TODAY'S WEATHER: Mostly sunny with a high of 64. SEE PAGE 6B STUDENT SENATE: Read profiles of this year's coalitions. SEE PAGE 3A
TALK TO US: Contact Leita Walker, Jay Krall or Kyle Ramsey at (785) 864-4810 or editor@kansan.com
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
KANSAN
WWW.KANSAN.COM
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
WEDNESDAY
MARCH 27, 2002
ISSUE 117 VOLUME 112
Senate candidate could be disqualified
By Sarah Hill Kansan staff writer
A candidate for student body president could be disqualified from next month's election after a campaign violation complaint claimed he was not enrolled at the University of Kansas.
The Student Senate Elections Commission Hearing Board will hold hearings on campaign violation complaints during its meeting tonight at 5:30 p.m. at Alcove B in the Kansas Union to determine whether Matt Steppe, presidential candidate for the Vision Coalition, is qualified to run. The meeting is open to the public.
steppe said he was dropped from classes earlier this year because of a late tuition payment, and was working to rectify the situation.
"I have faith that the commission will listen
I have lamb that the com to the testimony presented, and make their decision based on what they hear," Steppesaid.
Because Steppe and Laura Rupe, vice-presidential candidate for the Vision Coalition, ran together on the same ticket, both could be disqualified from the race.
Steppe
The hearing board of the Elections Commission, a board composed of Elections Commission members, will determine whether Steppe violated the elections code by filing documents declaring his candidacy that claimed he was an
enrolled student.
Elections Commissioner David Mitchell said the commission could not release the name of the person who had filed the complaint.
Mitchell said the meeting would be open to the public because Steppe had waived his right to have a closed hearing.
At the hearing, the board will also considera complaint that claims that a candidate, whom commissioners declined to identify, campaigned door-to-door in residence halls. Campaigning in student housing is prohibited by the elections code.
Contact Hill at shill@kansan.com. This story was edited by Kristi Henderson and Justin Hennine.
City appoints new mayor
By Lauren Beatty Kansan staff writer
Dealing with the budget crisis and creating jobs in Lawrence are Sue Hack's goals as the next mayor of Lawrence.
The position of mayor rotates yearly among the five members of the commission. In the spring 2001 election, Hack received the most votes and was appointed vice mayor. Then, following commission tradition, she was elected mayor last night.
Commissioner David Dunfield came in second in 2001 and was appointed to vice mayor last night. He will most likely become mayor in spring 2003.
Lawrence's new mayor, Sue Hack, chats with a family member during a 20-minute recess and punch cookie reception at the city commission meeting last night.
Last night, the city commission voted Hack to the position of Mayor. She served as the Vice Mayor during the last year.
Hack, 54, is a civics teacher at Southwest Junior High. She will retire at the end of the year to devote time to being mayor.
Hack said her first priority would be dealing with the budget in light of a $730 million budget shortfall by the Kansas Legislature.
"We will have a difficult time balancing the level of service that citizens have come to expect while at the same time dealing with a reduced budget," she said.
Dunfield said the budget was also his first priority.
Hack said keeping workers in Lawrence was another priority for her term.
"It seems like the first thing we have to grapple with is the budget and the implications of the state budget crisis and what that's going to mean to us and the city budget," he said.
"We need to attract businesses to this community that provide high paying, quality jobs for our citizens so they do not have to leave here to work in Topeka and Kansas City," she said. "Job creation and industrial and commercial growth will have a positive affect on our budget status, also."
Hack said ordinances affecting students would not likely change while she was mayor.
Dunfield said changes might come later to the rental registration ordinance. The current ordinance says that rental homes in single family districts must be registered and inspected by the city to make sure the houses are up to code.
"The program is just getting off the ground, but I would like to see the registration expanded to beyond single-family homes and
into the Oread neighborhood," he said.
Hack said she was grateful for dialogues between members of the University setting and the city government and hoped to see it continue.
"As for the future of student-oriented issues,
I think having these conversations and meetings helps us to understand each other and can help remedy problems prior to their becoming big," she said.
Contact Beatty at Ibetay@kansan.com. This story was edited by Justin Henning.
Stadium party to celebrate broadcast game
By Jessica Tims Kansan staff writer
The University of Kansas Celebration Task Force has planned a hoops party so big, only Memorial Stadium could hold it.
Fans can enter the stadium an hour before tip-off, said Leslie Heusted, program director for Student Union Activities and task force member. The post-game
oops happen Saturday's Final Four game against the Maryland Terrapins will be broadcast live on the stadium big screen, told Todd Cohen, assistant director of media relations.
task force member. The post-game press conference will be broadcast live after the game.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7:47 p.m.
Tip-on is scheduled for 7:47 p.m.
Nonalcoholic tailgating will be
permitted before the game, said Drew
Thomas, Hays junior and member of
the task force. He said the athletics
department planned to haveivia sue
department planned to have trivia questions on the big screen. Cohen said the task force planned to play music and show video highlights of the Jayhawks on the big screen.
