CAMPUS/AREA
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, August 25, 1993
3
Chalk murals liven wall
Colorful art grows each night
By Chesley Dohl
Kansan staff writer
Kansan staff writer
The drab cement wall just south of Battenfeld Scholarship Hall that once greeted students on their walk to campus gradually is being replaced by colorful, psychedelic chalk murals.
Many KU students like the expressions of art that appear on the walls overnight, and they have two Battenfield residents to thank for starting what could become a new trend.
Aaron Killigge, Lawrence sophomore, and Garth Atchison, Manhattan sophomore, said they got the idea for the murals after they had seen a chalk mural done on another cement wall near the hall.
Although most of the mural is abstract shapes and designs, there are some distinguishable figures, including a man and a woman, an eye crying tears and a huge cigarette with the caption "Why can't I be content when life treats me so good."
"Garth had some chalk and he started with the eye. 'Killogree said,' I thought it was pretty cool so I bought some chalk and started drawing too."
The two friends began the drawings last Sunday night, with minimal lighting from the scholarship halls. Every night since, either Atchison or Killigree have added something to the mural.
Brit Laurent, Battenfeld resident,
said it was fun to watch people stop to
look at the mural. "People just come
up, stand there, read it and look at it trying to figure it out," he said.
Ron Tippie, former KU student, said that the mural brought back memories of the old art fraternity, the Acacia House.
Killgore said he was glad there were positive responses to the mural and that he hoped that others would come up and draw on the walls with them.
"Hopefully we'll get more than just those murals done — I think it would be totally cool to fill the whole wall up," he said.
"I'm not fond of the cigarette nural, but otherwise the color is nice, there's nothing obscene and it's an improvement over that ugly cement," he said.
Sgt. Chris Keary, KU police shift supervisor, said that chalk is not considered a form of vandalism because it washes off.
A mural just south of Battenfeld Scholarship Hall turns the concrete wall into a colorful picture. Two Battenfield residents add something to the mural each night.
Holly McQueen/KANSAN
Shauna Aronson and Cindy Foreman, Shawnee freshmen, browse through the posters for sale in the Kansas Union. The sale runs through Friday in the Kansas Union Gallery.
Senators seek more student input
By Donella Hearne
Kansan staff writer
Sara Swanson is not exactly sure what it is that the Student Senate does besides hand out flyers before elections each spring.
"I would like to see them more active, more vocal," said Swanson, an Iowa City, Iowa junior. "I want to see them and hear them."
Senate has many issues on its agenda this semester, and one of its goals is to make its presence known to the student body. The senate hopes that greater visibility will lead to more student involvement.
Student Senators are concerned that only a small number of students participate in the decision-making
Postersale
process of student government.
"It shouldn't be that decisions are made by 70 people" said Chad Browning, administrative assistant to the treasurer. "They should be made by 70 senators working with 100 students
on each committee "
Travis Harrod, head of the Student Senate Executive Committee, said he also wanted to see the formation of a student advocacy group this semester.
John Shoemaker
Harrod said the advocacy group
would match students who have grievances to other students who are familiar with University policies
The group would supplement Legal Services for Students, also a Senate program, which answers.
students' legal questions. Legal Services can't represent students against other students, students against KU administrators or faculty members or students in criminal cases.
Tim Dawson
The advocacy group would advise students of their options in cases not
handled by Legal Services
Senate also will work on enrollment procedures, increased funding for Safirde cab services and expansion of Watkins Memorial Health Center
Harrod said it was important students realize they have a say in where their money goes and that they can exercise that say by getting involved in Student Senate. Many Senate services, such as Saferee and Legal Services, are financed from student fees.
He said that making Senate more visible would help interest students in college.
“If we can promote ourselves as an actual, integral part of the university, more people will want to serve the student body as senators.” Harrod said.
Language classes challenge students
By Kathleen Stolle
Kansan staff writer
Except for the sound of buses grinding past on Jayhawk Boulevard, Maksimo Proskuriakov's Spanish 104 classroom was silent.
"I'm Maksimo Proskuriakov and I'm going to teach you Spanish," the bespectacled teaching assistant said, breaking the silence with his Russian-laced accent.
"Como se llama?" he prodded his students.
This semester about 4,500 KU students are taking foreign language courses, many not without anxiety.
The 30 story faces didn't crack. El gato apparently had everybody's tongue.
Jennifer Badman, DeWitt, Neb. junior, doesn't mince words when describing her feelings about her Spanish class.
"I'm really scared," she said, rocking nervously on a bench outside her classroom in Wescoe Hall. "I have a bunch of friends who have taken it here before and say it's really hard."
Like Badman, students seeking a bachelor of arts degree from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences must prove proficiency through the fourth semester. Students with foreign language offered at KU, Some programs)
John Whetsine, Highland sophomore, said his anxiety was due to complete unfamiliarity with Spanish.
