PCC Courier, February 17, 1984

PCC COURIER Van Halen Moves Ahead With 1984’ See page 3 VOL. 57, NO. 1 PASADENA CITY COLLEGE, PASADENA, CALIFORNIA FEBRUARY 17, 1984 Women in Politics: First Women Board Members Jeanette Mann By Christine del Villar News Editor Dr. Jeannette Mann believes that as a woman educator she can offer a new and different perspective to board meetings. She defeated incumbent Gary B. Adams for the Area 2 seat in recent board elections. "Women and men develop different ways of approaching problems, dif¬ ferent ways of solving problems, and different ways of interacting with peo¬ ple. I do not believe that the way women do these things is necessarily better, but I do believe it is better to have both perspectives,” Mann said. Mann has often been the lone woman on professional and political commit¬ tees and is "quite used to trying to work with people whose orientation, Women have, for a long time, been active in politics. Only recently, however, has their participation been as significant as their male counterparts. In the coming presidential primaries and the November 1984 election, women voters will account for over 50 percent of the electorate, the first time ever women will be a voting majority in the United States. However, women still only make up 10 percent of the elected officials in the United States. Dr. Jeanette Mann and Susanna Miele are two of these women. They are also the first women to serve on the PCC Board of Trustees. в i Щ m Ш I Dr. Jeanette Mann — Board member, busy but never bored. — Courier photo by Christine del Villar experiences and perspectives are dif¬ ferent.” Mann has other distinctions besides being the first woman to sit on the PCC Board. She holds a doctorate in English literature from the University of Mis¬ souri and was a Rockefeller fellow. The fellowship was for university adminis¬ tration and was created especially to provide women and minorites the ex¬ perience and training necessary to as¬ sume university administrative posi¬ tions. After she completed the three year fellowship, Mann landed such a posi¬ tion: director of affirmative action at Cal State Northridge, a position she still holds. Affirmative Action assures that women and minorities are given special consideration in hiring policy. Once hired, however, Mann believes professional women “can’t expect spe¬ cial treatment.” With women making up 51 percent of the PCC student body, Mann plans to make women’s issues and educational programs a priority as a Board mem¬ ber. “L A. Pierce is very active in women’s re-entry programs. I would like to see PCC do likewise. Childcare, for instance, is essential for women to go to school,” Mann said. “After all, usually these students do very well.” An active member of California Women in Higher Education, Mann has been a working mother for many years. Her children, who are all in college, did not play an active role in her campaign. Neither did her husband, Dr. Kenneth Mann, a physicist at JPL. However.' her family was very supportive of her. “Before Д decided to run, I decided if I ran I was going to run to win. My husband gets out my way and leaves me alone to do what I want and that’s a tremendous amount of support,” Mann said. Mann believes she has always had a strong identity apart from her children. She sees motherhood and “wifehood” not as a career but as important rela¬ tionships. Because of this view she believes that “every human being has an obligation to herself to develop her own potential.” Mann also said often women discover “in sacrificing parts of themselves for others isn’t always to the advantage of the others.” Such women, Mann said, usually end up with things they had not bargained for in their self sacrificing: resentment, guilt, dependency. Mann admits her convictions about women’s roles in society may be seen as progressive. However, she regards herself as a “fiscal conservative.” “You should always get very good value for your money,” Mann said. This is something Mann believes that she and other members of the board can agree on. Working to increase quality does not have to mean increas¬ ing costs, Mann maintains. Mann plans to work not only with the PCC board members to achieve her goals, but also with the 400 other board members in the California Community College system, and with California’s legislature and senate. “You’ve got to go with what you’ve got,” Mann said. What PCC has got, according to Mann, is a community college system whose goals the law¬ makers do not necessarily understand and a budget inadequate to the needs of these misunderstood goals. Fall Will Feature Tuition By Lisa Lowery Assistant News Editor Community college students will pay tuition for the first time beginning with the fall 1984 semester. A student who carries seven units or more will be classif ied as full-time and must pay the full $50 per semester. Part-time stu¬ dents will pay $5 per unit for six units I or fewer. PCC students will continue to pay $10 I and $20 drop deposits and fees for parking permits. Even though the tui¬ tion will be collected by the local districts, it dods not represent “new state money,” said Dr. Bonnie R. j James, vice president of business serv¬ ices. Any additional funding for next year still has to pass the state Legisla¬ ture. The base funding for 1983-84 was I restored when Democratic leaders and Gov. George Deukmejian reached a compromise in late January. Accord¬ ing to James, the settlement leaves the colleges with the same spending level as in 1982-83. James explained that the colleges’ funding base is calculated on average daily attendance (ADA). Tuition fees, local property tax revenues and the state apportionment, which is gener¬ ated by ADA, will be the three con¬ tributing sources for next year’s fund¬ ing. Depending on how much money is collected from tuition and local prop¬ erty taxes, the state allocation will adjust to the ADA level. Campus services which previously had been provided for by a fee will now be covered by tuition. Therefore, health services, which are mandated by law, and general class materials become an addtional expenditure for the district. James said that based on his projected tuition intake for next fall, the college is in better financial shape than other community colleges. James said he knew of two colleges which claim their current instuctional fees exceed the $50 per semester. Although he would not disclose his projected figures, he concluded that fees do not exceed tuition at PCC. James added students will still pay fees for student records, child care services, optional community service classes and trips. Tuition will cover some field trips and any required insur¬ ance. Material fees for adult noncredit classes; charges for the use of non¬ district physical educational facilities such as a bowling event; and fees for eye protection devices in industrial classes will also be covered by tuition. Meal Money Restored By SSFC $15 Per Day Deemed Necessary By Tony Mitchell Staff Writer The restriction prohibiting the use of funds for meals for students participat¬ ing in co-curricular activities was re¬ moved by the Student Service Fund Committee (SSFC) in a 4 to 1 vote last [ Thursday. “Meal money for co-curricular ac- | tivities will be restored to a limit of $15 per diem for each participant, at the discretion of each program director,” said Glenn Schoenfeld, chairman of the SSFC and AS vice president of business affairs. “This is based on the idea that if you are participating in a co-cur¬ ricular activity that takes you away from your residence for eight hours or I more, you should be funded for meals.” This action comes after controversy | surrounding the Nov. 3 decision by the SSFC not to allow its funds to be spent on meals. Forensics, directed by Joseph Probst, was one group that formally protested the SSFC’s de- I cision. “We found out through certain pro- I gram directors that several programs were really hurt by not having meals funded,” said Schoenfeld. “SSFC mem¬ bers had a change of heart since we originally adopted our position con- | eerning meals.” The primary purpose of the SSFC is I to interpret the SSFC charter when reviewing requests for funds by various campus groups, Schoenfeld said. The committee examines the requests to determine whether they are reasonable and fall within the charter’s guidelines. “There is a need for certain co- curricular activities and if they can’t be funded through other means, they can’t exist. They need to exist because they are educational, directly and in¬ directly,” said Schoenfeld. In' other action Jan. 20, the SSFC granted 15 requests totalling $32,076. Among these were petitions from the "We found out through certain program directors that several programs were really hurt by not having meals funded. " -GLENN SCHOENFELD Chairman SSFC commencement program, the music department, the Campus Beautifica¬ tion Committee and the English depart¬ ment’s foreign student program. “The students who participate in the music program are taking something for themselves, learning talents that will assist them in the ’professional world,” said Michael Wilson, chairman of the music department, in a presenta¬ tion to the committee. “But when they Susanna Miele By Lisa Lowery Assistant News Editor Susanna Miele, one of the first two women recently elected to the PCC Board of Trustees, spoke frankly at an interview about her decision to run, her prolonged campaign and her priorities as a new member. Miele, who ran as a reform can¬ didate, attributed her winning margin to the “huge volunteer effort” backing her and the voter’s prevalent attitude that one person’s vote could make a difference. “The combination of the two elections and the college presi¬ dent’s work in all areas has already boosted morale,” Miele