Tuesday, May 5, 1998
Community briefs
Financial program director appointed
The UCLA administration has one more member as Alan Hall was
recently appointed director of financial management programs.
In this position, he is responsible for working with campus
departments to ensure they adhere to ethical business practices and
follow established procedures.
Hall will also serve as vice chair of a campus controls work
group, still being formed, which will create and assess a campus
control and ethics program.
The group will attempt to increase awareness of ethics issues,
develop an ethics program, and monitor the campus delegation
process.
Hall will report to Susan Abeles, assistant vice chancellor of
finance. In the letter to the campus community announcing his
appointment, Abeles acknowledged Hall’s experience in the
field.
He has worked for the California State University system, MGM/UA
and Arthur Andersen in both the internal controls area and
operational efficiency.
More high school grads enroll in college
An unprecedented number of high school graduates flocked to
college campuses last fall, reinforcing the notion that a high
school diploma alone can’t buy a ticket to a sunny future.
A report released Friday by the U.S. Department of Labor found
that 67 percent of high school graduates entered the college ranks
across the country in 1997, up 5 percent since earlier this decade.
These record numbers combined with larger high school graduating
classes put pressure on colleges to support the influx of
students.
"Nationally, the colleges have to be ready to serve those
students," said Phil Lewenstein, director of communications for the
Minnesota Higher Education Services Office.
Enrollment numbers picked up partially because more students see
the need for technical training, the Department of Labor report
said.
"I am delighted to see that more and more of our young people
see a college degree as more than just a piece of paper, but rather
as the ticket to success in the twenty-first century," said U.S.
Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman.
In 1997, enrollment rates among male high school graduates
reached 63.5 percent, similar to Vietnam era levels when men turned
to college to evade the draft. Of female 1997 graduates, 70.3
percent went on to college.
The amount of high school graduates also continues to rise,
amplifying the impact on higher education institutions.
Berkeley arrests
statistics misleading
Although a survey published this week names UC Berkeley as a
university with one of the highest numbers of alcohol- and
drug-related arrests, UC police data shows that the statistics may
be misleading.
The Chronicle of Higher Education released data showing that UC
Berkeley’s 523 alcohol-related arrests in 1996 rank second behind
Michigan State University’s 574, and the campus’s 193 drug arrests
rank first, ahead of San Jose State’s 160.
But the survey’s findings may be flawed, according to data
provided by UC police, since the vast majority of the drug-related
offenses on the UC Berkeley campus are attributed to persons who
are not affiliated with the university, including transients and
others in the university-owned People’s Park.
"Certainly the environmental factors, such as People’s Park,
have a lot to do with (the high numbers)," said Kevin Sabet,
president of Citizens for a Drug-Free Berkeley. "I’m not surprised
at all that we are seeing these statistics. Attitudes regarding
marijuana are that it is a harmless drug."
Compiled from Daily Bruin wire and staff reports.