1993-11-19; Central Michigan Life

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Decades of service
Journeyman works 34 years at CMU
Page 3
Et Cetera
THAT'S NO BOZO
CMU freshman clowns around
Page 8
Contra I
Michigan
Sports
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Walk-on wonders
CMU's walk-ons spark team in loss
Page 10
*».^NUMBER 86
MOUNT PLEASANT, MICHIGAN 48859
© 1998 CM LIFE
(51 !•> 774-3493
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14PAGI
IES
Plachta announces RSOs are exempt from policy
By Melissa Balgenorth
LIFE- Staff Writer
President Leonard E. Plachta announced Thursday that the university will exempt religious registered student organizations from a
university policy prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sexual
orientation.
Plachta's decision came after more than two months of research into
legal precedents by University Counsel Eileen Jennings and local
attorney Steve Martineau. Jennings gave Plachta her legal opinion
Wednesday.
"The case law is consistent and quite clear on this issue." Jennings
said.
In a two-page written statement released Thursday, Plachta
explained the reasons behind his decision.
"It would be unconstitutional to force student groups to change their
religious beliefs in order to register with the university," he stated.
According to Jenning and Martineau's legal analysis, federal and
state civil rights acts do not include sexual orientation, hut do include
religion and creed.
Plachta responds to
students' concerns
during open forum
By Andrea Smith
LISt Staff Writer
Central has taken steps to
increase its minority enrollment.
but improvements will not be
made overnight, according to
Betty Wagner, associate director
of admissions.
Wagner and Richard Redden*
associate director of minority
enrollment, helped Presi _»nt
Leonard E. Plachta answer jcs-
tions about the issue during an
open forum with the president
Wednesday in Bovee University
Center Auditorium. Approximately 90 students attended the
event sponsored by Student Government Association and Residence Hall Assembly.
Wagner said CMU is providing transportation for high-
school students wishing to com
pete1 in the Centralis scholarship
competitions, as well as having
competitions off campus. Both
are efforts to increase minority
participation in the competition,
she said.
Redden invited students interested it* hefpfrtg increase minority student enrollment to get
involved.
The open forum was prompted
by concerns that students were
not addressed adequately in
Plachta's Oct. 18 state of the university address, said SUA President Bridget Isquierdo. Franken-
muth sophomore.
Isquierdo and RHA President
Gene Welton. Kentwood sophomore, asked Plachta questions
written by students. Then the
floor was opened for other uues-
See FORUM Page 2
Clinton victorious;
House OKs NAFTA
by surprise margin
By Matt Crossman
I IPh News Pci.iof
After an intense bipartisan
battle. President Bill Clinton
earned a decisive victory Wednesday night when the House of
Representatives passed the
North American Free Trade
Agreement.
Clinton lobbied and dealt to
pull off a 234-200 victory. The
margin was greater than
expected and sends the measure
to the Senate, where easy passage is expected.
NAFTA is an agreement to
open   the   borders   between   the
LIFE
on the
Inside
MORE NEWS 3
VOICES 4
CM YOU 5
DIGEST 7
POLICE 7
ETCETERA 8
SPORTS 10
CLASSIFIEDS 12
U.S.. Canada and Mexico. Tariffs
affecting all industries gradually
would he reduced during the next
1 f> years.
The measure must he passed
by the U.S. Senate, the Mexican
Senate and must he proclaimed
law in Canada to he implemented.
Michigan lawmakers voted
along party lines, with Democrats opposing and Republicans
supporting.
U.S. Rep. Dave Camp,
R-Midland, said with the elimination of trade harriers, "mid-
Michigan will experience
increased growth and that means
more jobs
"While this is not a perfect
agreement no agreement can
be the future is ahout rising to
the challenge of global competition. And NAFTA will help us
compete by lowering trade barriers." Camp stated in a press
release.
Democratic Sen Don Riegle,
an outspoken opponent of the
measure, blamed the Bush administration. "This is George Bush's
revenge," Riegle told the press.
"His administration left a poison
cup and the new administration
decided to drink from it."
The   result   of  the   bipartisan
coalition    remains    to    be    seen.
Some claim it paves the way for
working together in the future.
See NAFTA Page 2
The registration application for RSOs makes it clear that student
organizations are not a part of. or controlled by. the university, the
analysis stated.
However, registered student organizations receive funding and room
space from the university.
The analysis also reiterates that the Free Exercise Clause of the First
Amendment  prohibits any law respecting religion.
