KU power structure slow to admit women
By SANDY HERD
Staff Writer
A historical review of women in top administrative positions at the University of Kansas could be summarized by a single position that, by tradition, required a woman—the dean of women.
With few, but notable, exceptions the advancement of women to administrative positions has scarcely scratched the surface of a male-dominated administration.
This is not to say that progress has been made, but, depending on the data used to measure progress, it may be better to use a different metric.
In 1975 women held 27.8 percent of full-time administrative positions. That percentage increased to
CONSIDERING THAT only 17 percent of KU's faculty last fall were women, those figures seem to indicate that women in the administration are far outdistancing women in faculty positions.
That is not necessarily the case.
The problem with the administration data is that women constitute those percentages only when the classification "administrator" stretches to include the lower levels of the administrative structure;
KANSAN Analysis
assistants to deans and assistant directors of Audio Reader, the Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art, the office of affirmative action and the office of minority affairs.
"Women are the directors of the smallest programs and the least funded programs," Bonnie Ritter, director of the office of affective action, said yesterday, "and they're making the lowest salaries."
The average salary for women administrators with 12 month appointments was only 60 percent of the male equivalent.
"SO IF ETHER salary or title is an index of administrative responsibility, women shared very little
of the decision making power at the University of Kansas. Ritter said.
TITLE IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits sex discrimination at academic institutions. In 1973, the implementing regulation specifically prohibited discrimination in, among other areas, the hiring, upgrading and promotion practices at universities.
The Affirmative Action Plan, adopted at KU in 1973 revised in 1977, established policies and procedures for women to recruit, train and improve the status of women, minority persons and people with disabilities.
THE TITLE IX and Affirmative Action as safeguards against sex discrimination, why are so many women not in the workforce?
The common reason given by administrators is that a sufficient pool of qualified women for ad-hoc positions has been found.
"Until not too many years ago, there were not too many women in the traditional academic ranks." DoI
says. "And they had a lot of power."
Most top administrators, especially those connected with academic administration, have come up
Although the intermediate levels vary from one discipline or field to another, it is at these levels that experience in budgeting, supervising, developing programs and other administrative skills are acquired.
through the ranks, typically from full professor,
administrator of a school, lower level University
administration and upper level Universitywide
administration.
THE EXISTENCE and development of pools of
qualified candidates is the home of contention at K11
Women contend that the pools exist but that progress in developing the pools varies from one area to another.
"There has been good progress in the office of student affairs." Ritter said, "but much slower progress in the other vice chancellors' offices and in the chancellor's office."
In the recently reorganized office of student affairs, 20 women were appointed, the highest appointment in the university.
"Typically, the ones that have come from the chancellor's office have been those that would be unsurprising, like director of affirmative action, minority affairs and women's athletics," Ritter said.
RITTER SAID women and minorities were usually appointed to those offices because a much larger proportion of white males already had passed those levels and the accompanying lower salaries.
The farther you go down the ladder of administration, the greater proportion of women and men are present.
Shankel told the women who are assistants and directors of relatively small University divisions were, nevertheless, increasing the pool of qualified candidates at the intermediate administrative level.
"A GOOD EXAMPLE of this would be the comparison of the budgets of the director of men's basketball and the budget of the director of women's basketball."
Ritter said, "Women are typically put into programs that are dead-end programs. If you look at the directors at this school for this current year, they directed the offices with relatively low budgets.
Ritter said one of the reasons often given for not promoting women was that they had not had enough experience with complex budgets or supervisory experience.
She said that acting director appointments were See WOMEN nage eight
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
Hot and humid Chance of rain
KANSAN
Vol. 88, No. 157
Lawrence, Kansas
Wednesday June 28,1978
U.S. reporters to face charges in Soviet court
MOSCOW (AP)—Soviet officials yesterday ordered two Moscow-based U.S. reporters to appear in court to face charges of civil slander.
In a separate case, the Soviets temporarily freed a U.S. businessman accused of smuggling currency in exchange for the confiscated money charged with spying in the United States.
Court summonses were hand delivered to Craig R. Whitney, 34, of the New York Times and Harold D. Piper, 39, of the Baltimore Sun while they sat in their Moscow offices. They were ordered to appear in court today but were not told why.
The reporters said they thought the charges were related to dispatches that they wrote from Tbilisi, the capital of Soviet Georgia, disputing the authenticity of a nationally televised "confession" last month of a Georgian dissident.
