Section C·Page 12
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, August 21, 2000
Long road leads to academic success for nontrad student
By L. Candy Ruff
Special to the Kansan
Karen Boyd is making her way through academic challenges at the University of Kansas.
A nontraditional student working toward a bachelor of arts degree in sociology, Boyd, Kansas City, Kan., senior, credit an understanding counselor and a student organization with helping her reach her goals.
Boyd was in her mid-30s when she arrived at the University with an associate's degree from Kansas City Kansas Community College. She saw only 18 and 19 year olds on campus, and she felt left out. Then she discovered the Student Development Center and happened into Laura Morgan's office.
"That visit turned my situation around," she said.
The Organization of Adult Knowledge Seekers is for married students, veterans, students with children, students older than 24, part-time students, self-supporting students and other nontraditional students.
"Something as simple as providing lockers for us is an issue I have been fighting for. We also wanted a stronger voice on the Student Senate, and we now have four nontraditional students served there," she said.
Pushing for better access to childcare touches many of the students with children. The Hilltop Child Development Center, Boyd pointed out, has a waiting list, forcing stu
dents to look off-campus for childcare providers. She would like Watkins Memorial Health Center to hire a pediatrician to care for students' children, she said.
"It's those type of concerns we are able to bring to the attention of the Student Senate," she said.
Being able to stand up and speak out are characteristics new to Boyd. In high school, she did not easily express herself. Her decision to drop out at age 17, she said, was the result of anxiety and self-doubt.
"I called her every day for a month, and finally, she told me to come in for an interview. Pushing myself like that was not like me, but I wanted that good job." Boyd said.
After an unsuccessful stint at telemarketing, Boyd sought employment at a financial management company in Kansas City, Kan. She telephoned the office manager.
The opportunity to improve her secretarial skills increased her confidence, and within seven months, she finished her GED.
Her timing in the early 1980s for getting college financial assistance was fortunate, she said. At that time, students under 21 could receive dependent benefits if one of their parents was eligible for Social Security disability.
With a Pell Grant and Social Security, she continued her studies, but a change in the Social Security eligibility requirements ended her dependent benefits in 1985. Boyd left school.
An opportunity to join a faith-based organization and move to Rhode Island gave her a ticket out of Kansas, which she said she needed just then. Besides her religious obligations, Boyd landed another civil service position at the naval base in Newport, R.I. For a single woman, she said, there could not have been a better place.
"My brother encouraged me to take the civil service exam, and I did well. I was thrilled to get a job at Fort Leavenworth. I worked almost three years," she said.
"Every year there were 2,400 new officers attending the warfare training school. My job was working for the commander of the school. I loved it and planned to stay there forever," she explained.
Her mother's ill health, however, drew her back to Kansas City. Her mother's knee surgery brought Boyd home for six months in 1990. She then returned to Rhode Island. In 1996 her mother contracted leukemia.
"I'm the youngest in the family and the one who could more easily relocate. It broke my heart to leave Rhode Island, but my mother needed me. I moved home in March of 1996," she said.
Her mother became blind later that year and required home health care
around the clock. Cleaning houses was the most flexible job Boyd could find.
With the help of Catholic Social Services and in-home nursing assistance, she was able to keep her mother at home until her death in September 1998.
She graduated in May 1988 with an associate's degree from Kansas City Kansas Community College.
As she faced her mother's death, Boyd took stock of her own life. Her decision to return to Kansas coincided with her commitment to finish school.
By the beginning of 1999, Boyd knew she wanted to become a sociology professor.
"I took a full schedule at KU in the fall of 1988 and was driving back and forth between KU and Kansas City. I was just overwhelmed that first semester after my mother's death. That is why I was so grateful to find the services for us nontraditional students." Boyd said.
"In sociology class I began to face my childhood prejudices. I saw myself change in that class and for the better. You could say I now have a sociology brain," Boyd said.
She put that sociology brain to work to became a McNair Scholar. After she receives a bachelor of arts degree in May 2011, Boyd will seek masters and doctorate degrees. Her sights are firmly set on joining a university staff as a professor of sociology.
Coach's departure would have been a fashion loss
Bv Jennv Oakson
Kansan guest columnist
When I heard the news on June 30, I shed a tear. Sure, I was hung over, but I cried out of sadness, not pain. Roy Williams was being lured away from Kansas — how could we bear to lose such a fashionable coach?
