The Michigan Daily Tuesday, January 25, 1993 - 3
Hoosier tapped to head News and Information Services A

By DAVID SHEPARDSON
DAILY STAFF REPORTER
Passing over a host of professional
journalists, Vice President for Univer-
sity Relations Walter Harrison picked
a career university editor from a fellow
Big Ten school as his choice for the
new director of News and Information
*Services (NIS).
Julie Peterson, managing editor of
the Indiana University News Bureau,
will assume her new position April 1,

officials announced yesterday.
Harrison said in a statement, "I am
delighted we havebeen able to attract
(her) to Michigan. Her energy, enthusi-
asm, and creativity will make her a
good leader."
Peterson replaces Joesph Owsley,
who retired July 1. She will oversee
University publications including The
University Record and Michigan To-
day.
NIS does not control The Michigan

Daily, which is an independent publi-
cation overseen by the Board for Stu-
dent Publications.
The search committee, headed by
Director of Public Affairs Lisa Baker,
received more than 150 applications
for the job that has a salary of nearly
$70,000.
Baker said she was pleasedwith the
selection of Peterson and called her
"very qualified."
The committee, which included two

student members, reduced the appli-
cant pool to 12 semi-finalists.
The committee conducted inter-
views with the dozen journalists, col-
lege officials and college public rela-
tions officers at the Holiday Inn in
Romulus.
Afterward, the committee for-
warded a list of five names to Harrison
to be interviewed.
Harrison chose Peterson from
among the five candidates recom-

mended.
Peterson holds a BA in journalism
and psychology and an MBA in mar-
keting from Indiana, worked her way
up through the ranks of the Indiana
University News Bureau.
She was a staff member for four
years before being named to her cur-
rent position in 1989.
Wono Lee, who has been seiving as
interim director since last year, chose
not to apply for the position.

Peterson


Vandalism
.causes
ResCom
site to close
Mary Markley
residents criticize
actions of residence
staff
By ZACHARY RAIMI
FOR THE DAILY
Markley Hall residents will have
to find an alternative to computing
in the comfort of their own home.
Because vandals committed more
than $200 in damage to Markley's
computing center last week, offi-
cials there have closed the site.
The move angered students.
Nada Elian, an Engineering first-
year student who lives in Markley,
said closing the site was not the best
response to the vandalism.
"I don't think they should shut it
down," she said. She added that a
better solution would be to close the
center, which is currently open 24
hours a day, when no supervisor is
present.
Sometime between 9 p.m. Jan.
16 and 6 p.m. Jan. 17, Markley's
ResComp (Residence Halls Com-
puting Program) site was vandal-
ized. The culprit or culprits are still
at large.
Two mouse cables and one key-
board cable were cut, according to
Mary Simoni, ResComp director.
Simoni, who is investigating the
incident in consultation with
Markley Building Director Marc
Kaplan, decided to close the site at
6:30 a.m. Jan. 21.
Angry Markley residents are left
wondering why Simoni went to such
drastic measures.
First-year LSA student Jonathan
Winick wondered what example the
University was setting. "The whole
thing is a joke ... What would hap-

Faculty members weigh
'sweet' benefits package

By JAMES NASH
FOR THE DAILY
The University wants to sweeten its
benefits packace for employees, but
some faculty members say slices of a
proposal for a flexible-benefits pro-
gram are too sugary to swallow.
Under the proposal - which was
recommended by an advisory commit-
tee last week - about 18,000 Univer-
sity employees could pick job benefits
that match their needs. The plan would
take effect Jan. 1, 1995 and replace the
University's current fixed-benefits pro-
gram.
A survey of faculty showed that 78
percent would like to tailorjob benefits
to their own needs and preferences. But
the plan the University put on the table
last week is drawing mixed reviews.
Of the 18,000 employees who
would be affected by a flexible-ben-
efits program, only 6,000 are aware of
the proposal, Flexible Benefits
Advosory Group Co-Chair David
Anderson said yesterday.
Anderson was addressing the Sen-
ate Assembly, a gorup of faculty lead-

