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LAWRENCE IOURNAL-WORLD
KU EDITION
SATURDAY. AUGUST 17, 1996 7A
KU ready to compete in Big 12 academics
- The Big 12 offers 11 reasons for KU to expand academic collaboration with conference universities.
BY TIM CARPENTER
JOURNAL-WORLD WRITER
A two-act play ended Kansas University's academic dominance of its old athletic conference and complicated a return to glory in its new conference.
In the opening act, the University of Colorado Buffalo stamped the Kansas Jayhawks in the 1996 Fiske Guide to Colleges.
Historically, the guide awarded KU the Big Eight Conference's only four-star rating (out of five) for academics. In the last edition, CU earned a fourth star.
KU Chancellor Robert Hemenway said he was more interested in what was happening on Mount Oread than the Rocky Mountains. But he vowed to show Fiske guide authors the "outstanding quality of this university."
In the second act, the Big Eight was replaced July 1 by the Big 12 Conference.
Adding four former Southwest Conference schools — University of Texas, Baylor, Texas A&M and Texas Tech — changed the dynamics of academic and athletic competition for Jayhawk fans.
UT, the cream of the newcomers, pulled down a four-star academic ranking in the Fiske Guide.
Hemenway, unwilling to be bullied by the Buffers or Longhorns, anticipates a robust tug-of-war in the classroom and on fields of play.
"I believe in competition," he said. "I believe in competition in athletics and academic programs. It makes us better."
Indeed, the Big 12 may develop into more than a coalition of big-time universities lusting after zillions of dollars in sports revenue.
Academic officials at conference schools have started crafting plans for cooperative educational programs.
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KU Provost David Shulenburger said the university's Office of Study Abroad was selected to recommend by Dec. 1 options for collaborative student exchange programs.
"Among Big 12 schools, we're the recognized leader in study abroad." he said.
In the future, KU students might be able to participate in exchanges offered at other Big 12 universities. Students from those universities could take part in KU programs. Or these universities could form new joint programs.
"I believe in competition in athletics and academic programs. It makes us better."
— KU Chancellor Robert Hemenway
"We want to model this after the Big 10, which has a long history of collaboration," said Mary Debicki, director of KU study abroad.
In 1995-96, KU sent 870 students overseas. Hot spots were Latin America, Spain, England, France and Germany. Some
countries were conspicuous by the small number of Jayhawks studying there.
"India," Debcik said. "We have one student there now, but by adding other schools there may be ways to help more."
Faculty exchanges will be explored. A professor at Texas Tech might switch places with a KU faculty member for a year.
so fast that it makes sense to share as much as possible," Shulenburger said.
She said KU wasn't a novice in the collaborative arena. A summer program in Brazil is managed
by KU, UT and the University of Illinois.
KU graduate students also could spend a semester working under a researcher at Texas A&M or Oklahoma State.
"There's no sense in us doing the same program, in the same place, at the same time," she said.
Shulenburger said cooperation could go beyond students studying in exotic places. He expects universities to increase sharing of library resources. UT has more than 6 million volumes, making it the sixth-largest academic library system in the United States.
"Collections have become so expensive and prices are going up
"It's got great potential," Shulenburger said. "If we can find what things complement each other, each school can be more successful."
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