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Show THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2001 THE DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE Check us out on the web Labor Investigation Moves Forward, U Not Concerne MATT CANHAM Chronicle Asst. News Editor A federal inquiry into the University of Utah's hiring practices moved into its second phase recently. Investigators with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance, a division of the Department of Labor, started their review three weeks ago, but according to U officials they may be here awhile. Tom Loveridge has worked for the U's Office of Equal Opportunity and Employee Relations for 14 years, and in that tijie he has witnessed two other "compliance reviews." The last visit was scheduled for three weeks and ended up lasting nine months. "This place is just so big it can be daunting at times," said Loveridge, Equal Opportunity director. Multiple faculty members filed similar complaints of racial discrimination against the U last year, which sparked the review. Federal Contract Compliance asked the U to file a detailed report about its recent hirings and information about the faculty makeup and salaries in each academic department With that information, the office conducted a desk audit, identifying areas where investigators would need to come to campus to conduct interviews to get a clearer picture. ' Loveridge and his staff act as "facilitators" during the visit by helping investigators set up interviews and navigate the campus. us us Federal investigators, by policy, are not allowed to discuss any particulars about an open compliance review. An investigator acknowledged that the review is underway, but he will not specify how close his team is to completing its work. The complaints that sparked the compliance review coincided with complaints from the Health Sciences Diversity Board about what it perceived to be a "bad-fait- h effort" on the part of the U to hire a diverse faculty. Loveridge said the two events were not connected, but they did raise the U's awareness of diversity issues. Loveridge does not expect federal investigators to find instances of discrimination or harassment "I honestly don't see the U as a hotbed of systematic discrimination," he said. But he hopes they come back with recommendations for improving the way the U handles complaints of discrimination and the way it educates faculty about the laws. "This is a really healthy thing. It shakes us up a little bit and makes us reexamine our processes," he said, The last compliance review, which indicated that the U does not have a problem with harassment and discrimination, suggested sending postcards to ail new . employees. The U adopted the idea and now sends the postcards to employees so they can identify their race and gender if they choose. The employees then send the cards back to the Equal Opportunity office for statistical information. health-scienc- i 5. ti. . ll-iXA- . es 11 f mm BUSINESS continued from page 1 million. The company will be set up as a finance class, complete year-lon- g with a classroom and a faculty instructor. Yet, participants will be doing much more than reading textbooks and writing essays. Students will research both local and national start-u- p companies to decide if they have "plausible plans," said Hutchings. A committee of local investors will hear students' proposals on different investment opportunities and decide which companies to invest in. Student involvement will not end there, Brittain said. When venture capitalists invest in the companies, they take on a supervisory role in that company, Brittain said. As investors, students will have a chance to play the parts of venture capitalists, to ensure the companies stay profitable, Hutchings said. "It gives students a seat at the table; they can see the kinds of issues companies face," Brittain said. "The idea is to build companies," Hutchings said. The concept for the fund came from a class in the business department which has students invest in the stock market, Brittain said. Investment capitalist and School of Business alumnus Geoff Woolley lead the creation of the fund. He called it a combination of "innovation, knowledge and learning. "The university's many sources of innovation are matched with venture capital knowledge from professors and alumni," he said. UEF falls under the umbrella of the Utah Entrepreneur Center (UTec), a program created to help to $5 students acquire business experience. UTec also join a lAnioM$iti ClemmiUaa! Campus Recreation Diversity Athletic Advisory Academic Policy Campus Planning Library Policy 5 Bookstore Advisory and much more! Mr.. 4fr Come to ASUU (234 Union) today and sign up, or check us out online at www.asuu.utah.edu! aging courses this Consider faking (Hore offerings and more opportunities! P.U courses count toward a Gerontology Certificate 15 hours Summer Looking for General Education Courses? GERON 2050 Aging: Concepts and Controversies (BF) GERON 3001 Experience of Aging (Bl) Looking for Distance Education? (Online & Telecourse) GERON 2050 Aging: Concepts and Controversies (BF) - ONLINE GERON 3050 Aging: Self, Family, and Society - TELECOURSE GERON 50016001 - Intro to Gerontology - ONLINE GERON 50026002 - Services & Programs for Older Adults - ONLINE GERON 53706370 - Health & Optimal Aging - ONLINE sponsors the Utah Entrepreneurial Challenge, a business competition, an undergraduate business major and other programs. Although the program is offered through the business department, Hutchings hopes more than just business majors will become involved. "It's a great opportunity to learn about business," he said. The department will hold an informational meeting about the class at n noon today in the C. Roland Center. Chris-tense- Increase your career skills and prepare for the age luaue... B Looking for great GERON GERON GERON GERON Questions? 50016001 50026002 5320 5960 electives? us on-camp- - 581-81- 98 - Intro to Gerontology - Services and Programs for Older Adults Death, Dying & Bereavement Geriatric Care Management or iuuniu.nurs.utdh.eduGerontology 5 |
