirkwood Hall? I've always feared that I really looked like that.'"\nRobert LeBien, chairman of the Sculpture Committee, said he got the idea during a basketball game at Assembly Hall in 1996. When LeBien saw Wells sitting in his typical spot, he realized one day Wells would not be there.\n"I wanted to tastefully perpetuate his physical presence for all time," LeBien said. "This sculpture is about Dr. Wells, the man and his presence -- not on a pedestal above us -- but on a park bench among us"
(10/20/00 7:18pm)
INDIANAPOLIS -- A room in the historic Indiana Statehouse was filled with talk of the future Wednesday as President Myles Brand molded IU's budget request around the changing face of higher education and the economy in the 21st century.\nThrough a colorful video and slide show, Brand presented IU's budget requests for 2001-2003 to the State Budget Committee. The committee is comprised of Indiana state senators and representatives, fiscal analysts and budget directors. Sen. Vi Simpson, a Democrat who represents part of Bloomington, is on the committee.\nAll Indiana public universities start their state funding process, which is biennial, at the committee.\nBrand began his presentation by addressing recent media attention to IU's national rankings in various polls. \n"Some of the reports have just been misleading," Brand said. "The fact of the matter is at Indiana University we have 100 programs in the top 20." Since IU and Purdue University are at the bottom of the Big Ten Conference in terms of state funding, Brand said IU has achieved this excellence "on a modest budget."\nTherefore, Brand went on to stress the importance of government fiscal backing for research institutions.\n"Federal and state support helps to create knowledge, and knowledge and research creates products," Brand said. For the University to continue to grow, Brand said it is necessary to form a "partnership between state government, businesses and research universities."\nIn the operating appropriations request, Brand emphasized the new School of Informatics, requesting $13 million for fiscal year 2000-01 and $4.5 million for fiscal year 2001-02.\nBarbara Hayes, who works at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis and is pursuing a second masters at IUPUI, spoke for the University, and attested to the importance of the new school.\n"This will help us provide really creative ways to treat patients," Hayes said. She named examples of advances in medicine that the new school could bring about, including new technology in which "A doctor can practice surgery on a computer five times instead of on you."\nOn the capital appropriation side of the budget, IU asked for $30 million to fund the first half of construction on the new multi-disciplinary science building.\nA site for the building, to cost approximately $60 million total, has not yet been chosen. The University plans to ask for the other half of the $60 million in the next budget cycle, Brand said.\nThe Indiana Commission for Higher Education is currently reviewing the building request as well.\nMichael Baumgartner, associate commissioner for facility and financial affairs, said state money can be given either in the form of cash appropriations or bonding authority. \n"When the Commission gets it, it receives all capital requests from all public institutions," Baumgartner said. "We look at all sorts of different aspects" of the proposed project, including scope of request and whether a request has been made in the past, he said.\nAfter the hearing Wednesday, the committee makes recommendations to the State Budget Agency and the General Assembly. Next February, all public universities will present their proposals to the General Assembly.\nOverall, Indiana universities have asked for about $480 million in capital requests. During the last budgetary period, the Assembly approved about $264 million in requests. That was the most money the state had ever satisfied.
(10/19/00 6:13am)
For the fifth time in as many years, a chemistry professor is leaving IU for another institution.\nGeorge Christou, who specializes in inorganic chemistry and the use of metals in biology, is moving his research and teaching to the University of Florida after 18 years at IU. He will leave his post at the end of the academic year.\nChristou said his main reasons for leaving were a recent decline in quality of the department, support from administration and ability to recruit.\n"The higher administration hasn't filled me with confidence that we're doing what it takes to rebuild for the 21st century," Christou said. "We no longer are attractive to the best people. Our ability to recruit has been handicapped."\nHe said because of the recent departures of professors, IU is no longer a leader in chemistry as it once was. This decline, Christou said, has also led to demoralization within the department.\nChairperson of the department, distinguished professor Ernest R. Davidson, said the department and Christou were negotiating for months prior to Christou's announcement.\n"We are very disappointed," Davidson said. "This is another serious blow to our department, and we are physically trying to recruit new faculty for his replacement."\nDavidson said the department was looking to replace the professors who had left before the end of the academic year. None of the five most recent departures have been replaced yet, Davidson said.\nChristou held the Earl Blough Professorship and was awarded IU's Teaching Excellence Recognition Award this year. Christou said a topic he is currently examining, the making of nanoscale magnets, is a cutting edge research area. He said the University of Florida was primarily interested in that part of his research.\nMilos Novotny, distinguished professor of chemistry, said he was very sad and disappointed when he found out about Christou's departure.\n"It's like an avalanche coming on us," Novotny said. "It's a terrible thing happening to our department." \nNovotny, who has been at IU since 1971, described a tie that faculty used to feel toward IU, which he feels has disappeared.\n"The market forces are always there. The loyalty people used to have for this institution has been tremendously eroded," Novotny said. "There are times when I feel I should have taken those opportunities I had professionally years ago.\n"We were doing well, there was a sense of community. It's totally missing today."\nNovotny attributed the problem to both department and University leaders.\n"We have internal problems," he said. "There is no question the upper administration has not made those things better." \nChristou said he felt nostalgic about IU and that it was not an easy decision to make.\n"I've been here 18 years, a very enjoyable 18 years," Christou said. "The chemistry department, about five or six years ago, was ranked number 12 to 14 in the national rankings, and then we started losing senior faculty, and we're certainly nowhere near that ranking anymore.\n"There's a general feeling of demoralization about the future," he said.
