THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2009
NEWS
3A
TRADITIONS (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Hoch Auditorium, which was somewhat limited in seating, so for thousands of guests the stadium became the only place to really do it."
Marsh called walking down the hill the primary KU commencement tradition. According to the KU Info Web site, there are two different trails that graduates take down the hill. Going down the west side are students graduating from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences as well as master's and Ph.D. students. It takes a graduate about 300 steps to get down the hill. For those taking the second trail down the hill on the east side — students from professional schools — it is a little bit of a longer walk, with about 330 steps to get into the stadium. The difference? Those on the west side have no stairs to combat, while those on the east side start their walk with 28 stairs.
THE CAMPANILE CURSE
Nemeth Tuttle said the Campanile was constructed in 1950 and that she thought the tradition of walking through the tower began sometime soon after that. She said she couldn't remember the curse of the Campanile — that if students walk through the tower before commencement they will never graduate — from her undergraduate years in the late 1960s and the early 1970s, and guessed that this tradition started sometime in the 1970s.
Marsh said the curse of the Campanile was one of the University's traditions that did not
have a formal beginning.
"There are a lot of them like this, like waving the wheat," Marsh said. "There are traditions that are just extraordinarily important to the KU experience that are hard to pinpoint as far as origins."
The walk through the Campanile — built to honor the 277 students and faculty who died in World War II — is extremely special to graduating students. Nemeth Tuttle said. She remembered her own expe-
fiance graduating from the University with her doctorate degree in 1996, when much construction was being done around the Campanile. Because of this, she said, graduates were not allowed
to walk through the Campanile at commencement.
"This created very bad feelings," Nemeth Tuttle said. "It's a great example of a tradition becoming so strong that students got quite upset that they didn't get to do that."
"...while we're here,
we feel like we're part
of a very big,very
special thing."
THE IMPORTANCE OF TRADITION
Nemeth Tuttle found a way, though — one of her relatives at the time was Baby Jay, she said, and as Baby Jay led her through the crowd, "the seas parted" and she got to walk through the tower after all.
Nemeth Tuttle said she remembered a story from last year that
CURTIS MARSH KU Info director
showed the importance of commencement traditions to graduates. One student graduating from the School of Nursing had a grandfather who graduated from the University decades ago, she said. The student's grandfather did not have enough money to purchase the graduation regalia back then, so he did not walk down the hill.
"They worked it out so he could go down the hill with her last year," Nemeth Tuttle said. "It's a symbol
of connectedness — no matter when you graduate, you can connect with it."
Commencement is especially an occasion to feel connected to the traditions of the University, Marsh said.
"You go to commencement and realize that they have been doing the procession since 1873, and the fact that we hold fast to tradition means, while we're here, we feel like we're part of a very big, very special thing." Marsh said.
He said the tradition of commencement made him feel closer to those who had gone before him and those who would come after him.
"Everyone wants to feel a sense of belonging to something bigger than themselves." Marsh said. "Having an institution with lots of very special traditions makes you feel as though you're a part of something much bigger than you."
— Edited by Susan Melgren
KISS-IN (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Juliana Tran, Dallas senior, and Zach Holden, Topeka senior, engage in a prolonged kissing session during Monday afternoon's kiss-in, sponsored by Queens and Allies. Heterosexual couples were encouraged to join same-sex couples on the lawn of Strong Hall as a sign of support for gay pride week.
not as readily accepted or tolerated as those of a heterosexual couple, same-sex couples could feel discomfort or other negative feelings about participating in public displays of affection.
"The kiss-in is basically supposed to be a big, loud 'Hey!' We here and we're queer and we're not apologizing for it," Thompson said.
Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN
Abigail Bockus, Manhattan, junior, was working at a table on Wescoe Beach for Women's Transitional Care Services and got a clear view of the kisin- as well as the reactions of people who passed it along the street.
Zach Stites, Lawrence sophomore, leans down over Andrew Hemdon, Kansas City freshman, during Monday afternoon's kiss-in.
