University Daily Kansan / Tuesday, March 24, 1992
CAMPUS / AREA
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Women pick up defense method
Classes build sense of safety
Learning basic self-defense moves, Suzanne Weeks, left, and Barbara Griffith take instruction from Alan Ulry of Lawrence. The women's self-defense course, sponsored by the Emily Taylor Women's Resource Center, began yesterday night at San Toku Kan Karate, 1904 Massachusetts st.
By Svala Jonsdottir
Kansan staff writer
Ever since a woman she knew was raped on the University of Kansas campus last semester, Molly Gratton has not felt safe.
Yesterday night she had the chance to fight back in a self-defense class sponsored by the Emily Taylor Women's Resource Center.
"The campus is not lit well enough to walk there at night," Gratton, Kansas City, Mo., junior said. "Carrying Mace is not always going to work."
She hopes learning to defend herself will give her a sense of security, she said.
"Knowing self-defense skills can make me feel safer," Gratton said. "I hope I don't ever have to use them."
Sherrill Robinson, acting director of the resource center, said the center offered the 10-session class at San Toku Kan Karate, 1904 Massachusetts St., for the first time last fall, after several students expressed an interest in learning to defend themselves.
"We offer a number of different programs in the area of sexual assault," she said. "There was a definite need to have some kind of a program that would teach different techniques to assist women in difficult situations," Robinson said.
KU students still can join the class, which will be on Monday and Wednesday nights until the end of the semester, she said. There is a $25 fee for the course.
Barbara Griffith, Raytown, Mo., sophomore, said that she and her roommates all carried Mace but
that she realized it might not be enough.
"I know someone that was attacked when she was walking down Campanile Hill," she said. "Someone grabbed her, but she sprayed Mace on him and got away. I can imagine situations where you would not be able to use it."
Laughs and giggles filled the room during the first session, where the women learned how to ward off attackers. The instructors reminded them of the seriousness of the issue as they showed them how to twist wrists, hyperextend elbows and throw people on the floor.
Brian Snow, senior student at San Toku Kan Karate said the women
"We are concentrating on the techniques of attacking weak spots that do not require a lot of strength," he said. "There are a lot of techniques that work better for small people where you can throw the attacker off balance."
would learn some basic techniques and concepts of self-defense.
Snow said the class should give the students confidence, but also a realistic idea of their ability.
"We also will discuss real-life situations and some measures you can take to be safer," he said. "Many people think that they never will be attacked, but we tell them, yes, it can happen to you."
Recent graduates find it's hard to get ideal job
By Ranjit Arab
Kansan staff writer
When Todd Sayre graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in film in December 1991, he had no idea that he would end up parking cars and working for customer services in a Vail. Colo., ski resort.
He looked for a job in the film industry after graduating but could not find one because of the tight economy, he said.
As a result, Sayre and four of his
trainees in the Department were
added to Yallook look old his bursar's report.
The problem of finding a job after graduation has been common among recent liberal arts college graduates, he said.
"There are least 40 other KU graduates in Vail." Sayre said. "Every night, I go out and see someone from KU."
He said that many of his other friends who graduated last year ended up accepting entry-level positions in the fields of their majors but that they made less than the $8 an hour he earned.
"I would rather make $8 an hour here
and skive every day than make $8 an hour
from home."
Terry Glenn, director of the University Placement Center, said one of the
major problems with placing graduating seniors was not a tight economy but a lack of student flexibility.
"We had companies last semester who had trouble getting enough people to sign up for the jobs," he said. "I want to go into sales and management."
Of the 4,000 seniors enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences last year, only 455 registered with the placement center, Glenn said.
Many of the seniors chose to go to graduate school, hoping to improve their chances in the fight job market, he said.
Glenn said the placement center had the most success in placing computer science, communications and English students.
Although computer science majors were in high demand in the job market, he said communications and English majors were sought by companies for a variety of jobs, including sales and public relations.
Glenn said the key was to remain flexible and to be aggressive in job selections.
Although the center could not guarantee job placement, more students could benefit from the placement center's services, he said.
"I think we have some information that would be helpful in the job
search." Glenn said. "Students stand to lose little, but maybe some time. by coming in and just checking with us."
Dale Noll, who graduated in May with a major in political science and psychology, said he was not able to find job in either of those fields after graduation.
James Henry, associate director of the placement center, said graduating seniors could expect to receive starting salaries in the low to mid-$20,000 range.
He said he had been accepted by the secondary program at KU's School of Education. Being certified as a teacher might improve his chances of getting a job.
Noll said he was employed temporarily as a supervisor at an indoor swimming pool in Leavenworth, where he made $6 an hour.
Many of his friends with liberal arts and business degrees also experienced difficulties finding jobs after graduation, Noll said.
However, he said he thought he would have had a better chance of finding a job if he had registered with the placement center.
"There are several companies that contact the placement center, but I did not go through them," he said. "That probably was a mistake."
Registration, licenses pick jurors
Numeric selection may tap students
By Andy Taylor Kansan staff writer
KU students who registered to vote for the April 7 Kansas presidential primary not only will help decide the primary outcome, but also could decide the verdict of a court case as members of a jury.
