The Penn State Harrisburg
Vol. 30, No. 2
Exhibit meets resistance
Trev Stair
Capital Times Reporter
The October art exhibit featuring
nude photography by James Bostick
has raised questions and eyebrows
concerning the function of the
Gallery Lounge.
"Postmodern Metamorphoses", a
'photographic art exhibit by James
Bostick, a Humanities graduate
student, has created concern over the
exhibit's use of nude models,
echoing a similar controversy at
Tenure policy questioned by faculty:
Humanities boycott committee
Susan ✓ones-Yurkiewicz
Capital Times Reporter
In a highly unusual action, the
Humanities Division faculty has voted
not to form a tenure and promotion
committee until disputes with the
administration over tenure decisions are
resolved.
The September faculty vote is a
protest of the tenure denial of Dr. Peter
Parisi last spring, which triggered
concern among faculty and students. The
denial brought to a head long-standing
conflicts between the faculty and
Provost and Dean Ruth Leventhal over
interpretation of tenure requirements,
administrative management and collegial
review.
At the same time, the Student
Government Association has brought
the issue to the forefront by listing it as
the main topic of the Humanities Open
Forum on Oct. 7 in the Gallery Lounge
at 12:30 p.m.
"It is an assertion of a genuine desire
for a real collegian exchange," Dr.
Theodora Graham, associate humanities
professor, said of the division vote.
The discontent is not limited to Penn
State Harrisburg, said Graham, who
serves on the University Faculty Senate.
At the September meeting, tenure
requirements were a significant topic.
Schuylkhill campus.
Last September, a reproduction of
Goya's "Naked Maja" was moved
from a Penn State Schuykill
classroom after the school recieved
complaints from feminists and
sexual harassement charges were
threatened.
"With the work being all nudes,
people will have problems with it,"
said Bostick of his "Postmodern
Metamorphoses."
"[The works] are not 'match
your couch' kinds of images," said
The vote is uncommon for PSH
faculty, according to William Aungst,
associate professor of science,
engineering and technology.
"Faculty members are intimidated,"
Aungst said. "They know the mentality
of the administration doesn't like anyone
rocking the boat."
According to faculty sources, the
administration met with the Faculty
Affairs Committee to hear complaints
about the lack of collegiality on
campus. The institutional atmosphere is
causing low morale among the faculty,
faculty sources said.
Union representatives will be on
campus late this month to assess the
atmosphere among the faculty, said a
faculty member who declined to be
identified. Faculty members voiced an
overwhelming interest to Faculty
Affairs Committee members about
meeting the representatives.
Dr. Troy Thomas, associate professor
of humanities and a member of the
division tenure committee for six years,
said the vote served as a catalyst to open
discussions between the two sides.
"We voted not to form a tenure and
promotion committee until she comes
to us to explain what her criteria are,"
Thomas said.
The meeting with the provost is
scheduled for October 7, the same day as
Bostick. "I don't think its a matter
that art needs to be beautiful or
decorative. These images are real
message pieces. They are meant to
be looked at critically."
The Gallery Lounge is a multi
purpose facility and should be
placed outside the ordinary
constraints of a traditional art
gallery, according to Janet Widoff,
coordinator of Student Activities.
"When there is an exhibit in an
art gallery, people could chose not
to enter. Here, [the Gallery
Lounge] is more of a public
domain. Some students have to
enter if they want to participate in a
classroom activity or lecture," said
Widoff.
To avoid any potential
problems, Widoff said that many of
the lectures and events scheduled in
the Lounge have been moved to
other venues.
"We chose to book many of the
activities out of the area, so that
someone would not have to
struggle with, 'Gee, I have to go
into the room, but I'm not really
comfortable," said Widoff.
However, some see the duality
of the Gallery Lounge as hindering
the academic development of PSH's
students.
"The whole idea of a college art
gallery is not to show 'gift store
art',"said Linda Ross, Assistant
Professor of Humanities and
Education, and volunteer
coordinator for the exhibits that
come to the Lounge.
"A college art gallery's mission
and role should be to present the
student body and college
community with challenging art.
Art that raises contemporary issues.
Art that challenges old ideas about
art," said Ross. "Isn't that what
academia is for?"
"It needs to be just a gallery.
The idea of a multi-purpose space is
fine, but art shouldn't be something
that enhances an assembly room,"
said Bostick.
The next month, the Nov. 6,
1992 edition of The Daily
Collegian reported that an
architecture student's project was
taken down after several students
found the work offensive.
"It was my understanding that
there was a memo sent out to all
the campuses to be politically
correct and be careful of any
offensive material for fear of being
sued. That trickled down to me,"
said Bostick.
According to Humanities
division head Dr. William Mahar,
the university came out with a
policy concerning sensitive art after
the Goya incident, and the PSH is
currently in the process of defining
its own. However, no set policy
was used regarding Bostick's
exhibit, said Widoff.
Concerns over Bostick's exhibit
became apparent this summer,
when the original cover for the
exhibit's postcard invitation was
rejected because it displayed full
frontal nudity.
"The administration felt that the
image reflected badly on the
university, and wouldn't print it."
said Bostick. A different piece from
the exhibit was chosen.
