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Show Obituaries B2 State B3 Opinions B4 0 J Ipti iLJ ill 1YU mm kindergarten ludicrous By SHEILA SANCHEZ Herald Staff Writer I'm a proponent of sex education at home and in schools. I naively believe the more information someone has about any given subject, the better. But two recent national commentaries go too far. The first was surgeon general Jocelyn Elders' comment a week ago that sex education should start in kindergarten. The second was a story in USA Weekend about a school in New Haven, Conn. , that is distributing condoms to students. It is difficult to imagine what kindergarten students need to learn about sex. They aren't really taught reading and math because the general consensus has been they aren't ready. Much of the reason they are there is to develop social skills to help them learn how to deal with others. Apparently Elders would like to speed up that training. Most kindergarten students still de PROVO Brigham Young University officials on Thursday accused outspoken professor Cecilia Konchar Fair of making statements to the media about a settlement she reached with the school earlier this week. ina-cura- te In a prepared statement issued by the university, BYU officials said: "Since reaching an agreement with Brigham Young University, Dr. Cecilia Konchar Farr has made some inaccurate statements H-- sMements inaccurate aers about the nature of that agreement and about the process that has led to her leaving the university." Fair, however, said comments made to The Daily Herald are 100 said by withdrawing her appeal, BYU made no final decision to overturn or uphold the initial determination to deny her tenure. She said she exceedod the tenure criteria on teaching and scholarship and disagreed "amicably but percent accurate and represent how she feels about the process. "I stand behind my statements. I haven't said anything that isn't true." On Tuesday, university officials announced Farr had withdrawn her appeal of a June decision by BYU's Faculty Council on Rank and Status of "no candidacy" or contract termination. irreconcilably" over what She appealed that decision in September to the Academic Vice President's Council for review. "Rather than complete the review, Farr entered an agreement with the university. Under that agreement, she withdrew, her appeal. It was because she withdrew the appeal that the university left the decision on her teaching and scholarship unresolved," the university said in its written state- consti- tutes the citizenship requirement of a BYU faculty member. The three criteria for tenure are teaching, scholarship and citizenship. But BYU officials said the school's Faculty Council on Rank and Status recommended last June that Fair be denied candidacy for The outspoken English professor, who supports abortion rights, tion made by the Faculty Council on Rank and Status. It is the appeal that is left unresolved," the statement said. Farr has alleged that the process was not an issue of faculty governance, meaning that the decision to deny her tenure was not one recommended by the council and by authorities above the faculty. continuing status or tenure because of concerns with the three criteria. The university's statement, however, explains that Farr's colleagues at the department, college and university levels evaluated her teaching, scholarship and citizen- - ment. "The agreement did not reject or modify the earlier recommenda- - (See BYU, Page B2) Orem delays decision on cellular site . T ' '' '. 'f1 n 4 li v ; " . vN'xb I . H By DONALD W. MEYERS J : Herald Staff Writer 7 v r 1 ' ", ' ( i . " ' U m ; . ... electromagnetic fifth-gra- ng nicotine-addicte- ever-prese- nt pre-tee- i ! V. X " - Vr.'-Y'- ':..C ;. ' H y- . " sion, despite the fact that he presented evidence that the phone installation would pose no threat to the nearby residents. "We would like to see the residents relaxed about this," Buxton said. "We don't have a problem if the commission would like to delay this to reach a relaxed level The residents who live near the site expressed concerns about what the health effects of the cellular transmissions will be. Some critics of cellular phones charge that their emissions give users brain tumors, and could lead to cancer in people ' de pre-tee- chain-smoki- .f r.- fa ns ' Herald PhotoPatrick J. Krohn ' Janina Craig, Provo, right, works on a cradle while Rosie center, helps Diane Lee, Provo, make a table at Santa's workshop. Ruff, Santa's helpers making Christmas better By PAT CHRISTIAN Herald Staff Writer Headstart, an educational program preparing from and minority families for kindergarten. Between Thursday and Saturday, parents with children in Headstart are making presents for their children. The project has been conducted at the Headstart center located at Geneva Elementary School in Orem. By paying the nominal cost of supplies, parents are making baby cradles, rocking horses, chairs and small toys such as automobiles and blocks. "We started this when we noticed some of our parents really wanted to do something for their four-year-ol- On Thursday Diana OREM Lee worked as hard as Santa's helpers making toys for her children. . "I must have broken at least 26 fingernails doing this," she said smilling. She was working at a special Mountainland Headstart project that allows parents to make presents