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SARAH CHAMP
Dress
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UNDRESSING YOUR WARDROBE
The girl drowning in her KU tee and sweatpants, the slave to logos, the guy still in his pajamas at 2 p.m., the brave soul who trekked up Mount Oread in 3-inch heels and that student who dresses nicer than some professors: just a few of the fashions spotted on the Jayhawk Boulevard catwalk.
Okay, so campus is no runway and clothes might be the least of your worries, but did you ever stop to consider what your appearance says about you?
Dress Evolves
From couture gowns to cotton t-shirts, history plays a part in everyone's clothing, says Bernard Kahn, professor at Parsons and the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. While a plethora of factors, such as your interests, occupation and mood influence what you wear, social norms throughout history have created the dress codes we know today.
Contemporary rules of dress, especially professional attire, stem from 1700s Puritanical norms in which people felt they had a certain standard in terms of what to wear. "There was always a differentiation between the way wealthy people dressed and the way poor people dressed," Kahn says. "People who were in business either emulated or were, in fact wealthy, so it was really the socioeconomic influence that gave us the image of what a business person should look like in terms of the clothing they would wear."
Photo illustration by Mike Gunnow
That standard carried through the 1800s and developed along with business during the Industrial Age. People who sought success or were successful continued wanting to emulate a look that reflected their wealth or social status, establishing what we consider acceptable business wear. This standard continued until the 1900s when "business casual" kicked the dress code down a notch in many offices, replacing suit-and-tie attire with a more day-to-night wardrobe.
Even outside of the office, Drew Downing, a senior from Overland Park, stays true to business casual attire with a closet full of button-downs, dress pants, chino shorts and polos in an array of colors. After a childhood of private school blazers and a mother who dressed him well, Downing says his greatest style influence came from two internships he did between high school and college. Working in an office every day at 18, he adhered to the historic business wear standard, dressing the part of a businessman.
The career influence on Downing's wardrobe made him feel more mature and he's become accustomed to dressing professionally for any occasion, be it work, hanging out with friends or going to class. "I always feel better when I'm well dressed," Downing says. "I feel more confident speaking up in lectures; whereas, if I look like shit, I probably won't call out or draw attention to myself."
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University to institute wireless improvements
BOBBY BURCH
bburch@kansan.com
After meeting with student body President Libby Johnson and Vice President Gabe Bliss, University IT began a project to expand wireless internet to frequently used areas of campus. The wireless expansion, which will continue throughout the fall semester, will eventually reach areas including Jayhawk Boulevard, Wescoe beach and Potter Lake.
As students settle in for the new academic year, the University of Kansas' department of Information and Technology is busy improving services and telecommunication around campus.
Ann Erickson, a senior from Tonganoxie, replied to a University Daily Kansan inquiry on student wireless experience so far this year.
However, as IT expands wireless to new areas of campus, some students have expressed concerns about the University's existing WiFi internet access.
"It's terrible," Erickson wrote. "From experience, it only works in certain areas and even then it's slow and cuts out."
Patrick Henke, a senior from Olathe, expressed similar concerns about KU's wireless reliability.
"We have problems in our room where it cuts in and out," Henke said.
In an effort to provide better service and more efficient technology support, University IT hired the Huron Consulting Group Inc., to review its technology services around campus in the summer of 2010. The group's report outlined that:
The University is behind the curve in terms of supporting technology-enhanced teaching in the classroom.
Overall need for more consistent consulting-level support for faculty and students related to technologies.
— Classroom standards have not been set, resulting in variable capabilities.
Following Huron's recommendations, the University's Instructional Development Services (IDS) merged its operations with the IT department, taking effect last spring.
In an email notifying University deans, directors and department chairs of the new changes, Diane Goddard, Vice Provost for Administration and Finance, wrote that: "By fall 2011, we hope that the plan for increased academic technology support will be well on its way to filling the gap at KU."
Julie Loats, director of Enterprise Applications and Services for University IT, said that the merger of University IT and IDS will help
"It brings all of those staff together so it can be a more focused and holistic approach to classroom support," Loats said.
Loats said that University IT hopes to further its service efforts by offering Blackboard technology support to students.
"One of the things we heard last spring loud and clear was that students didn't feel they had a place to go if they needed help with blackboard," Loats said. "With this merger wed like to be able to provide more support for students."
provide comprehensive technology support for students and faculty.
Edited by Jayson Jenks
CHECK OUT THE UPCOMING WIRELESS LOCATIONS
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CLASSIFIEDS 10
CROSSWORD 6
CRYPTOQUIPS 4
OPINION 7
SPORTS 12
SUDOKU 4
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
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HI: 74
LO: 48