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Show THE SIGNPOST 7 y i 1 1. ! ijt... 3 f 41 p ' Wednesday, May 16, 1990 ipening in the '80s whether on campus all these issues. there. They picked the mission statement apart bit by bit r; trying to find flaws. Then examined every word to find subtle shades of meaning that might harm their own ' '"particular departments. After a flurry of words, the mission statement was approved and in a form that was not much different than .the original. "It was a big misunderstanding; lots of faculty didn't understand," said Mikkelsen. "I, and quite a few others were overreacting." None of the changes to make Weber just a trade school has happened. In fact, the new mission statement has --reaffirmed the liberal arts tradition, said Mikkelsen. The mission statement, though not a direct cause and " effect relationship, helped in a minute way to allow Weber to become a university. "When the Board of Regents was questioning our motives, we were able to point to the "--mission statement and say, 'we just drafted this,"" said Sessions. "We're not going to change it now." Because of the heated debate over the mission r -statement other issues were frequently shelved. One 'shelved' issue was the student enrollment. Since May 31, 1983, when the Signpost reported, ". . . Weber is tightening , Jts requirements, and high schools are encouraged to 3 1 r vv. Y - f'H-rv f u In 87-88 support to Ureal was protested by fellow WSC students. toughen their requirements," admissions standards have been a problem that keeps surfacing. Within the last two years there was another attempt to raise the standards for entering students, said Sharon Toevs, who is the chair of admissions standards and policies. That was delayed because Weber had just been granted univeristy status. Sessions said that it looked too contradictory if Weber was to stay the same , then raise the standard for entering students. Weber's role has always been to give students a second chance; if they tried before and couldn't make it, we'd accept them here, said Sessions. Recently, Toevs said, the standards committee has a new admissions proposal that will be reviewed soon by the Board of Regents. The committee had one earlier that the faculty approved of, but the Board of Regents "felt that the change should come from them, not from the school itself," said Toevs. Along with a possibility of more stringent admissions requirements, is a new student rights bill. Chair of the Faculty Senate Committee, Thomas Burton, is currently overseeing this bill. "There was one 12 years ago, but it is out of date " said Burton. The new code is an effort to Due to cyanide tainting, Tylenol started the safety-seal craze. Aryan Nations worried locals Into protesting in 1987. f n r r - r " delineate the responsibilities and rights that students have as they go through their academic career. Faculty are concerned, not over students rights and issues, but over their own rights and issues. "Faculty are worried about the possibile threat of litigation and the climate on campus," said Burton. "The faculty and adminstration want to maintain the traditional difference of academic expectations without having everything spelled out," Burton explained. The student's code is now to the point where faculty may be able to accpet it. The code, originally 100 pages, was cut to six pages and is now between three and four pages. It should be coming up for approval soon, said Burton. Another proposal that has been rejected previously but will be presented again is the addition of a new "orphan minor" said Kathryn Mackay, a new member of the history department. A women's studies program was proposed nine years ago and "met with a lot of opposition," said Sessions. He explained at the time there were mostly male faculty who did not want changes, and much of the curriculum did not even support such a minor. Now the climate has changed, he added. "There is a larger female faculty and student population," he explained. Kathryn McKay is spearheading a drive to make women's studies a reality. "Well try it again," she said. She also explained that women's studies have been on campuses for 20 years and that Weber State is a bit behind the times. The purpose behind women's studies is to have "a program to bring students the new scholarships of study," said McKay. Gender issues, women throughout history and women in other cultures would all be parts of the program, she said. "We're developing a program that is diverse." The program is still in the planning stages, but there is tremendous support. Before it is implemented, the program must go through the Board of Regents. For now, the students have petitioned for it, deans and many of the administration and faculty are behind it, and a working committee has been formed. "Anew way of thinking is coming about," Mckay said. General education is being redefined; a new major, bachelor of fine arts, has been implemented. With the change to university status, there might be talk about graduate programs in the future, she said. "These are really exciting things." Signature - '85 ;! cur- '85 "87 '88 89 F ! f 'niversity not part of WSC goal Jolf lop ranking team allied Health Building onsfructed cpanese team wrestles at WSC Nadauld appointed as new president Library budget Is cut WSC drops wrestling program Kotter appointed as first woman vp IranContra scandal Viennese orchestra performs Wind blows down light at Bell Tower Perms are out WSC appoints Rich Hall as Ground broken for new gymnasium Tuition soars Computerrs cause problems with registration and financial aid . WSC's 100 birthday Russioan dancers come to WSC JAL programs at WSC Jesse Jackson speakes at Convocation WSC becomes WSU |