Crawford, a 45-year-old Mobile, Ala., native, was arrested and taken from his car June 12 at a stop light in Moscow. He denied that he changed money on the black market, a crime that carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.
Meanwhile, Francis J. Crawford, Moscow service manager for International Harvester Co. of Chicago, was released from Lefortivo Prison about 24 hours after two Russians facing spy charges in the United States made a tradeoff negotiated by the two governments.
Crawford and the two Russians are to be held for trial in Moscow and the United States, but there was speculation that all three would be sent home in another exchange either before or just after their trials.
CRAWFORD'S ARREST was thought to have been in retaliation for the arrest of two Russians, Vadik Aleksandrovich Ginger, 39, and Ludovico Cherwishnyi, 51. The two were falsified U.S. defense secrets from an unidentified U.S. Navy officer who was cooperating with the FBI. They were arrested by the Soviet ambassador in the United States.
The campus warning siren that went off yesterday at 3:15 p.m. was intentionally activated to test the emergency preparedness system, a spokesman for the local emergency preparedness organization said yesterday.
The spokesman said a siren system for Lawrence and Lecompont was being tested to see whether the system could be activated at either place.
The reporters said the articles that apparently got them in trouble with Soviet officials dealt with dissident Zviad Gamsakhurdia. They quoted friends of Gamsakhurdia as saying his confession had been fabricated by authorities.
Gamakurdha was accused of anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda and sentenced to death.
Both reporters said they refused to sign the summonses but would appear in court later.
Siren sounding not accidental spokesman says
"We were doing some wiring interconnections between the radio control unit and the computer."
He said the sirens, which act as disaster and civil defense warnings, were activated throughout the city as well as on the KU carmns.
The siren at KU is located on top of Joseph R. Pearson Residence Hall.
Tender aardeners
Dawn Van Hee and Terra Lybin pick onions from the organic garden that pupils planted
at the Lawrence Open School. "It makes the kids realize that food doesn't come directly from Dillon's shelves," the school's coordinator said. See story page four.
Ax attack by Russian kills Swedes
MOSCOW (AP)—In the bloodiest attack on foreign visitors in years, a 24-year-old Soviet night watchman yesterday axed two elderly Swedish tourists to death and seriously injured a third outside a central Moscow hotel.
The incident came a month after a hooded gunman held two employees hostage at a downtown airline office and thrown into the spotlight official Soviet statements that violent crime is merely a bourgeois act. He had happily, secure framework of Soviet society.
Hotel officials said the victims apparently were preparing to leave Moscow and were out for a final stroll through the downtown area when the attack occurred.
The attack took place at about 4:30 a.m. CST.
Witnesses the assailant, described as about 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighing 20 pounds, took an ax from a briefcase and started swimming wildly.
Witnesses said the tourists were standing with other Swedes outside the Intourist Centre, where they waited for Krenilin, when the tall, husky Russian rushed up and began swinging at them.
The Soviet news agency Tass said In tourists, the Soviet organization for foreign tourism, expressed condolences to the Swedish Embassy in Moscow.
Well-placed Soviet sources identified him as Alexander Nazhkissy, who worked at a local prison.
A policeman and several cab drivers overpowered the assailant, witnesses said.
The bodies were removed after about 10 minutes.
HOTEL OFFICIALS said the suspect appealed to a law enforcement mark. Witnesses in the appeared glassy eyes.
University of Kansas administrators expressed satisfaction yesterday with KU's progress toward compliance with Title IX and said there probably was no need for an investigation by the Department of Health, Education and Welfare.
However, Anne Levinson, a member of the Women's Athletic Council, differed with the administrators, saying that the law needed enforcement to be effective.
Levinson, who has played field hockey at the University of Kansas for the past two years and who has been a member of the Council of Women Athletes and the Women's Athletic Council, said that there were many disparities between the women's and the men's athletic departments and that the investigation by HEYMAN "definitely needed."
"THERE'S NOT ONE area that's in
equity with the men's department," she
"There's no point in having Title IX if
the team will be forced to enforce it." Levin-
son, Windscher, Mason.
However, Doug Messmer, assistant athletic director, said there was no need for an involvement.
"Everybody has a lot of work to do, and I'm sure HEW does, too," he said.
