The University of North Carolina at Asheville
www.unca.edu/banner
Volume 28 Issue 13
December 10, 1998
Student
arrested
for as
sault
By Shaun Cashman
staff Writer
Freshman Kelly Vines was
arrested Dec. 2 after assault
ing sophomore Patrick Irons
with a chair on Nov. 22.
Vines, who had dated Irons a
month before, assaulted her
Vines, who h;id d;ilcd Irons a
month before, assaulted her
in her dorm room following
her request to discontinue fur
ther contact with him,accord
ing to the investigation report
obt;uned from UNCA public
safety.
Vines shoved the chair at
irons and struck her in the
legs, said the report.-Vines
“got very angry,” said Irons.
“The chair left bruises on my
legs.”
Irons reported the incident
to public safety, and a warrant
for assault on a female was
issued for Vines’ arrest. Vines
voluntarily turned himself in
See ARREST page 10
Oh Tannenbaum
m
PHOTO BY TRAVIS BARKER
The Holiday Cultural Showcase was held Dec. 4 at 6:30 p.m. in the Highsmith University Center to
celebrate the coming holiday season, and for students, the approaching break.
Search firni
hired to find
chancellor
Committee says no to outsourcing
By Samantha Hartmann
staff Writer
The UNCA Outsource
Steering Committee deter
mined Monday that certain
university support services
should not be outsourced.
“That recommendation will
be given to the chancellor,”
said Gene Rainey, professor
of political science and mem
ber of the University
Outsource Steering Commit
tee. “The decision was unani
mous not to outsource the
bookstore and public safety.”
When a university
outsources certain operations,
an outside company is con
tracted to provide services.
According to Mike Small,
bookstore manager and a co
chair of the committee, the
study began in 1996 as a leg
islative mandate by the Gen
eral Assembly to study the
outsourcing of various sup
port jobs within the univer
sity.
“All 16 UNC state schools
were asked to study the feasi
bility of outsourcing different
functions at the university,”
said Small. “They did not tell
us how to set up the study
specifically for UNCA.
“The only thing they said
was to ‘do the study in three
years and report back to us.’ I
think the way it was stated
was they were looking to save
the state money and be more
efficient,” saicl Small. “We
were not singled out. It was
kind of the rage."
Stephen Baxley, director of
facilities management, said the
committee, in concurrence
with Chancellor Patsy Reed,
has not recommended that any
positions at UNCA be elimi
nated by outsourcing their
activity.
“We have several activities
we are trying to close the books
on as far as the outsource issue
is concerned,” said Baxley.
“The bookstore is one, office
supplies, public safety, and the
rest of the physical plant op
erations” are the others.
As the committee wraps up
its third and final year of the
study in July, Small said it is
not likely any imiversity sup
port services will be
ou tsourced.
“It can be a negative people
issue,” said Small. “Even
though we did not outsource
the custodial function, we still
had an impact on the people
because we put them on the
night shift. We pride ourselves
in knowing one another. Es
pecially with UNCA being a
smaller institution.”
Four third-shift, 10;00p.m.
to 6:30 a.m., vacancies were
listed in a November issue of
UNCA’s “Monday Morn
ing,” published by the Public
Information Office.
According to Sandra Booth,
administrative manager for
facilities management, the
openings were a matter of cir
cumstance.
“One person we had to fire,
two were on disability, and
one guy got a better job,” said
Booth. “We just got unlucky.
We have spells like that. ”
Booth said she was amazed
at how few people they actu
ally lost in housekeeping after
the new policy took effect last
June.
“We did not have much turn
over until later in the pro
cess,” said Booth. “We’ve had
spells like this before, where
everything that can go wrong,
does go wrong.”
According to Small,
outsourcing for public safety
was not an option.
“They were given special au-
thority (by the Board of
Governors) to hold certain
types of investigation that
public safety officers at uni
versities were not normally
authorized to do,’ said
See OUT page 9
By Shaun Cashman
staff Writer
The UNCA Chancellor
Search Committee voted Nov.
23 to hire A.T. Kearney, an
executive search firm, to help
find the new chancellor,
executive search firm, to help
find the new chancellor.
UNCA will use state-allocated
funds to pay the search
company’s fee of $50,000 plus
travel and other expenses.
“I was originally not in favor
of hiring a search firm,” said
G regg Kormanik, professorof
biology, chairman of tiie fac
ulty senate, and member of
the search committee. “But,
after more consideration, 1
thought the firm would be
beneficial.”
“My biggest concern is the
cost,” said Alphsonso
Donaldson, senior literature
major, president of SGA and
the only student representa
tive on the search committee.
“But because of class conflicts,
I have not been able to voice
that because I have not been
• able to get to all of the meet
ings.”
OnNov. 17, thecommittee
discussed the pros and cons of
hiring an outside firm. The
major concern was the cost,
said the minutes of that meet
ing found on the search
committee’s Internet home
page.