(10/18/00 5:11am)
The police in riot gear, complete with shields and helmets, stood guard around IU President Myles Brand's house.\nTheir dogs were nipping at the feet of the crowd, composed of people chanting "Hey hey! Ho ho! Myles Brand has got to go!" and of those just trying to get a glimpse of the action. \nThe protesters only became more destructive and violent as night fell. \nFlames from small fires shot into the sky around Brand's house, Woodburn Hall and Assembly Hall. The bronze fish in Showalter Fountain were removed and carried around campus. Brand and freshman Kent Harvey were burned in effigy. A few arrests were made, and several people reported police sprayed them with a chemical deterrent.\nCampus usually would have been quiet on a Sunday, but by the end of the day, it was a different place. \nAs the sun came up the morning of Sept. 11, the day after former men's basketball coach Bob Knight was fired, the University community started to clean up the aftermath of his termination. \nThe Knight firing was not the first event to trigger a wave of student activism. Whether the issue is one close to Hoosiers, such as tuition increases, or one weighing on the national conscience, like racism, the Bloomington campus has always become a hotbed for protesting.\nA different kind of cause\nSome in the University community questioned whether the protests after Knight's firing were a productive means for expressing student feelings.\nPatrick Brantlinger, an English professor who came to IU in 1968, said he thinks the Knight protests do not compare with the passion and scale of the Vietnam War protests of the '60s and '70s.\n"I don't think the Knight riots are political anything. I don't think they involved any kind of student activism," Brantlinger said. "The kind of idealism and activism I am talking about is present, and that's very different from students just having a good time because Coach Knight's been fired."\nBrantlinger cited student groups such as Indiana Public Interest Research Group and the anti-sweatshop movement as current examples of positive activism. He also said these groups would be the ones to define this IU generation, not the destructiveness of the Knight protests. \nDean of Students Richard McKaig said a possible cause for the change in protesting style is the types of issues addressed today.\n"We're not at war, therefore an anti-war protest probably isn't likely to be the sort of thing that will come along," he said. "After the late 1960s, there was more of an orientation or a suggestion that students had ways to work through the system, and therefore protest activities weren't necessary to dramatize the cause."\nVietnam takes center stage\nFor IU students in the '60s and '70s, a national political issue rose to the forefront. The Vietnam War aroused a great deal of passion and led to many campus demonstrations. \nBrantlinger said he witnessed many acts of anti-war protesting during that time period.\n"Many of us were very moved and encouraged by student idealism," Brantlinger said. "It was inspiring to be even on the fringes of both the anti-war movement and the Civil Rights movement." \nApril 30, 1970, about 1,000 students protested a speech by former president Richard Nixon on Cambodia. Windows were broken in residence halls and a Bloomington bank. The demonstration lasted until the early morning hours.\nDuring that time, students were advised to carry a piece of cloth wet with vinegar, in case they got maced. People were also told to wear boots or shoes with socks, so if they came in contact with police boots, injury would be minimal.\nA leaflet circulated around campus at the time told students that, "The main thing is to cover as much skin areas as possible in case of MACE or tear gas. The first effect from these chemicals is fright and therefore, panic. That is your enemy, too. Don't rub the chemicals."\nBut members of the IU community took measures to prevent clashes between police and protesters.\n"I went as a faculty observer to a number of the demonstrations," Brantlinger said. "We were both anti-war and hoping by attending the demonstrations to keep them moderate, and I think we were fairly successful here at Indiana."\nTuition raises\nStudent fee increases also raised controversy, with raises for in-state undergraduate tuition per semester from $195 to $325, and out-of-state from $525 to $745. The fervor culminated in a lock-in of student, faculty and administrators May 8, 1969, in Ballantine Hall. \nA committee meeting was taking place in the Faculty Lounge when students blockaded the doors to the room. They demanded the board of trustees be brought to the meeting to discuss the fee increase.\nThree hours later, all hostages were released under a compromise agreement, but the climate at IU was once again tumultuous.\nDiversity recognition\nThe Student Coalition, a multicultural group of campus leaders formed in the mid-1990s, was involved in protesting both a Zeta Beta Tau fraternity hazing incident and implementing University changes in minority policies. These changes included the addition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day to the University calendar as an official holiday with canceled classes. \n"No individual dispossessed group could really leverage enough weight to really change the University in any significant way. That's the climate that we were organizing in," Ryan Pintado-Vertner, one of the Coalition organizers, said. "We came up with the whole list of demands generated by each sort of group and us collectively."\nThe list of proposed changes, sometimes referred to as the "King Day demands," included implementation of a Latino studies department and creation of an Asian Culture Center. The Coalition took these demands into the protesting arena Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 1997.\nRepresentatives of more than 33 student groups combined with students and faculty on the steps of Showalter Fountain to make their cause heard. The Coalition distributed flyers to ensure the demonstration remained peaceful.\n"The key thing is that they were organized. For the first time since I've been in office, students representing various organizations came together," Bloomington Chancellor Kenneth Gros Louis said in a 1997 Arbutus article. "In the past, black students, Latino students and students from the GLB community made separate requests."\nZBT incident\nAnother Student Coalition protest ignited when the Zeta Beta Tau fraternity sent its pledges on a controversial scavenger hunt in October 1997. The hunt included such items as a picture of "any funny-lookin' Mexican" and the "impression of a nipple (female) in a jar of peanut butter." The fraternity was subsequently expelled and reinstated in December 1999.\nThe Coalition took action before the expulsion to ensure ZBT was punished, this time organizing protests at the fraternity house. \n"Our mind set was already firmly opposed to that kind of racist absurdity," Pintado-Vertner said. "So their scavenger hunt list became an opportunity for us to help students of color on campus organize against something they already deeply despised and wanted to change anyways.\n"ZBT was just one manifestation among one thousand, and students of color knew that."\nWilliam Wiggins, acting chair of the Department for Afro-American Studies, said the Coalition's efforts brought much-needed attention to the issue of racism in the greek system.\n"Very clearly the demonstrations and the publicity that came from it played a major role in bringing the attention of the administration and also the national body of the fraternity to what was going on," Wiggins said. "It struck a nerve."\nLegacy of activism\nBoycotts, riots and police action have all been part of IU's protesting tradition. And while this tradition has moved into more recent times, there is some continuity.\n"The important thing about protests and demonstrations is there is an indication that students are active and concerned," McKaig said. "Protests are a healthy part of campus life and a good attempt to get other people concerned about issues you are concerned about."\nWiggins agreed, saying, "Somehow the idea, which is I guess is as old as the tea party, is the concept of a concerted public demonstration of one's beliefs or one's troubles can have an impact."\nClick here for photos of protests at IU through the years.
