Friday inside
Homeland pride
Vimbayi Kajese, the sole Zimbabwean student at the University of Kansas,
proudly represents her home country while adapting to American life. PAGE 3A
Halloween
Pagans celebrate Samhain and dispel myths about their religion, and authorities guard an alleged gate to hell. PAGE 6A
Quarterback mystery
As Kansas prepares to meet Texas A&M tomorrow, coach Mark
Mangino is
trying to decide who will lead the team as quarterback. PAGE1B
Sentimental seniors
The soccer team plays its final home game today at 3 p.m.
Today is also the team's Senior Day. PAGE 1B
A better freshman class
In this week's column, Keith Langford discusses the quality of the freshman class, as well as if Kansas can make it to the Final Four without Nick Collison and Kirk Hinrich on the team. PAGE1B
Weather Today
6440
Cool and breezy
Two-day forecast Tomorrow Sunday
6539
7044
Mostly cloudy Partly cloudy Josh Molgaren/KUJH+TV
Talk to us
Tell us your news. Contact Michelle Burhenn-Rombeck,
Lindsay Hanson or Leah Shaffer
at 864-4810 or editor@kansan.com
Vol.114 Issue No.50
index
Briefs 2A
Opinion 4A
Sports 1B
Sports briefs 2B
Horoscopes 6B
Comics 6B
KANSAN
The Student Newspaper of the University of Kansas
Friday, October 31, 2003
GTAssick of medical plan
Fernando Arenas, Colombia graduate teaching assistant, and Matt Waldschlagel, Hampton, N.H., graduate teaching assistant, protested yesterday in front of Wescoe Hall for improvements in the University health care plan. The GTAs want health care that covers medical visits more adequately than the current plan.
Coalition stages demonstration in protest of health care options in University plan
By Maggie Newcomer
mnewcomer@kansan.com
mKansan staff writer
The University of Kansas' graduate teaching assistants are sick.
And they say they aren't getting the help they want from the University to get better.
The Graduate Teaching Assistants Coalition, or GTAC, staged a "Health Care Horror Show" yesterday in front of Wescoe Hall to implore University administration to help them get more health care options.
Members of GTAC turned up in hospital gowns and bandages rattling bottles of pills to illustrate that they think their health care plan is inadequate.
Dan Carey, GTAC president, said he wanted the University's support when
the group asked the state's Health Care Commission for more health care choices Dec. 3.
"The University has weight," Carey said. "If they want us to have better health care, they can pressure the commission."
GTAs and GRAs, graduate research assistants, have the student health care plan. Under this plan, insurance only covers visits to Watkins Memorial Health Center and the deductible is $150 per illness.
Carey said even though he was an employee of the University and the state, neither wanted to treat him as an employee when it came to providing adequate health care.
Aaron Showalter/Kansan
Syam Sidhardan, Kerala, India, sophomore (left), and Zack Sias, St. Louis freshman, danced at the "Hash-o-ween" party yesterday night in Hashinger Hall. The party featured a costume contest and was one one of several Halloween events that took place this week in residence hall.
Students organize, participate in array of Halloween events
By Abby Mills
almills@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
SEE SICK ON PAGE 7A
KU students are bringing Halloween home.
Residence halls and other student living groups have organized Halloween activities throughout the week, including "Hash-o-ween" at Hashinger Hall last night.
The annual event is open to all students and features a costume contest with prizes including a lava lamp, colored-light ball and other decorations.
"Hashies like dress up," said Erin Jones, arts program coordinator for Hashinger Hall. "This is an opportunity for them to do it and win prizes."
In addition to the costume contest, the party has a disc jockey to dance to and refreshments.
Jones said the event was always the night before Halloween so students could still go out on the holiday. Over the years, she said, it had turned into one of the most popular hall events.
"It's a nice opportunity for residents to dress up and have a fun, alcohol-free time," she said.
Tonight, Alpha Chi Omega will throw a party of its own for area children at their sorority house, 1500 Sigma Nu Place.
"It's a fun community service event", said Kindra Myers, event organizer. "Families around Lawrence look forward to it every year."
The party is an annual event the
sorority organizes so Lawrence parents can bring their children to a safe place for Halloween fun, Myers, Lawrence junior said. Activities include face painting, bobbing for apples, cookie decorating, trick-or-treating to different rooms and a haunted house.
Activities start at 6 p.m. and end at 8 p.m. Lambda Chi Alpha, the sorority's Rock Chalk partner, is helping with the event this year.
Scholarship halls handed out candy yesterday at another trick-or-treating event. The residence halls hosted a similar activity Wednesday.
The annual "Halloween in the Halls" trick-or-treating event was a
Students learn to lead
SEE EVENTS ON PAGE 7A
By Johanna M. Maska
imska@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
A crowd was huddled, talking amongst themselves, on Wescoe Beach when a couple of shy freshman approached it.
The people in the crowd introduced themselves and joked with the newcomers. But unlike most days, no one parted for class. Instead, a step show ignited, pitting the men of Alpha Phi Alpha versus the men of Kappa Alpha Psi. Camera phones shot up to capture the scene.
The scene was not at the actual Wescoe beach, it was Woodruff auditorium. And the students weren't chatting unassumingly, it was all a skit, as a part of
SEE LEADERSHIP ON PAGE 7A
Courtney Kublen/Kansas
Gabriel Roland, Kansas City, Kan., senior, playfully tossed a napkin to the crowd assembled at Woodruff Auditorium. Roland, of Kappa Alpha Psi, performed during the lunchtime entertainment of yesterday's Black Leadership Symposium in the Kansas Union.
Spooky electronica inspires concert
By Alex Hoffman
ahoffman@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
"They really got into it," she said. "They thought it was a lot of fun. They were like, 'Let's record these pliers. You want this drill?'
Composers turn to a number of sources for inspiration. University of Kansas composition student Abigail Smith's latest piece happens to be inspired by a visit to the orthodontist.
Smith, Gardner senior, took recording equipment and microphones to her orthodontist appointment. She specifically wanted to capture the sound of her braces being taken off her front teeth, and those working on her teeth liked the idea.
Kip Haaheim, assistant professor of music theory and composition, is the director of the ensemble and also teaches the students in his electronic music class. He said they were billing the concert as a Halloween party.
Smith's piece is part of a Halloweenthemed concert of music that begins at 7.30 p.m. in Swarthout Recital Hall. The concert of spooky and humorous sounds was written by 12 students who make up the KU Electronic Music Ensemble.
"The kids are going to put up jack-o'lanterns and stuff," Haaheim said. "We're encouraging people to come in costume. So it won't be your typical Swarthout classical music recital, that's for sure."
Some of the students will mix live elements, such as spoken word, with the electronic element. They used computer software such as Peak and Digital Performer to help manipulate and edit the sounds they sampled.
Alongside the crunching of pliers from her orthodontic appointment, Smith will use portions of the Ode to Joy theme from Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The computer programs allow her to slow down the music or add distortions.
"When you're writing electronic music, you can get the exact sound that you want," she said. "Whereas when you're writing music to be performed live, you're putting the music kind of in the hands of the performers."
Mark Lyda, Denver junior, will be combining his own vocal and acoustic guitar performance with laser sounds and other electronic sources. His lyrics and the overall tone of the piece are less than serious.
"It's pretty goofy, really," Lyda said. "Even though it is light-hearted, hopefully it has some artistic merit."
As Haaheim has observed the development of each piece, he said, his students were innovators with this type of music.
"There's a lot of talent in this group," he said. "It's amazing."
— Edited by Doyle Murphy
.
---
1.2