Ogapo
Opinion
Page 4
University Daily Kansan, February 24, 1983
Tightening the circle
We have entered the lifeboat and are discarding the weak.
In the case of a bill going through the Kansas Legislature, the expendable ones are the "nonresidents of the state of Kansas who are not citizens of the United States." Here at KU they number about 1,600 and are known by the more generic term "foreign students."
Since the fiscal crisis began last year, the Legislature has been trying to see to it that those who benefit from state programs are carrying their share of the state's financial burden.
But the aftermath of the first wave of budget cuts has produced howls of protest, and with the second wave on the way this year, the legislators are eager to find new, easier targets who won't complain as much at the ballot box.
Enter the foreign students.
House Bill 2332 is aimed at drawing blood from the voiceless minority of foreign students in a very simple way.
All 2332 does is place foreign students in a separate category from out-ofstate students.
sure分割 the groups, however. By dividing the groups, however, this seemingly simple maneuver also gives the Board of Regents the power to charge foreign students a separate, higher tuition.
Only the state representatives present at the House Ways and Means Committee meeting Tuesday know what went on there; there was little announcement that final action on the bill was about to take place.
But the committee's action can only be seen as an underhanded move that could damage Kansas schools culturally and give students around the nation and the world the image of a closed, biased system interested only in protecting its own.
The Regents schools deserve a better reputation than that, and we hope the Legislature will see the folly in Kansas chauvinism and keep the doors of education wide open.
By PATRICIA McCORMACK United Press International
Ernest L. Boyer, former U.S. Commissioner of Education, wishes the federal government would do more to help the teaching profession survive.
"It is clear . . . that today the teaching profession is imperiled. Rewards are few, morale is low, the best teachers are bailing out and the supply of good instructors is drying up." said Boyer, head of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
Boyer spoke out to chief state school officers and college and university presidents gathered at the University of Georgia.
The education system needs renewal from kindergarten to college, Boyer told the conferences, who met at Yale University in New Haven, Coop.
Colm "This teaching crisis is most dramatically revealed in science and mathematics," he said, citing the following:
since 1972, the number of math teachers emerging from college training programs has plunged 79 percent. In science, there has been a drop of 64 percent.
1 In 1811, half of all newly employed science and mathematics teachers were not qualified to teach science and math.
- In 1862, 32,000 classes in science and math that were planned and needed — involving 640,000 students — could not be scheduled for lack of teachers and resources.
Glimpuses of the teacher crisis in various states
Florida: The department of education estimates that, for the next five years, its colleges and universities will graduate only 20 math students, an annual need for new ones in state schools is 325.
California: Of 1,444 Los Angeles teachers of grades 7 to 12 who teach at least one period of math daily, 32 percent have neither a college major nor in math.
new York: In 1982, New York State had only 32 college graduates who planned to teach math in junior or senior high. That was the net crop among 80,000 graduates.
"These are not isolated instances," Boyer said.
"In fact," he said, "in 1881 . . . 43 states reported a shortage of teachers in science and mathematics.
"The nation needs to respond to this crisis that will have enormous impact on the economic future and national security of the nation."
Boyer very lightly applauded President Reagan for acknowledging, in his State of the Union message, that if the United States hopes to lead the education, the leadership system must be renewed.
"The President then proposed a $70 million catch up program for math and science teachers," Royer said. "At the core of the proposal is a $80 million block grant program to retrain — for math and science — unemployed, retired and new teachers."
"I do not wish to diminish the significance of the government's initiative. But I do wonder if we understand the seriousness of the problem we confront.
"And yet, the 1984 federal budget calls for a 6 percent reduction in education, overall, while proposing a $30 billion increase in national defense."
"We cannot delude the nation into believing that rebuilding public education will call for less commitment than rebuilding roads and bridges or rebuilding the security of the nation.
Raver did not let the states or cities off.
"The education system is a national problem calling for a national response.
"But I was in government long enough to know that Washington cannot and should not do the job."
"But the potential for such cooperation can be no greater than our ability to agree common goals."
"Rather, action at all levels is now needed. And, in particular, a new school-college partnership is required — one that involves collaborative leadership.
Boyer put down these caveats for leaders of the education establishment:
- Efforts to improve cooperation will be unproductive so long as the objectives of the eight years of high school and college remain unclear.
*The same is true if schools and colleges do not work together to strengthen early education, define the academic core, promote the gifted, recruit outstanding students for teaching and give teachers adequate tools and appropriate recognition.
"Then," he said, "excellence in teaching becomes an achievable goal."
Greece can be enchanting land
Before embarking on a four-month journey through Greece in 1980, I read Henry Miller's "Colossus of Maroussi," a delightful tale of Miller's visit to, and love affair with Greece exactly forty years before mine.
exactly the one of his most brilliant passages lovingly describe his friend, Katsimisha, an eccentric, excessive, gregarious man who lived life fully and dangerously at times. He was an excellent storyteller who had the capacity to rework life's moments into great masterpieces of color.
