I
The
^ Blue Bam
"No one can make you feel Inferior without your consent." -- Eleanor Roosevelt
ner
Volume 22, Number 19
The University of North Carolina at Asheville
Thurs., March 3,1994
Theta Chi and AASA try to make amends
Tori Smith
Staff Writer
Staff Photo By Lat Ray
Members of Theta Ciii and tiie African-American Student Assocation began their Feb. 24 meeting
segregated from each other. By the end of the meeting, leaders of both organizations shook hands.
At a meeting of the African-American
Student Association (AASA) last week,
memt)ers of the Theta Chi liatemity
joined hands with members of AASA
during an opening ceremony in which
all present paid homage to their
ancestors.
The lOmembersofThetaChi attended
the meeting to discuss the new direction
they want to take with their organization,
and asked memtjcrs of AASA to t)egin
working with them to mend the hurts of
the past.
“Basically, this year, coming in, we
want to have a whole different attitude
toward the school, the administration,
and everything,” said Tommy Graham,
president of Theta Chi. “We i.ust want
to U7 to forget everything that happened,
and just try to make whatever it was
better the best way we can.”
“1 think feelings have been hurt, and
the only way I know to make things
better is to work at it,” Graham told
members of AASA.
Theta Chi officers told those present at
the meeting that they are working to
rebuild their organization through
changes in membership and leadership.
They asked AAS A if they were moving
in a direction that is good for both
groups.
“When I came into this organization,
there was basically one type of person
in there, very conservative, rather Old
South-type person,” said Benjamin
Leonard, secretary of Theta Chi, when
asked what kind of changes the
fraternity is making. “That’s not to say
that was a bad person, but he was bad
for the fraternity because it was the
only type person we were getting in.
“He was poison to us because that
was the only way we were thinking,”
said Leonard. “We are very honestly,
and I think successfully, tfying to
appeal to a different type of people.”
“We’re getting in athletes. We’re
getting in, I think, more liberal types
of people. People who are more
politically active on campus,” he said.
“It’s a fundamental change from what
we have been attracting.”
In 1992, the Theta Chi fraternity was
placed on probation after a racial
incident occurred at an off-campus
basketball game, according to Eric V.
lovacchini, vice chancellor for student
affairs.
“The fraternity took voluntary
responsibility for the incident as a
group," said lovacchini. “Roughly a
year later, the university felt that the
fraternity was in violation of that
probation, so the group was suspended
from operations on campus for a
minimum of five years.”
According to lovacchini, the
suspension means that Theta Chi
fraternity cannot use university
facilities, cannot receive funding from
the university and cannot advertise
through the usual channels.
“The university does not recognize
them as a student organization,” he
said.
One member of AASA asked
fraternity members how they felt about
t)eing thought of as an “outlaw group.”
“I totally reject that,” said Leonard.
“We are working very hard to get
away from that image. The leadership
from last year thought that was a good
thing, but we believe that’s a very
negative thing.”
“We are trying to get away from that
through new membership and new
leadership,” he said. “We are trying to
See "Organization," page 8
Career Center holds last session of job strategies workshops
Alex Eastwood
Staff Writer
The Career Center at UNCA offered the second part in its four-part series of
career strategies workshops last week. The workshops will continue for five
more weeks, meeting every Tuesday at 3 p.m.
In four parts, covering a total of nine weeks, students learn skills in resume
writing, job search strategies, interviewing, and career option exploration. The
series is designed to be interactive, prompting discussion and suggestions
between participants.
Last week’s seminar was the second section on job search strategies. At the
first section, students were encouraged to follow specific techniques for finding
employment in an increasingly competitive job market.
In the second section, a brainstorming session between students and counselors
paired techniques with specific short- and long-term goals defined by the
students.
Those who attended worked interactively, discussing skills and goals. They
offered advice, added focus, and the occasional contact in the form of a friend
or relative. “
Students were encouraged to talk at length about how they plan to negotiate
the job market, and the counselors provided the job market realities.
“The reality of the situation is that jobs are extremely scarce,” said Dale
Wachowiak, Career Center director.
But, with the right strategies, chances for employment can be greatly increased,
he said.
Last week’s section on job search strategies built on a job search action plan
provided the week before. The counselors gave guideUnes for a referral
campaign as an instrumental part of the action plan.
The action plan is divided into weekly and monthly goals intended to
maximize the effectiveness of the job search.
After defining a geographical area in which to conduct a search, students
develop a timeline of actions to be taken, such as cold calling, contacting
employment agencies, referral campaigning, and volunteering. Then these are
prioritized according to an individual preference and are strictly adhered to.
In the meantime, students are told to amend and perfect their resumes and
practice skills such as interviewing technique.
Of all these strategies, the referral campaign can be constantly pursued, said
Ingrid Peterson, assistant director. Referral campaigning is a method of
networking a student’s name, skills, and job interests to those who would
provide contacts for employment.
Students make a sizable list of relatives, peers, faculty, employers, important
acquaintances, and professional groups through whom they can network for
contacts and possible employment. Those within the network keep many notes,
like full name, phone number, employer, and position.
An idea suggested by a participant was to have business cards printed to
distribute to new contacts, if only providing a name, address, and telephone
number. Additional information might include degree status, job interest, or
unique skills.
Part of the referral campaign involves using a technique called informational
interviewing. Here, a student makes appointments with professionals in related
fields to interview for advice and information on the job market.
