E- The Michigan Daily - New Student Edition - September 3, 1996 Contract starts healing process GEO Continued from Page 1B The new contract guarantees GSIs at least a 2.5- .percent increase each year. However, the pay increase is tied to the LSA faculty increase, deter- mined by the University each year. In other words, the University will give the same percentage wage increase to GSIs that it gives to the faculty. GEO asked for a specified wage increase written into its contract. Instead, the agreement, said Karen Miller, one of GEO's chief negotiators, wipes away GEO's independence. "It is dangerous to hook your- self onto something that the University will deter- mine." Michelle Mueller, the current GEO president, .tsaid the state mediator made GSIs are GEO accept the offer. indiSpenSible Another GEO' the victory involves international VENU Sw GSIs. Interna- adidnlSratiOn tional graduate students who are u m ust r0alize interested inh " ® becoming GSIs must go through a three-week "fel- lowship, or eval- uation period, while the Univer- Affirmative action shatters glass ceiling 9 sity assesses their abilities. Previously, they were not given financial assistance during this period. GEO was correct to demand a stipend to help the GEO me international students afford the training, which the Angeil new agreement includes at $700. To maintain its position worldwide reputation for academic excellence, the University must continue to attract the world's best students. The stipend should ensure this - much of the financial bur- den has been eliminated. The University has already tried to backtrack on this agree- ment. Miller said the University was only going to give the stipends to those students who came for training in August. .Miller called this an "imposed restriction" that was "pretty arbitrary and never discussed at the table." The two sides recently worked out an acceptable agreement for the next two summers, but again, the University used its unmatched power to rework some of the terms of the agree- mnent, paying little respect to GEO. Miller said, "It's really stupid and very much about them -(using their) power over us.... It's very dumb." In addition, the new contract calls for three joint Universi- ty and GEO committees that will address affirmative action mber Beth Chase, a communications GSi, pickets in front of Ball in April. QEO's two-day walkout was staged to better their in bargaining talks with the University for a new contract. problems. This will help guarantee that minority students' con- cerns will be heard. Moreover, the joint committees will keep the union and the administration in constant contact and help to create a cooperative environment. THE FUTURE, While there is always some conflict in contractual bargain- ing, steps can be taken to keep it at a minimum. Dan Gamble, the University's chief negotiator, said in a recent interview that the administration and GEO must remain in close communi- cation during the next three years. "Just talking will help," he said. But talking is not enough. The University must remain faith- ful to the contract it signed. It must respect GSIs and GEO. GSIs are indispensable - the administration must realize this. University correct to stand by Michigan Mandate and Michigan Agenda for Women By Paul Seriila Daily Editorial Page Writer Few phrases in the English language elicit the intense and polarized responses that surround affirmative action. Critics have always claimed that affirmative action is simply reverse discrimination and that systems that use affirmative action, such as the University's admissions process, are eliminating qualified people from consideration. These critics are ignoring the fact that affirmative action helps combat the traditional bias towards white, middle and upper class males, which has kept racial minorities and women on the outside - affirmative action continually promotes a diversified community that would otherwise be impossible to achieve. Despite what many would like to believe, the effects of past discrimina- tion have not yet disappeared from the American landscape. A large percentage of racial minori- ties, particularly African Americans t and Latinos, are stalled at the bottom of the economic ladder without the educational or job opportunities need- ed to move up. Furthermore, both minorities and women are sorely lacking in role models for advancement. Ann Arbor resident Because they have historically been istration Building in denied opportunities, they have been action. About 500 shut out of a network that confers ben- Engler spoke to the efits - left peering up through the began on the Diag, classic "glass ceiling." concluded with a s Affirmative action programs attempt to shatter that ceiling. Rather than offering unfair advantages, these programs are designed to build institutions - whether they be workplaces or universities - more representative of an area's racial makeup. At the University, the Michigan Mandate and Michigan Agenda for Women have Prope taken steps toward a more-diverse campus. The mandate, for example, has brought impen minority enrollment up from 13.5 percent inr 1988, when it was implemented, to 24.2 in actirm 1994. acio The program does not deny deserving majority students - if a majority student much n cannot successfully compete for a spot in 75.8 percent of the student body, he or she is than a clearly not the most deserving candidate in the first place. Furthermore, all students benefit from a diverse campus,gaining experiences they would not receive elsewhere. Presently, affirmative action is possibly under the greatest attack it has faced in over 20 years. In every corner of the country - in every institution in which the program has been enacted - affirmative action is bracing for the battle that will determine its ultimate survival. Affirmative action as we know it is defined under the 1978 Supreme Court decision Bakke v. California, which struck down the quota system at the University of California- Davis's Medical School, but stated that race could be con- sidered as one factor of many to further the goal of diversi- FILE PHOTO Mark Patrick protests outside the University's Business Admin- September during a demonstration supporting affirmative people marched outside the building while Michigan Gov. John Business School's Growth Capital Symposium inside. The rally when several hundred students left classes for the event and' It-in on the Michigan Union steps. S'j 4 al m1 ul U fying the student body. Properly implemented, affirmative action is much more than quotas - it is a system of recruitment, training and education to even out peopld's experiences and knowledge. Y Yet, the attacks have not wavered in their frequency or intensity. Recently, the *nfieu, Supreme Court supported an appellate car- cuit court decision - Hopwood v. the St tiVe of Texas - that declared race an invalid fa'' tor for admissions at the University of Texas Law School. ore Since the high court did not rule on the case, the precedent set by the appellate court tAsonly affects the 5th U.S. Circuit district and public universities in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi in that district. Should the Supreme Court continue this precedent of undermining affirmative action, the University may soon find the hiring admissions practices it has upheld under current law and even championed as the tools of increased diversity are-ho longer a legal option. The University should be commended for its continuing support of affirmative action, but a disturbing tone has been sounded by the high court. The death of affirmative action only means the public edu- cation experience will again be denied to many deservibg people. That degrades the experience for the entire educa- tional community. NFIT t ed from Page 3 ment. Since the state law does not recognize domestic partners as a married couple, Horning believes that the University over- stepped its bounds by extending the benefits. The nature of the legislature's provision is disconcerting. Lansing's authority over the University many not extend to dic- tating specific policies. It is one thing for legislators to express their personal opinions, but they should not impose their moral judgments upon the University and those in the University community. The state constitution guarantees public universi- ties autonomy from the state in determining their policies. Authority for governing the University is accorded to the Board of Regents. This attempt by the state legislature to dic- tate University policy sets a bad precedent. Fortunately, the benefits do not appear to be in jeopardy at the moment. The University currently provides same-sex ben- efits to about 90 partners and dependents of gay employees at a cost of $160,000 a year. Despite the lost funding under the new legislation, the Uni- versity does not seem willing to end the benefits. That is a strong message to the state -not only is the University mitted to standing behind its principles, but it is not inclin to be pushed around by legislators in Lansing trying to impose their moral judgments upon public institutions. A complete line of supplies for: * dorm rooms * offices *school Everything from paper to write on... to wastebaskets to toss it in, and the best selection of M-insignia stuff in the area. And we carry an extensive line of recycled products too! Extended hours during book rush! p ' A volunteer.