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CAMPUS/AREA
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday, October 13. 1994
3A
Wetlands' spiritual benefits overlooked
Haskell students and faculty upset with study
By Carlos Tejada and David Wilson
Kansan staff writers
The president of Haskell Indian Nations University yesterday criticized a study of the environmental impact of the South Lawrence Trafficway, saying the study did not allow the university to speak about its spiritual concerns.
At a press conference yesterday, Haskell President Bob Martin said Haskell only had been asked to tell the Federal Highway Administration of the trafficway's effect on the university's future development and curriculum.
Martin said Haskell faculty, students and staff had written a statement about their spiritual concerns about the trafficway, which probably will be built through the Haskell Wetlands south of the university. He said the statement would be sent to administration officials.
Administration officials are in the process of preparing a supplemental environmental impact statement, which will be completed in early 1995. The statement will be a supplement to the trafficway's final environmental impact statement, which Haskell students and environmentalists said had not addressed the wetlands' spiritual and environmental importance.
"We have developed an executive summary that summarizes our concerns from a traditional American Indian perspective," Martin said.
Martin gave out copies of the statement, which detailed the wetlands' environmental and spiritual significance. It said the wetlands
were part of a "sacred cycle of life" that reminded Native Americans of the sanctity of nature and the environment.
Martin said the administration was relying on a private, non-Native-American firm to study the area's spiritual value to Haskell's students, all of whom are members of federally recognized Native-American nations. He said such a study would not be adequate.
The South Lawrence Trafficway, a proposed four-lane roadway designed to relieve congested traffic in south and east Lawrence, probably will be built on top of 31st Street, which goes through the wetlands. Opponents
have said the added traffic and construction would disrupt the wetlands. The western half of the trafficway, from west of Lawrence to U.S. Highway 59, already is under construction.
Frank Wolfe, vice president of Haskell's student body, also spoke at the press conference. He pulled a clump of soil from the earth as he spoke.
"This soil is our altar," he told the 40 onlookers. "It's more than a religion. It's a way of life. And that's why we are here today."
Members of the administration were unavailable for comment yesterday evening.
Foreign journalists brush up on skills
Eastern bloc learns industry from West
Slava Nikolaev, television reporter from Siberia, looks at watches during a visit to Wal-Mart. There are 48 Russian economic and business journalists from the independent states of the former Soviet Union.
By Polina Sukonik Special to the Kansan
Jay Thornton / KANSAN
Slava Nikolaew wants to know how American journalists write. He's one of a group of 48 business and economic journalists visiting the University of Kansas from the former Soviet Union, now known as the Newly Independent States.
With the new freedom of the press in the former Soviet Union, these reporters are eager to learn new journalism techniques that they can apply at home. They are attending seminars at the School of Journalism this week and will visit newspapers and television stations in Kansas City next week.
"We are promoting democratic transition of the former Eastern bloc," said Jim Denton, president of the National Forum Federation, a nonprofit research program that organizes exchange programs between professionals in America and the former Eastern bloc.
"The former Soviet Union is between two worlds—one dead and one struggling to survive," Denton said. "It's going to take vast amounts of education to help."
The journalists will receive training at KU about how advertising and marketing works. Without advertising and marketing, the press won't survive because they have to be able to get income, Denton said.
Gregory Shapvala, editor-in-chief of Red Star, a daily newspaper in St. Petersburg, said it was interesting to learn the ways of advertising.
"As a journalist, I have to always learn new things to keep up with the changing world," Shapvala said. "When a journalist stops being interested in learning, that is the day he stops being a journalist."
The journalists range from editors-in-chief of major newspapers to editors of business magazines and executive directors of major television programs.
Last week, the group received a standard introduction to the U.S. political and economic system through meetings on Capitol Hill with members of Congress. The journalists also met with the editors of CSPAN, CNN and the Washington Post.
They also went to New York, where they spent time at the New York Stock Exchange. The New York Times and 60 Minutes.
