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■ Q&A: Don Eastman discusses money matters - 3
The Red & Black
An independent student newspaper serving the University of Georgia community
INSIDE
Forecasters say
Athens may slowly be
coming out of an
economic slump.
2
Weather; More storm clouds
are brewing. No wait, that’s
beer. High in the 70s.
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 1992 « ATHENS, GEORGIA * VOLUME 99, ISSUE 119
lifts 11-month hiring freeze
Propst
Improving economy cause for lift
By KEITH ST1REWALT
and LORI WIECHMAN
Staff Writers
University System Chancellor H. Dean Propst lifted
the 11-month old hiring and purchasing freeze last week,
saying that the state’s economy is taking an upward
turn.
The state economic situation appears to be improv
ing, but we are not completely out of the woods," Propst
said in a telephone interview Monday.
Propst, in an April 16 memo, urged the 34 university
presidents not to use the state’s very limited resources
for non-critical purposes.
Propst said the reason for ending the freeze is to pro
vide flexibility for institutions to fill vacancies.
“The decision to hire is left to their (presidents’) judg
ment," he said.
Propst said lifting the freeze will reduce the paper
work university system presidents have had to submit
for hiring and purchasing approvals over the last year.
But he said university presidents should continue to
reserve 1 percent of their state appropriations in the
event that the state does not meet revenue projections
for the rest of the fiscal year. The 1 percent reserve has
been in effect since January.
During the hiring freeze, university presidents were
required to obtain approval from the Regents’ central
office before hiring new personnel or purchasing major
equipment. Regents’ approval often took a month or six
weeks to obtain, which was a difficult obstacle if the posi
tion involved was a very critical one, said University
Budget Director Robert Bugbee.
“Now we will be able to fill critical positions within
days," he said.
While the process of hiring and purchasing will be
accelerated, the effects of the lift will not be dramatic,
said Public Information Director Tom Jackson.
“Basically, this means we will go back to our normal
operating procedure," said Jackson. This is just a small
step in a long recovery process and we are not out of
financial crisis."
He explained that there will be no influx of money
and the University will still operate on its limited bud
get.
Normal operating procedures refers to the internal
process of hiring personnel, said Bugbee. When a vacan
cy opens, the department fills out a position personnel
form. Critical positions are usually filled right away,
while non-critical positions are filled if the budget allows.
Community mourns Jody Grind deaths
By DAVID MONROE
Staff Writer
Members of the Athens music
community were stunned by
news of the Sunday automobile
accident that killed two members
of the Atlanta band the Jody
Grind and Atlanta poet and per
former Deacon Lunchbox.
Drummer Robert Clayton and
bassist Robert Hayes were trav
eling with Deacon Lunchbox near
Greenville, Ala., on Interstate 65
when a camper crossed the medi
an and collided with their van.
Police arrived at the accident
scene at 5:45 a.m. Sunday.
Jody Grind lead singer Kelly
Hogan Murray and guitarist Bill
Taft, who returned to Atlanta
safely in another vehicle, were
unavailable for comment.
Deacon Lunchbox, whose real
name was Timothy Tyson
Ruttenber, was scheduled to per
form at the 40 Watt Club
Wednesday, and the Jody Grind
was to play there Friday in sup
port of its new album, “Lefty’s
Deceiver."
Jared Bailey, owner of the 40
Watt, said he will meet with
Hogan and Taft and their man
agement to decide what to do
next.
Bailey said some Athens musi
cians may play a benefit Friday
to offer emotional or financial
support to the band if the band
will allow them to, but Murray
and Taft will not play.
“It’s one of those nightmares
you worry about when you’re tak
ing a band on the road," Bailey
said.
Chris DeBarr, the owner of the
Downstairs Cafe, said the Jody
Grind brought something fresh to
the Athens music scene because
it combined jazz with a variety of
other musical styles.
The Jody Grind: Kelly Hogan Murray (I), Robert Clayton, Bill Taft and Robert Hayes.
“They showed people in
Athens that you didn’t have to
have a big dance beat to be popu
lar,” DeBarr said. “People would
beat on the ceiling for them to
(play an encore) and they’d be all
sweaty, and they’d come back
and do another one.”
In fact, DeBarr said, the
Downstairs was the first club
where the Jody Grind attracted a
large audience. They drew
crowds there before they estab-
lished a following in Atlanta, he
said.