(10/11/00 5:44am)
Almost a month after President Myles Brand was originally scheduled to give his State of the University address, he delivered the speech to the University community Tuesday in the Frangipani Room of the Indiana Memorial Union. Brand, also a philosophy professor, invoked the teachings of Ralph Waldo Emerson, Plato and Descartes to convey his message of the importance of the arts and humanities.\nSpeaking once again in the spotlight of television cameras, now commonplace for Brand, he said the arts and humanities have experienced a decline in status and support because of "increased attention to the medical and life sciences and information technology." He said decline needs to be reversed.\n"Several decades ago, 75 percent of entering freshman indicated that their primary reason for attending college was to develop a philosophy of life, which is a surrogate for interest in the liberal arts," Brand said. "Now, 75 percent say they attend college to gain career skills."\nDuring his speech, Brand also referred briefly to incivility among some faculty members. Since the riots after the firing of former men's basketball coach Bob Knight, civility has been a hot topic on the Bloomington campus.\nBrand said he is trying to call attention to the issue but that no formal plans are in the works to change the situation.\n"There is some interruptive action by some disgruntled faculty, and I think that is unfortunate," Brand said after his speech.\nGail Hanson, professor of physics, said she would not call the faculty disgruntled but said that people are upset.\n"It is people who honestly want to see the University doing everything at the highest level that it can," Hanson said. "We feel that we don't have adequate support to do that. It's not a question of our own personal interest."\nBrand set forth several proposals for improving the arts and humanities.\nBrand said he will make $4 million available in research grants to support scholarship and creative work in the humanities. Funding for these areas is waning, Brand said, and the extra money is a way to help close the gap. His four-year plan would begin this spring.\nBut Hanson said she questions the plan, especially because of the deficits many schools have fallen into recently.\n"If Brand could come up with $4 million for whatever it is he's planning to do, then why can't there be money to balance the budget in the College of Arts and Sciences?" Hanson said.\nAnother plan Brand set forth was the appointment of a University-wide task force of faculty members and administration to propose new ways of enhancing the arts and humanities.\nSince this is also a year when the state legislature decides how much money to allocate to IU, Brand also set priorities for the budget. He said the University's first priority for the biennial budget request is the new School of Informatics and that the first capital priority is a new science building for the Bloomington campus.\nAfter speaking about the arts and humanities for 10 minutes, the insertion of two science-based areas as the top budget priorities was Brand being realistic, not inconsistent, said James Sherman, president of the Bloomington Faculty Council and professor of psychology.\n"Yes, they can be in conflict with each other," Sherman said. "You have to have both parts to do a good job"
(10/03/00 11:17pm)
College of Arts and Sciences: \nCredit differs widely between majors. See advisers in specific departments. \nKelley School of Business: \nThrough the Business Placement Office, students have an opportunity to supplement classroom experience with full-time paid employment in the form of internships. Internships are available each semester, including summer. The number of credit hours varies between departments.\nSchool of Education: \nInternships range up to six credit hours. There are different requirements for each internship class.\nSchool of Health, Physical Education and Recreation: \nRequired grade point average is 3.0. Up to 10 credits can be earned for internships.\nSchool of Fine Arts:\nApparel merchandising majors can gain up to 6 credit hours by working in an industry-approved professional experience. \nSchool of Journalism: \nStudents may earn up to three credit hours for properly supervised internships, as long as they arrange to meet the school's requirements before taking the internship. Students may not apply the credit to the minimum of 30 hours required for the journalism major, and they can use it only as elective credit in the total 123 credit hours required for the degree.\nSchool of Public and Environmental Affairs: \nInternships may be used for elective credit only. Interns must write a summary report and be evaluated by their supervisor. Students must get prior approval from their faculty adviser and supervisor and must be in good academic standing.\nSchool of Library and Information Science: \nSixty on-site hours are required for each credit hour. The most that can be earned is three credits.