The task force wants the event to prevent campus destruction, such as the damage that occurred in 1988 when the Hawks won the national title, Cohen said. He said the police presence would be enhanced to prevent violence and keep the party alcohol-free.
"We want to provide a nice, fun, festive atmosphere for fans to watch the game," Cohen said. "We want to keep people safe and enjoy the game."
The celebration is free and open to all fans, and may be canceled in the event of inclement weather.
Contact Tims at jtims@kansan.com. This story was edited by Sarah Smarsh.
Radio station to send rival mascot to campus
By Jessica Tims Kansan staff writer
WIHT-FM, Hot 99.5, a Washington, D.C., radio station that broadcasts out of Rockville, Md., announced to its listeners that it had sent a producer from its morning show to Kansas.
A human-size turtle will roam the University of Kansas campus this morning.
that it had sent to
The producer will walk around the KU
campus dressed as the Terrapin Turtle,
the University of Maryland mascot, said
Ann Marchand, a 1998 KU alumna who
now works for the Washington Post.
Todd Cohen, assistant director of University Relations, said he had spoken to Marchand about the on-air promotions.
The radio station has been bashing the state of Kansas since Maryland and Kansas advanced to the NCAA Final Four on Saturday, Marchand said.
Liz Webber, an administrator of Clear Channel Washington, the company that owns WIHT-FM, confirmed that a person from Hot 99.5's morning show was in Kansas yesterday, and would be on campus today.
Cohen was not worried about the Terrapin's presence on campus. He said many students might not know that the turtle was a Terrapin, and would not react in a harmful way.
"I just hope that they are shown some lajahw hospitality," he said. "And some sympathy toward their future defeat."
Contact Tims at jtims@kansan.com. This story was edited by Kristi Henderson.
Budget cuts may decrease funding for campus safety office
Kansan staff reporter
Rv Rachel Keeseee
The office might have to cut three potential positions to account for a 5 percent budget cut, said Ralph Oliver, director for the KU Public Safety Office. The state is facing a $685 million budget shortfall for the next fiscal year starting in July.
The KU Public Safety Office never takes a day off, and budget cuts could make its job even harder.
"There are no other alternatives for us," Oliver said. "We're already shorthanded, and that's based on previous cuts in the '90s. The officers who are here have a greater workload."
One patrol officer position, one dis
patch position and one security position would be cut if the office had to make cuts, Oliver said. Although the positions are vacant, the safety office uses most of the money allotted for those positions to pay current officers overtime. Overtime pay is not included in the office's budget.
"You would think that people would not complain about overtime, but it gets to be a burden when your name is being punched every time we need someone to work overtime," Oliver said.
Oliver said overtime cost more than usual this year because of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He said the safety office had to schedule more security officers to work at football games.
The office currently employs 50 people. The budget cut also would leave no
UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION
room for possible pay raises next year.
Oliver said he understood the University's request to include the safety office in the budget cuts.
"I think it will make some officers consider other departments, and I think this type of thing makes it easier for the new officers we've brought on board to leave." Oliver said.
INSIDETODAY
"What they're asking us to do, they're asking everyone else to do," he said. "I understand that the University has certain areas that they want to protect for academic reasons. I don't disagree with that at all. I think that support services in general need to be looked at as about
"If you don't have enough officers to respond to calls made from blue phones, to patrol areas and protect students, then all the work we do to make this campus safe is all for naught," Knopp said.
Andy Knopp, Manhattan sophomore and chairman of Student Senate campus safety advisory board, said the board would encourage administrators to keep the safety office from losing officers.
"It's an issue for academia. It's an issue for students. It's an issue for administration," he said. "I don't believe that this administration would do anything if they
Oliver said campus safety was an issue that affected everyone.
Bretz said most departments were preparing to cut positions if the Legislature cut the budget.
"The safety of students is one of our most important issues, but every department is bracing for it if we undergo the kind of cuts they're talking about in Topeka," Bretz said.
COMING IN TOMORROW'S KANSAN:
how much a hit they can continue to take and still supply the level of services that this community is used to."
Contact Keesee at rkeesee@kansan.com.
This story was edited by Joanna Miller.
CAMERA ON KU ...2A
HOROSCOPES ...2B
WEATHER ...6B
CROSSWORD ...6B
Lynn Bretz, director of University Relations, said the safety office's budget would be determined with the rest of the University's budget after the Legislature adjourned in April or May.
felt that they were seriously jeopardizing the safety of this campus."
RELIGION: Read about students observing Passover.
TEACHING SUPPLIES: Some instructors are buying class supplies with their own money.
The University Daily Kansan is the student newspaper of the University of Kansas. The first copy is paid through the student activity fee. Additional copies of the Kansan are 25 cents. Subscriptions can be purchased at 119 Stauffer-Flint Hall.
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