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SOCCER SHUTS OUT PURDUE
THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
Women's soccer team suprises with victory against nationally ranked Purdue SPORTS |1B
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, AUGUST 25, 2008
WWW.KANSAN.COM
VOLUME 120 ISSUE 4
FOOTBALL
TREES TO OBSTRUCT VIEW OF PRACTICE FIELD
BY B.J. RAINS
rains@kansan.com
No longer will bystanders wanting to watch football practice be able to stand on Mississippi Street and get a clear view. Soon, the only way to see the action on the new practice fields will be to climb a tree.
The Athletics Department announced on Friday that it is paying 980,000 to have 100 pine trees planted around the fields to help hide the team while it practices.
"I think it will help tremendously to reduce the likelihood of distractions," said Jim Marchiony, Associate Athletics Director. "We had discussions with the football office and they wanted to be able to practice in an atmosphere that was more
conducive to less distractions."
The trees are the result of a collaboration between the football office and athletics department, which were working for a solution to conceal the practice fields from people watching.
The 10- to 20-foot-high pine trees will start to arrive sometime this week and will be planted along Mississippi Street, the north side of parking lot 91 and the west side of the practice fields.
At an alumni kickoff rally in Prairie Village on Friday evening, football coach Mark Mangino spoke about the field issue.
"I'm not at all concerned about that kind of stuff," Mangino said. "I think it's a tempest in a teapot. Much ado about nothing. I'm not concerned about it at all. You can
probably find something better to write about than trees around a practice field, I would hope."
The trees will likely block the view from Mississippi Street and some of the low-level locations, but the top floor of the parking garage and the windows of the Kansas Union will probably still provide at least a partial view of the fields.
The team began practicing on the new fields when training camp opened on Aug. 1, but fans stopped and watched practice from Mississippi Street and other areas that surrounded the field. Mangino and his staff asked onlookers to leave, but soon after, the department told them they no longer could tell anyone to leave a public street or area. The team then didn't want
to practice on the fields because the location allowed anyone to watch their plays, including people who could be spies from other teams.
The team began practicing exclusively inside of Memorial Stadium in early August so no onlookers could watch practice, leaving two new fields empty.
The fields were part of at $31 million project to improve the University's football training facilities by constructing a new building next to Memorial Stadium and constructing the practice fields.
Map courtesy of KU Graphic by Brenna Hawley
— Edited by Arthur Hur
CAMPUS
Construction continues at Wescoe
BY JOE PREINER
jpreiner@kansan.com
Keith Wainwright (left) and Steve Foster, both of Central Mechanical Construction, worked Tuesday night on the roof of Wescoe Hall. The construction crews, who are installing a new air transfer system in Wescoe Hall, work between 4 p.m. and 2:30 a.m. to avoid causing disruptions to the many classes that meet in the hall.
The University is installing a vertical duct through all levels of Wescoe Hall to improve ventilation and airflow in the building.
Ryan Waggoner/KANSAN
The construction came on the heels of a yearlong study that was conducted by John Neuberger, professor of preventive medicine, and released in July 2007. Neuberger performed the study to determine the health conditions in the academic building after reports of staff in the building developing brain tumors. Upon completion, he said he found no links between the building and the tumors, but the study concluded that airflow in the building needed to be addressed.
Todd Cohen, director of university relations, said the University took the results of the study seriously and began work to correct the ventilation problems immediately. The construction visible around Wescoe Hall is improving the heating, ventilation and air conditioning, or HVAC system, which the study deemed inadequate.
The HVAC system will improve the air quality inside the building by increasing the airflow on each floor. It will make the conditions safer and healthier for people working or attending classes in Wescoe Hall. Cohen said the changes were meant to improve the overall working conditions for faculty and staff members.
The necessary construction within the building presented a problem for the University because it had to relocate hundreds of staff and faculty members. Many offices had to be closed to free space for the construction.
Don Steplews, vice provost for scholarly support, said 235 people were forced to
move. He also said that those people generally ended up scattered around campus, whether they were put in Watson Library, the Military Science Annex or simply doubling or tripling up in other Wescoe Hall rooms. Despite the inconveniences of moving, Steeples said the process had gone smoothly.
"Given the magnitude of the disruption, there have been relatively few complaints."
Steeples said. "We greatly appreciate the cooperation and patience of those affected by this series of moves."
Steeples said the move caused a decrease in productivity for both faculty and staff. He said that on a positive note, it had also forced people to get rid of nonessential items, helping to clear space in offices and eliminate clutter. Steeples said the moves would continue with the ongoing construction, causing some people to move as many as three times in two years.
According to Cohen, the construction is on schedule, which he said has helped avoid any major hassles.
The construction will continue through the school year and finish in June, with the majority of the work being performed after classes to avoid disruptions in learning. The construction company finished work
on Aug. 15 on the renovated first floor, updating offices. Other changes regarding the two-year, $3 million project, such as the closed east entrance, were detailed in an e-mail sent to all KU students, faculty and staff last Monday.
Edited by Adam Mowder
POLITICS
VP hopes dashed for Sebelius; Biden chosen as running mate
Early Saturday morning Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), announced his running mate for the 2008 election. Although Kansas' own Gov. Kathleen Sebelius was on Obama's short list of potential vice presidents, Joe Biden (D-Del.) will be the name beside Obama's come November.
Members of KU's Young Democrats, as well as a chairman of the Douglas County Democratic Party, thought it was Sebelius' lack of knowledge on foreign policy that had caused her to be overlooked.
FULL STORY PAGE 6A
KU on Wheels changes bus fares for students, faculty and staff; routes condensed
TRANSPORTATION
The University and City buses are available for students fare free this semester. KU on Wheels has changed some of the routes to increase its efficiency and
avoid the construction zones around campus.
index
FULL STORY PAGE 3A
Changes abound for recruitment
Classifieds. 5B Opinion. 5A
Crossword. 4A Sports. 1B
Horoscopes. 4A Sudoku. 4A
Fall formal recruitment featured a new schedule and two new events this year. The week also drew 900 prospective members, 200 more than last year.
GREEK LIFE
FULL STORY PAGE 3A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2008 The University Daily Kansan
ASSOCIATED PRESS
'TROPIC' REIGNS FOR WEEK NO.2
'House Bunny' also opens well; 'Race' flops ENTERTAINMENT | 4A
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