Miami Hurricane, February 26, 1988

              Musical alumni
New Greek on the block
A new fraternity, Tau Epsilon Phi, has been colonized on campus.
News — page 3
University of Miami alumni play in the Greater Miami Community Concert Band.
Accent — page 6
Clash of the Titans
Baseball giants Miami Hurricanes and Texas Longhorns wage war at Mark Light Stadium this weekend.
Sports — page 8
crisis results in task force
Safety
By CAREN BURMEISTER
Contributing Editor
Officers, students ask administration to improve security
Dr. William Butler, vice president for student affairs, agreed to appoint a task force to resolve the current public safety crisis discussed by University of Miami students at forums Tuesday and Wednesday.
The committee is designed "to address the issues expressed at the forum and to try to evaluate and develop plans to address those issues immediately," Butler said.
About 30 students attended Tuesday’s forum at the University Center Rock. Scott Meyer, vice president of GSA, raised the question "Does someone have to die for us to become secure?"
"The most important thing we can do is report crime, every crime,” Meyer said.
Butler sent letters to the sponsors of the Public Safety Forum on Monday requesting that the meeting be moved to 5 p.m. Wednesday. The sponsors agreed to keep the original time and to use Wednesday's forum as a follow-up for the previous meeting.
About 70 students attended Wednesday’s meeting in the University Center Flamingo Ballroom. The forum was also attended by Butler, Don Anguish, associate vice president of business affairs; Joe
F'rechette, director of Public Safety; Pat Whitely, assistant director of Residence Halls; and Pat Haden, director of the crime prevention program.
Butler said the University is trying to strike a balance between maintaining the current open atmosphere at UM and creating a fortress at the University.
Butler and Haden both alluded to security measures recently adopted by UM, such as the blue light phones, security officers, additional lighting for parking areas and escort services.
But these measures weren’t enough to satisfy many students attending Wednesday’s forum.
Three officers have left the UM force within the last few years. Hence, Public Safety is understaffed and without a chief of police. Students raised this issue several times during the forum.
"Crime rates rise exponentially,” said Roman Pryjomko, a graduate student and former British police officer. The further a department falls behind when replacing officers, the harder it is to catch up, he added.
Pryjomko said the Sussex Police Department
appoints one police officer for every 880 residents. He said at minimum UM should maintain that proportion because crime is a more significant problem in America.
T.J. Mannix, a sophomore communication major, said he was afraid that if the community found out UM didn’t have enough police protection “they may learn that we are fair game.”
The resignations of UM Police Chief Curt Ivy and Lt. Cokes Watson produced money to pay for three more officers, Frechette said.
"Three more officers will theoretically give us another guy per shift,” he said.
Frechette blamed the large turnover of UM police officers on low salaries — the Coral Gables police department pays $2,000 more a year. “People are always leaving us for better pay elsewhere,” he said.
Some students complained that tuition increases don’t provide them with better campus security. "The buck stops here," said Anguish, who authorizes funds for Public Safety. “As tuition goes up, so does the budget for safety. We are trying to spend money wisely."
Six UM police officers attended the public safety forumWednesday. Officer Ed Hudak said he doesn't feel safe with the current staff level. “Two officers on campus doesn't cut it," he said.
Several students requested Butler to appoint a UM officer to the new Public Safety Committee. Although Butler didn’t agree with the idea, he said he would consider it.
Manny Tejeda, GSA treasurer, organized the forums after reading The Miami Hurricane Feb. 12 article on Public Safety. He hoped to provide a platform for students to voice their complaints about campus security and for administrators to respond.
Butler will chair the committee. Also on the committee will be Frechette, Anguish, Tejeda, George Shoffner, director of Residence Halls; Beth Bloom, president of the Student Bar Association; Martha Zimmerman, representing commuters and Student Government; Don Vangeloff, representing fraternities; Fred Karlinsky from Stanford Residential College; Jane Secia representing the apartment area, and a student to be announced representing Mahoney and Pearson Residential Colleges.