“Initially, the sentiment was
we shouldn’t” hire a search
firm, said Donaldson.
“That would mean doing the
whole thing ourselves,” said
Kormanik. “We chose [a firm
that] had experience with
high-level institutions.”
The committee reviewed
seven national search ^irms
that specialize in higher edu
cation and interviewed two of
the firms before making a se
lection.
“It's probably a good thing.
We should measure all our
options and find the best per
son available,” said Justin
Donaldson, a freshman biol
ogy major.
The search firm will aid in
finding three or four appli
cants for the committee to
choose from. The committee’s
recommendation will be sent
to UNC system president
Molly Broad for acceptance.
“A.T. Kearnev has an exren-
MolU’ Broad tor acccptance.
“A. T. Kearney has an exten
sive network in higher educa
tion and the ability to actively
recruit excellent candidates
who, in all probability, would
not otherwise consider leav
ing their current institutions,
said Robert Cranford, search
committee chair, on the
committee’s Internet home
page.
“We have hired a firm like
this in the past for some previ
ous chancellors,” said
Kormanik. “They can bring
the necessary experience to aid
in establishing and finding ap
plicants.”
“It will be worth it if we can
get (a chancellor) who will
stay more than a couple of
years and not bail out on us,”
saidjon Byington, junior lit
erature major.
This month, the commit
tee also plans to place ads in
three national higher educa
tion trade publications in
cluding “The Chronicle of
Higher Education” and
“Black Issues in Higher Edu
cation.”
The ad describes UNCA
and asks for a candidate with
“a scholarly background, ex
perience in higher education
administration, deep com
mitment to the liberal arts
and the ability to articulate
the liberal arts mission.”
The ad is an updated ver
sion of the ad which ran
during the previous chan
cellor search.
The committee will have a
meeting at 1:30 p.m. on Dec.
17 in the Highsmith Uni
versity Center.
Chancellor I’atsy Reed will
be retiring after tiie spring
1999 semester.
Seasonal Rhythms
PHOTO BY TRAVIS BARKER
Students performed in the Student Jazz Ensemble on Dec. 1 in
Lipinsky Auditorium.
Fee increases part of wish list
By Mat Peery
staff Writer
I
Proposals for a 4.5 percent increase in
student fees will go before the Fee Review
Committee Friday at 3 p.m. in the Owen
Conference Center.
Each year, the campus organizations that
receive funding from student fees present a
“wish list” to the Fee Review Committee,
said Eric lovacchini, vice chancellor for
student affairs.
This year’s “wish list,” which would affect
student fees in the Fall 1999 semester,
include a $ 15 per year increase for parking,
a $14.50 increase for student center opera
tions, and a $6 increase for athletics. A $3
increase was requested for the educational
and technology fee. Health services and
recreation each requested $2 in increases,
and campus commission is requesting an
additional $1. The total dollar amount of
the proposed increase is approximately $50.
The Student Government Association
passed a resolution calling for a morato
rium on student fees for next year. How
ever, the resolution is not binding upon the
administration.
The $15 increase in parking fees “would
be devoted to increased parking spaces,’
said Arthur Foley, vice chancellor for fi
nancial affairs. UNCA’s Master Plan calls
for future parking areas to be built as park
ing decks, as opposed to lots. Parking decks
require less cutting of the woods and hills
on campus, but cpst up to 10 times as much
as parking lots, said lovacchini.
Two members of SGA, Doug Jones, se
nior senator, and Steven Crisp, residential
senator, are on the committee, and both
have reservations about the increase in park
ing fees projected for next year.
The new parking facility makes “institu
tional sense,” said Jones. “Eventually, we
will need another parking deck. It’s just a
matter of whether or not students who are
currently here are willing to subsidize a
parking deck that will not be completed”
while they are here.
“Another reason I am a little reticent
towards this increase is because they don’t
have any projection for what parking is
going to be like after the current construc
tion is finished” on West Ridge Residence
Hall, said Jones.
Crisp said that “more study” of the park
ing situation was needed before another
construction project begins.
“I think we’ll be out of the woods in terms
of parking crises that we’ve had this year,”
said SGA President Alphonso Donaldson.
Student fee increases will also pay for a
personal security pager system for students.
The money for the system would come
from student fees for parking and safety,
said Foley.
“The present calendar indicates the project
would be advertised for proposals in spring
semester 1999, and, if a proposal were
accepted, installation would begin in sum
mer 1999,” said Foley.
Plans for this system go as far back as the
fall 1996 semester (“Fiber optics just one of
the many plans for UNCA,” Dec. 5,1996).
The university has not received a satisfac
tory proposal for the system, said lovacchini.
SGA recently passed a bill calling on the
university to delay in making a final deci
sion about the safety devices.
Jones said he feels the university should
look into ways of making the campus safer
that are “more practical and less expensive
than the pager system. An additional prob
lem with the system is an annual “re
licensing fee,” said Jones.
There would “probably be some rental
See FEES page 10