DeBarr said Deacon
Lunchbox, who often performed
his “manic, redneck, transvestite
poetry thing” during the inter
missions of Jody Grind shows,
will be missed because he worked
so well with them.
“He was sort of a Celtic war
rior caught on Buford Highway,”
DeBarr said.
John Keane, who produced the
first Jody Grind album, entitled
“One Man’s Trash is Another
Man’s Treasure,” said he
admired them as performers
because they took musical cues
from each other so spontaneous
ly. Much of the music on their
first album was recorded live for
this reason, he said.
“They were great to work
with,” Keane said. “They never
played anything the same way
twice.”
MBA plus work experience ‘invaluable’
By THERESA WALSH
Staff Writer
Roger Shannon said employers are not as
interested in his master’s of business adminis
tration as they are in his three years at an
accounting firm.
“Just getting the degree is not enough,"
Shannon said.
Shannon graduated from Auburn University
in 1987 with a degree in accounting. He worked
with the accounting firm Peat Marwick and
with Vulcan Materials before coming to the
University in fall 1991 to obtain his MBA.
“Work experience greatly surpasses just hav
ing the MBA," said Brenda A. Young, human
resource manager for Coca Cola, who will be
going to Georgia State in the fall to earn her
MBA.
“Definitely, the combination of MBA plus
work experience is completely invaluable,” she
said.
Lisa Ransom, director of the University’s
MBA Career Services, agrees with Young.
“They (MBA seekers) can actually apply it to
something they’ve experienced. Also, those with
work experience have something to offer to their
classmates,” Ransom said.
Don Perry, director of admissions for the
MBA program, said in the last three years
applications have increased. The number of
applicants increased 20 to 30 percent last year,
he said.
The University offers a one- or two-year pro
gram at around $2,000 for in-state students,
depending on the student’s bachelor’s degree.
Perry said MBAs usually bring higher starting
salaries and advancement. MBAs make the stu
dents competitive in the market place, he said.
Hugh Nourse, real estate professor, said he
thought the increase in program applicants is
due in part to the recession and indicates the
market wants employees with MBAs.
He said an MBA is more relevant with two
to three years of work experience behind it.
“Employers believe that students should
have practical experience along with their
MBAs,” Nourse said. “A student with only an
undergraduate degree and an MBA is not as
easy to place.”
IBM spokeswoman Pam Evans said the com
pany is not looking just for the degree. Some
other factors include work experience in their
field, campus activities and the way the person
presents themselves.
Evans said, with her company, the value of
an MBA depended greatly on the position.
“An MBA for finance is an advantage.
However, for another area like marketing, it
may not be required,” Evans said.
Susan Rosenberg, UPS corporate public rela
tions worker, said an MBA isn’t a requirement,
but it “shows a commitment on the part of a stu
dent.”
Self-owned businesses suit entrepreneurs to a T(-shirt)
By ROBERT HAAQ
Staff Writer
When University students
Richard Rose and David Whitehead
needed money, they borrowed
$1,300 to print up and sell 18 dozen
T-shirts.
It paid off.
Two weeks after borrowing the
money last quarter, they paid off
their debt and are now planning to
order 12 dozen more to sell
Saturday at an Earth Day celebra
tion in Atlanta.
“If they (the shirts) didn’t sell, we
would have been stuck,” Rose said.
Part of the risk involved borrow
ing $300 in emergency student
loans from the University.
“We told them it was for the
phone bill, but wc used it for the T-
shirts,” Rose said.
Like Rom, many University stu
dents, faced with slim job prospects,
are going into business for them
selves, trying to slice a piece of the
Athens market.
“We took a big risk because we
didn’t have any money,” Rose said.
But, he added, “you can’t be afraid
to take risks.”
Rose said students are more like
ly to buy a T-shirt when they know
that some of the money is going to
charity.
Rose said he donates $2 from
each $12 shirt to the Audubon
Society and has collected about
$400 so far.
“I was basically broke and we
wanted to get a job we’d enjoy,"
Rose said.
TTie shirt’s design is based on
characters from Dr. Seuss, the chil
dren’s book writer who died last
year.
Rose said he was unsure about
whether using Seuss’s characters
would cause legal trouble.
“We changed it (shirt’s wording)
30 percent so that it didn’t violate
copy laws," he said.
Rose said students who are look
ing into starting a small business
should do some research before
investing money.
University student Trent Gains
also sells T-shirts on campus. He,
like Rose, has had a hard time find
ing a job.
