NEWS
THURSDAY, AUGUST 19, 2004
HAWK Link offers support, tutors for new students
Freshmen feel sense of belonging through programs
BY AMANDA O'TOole
autoole@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Eddrena Littleton, St. Louis freshman, danced to Usher's "Yeah!" in a crowd that gathered on Wescoe Beach Tuesday night.
night.
HAWK Link members Lauren Hays, Overland Park junior, and Melva Landrum, Minneapolis, Minn., senior, greeted Littleton as they passed through the crowd.
"It makes me feel more comfortable. I always have someone to talk to." Littleton said. "They are like my big sisters."
Beach yesterday.
This sense of belonging according to Juan Izaguirre, HAWK Link assistant director, is what the organization aimed to accomplish through their Block Party and Take Over the
HAWLINK is an all-inclusive program which aids freshmen through their first year of college.
Alisa Lewis, East St. Louis, Ill senior, said the group targets minority membership because minorities traditionally supply the highest drop-out rates on college campuses.
She said if it weren't for the organization, she probably would have gone home.
would have gone to school here I didn't know anyone," Lewis said. "You don't see too many people who look like you. HAWK Link introduces you to other people of color."
The Block Party was a social gathering while Take Over the Beach was an informational meeting with representatives from multi-cultural and academic clubs.
Members of Delta Sigma Theta dance during the step show on Wescoe Beach yesterday afternoon. The event was part of multicultural recruitment during Hawk Week.
crises.
"It's a common belief in the office that if you have a reason to stay, you feel needed," Lewis said. "It's a responsibility thing."
HAWK Link does most of its
recruiting in the summer and also through new-student orientation, Izaguirre said. That way, students already have a familiar face and a place to ask questions.
and a place to talk quite "HAWK Link made it aware that if ever I needed help that I can find it on campus," Littleton said.
Members of fraternities and sororities in the National Pan-Hellenic Council provided a stepshow during Take Over the Beach.
Beach.
"It excites the crowd and shows our unity," Candace Haines, St. Louis senior and NPHC president, said. "Together we can get a lot more things accomplished, and our motto is 'Where there is unity, there is strength.'"
Robert Page, multi-cultural affairs director, and Izaguirre both said the events were a success.
Page said a lot of people from 'Beach 'Boulevard' stayed for the Block Party on Tuesday night and created a diverse group. He said this helped market the all-inclusive aspect of HAWKLink.
HAWK LINES Izagirre said he thought there were more students at both events than in past years.
"I think it is because we have a lot more offices helping us out, combined with tradition," he said. "We have organizations and students and staff that know it's
coming. People were asking if and how they could get more involved."
- Edited by Jon Ralston
Summer road construction affects local business profits
BY STEPHANE FARLEY
sfarley@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
After nearly nine months of seeing construction cones outside his restaurant, Steve Prooski is hoping sales go up.
Prososki is hoping Prososki owns Runza Restaurant, 3418 W. 6th St., which is located near the construction at 6th Street and Kasold Drive. He said his restaurant suffered a 10 to 20 percent decrease in sales during the construction.
"Obviously, we're heading back in the right direction, but we're still not seeing the 10 to 20 percent yet," Proosski said.
"We can either close it
Fresh pavement, filled potholes and new curbs welcome students back to school. But while students are enjoying the benefits of these summer construction projects, some business owners face a different reality: A summer of lost sales.
and have 20,000 complaints because it's closed, or we can leave it open and have 20,000 complaints because of all the potholes."
Chuck Soules Lawrence director of public works
dents returned for the fall, he said.
Chuck Soules, Lawrence director of public works, organizes construction efforts. It's difficult to accommodate everyone, he said.
Meanwhile, Soules said he tried to keep both residential neighborhoods and business districts apprised of any changes in the construction schedule and lane closings.
The Department of Public Works tried to have all the construction done by the time stu-
Businesses may experience "growing pains" and see a decrease in business during construction, but over time the business events back out again, Soules said.
Prososki said the city of Lawrence notified him about the construction on 6th Street and Kasold Drive ahead of time.
Customers have a choice whether to brave the construction to get to a restaurant, Prososki said, but improvements needed to be made.
Scott Wieters, a barista at Classic Gourmet, 3300 Bob Billings Parkway, said it seemed there had been no difference in the amount of business during the roadwork
in front of the coffee shop.
"It's a hassle, but if the roads are falling apart, then it needs to be done. It's a necessary evil," Wieters said.
Wieters said it was tough to see a correlation between the roadwork and business slowing down because many students left for the summer and the weather was hotter.
He said most of the customers who came in during the summer were regulars who braved the road construction regardless of how bad it got.
now bad news.
"It probably does affect businesses to some extent, whether good or bad. But in the end, the end product, we hope, is a huge benefit," Soules said.
Just this year, the department of public works has overseen between 30 and 40 projects dealing with milling, the stripping of the top layer of asphalt, and overlaying, the adding of a new layer pavement.
Ed Mullins, Lawrence director of finance, said most of the major road construction, usually involving mill and overlay, was covered by general obligation bonds, which the city pays off over time.
The state funded 80 percent of the project at 6th Street and Kasold Drive because 6th Street is part of Highway40.
Tamara Bennett, senior management analyst for the city of Lawrence, said the city's general fund includes revenue from sales' tax and property tax. Bennett set the 2004 general fund set aside $650,000 for mill and overlay projects and $200,000 for curb repair.
Money from a gas tax is also used to pay for some projects.
The money comes from a tax on gasoline that drivers pay every time they fill their tanks; the money goes to the state and is redistributed into roadwork projects.
sawwork projects. For 2004, the gas tax fund set
aside $770,000 for overlay,
$170,000 for curb repair and
$70,000 for chip and seal projects.
Plans for 2005 might throw businesses for another loop, Soules said.
After hearing comments that drivers felt uncomfortable with turns on 23rd Street, Soules said the department would contact business owners and work to close some entrances to businesses.
The task of balancing city maintenance and resident interests is day to day for Soules. Kasold Drive, for example, is still an issue, he said.
in issue, we said,
"We can either close it and have 20,000 complaints because it's closed, or we can leave it open and have 20,000 complaints because of all the potholes," Soules said.
Edited by Paige Worthy
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