Monday, Oct. 23, 2000 -
Palomar College -
Volume 54, Number 7
Are British racist?
Skate bored
'Bedroom Farce'
Government Commission calls for the abolition of the word "British."
Sports video games enjoy continued popularity, we review the top ones.
The new romantic comedy begins run at the Howard Brubeck Theatre.
Sports, page 8
Opinion, page 4
Entertainment, page 5
Bustin' a anove
Task force • rev1ses parking policy
Board rejects proposal for more students on committee Laura Mitchell
Mark Harris
The Telescope
The Telescope
Under pressure from non-student groups that use the campus on weekends, Palomar's Parking Task Force has stopped enforcing a parking policy designed to relieve students of some parking lot maintenance costs. Parking lot revenues consist of students' semester permit fees, daily fees and fines. These revenues pay for maintenance - resurfacing, painting, lighting, policing - of all campus parking lots, including staff lots. Faculty and staff do not pay for parking. According to a survey released by the Task Force. Palomar's parking lot revenues account for 95 percent of the lot maintenance budget; 5 percent comes from the school's general fund. At City. Mesa and l'v1iramar. only 1 percent of lot maintenance budgets come from lot revenues; 99 percent come from general funds. In an effort to shift some of the lot maintenance cost from students to non-students - particularly to non-students using campus facilities on weekends - the Task Force last Spring proposed a new parking policy to the Palomar Community College District board of governors. Thomas Plotts, Task Force chairman, said the policy "put forward all of the issues relating to equity in payment for the lots." The board in May adopted the new parking policy, which requires parking enforcement 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But at a public forum held by the Task Force Oct. 5, reaction to the new policy was negative. Robert Gilson. Perfomung Arts Department chairman, directs a youth symphony that uses can1pus facilities on Saturday mornings. He told the Task Force the new policy would discourage participation in worthwhile programs, including his symphony, and hurt Palomar's
See Parking, page 3
Arthur Andersoo I The Telescope Tm O'Hara, Travis Nafziger and Elizabeth Mayrant get the crowd fired up Oct. 17 with tbeir interpretation of Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody." Karaoke was a one of tile many events held for Comet Week.
Campus celebrates Comet Week Mirva Lempiainen The Telescope
The annual Comet Week brought some fun and games into the Student Union Oct. 16-19, along with a lot of noise. The event, that has been around about 15 years, was organized and sponsored by the Associated
Student Government. According to ASG Senator Melissa Denham, the four-day Comet Week that was named after the Palomar College mascot, is an opportunity for students to show pride in their school. The activities started with Westem Wear Day on Monday Oct. 16 and ASG members served free ice cre<ml in the Student Union. Tuesday was Am1ed Forces Day with some visitors from the Marines, including Sergeant Felix Garcia, who received a gift certificate to Little Caesar's Pizza for wearing and encouraging his fellow marines to wear, their official uniform. Also, a
karaoke competition was held which
filled the Student Union with loud singing and laughter. The winner of the karaoke contest was Vanessa Pates, who received two tickets to Magic Mountain. Wednesday was Hawaiian Day featuring games in the Student Union. Free hot dogs, sodas and chips were served to studenl<>. Campus Wide Day also took place at the same time presenting some of the clubs and organizations on cam¡ pus. such as P'.ualegal Studies Club, Calvary Collegiate Fellowship and Study Abroad Programs.
See Comet, page 7
Requests to add members to a search committee that will seek a replacement for former Palomar College President George Boggs were turned down by the governing board on Oct. 10 by a vote of 4-l. Faculty, staff and students jockeyed to add more representatives to the comnlittee, which includes five faculty, two classified staff, two community members, two adnlinistrators, one non voting governing board member, one administrative association member and one student. "There are over 27,000 students on this campus. We should have at least two students on the committee." Associated Student Government President Shannon Gyde said. "We have many more students than faculty." "But only about 300 voted," said Board President Ralph Jensen. referring to voter turnout for ¡the Associated Student Government elections on Sept. 26 and 27. Tru tee Rita White asked why there couldn't be two students on the committee. "It's a great deal of time for a student carrying a full load," trustee Robert Dougherty replied. "It's a burden." Gyde said there are students who care, and that she has quite a few people who are interested and would dedicate the time. "If a student really wants to be on the committee, they will make the time." Gyde said. "You're not the only one under-represented." Administrative Association President Lee Hoffmann told Gyde. "The group that I represent also only has one (representative). You only have one: we
See Board, page 3
Governing board requests time for faculty union Laura Mitchell The Telescope
The desire of part-time faculty to gain health benefits, better salaries and better working conditions through unionization is clashing with the established power of full-time faculty here at Palomar. Members of the fulltime faculty asked Palomar's governing board for more time Oct. I 0 to organize against the umon. The board offered relief when they unanimously approved askPublic ing the state's Employment Relations Board for the additional time to discuss faculty unionization. The board
also voted to ask PERB for an election regarding establishment of the union. '"Our best hope for gettint: a fair hearing is for the board to help us," said speech communications professor Pat Schwerdtfeger, who interrupted his sabbatical to speak to the board. Schwerdtfeger said he was concerned most of the 286 fulltime faculty are just now becoming aware that they may be forced into unionization by over 828 part-time faculty members. "I think this kind of model .. . this old industrial model .. . which pits us against them and requires a win-lose instead of a
win-win proposition is something we've been able to Palomar," avoid at Schwerdtfeger said. Phil de Barros, director of Palomar's archaeology program, asked the board to request more time frorn PERB for the faculty to discuss unionization. De Barros asked the board not to accept the union as is, but to request an election. Part-time faculty did not address the governing board Oct. 10. However, at a May 23 board meeting, part-time faculty asked the board to recognize them as an independent bargaining unit.
At that meeting, part-time faculty member Tobi Rosenberg said she teaches at four colleges: Palomar, Mesa and Grossmont colleges, and National University. Rosenberg said she receives "less than a third of the salary of a full-time employee for doing the same work." She said she has no health benefits, receives no pay for office hours, has no office in which to store materials or meet with students, and has no job security. Full-time faculty receive at least $375 in benefits a month, said Victoria Del La Torre, benespecialist for human fits resources. Part-time faculty do
not receive health insurance benefits. If 828 part-time faculty become eligible for benefits via union negotiations, the additional costs could exceed $300.000 a month. "It depends on what the union would negotiate," said Del La Torre. "They nlight negotiate a different plan." At some community colleges, Del la Torre said, health benefits for part-time faculty are voluntary and part of the cost is passed along to the employee. Faculty Senate President Chris Barkley announced there will be meetings for faculty to discuss the union issue on Oct. 25 and 30th.