Yesterday was the last day to register for the primary
And if college students are jury members for the Douglas County District Court, they could sit in court even if a test or project is due on the same day.
mines whether a scheduling conflict exists between the court and the student jurv member.
Pat Laws, deputy clerk for the Douglas County District Court, said that prospective jurors were sent a questionnaire to ask them if they scheduled to start. The court deter-
"Normally we excuse college students for academic purposes – probably 90 percent of the time," she said. "But they have to give us plenty of time to know of their situation. If they don't, they probably will have to serve."
Patty Jaimes, county clerk, said jury members in Douglas County were randomly chosen by voter registration forms and driver's license numbers.
Current KU policy states that a student who is selected to serve on a jury in his home county or in Douglas County must be enrolled as a paraprofessal a student's academic work.
Jaimes said that although the final numbers of KU students who registered to vote in the county would not be known for some time, she estimated that between 3,000 and 4,000 KU students had registered.
"And I expect a larger number in the fall," she said.
Several KU students rushed to the courthouse yesterday afternoon to meet the 5 p.m. deadline.
One student said jury duty would not affect his studying.
"No, it doesn't bother me to serve." said Chris Barracks, Evanston, Ill., junior. "It's part of the responsibility to register to vote. It'a service."
"If it turns out to be an inconvenience, I'll make sure" and call to see if there is some way out," he said.
Barracks said that if he had to serve on a jury, he would try to avoid any trouble.
Jury members in Douglas County receive $10 a day, and the extra cash is distributed.
"Sure I'd serve," said Dwon Guenvir, Holton sophomore, after he finished filling out registration forms. "I could use the money."
Plan could give students control over how fees are allocated
Senate will hear proposal tomorrow
A student senator wants to implement a plan to give students more control over what their student activity fees finance.
By Jay Williams Kansan staff writer
Some members of Student Senate are some of the plan and afraid chaos would happen.
William Edwards, off-campus senator, said he would propose a bill to Student Senate a meeting tomorrow that would allow students to determine where they want the $25 fee they pay each semester to go.
"It's a very democratic, very fair plan," he said.
To help get support for the change, supporters of Edward's bill will collect student signatures Tuesday and day to present to Senate at its meeting
Edward's plan involves students marking on a sheet which groups they want to finance with their $25. He said the proposal would allow a student to give all of the fee to one group or divide it
among several groups.
Some of the groups that could be affected are KU on Wheels, University DanceCompany, Hilltop ChildDevelopment Bands and other student organizations.
Edwards said the cost of the program would be about $5,300 to develop, print and process the sheets that the students would mark each semester.
He said the changes would make student organizations directly accountable to the students it serves, instead of having them as senior senators, a raideoff Edwards wants.
"I am ten times more afraid of leaving it to 64 people who get hot, tired and uncomfortable during Senate meetings," he said.
The current system involves student groups coming before the Senate Finance Committee and making a detailed proposal about how much money they need and why they need it. The committee makes proposed cuts and passes their proposed budget to the full Senate.
Sixteen groups are funded through the revenue code, a two-year plan of fund allotment , while 35 other groups receive their money through yearly budget hearings. Both the code and budget hearings happen in the spring.
According to the plan proposed by Edwards, students do not have to fill out the form. Any left over money would be located by Senate in the current manner.
Alan Lowden, student body president, said that the idea was a good one in theory, but that he would have to see a more detailed plan before giving it support.
"There may be ways to do it, but it is
to take a longer-term study," he
Lowden said that some student groups could suffer if the plan was begun.
Leslie Lancaster, co-chairperson of the Finance Committee, said that groups lobbying students to get additional funds would hurt the groups' actual purposes.
"The groups running the best campaigns and the most popular groups were"
"You spend one night in front of the Finance Committee at budget hearings," she said. "With this, for three of us, we can focus on leading on the corner trying to get money."
Lancaster said some groups could receive too much funding one year and then receive none the next. Groups would never know how much money they would have until the fall semester started.
Edwards said his proposal was similar to a program at the University of Iowa, where students can earnark form a portion of their student fees to go.
Belinda Marner, coordinator of student services at Iowa, said that the check-off plan, called the optional student package, added to the basic fee students paid.
Marner said if students thought a particular service at Iowa was valuable, they could give an extra amount of money to help them along with the rest of their student fees.
Most groups at Iowa receive their basic funding through the $17.55 portion of the student fee allocated to student organizations, she said.
How KU spends its money
Thirty-five student organizations and 16 groups receive financing from the University each year. Here are the top five groups and how much KU allocated to them in 1991:
Allocation of activity fee
Student organizations
The Schools of Business and Law are pleased to present a public lecture by the winner of the 1991 Nobel Prize in Economics:
Source: Student Senate budget book
RONALD H. COASE
Clifton R. Musser Professor Emeritus of Economics,
University of Chicago
Aimee Brainard. Daily Kansas
"ON RECEIVING THE NOBEL PRIZE"
Tuesday, March 24, 1992
6:00 p.m.
Alderson Auditorium
Kansas Union, University of Kansas
Ronald Coase is one of three eminent scholars to visit the University of Kansas during the 1991-92 academic year under the auspices of the Koch Distinguished Professorship in Law and Economics. The Koch Professorship is made possible by a gift to the University from the Fred C. Koch Foundation of Wichita.