The Michigan Daily-- Thursday, September 6, 1984 - Page 13 00 Business students to pay $100 fee for computers By THOMAS HRACH Business students will enter the computer age this term with a new computer network for the business school, similar to the one already in use by the engineering school. But new technology doesn't come cheap, so the aspiring businessmen will be charged an additional $100 per term. "You just can't turn around without having to use a com- puter in the business world," said Gilbert Whitaker, dean of the School of Business Administration. "After graduation our students will have a leg up to the power of computers." THE BURROUGHS Corporation of Detroit has taken up the project, which will become the most ambitious computer familiarity project of any business school in the country. This is the first time the company has undertaken such a project in this great a magnitude. The system will utilize 90 computer terminals throughout the business school to link the students,faculty, and staff. Ac- cording to Whitaker, terminals, which can be used-as word processors, will be uwed to help familiarize students with the types of computers used in the business world. The project would be similar to the Computer Aided Engineering Network developed by the engineering college in conjunction with Apple computers. Students in that school have also paid a $100 surcharge added to tuition bills each term. WHITAKER SAID that the new system has become necessary in order to keep the University competitive with prestigious business schools in the East. The system will link a number of microcomputers and also provide user access to the University's central computers. "What we'd like to create is a corporate business at- mosphere," said Leonard Bertagnolli, program director for Burroughs. "Computers have become the foundation for education in the business fields." Burroughs hopes to have the system fully operational by mid-October, according to Bertagnolli. The new system will be well worth the $100 per term fee because it will reduce "the growing fears of using a computer in the business world," he said. "Any project which integrates the use of computers into education will well be worth the cost in the long run. The real issue is not the cost but how much the students will learn from the computers," said Bertagnolli. Burroughs will send seven representatives to campus for the first year the system is in operation to help work out the logistical problems and train faculty and students. In addition, the business school will hire staff to train users, maintain equipment, and work with the faculty in designing software. Because this is the first such project for Burroughs and the most extensive of any business school in the country, Ber- tagnolli said his company will benefit for putting the Univer- sity in a position with those making future business decisions. Daily Photo by CAROL L. FRANCAVILLA Construction workers put the finishing touches on the new business library and computer management buildings. I Ublack enrollment to increase (Continued from Page 1) pected to remain at last year's number of 26. Admissions officials estimate that the University will enroll eight Native American students this fall - only five more than the number who attended the University last year. Officials cite intense recruitment ef- forts by the admissions office - in- cluding a letter-writing campaign urging iinority students to attend the Univer- mity in addition to minority orientation programs - as being responsible for the expected increase. "WE'RE QUITE pleased that the ef- forts we made (this past year) helped in the anticipated increase for minority Students," said Monique Washington, an admissions officer. Aside from the stepped-up recruiting efforts by the admissions office, Vniversity officials credit an increased number of financial aid packages and merit-based scholarships to the small ninority enrollment increase. ' If students can receive long-term financial aid packages from other com- 'petitive universities, many won't come to the University where non-needy students are not guaranteed scholar- ships as many are at other universities, Washington said. The funding increase for financial aid has begun to entice qualified minority students to come to. the University, she added. Increasing black enrollemnt has been a University goal since the Black Ac- tion Movement strike in 1970 which utterly shut down the campus. In resolving the strike, University president Robber Fleming pledged to increase black enrollment to 10 percent within three years. THAT GOAL has never been met, the closest being in 1976 when the figure rose to 7.2 percent. Since then, the numbers have steadily dropped, despite University efforts to recruit black students to the University. The 10 percent black enrollment goal is not a key objective for admissions of- ficers although "it is something we'd like to see," Washington said. "A lot needs to be done first to decide what the pool of admittable students is before establishing a realistic goal," she ad- ded. But to many, retention is a much greater concern than the number of minority students who come to the University. ACCORDING TO Billy Jo Evans, a chemistry professor, minority students should be assisted in scheduling cour- ses which provide them with incentive to stay at the University. The primary objective of the Univer- sity should not be to simply retain students, Evans said. It should be to help them succeed in the area they are interested in. The effort to reach out to under- represented minorities includes in- creased attention to minority students in community colleges and high schools and having University student "am- bassadors" who graduated from largely black high schools to go back to those schools and give an optimistic, objective report to admittable students to offset the negative attitude many of these students have of the University. 7 764-0558 U Jri ii t-shirts * trash cans * glassware jackets * flags * mugs * prints music boxes * sweatshirts * hats baby bottles * buttons clocks -weaters * blankets * stickers sacks * frisbees * neck ties .use plates * pens * pencils gipslighters oand much more -- I Sth Annivesary 1934-1984 MORE THAN A BOOKSTORE Apple deal sours local computer business Main Store: 549 East University Electronics Showroom: 1110 South University Ann Arbor, MI 48104 (313)662-3201 s (Continued from Page 1) lbusiness" because local dealers sup- plied software and peripherals to those Vho bought the computers. .BUT ACCORDING to Reding the Vniversity's discount backs retailers -i ilo a corner with customers. '"We bear the brunt of it," she said, referring to the discontent of many ,-eople outside the University com- : :unity who are not eligible for the of- br. "People think we're ripping them ,off, until we pull out the invoices and S:how them what we're paying for (the Q omputer)." M . Fleckenstein said his own company, e which deals primarily in IBM computer ; ystems, has suffered because of the of- !:r. : "(THE IBM) Personal Computer (is a 4,000 machine, and (students, faculty, :and staff) have the option of buying the ;-acintosh for $1,100," Fleckenstein id "Wee sold say, 35 systems in ,ecember and maybe 10 in January, when the University's offer went into effect. y Fadden of Inacomp said he believes at whatever the consequences, local $tailers are going to have to live with a;pnsortiums like the one Apple has °Xrmed with the universities. W"The consortium is here: it's alive apd well," Fadden said. "In fact, the econd wave is here. Computerland j astern Michigan is considering (a program similar to Michigan's), Wayne- State is considering something. ACCORDING to Fadden, everyone had a chance at the contract Inacomp has. with the University. "It wasn't something against free enterprise." In the long run, said Fadden, wider use and ownership of computer benefits retailers as well as the Apple company. "It's a very wise move to get com- puters into everybody's hands," he said. "I think it's good for everybody." According to Apple spokesperson Dixon, reported that Macintosh sales both in and out of the universities have been strong. "We're still a little backlogged," she remarked. "We sold 72,000 (Macin- toshes) within the first 92 days. Dixon said Apple expects sales of the Macintosh to reach 250,000 by the end of the year. Hello ... is that right? The Daily? The Michigan Daily? Carries Bloom County... THE BLOOM COUNTY? Now in Ir. . ANN ARBOR CIVIC THEATRE 1984-85 SEASON How the Other Half Loves Mendelssohn Theater Fiddler on the Roof Michigan Theater The Late Christopher Bean Mendelssohn Theater ShdwBxFbMendelssohn Theater Sept. 12-15 Oct. 24-27 Dec. 12-15 . 27-March 2 * "Gimme a D Gimme an A Gimme an IYL Give the MICHIGAN DAILY that old college try. CALL 764.0558 to order your subscription The lmportance of Being Ernest May 1-4 Mendelssohn Theater Bells Are Ringing Power Center June 12-15 1 Back in School? It's Time to Plan Your Vacations! AT THE MAIN STREET THEATRE Avoid the Rush Call Conlin Travel to plan your Thanksgiving, Christmas or Spring Break vacations. Our experienced agents work hard to offer you the same quick, inexpensive, expert assistance that won your vote as the Best Travel Agent in Ann Arbor. 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