University of Alaska Fairbanks - Denali Yearbook (Fairbanks, AK)

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Chancellor says grades too high Chancellor O ' Rourke created some controversy in February when he announced that he felt UAF grade point averages are too high. Grade distribution figures released in January by the Office of Institutional Planning showed that the overall GPA at UAF the spring of 1982 was 2.87. According to the report, 44 percent of grades in the lower division were A ' s and B ' s, and 55 percent of upper division grades fell into that category. The problem is not unique to Alaska, O ' Rourke said in an interview, but laying aside comparisons, he said, The question I ' m raising more is do we Housing — Continued from page 17 according to Karla Hart, ASUA legislative coordinator. This completion date will probably now be even later, as neither bill had been passed by the end of May. The new housing will be two-bedroom townhouse style residences for single and married students, according to Eric Jozwiak, student housing officer. The current plan calls for the construction of 175 apartments in two phases. Originally, phase one was to include half the residences, and phase two would include the remaining half. For financial reasons, phase one now only includes one third of the apartments, leaving two thirds to be completed in phase two. The Board of Regents approved the schematics for the housing at its regular meeting in Juneau January 20 and 21. In late October Chancellor O ' Rourke said in a memo that several regents had expressed doubts about the apartment-style housing and had indicated a preference for the traditional dormitory type of approach. The Chancellor said that he felt that the townhouse style was the type of housing the students want. From the informa- tion that I have received from students and other workers in the field, this seems to be more in keeping with the modern university and student housing desires and needs. With funding for the new student residences still pending in the legislature it remains to be seen whether or not these student housing needs will be fulfilled. entice a student to learn more? Do we allow too much room to coast? In a memorandum titled Grade Inflation, the Chancellor wrote, Evidently, we have an extremely above average quality of student who attends the University of Alaska— Fairbanks, although with only a 1.9 percent rejection rate on all applications, one wonders how this is possible. Dean of engineering, Vincent Haneman, said that he felt one reason for the high GPA ' s may be that in a school as small as UAF, the faculty is more dedicated to the student. I expect grades to be higher because we spend an inordinate amount of time with the student, he said. The chancellor said that he doesn ' t think that the majority of students take advantage of world broadening opportunities outside the classroom. As I was walking out of a recent public lecture, I thought maybe we should re- quire freshmen to attend seminars and special events, he said. But who ' s going to instigate such ideas? At this point it ' s in the hands of the deans, O ' Rourke said. They won ' t hear from me again until next fall when we ' ll look at last fall ' s averages. The site for the proposed new student residences is located northwest of the Moore- Bartlett-Skarland complex. A tentative completion date has been set for Fall 1985. The Affair Semi-Formal Valentine ' s Dance LIVE BAND PARADOX Saturday Night February 12th 9:00 p.m. till 2:00 am. $2.00 per person $3.00 per couple Sponsored by 6th floor Moore Headlines 19

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KSUA Continued from page 17 Erisman said that he had felt left out of the planning process for several weeks. When he heard that DiBene was working with out him on a proposal which he had conceived and submitted two years ago, Erisman decided, Why am I here? If I ' m not working to that end, then I have better things to do with my time. Other reasons for the resignations were included in a two and a half page memo submitted with their resignations and included the distribution of unmitigated and deflamatory (sic) rumors, the purpose of which can only be to discredit us for their own ends by DiBene and Senate members, an internal audit requested by DiBene, the implemention of new business policies by DiBene, low morale of ASUA staff, distribution of misinformation about Empire Com- munications Inc. (EMCOM), a private corporation owned by Erisman, Tilson and former program director Kelly McClure, and a major philosophical difference between KSUA and DiBene regarding ASUA ' s role in the university. The proposal DiBene was working on calls for a membership corporation in which each ASUA member has one vote in the KSUA corporation. A board of directors comprised of students, College residents and ASUA members would be elected by the corporation members. DiBene said that a major roadblock in working with KSUA management on the project was a potential conflict of interest involving EMCOM, which filed for an FM license in Juneau. Over and over I asked them to tell me they would not file (as EMCOM for the College license), and they wouldn ' t, DiBene said. Tilson and Erisman said they had not applied for the College license and EMCOM has not done anything in Fair- banks yet. I would really like to see KSUA on the air. But if it becomes apparent the open-air project is going to fail, we will consider it, Tilson said in an October interview. Continued on page 22 Loan Continued from page 17 interest rate be raised from the current 5 percent to 9 percent, the rate charged by the federal government on its student loan programs. The 5 percent rate was set in 1971, the first year Alaska awarded student loans. In looking at possible changes, the commission decided to make the program less attractive than now, according to Kerry Romesb urg, director of PSEC. Raising the interest rate to 9 percent may discourage people from borrowing what they don ' t need. The cost of the program has gone up, ASUA Rentals is pleased to announce that we have the following items items available to rent for the 1982-83 school year: Refrigerators, Televisions: $25 semester, $20 deposit each Skates (hockey figure): 75 cents day, $3.75 week Cross Country Equipment: skis, boots, poles $3 day, $5 week Snowshoes: $l day, $5 week Racquetball rackets: 50 cents day, $2.50 week Hours 9-10 am, 2-3 pm. Prices are slightly higher for faculty and staff. up, up in terms of the number of people participating, Romesburg said. More than $59 million was loaned to students for the 1982-83 school year, an increase of $12 million over the previous year. Romesburg said that while the PSEC is dedicated to providing education as cheaply as possible, the commission felt it necessary to recommend changes in light of increasing pressure from legislators. One often heard complaint, according to Romesburg, is that compared to the interest rates charged by other state loan programs and private lending institutions, the loan is a subsidy beyond what some may feel is reasonable. In mid-April there were two bills being drafted in the legislature to revise the student loan program. The House Special Committee on State Loans was drafting a bill which would raise the interest rate to 8 percent, reduce the forgiveness clause from 50 to 20 percent, and set loan amounts at $6,000 for undergraduates and $7,000 for graduates, except when necessary to cover the actual cost of tuition and required fees. In the Senate, the Health, Education and Social Services Committee was reworking a version of SB 209, which was introduced by the governor. Their Continued on page 22 Candlelight vigil attracts 300 students More than 300 people demonstrated their disapproval of Gov. Sheffield ' s student loan proposals at the candlelight vigil held February 18, according to John DiBene, ASUA president. It was excellent, DiBene said. Although many people stayed only briefly, DiBene felt the protest put ASUA ' s proposals before the governor. We are your future, shouted students as Lt. Gov. Stephen McAlpine spoke at the vigil. He told the crowd that screaming and shouting won ' t get things done, but that alternatives, such as writing letters to legislators, will. McAlpine also said students should provide legitimate alternatives to the governor ' s proposals, because the state cannot afford to continue the present program. ASUA followed up McAlpine ' s suggestions by sponsoring a letter writing campaign in Wood Center this week. Paper and envelopes were provided and by Feb. 23 300 letters had been collected, according to Karla Hart, ASUA legislative coordinator. Funding for the vigil and letter campaign came from Project Contin- uency, a $7,000 special discretionary fund, DiBene said. The vigil cost about $500, he said, including $200 for 500 candles and $300 for an ad in the Sun-Star. The paper and envelopes for the letter drive cost around $20.

