trojan
Volume XCV, Number 26	University of Southern California	Tuesday, February 14, 1984
Disciplinary action disclosed for Jan. 27 ‘unlawful assembly’
By Catalina Camia
Assistant City Editor
The university has suspended one fraternity, placed another on probation, issued warnings to three chapters and cleared one house of any wrongdoing in the aftermath of the Jan. 27 incident which occurred on 28th Street between these organizations, the Los Angeles Police Department and University Security said.
Jeremy Stringer, assistant vice president for student affairs, released a statement on Monday detailing the disciplinary actions to be taken against the six fraternities that were cited for their different degrees of involvement in the incident, which the police declared an "unlawful assembly."
The Kappa Alpha Order has been suspended for a minimum of 60 days after an administrative review panel found the fraternity to have interfered with the efforts of the security forces to clear the 28th Street area, Stringer said in a prepared statement.
"The fraternity members harassed the officers with obscene comments and gestures, and projectiles were thrown at the officers from the area of the Kappa Alpha house," Stringer said.
He said the Kappa Alpha fraternity has the option to go through an appeal process before the actual suspension begins.
The fraternity has a maximum of 10 days after formal written notification is received to appeal the sanctions before the suspension begins. After the suspension period is over, the administrative panel will review' the fraternity again to determine if the suspension wall cease or continue. Stringer said.
He said the fraternity was placed on probation last fall for a similar incident, and that the majority of those sanctions were not fulfilled. Because these sanctions were not fulfilled, the Kappa Alpha Order received the most severe punishment in this incident.
The Phi Gamma Delta fraternity has been placed on "social" probation for the next three months, restricting the chapter from conducting any organized events at the house. The fraternity members must also irfvite representatives of LAPD and University Security to dinner for a discussion of how to establish better relations.
The administrative review panel determined that the fraternity
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Successor to Andropov: change means ‘no change’
Professors assess new leadership
By Sheldon Ito
Assistant City Editor
The selection of Konstantin Chernenko, a member of the old guard of Kremlin leadership, as the new general secretary of the Communist Party means "no change," either internally or internationally, for the Soviet Union.
This was the assessment of four university professors, knowledgeable about the Soviet Union, as they spoke about the second change of Soviet leadership in 15 months.
"There will basically be no change — they've just replaced one old guy with another," said Robin Ranger, an associate professor in the School of International Relations.
Chernenko, 72, a protege of former Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, was chosen by Brezhnev as his successor. But when Brezhnev died in November 1982, Chernenko and the Brezhnev faction were outmanue-vered by the faction which supported Yuri Andropov and he was passed over.
He got another chance last Thursday when the 69-year-old Andropov died. He was unanimously approved by his 11 fellow members of the ruling Politburo, and his selection was announced by the official news
agency on Monday.
Joseph Nyomarkay, an associate professor of political science, said the choice was "very disappointing."
"It was the choice with the least danger for the establishment," he said.
Both Ranger and Nyomarkay said they thought the selection had been prearranged.
Ranger said that after Andropov became ill about six months ago the various factions of Soviet leadership began manuever-ing for position.
"Everyone had planned out their moves," he said. "The Brezhnev faction had made the deals that would give them their power back."
Nyomarkay said he knew' Chernenko would be selected as soon as they announced he w'as heading the commission for Andropov's funeral.
He called Chernenko's selection a "temporary' solution." He said by selecting an ailing 72 year old, they will be facing the same problem of choosing a successor in a few years.
Carl Christol, a professor in political science, said that while he didn't believe the selection was preplanned, the time between Andropov's death and the naming of his successor was "remarkably fast."
"If there were greater dissension, they'd still be deciding," Christol said.
He said "very much of the same" can be expected in terms of policy within the Soviet Union.
Halina Stephan, an associate professor in Slavic languages and literatures, said any difference betw-een the leadership of Andropov and Chernenko "will be unnoticeable."
She also did not see any changes in lifestyle within the Soviet Union.
"Since Stalin died, the leaders have had very little effect on the everyday life of people," she said.
Nyomarkay said nothing will change in the area of U.S.-Soviet relations.
He said many people "have been expressing the hope" that whoever is chosen to succeed Andropov would "reverse the trend" and go back to the arms negotiation bargaining tables.
