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Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2015
NEWS | KANSAN.COM
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University weighs concerns in wake of gun law
MCKENNA HARFORD
@McKennaHarford
As Kansas prepares to join seven other states that allow guns on campus, the Kansas Board of Regents, the University administration and University Senate are working to address the possible safety concern.
Universities have been exempt from a 2012 law, which allows people to carry concealed guns into public buildings, but the exemption expires in July 2017. Between now and then, the University has said it will create a plan to abide by the law while maintaining student safety.
Earlier this year, Governor Sam Brownback signed a law, which went into effect July 1, that eliminated the need for training or permits to carry concealed weapons.
implement that security, anyone would be able to bring a concealed gun into any University building at any time.
The law would allow the University to secure the campus against guns by using metal detectors and guards, but it would cost more than $20 million to secure all 237 campus buildings, according to a 2013 report that the University gave to the Board of Regents.
"Right now it's a combination of the General Counsel's office, campus security and administration working together," said Joe Monaco, associate director of strategic communications.
If the University did not
However, the University is unsure of when it will have a completed plan, Monaco said.
The goal is to keep the environment on campus conducive to learning, according to the University Senate President, Michael Williams.
"The purpose of the university environment is to exchange controversial ideas," Williams said. "Interjecting weapons into that creates a different environment. There's extra concern to keep it open to the kind of dialogue the university should be about."
said. "We want to make sure that all of the rational voices are heard. We're not going to debate the second amendment. Our primary charge is to find a way to maintain a safe and secure learning environment."
The University Senate set up a task force to educate the campus on dealing with the changes, Williams said.
The task force includes three members each from Faculty Senate, Student Senate and Staff Senate. Williams said the task force was working closely with the Provost's Office as well.
"A lot of what we are doing this fall is to raise awareness and get the feedback of the University," Williams
"We'll discuss what it will mean for the University and how to best deal with the situations that may arise so that no one calls 911 every time they see a gun because we can't learn and work in those conditions," Williams said.
Gun regulations on college campuses in the U.S.
One of the Board of Regents' goals this year will be campus safety, according to Breeze Richardson, director of communications for the regents. The board may choose to address the issue with a task force or a consultant, or by requesting the reports from the universities, Richardson said.
"We are identifying our current resources and looking at what other states are doing."
Source: National Conference of State Legislatures MAP FROM FREEVECTORMAPS.COM
Richardson said.
There are eight states that allow for concealed carry on college campuses: Texas, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Mississippi, Oregon, Utah and
Wisconsin. There and 19 states that ban guns on campuses, including California, Florida, Georgia and Illinois. The other 23 states allow individual campuses to decide
whether to allow guns in their buildings.
- Edited by Emma LeGault
Group advocates transparency in donations to KU
CASSIDY RITTER @CassidyRitter
ALEX ROBINSON/KANSAN The UnKoch KU founder, Schuyler Kraus,a senior from Allen, Texas, speaks with members of the organization at an event on Aug.15.
A student group that spent the last year looking into Charles and David Koch's influence at the University is now pushing for donation transparency at the University. The group, Students for a Sustainable Future, is now looking past the Kochs for other large donors and how donations may affect academia at the University.
The group, led by Schuyler Kraus, a senior from Allen, Texas, has requested documents and contracts between the Kochs and the University, including emails from Art Hall, a lecturer in the School of Business who previously worked for the Kochs.
Kraus wants to create an online database where documents and contracts for public universities are made available for the public. This database would serve as a way to oversee donations made to universities by holding donors and universities accountable, Kraus said.
The Koch brothers have donated $1.4 million to the University's School of Business, which went to hiring a former Koch employee, Art Hall, as a lecturer. The funds also helped in establishing the Center for Applied Economics, which Hall also runs. Students for
a Sustainable Future started questioning the leanings of the CAE and Hall's research last year. The students filed a records request for documents and contracts to see if any strings were attached with the donation and Hall's employment.
Students for a Sustainable Future teamed up with Un-
Koch My Campus, a national organization that reviews contract stipulations at colleges and universities to which the Koch brothers donate.
ers] issue."
The Students for a Sustainable Future petition reads, "We have requested that KU give us access to specific contracts and other documents that will shed light on [the Koch broth-
Obtaining these documents cost the organization $1,800, according to an opinion column written by Kraus that appeared in the Lawrence Journal-World. The group paid this fee last September, and received a portion of the documents before Thanksgiving break, Kraus said.
The documents include information surrounding the hiring of Hall and two other economics professors. The students only received a portion of the documents because Hall filed a lawsuit against the University to prevent the release of the documents. The lawsuit is open.
Hall said the University, as a public agency, had a duty to respond to the request, however Hall argued that these documents were not public records.
Explaining the lawsuit, Hall said he wore three hats, each with a different role and title. He said he saw himself first as a lecturer for the School of Business, second as a director for the CAE and third as a private person. The judge will determine what "hat" Hall wears and then decide whether the documents are considered public. The records that students are requesting are Hall's emails. Hall said he was a "private person" when writing them.
In June, students requested full access to documents regarding Hall's hiring, but were denied by the judge due to the ongoing lawsuit. With the lawsuit still in place, the requested documents remain private until the judge determines if Hall is considered a private person or public employee when the requested documents and
emails were written.
Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, director of news and media relations at KU, said in an email that nothing had changed since the judge denied the request from students in June. If no resolution is made, a trial is scheduled for November.
"There is a privacy and academic freedom issue here," Hall said. "[The lawsuit] has nothing to do with me hiding, just misuse of the law."
Hall also said that the documents showed no evidence of anything mysterious going on with the money donated by the Kochs.
The students said that this was only an example, and the real issue was making sure public universities such as KU were transparent when it accepted money for donors who may have a specific interest in using money to guide academic programs.
"The Koch brothers were our starting point to show corporate entities can come in and give money to universities," Kraus said. "It is an issue for liberals and conservatives alike."
Kraus added: "Really once you have an understanding of what is really happening you see the issue. Ultimately, we don't need to point any more fingers. We need to come together for a solution."
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