The committee will have its first meeting Thursday at 5 p.m.
Fire starts in auto engine
Officer alerted driver to flames
By CAREN BURMEISTER
Contributing Editor
When Jim Ferro pulled over his roommate's car at the insistence of a University of Miami Public Safety officer Tuesday afternoon, he didn't realize the officer might be saving his lile.
“I had no idea the car was on fire,” F'erro said as he watched the flames and smoke envelop the 1973 Volkswagen station wagon.
F'erro, a sophomore, had just made a right-hand turn onto Walsh Avenue from the parking lot of Apartment 43. He was on his way to the bank to make a deposit and had not driven far when he heard the Volkswagen backfire.
Flames shooting out the back of the car alarmed Officer Robert Remmen, who was ticketing a motorcyclist about 20 yards behind Ferro.
Remmen put on his siren, and followed Ferro for about 100 yards before he began screaming at Ferro to get out of the car.
"The driver couldn’t understand why I was pulling him over," Remmen said.
Ferro obeyed the officer’s orders, but not before grabbing the envelope containing his intended deposit.
Since the gas tank is in the car’s front, car owner Phil McCreanor said, “You could easily say the officer saved his |F'erro’s| life.”
Coral Gables firefighters arrived at the scene within a minute and a half, Remmen said. It took 30 minutes for them to get the blaze under control.
McCreanor said he assumes his car is totalled since the engine and electrical sytem caught fire. He is waiting for an estimate from the fire department.
“There was nothing to make you think this would happen,” Ferro said, although he admitted the car seemed to be running a little rough.
"It’s nobody's fault," McCreanor said. “It would have happened to me the next time I drove the car."
McCreanor said his auto insurance will not cover the damage because the fire was started by a mechanical malfunction and someone else was driving the vehicle.
Flood victims may be paid
The victims of the Jan. 30 flooding of several rooms on the first floor of Stanford Residential College may receive compensation from the University of Miami.
Student Government Senator Marc Oster, who represents SRC, has filed property damage claims for several residents whose closets were flooded when air conditioner pipes above them burst.
Oster said the total damage for all the residents amounts to $500
“The students involved will be compensated," Oster said. "We're just figuring out the amount."
Oster originally made an estimate of the damage to Bill
Mullowney, assistant to the vice president of student affairs, William Butler. He then called the residents to better determine the actual price value of the damage.
Articles that were damaged by the water include clothing, a portable stereo and carpeting.
Oster said Mullowney will pass the claims through Butler and Risk Management so the students can get money.
Resident assistant Alberto Real said he was pleased to hear the news. “I’m glad,” he said. “I think that it’s only fair. The college is negligent.” Real said this problem with flooding has occurred in past years.
— BARBRA SPALTEN
lOUt) ft A VEL/lturricanc Stall
Coral Gables firefighters spent a half hour battling the blaze in the engine of a car Tuesday,
Number of applicants rises greatly
Administrator: 107 percent increase may, however, be misleading
By PAT McCREERY
Managing Editor
The number of high school seniors applying for admission into the University of Miami is on the rise, but may not be as high as figures now indicate, administrators say.
UM is experiencing a 107 percent increase over last year in the number of seniors applying, but the figure is based on a new, two-part application process and may be misleading, says Director of Recruitment Teresa Lahti-Gathje.
As of Feb. 17, 6,517 high school seniors applied for the 1,725 spots in next Fall’s freshman class, compared to 3,138 who applied by Feb. 17, 1987 for space in this year’s freshman class.
However, UM's admissions office relaxed its definition of an “application" this year, a move that is probably partly responsible for the phenomenal increase, I.ahti-Gathje said.
The 107 percent increase includes all seniors who have paid a $30 deposit and submitted
some entrance forms. Last year’s figure was only for students who submitted a fully or mostly completed application, which also included a $30 deposit, Lahti-Gathje said.
Students willing to pay a $30 deposit are later likely to submit a complete application, Lahti-Gathje said. UM’s application deadline is March 1, and no one will know until then just how many more students applied than last year, she said.