Jennings said campus discussion and letters to the editor in
CM LIFE did not influence her legal analysis, but did reinforce the
importance of the issue.
Discussion also raised issues that Jennings and Martineau
addressed in their legal statement.
The issue began when representatives from InterVarsity Christian
Fellowship. Campus Crusade for Christ and Real Life Christian Fellowship met with Plachta in September to express concerns about the
rewritten nondiscrimination clause of the application for RSOs.
The groups did not ask for exemption, but said that the current policy
was unconstitutional, said Ken Smith, faculty advisor of InterVarsity
Christian Fellowship and associate math professor.
See POLICY Page 14
1 have never been more disgusted or disappointed at any one
person or group of people in my whole life."
-   Kevyn   Aiken,   GLASS   co-prealdent
and  Birmingham sophomore
I don't want to see any backlash...from either side."
• Kirk   Priest,   president   of   Chi   Alpha   Christian
Fellowship   and   Mount   Pleasant   junior
I don't think there was a compelling reason for Plachta to
issue this decision."
* Michael   Stemmeler,   director   of
Gay  and   Lesbian   Programs
'People really should be treated with respect even if you don't]
like how they look, their opinion, or whether or not they are
J gay or Christian."
-    Ken    Smith,   faculty   adviser   of   InterVarsity
V^ Christian   Fellowship
Any questions?
President Leonard E. Plachta answers questions in Bovee University Center Auditorium Wednesday during an open forum for
students.
CMU exploring charter school concept
By Kelly L. Adams
i iM    Si,iff WnttM
CMU is exploring the possibilities of increasing innovation
in education by cooperatively
establishing a charter school.
The concept of charter schools
first was proposed by Gov. John
Kngler in his education address
last  fall.
Jerold Misner, interim dean of
the College of Education. Health
and Human Services, said charter schools are seen as an alternative to existing schools.
"Generally speaking, charter
schools operate with much freer
guidelines and are not bound to
many of the same rules that
public schools must abide by," he
said. "A lot of people think our
education system is broken and
that charter schools provide inno-
vation in learning and teaching
strategies at a grass-roots level."
Misner said no final decisions
have been made about sponsoring a charter school, hut there is
support for the idea.
"Right now we are in the vtry
exploratory stages, but we are
intrigued by the idea, we think it
lias promise and certainly the
governor is in suppoii of this kind
of opportunity," Misner said.
"With our strong history of
teacher education we would like
to be on the front edge of innovation and change."
Misner said there is a tentative
proposal to build a charter school
in the general area of the University Park.
"If everything falls into place
we would be very favorable to
sponsoring a charter school at
this point, but we still have a very
long distance to travel," Misner
said "There is a lot of positive
rhetoric about charter schools,
but we are not sure how it all
shakes down at this point/*
Misner said an individual has
expressed interest in funding the
construction of a CMU charter
school. He would not release the
individual's name
"I think one of the motivations
for looking into establishing ar
charter school is that someone
approached us and is interested
in establishing a charter school,"
he said "We would like to be on
the same page with the governor
looking    for    innovation    and
changes to provide a model. '
President Leonard E. Plachta
has charged Misner and Greg
Morris, legislative counsel, with
the task of exploring the possibilities and the process of sponsoring a charter school.
"The president has indicated
that he is very much in favor of
cooperating with a charter school
here on campus." he said "Right
now we think this is worthy of an
attempt and worthy of us entering into the fray to see what does
develop "
Misner said establishing a
charter school could open many
doors for CMU.
"Kind of built into the idea of
('MU sponsoring a charter school
is the idea that there will be a
great deal of interaction for students in the teacher-education
program." he said. "There could
be opportunities for student
teaching, field experience, observation and one-on-one interaction, to name a few "
Misner said he is excited about
t he prospect of sponsoring a charter school, but there also are some
aspects to be wary about.
"One of the most controversial
aspects of charter schools is that
they are not required to hire certified teachers," he said "I don't
believe just anyone can teach or
should he allowed to unless they
go through some kind of teacher
preparation program and are
judged to possess the necessary
skills to teach.
"However. I do think there
needs to be room for negotiation;
maybe this could be an opportunity for innovation in the
teaching profession as well."
Misner said he also would be
concerned that socio-economic
factors might prohibit some students from applying to charter
schools.
Misner said state authorization is required for charter
schools. He said state legislation
allows for the formation of charter schools in Michigan and outlines general requirements.
"The current model for the format ion of charter schools allows
them to be converted from an
existing public school or created
from scratch," he said "Current Iv, the legislature is in the
See CHARTER Page 6
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