6A NEWS THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 8, 2006 FAMILY WEEKEND Relatives pour into Lawrence to see students, enjoy activities BY BEN SMITH Family Weekend, the annual event that invites students and their families to experience traditions of the University of Kansas and interact with the campus community, begins tonight and lasts through Saturday. The event, which first occurred in 1932, features a variety of activities such as free cosmic bowling and movies, live entertainment, departmental open houses and access to sporting events on campus. Margey Frederick, director of special events and visitor services, said Family Weekend was geared toward students who normally wouldn't have the opportunity to be with their families. During freshman new student orientation, information was handed out about the event, but Frederick said it's not intended just for freshman and new students. Two years ago special events and visitor services began mailing postcards to the families of sophomores, juniors and seniors to ensure more people found out about the event. This year they have sent out about 13,000 postcards. Frederick said that having the event so soon after Labor Day was a result of scheduling complications having to work hand-in-hand with the football season. Usually it is held later in the semester after students have been away from home for a while, she said. "The football game would be the biggest draw of the weekend," Frederick said. "The more you have going on, the more people are interested in coming to visit the campus." Kathy Talbot, adviser for Student Union Activities, said they were pleased to be presenting comedian and magician Brian Brushwood, who has appeared on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno. He will be performing his "Bizarre Magic" show Saturday afternoon at Woodruff Auditorium in the Kansas Union. The event also coincides with Band Day, the KU tradition that invites high school bands from across the state to come to Lawrence and march with the Marching Jayhawks. Tom Stidham, associate director of bands, said that 35 bands would be performing during halftime of Saturday's football game against Louisiana-Monroe. Stidham said he thought that the two events were a wonderful opportunity for high school students to get a bit of "Jayhawk flavor" and for visiting families to enjoy the spectacle of 1,000 students out on the field at halftime on gameday. Kansan staff writer Ben Smith can be contacted at bsmith@kansan. com. Edited by Erin Wiley family weekend schedule Friday, September 8, 2006 KU Fine Arts Annual Collage Concert The concert will showcase works by KU fine arts students. 7:30 p.m.at the Lied Center. Tickets $7 for students and senior citizens, $12 for general public. Call (785) 864-3421 for additional information. Saturday, Sept. 9, 2006 Admissions presentation by The Office of Admissions and Scholarships 9:15 a.m. in the KU Visitor Center, 1502 Iowa St. Pre-registration is required. Call (785) 864-3911 or register online. School of Architecture and Urban Design Open House 10 a.m. to noon, 216 Marvin Hall. 10 a.m. to noon, Nunemaker Center. Honors Program Open House Comedy & Magic Show featuring Brian Brushwood 2 p.m., Woodruff Auditorium, Kansas Union Level 5. Free with SUA Preferred Student Card, all other tickets $4. Tickets available at the SUA Box Office, Kansas Union level 4, (785) 864-7469. Band Day Parade 1:30 p.m., downtown Lawrence Volleyball Tournament 1 p.m. The Jayhawk volleyball team vs. Arkansas to conclude the tournament in the Horejsi Family Athletics Center. $6 for adults and $3 for children ages 5-17 years. Free for children 4 and under and for students with a valid KU ID. For more info: www.kuathletics.com/volleyball/ Fun Zone 3 p.m. Tailgate Event, open to all Jayhawk fans. Burgers, brats, hotdogs, and soda. For prices and more info: call (785) 864-4760 Game Day at the Adams Alumni Center Touchdown Tailgate 4 p.m. Southeast corner of Memorial Stadium parking lot. Look for the giant inflatable Jayhawk. Free to young children attending the football game. Kansas vs. Louisiana-Monroe Football Game 3 p.m. - 6 p.m., Hawks Nest Patio, Kansas Union Level 1 Kansas vs. Louis Monroe Football Game Come support the Jayhawks! The game begins at 6 p.m. In Memorial Stadium. To purchase tickets please call the Athletics' Ticket Office (800-34-HAWKS) Tickets are $25 each with the promotional code FD-2006. Source: www.familyweekend.ku.edu FIRE (CONTINUED FROM 1A) He said the