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Tomorrow's weather
Kansan
Sunny with a nigh near 70 and a low near 50.
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
Jayplay: Dancers find place to strut stuff, do battle within dance circle.
SEE PAGE 1B
THURSDAY, APRIL 27 2000
Sports: The Kansas softball team sweeps Wichita State in a doubleheader.
(USPS 650-640) * VOL. 110 NO. 141
SEE PAGE 8A
WWW.KANSAN.COM
Carol Beier, the newest judge at the 10-person Kansas Court of Appeals, advanced from editor of the Kansan to a judge on the state's second-highest court in fewer than 20 years.
Storu bu Katrina Hull • Photos bu Craia Bennett
Justice appeals to KU graduate
Three words inspired Carol Beier to begin thinking about justice — long before justice became her name.
Beler, the newest appointment to the Kansas Court of Appeals, entered an Optimist Club speech contest when she was about 11. The topic set by the club, which is a community service organization, was along the lines of what the United States should be — a patriotic theme.
But three words kept Beier from competing in that contest: No girls allowed.
"That made a really big impression on me, and it made even a bigger impression that my dad quit the Optimist Club in protest that they would have this archaic rule," Beier said. "Those kind of things, they get you started thinking about justice."
Beier grew up in Kansas City, Kan., and attended' Catholic schools. Childhood friend Bill Vogrin said that Beier was on every other page of the Bishop Ward High School yearbook.
"She was always the smartest person in the class," Vogrin said. She also was a cheerleader at Benedictine College in Atchison, which she attended for a short time before coming to the
University of Kansas to study journalism.
Appropriately for a judge, Beier's lasting contribution to the School of Journalism is an ethics lesson.
Beier was editor of the Kansan in the fall of 1980 when an opportunistic reporter stole a list of nominees for the next chancellor.
"It always causes problems in a search of that kind," said Del Shankel, then acting chancellor. "There was the possibility that we might lose some very good candidates if names got out."
The chancellor's office and some of Beier's journalism professors were applying pressure to stop publication as reporters tried to confirm names on the list.
Beier didn't back down, but she also didn't print the list. Instead, the Kansan ran a story about the number of women and minorities being considered for chancellor.
Although not involved with the story, Vogrin, a Kansan reporter at the time, said the situation was intense.
"She wanted to print the names, and there was incredible pressure on us not to print those names," Vogrin said.
"That was a very difficult time
"Those kind of things, they get you started thinking about justice."
Carol Beier
Kansas Court of Appeals judge
for me, as you can imagine," Beier said. "I think what it seemed to do was test the whole premise of a laboratory newspaper."
Moreover, the situation reveals a certain stubbornness about Beier that followed her to law school and eventually to the appeals court bench.
When Beier was sworn in to the court in February, her friend Gaye Tibbets said she pitied the journalism faculty member who told Beier she could not print that story.
"I've often thought of that adviser as one person in a long line of people who made that same mistake — people who underestimate how easy it is to convince Carol of something when she thinks otherwise," Tibbets said. "She explained to that adviser that he could pull the story, but if he did that he would have to fire her as student editor."
See JUDGE on page 5A
Students seek classroom that is just right
By Ryan Blethen
Kansan staff writer
The University of Kansas's perch atop Mount Oread can make walking to class a sweaty task. And after trudging up numerous steps many students often are greeted with a classroom that is either too hot or too cold.
Andy Stevenson, Prairie Village sophomore, said the rooms in Wescoe Hall seemed warmer than most.
"This building particularly gets really, really nasty," he said. "It gets really hot in those little rooms."
But Randy Sanuels, systems director for Facilities Operation, said Facilities Operation did not receive more than a couple of complaints about classroom temperatures each semester.
Complaints usually do not lead to the air conditioning or heat being activated. It depends on the weather and the
Andy Stevenson Prairie Village sophomore
"This building particularly gets really really nasty. It gets really hot in those little rooms."
building when Samuels turns the heat off and the air conditioning on, he said.
"We don't have a specific date," he said. "It kind of depends on the weather."