“In Athens, you can’t really find
a job that fits into your schedule,”
Gains said. “It’s (selling shirts)
something to do; to each his own.”
Graduate student Wendy Shaw
has followed this advice, having
started a map-making service with
in the Geology, Geography and
Speech Building to make extra
money.
Using a Macintosh computer and
several blank maps, she adds text
and information to produce a prod
uct for which she says there is defi
nite need.
“When somebody’s doing a
paper, they usually don’t have time
to do maps and charts," Shaw said.
She also said some professors
will only except professional looking
maps.
“It’s king of a symbiotic relation
ship,” Shaw said. “I do them a favor
and I can make a few dollars.”
Shaw charges $5 per map and
she said she usually needs a day to
complete the map unless it is very
complicated.
“I only have a limited time, so I
don’t want too many people,” Shaw
said.
To people who want to start their
own small business, Shaw recom
mends trying to fill a specialized
niche.
Vivian Uddall/Tha Rad and Black
Crime rate increase
blamed on crack
By JEFF COEN
Staff Writer
The Justice Department’s release of figures showing a dramatic
increase in violent crime has local University officials looking for causes
and Athens-Clarke County police blaming crack cocaine.
The National Crime Survey (NCS) numbers showed the overall num
ber of violent crimes rose 8 percent in 1991. Rape rose 59 percent and
property crime rose about 1 percent.
Martha Myers, a sociology professor, said she believes the increase
could have been caused by a number of things.
“I’d soy there are probably three main reasons. First, you have to look
at the population change. An increase in the population can increase
crime rates,” Myers said. “Secondly, I feel victims may be feeling more
comfortable reporting crimes committed against them, partially because
of all the publicity that some crimes have been given. And the third rea
son is the condition of the economy right now."
Myers said one reason for the higher numbers could be the way they
were gathered, pointing to the fact that the NCS is a survey of 95,000
people.
“The National Crime Survey is a victimization survey,” Myers said.
“Those numbers will always be higher than the numbers that come right
off police reports. People feel more comfortable talking to a surveyor than
they do talking to police.”
FBI crime statistics, compiled from police reports, seem to confirm
Myers’ statement, said Maj. David Camp of the Athens-Clarke County
police.
“The FBI showed a 5 percent increase in violent crime, 3 percent for
rape and 8 percent for property theft,” Camp said.
Camp said the higher FBI number for property theft shows that when
someone has missing property, their first instinct is to phone the police.
Camp said exact percentages for the Athens area can’t be gathered at
this time because the merger between the Athens and Clarke County
police has caused some difficulty compiling records.
“But from my personal knowledge, I can tell you we’ve had increases,”
he said. “Crack cocaine is the biggest reason for our increases in violent
and property crime.”
Camp said the economy may be behind some of the national increas
es.
“Anytime the unemployment rate goes up, the crime rate goes up with
it,” Camp said. “But crack leads to much sharper increases. And there’s
always work for our drug unit to do - always."
Ron Chandler, Athens-Clarke County police chief, agreed with Camp.
“Crack is one of the major problems in communities across the nation.
I attribute a lot of the increases to it,” he said.
Overall, Myers said time is really the key to understanding the statis
tics.
“It could be that this is just an aberration; time will tell," Myers said.
“We could have had an atypical year - it could go right back down."
Kozak accepts position
at Iowa State University
John Kozak, dean of the
Franklin College of Arts and
Sciences, has accepted the posi
tion as provost at Iowa State
University, although a contract
has not yet been signed,
reporters at the Iowa State Daily
said Monday.
William Prokasy, vice presi
dent for Academic Affairs, said
he had not heard of any official
decision as of Monday afternoon.
Iowa State President Martin
Jischke was unavailable for com
ment Monday.
As provost, Kozak will be the
chief academic adviser responsi
ble for overseeing the undergrad
uate and graduate academic
activities. Jennifer Duke, a
reporter for the Iowa paper, said
the position is parallel to vice
presidential positions at Iowa
State.
Kozak, who was named a
finalist for the Iowa State posi
tion on Feb. 11, has not com
mented on his candidacy since he
was named and did not return
repeated calls Monday.
Prokasy said Kozak has
applied at a few universities for
the provost position. He did not
say where else Kozak had
applied.
Kozak earned his bachelor’s
degree in physical chemistry
from the Case Institute of
Technology and his doctorate
from Princeton University.
- Lori Wkechman
