1996-07-31; Central Michigan Life

              ^ervia?
Central I ICC
Michigan LITE
WEDNESDAY,
JULY 31,
1996
VOLUME 78, NUMBER 98
MOUNT PLEASANT, MICHIGAN 48859
©1996 CM LIFE
(517)774-3493
10 PAGES
CMU recommended for continued accreditation
By Dave Borough
LIFE Staff Wnter
After months of preparation
and evaluations, CMU has been
recommended for continued
accreditation for the next decade.
The recommendation is based
on the findings of a team of rep-
resenatives from the North
Central Association of Colleges
and Schools. The team visited
CMU and several off-campus
learning centers in February to
conduct evaluations.
To receive continued accreditation CMU has to demonstrate
that it satisfies 24 general institutional requirements as
described         by        the        NCA
Results of
casino study
presented to
the public
By Heather N. LaFave
LIFE News Edttor	
The results of the second tier
of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe
Gaming Expansion Evaluation
Project were released Monday.
James Hill, CMU professor of
political science, presented a
summary of information compiled during a study of the projected impact of the expansion of
the Soaring Eagle Casino at a
press conference Monday at the
Mount Pleasant City Hall and
during a community forum at
the Comfort Inn Tuesday.
Hill said there are four major
opportunities and five challenges
that face Mount Pleasant and
surrounding areas.
The opportunities in the
employment, economic, service
and social sectors are among the
positive impacts the casino
expansion will provide, he said.
Labor pool pressure, communication among social entities,
roads, crime and law enforcement will be the greatest challenges facing the area, Hill said.
Ray Casey, manager of the
Isabella County Road
Commission, said work has
begun already on many of the
potential trouble areas of local
roads.
On the impact of expansion on
crime, Larry Burdick, Isabella
County prosecutor, said it is fair
to state that an influx of people
can increase the incidence of
crime.
The report states the current
law enforcement level is not adequate, and an additional five to
seven county police and six to
eight local officers will need to be
hired.
Joe Sowmick,
Communications and Public
Relations director for the
Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe,
said the law enforcement projections don't include tribal police
coverage,    which    he    said    he
Commission.
According to Provost Richard
Davenport, the team has recommended the maximum 10 year
accreditation period.
According to the report, the
team found many strengths and
concerns.
Some of the strengths include
library services, the College of
Extended Learning delivery system for off-campus programs and
the planning and institutional
leadership that eliminated a significant operating budget deficit
from 1991.
Another noteworthy strength
is the new Combined Service
Center for students.
"All of these strengths we were
aware we excelled in, and placed
a high priority on them,"
Davenport said. "We are very
pleased with the number of positive comments."
One of the committee concerns
is CMU's current governance
systems.
According to the report, faculty
members have voiced concerns
about top-down planning for academic reorganization, lack of
commitment to affirmative
action and approaches to searches for key administrators.
Davenport said President
Leonard Plachta s position paper
on governance clarifies the role
of individual groups on campus.
Plachta created the university
planning commission, which
includes faculty representatives
and administration members to
give input on major issues, he
said.
He added this committee
allows faculty and administrators to meet more often than in
the past.
"WeVe making strides. We
need to communicate more clearly to the faculty and administration in regards of the kinds of
things we are doing," Davenport
said. "We expect and encourage
faculty to participate and play a
major role in curriculum development."
Another concern is attracting a
more culturally diverse student
body and faculty.
Davenport said the administration has been working on programs during the past two years,
which are beginning to take
shape, that allow for diverse
studies.
He said a study on diversity
planning for the institution will
be ready for release this fall and
should make major advances in
diversity and global education.
"We have a goal to increase
minority students to 10 percent
by the year 2000," Davenport
said. "We are committed to diversity."
The   report   also   noted   that
CMU's College of Extended
Learning sites in other states
and countries continue to have a
"tenuous connection" to CMU's
mission statement and an uncertain place in campus faculty priorities and involvement.
Davenport said he agrees they
need to put stronger language in
the statement to identify with
the college.
CMU was first accredited by
NCA in 1915 and if final
approval by the NCA is granted
in August, CMU's next evaluation will not be until the year
2005.
AFSCME and ARAMARK
bid for labor portion of
Dining Services contract
By Cindy Trombley
LlPE Editor	
LIFE Photo/Sabrina Burton
(From left to right) Chief Martin Trombley, Ray Casey, Duane Ellis, and George Dunn all spoke at the
press conference Monday afternoon concerning the stake holders of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe
Gaming Expansion Evaluation Project.
thinks is an error.
Sowmick said the tribe
employs 26 officers, and expects
to expand to 42 officers by
December.
According to the executive
summary of the report, the casino will provide 3,029 to 3,298
new jobs in the long term, most
of which Hill said will be filled by
people from Isabella County.
Hill also reported:
•The Mount Pleasant School
District can expect an increase of
approximately 306 to 364 students in the Mount Pleasant
school district, primarily in the
kindergarten to sixth grade
level, although some of the
increase may be offset by charter
school enrollment.
•The current rate of housing
growth will be adequate to
accommodate the population
influx the casino could bring,
although the growth rate will be
similar to the rate the area has
seen recently.
"We aren't going to see an
explosion (in population growth).
We're going to see the rate of
growth we see now," Hill said.
"People aren't all going to rush
in here at once and want a
house."
•The number of trips on local
roads because of the expansion
could increase by 11 to 16 percent overall.
Judi Sullivan, president of the
Chamber of Commerce, estimat
ed 175 people attended the
forum on Tuesday, and said she
thought the program went very
well.
She said she thinks the
researchers did an excellent job,
and provided good information.
Although she said she thought
there were no big surprises, she
said her main concern was
crime.
