The Stetson Reporter

^fbrida's Oldest Colkgiatt itytospaper .^v^-^awiv^wi^^^i^w-^waitw^wj MWfel §t#M¥>« - -M " .0 ;j ' s* i i^ysHinrC yiliilipilli-". -r^fef /• /f ^ |\ ", vy ik^i?igiwiw nil m$4Mw {_ -,'T V- " O « ivn'j \l%S$^ii^ iM|lg;iB|l »fdll0 - I . - %>^®lft .' <* o ^ -< - • , u W^^^^B^^y^S^v^^^^mm^^^> mmz ¥l8fba«af Wfk HsBsifeT PI around THE WORLD Clinton reviews affirmative action Ottawa (Reuters)- President Clinton said Friday it was time to review U.S. government affirmative action programs to determine if they are succeeding in helping Americans gain equality of opportunity. "We shouldn't be defending things we can't defend. It's time to review it, discuss it, and be straightforward about it," he said during a news conference in Ottawa at a U.S.-Canada summit. The Washington /^reported Friday that Clinton, has ordered an intense, urgent review of government affirmative action programs in anticipation of Republican attacks on them. The Post said Clinton had told House Democrats in a closed door meeting Wednesday that he wanted to "outsmart the Republicans" with the preemptive review of the programs. Clinton, asked about the report, said "it's not true I'm backing off" affirmative action. But he said that he did not want the matter to "degenerate" into another political issue. "I am going to do my dead level best...to stop this from becoming another cheap political emotional wedge issue," he said. , There are affirmative action programs that have made a difference to the lives of the disadvantaged, he said, giving the military as an example. But he said that it was time for the government to look at programs developed over the last 25 years and examine "do they work, are they fair, do they achieve the desired objectives." "We don't have equality. We may never have total equality," he said. What the country needed to do, Clinton said, was not to guarantee equality of results, but equality of opportunity. Amendment may ban burning of flag . Washington (Reuters)- A constitutional amendment to outlaw burning or other desecration of the American flag will be introduced in Congress next Tuesday with broad bipartisan support, its sponsors said Friday. The amendment is being promoted by the Citizens Flag Alliance, a coalition of over 80 national organizations, including the American Legion, the Moose, the Elks and the Knights of Columbus, with a combined membership of 27 million people. "The Citizens Flag Alliance has demonstrated evidence that the American people want a constitutional amendment to protect the flag," said Rep. Gerald Solomon, R-N.Y., one of the sponsors of the legislation. . The proposed amendment states: "The Congress and the states shall have power to prohibit the act of physical desecration of the flag of the United States." The proposed amendment has 130 co-sponsors in the House and 26 in the Senate. But 290 House votes and 67 senators are needed for the required two- thirds majority in both chambers to send the amendment to the states for ratification. Solomon said a recent poll found that 81 percent of Americans supported a flag protection amendment. He said 44 state legislators have passed resolutions urging Congress to pass the amendment, six more than are needed for ratification. Canada and U.S. policy sign "open skies" Ottawa (Reuters)- The United States and Canada opened their aviation markets to each other Friday, as President Clinton ended a summit in which he weighed in on the side of Canadian unity and stepped up the fight against his political opponents at home. Clinton and Prime minister Jean Chretien wrapped up two days of talks with warm declarations suitable to what they have both described as a "best friendship" between countries. Chretien emphasized the importance of continued U.S. leadership in the world. Clinton said, however, ihat he and Chretien agreed they need to re-evaluate international economic institutions-- such as the International Monetary Fund- to see whether they are structured correctly, and he said that would be a subject for the global economic summit Chretien will host on Halifax in June. The second day of the summit was focused on trade and the new "open skies" agreement, which was signed by the two countries' transportation ministers while Clinton and Chretien looked on. Clinton told reporters the aviation accord would strengthen a trade partnership already valued at $270 billion a year. Under the pact, Canadian carriers gain unlimited rights to fly to any U.S. city, and U.S. carriers gain similar rights in Canada. Compiled by Michael O'Neill America Online ew version ot mascot rev Davina Yetter The Stetson Reporter- stetson University's new mascot was selected Tuesday and is now under construction, according to Stetson administrators. A new version of the "Hatter" was chosen to replace the old mascot, which was removed from use because its features were deteriorating, according to James Kuebler/di- rector of sports promotions at Stetson. The mascot will be similar to the Hatter that represented the university in the 1980s, designed after the "Mad Hatter" from a character in Lewis Carroll's story Alice in Won derland. However, the new mascot will be younger, more muscular, and will wear a Stetson hat "to keep in the tradition of the Hatter," described Professor Emeritus Fred Messersmith, who designed sketches for a new mascot. When given the choice of the Hatter and an oversized Stetson hat as the new mascot, the Hatter was unanimously chosen by representatives from the athletics department, Student Government Association, and the S-Club, which is comprised of student and alumni athletes. The character is being recreated at Allied Costumes in Winter Park, which builds mascots for the Disney