THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
VOL.115 ISSUE 105
WWW.KANSAN.COM
LIED CENTER
Stephanie Farley/KANSAN
The Lied Center is getting a face-lift. Additions to the center may include an art gallery and an 800-seat auditorium.
Expansion on the way
Donation aids Lied Center addition
BY NATE KARLIN
nklarin@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Lied Center officials are planning an expansion of the building for the first time since its opening in 1993.
The planned renovations include an 800-seat theater that will be connected to the main theater that has 2,000 seats. The new theater would be constructed along 15th and Iowa Streets.
the center.
The University of Kansas announced a $1 million commitment from Ross and Marianna Kistler Beach Saturday. The donation will go toward the $15 million eventual goal of the project to expand
A 5,000-square-foot visual arts gallery, which would display student, faculty and alumni works, is also part of the project.
SEE EXPANSION ON PAGE 6A
MAINTENANCE
Haworth set for backup
TUESDAY, MARCH 1, 2005
Power outages threaten harm to lab specimens
BY TY BEAVER
tbeaver@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITE
Professors and researchers in Haworth Hall, north of Robinson Center, have been worrying about power outages for years. Although no damage occurred in this case, last week's temporary power loss had the potential to destroy thousands of specimens from more than 10 years of research.
The other half of the building is expected to be hooked up to the emergency backup power in early April and to quell concerns of Haworth occupants.
Only half of the building's backup power can only support emergency lighting, which would leave freezers and temperature-sustaining equipment to thaw.
The total cost is about $142,000, Kandi White, division of biological sciences business manager, said.
Money for the upgrade was provided by the provost's office.
Backup power was not included in the building's plans when it was constructed in 1964. A backup power source was added with Haworth's new wing in 1982, White said.
Backup power is something faculty and staff have been pushing for at least five years.
Stephanie Farley/KANSAN
Erik Lundquist, assistant
Robert Baldwin, Facilities Operations employee, looks at blueprints in Haworth Hall, north of Robinson Center, yesterday morning. The blueprints show where all of the emergency power receptacles are located. Baldwin is helping to install an emergency power system in Haworth Hall.
professor of molecular biosciences, has pushed for emergency power in his lab since his arrival in 2000.
Researching nervous system development with an organism called a nematode as a model, Lundquist has thousands of specimens in minus-80-degree Celsius freezers. He said he had 12 years of research stored in those freezers.
"Power outages happen, and it only makes sense to have a backup system," he said.
SEE HAWORTH ON PAGE 6A
NCAA POLICY
FAILING GRADES
Football among lowest academic ranking
BY ROSS FITCH
rfitch@kansan.com
KANSAN SENIOR STAFF WRITE
The NCAA released its Academic Progress Rate, APR, scores of Division I institutions yesterday. Four Kansas varsity teams failed to meet the new score of 925, which is roughly equivalent to a 50 percent graduation rate.
Baseball, 864; football, 899; and women's basketball, 780, were well below the mark. Men's basketball hovered near the mark with a score of 923.
Low scores for men's basketball, football and baseball came as no surprise, as those three sports were identified as problem sports by the NCAA Division I Board of Directors in January. Low scores for the women's basketball team could be explained.
During the coaching transition, at least three players did not return, which hurt the team's APR score, said Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director for external affairs. But, the low scores can't be pinned on the current women's basketball staff, he said.
"We are confident that Bonnie Henrickson will recruit and train the kind of student-athletes who will flourish here athletically and academically," he said.
He said the athletics department was also not worried about the other sports because the scores were based only on one-year data.
"We are very confident that, based on our commitment to academics, our scores, over time, will be satisfactory," he said.
Kansas athletics director Lew Perkins said he was confident that scores would improve following the announcement.
“This measure of academics is brand new to everyone,” Perkins said. “Now that we understand what the APR is and what the standards are, we fully expect our programs to adjust to the new measurement,"
The current reports are for informational reasons only. No penalties, which include the loss of scholarships, will be assessed this year. Next fall the same statistics will be compiled again. Schools will start to be penalized after two years worth of data has been collected.
According to the data, 7.2 percent of all men's and women's Division I teams fell below the mark. About 50 percent of all Division I institutions have at least one team that falls below the mark and could lose at least one scholarship in 2005-2006. The problem areas remained in men's basketball, baseball and football.