"I don't understand how they put the sentences together. It's all backwards," he said.
Proskurikov, who taught Russian to Americans and Spanish to Russians in St. Petersburg, said that language was the basis for application beyond conversation, such as in poetry.
*Language is not only the ability to understand or express youself to others, it's a material for build-*
*ing.
But learning to manage, or even master, a language is no mean feat, instructors say.
"The thing you need to know is to study the language every day," said Proskurikov.
William March, assistant professor of Slavic languages and literature. agreed.
"Memorization is the key to language learning," he said. "You have to set aside 10 minutes here, 15 minutes there, four-to-five times a day because our minds don't memorize in blocks, they memorize through repetition."
March, who teaches Croatian and Serbian, said that American students may feel anxious about learning a second language because they usually
have very little interaction with other languages and cultures. He added that students should realize that learning a language is actually a natural process.
"They've learned one language already," he said. But for Jason Nudson, Overland Park sophomore, the task was much harder.
But other students elect to take a foreign language
If I'm not going to pursue that as a career choice.
I don't want this language is enough.
As a business major, Paul Landberg, Vaxo, Sweden, senior, decided to take German. And when he went to Paderborn, Germany, through KU Study Abroad last semester, he applied what he learned
"When it came to tests, it was important," he said of his proficiency.
For students struggling with a new language, the Student Assistance Center, located in Strong Hall, will be sponsoring workshops in August and September to introduce its tutor resource catalog
Students who qualify may use the Supportive Education Services free tutor service. And the Ermal Garteren Academic Resource Center, also known as the language lab, has foreign language audio and video cassettes available to students.
Lied ticket rates reduced for faculty
By David Stewart
Kansan staff writer
Taking in an opening night of a Broadway production, like the first performance of "The Secret Garden" at the Lied Center, has never had the reputation as a cheap night out.
But Peter Thompson, dean of fine arts, has made that show a lot less expensive.
Thompson offered the school's faculty $20 off the original cost of $50 for "The Secret Garden," showing Sept. 28. He said this was a long-standing
"Fine arts faculty has always got a discount for art events. At least it's something I've done since I've been here," said Thompson, dean of the school for eight years. "There's no conspiracy here against other faculty."
practice
The theater faculty also could purchase tickets for the reduced $30 rate, Thompson said.
The Sept. 28 performance will include hors d'oeuvres, which will raise the regular ticket prices of $30 to $35 by $15 to $20, said Jack Davis,
director of the center.
"We're not talking about a huge group of people getting a discount," Davis said in reference to the Tuesday night performance. "Dean Thompson did this as a gift to the School of Fine Arts."
Poor ticket sales for the performance had nothing to do with the faculty discount, Davis said.
KU students also look for a discount to "The Secret Garden" should consider buying the half-priced tickets for the Sept. 29 performance, Davis said.
"After then, we will open up sales to the public at the half-price rate," Davis said.
Until Sept. 7, only students can purchase reserved-seat tickets for this discounted show. The tickets cost $15 and $17.50 up to the night of the performance, Davis said. But she suggested that students buy their seats before Sept. 7.
"The Secret Garden" will be the first performance held at the new center. Completed in the spring, the 2,030-senat center on West Campus will serve as the main venue for many arts
"The Secret Garden"
Location: Lied Center, West Campus
Dates: Tuesday, Sept. 28 to Sunday, Oct. 3.
Costs:
$50 for "The Secret Garden" gala on Sept. 28
$30 for second balcony and second and third-tier box seats
$35 for orchestra, first balcony and first-tier box seats
Ticket Information: 864-ARTS
events once held at Hoch Auditorium, said Nancy Kaiser-Caplan, public relations director of the center.
FREE DEMOS ON
THURSDAY 8/26 & FRIDAY 8/27
Hoch Auditorium was severely damaged by a fire caused by a lightning strike in 1991.
SERVICES
208ROBINSON 864-3546
FOR MORE INFORMATION: KU RECREATION SERVICES
208 ROBINSON 864 3546
CLASSES START
MONDAY,AUGUST 30
CLASS SCHEDULE
6:15 AM SUNRISE (MWF)
7:15 AM STEP (MWF)
4:30 PM HIGH IMPACT (M-R)
5:30 PM LOW IMPACT (M-R)
5:30 PM AQUACIZE (M-R)
6:30 PM TONING (M-R)
7:00 PM STEP (M-R)
4:00 PM HI-LO (FRIDAYS)
KU TRIATHLON & SWIM CLUB
MEETING- Monday, August 30,8 p.m. Walnut Room, Kansas Union
- Informational Meeting for those interested in Racing Team immediately following.