said. After a period of orientation, she will decide which of her priority issues she will pursue to sustain her campaign plat¬ form. Although she had been involved in campaigning for others, Miele never had any idea she would become a candidate herself. Miele’s volunteer work on the city’s Commission on the Status of Women, with the Pasadena Area League of Women Voters, and other service groups, built for Miele a broad base of community contacts. “As you become involved with one thing in the community, other people call on you,” Miele said. “Last July, in one week, I had six calls from” individuals representing various groups “in the community who asked if I would con¬ sider running for this seat.” Miele waited until the last filing day, Aug. 12, to see whether anyone else might enter the race. She said she thought long and hard before making her commitment as a candidate. Miele, 38, a PCC graduate, married and a mother of three, began to estab¬ lish her campaign platform by re¬ organizing her agenda and studying the college’s standings. Soon her home, which is a few blocks south of the college, was to become her campaign headquarters. “I became particularly interested because of what I considered to be Roger Gertmenian’s poor record of openness in government and of support for women and ethnic studies,” Miele said. “We (Miele and her campaign committee) just felt it was very impor¬ tant that this district not run unopposed ... as a statement of dissatisfaction and hopefully victory.” The second time around, Miele took 63.3 percent of the vote, winning 29 precincts out of 31. But for Miele, victory did not come easy. The unof¬ ficial results of the initial election disclosed Miele to be the loser by a nine vote margin which changed in her favor by two votes when the official results were announced. A recount was requested producing a tie which called the voters back to the polls for a runoff election. She was officially sworn into office Feb. 2. Miele admitted her apprehensive¬ ness was based on prior elections she had experienced. But her fears of campaign committees and supporters falling to the wayside dissipated as volunteers and funds formed an “in¬ credible effort.” In organizing her campaign, the more college related people she talked to the more she uncovered dissatisfactions matching her own, Miele said. “What began as a minimal effort became a maximum effort” due to the receptive volunteers. Miele said the most important aspect of her campaign was the personal contact made with the voters while “walking the areas, knocking on doors and telling PCC’s story.” She said the importance of voter contact was evi¬ dent in a study of the numbers chart, a tally sheet of each precinct’s voter turnout. The chart showed that she lost a Temple City precinct which Miele said was not walked by herself or her campaign volunteers. After the tie vote was determined, Miele said her campaign effort in¬ creased. The holidays had not slowed her campaign momentum as she thought they might. Many had con¬ tinued to join her effort. “I had some wonderful men who helped, but by and large, it was the women in the com¬ munity who put themselves out again and again. It is the best way to run for an office ... to have people come to you places you in a strong position because they then have a commitment to you.” Miele plans to maintain a receptive attitude as a board member. She said she will work methodically and gradu¬ ally to build up to what she really wants to emphasize. She hopes to build coop¬ erative relationships with the other trustees and people on campus by remaining open and accessible. I m Proud daughter and happy mother — Christine Miele, left, with her mother, Susanna Miele, one of the first women to be elected to the Board of Trustees. — Courier photo by Christine del Villar AS Will Wait For Review Board Postpones Sports' Funds walk down Colorado on Jan. 1, they take the name of Pasadena City College with them.” The SSFC also granted a request from the Community Skills Center for campus activities. “There are a number of activities that go on at the Skills Center. We try to provide our students with something to do besides just attending school,” said David Barksdale, Student Council president. According to Schoenfeld, there are many groups on campus that are un¬ aware that they can request funds from the SSFC. He said that AS needs to make students aware of this. “We need to solicit the different departments, letting them know that these funds are available for educa¬ tional, co-curricular activities.” Schoenfeld said that the SSFC re¬ ceives its funds from bookstore profits. The committee expended approx¬ imately $80,000 in the first semester of this school year. “It is a heavy respon¬ sibility to determine how to spend this money to best serve student needs,” said Schoenfeld. However, Schoenfeld said that the function the SSFC serves, supporting