THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2004
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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Courtney Kuhlen/KANSAN
Displays on the fifth floor of the KU Natural History Museum will be moved to make room for renovations. Both Comanche, a survivor from the Battle of Little Big Horn, and a camarasaur fossil will both be moved to storage.
Beloved horse switches pastures
Renovations force move for Comanche, legendary battle survivor
BY AUDY HYLAN
ahyland@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Comanche is used to hardship.
The horse was moved to Fort Riley and nursed back to health by the troops stationed there after being the sole United States Cavalry survivor of the 1876 Battle of Little Bighorn in present-day Montana.
Now he's being moved again, only this time, it's just one floor down.
The University of Kansas Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center is moving the horse to create space for a renovated gallery, which will house temporary and traveling exhibits, said Brad Kemp, assistant director of public affairs for the museum. The fifth floor of the museum will be shut down, which means Comanche and a 45-foot-long dinosaur fossil of a camarasaur named Annabelle will be moved.
The horse has been encased in
"One couple came in and said
they just wanted to see Comanche. And then when they couldn't see him, they came back down and asked for their donation back."
Will Spurzem
Omaha, Neb., senior.
glass at the museum for more than 100 years. After dying in 1891, KU naturalist Lewis Lindsay Dyche, who was a well-known taxidermist, prepared the horse's body. It has been at the museum ever since.
Kemp said that Comanche would not be available for public viewing until at least the end of this year.
"It's unfortunate that while this is going on, the horse will be off view," Kemp said. "It's verv
often mentioned as one of our most popular exhibits."
most popular combo
Comanche will move from its current spot on the fifth floor to a permanent exhibit devoted to it on the fourth floor.
it on the fourth floor
Museum workers will take special precautions while moving the 128-year-old specimen, Kemp said. A wooden crate will be built around the horse to prevent racking, twisting, or the skin from becoming dislodged from the form underneath.
Kemp said visitors of the museum specifically asked for Comanche about two or three times a day.
times a day.
Will Spurzem, Omaha, Neb.,
senior, works at the front desk
and welcomes visitors to the
museum.
museum:
Spurzem said a lot of people come in and want to see the horse and have to be turned away, and that some people become upset.
second upset.
"One couple came in and said they just wanted to see Comanche," he said. "And then when they couldn't see him, they
came back down and asked for their donation back."
Kemp said the new exhibit should be a better spot for Comanche, where the lighting and humidity can be better controlled.
trump. "This way," he said, "we can keep him around for the next 100 years."
100 years.
A $500,000 gift to the museum donated by Hortense Oldfather made the new renovations possible. Kemp said. He said the camaraasaur fossil will be dismantled and put into the research collection or possibly moved to Science City in Union Station in Kansas City, Mo., but that it had not been decided yet.
Kemp didn't have an exact timetable for when the fifth floor renovations would be complete, but he said they would have to be done by July 1 of next year, when the museum will display a temporary exhibit in that area called "Exploring Evolution."
Edited by Marissa Stephenson
GAP program gives students international certification
BY JEFF JOHNSTON
editor@kansan.com
SPECIAL TO THE KANSAN
Jenny Schmitt is adding international experience to both her college transcript and her résumé this semester without leaving the University of Kansas campus. Schmitt hopes the experience will help her stand out when applying for graduate school and jobs.
Schmitt, Hutchinson junior, is one of the first University students to take advantage of the new Global Awareness Program. More than four years in development, GAP is a program designed
to help students get academic certification on their transcripts for international experiences they have had in college. The program is free and open to all undergraduates regardless of their major. Some qualifying experiences include studying foreign languages, coursework of an intercultural nature, participating in clubs, attending lectures and studying abroad.
provost David Shulenburger proposed the program in 1999. It was developed in 2000 by a committee of faculty and undergraduate advising staff members, formed by Diana Carlin, dean of international programs.
Schmitt plans to attend law school, and wants to study immigration issues after she graduating in December 2005. She said the GAP certification would show she had worked with immigrants and knew about working with other cultures.
"Bringing this program to maturity has taken a long time," said Jane Irungu, GAP coordinator. "We are trying to prepare our undergraduates, both domestic and international, for a 21st-century work force. We want to prepare them to work and live in a world that is very interconnected."
Irungu, a visiting lecturer from
Kenya, counsels undergraduates on how to fulfill the GAP requirements for certification. Students may choose from a variety of academic components, some of which may have already been met.
Zack Rabold, a political science junior from Omaha, Neb. is also seeking GAP certifica-
been met.
Schmitt found that she has almost completed her GAP requirements. With a combination of her required foreign language classes, classes in international relations and a month of studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain, she will fulfill her requirements at the end of this semester.
tion. Rabold wants to work for the United Nations or another international organization after graduation. Unsure which of his completed classes are applicable to this program, Rabold scheduled an appointment to find out what he needed to complete certification. He heard about the program when Irungu spoke in his political science class.
his position. "I plan on applying to graduate school and think that this will look good on my transcript," he said. "It will show that I have an active interest in international issues."
GAP certification is still a new initiative and is not standardized
between universities. Irungu said Boston College is one school that has a Global Proficiency Program similar to the University's, and the University of North Carolina and the University of Delaware are working on similar programs
"Most universities now realize that raising international awareness among college students is very important given the current global climate," she said.
global climate
For more information about the program, go to www.
international.ku.edu/
programs/GAP.
— Edited by Jon Ralston
THIS WEEK ON CAMPUS
PRESENTED BY SEPTEMBER 16,2004 SENATE
WAYNE'S WORLD EXCELLENT!
Sept.17 10:30 PM FREE
WAYNE'S WORLD SHOWING BEHIND ELSWORTH HALL ON DAISY HILL
Pre-Nursing Club Meeting
Need help with your nursing school application?
Oct. 5 @ 5:30 Watkins Health Center 1st Conference Room
A representative from Washburn Nursing Program will be speaking.
Contact Laura at Iscalise@ku.edu for more information.
One community Many voices.
If you're a student, Student Senate is here for you. There 's always a place for you in Senate.
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