for their children. Parents whose children might have had less this Christmas can give more because of the Head-staprogram. "We like to call it Santa's Little Workshop," said Rudy Anderson, director of Mountainland rt low-inco- children but didn't have the money," Anderson said. "Christmas can be quite a stressful time as you see lots of advertisments for toys for your children but don't have a dime to your name. ' ' Anderson said participants in p the Santa's workshop can make a childs' table and four chairs for under $12. self-hel- The Headstart director said the program operated last year too, but was less ambitious, involving projects such as making Christmas bows or other simpler crafts. This year, his staff cut out the wooden pieces for bigger projects that would take more time to assemble. And Thursday living near the cell sites. Unlike cordless phones, which must be hooked up to a phone line, cellular phones are actually radio devices. When a caller with a cellular phone places a call, a radio signal is sent to a cell site, a facility that receives and transmits signals to cellular phones, and it is routed onto a phone line and connected to the person they are calling. and Friday normally used for Headstart home visits and follow-u- p were being added to a Saturday, set aside for the projects. "This Headstart project is wonderful," said Lee. "My husband had been out of work for a year and a half because of an accident at work and if not for this project we wouldn't have had things for the kids." As the cellular phone user moves out of die "cell" he started the call in, another cell transmitter picks up the signal, allowing the caller to continue his call without interruption. She said it's been tough since her husband's accident and he still needs two surgeries. But she said projects like the Santa's Little Workshop project, help bring hope. United Way tabbed to manage emergency money Utah County has PROVO been chosen to receive $74,502 to supplement emergency food and shelter programs in the area. function as fiscal agent. The board was charged to distribute funds appropriated by Congress to help expand the capacity of food and shel- The selection was made by a national board made up of national voluntary organizations and chaired by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). United Way of America will provide the administrative staff and ter programs. A local board will determine how the funds awarded to the Utah County area are to be distributed among the emergency food and shelter programs run by local service organizations. The local board is responsible for recommending agencies to receive these funds. Under the terms of the grant from the national board, local governmental or private voluntary or- ganizations chosen to receive funds must: 1) m ISQUSS Sy JOSEPHINE ZIMMERMAN Herald Staff Writer ' - The Utah DepartPROVO ment of Transportation unveiled alternatives to improvements in the South University and Provo Center Street interchanges at a public scoping meeting Wednesday. Horrocks Engineers, the firm designing the proposed changes, set up charts and maps in the Provo City Center for the public to examine and address. The overall project involves : beWidening Interstate-1- 5 and south Provo the Center tween Street interchanges. Currently that section of the interstate has two lanes in each direction, whereas the sections to the north and south have three lanes in each direction.' Expansion and modification of the south Fiovo interchange near asi be 5 1BU r,. 2) LeRoy Dennis, superintendent East Bay. Modifications to the Center Street-I-5 interchange A connecting link between and 9 (State Street), probably along 1860 South in Provo. Engineers estimated cost of the 5 south Provo interchange at million, while the new con9 would necting corridor with cost about $9 million. 1 . I-- SR-8- $25-$3- SR-8- While several alternatives were 9 conto offered for the necting link, the favored design in the would connect with area of the new Slate Canyon Drive, which is now the access SR-8- SR-8- 9 route to the Utah County Jail. All alternatives for that new connecting link run directly along the north boundary of the Bureau of Reclamation building in south Provu. .iJtSh it, of Parks and Recreation for Provo city, expressed concern about at least two of the four alternatives proposed for the south Provo interchange expansion. All four would affect Provo's East Bay Golf Course, but Dennis said, "There are only two we could live J? ' " with." All four would encroach on the 16th and 17th holes of the golf course to some extent, and one would take over the 16th tee and fairway and the 17th tee. That alternative would render the course unusable and would mean redesiging the whole course again." He said the city has just completed redesigning the golf course at a cost of $5 million, "and we are just now getting back to the point when? it is a full operating t private voluntary organization, they should have a voluntary board. Qualifying orgnizations are urged to apply before the Dec. 14 deadline. Additional information on the program may be obtained by contacting Pill Hulterstrom at United Way, 374-258- S-- 8. 