The Stetson Reporter

Male faculty: gender equity k low priority' BY VALERIE FUTCH | "The Status of Women at .Stetson University" is .a report compiled by .the Women's Council Jhat shows more investigation needs to go . into the discrimination of women on campus. This report is" built on statistics gathered by various -; campus groups for over a decade. The Council took data gathered at the university as well as information from other studies done at MIT. According to. Dr. Karen Kaivola, chair of the Women's Council, the report "focuses on faculty, but the recommendations apply just as much to staff. H M a UJ Ul Q Ul (9 licly they more often receive negative responses. Also, women speakers do not receive the same amount of attention that male speakers do. Both men and women contribute to these problems. Kaivola added that one study sent out fictional resumes and varied the name on them from a woman's to a man's. The 'resumes with the male name were rated more highly than those with the female name. "We found that men and women on the Stetson campus have significantly different perceptions of gender equity," said Kaivola. This information comes from a series of questions directed to male And many of the things it discusses are often called .'women's issues' but they're really human issues." A contemporary definition of gender discrimination is "a pattern of powerful but unrecognized assumptions and attitudes that "work "systematically against women even in the light of obvious good will," according to an MITrejport used l?y Kaivola -' in her presentation of the re- . port to the Student Life Committee and the Board of Trustees last Thursday. Research has shown that the most pervasive forms of gender discrimination aren't .things done collectively to by the male class to the female ' class. Kaivola added however, "this isn't to say the more "blatant forms have disappeared, just that they're rare - which is why many people feel the problem is solved." Contemporary discrimination is actually a result of shared attitudes by men arid women. . For example, studies have shown, stated Kaivola, that when women speak pub- 60.5 percent of female faculty felt that the commitment ofthe administration to increasing the number of women in the administration and faculty was the "high" or "highest" priority. and female faculty' and staff members. For instance, according to the report, 47.1 percent of women faculty feel that "compared to other faculty, it takes longer for female faculty to prove themselves." i 1.4 percent of male faculty agreed to this statement. In response to the statement "Discrimination is a problem on campus for female facuky," 37.7 percent of female faculty agreed and. 15.8 percent of male faculty agreed. In addition, according to Kaivola, 60.5 percent of female faculty felt that the commitment of the administration to increasing the number of women in the administration and faculty was the "high" or "highest" priority. 68.6 percent of the male faculty felt that this was the administration's "medium" or "low" priority. "We looked at statistical data on salaries, administrative appointments, tenure and promotion, honors and awards, and service responsibilities," Kaivola added. This data is still being analyzed but will be posted online soon for the entire [ see REPORT, page 2a ] STETSON WEEKEND 2000: Alumni and their family were greeted with many festivities for this year's Homecoming Celebration, photo by valerie futch. Kids of all ages celebrate Stetson Weekend BY KATARZYNA WALOSIK | Alumni from Stetson University began check-in registration on Thursday and were on campus until Sunday to participate in Stetson Weekend 2000. Kathy Burley, a graduate" of the 1975 class -and the coordinating staff member, said, "Stetson Weekend is a time once a year when alumni of sga BEAT f- all ages can come back to campus, re-live their memories, renew friendships and make new ones. It is a time to realize that no matter how long we have been away, Stetson University played a major role in each of our lives and has a special place in our heart." After much publicity, approximately one-thousand alumni and friends were ex- „ pected to attend. The date for Stetson Weekend 2000 was. announced during Stetson Weekend 1999 [February of last year]. During the summer, the alumni received a postcard with phone numbers, dates, and hotel listings. Those alumni who were celebrating a special reunion received a postcard inviting them to help plan their special reunion. A postcard from the deans to alumni who graduated from their school or college also helped to follow up with the event. At the same time, Re- -.union alumni received a class- specific newsletter. The Stetson Weekend brochure was mailed the end of November. "Then Reunion classes |M^ii^WSii,EiIiS|Q|N & For complete coverage of Stetson Weekend events see: Big Sky concert review and interview on page 1 b Staff editorial on page 4a Opening baseball game on page 4b Homecoming basketball games on page 4b received another newsletter in , January:" Alumni had the option of mailing their reservar tionsj calling us, or registering