renters and landlords should work together to make these things happen. Candles, cooking and overuse of extension cords are the prime igniters for house fires, McNorton said. The University has worked to improve fire safety by installing sprinkler systems in residence halls during the past five years, McNorton said. Eric Grospitch, interim executive assistant to the director of Student Housing, said McCollum, GSP-Corbin and Oliver halls did not have sprinkler systems yet. Instead of installing them now, he said it was best to wait until the building could be renovated, which is part of the master plan Student Housing is working on. Grospitch said the fire alarm systems are state-of-the-art as far as immediate response to public safety. Grospitch said accidents in residence halls across the nation often occur because people didn't leave during a fire alarm. Grospitch said the most common reason a fire alarm goes off in the University residence halls was from microwave cooking. "In some ways sprinklers are more property protection than people protection," he said. Kansan staff writer Erin Castaneda can be contacted at ecastaneda@kansan.com. PETS (CONTINUED FROM 1A) his house, it became quite apparent that he'd been hiding the dog. Webb sent Tobi back home to his parent's house for the next year and a half and was charged his full security deposit by his landlord for his troubles. — Edited by Erin Wiley Matt Vianello, Overland Park senior, had similar problems with his apartment complex after hiding his cocker spaniel, Gizmo. After "I basically just pawned Gizmo off to a bunch of friends for a month and a half," Vianello said. "He just kind of slept in different beds of different girls every night." receiving notice of eviction if the dog did not disappear within 14 days, Vianello had friends watch over Gizmo until he moved out of his apartment. moved to homes that allow pets and are finally enjoying, worry-free, the benefits of man's best friend. Kansan staff writer Matt Elder can be contacted at melder@kansan. com. Both Webb and Vianello have Edited by Elyse Weidner Stuck on you Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN Adam Rankin, Hutchinson junior, cleans up the aftermath of a practical joke Thursday afternoon, peeling hundreds of Post-it notes from his Volkswagen Jetta. "I have a pretty good idea who did this," said Rankin, who declined to suggest a motive. TUITION (CONTINUED FROM 1A) The fixed-rate plan will do little to ease financial pain for students who paid tuition between 2002 and 2006 through the five-year tuition enhancement plan. Revenue from KU tuition jumped from $112 million in 2002 to more than $160 million in 2005, an increase of about 42 percent, according to financial documents from Office of Institutional Research and Planning. Overall, tuition at the University has risen 10 to 17 percent each year since 2002. KU administrators said that tuition was only a minor portion of the average student's bills each year, and that the University was eager to keep tuition affordable. ask yourself the lifestyle question at some point" "We're here to offer some planning and stability," said Lindy Eakin, vice provost for administration and finance. "You have to The money the University receives from the state has not significantly increased for years, Eakin said. In 2005, the University received $240 million, a 3 percent increase from the year before. Some money taken in during the five-year tuition enhancement finances scholarships and grants, including the KU Tuition Grant. Tuition prices have increased at universities across the country. At the same time, the College Board reported a dramatic increase in the amount of non-federal student loans taken out from 2001 to 2006. The College Board is a non-profit organization that collects data on financial aid and tuition costs. Students and parents also borrowed $13.8 billion from banks and credit unions in 2004-05, up more than 153 percent from $5.4 billion in 2001-02, according to the organization. The University benefited from a 2001 change in the way state universities are allowed to handle tuition revenue, Eakin said. The University now can collect and allocate tuition revenue as needed, rather than simply passing tuition checks onto state general funds that would be disbursed later. KU tuition ranks in the middle of Big 12 schools, according to the Columbia Missouri. Kansan staff writer David Linhardt can be contacted at dlinhardt@kansan.com. Edited by Shanxi Upsdell 12