Wednesday, June 2, 1993-- The Michigan Daly Summer Weey -3 SAFE House prese for new residential By STEVE HEGEDUS FOR THE DALY Survivorsofdomestic violence call SAFE House for shelter. Although the women are "safe,"from spousal abuse, cramped facilities make livinguncom- fortable. Currently, SAFE House, a non- profit organization, is capable ofhous- ing 28 women and their children for as long as a month. But the women are frequently asked to double-up. But since voters in the November electionapprovedfunding,thatmay be just a painful memory. Members of Domestic Violence Project, IncJSAFE House (Shelter Available For Emergency) unveiled plans at a May 26 meeting for an new 27,500 sq. ft. facility to be located on a seven-acre parcel in Washtenaw County. Susan McGee, executive director of SAFE House, said the proposed forty-five bed facility on Clark Road would replace the current state-owned SAFE House which was built in the early 1900s. Thehouse, originally intended as a single family dwelling, is frequently overcrowded and is in need of exten- sive repairs. McGee said the statehas refused to do any maintenance on the building, which is located in a confidential area in Washtenaw County. Among the complaints are that the roof of the house leaks and that the antiquated plumbing often breaks, causing ceil- ings to collapse. The current shelter is also inacces- sible by wheelchair,whichforcesSAFE House to furnish hotel rooms to do- mestic violence survivors who are physically challenged. "The amount we're paying in rent andupkeepisridiculous,"saidMcGee. "We'llbe much better off with the new shelter in the long run." The new building will actually be owned by Washtenaw County, which in tum will lease it to SAFE House at the rate of a dollar a year for ninety- nine years.Voters in the county passed aresolution inNovembercalling for an increase in their property taxes to fund the project. The two-year, quarter of a mill in- nts plans shelter crease will generate the estimated $3 million needed to build the new SAFE House facility. The proposed design of the new shelter calls foran"L"shaped building with three different levels. Residents will occupy the main level,whichwillconsistofsuchameni- ties as alibrary and aseparate play area for children. Jan BenDor, presidentof the SAFE House board of directors, said that careful planning has gone into the project to ensure that residents feel at ease. "We wanted to have survivors feel safe, but not like they were in an insti- tution," BenDor said. Residents living near the proposed construction site have been consulted also in order to insure a harmonious atmosphere. "We've had a lot of community input," BenDor said. Groundbreaking forthenew SAFE House facility is scheduled to begin in October of this year pending final ap- proval of the plans. PETER MATTHEWS/MDy An operator In the nuclear reactor contol room monitors guages. 'U' to pay another nuclear reactor fine By KRISTINA GRAMMATICO FOR THE DAILY What many students don't know still won't harm them. The University's Ford Nuclear Reactor recently operated above its legal limit, but officals say it posed no threat to the environment. TheChicago-basedNuclearRegu- latory Commission (NRC) recently finedtheUniversity$3,750becauseits nuclear reactor exceeded its licensed power level by 15 percent for 10 min- utes last March, NRC spokesperson Jan Strasma said. The standard fine for this type of violation is $2,500. The University was fined one-and-a-half times this amount because it was the second vio- lation in one year. Thereactor, locatedin the Phoenix Memorial Laboratory on North Cam- pus, is legally licensed to operate up to only 2 megawatts. In March,theoperating crew oper- ated the reactor at 2.3 megawatts un- knowingly for 10 minutes. No damage was done to the facility or the environment, Phoenix Director Ron Flemming said. On the moming of March 24, the operating crew measured the reactor's power at 1.15 megawatts and then doubled the power, bringing the reac- tortoastateofsupercriticality-mean- ing the number of neutron fissions were doubled. Power was then at 2.3 megawatts. Hemming said the crew should have lowered the wattage from 1.15 megawatts to 1 megawatt and then doubled the power. Flemming faulted the operator. "Thatoperatorisnolongerlicensed to operatethisreactor,"Flemmingsaid. Flemming also stated that the reactor's safety limit is registered at 4.68 megawatts. The reactor can safely operate in- definitely at 4.68 megawatts without water boiling. But, to prevent the reactor from reaching its safety limit, a safety sys- tem is designed to shut the reactor down at 2.4 megawatts. After March 24, the reactor was shut down for two weeks,whileopera- torsand directorswentoverNRCpro- cedures, Flemming said. Previously,theNRCfinedthePhoe- nix Lab $1,250 for two June 1992 violations unrelated to the March 24 incident. In June 1992, Flemming failed to report to the NRC that operators re- movedafuelelementfromthereactor's corebeforerunning the reactor'ssafety rod system. Both procedures, removing fuel elementsorrunning the safety rodsys- tem, will shut the reactor down. ButNRCregulationsstate thesafety rod system must run first-thus shut- ting down thereactor-before pulling fuel elements out. The reactor was never completely shut down, but was in automatic con- trolmode when the fuel elements were pulled out, Phoenix tour guide Steve Nowak said. In this case, the operatorsreversed procedures by removing the fuel ele- ments and then running the safety rod system. "Becausetheyreversedprocedures and the reactor shut itself down, I did not think this was an officially report- able incident," Flemming said. Unfortunately,theNRCdisagreed. Flemming said the NRC fined the University becausehe failed to look at the bigger context of the incident and theoperatorsfailedtocorrectly follow NRC procedures. When these types of incidents oc- cur, the reputations of the profession- als and the Phoenix Memorial Lab suffer, Flemming said. SEEing is believing for high school girls leaning toward engineering educations By JULIE GARRETT DALY STAFF REPORTEER Becoming an engineer takes hard work. Because of stereotypes, it can be even harder for a woman. Thatis why the Society for Women Engineers(SWE)is sponsoring asum- mer program for high school sopho- more and junior girls. Startedin 1987,SummerEngineer- ing Exploration (SEE) is a one-week progmm that gives high school girls a taste of what engineering is about. "We want to encourage more high school girls to pursue a career in engi- neering," said Kris Korzecke, director of the outreach committee for SEE and Engineering senior. The exploration program was cre- ated to offer high school girls an intro- duction to the field of engineering. During the day the girls attend talks given by faculty from various Engi- neering departments. SWE members give toursof the Engineering buildings and research labs. The girls also spend time in teams working on a design project. Because working in groups is a vitalaspectofengineering,SEEstresses this throughout the week. The girls are responsible for working together to meet certain specifications in a cre- ative, unique way with very little su- pervision. "The program offers a chance for high school girls to come and see and experience engineering and meet women engineers," said Beth Meder, program chair for SEE and Engineer- ing sophomore. The program costs $225. This in- cludes room and boardwhilestaying at West Quad. SWE funds the program completely, with no financial support from the University. Scholarships are available for those in need. This year the scholarships are provided by Whirlpool and General Telephone and Electric. Supportfrom corporationsisdownthis year,soschol- arships are limited. Only 40 of the 75 available posi- tions have been filled. Thereisstilltime tosignupforhigh school sophomore or junior girls who might be interested in this program. is now forming a Focus Group to provide a channel for student input Ir What information would you like included in this year's Student Directory? 17 Is the Directory easy to read? Offer any suggestions to make a better Directory. Cadl # ....rlforr n t ..