While I may not agree with certain details of the task force's suggestions, I cannot comprehend how anyone would disagree with its general proposal of actively recruiting "exceptional" students to the University.
It was recently reported that the University, in an effort to bolster minority representation, is considering allowing minorities to send in their applications late ("Low minority applications raise concerns," 2/11/97). Furthermore, the admissions office places personal calls to minority applicants to inform them of visitation programs. The office does all this in the name of a more diverse, and therefore stronger, educational atmosphere. Such policies are beneficial and should remain.
Now, why can't the same be said for an active role in recruiting prospective students who have purely exceptional academic qualifications? Would obtaining these students not also enhance the learning environment? Obviously, it would.
In her letter, Fiona Rose states that former University President James Angell would be "troubled" over the policy of "diverting scarce resources to self-aggrandizing recruitment efforts." Would he also be troubled, then, at diverting scarce resour ces to the effort to actively recruit minorities, which includes extending application deadlines? I don't think Angell would be troubled at either, as both are essential to and would improve the educational atmosphere of the University.
While the University is public, and therefore has certain responsibilities that elite private institutions do not, the University is still a premier research university with an exceptional undergraduate reputation.
Therefore, it has a responsibility to ensure that its prestige and level of educational quality are maintained. One way to do that is to actively recruit quality instructors and highly motivated, intelligent students as evidenced by grades and test scores. And if allocating special funds and establishing a special school is essential to attracting such people, then so be it.
Greg Hillson
LSA Honors sophomore
To help contrast the precision of science with the vagueness of the humanities, Hamilton-Wright described how the limit as 'h' goes to zero of (1+h)(1/h) is precisely 'e.' He should have stuck with a simpler math problem, like 2 + 2 = 4, because the limit as 'h' goes to zero of (1+h) raised to the power (1/h), not multiplied by (1/h) as written by Hamilton-Wright, equals 'e.' For a proof, see p. 378 of "Calculus" by James Stewart (1991). In fact, the limit described by Hamilton-Wright 'does not exist' since the limits from the 'left' and 'right' sides yield different answers. To my knowledge, even the most vague humanities questions have answers of some sort that 'exist.'
Hamilton-Wright, I agree that math problems often have one precise answer. Next time check your math and publish the right answer. You make me and the rest of the science majors at the University look bad.
David J. Najarian
LSA senior
What I did not expect was him losing the "Play of the Year" award. How many times a year do you see someone run back a kickoff return for a touchdown? A few more times than you see someone pull off a goal like Mike's. Packers fans may say, "that cha nged the tide of the Super Bowl," to which I respond, "Mike's goal changed the entire NCAA hockey tournament."
The other thing that disappointed me was the fact that throughout the "Images of the Year" sequence, we saw highlights from the men's and women's college basketball national championship games, the national championship football game and the College World Series, but no hockey highlights - not even Mike's goal, which won an award.
I was severely disappointed by this year's show, not just because Mike lost to Desmond Howard, but because ESPN had a chance to open eyes to college hockey and totally missed the boat.
Brett Beier
LSA junior
The editorial raises the specter of needy children being "gouged" by government cost-cutters, but it does nothing to raise public awareness of the reasons for reforms in the SSI program.
Last year, thousands of angry taxpayers contacted their congressional representatives and President Clinton after seeing televised reports of abuses of the SSI program.
These reports showed how some poor parents coach their children to fail tests and to feign disabilities in order to qualify for a monthly SSI check. Healthy children were instructed to act "hyperactive" or "stupid" when visited by caseworkers. Some families received more than seven SSI checks a month, in addition to federal and state welfare support. These reports found that SSI fraud costs the public billions of dollars every year.
I do not know if the reforms proposed by the President will solve this problem while continuing to help needy children. But it seems to me that flexibility in interpreting stricter guidelines on a case-by-case basis is the only way to identify and r educe fraud in the SSI program.
It also seems to me that the Daily should have reported these issues while making its impassioned plea to defend the truly needy.
John Hawks
Rackham
All members of the community, regardless of sexual orientation, are welcomed and encouraged to join in the public displays of affection in celebration of freedom that lesbian, gay, bisexuals and transgendered persons currently enjoy and in protest t o the liberties that they have yet to gain.
"For every one same-sex kiss on the Diag there are 100 opposite-sex kisses to overshadow it."
"If you think gay people are blatant, look at TV and see the overt heterosexuality portrayed in commercials, sitcoms and Hallmark cards."
Ryan LaLonde
School of Art and Architecture senior, Member, QUP