UpDate - Vol. 16, No. 6
October 10, 1996
Memorial tributes presented at faculty meeting

     Memorial tributes were given to three faculty members by
their colleagues, and President David Roselle presented UD
results in a national student satisfaction survey at the
semiannual General Faculty Meeting Monday.
     Convening immediately after the meeting, the University
Faculty Senate voted to postpone its own ban on
fraternity/sorority pledging until 1998-99.
     A tribute to the late Charles N. Lanier prepared by
colleague Harry Hutchinson, professor emeritus of economics, was
read by Eleanor Craig. Barry R. Morstain was memorialized by his
colleague Jeffrey Raffel, urban affairs and public policy, and
John Rosenberger presented a tribute to Wilbur R. Hesseltine,
prepared by Paul Sammelwitz, plant and animal sciences.
     Lanier, who retired 23 years ago, served as chairperson of
the then Department of Economics and Business Administration from
1946 to 1961. "He, more than anyone else, laid the foundation of
the College of Business and Economics," Craig said. A specialist
in labor economics, Lanier served extensively on arbitration
panels and personnel boards in the area. Among his distinguishing
characteristics, Craig said, was Lanier's great depth of
commitment to the University and the quality of its academic
program, as well as a "quick, easy and marvelous wit."
     Morstain first joined the University in 1971 as director of
the academic planning and evaluation office. In 1975, he became a
faculty member in the College of Urban Affairs and Public Policy,
and, at his death last spring at the age of 51, he was an active
participant in the college's public administration program.
     "To Barry, every student could learn and learn well," Raffel
said. "His expectations for all people, especially students, were
always high and his words were always positive. He never said a
disparaging word about a student, nor did he ever feel
discouraged about a student's learning.
     "Barry was a fan of life, someone who got excited about so
many things, from baseball to the World Wide Web and who shared
his enthusiasm with those around him," Raffel said, noting that
Morstain created one of the first sports simulations on
computers-the Micro League Baseball game, released in 1984.
     Hesseltine, who received his doctorate from the University
of Wisconsin, served as a Cooperative Extension agent at the
University of Connecticut for several years before coming to
Delaware in 1959.
     Before his retirement in 1977, he had served as an extension
specialist, a professor of animal science, adviser to the
agricultural honorary fraternity and coordinator of winning teams
in intercollegiate competition for the College of Agricultural
Sciences. "Wilbur was forever emphasizing the practical
application of an education," Rosenberger said. "He was much more
impressed with a student who worked hard and was able to apply
facts and information to real-life situations than with the
academically successful student."
     As owner of the Dairy Queen franchise in the '60s and '70s,
he provided employment for numerous students, trying to pay for
their own college educations. "The Dairy Queen lab understandably
was always a favorite of students taking the introductory animal
science course," Rosenberger said.
     After his retirement, Hasseltine became involved in the
Flying Farmers of America, served as a consultant to the Farm
Credit Union and continued to operate his farm near Townsend,
Del.
     In his remarks, President Roselle summarized the results of
a student satisfaction survey conducted by ETS. He pointed out
that a similar survey had been made five years earlier, and the
University's approval rating had improved in a number of
categories.
     Student satisfaction is up in terms of faculty attitude
toward students, availability of advisers and the value of
information provided by advisers, Roselle said. These
statistically significant changes also were higher than the
national norms.
     Improvements in service to students were noted in the 1995
survey, when compared to the 1990 questionnaire. Approval of
class registration by telephone was high, ranking 4.22 on a 5
point scale, and students' satisfaction with the availability of
courses also went up.
     UD students indicate that they approve of improvements to
buildings and grounds and computing services, Roselle said, and
he noted that "parking is the whipping boy" of the UD survey.
     When compared to the national responses to the
questionnaire, the UD responses were higher in 39 situations,
tied in 15 and below in 8.
     "This is the most concrete example we have of how students
view faculty interaction, quality of courses and availability of
courses," Roselle said, noting that positive responses about the
University had increased since the 1990 survey.
     Questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of UD
students, and the return rate was "normal," according to Margaret
Andersen, vice provost for academic affairs. The University's
responses were compared to those at other large, state-supported
research universities.
     At the Faculty Senate meeting, senators voted 46 to 6 to
postpone their own no-pledging ban for a year, allowing time for
the Office of Student Life to assess a new Greek organization
accreditation process.
     The new process, implemented this year, proposes to evaluate
each Greek organization in the areas of academic progress,
financial management, University/community relations and service,
campus involvement and membership practices. Results of the
evaluations will be used to designate Greek chapters by stars.
Highest ranking organizations will be eligible for scholarship
awards and trophies.
     In new business, Sen. Ann McNeil, physical education,
proposed that, in 1997-98, only five-star fraternities and
sororities be allowed to rush first-year students.
     The resolution will be considered at the November meeting.
                                                   -Cornelia Weil