CAMPUS/AREA
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday, September 19, 1994
3A
'Good Earth' celebration stresses the farm roots
By Shannon Newton Kansan staff writer
Michael Ableman exposed people to their food source Saturday.
Ableman, a California farmer and photographer, was a presenter in a multi-media program that was part of a daylong celebration called "From the Good Earth." The event had a variety of sessions to educate people about organic farming and sustainable agriculture. The sessions included informational booths, a sampling of organic foods from area chefs at the Farmers' Market, a tour of an organic farm north of Lawrence and the opening of a photographic exhibition on worldwide agricultural practices created by Ableman.
Museum of Natural History, the Kansas Rural Center in Whiting and the Land Institute in Salina sponsored the all-day event to celebrate food and farming.
Kathryn Morton, marketing and communications coordinator for the museum, said Saturday's programs were designed to educate people from all ages and backgrounds.
"There was a large array of guests," Morton said, "There were both children and adults, people who knew about agriculture were there as well as people who wanted to learn."
A benefit gala Saturday evening included wine tasting and book signing from Ableman. The $75 tickets for the sold-out gala benefited the three sponsors.
At 8:30 p.m. there was a multimedia presentation to introduce the photography exhibit by Ableman.
The presentation began with remarks from Wes Jackson, cofounder of the Land Institute, followed by a slide show from Ableman on the transitions from traditional farming to industrial farming.
Ableman worked for 10 years on the exhibit. He traveled throughout South America, Africa and the United States to complete it..
Ableman said the photographs were a visual experience on the roots of farming.
The photographs begin with an introduction to the past.
"The exhibit tells about the impacts of the current agricultural systems," Ableman said.
"The photos visit traditional cultures and get a sense of roots," Ableman said, "I want people to see where we went off course to industrial agriculture with pesticides and chemicals."
Ableman grew up on a farm and wanted to reconnect people with their agricultural roots.
"These photos are to remind people about what we had lost and what we would have had." he said.
The exhibit then visits the cultures of the world and their agricultural process, he said.
"Everyone has agriculture throughout their roots," he said "I want to reach people who are not familiar with the issues."
He said, "I am passionate about the subject, and I have a story to tell."
Ableman's views were formed from his experiences as a practicing farmer.
Ableman's exhibit will be in the history museum until Dec. 15.
Meghan Dougherty / KANSAN
Brad Wendt, public education instructor at the Museum of Natural History, reads a story to local children about crop planting. Saturday's class was part of the "From the Good Earth" food and farming celebration.
Attorney general candidates debate about crime, justice
By Shannon Newton Kansan staff writer
At least that is what Democratic candidate Richard Schodorf thinks.
The Republican candidate for attorney general needs to go to prison.
In a speech last week in Topeka, Carla Stovall, Republican candidate', said Kansans had the wrong impression about prisons being elegant and said the perception that inmates don't work hard was false.
The speech kicked off a heated debate between the two candidates about how to deal with criminals in Kansas.
"People are opting for prison rather than working in the community," Schodorf said. "The system is
not working."
Schodorf disagreed and said that the $58 million spent on the new El Dorado prison had given the prisoners a luxurious place to stay. He said Kansas prisons are as nice as an athletic club in Lawrence and allow prisoners to have personal TV's and stereos, and Stovall should go to the El Dorado prison to see for herself.
Schodorf, who is chief attorney and director of the Consumer Fraud and Economic Crime Division of the Office of District Attorney in Wichita, said
Richard Schodorf
that prison had become a right of passage to many young people, and other options should be considered for first-time offenders.
"They go to jail to earn respect," he said.
"The best way to keep prisoners off the street is by public humiliation," he said. "First offenders should be put in orange suits and work in the community."
Stovall said that Schodorf's view of the criminal justice system was superficial.
'Stovall, who has a private law practice in Shawnee County, served on the Kansas Parole Board between 1988 and 1992.
"I know the criminal justice system," she said. "I was consistently the no-vote in allowing violent offenders to receive parole."
Stovall said she approved of the Department of Corrections "Earn It" program to give stricter guidelines in giving benefits and privileges to prisoners.
The program is designed to make inmates work for their privileges, she said. Prisoners must comply to the rules of the prison to gain such privileges as visitation rights and telephone and television usage.
Stovall said that Schodorf had the attorney general's responsibilities confused with the secretary of corrections responsibilities.
"The secretary of corrections is appointed by the governor so essentially he is criticizing his own party," Stovall said.
The rules of the states' prisons are made by the secretly of corrections not the attorney general, she said.
"The press release was a trick to attract attention," she said.
Sandia Labs to help Haskell
By Carlos Tejada
Kansan staff writer
It sounds like the essay question on the final exam of a higher-education class;
How do you educate about 800 students and pay for their books, supplies and housing while on a limited budget from the federal government?
But Haskell has found a partial solution in partnerships with private corporations and government agencies. In the partnerships, Haskell receives money, equipment and added faculty. In return, the corporations and agencies have more qualified Native Americans in their job pools.
For Haskell Indian Nations University, which is run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs in Washington, the question is more than hypothetical. Unlike state universities, which can lobby state legislatures for more money, Haskell subsists on a fixed budget from the U.S. government. If Haskell needs supplies, repairs, more faculty or any other improvement, it must go through U.S. Congress to get additional funding.
"It's not something we can do
ourselves," said Hannes Combes, education assistant to Haskell president Bob Martin. "The funding's not there. This kind of partnership helps make up for it."
Haskell's latest partnership is with Sandia National Laboratories of Albuquerque, N.M., a defense contractor with the Department of Energy, Combest said.
Starting this fall, Combest said, Sandia would pay the salaries of Larry Lucas, a visiting professor from Southwest Missouri State University, and three graduate teaching assistants from the University of Kansas to teach science.
The Sanda partnership joins several other Haskell partnerships, Combest said. The Kansas Geological Survey keeps a computer lab on Haskell's campus for Haskell students who are working on survey projects. The Bureau of Reclamation, an agency of the Department of the Interior, supplies equipment to Haskell for students assessing the Hoover Dam in Arizona. Haskell also belongs to an energy consortium that sponsors science education.
chance to improve their math and science skills, said Karen Braman, Cheyenne, Wyo, graduate teaching assistant who is teaching math at Haskell this year.
The Sandia partnership provides essential education for Haskell students who might not have the
"Just about anything they're going to get into requires some basic math skills," she said.
Students then could take their skills back to their reservations, where education is needed, she said.
Braman said her salary for nine months of teaching was $10,189, about the same salary graduate teaching assistants received at KU.
Some of Braman's students said the partnership idea was a good one.
"It's a good deal," said Joey Brady, Haskell freshman. "It's benefiting Indian students whose families don't have enough money to send them off to state schools."
But Katrina Coker, Haskell sophomore, said Haskell should be sure its partners didn't start dictating what was taught. She said Haskell classes still should teach respect for the land and for the students' Native-American heritage.
"This kind of thing has to be carefully watched," Coker said.
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