Monday
October 7,2002
Vol.113.Issue No.33
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KANSAN
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
'Hawks lose to Baylor Bears during final minutes of game p.10A
KU hosts minority greeks
Conference focuses on communication, minority images
By Todd Rapp
trapp@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
The National Black Greek Leadership Conference was held Friday and Saturday at the University of Kansas. The focus was on improving communication between all greek organizations.
About 350 students and their advisers from 16 states converged in the Kansas Union for the conference.
The conference was founded in 1986
by Robert Page, KU's current director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs. It was designed with two goals in mind: to network with other chapters around the nation and discuss issues that face them at predominately white campuses.
This year was different than years past because Latino/Latina Greek Letter Organizations also attended the conference, said Juan Izaguirre, graduate assistant at the Multicultural Resource Center and a coordinator for the event.
Black and Latino/Latina greek organizations discussed problems associated with existing on mostly-white campuses.
my Brother's Keeper," was valuable because it focused on the images of Latino and African-American men.
"African-American, Latino men get
stereotyped as being lazy or intimidating. We need to take on the aspect of educated men, promote ourselves in an educated fashion," he said.
Izaguirre said communication was the main problem minority greeks faced on predominantly white campuses. He said at KU, Latino and African-American organizations needed to work on building better relationships with each other.
They are all friends,but working
SEE CONFERENCE ON PAGE 5A
Open House offers events for all
Lindsey Gold/Kansar
Three-year-old Jasper Hawkins, Lawrence resident, makes a stress ball at the Counseling and Psychological Services table. The table was part of the Open House held on Saturday.
By Jenna Goepfert
jgoepfert@kansan.com
kansan staff writer
For the second year in a row, current, former and future generations of Jayhawks descended on Jayhawk Boulevard for a campus-wide Open House.
Campus buildings were opened from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday for presentations and exhibitions of student work. Officials estimated 22,500 current and prospective students, alumni and Lawrence community members attended the day-long event, an increase from about 20,000 attendees last year.
Balloons and information booths lined the sidewalks along Jayhawk Boulevard, where this year's events were centered.
Amanda Cook, Bloomfield, Neb., graduate student, manned the Multicultural Resource Center
"I want to be a cheerleader at KU and a doctor."
"I want to be a cheerleader at KU and a doctor,"Armstrong said.
Her cousin, Brianne Martin, 5, had her face painted — a tulip in pink and green, her two favorite colors. Both said they wanted to come to the University when they grew up.
For Rob Garner, a senior at Kinsley High School, a future at the University is not as far away. He attended Open House with his principal, Jack Waugh, and several classmates to see if the University was right for him.
"I just think it's a great campus," Waugh said. "You couldn't have a better day, it's easy to get around, and everybody's been
"We're just trying to educate and show that diversity is an important part of KU," Cook said.
Ophelia Armstrong 10-year-old Lawrence resident
booth, which featured flags of every country from which KU international students come.
"I think it's a great way to get the community involved in campus," she said of the day's events.
Lawrence resident Ophelia Armstrong, 10, ate a hot dog and took in a show at Wescoe Beach with her family. With a Jayhawk temporary tattoo freshly positioned on her left cheek, she said her favorite part of the day had been eating cotton candy in front of the Kansas Union and having her picture taken in the Jayhawk's nest.
real friendly."
He said Open House presented a unique opportunity for his students to catch a glimpse into their futures.
"There are all kinds of different things they're interested in, so we pick an
area and go from there," Waugh said.
Margey Frederick, director of visitor services and special events, said the event cost about $40,000 to put on and was financed almost entirely from donations and private funding.
She said the Open House helped reassure the community that budget cuts have not curbed enthusiasm for the University.
"We get the perception that maybe things aren't going well, or maybe something's wrong with the University," Frederick said. "I haven't found that. You just had to look on the smiles on the faces."