Bostick also said that the college
considered displaying his exhibit in
another area to avoid any potential
problems. "I felt that it was my
right to have the show in the
Gallery Lounge.. I had contacted the
ALCU and the Volunteer Lawyers
for the Arts, who were both ready
to support me," said Bostick.
"Their opinion was that it was a
matter of censorship; it's a matter
of public relations. It's not really
important to me how you word it,
it's a matter of not allowing free
expression," said Bostick.
Ultimately, it was agreed that
the exhibit should remain in the
Gallery Lounge. "In general, the
Humanities division always
supports freedom of expression, so
we didn't think the institution, or at
least the division, should exercise
any prior restraint over [Bostick's]
works," said Mahar.
"What I've dealt with at this
university is not unique. I've dealt
with it at other galleries. I've had
galleries tell me that they would
love to show my work, but if they
do, their funding will be cut off.
I've had friends who have had
everything from being denied
exhibits in certain places to having
the FBI confisicate equipment and
negatives," Bostick said.
As a result of the turmoil
surrounding the exhibit, Bostick
has helped organize a symposium,
to be held on Thursday, Oct. 28 in
the SGA meeting.
Consensus on interpretation of tenure
requirements is essential for current
tenure candidates, who go through long
discussions with their colleagues
attempting to meet those requirements.
"We all have a stake in it," Thomas
said. 'There are those who aren't tenured
who need to understand."
In Parisi's case, the administration
viewed his record of academic record
differently than the division and college
committees.
Even though Parisi's teaching record
was excellent, Dr. Ernest Dishner,
associate, provost and dean of faculty,
said his academic publishing record
Wasn't sufficient. Dishner said Parisi
needed more articles published in
"journals of the first rank."
"The administration thought m y
publishing was not heavy enough,"
Parisi said. "But, in the eyes of m y
colleagues, it was enough."
Publication is a problem involving
the quality of the journal and the
quantity, Dishner said. Even the rate of
article acceptance by a journal is
considered. A journal that publishes 95
percent of its submissions would not
especially be considered as an academic
achievement.
See TENURE, page 2
See ART, Page 2
Master plan update 2
Meet Joe Paternal 6
Theater renovations 6
Heindel librarian does
blue grass 7
Police investigation
yields no new answers
Denise Kessler
Capital times Reporter
University police are trying to detexmine whether there is any basis
to a report of a daytime assault upon a woman in the campus parking
lot Sept. 20.
The university's community relations department posted fliers
alerting students that police had received second-hand, unconfirmed
information that a woman student was "accosted in the central part of
the PSH campus."
Mary Anne Van Arsdale, university spokeswoman, said that al
though die report could not be verified, the fliers were posted after
some discussion among university officials as a precautionary meas•
Van Arsdale last Friday said details about the case remained uncon
firmed and sketchy. Police have tracked down several people who
heard either second-or-third hand reports about the incident, she said.
B ut the investigation was complicated because those people have given
conflicting stories about what, where and how the incident occurred,
Van Arsdale said.
"It has been frustrating for the police'and for us." she said.
According to a police report, the university first learned of the
assault through an anonymous phone call about 12:40 p.m. Tuesday.
The fliers were posted that evening_
University police Chief Charles Alesky said anyone who knows
anything about the incident should call police at 948-6232 or commu
nity relations at 948-6029.
"So far we have no ixissible proof of an assault," Ale Bky said.
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Towns Wins Award
Sue Barger
Capital Times Reporter
The International Women's
Writing Guild gave top honors to
behavioral science teacher Dr.
Kathryn Towns for her writing and
research.
She received the "Artist for Life"
award for her writing and
scholarship in education,
mathematics, psychology, addictive
diseases and women's employment.
The award was presented at
Skidmore College in Saratoga
Springs, New York, during a week
long conference in August.
"The most outstanding thing to
me was the night they honored the
Tenure Procedure at PSH, Behrend,
and Hershey Medical
If Provost denies tenure, the process stops at this point (only forwarded to UP
under appeal)
If Provost recommended tenure then:
University Committee
Executive Vice President &Provost of University at UP
Commonwealth Campuses (all others)
Campus Executive Office
Forwarded to UP for future consideration, regardless of positive or negative
recommendation.
Senior Vice President for Commonwealth Campuses
If College Dean and Senior Vice President both deny tenure, the process stops
at this point.
If both recommend, the process follows the last three steps in PSI-4 procedure
winners," Towns said. "They
clapped for five minutes for me. I
didn't know what to do."
Towns, of Harrisburg, has
worked at PSH since 1968.
The conference brought 450
women from 14 nations and
included classes and sethinars about
writing style.
She was nominated by previous
student Susan Baugh, Towns said.
Towns also received a National
Science Foundation Fellowship, the
Dr. James A. Jordan, Jr. Memorial
Award for Teaching Excellence and
the Service to Women Award from
the Pennsylvania Commission for
Women.
Department Committee
Department Head
College Committee
Provost
President of University
Campus Committee
Department Committee
Department Head
College Committee
College Dean
October 4, 1993