Kalambalsi' great love for life and the Greeks' famous hospitality to strangers renewed Miller's flaging spirits and sent him back to the United States in much better shape than he had
I met my own Katsambalis.
I met my own kids in the crowded, greasy taverna in I found him, a man in one of them. An allicy chilly spring night. My friend and I almost passed by the drab-looking Peristeri taverna, but the lively crowd and menu written only in Greek drew us back there and we ended up enping the table of one Kristos Karamichos, local flokitu rug dealer, historian, arts lover and storyteller par excellence.
That first evening was a taste of what was to come during my sojourn in the land that mesmerizes visitors with its intense light and whose inhabitants have the great capacity for loving life that has been terribly harsh to them over the years.
The conversation that night was lively and entertaining. In the course of two hours, we managed to discuss the world's political situation, whether the ancient Greeks really did fight a war over Helen of Troy, feinism — he was not sure women could really be happy if they were not married — and then back to politics again.
We continued to talk, argue, agree and laugh a great deal for the rest of my stay in Greece. Our favorite subject was, of course, politics, but we strained to others for variety's sake.
Our discussions were not always well received by others. Once during lunch, when Kris and I were in the thick of an especially heated
discussion, our frustrated lunch companion told us the two of us were louder than the student political demonstration that was occurring down the street.
So that Kris could learn more about present day America, I gave him books by Studs Terkel. In turn, he lent me his copies of Edith Hamilton's works on classical Greece.
As much as I liked our discussions, I enjoyed his storytelling more. Take the story about his car, for instance. Kris's car was fine when he was on the road. On one he and a friend drove the "Tank" to a seaside village for
KATE DUFFY
dinner to get away from Athens' oppressive heat. After talking into the wee hours of the morning, they parked car on the beach and went to sleep in the nearby grass.
When they awoke in the morning, the car was gone. After frantically combing the beach, they went to the police and reported the car missing. The exchange between the police and Kris turned into a screening match, with the police insisting they had not seen anyone drive the car out of town and Kris insisting that the police had probably stolen it themselves.
A few days after his return to Athens, Kris received a call from a fisherman in the village who said he had found the car while fishing. The fisherman was said that the car had simply rolled into the sea.
simply rotten into his head. Kris returned and had the car dragged from the sea. To the villagers' surprise, but not to Kris's, the "Tank" started right up.
But friends convinced him he needed to have the "Tank," overhailed after its terrible beating.
from the sea. He did, but when he tried to start the engine after the overhaul, it wouldn't turn over.
Frustrated, he told the mechanics to put all the old engine parts back in. They did. It started immediately.
Storytelling runs in Kris's family out of necessity. For the last 2,000 years, much of his ancestors' life was spent traveling over the world to learn about their beautiful sheen wool rugs called flokatis.
Kris can still remember his first caravan trip, although it took place more than 50 years ago. He left his home in the high mountains near the Albanian border, traveled the length of the mountain and finally landed at the port town of Patras, where they sold what flokatsi they had left.
Twenty years later, World War II and the ensuing civil war had practically destroyed the Greek economy, caused mass starvation and split families in half. Yet, the Greek people who were subject to all of the above tragedies and more, were not destroyed. They are survivors.
To drive home this point, Kris once introduced me to his friend Saturis who had nearly died from starvation while fighting the Germans in the northern Greek mountains during World War II. Saturis had resigned himself to die, tired of the horror, fatigue and constant hunger of war.
He did not die because Kris ran from house to house begging for food to give his friend. Finally, he found a slice of bread, probably the last in that poverty-stricken village, and forced Satiris to eat.
I know this sounds like a fairy tale, but Satiris ate that bread and stood up to go on. And almost forty years later, on a beautiful sunny day in the city, he shared everything with his good friend who had saved his life.
While we visited, I could not take my eyes off his face. He was living proof of the Greek saying, "We are all children."
Henry Miller described Greece as a magical country in which everyone is a hero and a philosopher. I couldn't agree more.
Letters to the Editor
Apathv of KU blacks rooted in communications
To the editor.
Thanks, Alvin Reid, for opening the eyes of many black students who unfortunately view their blackness in a different light than you and I. We commemorate them here today and encourage their transition to the KU environment.
Collectively, it seems as though we have a hard time communicating with each other. Many of us have good ideas but when it comes to results, this is where we fail, for example, the proposed KJHK discrimination suit. While our people were out there shouting "HELP" especially to us, we blew it by failing to remain committed to the cause.