(10/03/00 6:58pm)
When Tom Ayres graduated from the University of Virginia in 1968, he thought he wanted to pursue a career using his history degree. Thirty years later, he has worked for daily newspapers and now specializes in environmental media relations.\n"History involves writing and reading, so it does have some relation, but a loose relation, to journalism," Ayres said. "It's not too far-fetched, but it's certainly not too related."\nAyres now does environmental public relations work for American Electric Power in Columbus, Ohio. Like many college graduates, Ayres found himself working at a career unrelated to his degree. He said if he had to do college again, he would have majored in a field more suited to his academic strengths.\n"I wish I would have gotten into communications, because I now realize how important it is to be able to communicate clearly," he said. "So if I had to do it all over again, I would probably be a communications major."\nAccording to the IU Web site, 71 percent of IU students will change their major at least once during their college careers.\nMany famous people have graduated from college with degrees in fields other than that in which they now work. Isiah Thomas has a criminal justice degree, Brooke Shields has one in French literature and Steve Martin has a sociology degree.\nAt IU, several programs are designed to make sure students take full advantage of their major, although the importance of what students major in is debatable.\nRima Merriman, program coordinator for the Individualized Major Program, said the subject students actually major isn't as important as many think.\n"The major often does not matter. It depends on what you are applying for," Merriman said. "Many students don't understand that."\nMerriman's program enables students to pursue a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Arts and Sciences but is also designed to meet students' individual goals and interests. Generally these program students are pursuing degrees that do not follow typical departmental and disciplinary routes.\nWhile many students graduate from college feeling pressure to find a job in their respective major, IMP students have a number of options.\n"It makes them stand out," Merriman said. "They can say, 'If I figured this out for one field, I can figure it out for another field.'"\nProgram coordinator for exploratory student resources Tom Kenyon said that while he thinks majors are important in career choices, a wide range of academic experience is helpful in the real world.\nKenyon named several careers, such as optometry, elementary education and physical therapy, that require a specific major, but many careers will accept a variety of majors.\n"In most cases, if you're not choosing something like optometry, there's probably several majors that could be good matches for you," Kenyon said. "There's not this one right major that you have to find."\nKenyon also stressed finding a major that fits what students are good at and what they enjoy doing ensure a wide range of jobs after graduation.\n"You have to find that course that is in December at 8 in the morning and five degrees and snowing and you wouldn't think about skipping it," he said. "It's really about figuring out not what you want to do over your whole career, but just your starting point."\nNow that Ayres has a chance to reflect on his college experience, he said he would have done many things differently, especially academically. \nAt the University of Virginia in the late 1960s, such university programs as University Division and exploratory services were not available.\nThe University was also more liberal-arts oriented, stressing English and history. Neither journalism nor computer science degrees were offered then. \n"I think my own personal experience when I was in college was to have a good time and also get out. It was only as I got into history that I really got into it," Ayres said.\n"Looking back through the eyes of an adult, I would probably have taken a much more serious approach with an eye to what I wanted to do later on"
(09/27/00 5:52am)
Former IU women's basketball coach Jim Izard filed a federal discrimination complaint Aug. 28 against IU, claiming his March dismissal was based on his gender.\nIn the complaint, filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Izard accused the University of sex and age discrimination and a violation of the Equal Pay Act.\nAt the end of March, Izard, 52, was replaced by Kathi Bennett, 37, previously the women's basketball coach at the University of Evansville. Izard was the last male coach remaining among the Big Ten women's basketball teams.\nIn his last year at IU, Izard made $76,775, and never had more than a one-year contract during his tenure as IU's coach. Bennett was hired under a multi-year contract for $110,000 per year.\nJunior Jill Chapman, one of last year's team captains, said she thinks Izard's firing was based more on wins and losses than gender. Chapman said she never once heard her teammates discussing the fact that Izard was male.\n"I don't think that's the reason," Chapman said. "It was just his philosophy and not having a winning season last season."\nShe singled out specific areas, such as substitution situations, she felt he did not handle well. \nBut Izard said athletics director Clarence Doninger told him numerous times he wanted a female to coach the team.\n"I've had it said to me in meetings with Clarence, and I've had it said to me informally from Clarence," Izard said. "I was terminated, and a female was put in that post. It was not the right thing for them to do."\nVice President for Public Affairs and Government Relations Christopher Simpson said he was unable to comment on the case because of pending litigation. \nIndianapolis attorneys Ida Lamberti and Patricia Grow are representing Izard. Lamberti said Izard's performance as a coach was never examined during his 12-year IU career.\n"He was never formally or informally evaluated during his time there," Lamberti said.\nIzard said the only type of evaluation was "goal-setting," where he and Doninger would map out goals they wanted the women's basketball program to accomplish. Izard said this practice started about three years ago with all athletic coaches.\n"They may call it review, but it was called goal-setting," Izard said. "They can twist it anyway they want to, but it was goal setting."\nDuring the course of his 12-year career at IU, Izard compiled a 188-158 record, making him the winningest coach in the program's history. His best Big Ten finish was third place, and last season the Hoosiers tied for eighth in the conference with a 5-11 record.\n"We tried to run (the program) first-class with a high integrity," Izard said. "I was very much of a team player there. Clarence has even told me that. It was just a total involvement, and we did that for 12 years."\nIzard said he and his staff always "followed the chain of command" and "worked within the frame of the department."\nThe former coach emphasized he does want some sort of validation to his cause, but he also said he wants to prevent the same thing from happening to other coaches.\n"I really thought a long time about this, and it's not something I just did overnight," Izard said. "I just felt like it was very important that it didn't continue with other coaches."\nUntil the dispute is resolved, Izard is living in Florida and looking at his future coaching options. He is entertaining coaching at other colleges and also considering the WNBA.\n"I'm volunteering to do some work with the Boys and Girl's Club because there are no coaching positions available from now until mid-February," Izard said. "I obviously do want to coach again"
