Tomorrow's weather THE UNIVERSITY DAILY Kansan Cooler with hazy sunshine Happy St. Patrick's Dav Wednesday March 17, 1999 Section: A Vol. 109 • No. 115 Online today To see some St. Pat's history go to this site that highlights all of the Irish treasures at the Spencer Research Library. Sports today http://www.ukans.edu/kufacts/ The Kansas softball team split its home opener with Arkansas yesterday. SEE PAGE 1B Contact the Kansan WWW.KANSAN.COM News: Advertising: Fax: Opinion e-mail: Sports e-mail: Editor e-mail: THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS (785) 864-4810 (785) 864-4358 (785) 864-0391 opinion@kansan.com sports@kansan.com editor@kansan.com English classes to expand College to increase size of some sections in fall By Chris Hopkins chopkins@kansan.com Kansas staff writer After pressure from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences administration, the University of Kansas English department will enlarge several class sections for the 1999-2000 school year. The change, which could double or triple some class sizes, has been debated heavily within the department. (USPS 650-640) Max Sutton, professor of English, said that the natural sciences department already offered too many large classes and that he didn't think the English department should operate the same way. Richard Hardin, chairman of the English department, said the college was interested in having more contact between undergraduate students and senior faculty. "The college and the University are interested in making the most of their resources," Hardin said. "I believe students do better in smaller classrooms," Sutton said. The department had offered larger classes during the past few semesters to test how well the idea would work. Chester Sullivan, associate chairman of the English department, is teaching a course called Major British Writers after 1800 to about 70 students this semester. The maximum amount of students in the class had been set at 90 people. "It gives me an opportunity to speak to a large audience," he said. "It gets me pumped up a little bit because it's an auditorium situation." Sullivan said the larger class also gave him an increased number of truly interested students. He said this particular class didn't need smaller sections. Dennis Quinn, professor of English, is teaching a course called Shakespeare. The department plans to increase the maximum amount of students in one section next year. Quinn said that he had taught large classes before and it hadn't hurt his teaching but that he thought that was related to his teaching style. Jason Bredemeier, Seneca junior and a student in Quinn's Shakespeare class, said that he doubted it would work well with more people and that he didn't like larger classes. "It's impersonal — the teacher doesn't try to learn names." he said. — Edited by Liz Wristen KU students relish kids program Melissa McCray, Lincoln, Neb., sophomore, helps students prepare stuffed mushrooms at an afterschool program offered at East Heights Elementary, 1430 Haskell Ave. Photo by Magnet Anderson/KANSAN Grant finances afterschool activities By Chris Hopkins chopkins@kansan.com Kansan staff writer Amid the alphabetical banners and the thigh-high drinking fountains. Nicole drinking fountains, Nicole Bartz and Stephanie Miller train children to play tennis in the halls of East Heights Elementary school. "I recruited Nicole to play tennis with me because we play tennis all the time," said Miller, El Dorado senior. Bartz, El Dorado junior, said, "It's really crazy, but we like it because of the kids." Bartz and Miller are two of 40-60 KU students who work at new afterschool programs at East Heights Elementary, 1430 Haskell Ave.; New York Elementary, 936 New York St.; and Central Junior High, 1400 Massachusetts St. Brenda Nuñez, coordinator at East Heights, said the afterschool sessions began after the schools received a three-year, $3 million grant from the federal government. "We were a little shaky at first, but it's gotten so much better," said Tina Thompson, director of the program. She said the grants were aimed at poorer areas of the country, where students might not have the same extracurricular options. this is the first year for the program, which offers classes for students in kindergarten through ninth grade. The program represents part of a nationwide push by the Clinton administration, she said. Andrea Edwards, Lawrence resi "One of the biggest goals in the grant is to provide those kinds with opportunities," she said. dent whose small 7-year-old daughter Champrell was whacking a tennis ball with an adult-size racket yesterday, said both she and her daughter liked the new programs. "It gives her something to do instead of bugging me," she said, laughing. "She loves it. She hates to leave." Thompson said the University had been involved with the program from its first stages. Jerry Bailey, director of research for the KU education administration, wrote the final draft of the grant proposal, she said. Community members, parents and the Lawrence Arts Center, 200 W. Ninth St., also are involved in the program, she said. "The