"I think it's a pretty prominent way to send out your message," Bockus said. "I don't think they're trying to offend anyone though."
Bockus said she heard a variety of reactions to the event, both positive and negative.
"I think that you should be comfortable with your life choice and you shouldn't be embarrassed by it," Bockus said. "I feel that the people that would be offended by it are the one's uncomfortable with their sexuality."
and president of Queers and Allies, said the kiss-in used to be a Quesers and Allies tradition, but that they had stopped doing it two years ago because of a lack of interest. The kiss-in used to be held at a table on Wescoe Beach with just one couple kissing. Campbell said there wasn't much of a reaction from people to the old kiss-ins because of the underwhelming effort on Queers and Allies' part. He said he was com-
fident that this year would revive the tradition. Though the kiss-in may seem fun and sexual, it's actually rooted in activism, Campbell said. "This is one more way to show that queer and heterosexuals are remarkably similar" Campbell said. "We eat, we sleep and we even like to fool around."
— Edited by Melissa Johnson
Ryan Campbell, Olathe senior
BOSTON — Boston police say they have a man in custody in connection with the death last week in a luxury hotel of a woman who advertised massage services on Craigslist.
death also may be connected to the attempted robbery Thursday in Warwick, R.I., of an exotic dancer by a man responding to an ad she had posted on Craigslist.
CRIME
Police see connection in Craigslist murders
ANZA, Calif. — Authorities have arrested a Southern California man after determining that a dead horse on his property had been struck repeatedly in the head with a sledge hammer and decapitated with a chain saw.
Deputies say the horse had actually been struck on the head and decapitated. They arrested the 64-year-old Ziniku on an investigation of animal cruelty charge after finding the animal's head had been fed to his dogs.
said Monday that Jack Ziniuk summoned deputies to his Anisa home Sunday and told them his horse was having seizures after being attacked by dogs and needed to be put down.
Riverside County sheriff's Deputy Herlinda Valenzuela
A call to Ziniuk's home seeking comment was not immediately returned.
Associated Press
Julissa Brisman of New York City was found dead Tuesday at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. The man also is being held in connection with the robbery last week of a woman at the Westin Copley Hotel.
PLATFORM (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
ing issues had been addressed. Students are now able to park at the meters outside of Watkins Memorial Health Center for free.
"I think that was one of our bigger accomplishments," McGonagle said. "It was something that didn't cost money and opened up a vital service to students."
IMPROVED ENROLLMENT SYSTEM — POOR
The coalition said it wanted to improve the enrollment system by providing additional information such as textbook prices, prerequisites, degree requirements, labs and open class times as well as offering a drag and drop system. United Students also said it wanted professors to provide midterm grades to students so they would know where they stood in their classes.
Authorities believe Brisman's
This year, Gillaspie said he had already received all necessary funding and had made arrangements for the event, though an official date had not been set. He said he expected the event to occur annually.
McGonigle said that because the University's contract with its enrollment program wouldn't expire for several years, it was not yet possible to make these changes. He said Michael Gillaspie, Ashland senior and student body vice president, worked to compile research on how to improve the current system, to provide to the administration when the current contract expired.
WIRELESS INTERNET IN HOUSING — MODERATE
McGonigle and United Students originally said implementing wireless Internet through residence halles was a project that could be completed without a student tee increase. After taking office, McGonigle found that this was not the case.
LIGHTING, SECURITY CAMERAS POOR
McGonagle said that as wireless technology became cheaper it would be more feasible to shift money spent on the current system to wireless Internet.
During last year's election, Gillaspia said he would make it a priority to start a free self-defense program available to women on campus.
United Students said it wanted to use money from the Campus Safety Advisory Board reserve account to increase lighting behind Strong Hall and in places with high student populations on and off campus, such as Emery Road and Tennessee Street.
Jennifer Wamelink, associate director of student housing, said all residence halls had some access, but only in shared spaces. For some halls this was the main lobby and for others this included floor lobbies.
