The back burner

Administration ignores clear solution for the women’s studies department

Ah, the Benson Building. It’s the used car of University facilities – it runs just well enough to get the job done, and its problems aren’t worth fixing or replacing.

The building’s current high-priority project is replacing an entire rotting wall, which is estimated to cost $20,000.

That comes on the heels of the $63,133 the Physical Plant spent on repairs in fiscal years 2007 and 2008.

Every women’s studies faculty member, major and minor is subject to faulty toilets, a leaky roof and unreliable heating and air-conditioning on a regular basis.

Isolated incidents include documented sightings of mice, rats and mites, and the University rang in the semester with toxic asbestos in the building.

If only there were a vacant building on campus … but wait! The Lamar Dodd School of Art just moved into its new digs, leaving the visual arts building practically empty.

Unfortunately, University Provost Arnett Mace said moving the Women’s Studies Institute to that building would only be temporary.

So moving a department – even temporarily – to an asbestos- and mite-free building isn’t high on the administration’s list of priorities.

But now the administration is using those pesky budget cuts as a handy little excuse for ignoring maintenance issues.

We understand that the 6 percent cut has taken a toll on what the University can and cannot do.

But the building’s problems have been going on for longer than the state-mandated cuts have been in place.

And now University administrators are using the budget cuts as a convenient “get out of jail free” card handed to them on a silver platter.

If the building of another department – say, English – was rotting away, the University likely would take care of it in a heartbeat.

This situation reeks of apathy, and is just another occurrence in a long list of the administration overlooking women.

The administration has a pattern of putting women’s concerns on the back burner.

Inadequate child care, unequal pay and a reluctance to address sexual harassment have long been issues on campus.

Perhaps these oversights aren’t intentional. But that’s how their actions come across.

In fact, few women hold positions in the University’s highest levels of senior administration.

The women’s studies department includes 50 majors, 40 minors, faculty members, graduate students and many other students who choose to enroll in introductory courses to fulfill graduation requirements.

Although Mace said he has not had the opportunity to speak with University President Michael Adams about the department, we think the toxicity of the building and number of people affected warrant a speedy – if not immediate – solution and recommend the two find time in their busy schedules to meet and discuss the issue.

One suggestion to get the administration to stop ignoring the Benson Building’s issues: swap buildings with the women’s studies department for a week or two.

Let’s see how our administrators like working among overflowing toilets and a chronic malodor problem.

- Shannon Otto and Kelly Shaul for the editorial board