6A NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MUSIC
TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 9, 2008
Council seeks to spur Hispanic enrollment
BY HALEY JONES
hjones@kansan.com
The Hispanic population is the largest minority population in the United States, but the number of Hispanic students enrolled at the University has been stagnant over the past few years. Provost Richard Larivere has created a council to find out why.
Hispanics are set to make up 30 percent of the United States' population by 2050, according to the latest census data, but
Hispanic enrollment has barely climbed above 3 percent at the University.
Lariviere has invited 24 members of Kansas' Latino community to be a part of the Latino Vision Council. Four of the members are KU students or alumni.
Larviere said members of the council represented both wealthy and poor segments of the population across Kansas. The council has a wide age range and is made up of college students and state, public and religious officials from the Latino community.
Lariviere said low enrollment was a common problem for all minority groups, not just for Hispanics. He said it was important to focus on the local Hispanic population because of how quickly it has grown.
Galo Salcedo, Guayaquil, Ecuador, 2007 graduate, said his parents always encouraged him to pursue a college education. Salcedo said many students put emphasis on paying the bills and not education.
"It all depends on your background."
Salcedo said. "But it's going to help you get
farther in life to invest time now in an education. It will paw off."
Leo Casados, Jr., academic adviser at Butler County Community College in El Dorado and council member, said the council wanted to also train additional faculty and staff to support the increase of Spanish-speaking students. He said a successful integration of more Latino and Hispanic students would require the involvement of campus organizations and sororities and fraternities.
Cruz Jasso, associate principal of Emporia High School and council member, said many Latino students had difficulty overcoming immediate pressures from peers and their families and ended up dropping out or falling behind.
"These students often never return to high school and enter the work force unprepared and without the skills needed," he said.
Edited by Lauren Keith
COUNCIL'S IMMEDIATE GOALS
OFFER MORE PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY IN SPANISH
CREATE ADMISSIONS HOTLINE IN SPANISH
PROVIDE MORE EDUCATIONAL CAMPS FOR CHILDREN
The council met in April and June and is planning to meet again next month. Lariviere said members were asked to come up with a set of recommendations on increasing Latino enrollment at the University.
Photos from flickr.com
MUSIC
Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN
US Air Force Technical Sgt. Hughey Hancock practices a melody line in Swarthout Recital Hall an hour before Monday night's performance by Winds of Freedom, a six-piece ensemble of Air Force musicians that regularly tours the Midwest. Members of the group have performed around the world with other Air Force units.
US Air Force Staff Sgt. Jennifer Griffith leads the ensemble Winds of Freedom in the national anthem Monday night in Murphy Hall shortly after the commencement of the evening's performance. The sextet, which includes woodwinds, brass and percussion, played classics from several genres as well as an original piece composed especially for the group.
Murphy Hall hosts Air Force ensemble Monday
BY RYAN MCGEENEY
rmcgeeney@kansan.com
date.
Lawrence crowds can be tough on traveling musicians. But when your last gig was a tour of the Middle East, even the discerning critics of classical music in the University of Kansas' School of Fine Arts can seem like a relaxed
Murphy Hall's Swarthout Recital Hall swelled with the sounds of brass and woodwinds Monday night as Winds of Freedom, a sexet of musicians with the United States Air Force, brought a variety of musical styles to campus. The group, which includes reeded instruments, a horn and various
The performance featured pieces from a variety of musical genres. In addition to conservatory favorites such as Aaron Copeland's "Hoedown" and Bela Bartok's "Hungarian Dances," the ensembl-
percussion instruments, is one of 10 musical configurations that make up the Heartland of America Band.
ble also performed "Tormenta de Arena," a complex composition written especially for Winds of Freedom by the unit's composer, David Beasley, after returning from a deployment to the Middle East and Africa.
Individual members of the group have traveled around the globe for music with other Air
Force units. However, Winds of Change, which is based at Offutt Air Force Base outside of Omaha, Neb., is primarily assigned to serve communities throughout the Midwest. The University performance was the first of eight shows in the northeastern Kansas area that the group will perform over the next week, according to
Master Sgt. Nancy Montera, the group's Noncommissioned Officer-in-Charge.
"We are the face of the Air Force," Montera said. "We're able to come to small communities that never get to see a person in uniform."
Edited by Becka Cremer