May 13, 1976
SGA Looks At Evolutions
By John Leierzapf
Staff Writer
“I want to know what the
students think, (about
courses and faculty). They
know better than anybody.
The question is how do you
get the information, and how
do you keep from influ
encing them?”
This comment was made
by Dean Wolf at the April
28th SGA meeting where the
main topic discussed was
faculty evaluations.
Wolf, accompanied by
Dr. John Joseph, assistant
to the dean for instruction,
attended the meeting at the
request of SGA.
Last term, SGA asked
students to boycott the
University Park faculty eval
uations because it was not
satisfied with the input, the
type of questions asked and
the lack of feedback to
students.
Questions were put to
both Wolf and Joseph to
explain present and possible
future evaluations.
Wolf explained that in the
past an evaluation form was
developed in conjunction
with the faculty and
students, and the open
ended questions were pub
lished in the Campus
Student I, D. Cards
Beginning spring term, a
valid student I.D. will be
required for all transactions
made through the Records
Office (registration, drop/
add, pass/fail, etc.).
Students may pick up
I.D. cards in WlOl. The fee
is $4.00 to replace a lost I.D.
-- - chairman of
this year’s bathtub race with one of the race’s student
marshalls.
- ngi
Kicinski, Mark Krampitz, Tom Hubert, Pat McHale,
Terry Schleiker, Jim Rowe, Lew Ruffing, Mike
Kotchick. Middle row, left to right: Steve Henninger,
Jim Morris. In tub, Ron Ranick, then Del Dosch and
Tom Plank.
newspaper.
However, Wolf said he
felt the published questions
were picked at random and
were only generalizations
i.e., two or three people
saying this guy is great or
this course is terrible. Wolf
said he didn’t think this was
fair either to students or
faculty.
In 1972, the SGA showed
no interest in the eval
uations, and Wolf said he
decided to use the forms
provided from University
Park.
Evaluations were on a
Grand Prix Memories
Found In Bathtub Race
By Ray Martin
Staff Writer
I can recall many a crazy
weekend in October when
my father and I would
journey to Watkins Glen,
N.Y., to witness and indeed
participate in a massive act
of organized insanity known
officially as the U.S. Grand
Prix.
These old and gold
memories merged and
melted into new experience
to create my view of the
PSPE bathtub race held here
on Wed., May sth.
Team Berks arrived first
with some very heavy
machinery.
One reminded me of the
old Gurney (I'm proud to be
an American) AAR eagle.
The other looked like the
1972 Yardley Mclaren.
Theirpitcrew brought fire
C.C. Reader
voluntary basis and still are,
he said.
Wolf added, “because of
this, Idon’t think it would be
fair to our faculty to release
the evaluation results.”
How are the questions
compiled for the University
Park form?
Joseph answered saying
that The Division of In
structional Services at Uni
versity Park asked all
campuses of the University
to submit any form they
thought was good. They
received approximately 2000
questions.
in their eyes and hearts, as
well as much support
equipment and the usual pit
groupies.
Tliey left nothing to
chance and indeed were the
only team to make a
shakedown run (in which the
Eagle obviously suffered
from handling problems).
The Mclaren people had
delusions of being Richard
Petty ei al.
The hometown PSPE
team came in next with
something that looked and
acted like Jackie Stewart’s
Matra. The tub had a unique
tiller steering and a large pit
crew, which suffered from a
shortage of groupies.
A garbage truck rolled in
then. But it didn’t bring a
team, it just collected.
Easy Inn brought a
Surtees tub and a pit crew
that reminded me more of
Patton’s 3rd Army than a pit
crew.
XGI rolled a Ferrari in
that the commadatore him
self would take pride in.
Once again, I thought I
was about to witness the
rebirth of Ferrari dominance.
Their pit crew had the usual
slightly disorganized family
atmosphere of Ferrari com
plete with a pregnant lady.
Finally, the third Berks
car (a 1972 black Lotus)
arrived. Its driver seat
looked like it had been
stolen from a Rolls Royce
sports car.
The crowds, the feverish
preparation, the machines
all screamed into my ear
‘Grand Prix!!’
The only things missing
were the smell of burning oil
and rubber and the roar of
high powered engines.
These were more than made
up for though by the smell of
old soap and new paint and
the roar of A.N.G. Connies
taking off.
The start was LeMans
style, but had a Grand Prix
flavor, complete with an
over-ballsy photographer
getting run over.
After the PSPE/Matra
and XGI/Ferrari led the pack
away, I performed a poorly
executed paratrooper roll
into the back of a truck (if
anyone wants a soprano for
their choir my address is tj
available in the C.C. Reader J
office) and took off in o
pursuit. 2
I heard XGI/Feirari es- *
tablished an early lead, but
in time lost it to PSPE/
The submitted questions
were categorized, and the
best questions from each
were taken and broken down
again until the result was the
form we are presently using.
Because University Park
has the equipment to
process the forms, it is
cheaper to use their forms,
Joseph said.
He added a new form that
should satisfy everyone is
under consideration.
A list of 200 numbered
questions will be made
available to faculty mem
bers. Each instructor will
Matra.
At the bottom of the new
building turn, a shower
entered the race. While
mechanically the machine
was far out classed, it far
and away had the best body
work in the race.
Having run to the finish
line, I watched the formi
dable PSPE/Matra blast in
with a new lap record of
8.41.5, followed at in
creasing distances by the
XGUFerrari, the Easy bin/
Surtees, the Berks /Eagle,
the Berks/Mclaren and the
Beiks/Lotus.
Bringing up the rear was
a very powerful entry that
looked more like a Group 7
car to me. R was run by the'
Fraternal Order of Police.
I enjoyed all this greatly.
Maybe enough to try to
become Capitol Campus’
own Ken Tyrrel next* year.
During the race, the Easy In tub,
The tubs lined
student center.
up for the start of the race near the
choose from this list
approximately 10 or 12
questions for himself.
These questions will be
compiled on one form along
with approximately 20 other
questions from the list
chosen by administration
and students. The chosen
questions will be compu
terized, duplicated and re
turned to each instructor.
The result is an indivi
dualized evaluation form,
Joseph said.
As Joseph sees it,
approximately half of the
questions will be mandatory
for administration and stu
dent use. The others will be
for the instructor's personal
use.
Most SGA members
present agreed this new
means of evaluation would
be best for Capitol Campus.
The question remaining
is the kind of evaluation
used during the interim?
At last week’s meeting,
SGA decided to use
University Park’s standard
18-question form.
There are 10 additional
answer blocks on each form,
and SGA will devise .its own
questions to be answered in
these blocks.
Pag* 6
Photo: Lund