FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2005
NEWS
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN 3A
BUSINESS
Gas prices deal blow to local workers
BY CHRISTINA SPALDING editor@kansan.com KANSAN CORRESPONDENT
Looking at the ticker on the gas pump, Brian Holland, Edina, Minn., senior, shakes his head in disbelief. Filling up his tank will cost him nearly $30, and because he uses his car for his job, he most likely will have to fill up again in just a few days.
Holland is just one of many KU students facing the expensive gasoline problem. As a delivery driver for Jimmy John's, he drives his car for at least 20 hours a week for work alone. With gas prices in Lawrence hitting about $3 a gallon, remaining at a delivery job becomes a problem for people such as Holland.
"This is getting out of control," Holland said. "There's no way I can afford to run this car if gas prices stay like this."
Management at restaurants such as Jimmy John's are seeing the effects of gas prices on their employees.
"Our delivery drivers are really taking a hit," Yingling said. "I get complaints at least five times a day and threats to quit if I don't compensate, but it's understandable. In a lot of cases our drivers will lose money doing a delivery based on the cost to fill up their tank."
Scott Yingling, manager at Gumby's Pizza, 1445 W. 23rd St., faces the issue every day.
Delivery drivers aren't the only people taking a hit. With jobs in Lawrence so scarce, many students commute to other cities, such as Topeka and Kansas City, for work. Just having the money to get to their jobs is becoming a problem.
Attention to detail
"This is getting out of control. There's no way I can afford to run this car if gas prices stay like this."
Senior
Brian Holland
"I run out of applications every day and I can usually only hire about a tenth of the people that apply," he said.
August and September are the hardest times to find a job in town said Taylor White, manager at Jimmy John's on 23rd St.
Scott Handy, Wayzata, Minn., senior, works in downtown Kansas City, Mo., at Old Dominion Shipping Co. Because of the high price of gas, he was forced to put in his two weeks notice and attempt to find a job in Lawrence.
Students such as Handy face another problem by giving up their out-of-town jobs—finding work in Lawrence.
This is bad news for people like Holland, who may be searching, along with other students, for a job that won't guzzle their gas and empty their wallets.
"It's roughly 40 miles from Lawrence to Kansas City," Handy said. "Make that a round trip, three days a week, and you've got nearly 250 miles a week. I just can't afford to put that much gas in my car anymore."
- Edited by Anne Burgard
Kristin Driskell/KANSAN
Cole Winblad, senior, works on a vase for his ceramics class in the Art and Design building. Although he has almost completed his work on the wheel, he still has more steps until the vase is considered a final product. Cole is majoring in ceramics and graphic design.
HEALTH
Students' mental health problems on the rise
BY ZAK BEASLEY
editor@kansan.com
KANSAN CORRESPONDENT
Doctors from the Counseling and Psychological Services have reported an increase of 35 percent in the number of students with mental health issues during the last five years at the University of Kansas.
The most common types of mental health illnesses treated on campus are depression and anxiety. Counselors have also stated that the severity of the cases has increased.
Frank DeSalvo, CAPS director, said in 2000 the center saw about 800 students. By 2004, DeSalvo said CAPS was seeing more than 1,200 students.
There are two types of students treated at CAPS. The first type of student has pre-existing medical conditions and visits the center on a regular basis. The second type of student has an unexpected crisis he or she needs treatment for, such as a death in the family, DeSalvo said.
Almost 15 percent of the nation's college students have reported that they have suffered from a mental illness. A national study conducted by the American College Health Association found that the number of students suffering from mental health issues has increased by nearly 50 percent in the last five years. A similar study shows that 85 percent of college psychiatric clinics have had significant increases in the number of cases in the last five years.
Unfortunately, the cause of this growing problem is not limited to one source.
"A student's mental health problems can come from a number of things." DeSalvo said. "Perhaps a student becomes overwhelmed with school work, breaks up with his or her significant other, or forgets to refill their medication. The variables are endless."
Nick Dormer, Topela junior,
sees many different kinds of
students as a resident hall assistant
at Lewis Hall. He thinks that the
social and academic pressures of
college life are equally responsible
for a student's mental health.
"Students, especially freshmen, are constantly trying to find ways to be accepted. When they don't achieve that acceptance, they begin to slip into depression," he said.
Like most physical injuries, mental problems require appropriate treatment in order for someone to properly recover. Without treatment, a student's mental problems will only get worse.
"I have seen how students can suffer from mental health issues," Dormer said. "Students who used to be socially active begin to shut themselves off from society. They eventually stop talking to friends and their academics begin to suffer."
Even though mental illness is becoming a bigger problem on college campuses, there are solutions.
"Most students who use CAPS are usually treated within three to five visits," DeSalvo said. "Normally, students do not have reoccurring episodes, unless they have serious pre-existing conditions."
"The problem is that as the semester goes on, it becomes harder for us to see everyone," DeSalvo said. "By November, a student will not be able to see us until 10 to 15 days after they have made their appointment; however, we will never turn a student away who is in dire need of counseling."
CAPS allows students to meet with counselors one-on-one to discuss their problems. Sessions last for one hour and students can return as many times as needed.
Besides CAPS, students can get information on mental health care at the American College Health Association's Web site www.acha.org, or the National Mental Health Association's Web site www.nmha.org.
ON CAMPUS
CORRECTION
◆ A 61-year-old KU employee reported $885 in textbooks stolen sometime between 7 p.m. Aug. 29 and 7:15 a.m. Aug. 30 from Learned Hall.
An 18-year-old KU student reported a $130 bus pass stolen sometime between 8:15 and 10:15 a.m. Aug. 26 from Blake Hall.
Student Union Activities is hosting First Fridays tonight, featuring an open mic contest and musical performance. The event will be held at 7 p.m. on the patio outside the Hawk's Nest of the Kansas Union. The musical performer will be Lawrence band like Turner Overdrive. The winner of the open mic contest will receive a prize. The event will be held on the first Friday of every month.
— Edited by Jayme Wiley
SUA Films will kick off its fall Flashback Series with the film Gone With the Wind on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Woodruff Auditorium, Level 5 of the Kansas Union.
- An article in yesterday's University Daily Kansan contained an error. The article headlined "Fraternity under investigation" stated a pledge from Sigma Nu was thrown out of a window. The pledge was only thrown into the air and never through a window.
Gas conservation remains a must
Gas prices continued to skyrocket yesterday in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Prices were rising at such a breakneck pace that a realistic national average couldn't be calculated, the Kansas AAA office reported. The average price in Lawrence yesterday was $2.99 a gallon as of 4 a.p.m.
STATE
ON THE RECORD
One month ago...$2.21
Wednesday...$2.92
State averages for a gallon of unleaded gasoline:
♣ Go to www.kansasgasprices.com to find the cheapest gas in Lawrence and the state reported by consumers
Drive at a steady speed. Acceleration burns extra gas.
- Improve your car's fuel efficiency by regularly checking the tire pressure, checking your air filter and making sure spark plugs are in good shine.
◆ Yesterday...$2.99
- One year ago...$1.82
- Here are some tips for saving on gas:
- you can also improve fuel efficiency by not running your air conditioner (just roll the windows down, you can handle it). If your A/C has an economy setting, use it.
Consider car pooling or riding the bus.
Source: AAA
LIBERTY HALL CINEMA
Clearview Baptist Church
Service
Sunday School
Sunday Morning
Sunday Evening
Wednesday Even
Time
9:45 am
Wednesday Evening
Louis R. Turk, Pastor
35800 West 102nd Street De Soto, KS 66018 913-583-1144 (church) 913-375-1670 (pastor) www.ClearviewBaptist.us
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