Western Front - 1988 July 5

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The Western Front
VOL. 80, NO. 37 WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, BELLINGHAM, WA TUESDAY, JULY 5,1988
Investigation leads
to citation; Western
must correct policy
By Jenny Shuler
staff reporter
Western administrators
received a citation from the De-partment
of Labor and In­dustries,
June 27, charging fail­ure
to implement their policy
for university police safety.
Members of Labor and In­dustries
conducted an investiga­tion
of Western's alleged unsafe
conditions and found officers
occasionally were faced with
hazardous arrest and detention
situations. Exposing officers to
hazardous conditions violates
Western's current policy, said
John .Ecker, regional ad­ministrator
for Labor and In­dustries.
Western policy requires of­ficers
to avoid high-risk situa­tions.
In the event of a life-threatening
situation, Belling-ham
Police are to be called and
university police stand-by if
needed, said Peter Harris, vice
president of business and finan­cial
affairs.
The citation was directed to
H a r r i s who is a c t i n g as
"management official" in this
case. As vice president, Harris
oversees the physical plant
which includes the police force.
Ecker said it's difficult for
police to comply with current
policy because each situation
could pose a potential hazard.
He said Western has 90 days
to correct the alleged hazardous
conditions. Alternatives might
be to increase city police protec­tion,
decommission police to
security, outline a more strict
safety policy or arm the police.
"It is the employer's respon­sibility
to sec that the policy is
enforced and to provide a safe
environment for employees,"
Ecker said.
"We require a plan that will
resolve the problem. All the
university has to do to comply is
take the policy and say it will be
enforced. We made it perfectly
clear that they (police) don't
have to carry guns," Ecker said.
Another investigation will
take place after 90 days, to in­sure
safety measures have been
met.
Ecker said a general citation
was issued because current
working conditions could pose a
safety hazard, but the situation
is not extreme enough to issue a
serious violation, which would
result in a fine.
The citation was the first of
its kind to be issued to a univer­sity
regarding police safety, he
said.
Harris is working on a
temporary policy revision to
clarify police responsibilities.
"The new policy will enforce
what is really meant ~ police
are not to go where known
weapons are involved," Harris
said.
University Police Lt. Dave
Doughty said a petition to carry
hand guns was presented to the
Board of Trustees in September
1986, because of an incident in
which a city police dog was
stabbed during an on-campus
investigation.
"Our officer was out on
routine patrol. He was checking
a parking lot and found evi­dence
of a prowler. The prowler
See Guns p.4
Fumes likely cause of illness
By Don Hunger
staff reporter
"Sure Klean," a brick sealant
being applied to the outside walls
of Bond Hall is giving employees
headaches and nausea.
The label found on the pro­duct's
55-gallon drums lists the
main ingredients as "siloxane and
mineral spirits."
w
Dennis Smith, acting Western
safety officer, said siloxane isn't
listed as a "hazardous" material,
according to the product's safety
data sheet.
Instead, it's defined as an oil
with disposal dictated by the
Clean Water Act, which states it
can't be disposed of in gutters,
drains or open water, he said.
Alycien Van Droof
Warning label found on hazardous sealant container.
The container warning label
lists siloxane as "harmful or fatal
if swallowed or inhaled." The
chemical is highly combustible,
will flow as a gas down corridors,
and should be applied wearing
federally-approved respirators.
The sealing process began two
weeks ago and has received varied
r e a c t i o n s from Bond Hall
workers.
Linda Nunamaker, physics de­partment
secretary, said the smell
was strong to the point of giving
her, "severe headaches, nausea
and intestinal reactions."
Nunamaker said two days
after spraying began she felt ill
enough to go home, if her work
load would have allowed.
At home, she noticed a
mctalic taste in her mouth as well
as feeling very drained and tired,
she said.
A common complaint among
staff and students alike was the
pungent odor, described as a cross
between paper-duplicating chemi­cals
and shoe polish.
