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The Blue Banner
"Where there is an open mind, there will always be a frontier.” — Kettering
Volume XVII, Kumber 7
The University of North Carolina Asheville
October 11, 1990
Student fired for editorial comments
Steve Peake
Staff Writer
Bill Ashton reported to his job
at campus security Friday to ^d
he had been fired for writing a
letter to the editor published by
the Blue Banner the day before.
The senior literature major’s
letter had been in response to a
published complaint by
mathematics major Warren Smith,
in which Smith had challenged the
way campus security issues parking
tickets. Until Friday, Ashton had
served as campus parking
enforcement supervisor.
In his letter, Ashton objected
to Smith’s characterization of the
parking enforcement squad as
"pipsqueaks with clipboards," and
"zealots in the enforcement of the
trivial."
Ashton wrote, "I don’t know
about the ’pipsqueak’ business,
Mr. Smith. The five of us ticket
writers have the full capability of
ramming that Honda of yours up
your ass." Ashton signed his letter
with his job title under his name.
Warren Smith declined
comment on both Ashton’s letter
and his firing.
Ashton said Jeff Van Slyke,
chief of campus security, informed
him of his termination. According
to Ashton, Van Slyke said the
decision to fire him came from
Roy Carroll, interim chancellor.
"I got to work," said Ashton,
"and Jeff told me that the
chancellor had called him and told
him to let me go. He said the
chancellor was really mad about
the letter."
Carroll confirmed Ashton’s
statement. "Yes, I did," said
Carroll, referring to his order
terminating Ashton’s employment.
"I did not believe that the attitude
expressed in Mr. Ashton’s letter
was of the kind I’d expect from
members of the UNCA faculty or
staff."
UNC president
donates salary
Kimberly Cooley
News Editor
C.D. Spangler, president of the North Carolina university system has
donated his $142,520 yearly salary to the 16 Universities in the
system.
"My salary for the current year, set at $142,520, has caused
comment from a few editorial writers, some members of the General
Assembly, and maybe from some other citizens. Because any
resentment of my compensation too easily transfers to a resentment
of me and of the university, I have decided to donate my salary to the
16 campuses of the University," Spangler said in a letter to Interim
Chancellor Roy Carroll.
Spangler donated $10,000 to each university in the UNC system and
the decision for what it will be used for will be left up to the
chancellor of each university.
"I just felt it was the right thing to do," Spangler said. "Many
professors are digging in their pockets to provide what they need in
their classrooms and I want to give some of that same support."
Spangler said that is was very tempting for the legislature and
anyone else to say he was making too much money for what he does.
"It is human nature for people to resent such a large salary from state
lax revenues."
"Many citizens doubtless feel they work just as hard and just as long
as I do, yet do not get such handsome rewards from the state, and
that is certainly true," Spangler said.
Please see SPANGLER, page 8
Van Slyke expressed pain in
having to fire Ashton. "It was a
very difficult decision, but it was
something we felt we had to do.
We really like Bill down here a
lot," he said, "but we just couldn’t
support him on this one."
Ashton’s letter prompted Van
Slyke to write a response to the
Bliie Banner (page 3), in which he
apologized for Ashton’s remarks.
In that letter. Van Slyke described
Ashton’s letter as "reprehensible
and in poor taste."
Ashton said his dismissal is a
"clear-cut" violation of his right to
free speech. "If UNCA is an
institution of free thought and free
speech, then I should be able to
express myself. My freedom of
speech has been challenged."
When asked if Ashton’s
dismissal had infringed his rights,
Carroll declined comment.
Ashton said he was fired
because he is a student at UNCA.
"It’s clear I’ve been treated like a
student, like a little kid.
"I got nothing in writing from
the university. I wasn’t allowed to
make my point, or to hear from
Carroll why he was firing me. He
even had Jeff Van Slyke do the
dirty work. That’s unprofessional."
"That may or may not be the
case," said Carroll, when asked
whether student employees fall
under a different set of disciplinary
guidelines than full-time state
employees. "Mr. Ashton’s
assumptions on that subject may
be wrong."
Andy Brantley, UNCA
director of personnel and
affirmative action, said Ashton was
hired "at will," meaning the
university can limit or terminate
his employment at any time and
for any reason.
"When you’re talking about a
temporary employee, state
guidelines say there doesn’t need
to be a big trail of paper
generated when that employee is
terminated," said Brantley.
Ashton said his dismissal also
reveals a disciplinary double-
standard for UNCA employees. "If
I’m expected to live up to the
standards of full-time state
employees, then I should expect
the same due process they get.
Even if I was, say, an interim
chancellor. I’d expect due process."
Brantley said Ashton does have
an avenue to air his grievances.
Brantley suggested Ashton first
meet with Van Slyke. "If he fails
to resolve the problem, he could
speak to [Vice Chancellor for
Student Affairs] lovachinni. If that
fails, he could talk to Chancellor
Carroll."
When asked if he thought
Ashton could receive a fair
hearing from the man who had
ordered the firing in the first
place, Brantley said he thought so.
Carroll said he would be glad to
meet with Ashton to discuss the
firing.
Ashton had written to the Blue
Banner in response to Smith’s
letter. In that letter. Smith had
expressed displeasure at receiving
a ticket for improperly displaying
his parking dec^.