Corporation, high schools and other colleges. The costume will cost between $3,000 and $5,000, and will be paid for by the S-Club, the athletic department, and SGA. The new mascot may be revealed as early as Mar. 2 for the Trans America Athletic Conference (TAAC) tournament at the UCF arena. ■■-.. Kuebler said he hopes to be able to present the character to the student body in a pep rally to send off the men's.basketball team to the NCAA tournament. The decision to bring back the Hatter was made after two years of deliberation. Stetson's athletic de partment decided in 1993 to find another character. After two professional artists failed to design a mascot that appealed to the Stetson community, Jim Jordan, executive secretary of Hatter Boosters, recruited Messersmith .to build the new Hatter. Jordan described himself as being a "catalyst" for reintroducing the mascot. •'-. "Every team should have a mascot," said Jordan. "It brings spirit and gives fans something to rally around." Combining computer systems proposed ; Kelly Underwood The Stetson ReporteL. A recommendation written by an outside company in January proposed combining campus computer systems into one department. The recommendation, written by a local computer consultant, advocated the combination of Stetson's two computing services into one department to create the Information Technology Department. The "Strategic Long Range Information Technology Plan" by Carl Beling proposed the integration of new technology into the Stetson campus by combining the Academic Computing Services (ACS) with the Management Information Systems (MIS). The plan included re-networking the campus and automating the library. The program would be implemented in different phases, and would cost Stetson between $4.2 million and $5.2 million. "The purpose is to provide the university with a long range plan to ensure that over time the university stays current with technology," said Carl Beling. The plan required that MIS and ACS be combined into one depart ment, and the director of that department would report to the Vice President of Business and Finance. "Those two organizations need to be brought together to become more efficient, eliminate redundancy, and provide a higher level of service to the campus," said Ann Graham, Vice President of Business and Finance. The recommendation to com- ' bine MIS and ACS sparked some debate among the administration. Dr. Paul Steeves of the history department said, "I am not opposed to the principle of this, but what 1 am concerned about is the idea that the director of the new department will report to a non-academic administrator." Steeves said, "The university is a university, not a business. One important dispute is the non academic side thinks the university is a business and should be run like a business. The academic doesn't agree with that." "Stetson is in a competitive environment for students. The university is a business, meeting customers' expectations. With the new use of computers and economics, it makes sense to combine them [ACS and MIS] as one," said Beling. photo by Nancy E Brad Budd and Carmen Hendricks were officially crowned Homecoming King and Queen at the dance last Friday. ■indents write to save aid New drus David Young The Stetson Reporter- A letter writing event for students wishing to express concerns about proposed financial aid reductions was held in the Stetson Room Feb. 20. At the event, approximately 250 letters were written to various congressmen, expressing concerns about proposed changes to student loan and work study programs, according to the Student Government Association. In addition, participants signed cloth sheets protesting the proposed changes in federal financial aid. The sheets will be sent to Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Rep. Claw Shaw, who is a Stetson alumnus. Students could also contact legislators through "electronic mail" at the SGA-sponsored event, which- was held last Monday night. SGA Secretary Rachel Ward said that the letter-writing event was held "to show Congress that it's a problem that they cut aid," noting that SGA "felt it was a crucial issue." One student who participated in the event, David Crowder, predicted that he would be "out of Stetson next year if they pull [federal program- introduce Shane Cadden Ihe Stetson Reporter^-. photo by Nancy Brill Sarah Sturdivant writes a letter to Congress to state her opinion about the proposal to cut financial aid, financial aid]." When asked whether the letter- writing campaign would help influence legislators on the issue, another participant, Karl Kletzing, responded, "It might, it might not, but I'd rather do it than not and say, 'At least I did something.'" Nancy Jones, assistant dean of campus life and advisor of student government, said the letter-writing event was the "crescendo" of the university's efforts on the financial aid issue. A new- drug and alcohol educational program was introduced to the Stetson community last month by the Counseling Center. This new program met in the Counseling Center for the first time on Jan. 30 at 4 p.m. The new Drug and Alcohol Education Program (D.A.E.P.) is an educational class that is open to the Stetson community. The D.A.E.P. program is held in the Counseling Center classroom and will continue to meet Mondays from 4-5 p.m. The design of the course allows it to be open-ended, so that each week may be a starting point. The Counseling Center staff organizes the meetings, which may include college speakers, skits, or films. Six program topics will be covered: Genetic Predisposition, The Twelve-Step Recovery Model, Effects on Family Dynamics, Effects on Relationships, College Life Specifics, and Enabling vs. Intervention. "• i