"Today we have a high quality
of life — we want to keep that
control," Sullivan said.
Gail Parkhurst, Mount
Pleasant resident, said the
report    gave    information    she
expected.
She said the report was good,
and "meticulously compiled."
She said it will be interesting
to see how closely the study projections are to what happens.
According to Alice Littlefield, a
CMU researcher in the project,
the most important aspect of the
report was that it allowed fears
the community might have had
about the expansion to be subsided.
The 310-page report is available   for   $35   from   CARR.   For
See STUDY Page 9
Both AFSCME and ARAMARK have submitted bids for
the labor portion of Dining
Services and are waiting for an
injunction request hearing to
take place, which will decide
whether the university can
make a decision on the proposals.
The American Federation of
State, County and Municipal
Employees Local 1568 filed a
request for an injunction to stop
the university from going forward in the process to bid out
the labor portion of Dining
Services.
The request was filed in
Macomb County June 28 and
transferred to Isabella County
Circuit Court in July.
An order for the defendants to
show cause before the court on
why an order enjoining subcontracting shouldn't be issued will
take place at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 6.
University representatives
met with union representatives
June 11 to announce Central
would rebid the labor portion of
Dining Services for a two-year
period.
J.
15
After arbitrator Mark
Glaser deemed CMU's Jan.
decision to subcontract the labor
portion of Dining Services to
ARAMARK, the national firm
that has managed CMU's food
service since 1995, "unreasonable," the university announced
it would reconsider AFSCME's
original proposal.
Glaser's decision nullified
CMU's prior plans to award
ARAMARK the contract beginning in 1997.
CMU officials and union representatives met several times
in an attempt to finalize the
union's two-year proposal to
staff the university's food service
operations.
After an agreement could not
be reached, both sides were
informed they would have the
opportunity to resubmit bids.
ARAMARK submitted its bid
June 26 and the union submitted its bid July 17.
Rae Goldsmith, associate vice
president for Public Relations
and Marketing, said Friday the
university agreed not to make a
decision on the bids until after
See BIDS Page 9
Goenner to leave Charter School Office for position
in MAPSA to help the charter school movement
By Cindy Trombley
LIFE Editor	
Casino planning grand
opening for expansion
The Soaring Eagle casino expansion is planning its grand opening, just in time for the arrival of students at CMU.
The Casino is looking at a Labor Day Grand Opening and will
become fully operational "sometime in December," said Joe
Sowmick, Communications and Public Relations director for the
Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe.
Sowmick said the casino's December date is going to be based on
factors such as the weather and construction schedule.
The casino is on schedule, even with the minor design changes
that were implemented, he said.
The changes focus on the artistic areas of the casino. The casino
will be displaying several pieces of art that focus on the tribe's heritage, Sowmick said.
"Local artists will be featured," he said. They will provide for full
viewing of the art and artwork can be purchased.
As for the casino opening, Sowmick said, "I feel pretty confident
about it We have an excellent team and all the contractors are
working together."
A CMU employee who has
helped advance schools with
CMU charters will be leaving
Central to further the charter
school movement in Michigan.
James Goenner, senior associate director for CMU's Charter
Schools Office, will be leaving
Central to start in a new position
as executive director for the
Michigan Association for Public
School Academies Aug. 12.
Goenner, who previously
served on the MAPSA Board of
Directors, was selected by the
Board to serve as executive director.
Mark Delia an, Board chairman and project director of
Educational Development
Corporation, could not be
reached for comment on
Goenner's appointment.
Goenner said he will focus on
three areas for MAPSA, a newly
formed organization, in the fall.
These areas will deal with
employee benefits and insurance
coverage programs charter
schools can use, act as an advocate to policy makers regarding
charter school issues and develop
a strategy to spread the message
about charter schools.
"What we really want to do is
get the message out for what
charter schools are doing for children," Goenner said.
The Board of Directors for
MAPSA consists of nine members with different interests and
involvement in charter schools.
Goenner has been approved for
a one year leave of absence from
CMU. He said after that time he
is uncertain what will happen.
Goenner said the new position
will give him the opportunity to
coordinate charter schools
statewide, rather than primarily
focusing on Central's charter
schools.
"It's really a great opportunity
to serve all the charter schools in
the state," he said.
Goenner said he has been a
member of CMU's Charter
Schools Office for a year and a
half. Although he is looking forward to his new position, he said
he will miss Central and Mount
Pleasant.
"Dr. (Robert) Mills has been
great to work for," Goenner said.
"He's been a mentor to me."
Goenner said the skills and
opportunities he had at CMU are
what provided him the chance to
obtain a position at MAPSA.
"Central has provided me with
a great foundation to go to the
next level," Goenner said.
Goenner said he will be dealing
with more than 80 charter
schools, including 41 of which are
Central's, starting in August.
He said he will be able to work
in both education and administration.
"I've always loved education
and I've always loved business,"
Goenner said. "This really is an
opportunity to combine both."
Mills, director of CMU's
Charter Schools Office, said he is
excited for Goenner, but sad that
he is leaving Central and that
"everyone in the office will miss
him"
"I wish him the very best and
I'll support his activities and look
forward to working with him," he
said.
"I'm very sorry to lose him as
he has been an anchor and loyal
colleague in our charter school
effort," he said.
Mills said he plans to fill
Goenner's position as soon as
possible, but that the office
"would welcome (Goenner) back
at any time."
Mills said he would "do everything possible" to hire Goenner, if
he returned to CMU, "even if it
means creating a position."
LIFE Photo/Bryan Bosch
James Goenner, senior associate director for CMU's Charter Schools Office, is taking a one year
leave of absence to work as executive director of the Michigan Association For Public School
Academies.