(09/22/00 5:46am)
Local Boy Scouts are being forced to re-evaluate their funding sources after the Monroe County United Way board ruled to cut funding to groups that refuse to sign a nondiscrimination policy. \nThe Boy Scouts cannot sign the policy, scout executive Randy Brown said, due to the barring of homosexual leaders and scouts from their organization.\n"We're not going to sign it. We're not able to sign it," Brown said. "It's because our policy does not permit us to have homosexuals in leadership positions."\nThe policy, which covers discrimination based on race, religion, gender or sexual orientation, is the first in Indiana to extend its nondiscrimination policy to member agencies.\nThe Boy Scouts are not mentioned by name in the document, but officials acknowledged the policy was prompted by concern over a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that allows the Boy Scouts to bar homosexuals from their ranks.\nA United Way chapter in Maine and one in Rhode Island both adopted similar policies after the Supreme Court upheld the Boy Scouts' right to bar homosexuals from the organization. Eight other United Way chapters nationwide had passed similar policies before the ruling, according to the national United Way of America.\nEven though the policy was unanimously approved, United Way of Monroe County Board President Barry Lessow said it was a difficult decision.\n"There was an increased awareness in the community that the scouts did have this policy that excluded gay people and people who would not take an oath to God from being members or volunteers or leaders in the scouts," he said.\n"Especially because of the increased publicity, we've heard a lot from members of the community telling us they were uncomfortable supporting United Way and in turn supporting the Boy Scouts and this policy from a fairly widespread group of people who felt this was something they weren't comfortable with." \nLessow added the board came away with "with a very strong sense that people really value equal access to all people in the community."\nWord of the Monroe County agency's decision got response from other United Way groups statewide.\n"We are listening to any feedback we get from the community on this very sensitive subject and sharing it with our volunteer board members," Ellen K. Annala, president of the United Way of Central Indiana, said to The Associated Press.\nThe Boy Scouts chapter in Bloomington received $22,000 from both donor-designated money as well as general United Way money last year, Brown said. Six thousand dollars of that was from the donor-designated money.\nDonor-designated money is money that contributors specifically allocate to the Boy Scouts. This funding will still be allowed to be given through the United Way to the Boy Scouts.\nThere are three options the Boy Scouts have to replace the lost funding, Brown said.\nThe first method is to continue the donor-designated money to the Boy Scouts through the United Way. Another is improving the Boy Scouts' own fundraising efforts. The third involves doing away with some of the current activities the organization offers.\n"We would be forced to reduce our services in this county, and therefore reduce the number of kids involved in scouting," Brown said. "That's the last option."\nThe Associated Press contributed to this story.
(09/05/00 6:43am)
Once again, U.S. News and World Report has given IU a mediocre ranking. \nRecently, IU has fallen within the second tier of schools when evaluated in areas such as SAT and ACT scores, freshmen retention numbers and alumni giving rate.\nThis year was no different.\nWhile IU ranked 26th among public universities, the Kelley School of Business's undergraduate program picked up some of the slack, garnering a 10th place overall ranking for business schools.\nMarc Dollinger, chairman of the undergraduate program at the school of business and a professor of business administration, said several of the factors for overall ranking work against IU, such as standardized test scores and selectivity rank. Part of this stems from the nature of Indiana's public universities, he said. Traditionally, they have tried to accept a large number of students to provide as many people as possible with higher education.\n"We get killed a little bit in the national rankings, but clearly we would not want to have it any other way," Dollinger said. \nHe compared IU to schools like the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Both schools are more selective, Dollinger said, but "I feel they don't really serve their states as well as we do."\nAlthough many students and parents use the rankings to compare potential schools, not everyone agrees on their merit.\n"As with all rankings, they have to be looked at critically," said Vic Viola, distinguished professor of chemistry. "Nonetheless, this is probably the most widely read of the rankings, and I think U.S. News makes an honest effort to select relevant criteria. What you really need to do is look at the individual criteria to see IU's strengths and weaknesses among those."\nBruce Cole, distinguished professor of fine arts, said there are other rankings he thinks hold more weight.\n"They are not as scientific as the new Florida Center Report, which also assigns IUB a low rating, but they do give a snapshot of how colleges and universities rank comparatively," Cole said. "And, they are far and away the most important rankings for prospective students and their parents, who rely on them to choose where they will apply."\nThe overall university rankings are determined by quantitative data, including areas such as student-to-faculty ratio, class size and predicted graduation rates, combined with a reputation score.\nJunior Justin McNall said that while he paid attention to rankings when he was choosing schools, some give them too much weight.\n"I don't think they're that important, and I think IU's kind of underrated," McNall said. "As far as the Midwest goes, you can get a pretty good job in the Midwest coming out of the IU business school."\nMcNall is an accounting major in the Kelley School of Business, which scored well in the ranking.