Ashton responded with a 600-
word letter in which he called
Smith a "schmuck," and "a spoiled
brat who doesn’t have the brains
to follow directions."
Ironically, Ashton received a
plaque from, the security
department at last spring’s annual
university awards ceremony. The
plaque read, "For recognition of
outstanding and dedicated
performance to the campus
security department."
I have nothing against Security,"
said Ashton. "I’ve really enjoyed
working there. I’m sorry if this
whole thing has caused a lot of
problems for them. I was just
speaking my own mind. Is that a
crime?"
Sweating it out
Competitors for the 1990 Run in the Gardens race turn
first.
Photo by Diane Maney
the corner hoping to finish
Search
team
needs
input
Vicki McCoy
Editor
The search committee for the
new chancellor will hold a special
set of open forums for students on
Oct. 17 from 1:30 p.m. until 3 p.m.
and again on Oct. 18 from 10:30
a.m. until noon.
Wednesday’s forum will be held
in the New Classroom Building
(NCB) in room 038, with
Thursday’s forum held in NCB
012.
According to Jack Cecil,
chairman of UNCA’s board of
trustees and the search committee,
the forums will give students a
chance to give their opinions on
the characteristics and qualities the
new chancellor should have.
"We value the students’ input,"
he said. "Do they want a teacher,
a lecturer, a fund-raiser, someone
who is civic-minded? In order for
Please see SEARCH. page 5^
Students discuss solutions
to parking problems
LeeAnn Donnelly
Staff Writer
Despite a large number of letters
recently received by the Blue
Banner regarding the current
parking situation, only a handful of
students attended the Student
Government Association-
sponsored forum in Dante’s
Tuesday night.
Ten students participated as
Kevan Frazier, executive assistant
for internal relations of the SGA,
led a discussion about campus
parking problems and some
possible solutions.
Frazier presented maps of the
campus outlined with at least 10
proposed parking sites, as well as
several blueprint designs for the
sites.
> Frazier said Roy Carroll, interim
chancellor, wants to increase the
number of parking spaces on
campus by fall of 1991.
"Dr. Carroll would like for us to
build at least one big lot, or a
series of lots together. That would
be at least a hundred spaces," he
said.
According to Frazier, current
allocations for lot renovations
stand at approximately $300,000.
This amount comes from a fund
made up of parking-slicker fees
and parking fines.
"Out of that fund comes money
for maintenance of lots, roads, line
painting and signs," he said.
Frazier said the $300,000 could
act as a down-payment on a two-
lot arrangement, or a parking
deck.
Frazier mentioned the possibility
of building a parking deck to
accommodate the university’s
ongoing growth in students, as well
as in new academic buildings.
Remembering from past
experiences, Frazier said parking
wasn’t increased to compensate for
Mills Hall when it was built. Since
Carroll has requested more
parking facilities, Frazier says
parking will grow proportionately.
"I’m glad to see the university is
actually ready to make a
commitment, and is trying to pick
up on something, so we don’t
build another set of buildinas
without parking areas for them,"
he said.
Chris Lawing, an environmental
science major and an ecology club
major, suggested that in order to
keep the land surrounding UNCA
aesthetically appealiug, the
university has no other choice but
to expand parking "vertically, not
’ horizontally."
He suggested building a deck
over the existing terraced lot
across from Ramsey Library and
Carmichael Hall.
"Just go into the lot and slap a
concrete deck on top of it. You
won’t take up any land. It’s
tremendously feasible," he said.
Frazier added that parking fees
would have to go up to
compensate for any deck built on
campus.
"If we decide to go with a
parking deck, we’ll have to raise
student and faculty parking fees to
$125 starting in the fall ’91
semester," he said.
Frazier said other ways of
combatting the parking problem
include rescheduling the hour
when humanities classes meet.
"The greatest concern is to build
parking to hold students at 12 p.m.
on Mondays, Wednesdays, and
Fridays. That is the absolute peak
period on campus. There are more
students at that time than at any
other," he said.
Other possible parking solutions
exist, said Frazier. One solution,
he said, would require all
freshmen to live on campus,
without benefit of a car, or to limit
their parking to remote areas of
the campus.
Frazier expressed concern
about the low number of students
involved in the forum, but said the
group represented the university as
a whole.
"I’m very glad to have met
with the ones who did come. I was
glad to see the new faces. I wish
we could have had a better
turnout, though."
Alcohol violation
policy revamped
Bonnie Phillips
Staff Writer
UNCA’s alcohol violation policy has been revised to help students
rather than punish them. "It’s not seen so much as punitive, but it’s
health assistance," said Vicki Brunnick, program coordinator and
counselor at the Counseling Center.
In the past, offenders of the alcohol policy had to attend an alcohol
education class.
"It used to be if a student received a violation in a dorm, that they
would just go to a two hour alcohol education class. Well, what if they
received two or three of those? Then they’d repeat that class," said
Brunnick.
The federal government has mandated that all schools have a
consistent substance abuse policy. Three years ago, the Board of
Governors in Chapel Hill adopted a policy for the 16 schools in the
University of North Carolina system.
"As a result of that policy, we already had a student court procedure
in place. So basically what we did is we took an evaluation of last
year’s procedure and decided that we needed to make it more of a
student assistance program," said Brunnick.
Please see ALCOHOL, page 8