I have never experienced, and have yet to understand, how some blacks can center their whole existence around fraternities, sororites and union parties. On the other hand, I guess it would be no surprise that the institution exhibited a high productivity and progress. But they don't, and that's what hurts the most.
Furthermore, it took me by surprise that if one did not belong to a Greek organization, that one was automatically considered unhp, a nobody, and excommunicated from the black experi-
Problems like these have made some of us look toward white organizations for results. No, we're not "tokens" as some may suspect. We're just assertive and progressive and unafraid of being black. By the way, do you think brought in Tommy Brown?
Being black doesn't mean knowing the latest dance or the latest secret passage rite, because booing and rapping with Grand Master Flash won't get us financial assistance, won't defray rising dorm costs nor get us any closer to graduation.
Don't get us wrong, we appreciate the successful turnout for Tony Brown, but being
black just for Black History Month isn't enough. And just as Tony Brown said, results go beyond color definition. Ideally, the concept of unity weighs a heavy burden on us in regards to where we have come from and how our environment effects us now. However, whether we do it together or choose separate paths, the struggle is still going on.
Gina Stevens,
Washington, D.C., junior
Sidney Saunards.
Washington, D.C., senior
Little to be unified on
I consider myself a serious student. As such, I do not have mega-hours for campus activities. The majority of my time is spent in pursuit of economic and scholastic stability. The remainder of that time is spent with classmates who do not have time for the "who's my black student popularity poll."
To the editor.
Mr. Reid, I feel your letter deserves a reply. I had to find time to write this letter. I hope you will appreciate the effort.
I do not read the Kansas; however, I do read several other newspapers. I also watch the evening news. Local, national and world events are in view. Do you do? You do? Please do not include me in your WE!
No, I do not care that a smaller percentage of blacks attend the University of Kansas every fall. One does not trifle through KU. It takes hard work to survive. I am not responsible for those black students who take the grade. I should degree and I intend to get it. They should adopt the same attitude.
No, I did not know that minority affairs was
under review. I'll tell you why I did not know. There has been a communication gap between black students and certain organizations (BSU, black sororites, black fraternities, BIC, etc.) for a long time. Where were they when this news first surfaced? Aren't they supposed to alert us to these types of developments?
I agree, there is disunity among blacks on campus. If you'll notice, there isn't much to be unified about. Black campus organizations bicker among themselves, which results in accomplishing nothing. They stub out from their black student body. We work from them and the same behavior has helped to perpetuate the aloof attitude of some black students, such as myself.
My time is precious. When I give of it, I like to feel that it is well spent. I would love to time to worthwhile black civic activities. I imagine other black students feel the same.
oed me otation. I am not a hypocrite. You attack the tokenism of Black History Month. Why is it your column makes such a timely appearance? I do not participate in the programs designed for this month, because I do not appreciate the tokenism.
Do you plan to play "black crusader of the month" for the year, Mr. Reid?
Lawrence senior
Insensitivity to rape
To the editor.
Rape is not only a frightening experience for the victim, it is also frightening to those who can sympathize with the victim.
Sympathy with the victim
Sympathy, the capability of sharing the
As host of KJHK's call-in talk show, "Call Me Up," I have a unique opportunity to not only ask questions of my guests, but observe their reactions as they answer questions from me and the listening audience.
feelings of another, is inherent in humans. If an individual cannot share in the interests or distress of another, let us sympathize with this individual.
The show's guests Feb. 21 were two volunteer counselors from the Rape Victim Support Service of Douglas County. They were both quite knowledgeable and well versed in their preparation.
I only regret that some members of our listening audience were not. Several callers took light of this topic, strengthening some of the myths associated with rape. These callers, by their insensitive comments, have undoubtedly made it more difficult for victims to report rape and, perhaps even worse, provided an assailant with a rationale.
Through a screening process at KJHK, we were able to find out who was making these "brank" calls.
For the few pranksters, I sympathize with you for your actions, but I'll never understand them.
host. KJHK's "Call Me Up"
For the vast majority of people at KU, I apologize to you. You have nothing to do with what has happened. I sympathize with you for having to be alone with them, who not only have diarrhea but have diagnosed us all.
It is difficult when people do not face reality. When they hurt others in the name of fun — a college prank. But when innocent women are being attacked and raped, the pranks are not funny.
The University Daily KANSAN
Editor Rebecca Chaney
The University Daily Kaanan (USP) published at the University of Kaanan's 18th Fell Hall. Published regularly through the regular school year and Monday and Thursday during the summer sessions, excluding Saturday afternoons. Postage paid at Lawrence, Kan. 6044. Subscriptions by mail are $15 for six months or $27 for a year in advance. Subscription country: the county. Students subscriptions are $3 a semester based on the student activity fee. Students pay $9 per semester. University Daily Kaanan, Kan. 6045.
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