\nThe accounting program ranked seventh overall, and ten other Kelley programs were in the top 10. Human resources and general management were the highest finishers, each coming in at fourth.\n"If you look at the ratings, you'll see schools like MIT and Carnegie-Melon get very high rankings in limited areas," Dollinger said. "We are highly rated in all the different areas."\nIndividual schools' rankings are determined from a questionnaire sent to schools. University representatives rank each school based mostly on reputation, Dollinger said. \n"We've been actively promoting the Kelley School of Business in the press," he said. "Many people in academia graduated from Indiana University, and they know it's a fine program. Because we're a big school, it gets the word around."\nWhile Dollinger admits the ranking system is not the best judge of a school, he said it provides students with a tool for comparison.\n "I think that the public wants to know which are the best schools, and there are lots of different ways to go about that, and one of those is reputation," he said. "In a perfect world, the customer would be able to get all the information they need without an intermediary. This is a kind of advertising, and it helps to sell magazines."\nMargaret Garrison, director of communications and marketing for the business school, said the school's tradition contributes to its high ranking. She said the schools pushes its students hard to continue this tradition.\n "The reputation is something that's been in existence for a long time," Garrison said. "The school has very high standards of excellence."\nWhen it comes down to it, Dollinger said, rankings are important but not everything.\n"I think they play strongly with parents because they want to know they're getting a good bang for their buck," he said. "When the students themselves are making the decision they look at more things than just the rankings"
(09/04/00 6:00am)
The question as to why IU Bloomington students have class on Labor Day, a federal holiday, arises every year.\nAnd most people who ask this don't even know the origin and meaning of the holiday, said Peter Seybold, division of labor studies director.\n"A lot of people don't know the significance of Labor Day, and the fact that it was tied originally to the fight for the eight-hour work day," Seybold said. "That's an example of something that everyone benefited from, but they don't realize that it came from the labor movement."\nLabor Day is deeply rooted in American history. According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Web site, the day is "dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of our country." \nBasically, the holiday is in place to honor working Americans and remember their struggles for better working conditions and reforms, Seybold said.\nSamuel Gompers, the founder and president of the American Federation of Labor between 1886 and 1924, once said Labor Day should be recognized by everyone because more than any other holiday, it applies to every American citizen.\nSeybold echoed that statement but added the labor movement is not one that ended after Gompers' era, but it is still an important part of today's society.\n"I think that originally the connection to the labor movement and the effort to reform society was much clearer," he said. "And now it is more of an end-of-the-summer holiday, and its connection to the past is not very clear to a lot of people."\nBecause Labor Day is a federal holiday, classes will not be in session at most public universities. Purdue University, Ball State University and Indiana State University students will enjoy a day off from classes today. All three are public schools.\n"It's quite unusual that it's a federal holiday and it's not recognized," Seybold said.\nRichard McKaig, dean of students, said there is a calendar committee to examine whether IU has certain days like Labor Day off. The committee has been looking at the Labor Day issue, but has made no final recommendations.\n"The perspective is that we haven't had any specific actions yet by the committee," McKaig said. \nMcKaig said there have been several plans in the past to rearrange the schedule, and at one time, Labor Day was added to make up for other days off.\n"As I recall, there was a time when we were talking about taking the entire Thanksgiving week off," he said. "The idea was if we were going to take Monday and Tuesday off, we would have to replace them."\nHe also said some courses, especially those in the sciences, need as many complete weeks as possible for continuity in class.\nGraduate student Peter Seaman said he has a unique perspective on having classes on Labor Day, because he was in the work force for many years and is used to having the holiday.\n"It's kind of weird that my 6-year-old daughter is off school and I'm not," Seaman said. "But if you think about when we come back to school in January, Martin Luther King Day is a holiday. Once you start making a bunch of exceptions, where do you stop?"\nSeybold emphasized that even in today's society, the ideals of the labor movement that were the motivation for Labor Day are still valid.\n"I think it's very important to recognize that working people today have a real need for labor unions and the struggle for dignity in the workplace continues," he said. "So this is not just a holiday to honor factory workers that are unionized. It's really a holiday for everyone, and it's very much connected to our democracy."\nAnd McKaig said he can sympathize with students. \n"I'll be in the office on Monday like some others will be"
(08/31/00 6:43am)
In higher education, the dollar still reigns supreme.\nThere is no place where this is more prevalent than here in Indiana, as a month-long clash between two education titans over just that - money - seems to be losing some steam.\nIU President Myles Brand and Indiana Higher Education Commissioner Stan Jones are at opposing ends of the spectrum in a battle over funding for IU's regional campuses and the state's new community college program. \nFour pilot community colleges opened for the fall semester in Gary, Lafayette, Indianapolis and Evansville, through a partnership between Ivy Tech State College and Vincennes University. During the next six years, 23 community colleges will be opened across the state.\nTwo of those cities already house IU regional campuses - IU-Northwest in Gary and IU-Purdue University at Indianapolis.\nWhile both men are standing behind their respective institutions in the struggle for money and students, it appears progress is being made between the two factions.\n"The most important point is that the conversations with the commission are headed in that direction, and we are making genuine progress," Brand said. "The community college system is evolving, and as it evolves, we will work together with the commission in a complementary way."