online," said Burley, The alumni were able to various Stetson discussions such as the Investments Forum. In addition to Stetson's sports, music, school, and drama events, [ see ALUMNI, page 3a ] SGA supports press freedom by katarzyna walosik | During the first few meetings ofthe year 2000, SGA not only added new members to its organization, but they also elected two new officers. Brian Mistier, President Pro Tempore, and Brian Crooks, Parliamentarian, stepped down from their officer positions this semester. The SGA senators elected other members to fill these positions. During the Jan. 18th meeting, Chris Donovan was selected to be the new president pro tempore. A week later, on Jan. 25, Patrick Smith took over the position of parliamentarian. In addition to electing new officers, SGA continued to work on several bills. On Jan. 25, 2000, SGA passed and received approval from the administration to place, a change machine in the CUB that will accept bills larger than a dollar. In light of the issues facing The Reporter, SGA senators voted to pass a bill that affirmed SGA's support of The Reporter's. right to freedom of press. Additionally, the food service committee worked on extending the use of meal points * to the New Chinese Restaurant in town. However, the restaurant rejected the idea. [ see SGA, page 2a ] Berry criticizes university research machines by jeff hamrick | A "farmer, thinker, writer, and speaker" said that Americans Should abandon their "frontier mentality" last Wednesday. ' i Wendell Berry, the author of The Unsettling of America, asked a crowd of over 250 people at "Allen Hall to "realize that...[they're] living in the middle of a depression... in spite of this unprecedented period of prosperity." Berry told the audience to "reinvest in.your own comriiunities, direct your efforts there." The winner of the Lyndhurst Foundation Prize praised Edward O. Wilson's Consilience for criticizing divisions and compartmentalization of knowledge in academic communities. Berry criticized Wilson, though, for naming the natural sciences the aegis of the academic disciplines and not criticizing academic developments in the natural sciences. "Too many academic researchers," said Berry, "must submit to a form of slavery, in which time equals work equals original discovery." "This kind of academic Darwinism calls for the eclipse of any other standard of any other kind," said Berry. "It's obedience to the industrial values of productivity and innovation." The Guggenheim Foundation Fellow said that corporate sponsorship of academic research is "product-driven" and "turns schools into factories." "The donor will determine truth, and how much truth, and how truth-will be used," said Berry. "These academics will not have time to know their community." The author of sixteen books of poetry said that corporate sponsorship of research "steals time from teaching" and "creates a devotion fo the new that necessarily devalues the old." Berry said that the standards and goals of the academic disciplines must be changed to preserve human communities and the human connection to the past. [ see LECTURE, page 3a ] Rowin' in the dough CREW TEAM: John Thompson watches as a Stetson Crew member participates in the Row-a- thon. PHOTO BY PAUL DAVIS Bookfeast gives useful information ;by beth.bertr.and I The Sexual Harassment Griev- ! ance Council sponsored a bookfeast on Monday, ! January 31 in the Private Dining Room ofthe Carlton [ Union Building. The students who attend a bookfeast are given a book a few , weeks before the bookfeast is scheduled and read it before the bookfeast. The attendees then attend a discussion group for the book, fol- * lowed by a dinner provided courtesy of the sponsors. The book provided for discussion at the last bookfeast was Get Smart! by Montana Katz and Veronica Vieland (The Feminist Press). It contains strategies designed to help women deal with the many forms of sexual harassment on college campuses. [ read this story in News, page 3a ] Students can be ready for old conflicts with parents -•by karen hofmann | You are back from the holi- JMay vacation and have survived another visit >home. :* ' • For some students, school has been the much needed relief ifrom family issues and control. Going back to your household environment can certainly feel frustrating at times. How are you going to teach your parents to adjust to you '.and all the changes you have experienced? Your parents have ; been in the role of guiding and protecting you for at least eighteen years. It is unrealistic to expect that they know how to be or act with you now that you need them in different ways than you needed them before. Here are some things to consider: Understand that this is a transition for'both of you. You are transitioning from adolescence into adulthood, and that requires the learning of new skills and depending on yourself. [ read this story in Life, page 3b ] 7 >' Hats rattle FAMU AT THE BALL GAME: Josh Laws, an outfielder for the Hatters helped the team to a 14-5 victory over FAMU last Saturday, photc by valerie futch [ read this story in Sports, page 4b ]