A newly established “Discrimination Hotline” will remain in existence despite having received one call so far.

Ombudsman Bertrand Simpson said one NIU student reported an incident of discrimination. “I can’t tell whether it is a good or a bad thing,” Simpson said.

There have been two other calls but the callers remained anonymous, and there was not anything that could be done to follow up on their accusations, Simpson said.

Barbara Henley, student affairs assistant vice president, said she hopes the lack of calls is the result of few discriminatory acts.

“If it was ringing off the hook, that would give us reason to be concerned,” she said.

Judicial Office Director Larry Bolles said the reason no one is making any use of the hotline right now could be because nothing discriminatory is happening.

Bolles said, “I haven’t heard of any racial problems this semester aside from the Thunderbolt.” Thunderbolt is a racially derogatory newspaper that has recently reappeared on campus.

“Things are settling down and I’d like to think it (racism) is declining,” Bolles said.

Henley said the discrimination hotline has a simple procedure that must be followed for any act to be taken on a complaint.

The caller is asked their name, location (if immediate action is needed) and to give a description of the incident. She said all forms are collected and sent to the ombudsman. He screens the incidents and the report forms.

She said if the incident reported is on campus, the ombudsman determines the appropriate office and contacts the office’s vice president.

Henley said if the incident is in progress, the ombudsman will contact the appropriate law enforcement office, either the DeKalb Police Department or the University Police and Judicial Office.

She said they will check back to see what progress has been made.

Henley said, “It will take time to measure the success. That is not the immediate issue.

“What is important is that students, faculty and staff know there is a centralized place they can call,” she said.

Bolles said the hotline is in the process of advertising its availability.

It is necessary to have the hotline in operation “just in case” something occurs, he said. This is the first time NIU has had a 24-hour hotline available to reprt discrimination, he said.

The hotline will continue through the semester and next year, Bolles said. “We will keep it in place until the problem has subsided,” he said.

Henley said, “There is no reason not to continue. It is not costing a great deal of money to operate.”