\nIU and the commission are in talks to resolve issues. Brand and Jones said the discussions have been productive, although neither would venture a guess as to when anything official would be announced.\nBut relations have not always been so productive between the two leaders. \nAt a University Faculty Council meeting in March, Brand called Jones "delusional" and publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the commissioner and the community college plan.\n"(Jones) sees the community college as becoming the most important institution of higher learning in the state with the lion\'s share of the resources and students," Brand said. "He sees a large community college base, and a much smaller set of residential research campuses than we have now by numbers of students, certainly no academic development on these campuses."\nHe continued, "I think that the Bloomington campus and Indiana University as a whole has not been very well-funded. On a per-student basis, Bloomington is 10th out of 10 in the Big Ten. Next year, the community college effort will take $6 million from the base budget, out of the Bloomington campus."\nThirty or 40 years ago, Indiana lawmakers agreed not to start the state community college system so IU could branch out with regional campuses, Jones said. \nThe legislature allocated $6 million to the community colleges for their first year of existence. Another financial implication is the 8.5 percent increase in higher education spending over the next 10 years with a state budget surplus. The legislature also temporarily froze tuition. \n"Forty-four of the states have strong community college systems," Jones said. "And it hasn't harmed the funding or student influx of their state schools."\nRepresentatives of both schools in Gary admit they were hesitant at first, but now said they are more optimistic.\nJose Valtierra, director of student services at Ivy Tech's Gary campus, said his school is trying to make education available for everyone in the area.\n"We'd like to see here in northwest Indiana for any individual to come to Ivy Tech, to Purdue, to IU-Northwest and to be able to take the classes they want to take, to have that seamless flow of education," Valtierra said. There is also a Purdue University regional campus in Gary.\nAnd Bill May, executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at IU-Northwest, said, "The initial reaction here is: 'Do we need another school in Indiana?' But after we got through that initial reaction, we think it can be done in this area."\nWhile the regional campus and community college struggle seems to be settling down, at least for now, so are the hostile comments between Jones and Brand. \n"Our relationship currently is one of professional colleagues working toward common goals," Brand said. "There are areas in which we differ, but nonetheless we have a strong working relationship."\nJones' description was to the point.\n"I'd say that we have a relationship that's professional and cordial," he said.\nAfter the struggle between two of Indiana's most influential education leaders dies down, though, there is still the question of what will happen to both systems. \n"I think it will be a cooperative relationship where the community colleges will develop as a feeder system for the regional campuses," Jones said. \nIn a perfect world, Brand said, "The best possible situation would be that the two institutions would be entirely complementary in their offerings and together would serve the full population of the region."\nBut, he added, "The state does not have enough resources to duplicate effort"
(08/28/00 6:04am)
Freshman Jasmyn Lagenour pictured moving to college and making her first home away from home special.\nInstead, she is living in a dorm lounge with a closet made of two wooden poles and a steel bar.\nLagenour arrived at her residence hall to find she had no room assignment. As of Friday afternoon, 130 other students had the same problem, said Patrick Connor, halls of residence director. Connor said they are living in dorm lounges until further notice.\n"Next week we do our official check of who has showed up and who hasn't," he said. "Once we call people who haven't showed up, we believe in two or three weeks we can have everyone out."\nResidential Programs and Services is doing several things to combat the overcrowding. Two houses of Ashton Center previously closed because of a lack of need have been reopened, and several floors in Eigenmann Hall were redone to house new students.\nLagenour came to campus with a letter from RPS containing a room assignment and a roommate. But when she got to Read Center, Lagenour was told RPS lost her contract and she would have to settle for a lounge temporarily.\n"I was very upset," said Lagenour, from Jasper, Ind. "My mom didn't want to leave me here."\nShe is living in the Read-Landes fifth floor lounge with another woman. Her original room and roommate were both given to someone else. She did joke that the air conditioning and large space is one plus.\nLagenour said RPS told her it could take anywhere from two to eight weeks until she has a permanent room.\nAlthough the University has no current plans to build more on-campus living, Connor said there are other options that can be explored first.\n"We have five buildings in Ashton we are using for administrative purposes," he said. Offices of several campus groups are currently being housed there, partly because of construction in other campus buildings. It is the only space in the dorms that is not currently used for housing.\nBruce Jacobs, associate vice chancellor for administrative affairs, said new student numbers and dorm retention rates are high this year, making it a difficult task to assign everyone to a room. The freshman class is estimated to be about 6,700 students, and the retention rate for the dorms was close to 30 percent this semester. \nOverall, between 10,200 and 10,300 students will call a residence hall their home this year, almost 500 students more than last year, Connor said. \nJacobs promised in the March 20 edition of the Indiana Daily Student that there would be plenty of room to house all students on campus. \nBut Jacobs said by the end of June his office realized there would be a problem. \n"It wasn't a surprise," he said. "We probably knew about it as orientation got going.\n "Basically, we continued to get reservations in, and we've had a policy for as long as IU has had residence halls. We will not turn students away," Jacobs said. "We will not tell a student you will not have a place to live."\nSenior Jason Dudich, president of the Residence Hall Association, said people should understand RPS is doing everything they can to ensure the situation is quickly cleared up.\n"We tell them they can live in lounges, and it's up to them," Dudich said, "knowing down the road they're going to get a room."\nAfter remedying the problem this year, with even bigger freshman classes expected in the upcoming years, long-term solutions are being examined by RPS. \n"These next couple of years will be pretty crowded," Connor said. "Should we determine a ceiling for the number of rooms we give out as double singles? This year we rented out more then last year, but that was because of a bigger occupancy.\n"We basically don't have anymore space."\nDudich stressed that although an inconvenience, the overcrowding indicates the residence hall staffs are doing something right.\n"This is a positive thing. We're getting more students in," Dudich said. "More students want to live on campus."\nMeanwhile, Lagenour said she didn't expect to start the year off like this.\n"It's not as bad as I thought, but I wanted the dorm experience," she said. "I don't know when I'm going to have to move again"