more collaboration involved in the grant, the better the chance we would get funding," she said. Thompson said the KU students made up half to three-fourths of the program's 80 workers. Nunez said the teachers were paid $8 an hour. Mijanou Burger, Kansas City, Mo., senior, said she enjoyed working with kids and would teach more classes next year. Yesterday afternoon, she was mixing paint for Danielle DuMortier, an eighth grader. Thompson said her goal with the program was to make an impact on the students. "I would like to see kids say, 'this has really made a difference in my life.'" she said. — Edited by Duane Wagler "I love it," she said. "This is the favorite class I've taken so far. It's better than sitting at home watching TV." DuMortier said she planned on taking other classes that Burger offered. Graduate, student petition to toughen hate crime policy By Nadia Mustafa nmustafa@kansan.com Kansan staff writer While hundreds of college students from around the country gathered in Washington, D.C., yesterday to show their support for a federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act, a group of KU students also advocated a zero tolerance policy for hate crimes and sexual assault at the University of Kansas. Matt Caldwell, 1998 KU graduate, and Deidre Backs, Lenexa senior, are leading a petition drive to gather student support for mandatory and permanent expulsion of KU students convicted of hate crimes or sexual assault. They have obtained about 250 signatures on the petition, which they started last weekend. If they obtain 1,000 signatures by April 1, the policy proposal will be put to a student body referendum during Student Senate elections next month. If the student body votes for the policy, Caldwell and Backs will present it to the administration for approval. Caldwell said he initiated the petition drive in response to a national phenomenon in whiteb hate crime assailants were not prosecuted. Because federal law about hate crimes was so vague, he said, only individuals who inflicted bodily harm or property damage were convicted. "How to determine what a hate crime is, is what makes the law so sticky," Caldwell said. "If a person is singled out or ridiculed because of the group they belong to, it's a bate crime." He said that hate crimes at the University had been increasing but that it was difficult to rely on statistics because most hate crimes were not reported. Last year, the KU Public Safety Office reported five hate crimes and three incidents of sexual assault. Caldwell said he hoped a zero tolerance policy would encourage victims to report hate crimes or sexual assault. "It's definitely a problem," he said. "I've gone to parties with friends that were women, and after the party they said someone raped or sexually assaulted them. Someone grabbed them and took them into a bedroom and tried to get them to do See PETITION on page 2A Feelin' the groove Photo by Dan Elavsky/KANSAN Alanis Morissette performed Monday night at Kemper Arena in Kansas City, Mo. Kansan music critic Matt Cox attended the concert. To read more about Alanis' performance, See page 6A. Underwater search team recovers stolen car from Kansas River Bv Katie Burford By Katie Bortora kburford@kansan.com The Douglas County Sheriff's Underwater Search and Recovery Team donned its dry suits yesterday morning to retrieve a stolen car deposited in the Kansas River. Kansan staff writer The car was rolled into the water sometime last week by a Lawrence man, Sgt. George Wheeler of the Lawrence Police Department said. The man told police that he rolled one of the cars, a 1984 Chevrolet Caprice, into the Kansas River, prompting the recovery team's effort. The 20-year-old man was arrested Monday at 4:47 p.m. in the 700 block of Connecticut Street. The car was stolen from the 800 block of Connecticut Street. Police have connected him with the theft of four vehicles stolen in Lawrence since Friday. "River diving is probably the most dangerous," said Fire Marshal Rich Barr of the Douglas County Fire and Medical department. Before to stepping down from his position as team coordinator in January, Barr had been with the team since its inception in the late 1970s. Volunteers from the Lawrence Police Department, the KU Public Safety Office and the Douglas County Sheriff's Office make up the team. The team is operated through the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, which provides $9,000 annually to operate the team. Although the recovery effort began about 10 a.m., it was not until 4 p.m. that the car was wrenched out of the muddy river bottom. "The car wasn't sunk too far, but it had drifted 100 feet down from where we originally thought it would be," said Capt. Bill Shepard of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, who oversaw the recovery effort. See DIVING on page 2A 答： Douglas County sheriff's Underwater Search and Recovery Team searches for a stolen car in the Kansas River. The team recovered a 1984 Chevrolet Caprice that was stolen between 11:30 p.m. Thursday and 5:50 a.m. Friday from the block of Connecticut Street. Photo by Brad Looney/ KANSAN