Dcanna Blackmail, computer
center secretary, said she assumed
the chemical's use was harmless
because the technician applying it
wasn't wearing a dust mask.
"I hope it's OK because I had
my window open earlier, and they
came by and sprayed right in it,"
she said.
A worker on-site said he feels
comfortable using the sealant be­cause
no specific requirements for
its handling were issued.
Smith said, "They should be
wearing eye protection and gloves
to keep it (Sure Klean) off their
skin."
The safety office policy, how­ever,
is not to enforce it in this
and similar situations of "mild
chemical" use in open air, he said.
"Bond Hall occupants should
keep their windows closed to min-
See 'Sure Klean' p.4
Curtain is ready to rise on 1988 Summer Stock season
By April Osborne
staff reporter
The lights go down, the
curtain opens ... and the first re­hearsal
for the 1988 Summer
Stock season begins.
Summer Stock is the theatre/
dance department's effort to bring
a lively collection of plays to
Western's campus and the Bel-lingham
community.
Started 17 years ago by former
theatre/dance department dean
Bill Gregory, Summer Stock is a
continuous summer theatre — the
only one of its kind in the Pacific
Northwest.
Not merely an entertainment
extravaganza, Summer Stock also
is intended to give students an in­tensive
theater experience, which
is not possible during the regular
school year. Student company
members act, work with props and
lighting, and rehearse lor more
than 10 hours a day, six days a
week.
Summer Stock is offered as a
credited class, listed in the West­ern
catalog. Students apply for ac­ceptance
into the program during
the regular school year.
After acceptance, each com­pany
member must then audition,
separately, for the various plays
chosen for production.
This year, auditions for Sum­mer
Stock productions were
opened to the public, and many
non-company members audi­tioned
for parts in a wide variety
of plays, including Shakespeare's
comedy, "Twelfth Night," and the
classic musicai, "Fiddler on the
Roof."
The open audition is one of
many changes initiated by Sum­mer
Stock producer Doug Vander
Yacht.
V a n d e r Y a c h t , a
theatre/dance department profes­sor,
accepted leadership of Sum­mer
Stock two years ago. Return­ing
from sabbatical in 1987, he
found himself with no class as­signments
and a lot of time on his
hands.
"I had plenty of leisure time,"
he said. "I came back...refreshed
and was able to spend a lot of
time thinking about Summer
Stock."
After consulting with friends
and faculty members, Vander
Yacht reformulated the program,
revamping and setting new goals.
"My main goal after taking
over the program was to provide
more varied opportunity for ac­tors
to work with new directors,"
he said.
His second goal was to in­crease
audience size so cast mem­bers
could experience a more live­ly
response to their performances.
"The more audience response,
the more energy in the per­formance,"
Vander Yacht said.
Early publicity has played a
key role in increasing audience
size and community participation
in this year's Summer Stock
agenda, Vander Yacht said. Sea­son
ticket sales have quadrupled
over last year's, and requests for
tickets continue to pour in.
Large-scale promotion has
had some negative effects. While
originally intended to give West­ern
students intensive acting
training, Summer Stock now oper­ates
under the added stress of the
community eye.
With such high expectations
on the quality of performance,
Summer Stock must now focus
more heavily on public appeal,
sometimes at the expense of stu­dent
members. Some say the open
audition policy lies at the root of
the tension.
"It's a fine line," commented
one company member. "It's a de­cision
on who Summer Stock is
for, the audience or the students."
Many student members voiced
disapproval over the open audi­tion
system. Although the compa­ny's
student actors are considered
over outside hopefuls, they claim
Summer Stock has become too
performance-oriented, with the
educational aspect being lost.
But, as theater student Clark
Savell was quick to point out, "It.
gets frustrating at times, but the
good points outweigh the bad."
"13 Rue de L'Amour," a
French farce, opens at 8 p.m., July
13 on the main stage of the Per­forming
Arts Center and will run
through July 16.