Don't get me wrong. I follow basketball. But, even more so, I follow a man in a well-nut-together suit.
I remember a couple of years ago when I spotted Roy on TV at one of the annual preseason Hawaii tournaments. His bronzeed face brought out the white highlights in his Ken Doll hair. His light-colored suit made the
opposing team's coach look like a mobster. And he was committing an act more daring than starting T.J. Whatley — he was wearing sandals with a tie. But he could work it.
I'm not alone in noticing Coach Williams' (or his wife's) impeccable taste. In Spike Lee's He Got Game, Roy was debonair as he played a less shiny version of himself. Spike knows what's up. Roy's photogenic. Why else would my mom tape the games? It's all about freeze-frame.
This past season, Roy showed off his knack for accessoring. His oh-so-Ben-Franklin eyeglasses were not only stylish, but also flattering to his
oval face shape. Yes, some ties were hideous, but the man is a risk taker. Anyone can look good in paisley, but how many men can wear a multi-colored, spectrum-themed prop from A Clockwork Orange piece of neck candy?
I wouldn't have been so devastated if I had thought potential new coaches could be as suave — oh yeah, and as good at coaching as Roy. But just look at who the candidates were:
- That big guy from Utah who always wears sweaters — All I have to say is Mr. Belvedere, Boo-hiss.
- Rick Pitto— Make the pass or you sleep with the fishes. This man can
wear a suit and gets extra points for cuff links, but is that a pinky ring I see?
- Bob Hill — Boring. If this coach were a dish he'd be boiled carrots. I see no flair and lots of earth tones.
- Matt Doherty — Hmmm. He reminds me of Sam Malone back in the Shelley Long days of *Cheers*. As assistant coach under Roy for so long, he has definitely learned from the master, but I was worried he would have ventured into pastels.
We would have all missed you, Roy. But I would have especially missed your style, baby.
Center helps nontrads get settled in
By L. Candy Ruff Special to the Kansan
Embrace the new technology. Find time to study.
Family is important. Don't be afraid to ask for help.
These are the messages Mary Ann Rasnak delivers to the 5,000 nontraditional students attending the University of Kansas each semester.
Rasnak, director of the Student Development Center, said nontraditional students should consider the center their anchor.
"It's all about connecting," Rasnak said. "We are here for them from the orientation."
The orientation at the end of June focused on challenges nontraditional students face when returning to school.
students are classified as nontraditional if they are
parents, married, military veterans or are three or four years older than most of their classmates. Students who commute more than 10 miles to campus also are considered nontraditional.
"It's all about connecting. We are here for them from the orientation."
Mary Ann Rasnak Student Development Center Director
The center offers assistance to all students. It provides academic advising and support as well as help with financial aid, scholarships and grants. Rasnak said the center also offered help with concerns such as commuting, housing, health and medical services, disabilities and employment and career planning.
"Students who are parents find a special welcome because returning to school when you have a child is really a difficult challenge." Rasnak said.
KU Hilltop Child Development Center takes children aged 2 to kindergarten and offers an after-school program.
Rasnak said the Dependent Care Referral Services at Room 103 Carruth-O'Leary Hall was the place to begin a childcare plan. In addition, her office maintains an active list of childcare providers in Lawrence and Douglas County.
Student Financial Aid offers childcare grants during the first two weeks of September at the Office of Student Financial Aid. Lack of funds for childcare should never keep a parent from attending college, Rasnak said.
Avoiding the expanding waistlines that often accompany broadening knowledge at college
By Stephanie Tweito Special to the Kansan
The "Freshman 15" is the dreaded weight gain common among new college students.
"Freshman are so excited to be here," said Ann Chapman, clinical dietitian at Watkins Memorial Health Center. "They're meeting new people. It's a new food setting. They are very vulnerable to not using good judgment about their eating or being physically active."
Causes of freshman weight gain include insufficient exercise, not enough fruit and vegetables, and increased consumption of fat and alcohol.
Exercise can help. Chapman said students should get regular aerobic exercise 30 minutes a day four or five days a week.
"And that does not include the walking they do to and from class," she said. "You would think all of these hills on campus would be enough activity, but that's not really aerobic," she said.