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At a school as diverse as UAF, it ' s difficult to pinpoint the one event of last year that meant something to everybody. Let ' s face it— not everyone adores sports, enjoys university politics, follows a cause, or even reads the paper. But there was one event that did affect every student at UAF last fall— the tuition hike. Wham. Over the summer, when no one was looking, the Board of Regents voted to raise full-time status to 12 credits instead of 9, meaning that full-time students paid for three extra credits. Pretty sneaky, eh? But no one squalled too much. It ' s a little late when you ' ve already arrived at school, eager for another year of academic bliss. Last year was a banner year for enrollment too. Remember those pathetic stories of the Students Without a Room, the ones sleeping in the lounge, or in a room with two other students, just waiting for someone to bag it and go home so he could finally have a room to call Home? But it looks like overcrowding problems will be temporarily alleviated if the Legislature and governor finally approve construc- tion of an $11 million dormitory, which should be finished by 1985. Finally, 1982-83 will be remembered by the saga of KSUA. It ' s not over yet; the Student Media board of directors election failed to collect a quorum of interested students this spring. But they ' ll be back next year to try again. And so will the Class of ' 84, ' 85 and ' 86, the Skating Nanooks, Chancellor O ' Rourke, the Sun-Star, Denali, ASUA, winter Sherry Simpson CORRESPONDENCE Hardworking students Chancellor O ' Rourke, I am writing in regard to your remarks in the Sun-Star about the GPA ' s at UAF. From my viewpoint in the library reserve room, it looks like a beautiful Sunday afternoon. My view is not that great though because I couldn ' t find a desk next to the windows. They were all occupied. There are about 40 people in here now and a stroll through the library reveals that we 40 are by no means alone. I work hard for my grades, and suspect a majority of other students do too. I resent having my hard earned grades deemed insignificant because there seem to be a lot of them around. I prefer to agree with the idea that high grades are a result of faculty attention and student motivation. In a large, diverse educational environment, it ' s impossible to have a set standard of difficulty. Each student is different, struggling more with some classes than others. And please, rest assured that your educational philosophy is safe. Anxiety in the classroom is alive and well! Sincerely, Susan Ewing These letters were submitted for the March 4, 1983 issue of the Sun-Star. Sun-Star Staff: Left to right: Dan Joling (adviser), Diny Bryson (reporter), Anna Farneski (managing editor), Ron Kuczek Jr. (photographer), Sherry Simpson (editor), Michelle Oaede (advertising manager), Kate McKee (reporter), Mike Belrose (photo editor), Robert Petretti (columnist). Not Shown: John Fridrich (fall editor), Barb Kelly (fall photo editor, reporter), Paul Gruba (copy editor), Mark Wilkinson (reporter), Tony Marsico (reporter). 20 Headlines Hockey kudos I would like to publicly thank the University hockey team for a very exciting season. I think they all should take a bow for their display of talent and sportsman- ship. They are indeed a fine example of our athletic organizations. I would also like to thank my fellow students for staying with them. Truly a good time had by all. Ric Shafer, a job well done, despite the problems at UAF. There is no limit to what can be done with the right com- bination of players and coaches. I hope this combo stays together for some time to come. Who knows how far this season can go... perhaps a national title bid; but regardless of the outcome, you deserve our thanks and applause. Thank you, Jeffrey Scott The articles in this issue of the Sun-Star are comprised of portions of articles that appeared in issues of the Sun-Star during the 1982-83 school year. They are intended to give an overview of some important events that occurred over the year. We wish to express our thanks to the people who worked on the Sun-Star this year for allowing us to use their articles. Their cooperation was much appreciated. The Denali Staff