The Towerlight, February 6, 1976

tl19760206-000 "ovvs on State administrators� ALBERT S. COOK tIBRA# TOWSON SIM COI f(= tterS1 h r �FEB 6 19' iuffle hree It1'0 depart by Steve Verch Those above are part of a recent administrative shuffle. Pictured from left to right are John Suter. David Sturdivant, Robert Bauerle, Mark London, 0 113 trti Rosemary Malcolm and David Nevins. TL photos (from left to right) by K. Dudek, Ken Vane, Buddy Relu-ey, K. Dudek, Davor Photo, K. Dudek. With the beginning of the spring 'nester, three administration per-onnel have left Towson or ranged for new positions away orn Towson State. Already de- ''d are former Associate Dean Students, Rosemary Malcolm, d former Operations Manager for e College Center, Dick Metz. eying later this month is the rrent Director of Planning, David turdivant.1. Dean Malcolm had been involved runarily with Student Services and e Orientation Program. She came 10 Towson in 1971 with the opening ,f the College Center. Malcolm's new position is on the aryland Board of Trustees for ornmunity Colleges, and she will e working in Annapolis where the ard is headquartered. As yet, no Placement has been named, ccording to Dean of Students orothy Siegel. SGA president flue Marie Lowe said a search is derway for someone to fill the St. ''We have two students on the arch Committee to pick a new erson for the Associate Dean Sitio n,' Lowe stated. Dick Metz, now assistant to the resident of Essex Community 'liege was the former Operations anager for the College Center. et; an Ohio State graduate with M.A.S. from Johns Hopkins, se came to Towson in 1971. He rifled his most significant hievement at Towson as having taken the College Center from the d and put it in the black."" Please turn to page 4 LXVIII, NO. 15 TOWSON STATE COLLEGE FEBRUARY 6, 1976 TSC officials back off stand by Bill Stetka Hoping for a compromise and avoiding further political squab-bling, Towson State College offi-cials decided in mid-January to back off in their attempts to override Governor Mandel's veto of the bill that would have given TSC university status. Dr. James Fisher, president of Towson, decided four days before the opening session of the 1976 General Assembly to ask supporters of the bill to call off efforts to gather the legislative votes needed to override .the veto. ""Neither side was sure of victors,"" Dr. Fisher said. ""We're not trying to make a political debacle of this - all we want is to be a university."" Dr. Fisher said he had discussed Towson's stand with several key people in the Mandel administra-tion, and with members of the state ""We didn't decide to go into this out of the blue,"" Dr. Fisher said. ""We had a committee of students and staff that reviewed the criteria used in other states to determine state universities and state col-leges."" In December 1974, that com-mittee sent its recommendation to Dr. Fisher that Towson State should seek university status. A joint bill seeking university status for both Towson and Morgan failed, but bills presented separately both passed through the legislature, needing only Mandel's signature. The Governor signed Morgan State's bill, but vetoed Towson's. Aides to the Governor attempted to keep the veto from being over-ridden to show that Mr. Mandel has not lost any of his power with the state legislature since his indictment last fall on charges of mail fraud. Delegate John Arnick, of Balti-more County, one of the bill's biggegt, backers, felt that Towson had the necessary votes at one time, but lobbying by Mandel administration aides succeeded in switching some votes. Dr. Fisher was surprised at the emphasis placed on the Towson attempt to override the guberna-torial veto. ""The bill certainly became of disproportionate importance and stature,"" he said. ""It's a simple name change. Even the Governor's aides have said there are no financial implications involved."" The Towson president also downplayed the importance of the rift between himself and the Governor. ""I don't take seriously the difference between Mr. Mandel and myself, but it's there,"" he said. ""I don't believe the Governor was 'out to get us!'."" Dr. Fisher praised those who have worked for the bill's passage, especially Mr. Arnick, for his ""unflagging support."" legislature. After negotiating for several weeks, Towson officials decided to pull out of ""the political arena."" ""We didn't want to be there in the first place,"" Dr. Fisher commented. ""It taints the accom-plishment if it's done politically. We would much rather make it as a university based on the criteria needed to be a university."" If things work out, Towson could become a university before the end of the 1976 'calendar year, perhaps as early as July. A meeting today of the Maryland Council for Higher Education could do much to determine Towson's fate as a university. The Council is expected to vote today on the criteria that will determine the difference between a state college and a state university in Maryland. If passed, it is expected that Towson State will meet the criteria established for a university. ollege abandons plans for expansion of stadium by Mary Worobec Community objections, bureau- go etre foot-dragging and legislative sapproval have caused the college abandon plans for expanding the ew physical