However, he said, "In the last three years, it's been the Reagan Administration that's been unwilling to make any kind of arms agreement with the Soviet Union."
Nyomarkay said Reagan has been talking about resuming negotiations "because the elections are coming up."
Ranger said the Soviets regard Reagan as one of the most effec-(Continued on page 14)
Program to be evaluated
‘Topflight consultants’ to study GE program this spring for first time
By Sheldon Ito
Assistant City Editor
"Three topflight consultants" will evaluate the university's general education program this spring and make recommendations on how it can be improved, said Irwin Lieb, dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
Lieb said the general education program has "never been evaluated" by experts from outside the university, but said he felt the program is strong — "way ahead of other schools."
"We're not being ordered to do this," he said. "We want to check ourselves and do an undertaking of our program."
He said the three consultants will be "very distinguished professors — experts in their academic fields, who participated in the construction of the general education programs of their universities."
The study is currently planned for early April, but Lieb said it may have to be delayed because of a scheduling conflict with one of the consultants.
A recent conference of the Association of American Colleges called liberal education the "disaster area of American higher education."
In response to this problem, it was announced that the association will establish a national Council for the Improvement of Liberal Education.
"It's true that most universities don't have a good conception of general education," Lieb said, but he again added that this university is not one of them.
He said he forms his opinion on "knowing what is done by at least 100 other universities." For example, this university is one of the few that requires
proficiency in writing and mathematics. Manv universities' general education programs are simple elective systems, and w'ere not "conceived philosophically" like the one at this university.
He also said a few universities have patterned their programs after the one at this university, which he said is "clear evidence" of the strength of the program.
One of the priorities listed in the current draft of the university's academic plan, which will be delivered to the Board of Trustees in April, is to "strengthen the quality of the undergraduate educational programs."
Cornelius Pings, senior vice president of academic affairs and provost, said that includes developing a "better, more exciting undergraduate education."
Pings said he did not know of any specific proposals, but he said possible changes will include encouraging more participation of faculty from the professional schools to teach general education courses and broadening the variety of subjects offered to possibly include law and business courses in the curriculum.
Lieb credited his predecessor, John Marburger, and the General Education Committee, a committee composed of faculty and administrators which developed the current program four or five years ago, for the present stature of the program.
However, Ronald Gottesman, director of the Center for the Humanities, was not so adamant in his appraisal of the program.
"From a broad, conceptual viewpoint it's not all that bad," Gottesman said. "What troubles me the most about it is the inability to decide w’hat courses satisfy the requirements."
He said the program "has no coherence" because it offers too many "disparate" courses that don't "add up to a (Continued on page 14)
Building names reveal rich history of campus
By John Minichini
feature Writer
Remember the little school houses of the 19th century? Picture the white, colonial-styled wooden building grandfather walked miles to reach and the open land around it and you have an idea of the way this university looked on opening day Oct. 6, 1880.
Back then, a tw'o-story structure, Widnev Hall, housed all university personnel, which included administrators, 12 faculty members and students who were paying S15 per semester. The house itself, which cost only $5,060 to build and furnish, was surrounded by a "campus" consisting of wild duck, mustard plants and a city which had a population of only 11,155.
The university and its surrounding area has changed drastically since then.
Widney Hall, now known as Wid-ney Alumni House, is today a state landmark. Tuition is more than $250 per unit, and the campus now boasts more than 50 buildings with its population alone more than that of the entire city in 1880.
The buildings themselves perma-nendy symbolize the gratitude the university bestows upon some of its alumni, an enormously distingushed group of scholars, philanthropists, lawmakers and community builders.
Roger Olson, senior vice president of university relations, said universities tend to show their gratitude to alumni in this manner "to honor their memory as great servants and great benefactors of the university."
The history of the university and the contributions these people made to it are synchronous. To understand one is to understand the other.
Widney Alumni House
Widney Alumni House, the first campus building, is located on Childs Way, near the main entrance of the school. It has been designated as California State Historical Monument No. 70.
Completed and dedicated in 1880, the colonial-styled, two-story building was named after one of the principle founders of the university. Judge Robert Maclay Widney.
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