SWASHBUCKLERS —
Opting for swords instead of backboards, these students enjoy the derring-do of fencing on 'he basketball courts by Parking Structure C. DT photo by Doug Gray.
University of Southern California
Volume LXXII, Number 26	Los	Angeles, California	Tuesday,	October	25,	1977
Rise in stature of faculty salaries may be deceiving, study concludes
By David Hall
Staff Writer
The university’s newly acquired Rating 1 status in faculty salaries may be deceiving, according to a report by the Faculty Senate Employment and Remuneration Committee.
The report, issued Wednesday, says that despite the rating — which puts the university in the top 20% of comparable institutions — the university actually has failed to keep up with its peer institutions.
A category-1 school has to rank above 80% of comparable universities in faculty compensation and behind the top 5%.
In the recent American Assn. of University Professors (AAUP) survey, the university moved into the top category.
According to the Office of Institutional Studies, a research office under the administration, “The results of this year’s AAUP survey documents USC’s increasing advantage in the academic market.”
“With an analysis of the data, USC appears to be ahead in Rating 1, but in fact, with some further analysis, it is apparent that we’re farther behind,” said Kenneth Servis, chairman of the Employment and Remuneration Committee.
Servis’ main evidence is the number of schools considered comparable to USC in academic rank. In 1975-76, there were 164 reporting institutions.
This past year, 203 institutions were required to report, and most of the new schools fell in behind USC in compensation ranking. Therefore, by sheer increase in numbers of schools behind the university, USC grew in comparative rating.
In professor salaries. USC improved not only in percentage but also in compensation ranking — from 45th place in 1975-76 to 41st place this year.
At the associate professor level, there was a slight drop from 33rd place to 38th place.
Assistant professors moved from 14th place in 1975-76 to 24th place last year. Instructors fell even farther, from 14th to 33rd.
(continued on page 12)
Committee to discuss residential status changes of two senators
By Wendy Zimmerman
Staff Writer
A committee will be chosen Wednesday to decide the case of two Student Senators who were elected as commuter representatives but are now resident advisers.
The Joint Elections Committee will decide if Lisa Boyd and Fay Van Blake will retain their senate seats.
Both Boyd and Van Blake are now resident advisers in Marks Tower and members of the President’s Advisory Council.
The spring 1977 elections code states a committee will be composed of “four students plus a chairperson, evenly divided between graduate and undergraduate students. In addition. the dean of Student Life will serve as an ex-officio nonvoting member of the Joint Committee.” Members of the committee may not belong to the senate at the same time.
The committee’s general function is to run the elections.
The committee will decide if the women will retain their seats and, i f they vote to remove them, choose the procedure that will be used to fill their seats.
In the past, vacated seats have been filled by the runner-up in the election.
Bill Dauster. chairman of the senate, said there was a delay in forming the committee because they needed to find an adequate number of graduate students who were qualified to serve on the committee.
Dauster hopes the committee can reach a decision within a week to get the matter resolved as soon as possible.
John Griffith, executive assistant to the chairman of the President"s Advisory Council, and Dauster both said it is possible the women could keep both their senate and council seats, lose both, or keep their senate seats but lose their council seats.
Laws concerning the qualifi-
cations for membership in the two groups differ, although Boyd and Van Blake were voted to their council seats by the Student Senate.
An appeal of the committee’s decision would be addressed to the Commission on Credentials and Elections of the council.
Griffith said the council will wait for the joint committee to make its decision before starting any actions involving the women, if any.
If the women were not members of the council. Griffith said having the appeals group being a council commission would not necessarily be appropriate with the senate’s new autonomy.
Before the referendum was passed last spring, all members of the Student Senate also belonged to the President’s Advisory Council, but this is no longer the case. The senate now chooses seven undergraduates and seven graduate students to belong to the council, as well as the senate chairman.
Daily
Trojan
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM — Fallen maple leaf reminds students that winter is fast approaching. Midterms, too, are nearing, though they are in no way related to the gloomy weather of winter. DT photo by Doug Gray.
Registration, financial aid processes said improving
By Merilynne Cohen
Staff Writer Enrollment and financial aid processes have been smoother and more efficient this year than in the past, said James Jones, director of Student Administrative Services.
“This year has to be one of the smoothest years we've had.” Jones said. “The number of complaints we have received are much less than last year, and in general, the whole enrollment cycle has gone well.” Student Administrative Services is completing its review of the financial aid packages of students dissatisfied with the amount of aid they received. Over the past three months, financial aid counselors have processed more than 1.000 requests for financial aid reviews.
“There is currently only a handful of requests for review left to process," Jones said.
Many students were awarded financial aid packages but have yet to pick them up. Jones said. “Many students have waiting for them down in Student Administrative Services their National Direct Student Loan and their Federally Insured Student Loan awards, among other financial aid awards,” he said. “The sooner these students pick up their awards, the better off they and every thing will be. A lot of fee bills have not been settled because of this.”
Hundreds of applications from freshmen and transfer students wishing to attend the university in the spring have been received, as well as many requests for financial aid.
“We have every reason to think processing of these applications will go just as smoothly as it has been going,” Jones said.
Students who did not settle their fee bills soon face being dropped by the university. The unsettled fee bills are said to affect the efficient operation of several departments that depend on tuition income for their operating budget.