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

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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

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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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Tradition Stone returns The Tradition Stone returned to UAF this year after an absence of nearly a year. Three civil engineering students, Steve Pannone, Henry Knackstedt and Jim Baker, tracked down the wandering cement block in Texas, where it had been taken by a former UAF student. The three paid $200 to have the 400-pound block shipped to Seattle. From there it was sent to Fairbanks free of charge by Dick Kaas of Alaska Traffic Consultants. According to Pannone, the stone had been last seen on May 7, 1982, when it had appeared at the Engineers ' Picnic. At that time the stone was in the possession of 5 members of Tau Beta Pi, an engineer- ing honor society. Later, Gerry Foster, one of the five owners, had the stone shipped to Midland, Texas with his belongings, Pannone said. Pannone, Knackstedt and Baker contacted Foster and arranged to have the stone returned. Where the stone is now is a closely guarded secret, but Pannone said, It will show up at various functions, just keep your eyes peeled. You never know when. The Tradition Stone commemorates the death of the tradition of drinking on campus in 1957. In that year, former President Ernest Patty banned liquor from campus because he objected to the drinking parties happening in the dorms. Later, students held a torchlight parade in response. In his book, North Country Challenge, Patty wrote, Several hundred students marched to the front of the Student Union and erected a stone Jim Baker, Steve Pannone, and Henry Knackstedt display the Tradition Stone shortly after gaining possession of it in April. monument, on which they inscribed with a welding torch, ' Here Lies Tradition. ' A drama student, dressed in cap and gown, delivered the funeral oration. It was recorded and later I heard a playback. One by one, he recited the things I had done to break down campus tradition; after each charge he intoned, ' But Ernie is an honorable man. ' Since that fateful day, the stone has admirably illustrated the proverb, A rolling stone gathers no moss. According to an article in the Oct. 31, 1975 issue of the Polar Star, after 1957 freshmen were expected to produce the Tradition Stone at their annual bonfire. They usually acquired it by buying it back with several cases of beer from whoever owned it at that time; it was usually stolen (photo by Elnora Rosa Smith) back after the fire. At different times through various swindles, trade-offs and scams, the stone has been in the hands of Fred Brown, UAF alumnus and former Fairbanks representative, the fire depart- ment, and Safety and Security, as well as engineering students. According to the Polar Star article, rumors have had the stone making a round trip to Seattle, visiting Vietnam, lying on the bottom of the Chena for several years, and being sent c.o.d. to someone in Brazil. Apparently it was not accepted, and was returned c.o.d. Great hockey season After suffering through dismal, troubled seasons their first two years, the Skating Nanooks ended their third season with a much improved record, finishing with 18 wins and 8 losses. For the first time, they were eligible to compete in the NCAA Division II playoffs in Minnesota, and were ranked as high as fourth in the Division II Western standings and seventh in the Division II National standings. The team ' s successful season was due to pretty much a whole new team, said Ric Schafer, the team ' s head coach. He blamed last season ' s record on poor players. This year he and assistant coach Don Lucia recruited 15 new players and had six experienced players return. Schafer cited the new players as the reason for the improved team performance. They ' re able to score whenever they hit the ice. The Nanook ' s new-found success is especially impressive considering that 14 of the 21 team members were freshman. This also means that the Nanooks can look forward to another great season. Forward Kelly Schroeder, who graduated this year, is the only player who will not be returning, and Coach Schafer has announced that four new players have been recruited for next year. Desorcie named All-American Nanook hockey player Doug Desorcie was selected for the 1983 All-American College AHCA Hockey Team, but because of his class standing, he was ineligible to play. To be eligible for the team, a player must have senior class standing; Desorcie was a junior. He will be eligible to play this year if he is selected again. Desorcie was chosen because of his season record as a goalie. He had a goals- against record of 3.2 per game and a save percentage of 90 percent. Desorcie is a physical education major with a minor in psychology. He played two years in junior college in Saranac Lake, N.Y., his home town, before he was recruited by Al Turgeon in 1982. Headlines 21