As interviewers, students might ask for resume advice, conduct career
research, or deteraiine field trends. These “reverse” interviews can also reveal
the duties of a specific job in that field and provide additional contacts.
Counselors at the Career Center warn students to avoid common job hunting
errors. The most frequent mistakes, according to counselors, are poor
interviewing preparation and technique.
It is essential, said Wachowiak, to do at least a bit of background research on
any company approached for employment. Being prepared with enough
background information can lessen “interview anxiety,” said one participant.
Other common errors include poor appearance, like inappropriate dress, a
weak resume, and a negative attitude about past employers.
At the end of the job search section was advice on what to do if a job cannot
be secured in a reasonable amount of time. Counselors suggest additional
education, moving to another area, or taking any job available for the time
t)eing.
Students can also list with a temp^^ary agency, or provide salary-free
assistance in exchange for experience and resume building. Volunteers may
receive special consideration when job openings at that establishment come
available.
Inside
Opinions 2
Meeting a success
Sus^n Hanley Lane
Perspectives 3
Sinful act
State facts
Features 4
Ptioto extiibit
Cumette Maher preview
Sports 5
Women's basketball wins
Track meet
Comics 6
Falstaff
Cfiaos
Announcements 7
Job opportunities
Events
Organizations get involved in
community service program
Robin Burris
Staff Writer
Weather Report
Friday
Lo32
Saturday
Lo32
Weather Report courtesy cA the NMional Weather
Service
UNCA Atmospheric Science Department offers
updated forecasts through the 24 hour
Weatherllne...251-6435
UNCA's student organizations are
getting involved with the university's
community service program, which is
a division of the Office of Student
Development.
“There’s been a lot of response from
organizations, more than just
individual students, such as sororities
and different groups on campus, but I
haven’t gotten that much feedback
from individuals at all, but I’d like to
see more of that,” said Shalanda Few,
community service coordinator.
“I’m looking forward to having a
volunteer day soon. I have a lot of
applications for volunteers, and I would
love for someone to stop by and fill
them out,” said Few. “I have a lot of
programs. I just would really be happy
if some people would come by and fill
them out.”
One of the organizations that has
been mvolved with community service,
has tieen the Black Women’s Coalition
for Improvement (BWCI). “We
decided that we didn’t want to be just
a regular organization. We decided it
would be best to be community
oriented,” said Lisa Williams, member
of the BWCI.
The group they have been working
with has t)een Project Headstart said
Williams. They have had fund-raisers
to help the organization said Williams.
Williams said that they help about 100
children.
Other organizations are also in need
of volunteers. Big Brothers/Big Sisters
is one of them.
“We basically have a friendship
program,” said Robin Myer, from the
Big Brothers / Big Sisters program.
The group works with kids from six
to 14 years old, who are usually from
single parent households, said Myer.
“We ask volunteers to get into a
one-to-one relationship with the child,
spend anywhere from two to four
hours a week with the child, doing
simple, sharing-type activities.
Helping them with their homework,
doing a science project together,
fixing their bicycle, going fishing,
things where they share their
friendship more than big money
entertainment type events,” said
Myer.
Myer said that the children mainly
need attention. “When you have
someone coming over that’s coming
over just to seethem,it'svery powerful
for the children. It helps improve
their self-esteem also by having
someone develop their problem
solving abilities. As they face new
challenges, they can kind of draw on
the things they’ve learned from their
big brother and big sister, and
overcome those challenges in a
positive sense, rather than a negative
one,” said Myer.
Big Brothers/Big Sisters need people
who can work with a child for one
year. Big Brothers/Big Sisters will
provide training.
At this moment, there are not enough
volunteers for all of the children that
requested a big brother or big sister
said Myer. There are 90 kids on a
waiting list said Myer. “These are
See "Community service," page 8
Patty Watkins cleans up the water in Carmichael Hall.
Staff Photo By L^t Ray
Water filter break causes building to flood
Lizzy Pressley
News Editor
Parts of Carmichael Hall were
flooded Friday afternoon after a water
filter in The Blue Banner office broke
releasing about2,000 gallons of water.
Jim Efland, Physical Plant director,
said the break was caused by a bad
pressure reducing valve that caused
the system to overload and break the
casing on the water filter.
“What happened was that the
pressure reducing valve apparently
over the years went bad, and we hit
abnormally high pressure or
something. Since that went bad, it
overloaded and found the weakest
point in the water system in the
building, which happened to be that
filter housing,” said Efland.
The Physical Plant received a call
abouttheincidenton Friday afternoon.
Paul Braese, building systems
engineer, went to investigate.
Efland said about 25 percent of the
building was flooded. The water level
varied throughout that part of the
building. Efland said there were two to
three inches of water in the newspaper
office, and alx)ut one inch of water
downstairs.
“Fortunately somebody caught it,
and we managed to shut the water off
before it flooded the whole building,”
Eflasd said.
Physical Plant workers had already
gone home by the time the incident
was reported. Braese and three
members of the Physical Plant
housekeeping staff worked to remove
the water from the buildmg.
"For an emergency situation, I
thought the group pulled together
and did well," Efland said.
A new pressure reducing valve was
installed on Tuesday.
Thank You
The Blue Banner would like to thank those Physical Plant workers who cleaned up
after Friday's accident; Patty Watkins, John Lewis, Curt Salter, and Paul Braese.