University Daily Kansan
Friday, Sept. 18, 1970
9
Tenants' Union Maps Housing
If you feel that you are being taken advantage of by your landlord and there is nothing you can do about it, the Lawrence Tenants' Union says it has a solution.
"People have already tried individually and it doesn't work," said Mrs. Maureen Hollis, St. Louis sophomore, who is an oragnizer for the union. "A tenants' union is a much more effective way to express our grievances."
THE MOST immediate goal of the union is to print a booklet which will explain legal aspects of being a tenant which are unknown to many persons. The booklet will contain housing regulations which specifically have to do with decrepit houses, in addition to legal regulations on deposits, rent and leaving notice.
The next goal of the union is to issue a map of the area from 6th Street to 19th Street and from Missouri Street to Massachusetts Street, which is where most sub-standard housing is found. Mrs. Hollis said.
WORK ON the map is now underway. When finished it will list who owns each house, how many people live in it, and how much rent is charged. The map will be a great help to persons looking for a place to live, Mrs. Hollis said, and it will also reveal landlords who are raising their rent
"The ultimate goal of the Tenants' Union is a rent strike. The strike will most probably hit one
landlord," said Mrs. Hollis. "Three years ago a strike would not have worked because he would have just sold all of his property to the University. But now the University does not have the spare resources to buy any land and the strike should be very effective."
THE DEMANDS of the rent strike will be to clean up the houses, pick everything in the houses, keep the houses clean, pick up trash regularly, respond to tenants' calls for repairs, and lower rents.
Another problem the Tenants' Union is concerned about is the foreign students who are living off campus. Foreign students seem to have the attitude that you are overthrowing the government if you strike, Mrs. Hollis said.
MRS. HOLLIS said the Lawrence Tenants' Union needed help.
"We need to educate these people that they can do whatever they want," she said.
"It is not true that in order to work on the Tenants Union you have to be a radical," said Mrs. Hollis. "Right now we need people to help us canvas neighborhoods to make our map."
The Lawrence Tenants Union is a part of the Lawrence Liberation Front. There will be a meeting noon Saturday at 1406 Tennessee Street preceding an afternoon of house canvassing.
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Language Requirements Disputed by Committee
The language requirement at the University of Kansas requires at least one semester to complete, takes up too much time and 75% of the students surveyed favor its reduction according to Robert Duncan, Wilmette, Ill., sophomore and member of the Committee on Language Research.
Duncan has been waiting since April for some word on the decision of the Educational Policies Committee of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences concerning the language requirement.
In April, Duncan presented the recommendations of the Committee on Language Research, a committee of students. The committee recommended that the junior-senior language requirement for graduation be abolished. This would not alter freshman-sophomore requirements.
The 16 hours needed to fulfill the language requirement means students are paying one semester to come to KU to take language. For the in-state student, that's $225 and for the out-of-state student, it's over $500." Duncan said. "We ask the question—is it fair or just? The decision should be made by the student, not by the faculty."
Results of a survey passed out at enrollment last spring by Duncan's committee are the basis of the committee's recommendations. In the survey about $75\%$ of the students replying from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences thought the language requirement should be reduced in some way. Of those, more than half thought it should be completely eliminated.
According to Duncan, the committee thinks a student could better spend his time by studying foreign psychology and social structures.
"These mentioned fields, not excluding the areas of political science and economics," Duncan said, "are perhaps more valuable to the student who is not dependent upon the mastery of language in his anticipated field."
The survey also indicated that almost a third of those suggesting a reduction in language requirement would still take some foreign language. Oddly enough, he said, almost half of the seniors replying to the survey indicated they would take a foreign language compared to only about one-fifth of the freshmen who would.
Duncan also emphasized that the last research done on language requirements took place in 1959. The only recommendation made at that time was to initiate a statewide study of foreign language from the elementary grades through the University.
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A Simple Challenge
If you got it, prove it. If you want it, work for it. If you think you're a leader, show us. This is the challenge the United States Marine Corps issues to the College Man who is seeking a career of leadership. The reward: service with one of the finest fighting outfits in the world and a commission that starts with gold bars and reaches to silver stars.
Visit with the USMC Officer Selection Team September the 21st thru the 23rd: our location will be the Military Science Building or contact us at 911 Walnut, KC, Mo. Tel.: 816-374-3031.
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