Leonid Komarov, a business journalist and consultant in Tomsk, Siberia, said he hoped to make some business connections and to learn how to teach Russian media and businesses to advertise and to market.
"America is a land of many opportunities," Komarov said. "It's a rich country, and I hope that one day I will be able to start a trading company with an American business."
The Russian journalists said they thought that Lawrence was a great town.
On Tuesday evening the journalists received another educational experience — how to survive a major shopping expedition at Wal-Mart.
"I'm surprised to see such a quiet and clean city," said Peter Tszurow, the executive director of Kanal 2, a television broadcasting company in Ulyanovsk, Russia. "And the weather is unbelievable."
After a short introduction of Wal-Mart by employee Patty Perez, the journalists were let loose to explore the store.
"I am impressed with the size of the store, the convenience and the sheer quantity of items," said Peter Tszyrov, executive producer of Kanal 2.
Tsyzyrov, who had never seen skim-masks before and bought several to take home to his friends and family.
"This will help keep them warm," he said.
lshat Aminov, chief editor of information programs at "Efr," a television program, bought a talking Barbie doll for his daughter.
"Look at this," he said as he held the Barbie in his hands. "I have never in
my life seen anything like this," he said with a grin.
"五 years ago, I would be walking though this store with my jaw hanging open with amazement," Aminov said. "But now, I am used to stores like this because there are new ones opening up at home. I can now walk through this store calmly."
The group is not the first Russian journalists to visit KU. Bob Basow
and Adrienne Rivers, associate professors of journalism, and Tom Volek and Charles Marsh, assistant professors of journalism, coordinated the trip.
Volek said that KU had an ongoing relationship with the Newly Independent States.
"We are reaching out, building bridges," Volek said. "You learn things that will help classroom teach
ing."
The Russian journalists are also looking to the future.
"I think that there will be a vast amount of changes in the journalism field in Russia," said Andrei Grigoriev, reporter for Moscow's newspaper Today.
"In order to prepare for these changes, we need the education that we are receiving on this trip."
Campus concerns and complaints often wind up in hands of ombudsman
By David Wilson
Kansan staff writer
As University Ombudsman, Robert Shelton hears many complaints, concerns and requests for information - 444 last year, to be exact.
Shelton, who works independent of the administration, investigates claims of unfair treatment from students, faculty and staff. All complaints brought to Shelton are kept confidential.
In his recently released annual report,
Shelton, who also is a professor of religion, said the largest category of contacts with his office — 70 of 444 — came from students who had received a low grade they felt that they didn't deserve or who had a problem with an instructor.
Of the complaints about grades, most were referred to a grade appeals committee within in the instructor's school or department.
Students are sometimes wary of being told to go elsewhere, but referrals are a large part of his job, Shelton said.
"They usually call that the run-around." he
said. "But we have to find out where the most likely place for that person's problem to be solved would be."
The referrals are accompanied by advice from Shelton.
"My referrals include quite a bit of coaching," he said. "I have to listen long enough to know what the student is asking for."
Students upset with a grade should not expect Shelton to be able to change the grade if it was based on a paper or a test.
Rather, Shelton keeps an eye out for proper procedure. For instance, if an instructor fails a student for missing a class on a holiday important to the student's religion, Shelton would point out that University policy forbade instructors to penalize students who missed class on religious holidays of their faiths.
Other complaints brought to Shelton last year included problems with school and department regulations, financial aid, student housing and admissions.
Some complaints have prompted Shelton to get on the phone and make waves, such as
the complaints he received last year about unannounced timetable schedule changes
"I got several reports that schedules for final exams had been changed," he said. Since he took the Ombudsman's job nine years ago, Shelton's workload has increased.
Next semester, Shelton will go on sabbatical. So far, no replacement has been found.
"The responsibility is such that you can't catch onto it in one semester," he said. "But we are putting provisions in place."
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