education complex go to an 11,000 seat community ena. The plan which had approval of th the college and Baltimore antY was dropped in December Y TSC President James Fisher 10 he it became apparent that perficial opposition would cause elays and cost over-runs in the eady under-construction project. f 2. The proposal's cost to Baltimore Vounty of approximately $2 million al �aid ave been defrayed by using e facility for top-name entertain- 0 ent, ice shows, and other tivities which often refuse to use tlk,he downtown Civic Ceror. ,l'',' Wayne Schelle, TSC vice presi- ol' ent of Business and Finance said e County would have gained a Vie arena and the college would ve made some money from its peration, but lack of time and verse publicity from Civic Center PPerters made the plan ""not Orth the price."" Schelle said that more time could V e Possibly allowed the college to ork out the roadblocks but that fter mid-December, any delay ould cost $20,000 to $30,000 per eek. ""It's an awfully difficult situation he You try to combine various ve rnments in a project,"" Schelle romented and added that there ere even rumors that city gislators would oppose university atus for the college if the arena ea were not dropped. City legislators and Mayor chaefer were apparently con- roed that an arena in the Towson ea would further hurt the already- Rag Civic Center downtown. Schelle said the Civic Center is a ig place but no one goes to it. anY promoters will not even book vents Premature publicity about the , f, into the facility because of or attendance. Proposed plans helped to put the lilli College in a bad position. The altirnore Sunpapers ran an lftrial saying that an arena on the d. Pus would be a death blow to rvtile Civic Center and would become 1 a ""white, inmate class facility,"" according to Schelle. Community groups in the area objected to the proposed arena because of increased parking and traffic problems. ""We were suffer-ing from lack of communication with the community around us. It would have taken months to roll away the opposition,"" Schelle said. The college had been advised to keep the negotiations confidential until the State Board of Public Works could pass judgement on the project. Instead, someone leaked the story to the press and then the college was accused of underhanded dealings. Various state agencies began questioning segments of the pro-ject. For example, a question arose over the need for air-conditioning, and an environmental impact study might have been required before approval. But the final obstacle was raised by the Attorney General's Office. The college was told that money raised by leasing a building constructed with state bond funds must be returned to the State Bond Annuity Fund. Although the college said this did not apply to the new building, the long delays in deciding the issue and the possibility that there would be no profit potential for the college in the arena made Dr. Fisher drop the plans. Schelle said that ""certainly Mayor Schaefer did play a role"" in the opposition to the project as did ""bureaucrats raising independent questions"" which would have taken months to answer. Community pressure also in-fluenced the decision. Again, lack of time and the cost factor made it difficult to smooth out opposition quickly. Schelle explained that the college ""can't afford to alienate the legislative base which we have worked so hard to build."" He apparently was referring to the university status question. He did say he had wondered if political pressure had caused the delaying tactics but decided this was not the case. ""Just the logistics of so many groups in a short time frame,"" he explains, made it more trouble than it would have been worth. The college will still be able to use the facility for special events without conflicting with either academic or sports schedules. And the college plans to bring in the same types of entertainment they had planned to use the larger facility for, only with 3,000 fewer seats. Schelle says there is a need for an arena in the area holding events similar to those held in the Capitol Center in Largo. Presently, the college plans to investigate these possibilities, hoping to book about 30 events each year. Schelle said it ""looked like a good idea, but the time hadn't come yet"" for such a complex intergovernmental project. Construction man Dan Bachelor continues work despite recent controversies. at the stadium complex TL photo by K. Dudek Four men promoted by Ruth Ann Leftridge Four TSC administrators are working in new positions during the Spring '76 semester. John Suter, Terry Smith, Mark London, and Robert Bauerle have all received promotions, moving them into different administrative depart-ments. In addition, David Nevins, former SGA president, is now employed as Management Special-ist of Auxiliary Services. Suter, the new Director of Planning, explains the functions of his department, ""We are involved with the capital planning of the college - new buildings and renovations, the capital budgeting process, and space analysis."" The Department of Planning is con-cerned with the general planning of the campus' physical appearance. Suter describes his role as primarily one of ""project coordinator."" As director of the newly re-organized Auxiliary Services