15 (See CELLULAR, Page B2) interchanges golf course." The south Provo interchange has been proposed to relieve congestion because of growth in the East Bay development and increased demand at the University Ave. interchange. Novell, Inc. is currently one of the largest trip generators in the area, and has plans to expand to more than 4,000 employees. Provo City has dropped plans to extend a route from that area to the Provo Airport, according to Horrocks engineers. The 1860 connecting route is proposed to provide for a continumovement of traffic ous south of downtown Provo, thus reducing congestion and improving air quality in downtown Provo. That route would involve crossing two railroad lines. ed east-we- st Buxton said the cells have to overlap in order to maintain the continuity. The proposed facility in the north part of the city would overlap with a cell in Provo Canyon, providing continuous coverage for that area. He would not give a specific number on the range of the cell station, noting that it varies from miles up to 10- - 20 miles. He anticipated that the cell would cover most of the northern portion of the city. However, some of the residents do not want that convenience to come at the expense of their health, and their children's health. "We keep getting information on power lines, how they were safe for us to live under in the past, but 1- -2 liver emergency food andor shelter programs, and 5) if they are a twas for t .rn non-prof- have an accounting system and conduct an annual audit, 3) practice nondiscrimination, 4) have demonstrated the capability to de- - radiation produced by the installation. Cellular One is seeking to estab-- ( lish a cell site southeast of the Central Utah Water Conservancy District plant at 1078 East Cascade Drive. Dale Buxton, Cellular One's site acquisition manager, said he was comfortable with the board's deci- Herald Columnist A OREM Cellular One's plans to construct a cellular phone installation in the northern part of the city were put on hold by the Orem Planning Commission. The commission delayed action on the phone company's request to allow a concerned resident to re- search the health effects of the zJ believe in Santa Claus. So to think they are prepared to understand sex is ludicrous. Even more outrageous is the distribution of condoms to fifth students graders. While are certainly mentally able to understand sex, they are not ready to handle the responsibilities that come with it. (If this continues, will condom manufacturers begin making youth sizes?) The argument is that some are already having sex, so at least they should be protected. But making condoms readily available will certainly encourage some children to have sex when they otherwise wouldn't. If that logic is acceptable, perhaps schools should be passing out cigarettes and drugs. After all, some students are going to use them. Supporters defend the practice by saying the students receive guidance and counseling with their condoms. But even if the spoken message is abstinenece and mpnogamy, distribution of cqndoms sends the opposite signal. ,This situation is worse than a parent who tells his children not to use tobacco. It's d more like a parent who gives his child a pack of cigarettes and some matches and then says never to use them. There are some exceptional children who won't succumb. But most will eventually give in to the temptation especially if the action seems to have the tacit support of school administrators, who are significant authority figures in their lives. When this action fails to curb n sex, and it won't, what will be the next step? Will schools have conjugal lounges to make things more convenient? One issue that hasn't been discussed much in this debate is liability. Although it apparently hasn't happened yet, at some point expect to see a lawsuit against a school district that distributes condoms. The legal action could come from parents of a girl who gets pregnant in a school where condoms are provided. Or it may be from the parents of the boy who gets the girl in that condition. In either case, they could argue if the school is providing birth control devices and counseling on how to use them, it should be partially accountable when they aren't used, And what if a child contracts AIDS when using a defective condom handed out at school? Whether or not the school bears any blame, someone is likely to sue Simply out of desperation. It is ine v itable that some teenagers will choose to have sex, no matter what they've been taught at hdme or at school. It has happened for generations. But in kindergarten, schools should confine themselves to health topics like personal hygiene. And in fifth grade, while sex tn'ay be a fair topic for discussion, it certainly doesn't need to be accompanied bv the distribution of late Pandora's boxes. 1 Friday, December 3, 1993 . in fifth-gra- HTl I I f"0" f j ' The Daily Herald Sex ed ''''""""n U if nf U J J Lri Engineers said the route would not involve any property owned by Pacific States Cast Iron Pipe Co., but would involve some mitigation because of wetlands in the area . Other more costly alternatives for the connecting link would take the route farther north. Engineers anticipate that the fi- nal environmental impact statement will be completed by spring of 1994, and a public hearing will be scheduled in June, 1994. Right of way acquisition is scheduled for January to June, 1995, with construction to begin later that year. Written comments can be sent to:, Ron Clegg, Horrocks Engineers, P.O. Box 377, American Fork. Utah 84003. |