Daily w Troian
Volume LXV, No. 105
Trustees back
plan for coed campus housing
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, California
~r
Thursday, April 4, 1974
BY ELLEN NORMAN
Staff Writer
A diversified living plan which would make Birnkrant Hall. Marks Hall and History House coeducational was approved in principle Wednesday by the Board of Trustees.
Hans Reichl. director of Resi-dental Life, said that the final go-ahead for the plan is expected to be given next week. Implementation is expected next fall.
The proposal, which includes various special interest floors, states that men will be housed on floors 3, 5, and 7 in Birnkrant Hall, providing a total of 126 spaces. Women will be housed on floors 2. 4. 6 and 8 in Marks Tower, providing 112 spaces.
History House, a facility primarily for students majoring in history, will house 25 men and 25 women. The house will be supervised by a faculty member in residence and two graduate resident advisers, one man and one woman.
The plan, which was drawn up by a task force consisting of the Men’s and Women’s Halls Associations. the Residence Halls Student Advisory Board and the Office of Residential Life, was stated formally March 11.
It also allows a maximum of 175 added spaces for diversified living situations. An evaluation of the progress of the new living plan will also be made by April 1.1975. in order to determine the success of the plan.
‘ This is a good opportunity for men and women to relate to each other other than in a dating situation.” Reichl said.
If the plan is approved, residents of Marks Tower and Birnkrant Hall would have their prior-
ity for next year stripped, and a lottery would be held to determine the coed assignments.
Residents of the two halls wishing to live in the opposite hall (i.e., women in Birnkrant wanting to move to Marks Tower) would receive priority. If spaces remain after the initial lottery, an additional one may be held to include those not chosen in the first lottery and residents of other halls in the complexes.
Reichl also said that studies show that students living in coed dorms don't date each other.
“This encourages friendship between them, which is something we really need now,” he said.
He denied claims that the idea of coed living would be destroyed, since men and women will be placed on alternate floors.
“There are two stairwells,” he said. “If people just want to sit in their rooms then there will be no interaction at all.”
He also said that the coeducational atmosphere is designed to get men and women to share common areas of the buildings.
An additional part of the proposal is that Marks Tower will be brought up to par with Birnkrant Hall, Reichl said. The rooms will be carpeted and repainted.
Reichl said that women involved in drawing up the proposal asked for the same visitation hours. Men will be allowed visitation on women’s floors from 10:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Women may visit male floors on a 24-hour basis. The plan, however, states that the visitation hours can be reviewed after the first year of operation.
(Continued on Page 8)
International Festival will end Friday
The Japanese tea party in Alumni Park yesterday was part of the events marking the week-long International Festival.
The festival, which began last Friday evening with a Cuban Carnival and Street Dance, will close tonight with international music in Hancock Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. and a reception in the Town and Gown Foyer at 10:30 p.m.
Sporting events, a food fair, and a fashion
show were some of the activities that highlighted this week’s festival. A tug-of-war that was scheduled for noon Tuesday was cancelled because no rope was available.
“The Year 2000 Olympic Relay Races” as well as the music and entertainment on the steps of the Administration Building and on the Student Activities Center patio are among today’s events.
Date set to draw up constitution of proposed student government
I
TOMMY TROJAN —He's walking on eggs trying to pass his exams and finish these last days in fine form before taking his long awaited Easter break. He sees it's a good time to get a suntan, too. DT photo by Bob Chavez.
BY LINDA CIRIGLIANO
Staff Writer
The Student Programming Board and the Student Caucus of the President’s Advisory Council will meet April 12 to draw up a constitution for the USC Student Association, it was decided at a caucus meeting on Wednesday.
In May the student body will vote on which type of student government it wishes to have.
In that election, the USC Student Association, a proposed form of government which requires mandatory payment of student programming fees, will compete with the Voluntary Student Association (VSA), a proposed form of government which calls for voluntary payment of fees.
Both forms of government will be represented to students by their constitutions.
VSA came up for student consideration once before in an election held last spring. At that time, VSA and seven other student government proposals were on the voting ballot.
VSA won a plurality of the student vote, but not a majority. Because voter turnout was low and VSA did not win a clear majority. the administration said a new election would have to be held.
The caucus originally planned. during its Wednesday meeting. to vote on endorsing a proposed mandatory fees constitution which was submitted to them on Thursday by George Bolanos.
Bolanos. a caucus member, heads a subcommittee of 10 caucus members which was appointed two months ago to draw up a USC Student Association constitution.
However, Student Programming Board members who were present at the caucus meeting voiced objections to the proposed mandatory fees constitution.
Bob Shiota. a board member, said the board had not been given enough time to study the proposed constitution because its final draft was given to them late Tuesday afternoon.
“We don’t think the board has been given any opportunity to have input on this constitution,”
said Arturo Abarca, chairman of the Student Programming Board.
Joe Flannagan. a board member, said the constitution submitted by Bolanos “has many problems and needs much clarification.”
Flannagan then went through most of the 10-page constitution, point by point, detailing the members’ of the Programming Board objections.
David Blackmar. a board member, asked the caucus to delay voting on the proposed constitution until the board could draw up an alternate plan.
Bolanos said there were time restrictions that had to be considered in delaying a decision on the mandatory fees constitution.
Connie Seinfeld, acting
caucus chairperson, said the caucus had hoped to submit both the VSA and the USC Student Association constitutions to the Executive Committee of the President’s Advisory Council today.
She said a long delay in deciding on a mandatory fee constitution might make it impossible for the constitution to be ratified by the Executive Committee, the President’s Advisory Council and President John R. Hubbard in time for a May election.
“We can’t wait another half year for a representative student government,” Seinfeld said.
Shiota then promised the caucus that the programming board would come up with an alternate mandatory fees constitution by the end of Easter recess.
A caucus member suggested that the caucus and the board work together to draft a new mandatory fees constitution.
The caucus then voted to meet with the board on April 12 to work on a constitution. They set a deadline of April 15 for completion of a USC Student Association plan.
“We’ll submit the constitution to the Executive Committee of the President’s Advisory Council on April 18.” Seinfeld said.
No DT until after vacation
This is the last issue ot ihe Daily Trojan before Easter vacation.
There will be no SoCal on Monday. April 15. Regular publication of the Daily Trojan will resume on Tuesday. April 16.