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Volume XI, Number 14
The Student Newspaper of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina
November 18, 1975
Five Year plan represents ^soundest thinking at
By Brad Rich
In the spring of 1974, the 16 schools
in the University of North Carolina
system were told to develop a five-year
plan and deliver it to the State
Legislature by January 1st, 1975. The
UNCC General Administration, pushed
for time, then told the Planning
departmental level... ever produced at UNCO
North Carolina
Student
Legislature
By Les Bowen
The Interim Council of the North
Carolina Student Legislature (NCSL) will
meet in the McEniry building at UNCC
on November 23.
This will be the first time the NCSL
has come to UNCC. Representatives form
most of the approximately 50 member
institutions will attend, according to Dr.
William McCoy, faculty advisor for the
students for Political Action Club.
The NCSL is made up of students
from junior and senior colleges,
community colleges, universities and
technical institutes in North Carolina.
The group holds an annual meeting each
spring in Raleigh. At the annual meeting
the various delegations introduce
legislation which, if passed, is sent to the
Governor. The Governor then presents
the legislation to the North Carolina
General Assembly for its consideration.
According to Dr. McCoy, 60% of the
bills passed by the NCSL are later
enacted by the General Assembly. “The
bills that are introduced,” said McCoy,
are serious bills that the students think
the state should take some action on.”
Governer Jim Holshouser and Lieutenaut
Governer Jim Hunt are former members
of NCSL.
The Interim Council meets monthly
at a member institution. McCoy said the
chief purpose of the monthly meetings
was to plan work for the annual spring
sessions.
UNCC participates in the NCSL
through the students for Political Action
Club. The club is responsible for the
Interim Council coming to UNCC on
November 23, and it attends the annual
meeting in Raleigh. According to McCoy,
the group currently has 26 or 27
members on campus.
The UNCC delegation to the annual
meeting will consist of 25 members. The
L'NCC representatives won the “best new
delegation” award two years age, and
received an honorable mention last year
in the “best large delegation” category.
McCoy said UNCC will introduce
two bills at the annual meeting in the
spring of 1976. One bill will call for a
revision of the North Carolina sex laws,
hoping to get rid of what McCoy calls
“out-of-date, unenforceable statutes.”
The second bill will deal with
psychological counseling for parents of
juvenile delinquents.
Club member Randy Maynor
explained the latter bill would “give the
court the power to instruct the parents
of a juvenile to obtain counseling.
Presently the court can order a juvenile
to obtain counseling, but it does not have
the power to require the parents, who are
often the source of the problem, to do
the same.”
department, headed by Ben Romine, to
have the plan ready by September 1st,
1974.
According to Romine, this was the
most difficult time imagineable for such
an extensive project to be undertaken,
because many of the faculty members
and department chairmen are not even
on campus during the summer months.
Work, however, did begin quickly on
the plan, and almost everyone involved
was consulted for information. Says
Romine, “The plans came from the
bottom up. The individual departments
submit their plans to the college level,
then they in turn work with the
University level.”
Many hours of work were put in, and
soon the plan was a reality. The
University then submitted the plan to the
General Administration, who,
unfortunately, was beset by a host of
other important issues. They were not
able to tie all 16 individual plans together
in time, and so were not able to meet the
Legislatures’ January 1st deadline. Tlie
Legislature, however, was understanding,
and the now ready plan will be delivered
in time for the next short session of the
Legislature.
Romine feels the five-year plan, like
all of its kind, has both strengtlis and
weaknesses. Among its strengths is what
Romine calls “some of the soundest
thinking at the departmental level as any
effort of this kind has ever produced at
UNCC.” Me also said he feels all of the
projections in the plan are realistic, and
within the time constraints imposed, the
people involved took the project very
seriously. “Also2’ said Romine, “the plan
goes beyond the projections tliat might
have been required. It addresses visionary
elements of the institutions, and
expresses a dream.”
Romine also feels UNCC, as a
growing urban university, offers a unique
and exciting educational experience. He
thinks, due to the growtlt of our
metropolitan area and increasing
enrollment, “we must not just plan for
the future, but plan for alternative
futures.”
