THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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TUESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2005
VOL.116 ISSUE 47
WWW.KANSAN.COM
KU ON WHEELS
Bus system confronts problems
Riders, drivers complain of deficiencies
BY GABY SOUZA
gsouza@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Student users and employees of KU on Wheels have reported that the wheels on the bus are not turning quite so smoothly.
Michelle Prahl, Bentonville, Ark., senior, discovered that the online route map was incorrect. Dave Courtney, a Lawrence resident and bus driver, said he thought his bus needed some repairs and that bus drivers' wages should be increased.
home; instead, she found herself stranded.
Prahl thought she had a ride
She had checked the bus route map online and found that a night bus ran from campus and stopped right in front of her apartment at 25th and Louisiana streets. She boarded the bus at 9 p.m. and waited patiently as the bus made its other stops.
When the bus reached Colony Woods, at the intersection of 24th Street and Naismith Drive, the bus driver asked Prahl where she was headed. He explained that it was his last stop and that Prahl would have to get off the bus. She told him the map online said differently,
and he told her the route maps were incorrect and had been for about three years.
"I had to walk home by myself, and I didn't have my cell phone." Prahl said.
"It was actually kind of scary."
Colony Woods Apartments and Prahl's apartment are about a mile apart.
Jessica Mortinger, transportation director of KU on Wheels, said she was unaware of the route maps being incorrect at all. But she did say that the times on the schedules were correct.
Aaron Quisenberry, associate director of the Student Involvement and Leadership Center, said that KU on Wheels had
received no complaints from students regarding the bus system. The transportation board for Student Senate has debated eliminating the night bus because of low ridership, he said.
"Obviously, we want to know if a student is having a hard time with the bus system," Quisenberry said.
Vehicle Problems
SEE BUSES ON PAGE 8A
Courtney said he noticed that the electronic sign on the front of his bus was slowly becoming dimmer and dimmer. The sign tells riders his route, 15th and Crestline streets.
Students and bus drivers say the KCJ on Willow's maps incorrectly display the map areas. The University paid the library $830,000 last year to operate the University's bus system.
Night Off-Campus bus route as it appears on the route map
SCHOOL OF NURSING
Source: KU on Wheels Web site
Online program sees healthy growth
BY GABY SOUZA
gsouza@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
A KU School of Nursing program tripled in size since its beginning in 1998.
The program has grown from about 20 students to 58 students.
Rita Clifford, associate dean for student affairs, said the program had reached its ideal size.
The program, called Registered Nurses to Bachelor of Sciences in Nursing, offers students who are already registered nurses the opportunity to complete their bachelor's degrees without taking classes in a physical classroom. Instead, students take classes through KU Medical Center's Virtual Classroom, conducted online.
"They don't have to be hostage in a classroom that doesn't cater to their needs," Clifford said.
The program's flexibility is one of its advantages, Clifford said. It allows students to take the classes on their own time and take classes when their schedules allow time. The program can be completed as quickly as one year or as long as five years.
The School of Nursing admits students to the program three times a year; the application deadlines are March 1, June 1 and Oct. 1 each year.
The program requires 62 prerequisite hours in liberal arts and science courses. Bridget Koan, a spokeswoman for the School of Nursing, said most students completed those hours at a community college.
Students in the program participate in a variety of activities in their classes. Students use a standard textbook for readings.
Most of the students in the program work professionally, Clifford said, but that doesn't mean that the students feel disconnected from the school.
They complete exercises, alone or in groups, and participate in discussions on an online discussion board. Students coordinate group work by e-mailing one another.
Last year, all the graduates of the program attended the School of Nursing's graduate recognition ceremony.
Clifford said some of them had traveled great distances to be there.
"They were there because they felt they were part of the school," she said.
High note above the Golden Valley
Kasey Cullors, Wichita sophomore, has a high note during the "Jayhawk Idol" competition, presented by the University of Kansas homecoming steering committee. Participants were required to sing the KU alma mater at the Monday afternoon contest in front of Wescoe Hall. Winners will be announced Wednesday.
Jared Soares/KANSAN
Edited by Theresa Montaño
BOARD OF REGENTS
Legislation would limit university funds
BY JOHN JORDAN
jfordan@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Funding limitations could affect college students throughout the state, said Kip Peterson, director of governmental relations and communications for the Regents.
The Kansas Board of Regents and Student Senate are working to stop a bill in the Kansas House of Representatives that they say would cut higher education funding. Proponents of the bill say it curtails rising spending by the government and lets citizens decide where money should go.
The legislation is named the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, or TABOR, and would limit increases in state government spending.
"TABOR would price middle- and lower-income students out of tuition," Peterson said.
If the University, which receives 25 percent of its funding from the state, had funding cut to 10 percent, it would lose $79 million a year, Peterson said.
The bill ties increases in state spending to population growth and inflation. Kansas wouldn't be able to spend more than its population growth each year, plus the rise in the costs of living.
The Kansas Board of Regents passed a resolution Wednesday opposing any state funding limitations. Student Senate committees would be vote on a similar resolution tomorrow to be seen in front of the full Senate next Wednesday.
Spending increases higher than state growth would have to be voted on by citizens, and extra revenue from taxpayers could be refunded to them.
The Regents were concerned with what would happen to funding based on what has happened in Colorado, which has a TABOR law.
Peterson's research has found that the limitations have hurt Colorado schools, such as the University of Colorado. Peterson said that Colorado received 10 percent of its funding from the state due to restrictions from TABOR and has kept funding from increasing for the past five years.
Americans for Prosperity is a fiscally conservative public policy advocate.
Alan Cobb, Kansas state director of Americans for Prosperity, said Kansas is in an economic slump, partly because of a high tax-burden. TABOR could help the state get a handle on spending and lower the tax burden on citizens, Cobb said.
Cobb said TABOR wouldn't cut
funding to higher-education, only limit increases in spending. If citizens think that more spending is necessary, Cobb said, they may vote to further fund education.
"It's going to be up to the public's wishes," Cobb said.
"TABOR would be very detrimental to higher education," Bender said.
But student lobbyists see it differently.
Higher education is the first thing to be cut when states face budget cuts, said Josh Bender, Sterling senior and Student Legislative Awareness Board president.
SLAB is starting an education campaign on the issue and is working to have letters published in newspapers throughout the state in the hometowns of students.
— Edited by Ty Beaver
Snyder strikes back
Missouri basketball coach Quin Snyder says he's optimistic about the upcoming season, despite his fierce response to reporters last week. PAGE 1B
Students cast their votes for classes Students not only look into what time a class is anymore or when the final is.The effectiveness of an instructor, and maybe even their looks, play just as much a part in enrollment choices. PAGE 2A
Beijing Modern Dance
Company in motion KU advanced ballet students worked through a class from the Chinese modern dancers and their highly respected instructor before the company performed Friday night.PAGE 4A
Index
Comics. 4B
Classifieds. 5B
Crossword. 4B
Horoscopes. 4B
Opinion. 7A
Sports. 1B
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All contents, unless stated otherwise.
© 2005 The University Daily Kansan
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