ers. Most spreakers attheweekly meet-
ing gave the flexible-benefits plan posi-
tive reviews, but a few offered criti-
cisms.
"It could be that the lack of faculty
interest orwhat was perceived as a lack
of faculty interest was actually satis-
faction with the present structure and a
considerable degree of doubt and sus-
picion about a new one," English Prof.
Leo McNamara told the group.
Another LSA professor questioned
the administration's motives for intro-
ducing the proposal.
Provost and Executive Vice Presi-
dent for Academic Affairs Gilbert
Whitaker denied ulterior motives, say-
ing, "Our goal is to let people act like
adults and to make adult choices as
they see fit.
"If you want these choices made for
you, you can just throw darts at the
selection forms," Whitaker added.
The University's felxible-benefits
proposal would trim sickleave from 15
to 12 days annually and offer expanded
mental-health, dental, vision and short-
term disability insurance options. It

also would convert unused benefits to
cash added to an employee's paycheck.
The plan would yield savings for
the University and all of its employees,
Anderson told the Senate Assembly.
Roy Penchansky, a professor of
health services management and ploicy,
followed Anderson to the podium and
offered a grimmer picture.
He estimated that a flexible-ben-
efits program would cost $1 million to
phase in.
Penchansky said the University's
proposal is swollen with unnecessary
perks.
"The committee has included lots
of junk to give everybody what they
wanted," he said. "Let's not throw junk
in just to sell a flexible-benefits plan."
He singled out the proposal's vi-
sion coverage. Although 77 percent of
surveyed facxulty said they would "very
likely" or "somewhat likely" elect the
plan, Penchansky said it's superfluous
for most and expensive to administer.
As much as one-third of costs of vision
coverage wiuld go toward administer-
ing the program, he said.

SARAH WHITING/Daily
James Gowell, who works for ResComp at Markley, finishes shutting the
system down after the computing center was indefintely closed yesterday.

SEARCHING FOR SOMETHING OUT THERE

pen if someone got murdered in
Markley? Would they throw every-
one in jail until they found out who
committed the act?"
But Simoni, who has used the
same approach with problems in
other residence hall computing sites,
insists this is the most effective way
to approach the problem. She said
she has had about a 75 percent ef-
fective rate "in terms of identifying
who is involved" in other incidents.
Since this site, and all other
ResComp sites, are often left unsuper-
vised, students gain access by running
their student I.D.s through acard-reader.
The Entr6e Office keeps computer
records of all entries of computing sites
across campus.
Simoni has requested informa-

tion detailing who used the site dur-
ing the hours of the vandalism from
the Entree Office. She said she is
expecting to receive the data "any-
time soon."
Kaplan will decide how to pun-
ish the responsible party. His op-
tions include using the Residence
Hall disciplinary process and/or fil-
ing a police report, and most likely
requiring the perpetrator to pay for
the damages.
If the person or persons respon-
sible cannot be found after the in-
vestigation, the residence hall staff
of Markley will recommend whether
the site shall remain closed, and for
how long. Kaplan said he does not
plan to recommend that the site stay
closed for the remainder of the term.

Former Michigan Gov. Blanchard
says he will not run for U.S. Senate

LANSING (AP) - Former Gov.
James Blanchard reluctantly announced
yesterday that he won't give up his
Sambassadorship to Canada to run for
the Democratic U.S. Senate nomina-
tion in Michigan.
Blanchard became the U.S. ambas-
sador to Canada shortly before U.S.
Sen. Donald Riegle made the surprise
announcement Sept. 28 that hewouldn't
run for re-election this year.
Since then, Blanchard has been
looking at the race and spent the holi-
days in Michigan talking it over with
friends and close advisers.
"From the outset I have felt uneasy
and uncomfortable about leavinganew
and important job before I've hardly
begun my duties," he said in a state-
ment.
"I thoroughly enjoy and treasure
the assignment of United States Am-

I would love to serve the people of Michigan in
the United States Senate if circumstances were
different. It almost breaks my heart not to say
'yes"
- James Blanchard
U.S. ambassador to Canada
and former Michigan governor

SARA WHITING/iDaily

Edward Power of Ann Arbor sells his artwork in Nickels Arcade for five dollars each yesterday.

