Friday, November 17, 2000 The University Daily Kansan Section A·Page 5 Program aims to attract minorities By Laita Schultes writer@kanson.com Kanson staff writer A diversity program last night at the Kansas Union could turn out to be the deciding factor for some high school seniors considering the University of Kansas. Candice DeBoise, an African-American high school senior from St. Louis, said she felt slightly out of place walking on campus yesterday, even though it was Multicultural Recruitment Day. The University, like other schools in the Big 12, fights an uphill battle to recruit and retain minority students. But DeBoise said last night's program was reassuring and made her think the University could be the school for her. "I thought it was very good," she said. "It was the most amazing way I've ever seen someone teach diversity." The event, "An Evening of Diversity," was led by the Diversity Peer Education Team, part of the Multicultural Resource Center. The event centered on a game called Bafa-Bafa, which the Navy invented as a way to teach diversity. Santos Nunez, program director for the center, began the evening by dividing almost 50 students from KU and visiting high schools into two groups, the Alphas and the Betas. cultural characteristics, and students were then forced to interact with one another. Miscommunications and frustrations abounded as nonsense languages and cultural values collided. At the end of the game, Nunez asked students to describe one another's cultures. Words such as crazy, rude, inferior and ignorant quickly filled the board. "People," Nunez said, "this was just a game, and look what we came up with. Look at this. What does this say about our society?" She asked students what could be learned from the activity. "It's easier to judge people than to try to understand," one audience member said. As soon as people see something different, they jump on it and condemn it as wrong, DeBoise said. DeBoise said that she had not realized her own tendency to marginalize people and that it was something she planned to work on. Nunez encouraged the students to apply what they learned to everyday life on campus and to their interactions with all types of people. She also said the program — and the friendly people she met — made her feel like she would "add to the number" of minority students at KU. "You look for a school where you can feel comfortable because that's four years of your life." DeBoise said. Professor pens biography of river explorer --- Edited by John Audlehelm Don Worster, professor of history and environmental studies, will publish his biography about John Wesley Powell, a famous American explorer in the 19th century. Photo by Carrie Julian/KANSAN By Nathan Dayani Special to the Kansan Don Worster can't even remember how many books he has written. "I think this will be my ninth or 10th book, but I'm not sure myself," said Worster, professor of history and environmental studies. However, he is sure that his latest book, A River Running West: The Life of John Wesley Powell, is the first biography in nearly 50 years to tell Powell's story — a story of religion, the conservation movement, environmentalism, exploration and the American landscape. "We have a lot of biographies of political figures, but not too many about some of the people who gave us a concern for the land." Worster said. John Wesley Powell's trailblazing expedition is one of the most famous stories of exploration in American history, Worster said. Powell, a Civil War veteran who lost half of his right arm to amputation, began his expedition in 1869 and became the first person to lead an expedition down the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. His dangerous expedition endured several hardships, including the loss of lives and precious supplies. The voyage captivated national attention, and at times, major American newspapers even reported that Powell and his crew had perished on the dangerous journey. "He was one of the greatest explorers of the 19th century, up there with Lewis and Clark, and in some ways, more amazing than Lewis and Clark." Worster said. "Amazing in the sense that he raised his own money for the expedition. He had no president like Thomas Jefferson standing behind him. He was the sole leader of his group. Instead of having soldiers, he had a bunch of mountain men, hunters and trappers. They were an unruly crowd. They had a lot of troubles going down the river. It was a lot more difficult, in some ways, than the expedition of Lewis and Clark." After the voyage, Powell, by then a national hero, discussed his exploration with Congress and became a critical figure in advocating scientific examination and preservation of some of the landscape. Worster said. Powell left an important legacy on the landscape he explored, Worster said... "It opened up the imagination of the Americans to the Colorado River, to the Grand Canyon, to the Colorado Plateau," Worster said. "Today five million tourists come every year to the Grand Canyon; half come from outside the United States. That's an amazing transformation, and everywhere you go, there's Powell's name." The biography not only describes Powell's adventurous life, but it also examines the mid-19th century shift from evangelism to a more secular American society, the conservation movement, and land use in the arid climate of the Southwest, Worster said. Brian Drake, graduate student in American history, said he admired Worster's writing talents. "I think he's not only one of the great writers of environmental history, but he's one of the great writers of history in general," Drake said. "There's always a beautiful elegance to his writing. He's never bogged down in history jargon. He has a wonderful ability to say things very precisely and very cleanly." Drake also said Worster challenged readers to examine difficult issues concerning the relationships between humanity and the environment. Andrew Frye, Overland Park senior. agreed. "He's definitely broadened my environmental critique," Frye said. "When I take a look at something, I see it through more viewpoints than I would have otherwise." Worster said he used a somewhat unorthodox approach in writing his new book by mixing historical study with narratives. "Looking at our environmental history through the eyes of a particular individual, combining biography and environmental history is still a new idea," Worster said. The Oxford University Press is publishing Worster's new book. Although many copies won't be available until the official January 2001 publication date, some copies are available at The Raven Bookstore, 8 E. Seventh St. Copies also can be ordered online at amazon.com. - Edited by Shawn Hutchinson (Level 1 • Kansas Union® 864-3545 Pregnant? 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