The KU men's basketball team score is in what is considered a "buffer zone." which is essentially a margin or error. The margin is used to account for small squad sizes and allows teams to be a little below 925.
The men's basketball teams' four seniors and redshirt junior Jeff Hawkins are expected to graduate in May, coach Bill Self said. The graduation of these players would most likely increase the team's APR score above 925.
Chancellor Hemenway said that 15 out of the University's 18 programs were well above the mark and that reflected positively on the University. The University has more than 50 percent of its players graduating, said Hemenway, who serves as chairman of the NCAA Board of Directors. The purpose of the rule ensures that teams encourage their players to graduate, he said.
The University took pride in itself in the past for focusing on graduating its players, and it will continue to take pride in the future, he said.
"We have great confidence in our coaches and players and the progress we've made up until now," he said.
Edited by Lisa Coble-Krings
How we stack up
Here's how the four KU sports teams with low scores compare to the overall Division I average.
Baseball
◆ Kansas 864
◆ Overall Division I 922
Football
♦ Kansas 899
♦ Overall Division I 923
Women's basketball
♦ Kansas 780
♦ Overall Division I 956
Men's basketball
- Kansas 923*
* Overall Division I 923*
Overall Division I APR score for all teams: 948 University of Kansas overall score for all teams: 936
*It is anticipated that some smaller teams that may be identified as underachieving in this year's report will not be subject to penalty because of the margin of error.
Source: NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate Compilation Report
Teams with intelligence
These are the Division I men's and women's overall scores. The following sports had high APR scores.
Men's sports
♦ Gymnastics 973
♦ Ice hockey 968
♦ Skiling 967
♦ Swimming and diving 967
♦ Fencing 965
♦ Lacrosse 964
♦ Golf 961
Women's sports
◆ Field hockey 981
◆ Lacrosse 981
◆ Rowing 981
◆ Gymnastics 979
◆ Ice hockey 975
◆ Swimming and diving 975
Source: NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate
Compilation Report
CAMPUS ORGANIZATIONS
HALO tackles cultural stigmas
BY ESTUARDO GARCIA
egarcia@hansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Senior Tyrone. Seymore grew up in San Diego, where most of "A Day Without a Mexican" was filmed.
"Growing up close to the border, I heard a lot about it as a kid," he said.
jobs.
Seymour said that California would be a lot different without its Hispanic population, but didn't agree that only Hispanics take the many of the low-paying
The movie attempts to answer the question, "What would happen if there were no gardeners, restaurant cooks or any Hispanics in California?"
Members of the Hispanic- American Leadership Organization showed students "A Day Without a Mexican" last night to bring awareness of immigration issues and to kick off HALO Week.
HALO Week gives the organization an opportunity to hold educational programs for its
members and the campus.
Hispanics are a big part of the American culture, and the movie showed the impact that Hispanics have in the United States, said Victor Aguilar, Dodge City sophomore and vice president of HALO.
"This movie is important because the majority of immigrants are Mexicans, and they take a lot of the jobs people don't want for less money," Aguilar said.
Twenty-five people came to the screening last night.
The film is a remake of the director Sergio Arau's short film with the same title. The film debuted in May 2004 at Televisa Cine in Los Angeles with good sales, but it did not impress the critics.
Ella Taylor of LA Weekly said in her review that the movie had a terrific premise that was mangled to a pulp, then beaten to death and described it as a forced mockumentary. Mockumentaries are
SEE HALO ON PAGE 6A
Today's weather
All contents, unless stated otherwise
© 2005 The University Daily Kansan
Dr. Gonzo
More than 18 years ago, Hunter S. Thompson spoke at the University of Kansas. A former Kansan reporter shares her recollections of the pioneering journalist who recently killed himself in his Colorado home. PAGE 2A
Women's basketball heads to Iowa
The team will "play with more heart" against Iowa State today, said Erica Hallman, in hopes of avenging last year's loss. PAGE 1B
Swimmers compete at Big 12 tournament Women's swimming team coach Clark Campbell said he was disappointed that Kansas did not edge out Nebraska for a third place finish. PAGE 1B
Robotic art
ROBOTIC art See video of the work of David Bowen,assis-
kansan.com
EXCLUSIVE
the web
in "Professor intertwines metal and art."