1994-11-30; Central Michigan Life

              Central! iff
Michigan LI m   E
VOLUME 77, NUMBER 38
MOUNT PLEASANT, MICHIGAN 48859
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LIFE Photo/Andy Klevorn
The Central Michigan Chamber Singers filled Bovee University Center with holiday cheer Monday
afternoon during the sixth annual Holiday Festival.
CMU kicks off holidays with festival
By NICOLE BROWN
LIFE Staff Writer	
With plenty of chilly
weather and caroling, CMU's
6th Annual Holiday Festival at
Bovee University Center kicked
off the yule tide season Monday.
The event, sponsored by the
UC     and     Residence     Hall
Assembly, featured a craft show
that lasted most of the day and
various other festivities for both
young and old.
The highlight of the evening
was the lighting of the CMU
Christmas tree by President
Leonard Plachta and his wife
Louise Plachta, non-traditional
student advocate, along with
Mount Pleasant Mayor Robert
Trullinger.
Leonard Plachta talked about
the joy of the season and also the
cold, while Louise Plachta
■wished everyone "merry Christmas and happy new year" in
See FESTIVAL Page 13	
MOVING ON
Charter schools
leader Misner to
retire from CMU
after 27 years
By MARJORY RAYMER
LIFE Editor	
"Mr. Charter Schools" decided he wants two
things: a wife and a life. So, the 27-year CMU
employee delivered his letter of retirement to the
president last week.
"I've lost some enthusiasm for my job in general
at CMU," Jerald Misner, special assistant to the
president for charter schools, said Monday. ul could
do it, but I would die a little if I did."
Immediately before the Thanksgiving break, Misner asked the president to accept his retirement,
which would be effective Jan. 1.
Tm not being pushed out," he said. "I'm moving
toward something; I'm not running away from anything."
President Leonard Plachta said he will miss Mis-
ner's expertise. "I must say I will miss him. I relied
heavily on his leadership in working with charter
schools.'*
The president said he will aggressively seek a
replacement and hopes to select a new special assistant "in a week or so" by giving the search for a
replacement high priority.
Misner said to return to the wife and life he loves
Photo/Andy I
Jerold Misner, special assistant to the president
for charter schools, will step down from his position Jan. 1.
he must leave the state. In August 1993, Misner's
wife moved to Dayton, Ohio, to complete her graduate education in clinical psychology. Misner stayed
in Mount Pleasant, working at CMU and traveling
on weekends to see his wife.
"This will be a chapter in my life and a very
See MISNER Page 13	
NABET ratifies contract
By CINDY TROMBLEY
LIFE Staff Writer	
The National Association of
Broadcasting Employees and
Technicians ratified Tuesday a
new four-year contract, which
includes 3 percent salary
increases every year of the contract.
According to a CMU Public
Relations press release, the contract also includes 3 percent
increases in university contributions toward a flexible benefit
program in the second, third and
fourth years.
Also as a result of the new contract, the way sick leave is
awarded will change from a grant
to  an  accrual  system, which
allows employees to earn hours of
sick leave based on the number of
hours worked, said Linda Hyde,
local union president and public
information coordinator for
■ Public Broadcasting.
Employees will now earn one-
half day of sick leave each month,
the press release stated.
The tentative contract agreement was reached after a 24-hour
bargaining session with the university Nov. 23. Hyde would not
comment on the degree to which
NABET Local 412 ratified the
contract.
The four-person administrative and five-member NABET
Local 412 bargaining teams met
with a national union spokesperson for a total of 10 days through a
five-month period, Hyde said.
The contract now requires
approval from President Leonard
Plachta.
Ratification of the contract
came as a result of hard work
during negotiation sessions,
Hyde said. "Both sides had good
teams that worked toward
reaching an agreement."
Goldsmith agreed. "Obviously
we're pleased with the outcome,"
she said.
NABET Local 412 represents
about 25 Public Broadcasting
employees.
The public broadcasting
employees' previous contract
expired June 30 without a contract extension.
Privatization continues to cause buzz on campus
ARAMARK executive
speaks to small audience
UFtE Staff VVriter
it is a hot issue on
forum to dis-
urivatisa-
with a company that could
the depart-
aren't even tuned in to the
pus," Seine said. "We
know what the university
to achieve with the dining eer-
David Whitney, CMLTs
tor of hospitality
nistration, said too
CMU      mm
Union postpones meeting on past, present privatization
By TAMARA SNYDER
LIFE Staff Writer	
Union concerns over past and
present moves to privatize several university services were not
delivered to the administration
as planned Monday because of
scheduling conflicts.
Jim Wood, assistant director of
employee relations for Staff Personnel Services, said he had to
change the meeting time with
food and maintenance officials
because he had another matter to
handle, but hopes the meeting
can be rescheduled for next week.
The meeting was to have dealt
with an unfair labor practice filed
two years ago regarding subcontracting of custodial services in
the Dow Science Building as well
as the implications of privatizing
other   services   across   campus,
said Jerry Mester, president of
the American Federation of
State, County and Municipal
Employees Local 1568.
"Our main concern was they
didn't even contact us (about subcontracted services in Dow),"
Mester said, which he claims was
similar to the way the administrators treated the bargaining
unit when they announced the
decision to privatize Dining Ser
vices Nov. 3.
Recent moves toward privatization also are at the forefront of
concerns, Mester said. Dining
Services employees still do not
know how subcontracting will
affect them when they come back
after the holidays.
However, Kim Ellertson, vice
president for Business and
Finance, said the union members
See AFSCME Page 2 	
SGA to visit Alma College to tour privatized services
By ANNA LAMPI
LIFE Staff Writer
The Student Government
Association will hit the road this
week to look several issues,
including the privatization of
another university's food services.
SGA members will visit Alma
College Thursday to tour its privatized Dining Services.
Eric Shumate, SGA president
and Detroit junior, said the purpose of the Alma trip is to see how
Marriott food services is received
by Alma's students.
"We're going to just talk with
students and see what they think
about the food and service," said
Jeanie Kittel, SGA vice president
and Muskegon junior.
Marriott and the ARA company are the two final contenders
to contract CMU's Dining Services.
The SGA members who go on
the trip also will sample the food,
meet with the Alma student government and speak with students.
Shumate has spoken in opposition to privatizing CMUs Dining
Services since the decision to contract out was announced
month.
See SGA Page 15	
*