Western Front - 2009 April 14

              Why do all the white kids sit together;
a discussion on self-segregation
PAGE10
McEnroe pitches perfect game
as Vikings sweep NNU
PAGE 13
Tuesday, ApriM 4/2009
THE WESTERN FRONT
AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SINCE 1 9 7 0 1 W E S T E R N F R O N T Q N L I N E . N ET
Faculty senate delays salary raises
Daniel O'Hair
THE WESTERN FRONT
Western President Bruce Sliepard and
United Faculty of Western Washington
President Bill Lyne announced March .24
that Western's tenured faculty will not re­ceive
special merit salary increases for the
2009-10 school year in lieu of Western's
current budget crisis'.
The salary increases, which would
total more than $200,000, will instead
be used to fund sections of courses that
would not have been available due to bud­get
cuts, Lyne said..
Because Western's legislature is still
working on the final budget for the next
school year, no decisions have been made
about what courses would receive the
funding specifically, Lyne said.
• "We wanted to maintain [as many op­tions]
as we could for students so they can
get the classes they need and preserve jobs
for non-tenure track faculty," Lyne said.
Lyne, who .was involved in discus­sions
concerning the decision to delay the
salary increases, said using the money to
fund classes was "the right thing to do"
and represented a small effort in creating
relief for Western's budget crisis.
see MERIT PAY page 7
••photo by Rebecca Rice THE WESTERN FRONT
Western art professor Elsi Vassdal-Ellis teaches students how to make accordion books April 13 during her Design 377 course. Ellis is one of
47 faculty members eligible to recieve a pay raise after the faculty senate reached a bargaining agreement signed in May 2008. The faculty
senate agreed to postpone more than $200,000 in merit pay to save money and preserve more courses that need funding.
Buchanan Towers addition set for July
Miller Hall renovation in limbo; awaits legislature approval of funds
Megan Tackett
Lisa Carrougher
THE WESTERN FRONT
Earlier this year, Western anticipated
two significant on-campus construction
plans to start this summer. Beginning in
July, Western will build its first significant
residence hall addition in 40 years. How­ever,"
the fate of the Miller Hall renovation
project is still being negotiated.
Linda Beckman, Western's division
budget and administration director, said
Western plans to pay for the Buchanan
Towers addition through revenue bonds,
starting in June. The proceeds will be paid
back after 30 years, she said.
"Revenue bonds are supported
through revenue from the housing and
dining systems," Beckman said.
Funding for Miller Hall is included
in the Senate's proposal budget, but not
included in the House's budget proposal.
The legislature chose not to include the
Miller Hall project as part of Gov. Chris
Gregoire's Washington Jobs Now initia­tive,
an economic stimulus package to cre­ate
employment opportunities. This would
have accelerated Miller Hall's renovation
project to begin this month.
If the legislature agrees to approve
the $57.5 million plan in capitol budget
before the end of the legislative session,
renovations will begin on the original
schedule, starting this summer.
"We feel, based on a lot of different
v'factorsYthat;MillerH:all will be approved,"
Tim W y ^ of Facilities
M ^
teeofthat" . • ;.
Out of the six; four-year universities
in Washington, legislation ranked Miller
Hall, which was last renovated in 1967,
as the building most in need of improve­ments,
Wynn said. In the past, members
of legislature have toured the building and
observed how crucial improvements are,
he said.
Western must wait until a decision
is made between the House and Senate,
Wynn said.
The construction of Western's 100-
bed addition to Buchanan Towers will
begin this summer. The construction plans
will be completed by April 22, university
director Willy Hart said. Construction of
the new addition begins this July and will
be completed by August 2010. Construc­tion
could cause Buchanan Towers to
lose between 35 to 90 parking spots, Hart
said. , ' .
"This is a reasonable amount of time,
so there- should be.no problems," Hart
said.
The Buchanan Towers addition will
help the current housing situation at the
university, as well as improve the quality
of the building, Hart said. The expanded
entryway will provide more gathering
see CONSTRUCTION page 7
Veterans form
support group
Meaghan Cox
THE WESTERN FRONT
As more veterans come home from
the war and take on the college front, a
need for support has developed. A pro­gram
known as the Veteran Safe Zone,
made up of faculty, staff and administra­tors,
will fill part of that need.
The Veteran Safe Zone is expected to
improve the campus climate for veterans
through outward expressions of support
and recognition, said Western graduate
student Jana Brost, who created the pro­gram.
Faculty and staff can post a desig­nated
emblem in their office or department
to show their involvement with student
veterans at Western.
A new bill called Chapter 33 will be
coming into effect, said Army Specialist
4 veteran Wendy Gegenhuber, who works
in the Veteran Affairs office as administra
see VETERANS page 6