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THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS
JULY 13-JULY 19,2005
TUITION
Study ranks KU best buy for 2004-2005 semesters
KU tuition rates among cheapest
BY ADAM LAND
aland@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITE
After conducting a study comparing Kansas universities to schools in other states, the Kansas Board of Regents named the University of Kansas a best buy for the 2004-2005 academic year.
Kansas State University and Wichita State University were also named best buys.
The three universities, the state's only research universities, are 21 percent below the national average in tuition, which is $5,618. The universities are also 15 percent lower than the regional average, which is $5,199.
All figures come from the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, of which all three schools are members.
Not only did the large state universities make the best buy list, so did the state's three regional schools.
Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University offered tuition rates that were one-third less than the national average of $4,585. The average tuition of the three schools, $3,077, was one-quarter less than the regional average of $4,121.
Figures for those three universities come from the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, of which all are members.
The best buy moniker only encompasses cost, said Kip Peterson, director of government relations and communications for the Kansas Board of Regents. Value and benefit were not part of the analysis, Peterson said.
Ranking consists of many factors and is compiled in different ways.
U. S. News and World Report uses eight different factors, none of which include cost, said Robert J. Norris, director of data research for U.S. News & World Report. The factors comprise peer assessment, admissions, financial resources, faculty resources, alumni giving, reputation, graduation and retention.
"People should look at more than price alone," Norris said. "But looking at equal schools it can matter, it's perception."
The magazine ranks schools against their peers throughout the nation, not just regionally, Norris said.
If students compare schools throughout the region or state, price is probably a factor in deciding where to go, Norris said. But students who are looking at colleges throughout the nation are looking at more things than just price.
Cost can still be significant, however, when you are comparing a school like Northwestern University, which costs almost $40,000 for tuition and housing, with the University of Kansas, which costs about $12,000, Norris said.
— Edited by Erin M. Droste
DRIVING DANGERS
Research reveals cell phone use increases risk of car crashes
BY KEN THOMAS
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — Using a cell phone while driving quadruples the risk of getting into a crash with serious injuries, a study finds.
Research released July 12 by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety suggests that using a hands-free device instead of a handheld phone while behind the wheel will not necessarily
improve safety.
and lawmakers are grappling for ways to reducing driver distraction.
The study found that handheld devices were slightly riskier than hands-
The researchers used cell phone records to compare phone use within 10 minutes before an actual crash with cell use by the same driver during the previous week.
Each driver's cell usage during a 10-minute interval prior to the accident was compared with use during at least one earlier period when no accident occurred.
You are four times more likely to be involved in a car wreck if using a cell phone.
The study, published in the British Medical Journal, found no difference in the risk posed to male and female drivers or to drivers older and younger than 30.
free ones, but the difference was not statistically significant.
More motorists are using cell phones on the road than ever,
Each driver, in effect, served as his or her own control group in the study.
A survey released earlier this year by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found 8 percent of drivers were using cell phones during daylight hours last year. It represented a 50 percent increase since 2002.