Title IX is part of the Educational Amendments Act passed by Congress in 1972. It prohibits sex discrimination at any educational institution receiving federal
women to participate in all types of athletics.
UK will be in compliance with Title IX by the July 21 deadline, Messer said.
July 21 is the deadline by which such institutions must comply with the regulations
THE LAW STIPULATES that schools must provide equal opportunity for men and
Messer said there was no sex discrimination in KU athletics.
Del Shankel, executive vice chancellor,
and William Hogan, associate executive
vice chancellor, agreed yesterday that
the University should make
makes no difference in University plans.
"We're still going to go ahead with plans to improve women's intercollegiate athletics as rapidly as we can," Shankel said.
Messer said women got more funding from the state than men.
Both Shankel and Hogan said that the administration had been making preparations to comply with TITLE IX and that steady progress had been made.
"I have a 'wait and see' attitude about the whole thing. I think it will be quite a while before the correct interpretation of the law is determined.
However, Ken Snow, women's gymnastics coach, said, "I would like to see HEW go ahead and check very quickly on individual institutions.
BOTH SAID they hoped an investigation would not be necessary.
“It’s very difficult for people in our
dentists’ office to know
what the courts are going to decide.”
Marian Washington, director of women's athletics, said it was possible that an investigation of whether KU had complied with Title IX would be needed.
"There's no question that we have had some concerns in the department," she
said. "A complaint was filed last year, and other complaints may be file later."
She said disparities still existed in the overall budget, especially in coaches' budgets.
HOWEVER, SHE said she did not expect to file a complaint herself.
J. L. Thomas, a representative of HEW, had said no investigation was scheduled to determine whether KU was in compliance with TITLE IX.
"But I have not heard anything at this point that would indicate there won't be a deadline and investigation as planned," Washington said.
member, said, "The government has passed another law that looks good but has no bite.
"A lot of lip service is being given to 'compliance.' "
Harper, student body president, said he brought there was still sex discrimination in the school.
Although Harper said he did not plan to face a complaint with HEW, he said he hoped the investigation would succeed.
It's another example of a law that looks good on paper, but is understaffed and will not perform well.
HOGAN SAID HE thought TITLE IX was good even if an investigation was not made
"The law is doing some good," he said. "It causes people to think and re-evaluate what they are doing to improve women's athletics and to provide equal opportunity."
According to Title IX, HEW has the right to provide funds from institutions that do not commit.
An assurance form certifying compliance must be sent with each of KU's applications for federal financial assistance for any educational program or activity.
Shankel, Hogan and Messer all said that if the occasion should arise, they would sign up for the training.
See KUAC page six
Senate vote blocks oil import fee
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate voted yesterday to block President Carter from imposing an import fee on foreign oil, and the House of Representatives lawmakers of truce to avoid the problem.
Senators voted 49-39 for the measure sponsored by Sen. Robert Dole, R-Kan., that would deprive Carter of federal funds needed to impose such a fee as a way to encourage energy conservation by making imported oil more expensive.
The measure was amended to an $8.8 billion funding bill for the Treasury Department.
The Senate later passed the bill by voice vote. It now goes to a conference committee with the House to reconcile differences with the House version of the same legislation, which does not contain such an import-fee ban.
VOTING AGAINST imposition of an import footnote to a coalition of Republicans and Democrats
At the White House, press secretary Jody Powell said Carter viewed the Senate vote as "just another unfortunate demonstration of the desire to duck a tough problem and of why we're the only industrial nation in the world without a national energy policy."
The Senate also voted 54-34 to cut 2 percent, or $144 million, from the appropriation of the program.
Asked whether the vote would hamper Carter's effectiveness at next month's economic summit in Bonn, Powell said, "It certainly further erodes the confidence of the rest of the world in our ability to act responsibly to deal with our own problems."
White House staff and various other agencies included in the bill.
Dole cited recent reports that Carter might use the occasion of next month's economic summit to announce a fee on oil imports of $5 to $6 a barrel.
Such a move would be inflationary and could trigger price increases by oil surplus.
Administration officials for some time have held out the likelihood that the president would take direct steps to raise the price of oil—such as an import fee—if Congress fails to pass his embittered proposal for a tax on domestic crude oil.
Democratic Senate leaders unsuccessfully argued Tuesday that prohibiting the president from exercising such an option would prevent as he prepares to meet with world leaders.