Many students neglect fruits and vegetables, Chapman said. They should eat three to five servings of vegetables and two to four servings of fruit a day. Fruits and vegetables are 80 to 90 percent water and displace higher-calorie food.
Chapman recommended keeping
rut and vegetables on hand for snacks and to take the edge off before a big meal.
Many freshmen eat out frequently, often on high-fat fast food, Chapman said. Late night eating tends to be the fourth meal of the day.
"You're adding another meal which for most of us is going to be five, six, 700 calories above our daily need for fuel," Chapman said. "An extra 500 calories a day would be a pound in a week and 3500 calories are in a pound. So you can get there fast."
Chapman said skipping meals led to overeating at the next meal. It is important to set a schedule of three meals a day plus a snack or two in between.
Alcohol is high in calories and many student drink more alcohol than they did in high school. Chapman said. She advised students not to drink on an empty stomach.
"Drinking on an empty stomach not only sets you up to get drunk, but to then go out at one o'clock in the morning and eat a huge meal That is a fourth meal of your day," she said.
She also suggested drinking lower calorie light beer or wine spritzers and ordering mixed drinks with diet pop. Following each alcoholic
drink with a glass of water or a caffeine-free soda also helps students avoid getting drunk and dehydrated.
Many students blame residence hall food for added weight, but Mindy Pendreigh, Board Administrator for Dining Services said low-fat and low-calorie meals were offered at the halls along with higher-calorie food.
"The healthy choices are there but students have to make the choices," she said. "We offer all varieties because some people need a higher calorie base."
Residence hall menus include vegan and vegetarian dishes, soymlk, and steamed vegetables without added butter or margarine
Chapman said snacking between meals was healthy but that students should avoid the vending machine and eat healthy snacks, such as hot cocoa, granola bars, whole grain crackers, string cheese, oatmeal, cereal, soup and dried fruit.
"Stock up on healthier, easy-to-eat-on-the-run snacks that can be kept in their dorm room so that at 10 o'clock at night they don't go and get a candy bar or they're less likely to order a pizza," Chapman said.
Watkins offers nutrition counseling at 864-9575.
Eric Snider, Wichita junior and orientation assistant, helps Kayce Conkright, Overland Park freshman, decide which English class would best suit her, while her mom reads handouts. Conkricht attended a new student orientation session this summer at the Kansas Union. Photo by Bradley J. Dreier/KANSAN.
Getting oriented
ALL ACS classes are FREE to KU students, staff, and faculty and don't require registration UNLESS otherwise noted.
Training
Register at acworship®
ukans.edu or
864-0494.
Some classes are $75 for non-KU as noted.
Academic Computing Services present FREE COMPUTER TRAINING for the KU Community
Web Authoring: Foundations—Get insight into the Internet without a lot of technical jargon. Tues. Aug. 22, Noun-1 p.m., Computer Center Auditorium.
Academic Computing Services presents:
SPSS: A HeadStart—Get a hands-on headstart on your statistics classes that require SPSS. Tues. August 22, Budig Lab. 4-6 p.m. Registration required.
Tues. Aug. 22, 1-4 p.m., Budig PC Lab, Room 10.
ACS class schedule:
www.ukans.
edu/acs/
training
KU Online Services—Learn about connecting your computer to the Internet, KU email addresses and directories & Web-based email access. No registration. Tues. Aug. 22, 1:30-2:30 p.m., Computer Center Auditorium.
UNIX Introduction—Learn the basics of UNIX, the operating system on Falcon, Eagle, Lark, Raven, and Heron. Wed. Aug. 23, 3-6 p.m., Budig PC Lab, Room 10.
Web Authoring: Introduction—Learn the first steps in Web page creation. You should attend Web Authoring: Publish your Web Page on the Internet immediately following. Prerequisite: Web browsing or equivalent skills. No registration. Thurs. Aug. 24, 4-7 p.m., Computer Center PC Lab, Room 202B.
Web Authoring: Publish your Web page on the internet—Move your HTML documents from your desktop computer to your KU central computer account and to the Web. Prerequisite: Web Authoring: Introduction or equivalent skills. No registration. Thurs. Aug. 24, 7:30-8:30 p.m., Computer Center Auditorium.