OPINION t Page 4 Wednesday, November 16, 1983 The Michigan Daily - ------- -- . . . .......... . .. .. . . . ................... . .. Little new in minority administral Paul J. Fleuranges At their October meeting, the University regents, in an attempt .to handle more effec- tively a problem that has plagued the Univer- sity persistently, created a high level ad- ministrative position in the office of the vice president for academic affairs. Among the responsibilities of this position would be the coordination of the various programs that at- tempt to recruit and subsequently retain black and other minority students on campus. While one may not choose to question the sin- cerity of the regents' move, doubts can and should be raised about the strategy they have adopted in the wake of seven years of con- sistent declining enrollment figures for these same segments of the student population. HISTORICALLY, the University's record on this matter has been dismal (with noted ex- ceptions such as the increase in Asian and foreign students, and the recruitment and retention programs of the engineering and business schools). Official records show that the highest percentage of the student population ever attained by black students has been 7.7 percent; for all minority students that figure has not exceeded 10.7 percent. In 1970, with black enrollment at 3.5 percent, the failure of the administration and regents to diversify the University community and more equitably distribute its resources led black students to demand that the University: " increase the number of minority recruiters; " increase black enrollment to 10 percent by the 1973-74 academic year; " recruit more black faculty; " institute an intense support service program for entering black students; " increase the amount of financial aid resources targeted for minority students and solicit contributions for the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholarship Fund; " establish a black studies department; %/ i // 7 / / / /j / / "- 7 t, A I!IIhilI I j;, / /7/ What BAM did was push a lethargic ad- ministration to move more rapidly in the direc- tion of increasing black enrollment and providing the necessary resources to facilitate such an expansion. If BAM had not gone on strike, it is reasonable to assume that the ad- ministration would not have moved to put the issue of black and other minority student af- fairs on a front burner. Although a targeted area of the BAM agreement, the University has never reached its goal of 10 percent black student enrollment. In fact, the language of this goal has changed to include all minority students in the 10 percent figure. If this is the case, this goal has already been met. But there has been no talk of in- creasing black enrollment to the agreed upon figure - which was to have been accomplished 10 years ago. Since 1970, this figure has never been at- tained. Black student enrollment has already experienced but a 1.4 percent increase. This is hardly an accomplishment for a university which considers itself the flagship institution of the state and a peer institution of prestigious private universities across the nation. The recent disclosure of this fall's enrollment figure of 4.49 percent for black students stands as testimony to the University's failure to energetically and equitably distribute its vast resources in the pursuit of a more diversified university community. THE ESTABLISHMENT of an associate vice president of academic affairs for minority af- fairs, while a show of resolve for the Univer- sity, does little more than create yet another chief, while the little indians fall astray. A con- cern which, in Vice President for Academic Af- fairs and University Provost Billy Frye's wor- ds, would "require special attention" warrants a position of greater importance, visibility, and respect. The only possible place in the University structure (outside the regents) which yields such attributes is the office of the president. tor post Presumably, such a position would require this kind of stature if it were to be reasonably effec- tive - like the Affirmative Action Office. While stature is not the prime issue, effec- tiveness is. The task of increasing black as well as other minority student enrollment figures and retention rates is, to say the least, a dif- ficult and delicate task. This is especially true in the case of a university which is bent on becoming "smaller and better." To be successful, the position must provide careful, unbiased, critical scrutiny of all University offices and programs which serve students and minority students specifically; provide a mechanism whereby proposals for the restructuring and redesigning of these areas can be generated as deemed necessary through evaluation; and be a fully autonomous power so it can enforce such changes and any comprehensive policy developed through the course of any administrative action, Throughout and process, objectivity, not adherence to an "old boys network," should b'e foremost in the minds of any individuals under; taking what will be a very serious task. Under the present circumstances, the likelihood of this happening seems remote. A candidate generated out of an internal search process will not produce strategies indepen- dent of the paradigm in which they have been oriented and subsequently have been operating 4 in. This paradigm and the methods it has generated and implemented have not solved the problem to date. C In this context, a position in an office which is already seen as too powerful, too uncaring, and too overburdened - such as academic affairs - would seem self-defeating. This bold new step by the administration is neither and will uncover little and change even less. Back to the drawing board - or better yet, back to the president's desk. A , 1AW Gr ,j 1 lf i i v ""Y"t li , vJ I - -- - I I . 1-1 I " - A * and establish a black student center. These and other demands were presented to the administration in January of 1970 by the Black Action Movement, a coalition of the Black Student Union, the Black Law Students Association, the Association of Black Social Work Students, and other groups from other departments and colleges. AFTER NUMEROUS meetings with ad- ministrators and regents yielded little, BAM struck. On March 19, 1970, BAM sieged Univer- sity facilities and severed critical arteries of the totum corpus. Broad-based support for BAM's demands was evident as the Residential College faculty and students voted to close the college for the duration of the strike. The .In- stitute for Social Research and the School of Social Work did the same. At the same time, LSA attendance was down 75 percent, and the Department of Economics closed. At the peak of the strike, the LSA, chemistry, and economics buildings, and Angell and Mason halls were all closed as was the Univer- sity dormitory food service. 