Both Lahti-Gathje and UM’s President Edward T. Foote II say that however the figures are computed, more seniors are applying for admission this year than last year.
"This [trend) is true, incidentally, at a number of the better private universities," Foote said.
Cause for the increased interest in UM is varied, the administrators say. Foote and Lahti-Gathje both named better academic reputation and intesified recruitment as the two main reasons.
Both said that UM’s football national
championship had little effect on figures. “We had an increase before they won, and it’s just as sweet now,” Lahti-Gathje said.
The more applications UM receives the more selective it can be, Foote said. Since he became president in 1981, the average freshman SAT score has climbed over 200 points.
Not every educator is noting more student interest in UM, however. John McCloskey, head of the guidance office at Coral Gables High School, said the number of CGHS students applying to UM has not increased this year.
Last year, McCloskey said, 44 Gables seniors applied to UM and 33 told guidance counselors they had been accepted and planned to enroll. Although this year's figures are not available, McCloskey says they appear to be almost the same.
Lahti-Gathje, however, said UM records show an increased interest locally. "We do think its important to be strong in the local area," she said.
Committee evaluates
By LISA FRANKEL
Assistant News Editor
Today at noon the visiting committee for the University of Miami School of Law will convene for its two day evaluation of that
school's status.
The purpose of a visiting committee is to report to the UM Board of Trustees on the status of its schools. The reports include evaluations of faculty and classes, updates on various operations of the schools, and recommendations for improvement within the schools.
Most committees meet every other year, but the law school has allocated money from its budget for a yearly visit, paying for most of the expenses of committee members.
This year’s agenda, which was set by Dean Mary Doyle and the committee chairman, will include an update on the operations of the law school, expansion and renovation ot the law school buildings, a discussion of clinical legal education. <nd a forum on movements in
legal scholarship such as feminism.
"Normally the dean and the chairman of the visiting committee will set an agenda for the meeting and it can vary from year to year," Assistant Dean Patricia Ash said.
Beth Bloom, president of the Student Bar Association, said she was disappointed with the evaluation process that the committee is using this year. The main focus of the committee will be on clinical legal education and assessment of new faculty.
"I think they [the visiting committee | have a responsibility to sit in on classes," Bloom said. "It’s a shame. I think it is unfortunate for them and indirectly unfortunate for the students."
Informal meetings between students and committee members may be scheduled although any formal interaction is not on the agenda.
Members sit on the committee by invitation only and are suggested by the dean and approved by the Board of Trustees, Ash said. "We try to draw people who are
law school today
outstanding in their own field.” Comprising this year’s committee are such reknowned leaders as U.S. House Representative Dante Fascell, Vice President for the
National Organization for Women Patricia Ireland, and President of the School of Law's Alumni Association and Committee Chairman Emerson Alls worth.
Literary contest open to all
Want to get rich fast?
All you have to do is write a paper to be eligible for prize money and submit it by Tuesday.
The Consortium of Academic Honor Societies and the Honors Program are sponsoring a literary contest for all undergraduate students — and first prize is $500 for a person from each class level.
In addition, a second place winner from each class will win $250; third place winner will receive $120; and five honorable mentions will be given for each class at $50 a piece.
There will also be one grand prize winner who will win $1,000. Also, the winning entry will be published in Phoenix, University of Miami's literary magazine.
Phi Kapp^Phi honor society will
also add $250 to a winner’s prize if they are a member of the society.
The topic must center on freedom of expression and censorship. Entries can be fiction, non-fiction, plays, or poetry.
There is no minimum number of words, but a maximum of 5,000 words. All entries must be typed and double-spaced.
The student must indicate in a cover letter the student's name, student number, local address, phone number, and how many credit hours have been attained as of Sept. 1, 1987.
All entries must follow established criteria and the UM Honor Code and must be turned in to the Honors Office, F'erre Bldg. 210.
DEBBIE MORGAN