(08/25/00 3:41am)
The faculty filed in wearing colorful caps and gowns, the administration evoked the wisdom of historical figures and the students sat with their parents, looking around at their new classmates.\nThis all took place Wednesday at this year's installment of the Freshman Induction Ceremony, making the Class of 2004 officially a part of IU.\nAfter the students, parents, faculty and platform party marched into Assembly Hall to the music of the IU Brass Ensemble, President Myles Brand introduced the people who will be instrumental in the students' lives during their college years.\n"This is the beginning of an adventure for you," Brand said. \nThe president brought some humor into his speech, saying, "You'll learn that a $40 psychology textbook is only worth $12 after 16 weeks -- whether you used it or not. So I suggest you get your money's worth and use it."\nBrand also reassured the families that their children were in good hands.\n"The entire University community stands behind you," he said. "We will all reach out to lend a hand."\nHe was followed by remarks from Vice Chancellor for Enrollment Services Don Hossler, who reminded all the freshmen that no matter how they ended up at IU, there is a network here to include all students.\nHossler told the audience that 64 countries were represented in their class, as well as every state, the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories.\nSenior Meredith Suffron, president of the IU Student Association, gave the audience tips she has learned in her three years as a Hoosier.\n"My experience here has been outstanding," Suffron said. "I was slightly homesick, but that only lasted a few hours."\nAlthough on a campus with 36,000 students, she reminded the students, "you\'re not a number or a statistic."\nThe next speaker was Kenneth R.R. Gros Louis, IU Bloomington chancellor and vice president for academic affairs. He recently announced his retirement effective at the end of the 2000-2001 academic year, making this his last freshman class induction. \nGros Louis made a number of comparisons between when he was in college and now. Among those included the fact that when the new students' parents were in college, the United States was deep into the Vietnam War. But last year Gros Louis and the School of Education deans were able to travel to Hanoi.\nHe also promised the freshmen class, whose members range in age from 15 to 45, that by the time they leave IU they will care about issues and countries currently unbeknownst to them. \nAfter the singing of "Hail to Old IU" and a benediction, the freshmen were officially a part of IU's history. \n"This is definitely the time when you're given the opportunity to be your own person," Suffron said.
(08/24/00 11:43pm)
Signs that new students are arriving were all over campus Wednesday.\nThese students were meeting their new roommates for the first time, buying books for their first classes and starting their new life as Hoosiers.\n"They have a lot on their plates right now," said senior Jason Dudich, president of the Residence Hall Association. "But it's a good experience for them."\nThis is Welcome Week, when RHA and Residential Programs and Services have many activities planned to get students settled into campus. These activities include Traditions and Spirit of IU, designed to get students excited about IU athletics, and Midnight Madness, where buses take students to local stores from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. free of charge.\nDudich reminded new students that although everything they experience this week will be overwhelming, eventually life at IU will seem normal.\n"Don't think that you have to do everything at once," Dudich said. "It will all die down in a week or two."\nOne of the biggest hassles during the first week is meeting a new roommate. Director for Residential Operations Bob Weith said his staff tries to handle any situations that might arise.\n"I would anticipate there will be some roommate problems that we hope our staff can work through," he said.\nOne way to alleviate these conflicts is through the roommate agreements all dorm residents must sign this week, under the mediation of their resident assistants. This agreement tackles such issues as telephone messages, studying habits and cleanliness.\n"It forces the action," Weith said.\nHe also encouraged new students to get out and meet their neighbors, especially because many students are from small towns and this is their first time living in a place as big as IU.\n"We hope that they don't close their doors in this day of everybody being on their computers," he said. "We would like it if they'll be assertive about meeting each other face to face."\n"Beyond getting out and mingling and being tolerant, we have a lot of folks who have come from somewhat closed communities," Weith said, stressing tolerance of people different than themselves.\nSecond-year student Erin Ransford, president of Foster Quad, who was also an orientation assistant, said they had a constant stream of people moving in today with very few problems. She said last year when she was getting acquainted with IU, she tried to just "take it easy."\n"This was the most stressful week in the whole world for me," Ransford said. "I didn't know what was going on."\nRansford said in Foster their resident assistants are helping students feel comfortable in their new home.\n"Our RA staff is wonderful," she said. "They all just seem really friendly and outgoing, and I think they are going to do an excellent job welcoming our residents."\nAnother issue many new students will be facing for the first time on a large level is the presence of alcohol and safety in general. Both RHA and RPS are taking steps to help new students deal with these things.\n"Pay close attention to safety issues," Weith said. "There's a bunch of partying that happens this time of year, and women in particular don't know the ropes.\n"Be careful with alcohol. Everybody knows it's out there, everybody know it's getting used and that there are some problems that go along it. Be safe in judgement and decisions."\nClick here for a list of Welcome Week events.