- Edited by Matt Gehrke and Jessica Hood
Athletes improving off the field
By Kelly McNearney
kmcnearney@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Spring's 2.89 grade point average was the highest posted by student athletes at the University of Kansas in 15 years.
The KU Athletics Department measures its success off the field using three standards grade point average, student athlete development and graduation rates.
Student athletes reflected improvement through both GPAs and graduation rates last year.
According to department statistics, a higher spring GPA is common. Since KU began compiling team GPAs in 1986, student athletes have earned a higher GPA in the spring semester than in the fall, with one exception: the overall GPA was 2.71 during both semesters in the 1993-1994 school year.
Since athlete GPAs have been tracked, the football GPA has been higher in the spring than in the fall, and the baseball team has posted a higher GPA in the fall than the spring every year except 1989-1990. Most teams earned a higher GPA in the offseason.
Student-athlete graduation rates also improved last year.
Every year the NCAA compiles a report comparing students to student athletes. The study tracks scholarship freshman athletes to see whether they graduate within six years.
Of the 1995-1996 incoming freshman class, 56 percent of those students have graduated, compared to 62 percent of student-athletes. The study counted transfer students as students who did not graduate. KU ranks fifth among Big 12 Conference schools for student-athlete graduation rates.
Paul Buskirk, associate athletics director for student support services, monitors the academic achievements of student athletes. When a problem arises, Buskirk steps in.
"I can't make a souffle out of lemons," he said. "But we can increase tutoring time or meetings with professors."
Buskirk, who is responsible for student-athlete development, said the department was proactive at the beginning of each semester to prevent problems from occurring with students' school work. The department spends
SEE ATHLETES ON PAGE 5A
By Michelle Burhenn
mburhenn@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Genevieve Gordon, co-director of homecoming and Wichita junior, said the committee's goal was to make homecoming at the University of Kansas bigger and better. She said the committee had made significant changes this year, but creating a traditional spirit-filled, week-long event would take time.
Kansas kicks off against Colorado for this year's Saturday homecoming game, but 12 students have been working since February to make this year's homecoming more than just a game.
"I think homecoming at KU is definitely going to take a few years of nurturing." she said.
Gordon said students would see the biggest changes this year as a result of a
HOMECOMING EVENTS
SEE HOMECOMING ON PAGE 5A
Monday
Coca-Cola product distribution at Wescoe Beach
Can'struction at Wescoe Beach and Kansas Union during the afternoon Thursdav
Chalk 'n' Rock Contest throughout campus during the afternoon
Wednesday
Good-luck banner contest due at 4 a.m. in the Kansas Union Inhib
4 p.m. in the Kansas City stadium.
Pep rally from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the south end of the Memorial Stadium parking lot
Crimson and Blue Giveaway at Wescoe Beach
Friday
Homecoming parade starts at 10:30 a.m. in front of the Adams Alumni Center and ends at the Chi Omega fountain
Football game kicks-off against Colorado at 1 p.m.
Masseuse fills student kneads
By Matt Stumpff
mstumpff@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Instead of waiting tables or scanning groceries, Erica Koop kneads flesh between her fingers.
The Ulysses freshman became a certified massage therapist in March after taking classes on the weekends throughout her senior year in high school to master the practice. She charges $36 for students and $40 for everyone else for a one-hour massage.
"This is my spending money." Koop said. "My parents pay my tuition and housing but this is my source of personal income."
Abby West/Kansan
Erica Koop, Ulysses freshman, gives a massage to a fellow student in the room she rents at Naismith Hall. Koop took message therapy classes throughout high school and received her massage license in March.
Koop said she began looking last December for a place to live that would let her operate her business. She made arrangements with Naismith Hall to rent a small room for $50 a month in which she could set up her massage table and chair.
Students should be careful when opening businesses out of their home, said Michele Kessler, associate director
operate a business.
for legal services. Kessler said Koop was protected because she was certified and made arrangements with her landlord to
SEE MASSAGE ON PAGE 5A
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