Wildcat Club Changes Name, The college’s athletic booster group, First vour boss asks vou to do an extri project, then the PTA calls, then vour church minister has an assignment. Soon vou’re over-burdened and overstressed. Learning to sav no is a graceful art. See story on page 5. the Wildcat Club, has changed its name to the Wildcat Athletic Association and has been reorganized with a closer relationship to the college. The club’s Board of Directors made the move in order to broaden its membership, increase revenues and to conform with NCAA, state and WSC policies regarding private support and affiliation with booster organizations. The Wildcat Club was organized ten years ago as a volunteer organization for the support of athletics. The association will enjoy a closer liaison with the college athletic, business and development offices in its operations of budget, accounting, and financial reporting of all funds generated by the group’s activities, said Gary Crompton, WSC athletic director. The dedication of the new J. Willurd Marriott Allied Health Sciences Building on April 6 marks un impor fant turning point as health education at Weber State finds its own home. The stories on puge 6 und 7 look ut the. dedication, and ut two unique pro grams in the School of Allied Health Sciences. The newly organized group retains the support of the volunteer board that directs activities of the association, which includes the annual membership drive and other fund-raising activities. ‘It is our hope that all of our fans and supporters desirous of maintaining a quality athletic program. will recognize the needs resulting from severe budget cuts experienced in re. cent years. We can assure them that every cent of their donation will go to the scholarship fund in direct support of programs,’’ Crompton said. The 12 member Board of Directors, currently chaired by Larry Wood as president, will continue with Carol Nelson as executive secretary. Former Executive Director Gary Evans is. now serving as athletic marketing and promotions director and will work to: generate additional funds and promo. tions complimentary to the Wildcat Athletic Association’s role and purpose. “‘In order to compete for the best athletes we have to offer full NCAA scholarships which include tuition, fees, room and board and a book allowance,’’ Crompton said. Next to salaries, scholarships are the athletic department’s biggest expense, he said. ‘*There’s no way to succeed without an active volunteer board,’’ he noted. ‘‘They have to act as a catalyst to get things started, and they are going to be even more involved than they have been in the past.’’ The college has 275 athletes on campus, 60 percent of which are from out of state. ‘‘There is a direct correlation between academics and good athletes,’’ he said. ‘‘The higher the academic level of . the team the better the team we have.”’ The athletic department receives about a third of its annual budget from the college. Crompton noted that last year’s rounds of budget cuts to the college cost his department $90,000. Most of the money the athletic department receives from the college is paid back to Weber State in the form of overhead, tuition, fees and books so that in the end actual operating money received from college coffers amounts to about one half of one percent. Twenty-five percent of athletic’s budget comes from ticket sales, and the rest is raised through donations from local businesses and individuals and through memberships in the. Wildcat Association. A membership in the association represents a donation of $50 to $200, Reorganizes and members receive a plaque and free parking at athletic events. There are discounts on tickets, banquets and travel to games, but Crompton’s office offers those on a break-even basis so that the services are provided to members at the lowest cost possible while at the same time preserving scholarship money. Currently there are some 2,500 members of the Wildcat Athletic Association in Utah and in many western states. Last year the Wildcat Club donated $160,000 to Weber State athletics. In addition, trade-outs with local businesses for a variety of goods and services including tires, printing, paint for the fields and numerous other exchanges saved the college another $126,000. Since the club’s beginning in 1977 it has contributed $1.8 million to the college. ‘*Without this support we would not have a program,’’ Crompton’said. The new organization is now closely allied with the college business office, a move that will help reduce operational expenses, he said. Beyond those savings the Wildcat Athletic Association looks to raise $175,000 this year, in addition to generating promotional funds and gifts-in-kind. “‘We have great fans,’’ Crompton said. ‘‘They support us even when we have a bad year, but | can guarantee you that we’re going to be better next year.”’ Auto Company, WSC Join Forces Automotive service technology If vacations for vour family raise visions Of kids fighting in the cur and - students at Weber State will now be trained on the very latest equipment money fiving out the window then con and in the most modern service centers, sider Dr. Garv Willden’s set of “mini thanks to an innovative program bevucations.”* His suggestions mav suave tween the school, General Motors Corvour sanity and actually make family poration and local GM dealers. time together fun. See storv on puge 8. The Automotive Service Educational Program ,ASEP) at WSC is one of on ly 39 nation-wide and one of seven in the western United States, and is the only such program in Utah. . According to Richard DeMoss, WSC ASEP coordinator, the new pro gram is a 20 month curriculum which features 44 weeks of classroom and laboratory work at the college and 33 weeks of supervised work experience at sponsoring (iM dealerships. ‘Students take automotive courses Dr. Joe Horvat’s camera collection which are devoted exclusively to cur tops 700, and is extensive enough to rent General Motors’ vehicles,’’ make this psvchology professor the naDeMoss said. tion’s foremost expert on one camera ‘‘The knowledge and skills gained in brand. See story on page 9. their sessions at the college will be practiced and perfected at the dealer. COMMENT Executive Editor Howard G. Noel Editor Craig V. Nelson Graphic Artist Karen Wimmer Comment is published four times each year: October, January, April and July, by the Mepartment of College Relations, 316 Miller Administration Building, Weber State College, Ogden, Utah 84408-1010. COMMENT is mailed to alumni, faculty, staff, the business community and friends of the college at no charge. Second class postage paid at' Preston, ID. POSTMASTER: form 3579 to Alumni Relations WSC, Ogden, UT 84408-1011 (USPS 791-360) A new agreement with General Motors allows students to train at both the college and at local GM dealerships. The result will be a better trained student, more equipment for WSC, and increased opportunities for faculty. ship,’’ he added. Tuition and fees are the responsibili ty of the student, but ‘‘since the ASEP students are also employees of a local GM dealership, they will earn while they learn,’’ DeMoss said. Under the program, General Motors will provide assistance in recruiting prospective students, developing the curriculum, training college instructors, monitoring and evaluating the program, and supplying the needed components, vehicles, technical information and training aids. DeMoss noted, ‘‘This program is an excellent response to the needs of General Motors dealers, while it trains students for a career as a service professional in a GM dealership.’”’ He said that students train on the latest equipment and vehicles, learn reading, communication and reasoning skills, and study business-related subjects, and interpersonal skills. ‘“‘In addition to the associate of applied science degree offered through the program,’’ said DeMoss, ‘‘the ASEP partnership provides for aftermarket classes for independent and fleet technicians, faculty development | institutes for automotive instructors, and other activities.’’