19 days later, after numerous negotiating sessions, protests, and symbolic acts of disobedience, the strike was over. It was, for all practical purposes, a giant success. THE UNIVERSITY had agreed to all but two BAM demands. The University acquiesced on the key demands of enrollment, financial aid, recruitment, and support services. And although a black student center was not originally agreed to, the University did establish the William Monroe Trotter House a year later. Fleuranges is the director of information of the Black Student Union and a senior in the Residential College. 4 Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan LaBan ----i -------r-3- A Vol. XCIV-No. 61 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board The sit-in fad r : : ,, , = r __.._-: i III ... . A RE THESE RECENT sit-ins going to be denigrated to a fad? We hope not, but a group of students who took over a research lab this week took -a big step in that direction. The students, calling themselves the K'Nuclear. Saints of America," mar- ched into Prof. Thomas Senior's radiation laboratory Monday on a ewave of sarcasm, demanding to do 'around the clock military research." This research consisted of knitting a Ruclear missile nosecone warmer and attempting to create new life from ritos corn chips and refried bean dip. ~he students leftfat 2:00 a.m. Tuesday. This was the second sit-in at Senior's 'lab in as many weeks. Last Monday tmembers of the Progressive Student }Network staged a 48-hour military research protest in the radiation lab. The group's sarcastic approach to the sit-in worked. Pretending to be =ultra-conservatives, members vowed to help their "prophet," Thomas Senior, conduct his "military resear- ch." They wore laboratory jackets, Walkman stereos, and dark sunglasses. Not only was their style humorous, but it also helped the group avoid the '60s radical aura that often isolates the PSN from the general student body. Unfortunately, the group also avoided telling anyone why they were there and what they hoped to accom- plish. Members never outlined any demands, or publically set any goals. They never used their real names. The joke went to far - in fact it never ended. The group continues to spout quasi-religious pronouncements about Senior and his research when asked why they took over the lab. Obstructing research in a University laboratory is a serious business. It challenges principles of academic freedomclose to the heart of the University. That does not mean that it never should happen, or even that it shouldn't be done humorously. It means that it should only happen for a very good reason. Humorously or otherwise, that reason ought to be ex- pressed clearly and forcefully to justify such an action. One must conclude that the Nuclear Saints have no goals, or at the very least, mistakenly feel their ambigious pronouncements of purpose mean something. In either case, their primary motivation appears to be gaining at- tention for themselves with a spec- tacular but meaningless prank. 7-- >> r --_.. t A LETTERS TO THE DAILY- Downgrading alumni inappropriate. . . To the Daily: I realize that the Daily editorial staff does not necessarily agree with the view presented in Karen Tensa's article ("Dreading the future as a 'U' graduate," Daily, November 5). However, your decision to give the article such prominence on a Saturday, when so many, of the University's dedicated alumni roll into town, makes you equally responsible for the inevitable retractions. In addition, I question your reasoning for putting the article on the Opinion page, when in fact, the piece presented no opinion. It was instead an inap- propriate downgrading not wor- thy of publication, let alone an accompanying picture. By the way, please inform Ms. Tensa that the deadline for alum- nae scholarships is quickly ap- proaching. Yes, alumni do spend their money on something other than obnoxious tams. - Scott Page November 6 Page is a vice president of the Student Alumni Council. 4 Their fanaticism misplaced Academic non-freedom rte -- - - - - - -.:.:_=s--- - - - - - - i To the Daily: Surely, Professor Thomas Senior, the subject of the recent student sit-in, feels applications of his research are honorable. I am sure that he believes they are. Obviously, it is much easier and comforting to view one's work as a contribution to society rather than a contributor to its demise. However, one must ask a question about Professor Senior's current research: If the research is designed to test the effects of lightening on aircraft, would not scale models of civilian aircraft work just as well as military planes? The answer is yes, unless, of course, one does not foresee civilian aircraft using the skyways during nuclear an- nihilation. But there is a more deeply rooted problem emerging from the recent controversy research at all, then these researchers are enjoying academic freedom. If it means the right to pick the course of research and responsibly decide its applications, then what these researchers' are experiencing is not academic freedom, but is, more accurately, academic ser- vitude. Perhaps it is time to recognize that hefty Pentagon grants may inflate egos and aid financially strapped universities, but such grants are simultaneously in direct conflict with the concept of the university as an agent for the betterment of humankind. - Jeff MacLean November 9 BLOOM COUNTY To the Daily: As someone who has lived with the fanaticism of the University "alumni" that is described in the article by Karen Tensa ("Dreading the future as a 'U' graduate," Daily, November 5), I must compliment her on her assessment of this phenomenon. The "alumni," who are either ac- tual graduates or have chosen Michigan as their adopted school, seem to treat Michigan football as a psychological substitute for nationalistic, patriotic fervor. This substitution effect can be exemplified by their near-total infatuation with Michigan foot- ball, right down to the indoc- trination of their children on the outside, while not really under- standing or caring about the ex- perience on the inside. Whether or not this alumni phenomenon is a healthy thing is debatable. Some may see it as'a healthy outlet of inner psychological emotions that could be expressed in other, more violent ways, such as nationalistic wars or military ad- ventures. However, I tend to see this in much the same vein that the article views it: as a character flaw of people who use these psychological tendencies 4 they have to put college football way out of perspective. This kind of thinking is why college athleticv is so out of step with the other areas of the college experience.-1 - Mark D. Mehall November7 by Berke Breathed; I I I I AND YOU WODUWN'T 7HINKKI I I f i IYV OJ-N' HN L I