4A • THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
OPINION
THURSDAY, AUGUST 22 , 2002
KANSAN
TALK TO US
Jay Krail
editor
864-4854 or jkael@kansan.com
Brooke Hesler
Kyle Ramsey
managing editors
864-4854 or threesl@kansan.com and
tramsey@kansan.com
Laurel Burchfield
readers' representative
864-4810 or lbruchfield@kansan.com
Maggie Koerth
Amy Potter
opinion editors
864-4810 or opinion@kansan.com
Amber Agee business manager 864-4358 or advertising@kamani.com
Eric Kelting retail sales manager 864-4358 or advertising@kamani.com
Malcolm Gibson general manager and news adviser 864-7667 or mgfisher@kamani.com
Matt Fisher sales and marketing adviser 864-7666 or mfaferr@kamani.com
Hawk Week fails to appeal to everyone Weeklong activities lack promotion upperclass involvemnt
It's a weeklong cluster of events put together by the University of Kansas to help students get involved and meet new people. Yet, it's mostly freshmen who attend Hawk Week festivities.
Maybe my disinterest stems from the fact that the activities offered — like having a personal class schedule tour — seem a little silly to non-freshmen. Maybe it's the idea that you've been toe traditions night you probably know all the traditions by now, and you won't need to return. Or maybe it's that Hawk Week is really just for freshmen.
Hawk Week Coordinator Curtis Sloan estimated that 12,000 people attended activities during the week. Sloan also estimatesdthat the majority of the 12,000 people who do attend Hawk Week were freshman.
If wider ranges of students are going to be involved in Hawk Week, more activities need to be offered that cater to their needs. For example, maybe some students would be much more interested in an activity that focused on the transition from graduation to the working world.
Another problem with Hawk Week is that it's poorly promoted. Although residence halls and scholarships halls have Hawk Week fliers hanging in them, other forms of housing don't.
Sloan says that the primary targets for promotion of Hawk Week were the residence and scholarship halls and greek houses.
There is a Hawk Week Web site, but how many students know about it? Sidewalks on campus are covered with chalk promoting the activities, but how many students spend much time on campus before classes start?
Because of the way Hawk Week is being publicized, it's mostly freshman who are attending the events.
So how do we improve Hawk Week? The most important step is for the coordinators of Hawk Week to receive feedback from students on the activities offered.
In previous years students have had no way to voice their opinions about Hawk Week, but this year is different. Sloan said the committee would be posting an online survey so students could voice their opinions. Students will receive an email following Hawk Week directing them to the link.
Second, it is important that the Hawk Week coordinators take more time to promote the upcoming events
Go to hawkweek.ku.edu and take your first step in getting involved by giving the committee something to work with.
PERSPECTIVE
Make a statement with your words, not with your clothing choices
Many young people today obviously suffer from a crisis of self-confidence. This becomes clear through their willingness to attempt to express themselves through their clothing.
MARKLYDA
No trip across campus can occur without seeing one of several shirts on students with short, smart-alecky comments that always fail to express a clear and cohesive thought and never fail to leave passersby confused.
For newcomers to the school, the campus played host last spring to a weeklong religious crusade done through bright red shirts pledging the wearer's allegiance to Lee Bickerstaff, who represented Jesus Christ in this cause.
I came upon such an example of this last week returning from buying books. A tall and slightly unconfident male walked by wearing a shirt that said "I Do All My Own Nude Scenes!".
The University saw a glaring example of how pitifully futile one becomes when trying to communicate oneself through clothing in the form of last year's mass of crimson "I Agree With Lee" shirts.
Unfortunately, no one can tell for sure what message he wants to convey. Does he want to state and have people believe that he works part-time starring in pornographic videos? Perhaps he might just be such an actor, or maybe he just wants to fool us.
He sure makes it hard to understand what he wants to say.
Mandy German for the editorial board.
COMMENTARY
Steve Vockrodt opinion@hansan.com
For the first half of the week, hardly a soul knew what these shirts meant, and by many of the responses given by those sporting the shirts, neither did those endorsing Lee.
One crusader told me his agreement with Lee meant his and anyone else's faith in Jesus was the only admission to heaven. What if someone did not agree with Lee? They went to hell, no exceptions.
As an atheist, this statement made me howl. Why not just have a shirt reading "I Agree With Intolerance To Other Ideas?" Furthermore, such a mediocre method of displaying their message succeeded only in confusing most people for the first half of that week.
Fortunately, an article in The University Daily Kansan about halfway through that week clarified Lee's followers do believe sceptics of their cause go straight to hell.
The "I Agree With Lee" movement succeeded
in proving one fact: articles in the Kansan allow people's viewpoints to be heard. Luckily, the Kansan provides many outlets for anyone to make use of the newspaper to express their ideas.
Editors welcome guest columns from anyone willing to submit their ideas on pertinent issues. Still fuming over the tuition issue? Sickened by all the construction on campus? Come by the Kansan newsroom in Stauffer-Flint Hall or send an email to an editor and the paper will gladly listen to what you have to say.
Similarly, letters to the editor accomplish the same purpose. Whether one might sing tunes of praise for the efforts of a reporter on a story or fume over the ideas of a columnist, take a few minutes of your time and send a letter our way. Make it good and most likely you will see it in the paper.
Expressing yourself in the Kansan guarantees your message will reach most of the student body. People will see your whole side of the issue instead of relying on vague quips on the front of a shirt. Interaction with the Kansan is welcomed no matter what you have to say, and unlike a shirt, it costs nothing.
Vockrottt is a Denver junior majoring in journalism and political science.
SUBMITTING LETTERS AND GUEST COLUMNS
The Kansan welcomes letters to the editors and guest columns submitted by readers.
The kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length, or reject all submissions. For any questions, call Maggie Koerth or Amy Potter at 864-4924 or e-mail at opinion@kansan.com. If you have general questions or comments, e-mail the readers' representatives at readersep@kansan.com.
The Kansan will attempt to run as many submissions as possible that conform to the guidelines below.
GUEST COLUMN GUIDELINES
**Maximum Length:**
650 word limit
**Include:**
Author's name
Class, hometown (student)
Position (faculty member)
Also:
Columnists must come to 111 Stauffer-Flint to get their picture taken
LETTER GUIDELINES
Maximum Length:
200 word limit
Include:
Author's name
Author's telephone number
Class, hometown (student)
Position (faculty member)
SUBMITTO
E-mail: opinion@kansan.com Hard copy:
Kansan newsroom
111 Stauffer-Flint
Just get the first Kansan of the year,it takes five minutes to find the crossword
P