Lawmakers try to break school-plan deadlock

bassador to Canada. I am challenged
by it. And it is one of the most impor-
tant diplomatic posts the president can
bestow on any fellow citizen.
"I would love to serve the people of
Michigan in the United States Senate if
circumstances were different. It almost
breaks my heart not to say 'yes.'
"However, I have decided not to
run for the Senate because I feel a

strong commitment to my new assign-
ment as United States Ambassador to
Canada. In short, I feel I should finish
what I have begun in Canada."
The Democrats already in the race
for the U.S. Senate seat include state
Sen. Lana Pollack, of Ann Arbor;
Macomb County Prosecutor Carl
Marlinga, and former U.S. Rep. Bill
Brodhead.

LANSING (AP)-- House Demo-
cratic Leader Curtis Hertel asked the
Court of Appeals on Monday to break
a state panel's deadlock on ballot word-
ing for the March 15 tax election.
Hertel's attorney, Mike Hodge, said
the lawsuit asks the appeals court to
order the Board of State Canvassers to'
adopt Hertel's wording.
Ifdit doesn't want to do that, it sug-
gests that the judges "send it back to the
Board of State Canvassers and tell them
to do it again, only this time to restrict
the ballot statement to only those things
actually included in the proposal,"
Hodge said.
The Board of State Canvassers spent
most of Friday trying to work out a
compromise, but ended up in a 2-2
party-line deadlock on each of three
versions.

State law requires the
canvassers to adopt
that language 49 days
before an election.
That's today.
The board's two Republicans, Jim
Alexander and Linda Shinkle, backed
the versions drawn up by the staff of the
Bureau ofElections. Both those spelled
out that the income tax would go from
4.6 percent to 6 percent if the sales tax
increase was rejected.
GOP Gov. John Engler is pushing
the ballot plan, which would raise the
sales tax to 6 percent from 4 percent. It
also would raise several other taxes -
as would the backup plan - and the
Democratic canvassers said those

should be mentioned.
The Democrats, Mike Pyne and
Bernice Shields, also said the figures
on the income tax increase should be
dropped, since those might be changed
and were not part of the ballot plan.
Alexander and Shinkle argued that
the board's duty was to approve ballot
language -what voters will see in the
voting booth - that accurately and
fairly depicts the proposal.
Shields and Pyne weren't swayed.
They wouldn't vote for either of the
versions offered by the Bureau of
Elections staff and Alexander and
Shinkle wouldn't vote for Hertel's
wording.
The ballot wording can only be 100
words or less. State law requires the
canvassers to adopt that language 49
days before an election. That's today.

Group Meetings
U American Movement for Israel,
at Hillel, 7 p.m.
U Asian-American Lesbian-Gay-
Bisexual Support Group Meet-
ing, Michigan Union, Room
3116,5:30 p.m.
U Folk Dance Club, ethnic line
dancing (no partner needed),

Hall Commons Room, noon.
O Minority Career Conference
Sneak Preview, sponsored by
Career Planning and Placement,
Michigan Union, Kuenzel Room,
5 p.m.; conference is at 6-9 p.m.
in the Michigan Union.
U Primitive Communism: andthe
Human Nature Lie, sponsored

House and Lutheran Campus
Ministry, Michigan League,
Hussey Room, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.,
2:30-4 p.m., 8-9 p.m.
U VolunteerInformation Meeting,
Maternal/Chile Health Center,
MCHC Auditorium, 5 p.m.
U Walkers in the Wastelands,
speaker: Sharon C. Herbert, spon-

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