Samuels said he did not turn off the air conditioning until December this year. It was turned back on March 1.
There used to be a rule that said the air conditioning would be turned off October 15 and turned on April 15.
"They really don't follow that anymore." Samuels said.
With the past couple of winters being warmer than usual, the air conditioning has been run almost year round, even after they had turned it off in December. Samuels said.
"We ran the chillers pretty much year round last year," he said.
Kim Traskowsky, Olathe junior, said there was no consistency from building to building.
"All the buildings seem to be very different," she said. "One building you seem to be very cold, in the next you are sweating."
The inconsistent temperatures in classrooms can leave students not sure what will be comfortable to wear.
"Usually I grab something I can take off pretty easily." Stevenson said.
Jennifer Davis, Overland Park sophomore, agreed.
"It never seems consistent," she said.
"You never know how to dress."
IFC officials resign from offices for good of greek community
By Jessie Meyer
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The Interfraternity Council president and the vice president for philanthropy and community service resigned Tuesday night.
Chace Ramey and R.J. Woodring surrendered their offices a week after a motion from the general assembly to recall their offices failed.
"There were irreconcilable differences between a portion of my exec board and myself that stemmed from my involvement in the Delta Chi recruitment function," Ramey said. "It was more of the aftermath surrounding the Delta Chi function and stories that certain members believed and the story that I was telling that I believed," he said.
Bill Nelson, director of greek programs, said that a motion was made and seconded for the recall and review of the officers at a general assembly meeting Tuesday night. After a short recess to review policy, the two men surrendered their offices.
Ramey said he was not forced to resign, but he thought resigning was the only way the greek community could move forward.
"The good of the community is much more important than me sitting as IFC president," Ramey said. "I did it because I felt that this was the best way the community could move on, and there was no way that the Greek community move on with this going inside the board."
The first motion to recall Ramey, Woodring and Mike Solow, the IFC vice president for public relations — who are all Delta Chi fraternity members — was a reaction to the roles the officers played in a Delta Chi recruitment party at which alcohol was served. IFC rules prohibit alcohol at recruitment events.
The resignation is effective Monday, at which time Ryan Gerstner, IFC vice president for recruitment, will serve as acting president until a new president and vice president for philanthropy and community service are elected next Tuesday night.
But Gerstner said he thought the resignation dug deeper than the party itself and hit more at the issues surrounding the party.
"The good of the community is much more important than me sitting as IFC president."
Chace Ramey Interfraternity Council President
"Honestly, I don't think it had anything to do with the party," he said. "They were just looking out for the best interest of the Greek community so the board could function as a whole. Some members of the board thought that they had been dishonest and that created the irreconcilable differences. We realize people make mistakes, but you have to have confidence that you can believe what they say."
Ramey admitted he had made a mistake but said he thought the story he had told, that he did not engage in conversation with prospective Delta Chi members at the recruitment party, was accurate.
"I am not an innocent party. I screwed up," Ramey said. "Fortunately or unfortunately, I feel my time on IFC is finished. I wish it hadn't gotten to this point, and I don't think it needed to come to this point. But since it did, I thought that I made a decision that I had to make for the good of the community."
Nelson said that he had worked with nine groups of officers and that this was the first time any IFC officer had resigned. A pair of resignations will prove problematic for the Greek community, he said.
"It presents a tremendous challenge, and it is critical that at this point we're able to elect quality officers and move on," Nelson said. "I think what has resulted from this is a raising of the bar related to the expectation of IFC elected officers. But it's a greater challenge to press on and get back to the most important purpose of serving our chapters."
Gerstner also said that Solow had made no indications that he was going to resign and that he planned on fulfilling the duties of his office.
Woodring confirmed the resignation but refused to comment further. Solow could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Hip-Hop dancin'
Raheisha Nard, Topeka junior is part of the Hip Hop Troupe that performed yesterday in front of Wescoe Hall. The Troupe gets together in September to hold tryouts which last for two days. The Troupe's focus is to bring students of all races together in music and dance. Photo by Brad Dreier/KANSAN
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