student activities, is a necessary one. “An educational institution has respon¬ sibilities other than just in the classroom,” said Schoenfeld. “These activities help to enhance the educa¬ tional experience itself.” By Greg Augustyn Staff Writer The AS Board postponed a decision regarding allocated funds to the ath¬ letic department until a review of the department’s student bank trust and agency accounts is recieved by the AS executive board. Dr. Bonnie R. James, vice president of business services, is conducting the review. The athletic department requested of AS a $5,000 donation to refurbish the weight room facilities. AS members want to see how much money the athletic department has before the board votes, said Glenn Schoenfield, vice president of student affairs. Ac¬ cording to Schoenfeild, he would like to see the athletic department “spend thier money before spending ours.” Opposing the request, Schoenfield considers the $5,000 donation a “dis¬ proportionate amount going to one de¬ partment.” He backed his statement with his belief of a donotion that large should be used for a greater percentage of the student body. The sum repre¬ sents 17 percent of the AS govern¬ ment’s projected annual budget, Schoenfield said. However, he said he would consider a significantly smaller sum. The athletic department estimated the costs of reconditioning two weight rooms at $18,000. The facilities would then meet the needs of the physical educational classes and the athletic teams. The department has already spent $6,500 on the rooms with funds raised by the the department and the sales of football programs, but an additional $12,000 is needed according to the de¬ partment. & In other AS action, The board elected Tom Wickel as coordinator of external affairs to fill the vacancy when the former coordinator David Leatherberry became ineligible. Ac¬ cording to AS by-laws, a candidate has to be enroll during the semesters of his term. Leatherberry failed to do so. Wickel, current secretary of the Col¬ legiate Republicans, answered board member’s questions concerning his club affiliation. “I don’t think it will be any conflict of interest. I will not use one (position) in connection with the other,” Wickel replied. The AS position represents the student lobby. Others elected were Chris Cofer, commissioner of the social science department, and Steve Nash, com¬ missioner of the foreign language de¬ partment. All appointments are pend¬ ing verification of eligibility according to the AS constitution. Helen Hanson, AS president, ex¬ pressed a need for additional com¬ missioners within the student govern¬ ment. She said only four out of 15 positions are filled, and they are “very important.” She considers the com¬ missioners an extention of the board into the departments. Commissioners supervise various college committees and collect information from the de¬ partments they represent. Schoenfield added, “We need com¬ missioners from all programs to know what student’s needs are. It is difficult for us to say why we should supply your program when you are not supporting us.” As a commissioner you have the right to bring up board issues and to second a motion, but you do not have the right to vote. All unfilled positions are open to all interested students enrolled in a least nine units with a cummulative 2.0 grade point average. Campus News Briefs mm The search for the portrait of Bill Cosby, valued at $20,000 stolen from the Art Gallery last semester has gone nationwide. The artwork has been re¬ cently listed in the FBI’s “Stolen Arts” file according to Jerry Saladin, in¬ vestigator with the college’s Safety Department. A $1,000 reward is still being offered for the safe return of the painting, Saladin said. “Although $20,000 is the estimated value of the painting, the artist wouldn’t have sold it for any amount of money. It was a sentimental piece of work,” Saladin said. The artist lent the portrait to the college for an art festi¬ val last May. □ Henriette Wymar has been “in love with the English Language” ever since her first exposure to it while attending school in her native Holland. Wymar has been named Editor of Focus Maga¬ zine by the Journalism faculty for the Spring 1984 semester. A naturalized U.S. citizen, Wymar immigrated to this country when she was a teenager. A member of MENSA, and the mother of two, Wymar has worked as an executive secretary for business firms and at Caltech. She has taken classes at PCC as her time permitted for several years. “In 1982 I got started on a part time writing program — taking all classes that piqued my interest. I was never really interested in pursuing a degree. I don’t want to be limited. They’d have to design a new curriculum just for me,” Wymar said. Wymar plans to find work writing “any and all media.” Besides her post as Focus editor, Wymar is interning at KPCC as a newswriter. Henriette Wymar Focus Editor