The plan does have weaknesses,
however both tlie lack of time and the
particualar time (summer) cliosen to
form the plan hurt it. The most serious
weakness, tliough, is the fact that there
was not a budget attached to tiie plan. As
Romine says, “The plan is basically a
wish list, but a realistic one. In some
respects, tlie most important aspects of
an institution’s planning is its budget. If
the money is not allocated, a plan is noth
worth a hill of beans.”
One section of the plan, entitled
“The Quintessence,” states that UNCC is
one of most exciting challenges in higher
education today. “It is poised on the
threshold of greatness, and not only that,
can establish new parameters of
greatness.”
Speaker of Legislature^ Sam
Wilson^ leaves University
By Pat Rose
Speaker Pro-Tempore Sam Wilson
announced his resignation from the
Student Legislature Wednesday,
November 12, 1975. Wilson also resigned
all other governmental and organizational
seats which he held, announcing his
intentions of leaving UNCC.
Wilson’s involvement on campus
began a year ago, with the Commuter
Association. He was appointed to former
Carolina Journal photo by Gene Russell
Wilson commented that lie thought
Student Government should have
critics-several critics-however, “those -
who don’t get involved, who don’t care,
who don’t even know that they have a
Student Constitution., .^on’trre^ to be
criticizing.”
Wilson paused and then continued,
“People have no idea how much hard
work a lot of people put in for their
benefit. Student Legislature needs praise
when it does something right. Those who
are working are at least trying. Most
students that I’ve been in contact with
(on Student Legislature) sincerely want
to do a good job.”
When questioned about his views on
this Administration, Wilson replied,
“Jamie Stemple is probably extremely
underrated. 1 can’t say how much of the
knowledge of the way that he’s felt
about, is holding him down.” He called
Stemple, “the Students’ President” but
was hasty to add, “ that’s not to say he
doesn’t make mistakes”.
^Because studentsdo notknowwhat is
going on, it makes the moral obligation
of Student Government that much
greater. People in Student Government
need to be keenly attuned to that moral
obligation.”
Wilson’s forecast of leaders this year
in Student Government include Terry
Fulbriglit, Greg Davis. Geoff Wallwork,
and Doug Lerner.
Wilson cinpliasized he was leaving
UNCC for “strictly personal reasons” and
remarked that he’ was merely taking a
sabbatical. Wilson plans to return in the
spring. “It has nothing to do witli
anything in Student Government,”he
said.
The key question now in Wilson’s
mind, referring again to Student
Legislature, was: Is Student Legislature a
body whose purpose is to allocate monies
and monitor clubs and organizations, or
should Legislature be branching out and
doing more? Wilson acknowledged
Legislature seems to have a difficult time
allocating monies and overseeing clubs
and organizations. He attributed this to
the fact that legislators are not
professional: “ We do some mighty
stupid things.” Some legislators “ stick it
out”, while others become disillusioned.
Wilson expressed the opinion that there
are a number of issues begging, such as
student rights. Summarizing , Wilson
stated: “Student Government has been
one of the most real experiences I’ve ever
had.”
Carolina Journal photo by Gene Russell
Sam Wilson.
Student Body President Ed Hendrick’s
cabinet to represent the Commuters on
campus Later he was appointed to
gkudent Legislature by President
Hendrick’s to fill a vacant Commuter
Representative seat.
Wilson expressed mixed feelings at
tlie prospect of leaving UNCC. He cited
Student Government as what he would
miss most. “Why do all the work?
Nobody seems to care...” remarked
Wilson, referring to his involvement in
Student Government. He expressed
sadness at opinions by some students,
regarding . Student Government as a
laughing matter. Wilson did not concur
with these opinions. “Although the
world would probably not come to an
end if Student Government were to fold
up tomorrow... it is definitely a learning
experience, a human experience. What I
enjoyed most was the human
involvement and relationships which
developed”.
Wilson in delegation with the Student Legislature.