ENERGY-EFFICIENT BUILDINGS — POOR
who chairs the Campus Safety Advisory Board, said the board would begin scheduling meetings within the next week to work with the School of Engineering and the City of Lawrence to address lighting needs.
United Students said it wanted to reduce energy use in buildings such as the Kansas Union, recreation center and Watkins. It said it wanted to require that staff use fluorescent light bulbs, shut off computers at night and turn down air conditioning or heating at night.
"There's definitely a good chance that this promise will at least get addressed seriously before the end of the school year," Zacharias said.
SELF-DEFENSE — GOOD
Felix Zacharias, Wichita junior.
"I don't think we made as much progress as we wish we would have," McGonigle said. "Frankly a lot of the easiest things to do, like use fluorescent light bulbs, are already done. Watkins and the Union, for instance, and the recreation center have been very proactive about reducing their own costs and have already implemented those practices."
McGonagle said that in the future he would recommend Student Senate better integrate its efforts with those of the state and nation as a whole.
Las Vegas Sun reporter Alexandra Berzon calls her parents to share news of the Las Vegas Sun's win of the Pulitzer Prize for public service for exposing a high death rate among construction workers on the Las Vegas Strip. Berzon learned of her achievement Monday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
— Edited by Casey Miles
Pulitzers awarded to newspapers for breaking top stories of 2009
Associated Press
BY DEEPTI HAJELA
NEW YORK — The Las Vegas Sun won the Pulitzer Prize for public service Monday for exposing a high death rate among construction workers on the Las Vegas Strip. The New York Times received five Pulitizers, including one for breaking the call-girl scandal that destroyed Gov. Eliot Spitzer's career.
The Detroit Free Press won in the local reporting category for obtaining a trove of sexually explicit text messages that brought down the city's mayor. The judges also awarded a Pulitzer in local reporting to the East Valley Tribune of Mesa, Ariz., for revealing how a sheriff's focus on immigration enforcement endangered investigations of other crimes.
The awards were announced after one of the most depressing years the newspaper industry has ever seen, with layoffs, bankruptics and closings brought on by the recession and an exodus of readers and advertisers to the Internet.
"These are tough times for America's newspapers, but amid the gloomy talk, the newspaper winners and the finalists are heartening examples of the high-quality journalism that can be found in all parts of the United States," said Sig Gissler, administrator of the prizes. "It's quite notable that the watchdog function of journalism is underscored in this year's awards. The watchdog still barks, and the watchdog still bites."
The only other multiple winner was the St. Petersburg Times. It was honored for national reporting for fact-checking what the candidates said during the 2008 White House campaign, and for feature writing
for Lane DeGregory's story on a neglected girl who was unable to talk or feed herself.
The presidential race also required in the Pulitzer awarded in commentary: Eugene Robinson of The Washington Post was honored for his columns on Barack Obama's historic run for the White House.
No Pulitzers were awarded for coverage of the biggest financial crisis since the Depression. And despite a rule change that allowed online-only news organizations to compete for Pulitzers for the first time, none of the 65 entries won any prizes.
However, the board said online content played a role in several of the winning entries.
In a measure of what the recession and the Internet have done to the newspaper industry, the Detroit paper's award came less than a month after it cut back home delivery to three days a week.
Similarly, the Pulitzer for editorial cartooning went to Steve Breen
of The San Diego Union-Tribune, which was sold last month to a private equity firm after its advertising plunged 40 percent since 2006 and it forced employees to take unpaid furloughs.
The Las Vegas newspaper was cited for the "courageous reporting" of Alexandra Berzon, whose stories about lax enforcement of safety rules on the Las Vegas Strip led to changes in policy and improved workplace conditions.
The death toll on the Strip had reached nine in 16 months as casino giants undertook a $32 billion building boom, including the largest private commercial development in U.S. history. Berzon described how the rush to build quickly and at highly congested work sites led to safety shortcuts that contributed to deaths.
The awards also follow a difficult year for The New York Times, which is dealing with the burden of a heavy debt, forcing the distinguished paper to ask employees for pay cuts and seek an infusion of cash from a Mexican billionaire.
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