De-partment, Smith is in charge of the management of the College Center, Bookstore, and residence halls. ""I will be assisting the managers of the particular departments to carry out their roles and bring the segments into a cohesive unit,"" he said. Smith stated that his imme-diate goal will be to review the total program of the department to make sure that it meets the college's requirements. Functioning within Auxiliary Ser-vices is the College Center Operations Department which in-cludes management of the box office, recreation center, and vend-ing and Xerox machines. ""Right now I'm interested in seeing into which operations we can expand,"" stated London, new manager of this department. ""We *ant to profes-sionalize the services as much as possible. We'd like to totally restructure the box office - both physically and organizationally - to make its operations as smooth and professional as they can be,"" he continued. Besides the continued refurbishing of the College Center, London is considering the possibi-lities of having a classic film series and a bike rental system for next year. Former Safety Coordinator, Bauerle is now the Building and Services Supervisor. This depart-ment handles all housekeeping operations - taking care of the campus and its over-all appearance inside the buildings. ""Housekeep-ing is not a job where you get a lot of glamour or praise and admira-tion,"" said Bauerle. The recently-appointed Supervisor explained that he will emphasize the training aspect of his job. ""I believe very strongly in training,"" he stated. ""I think there is a need for it."" As Management Specialist of Auxiliary Services, Nevins will be responsible for the budgetary concerns of the College Center, the Bookstore, and dormitories. He will also assist the heads of these departments in coordinating any new projects, and will act as a liaison to the Finance Office. While discussing the merits of his position, Nevins suggested he ""will be able to offer a lot,"" particularly because of his student government experience. HEW bears down on college federal aid by Pete Binns and Joan Grabowski Sixty-five million dollars in federal aid remains in jeopardy as a suit over the desegregation of Maryland public colleges continues in Baltimore federal district Court. The suit is an attempt by the State of Maryland to block a Health, Education, and Welfare adminis-trative hearing that could result in the termination of federal aid to Maryland public institutions of higher education. Towson has at stake $5.1 million, much of which is earmarked for direct student aid funding. Passage of Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act necessitated the formulation of the ""Maryland Plan for Completing Desegrgation of Public Post Secondary Education Institutions in the State,"" which was submitted to then-director of Civil Rights Peter Holmes in February 1974. The plan was accepted by HEW after May 1974 clarifications were made. In August, 1975, Maryland and seven other states were warned by HEW of their alleged non-com-pliance with orders to desegregate. HEW began procedures for an administrative hearing against the State of Maryland in December, 1975. On January 5� the State of Maryland filed suit in federal district court, seeking an injunction to block the HEW hearing. In related actions, the City of Baltimore filed suit against HEW to stop an administrative hearing involving more than $20 million of funds which HEW has threatened to cut off from the City because of alleged failures of the Baltimore public school system to comply with Title VI. As the two cases involve similar issues, both cases were considered together. Testimony in the City case was completed January 30 and a decision was postponed until March. Attorneys for HEW, Maryland, and the City of Baltimore began presenting arguments before Chief Judge Edward Northrup on January 30, and deliberations are con-tinuing. Attorneys for HEW contended the State of Maryland failed to comply with Maryland's plan for desegregation. This view was maintained by Lou Mathis of the Office of Public Affairs, of the Office of Civil Rights. Mathis said the 1974 Maryland plan for desegregation was still acceptable to HEW, but that Maryland was not complying with the plan. Responding to charges from Maryland attorneys that no specific examples of non-compliance were ever provided, HEW attorneys stated that a list would be presented at an administrative hearing. They maintained the administrative hearing was the proper forum for further negotia-tion, even though it was the first step toward termination of funding. ""The HEW approach has been callous, arrogant and irrespon-sible,"" contended Maryland attor-neys. ""They have tampered with the rights of the state and its citizens, using as a bludgeon $65 million in taxpayers' money."" Lack of prior warning, non-speci-fic charges on non-compliance, generalized estimates of endanger-ed funds and the issue of voluntary compliance were the basis of the Maryland suit. Representatives of state colleges repeatedly testified that they had received no prior notice of HEW's dissatisfaction with their desegre-gation efforts. President James Fisher of Towson stated that during on-campus meetings with HEW officials, ""While there was a Please turn to page 7 "