KULTURE THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN TUESDAY, MAY 10, 2005 8A From TEXTBOOKS to KUIDs Lost and founds collect it all By Charissa Young By Charissa Young correspondent@kansan.com Kansan correspondent Textbooks, iPods and backpacks are often left underneath desks, in the hallways, in the bathrooms and on the steps of campus buildings. For those not stolen by the finders-keepers-losers-weepers type, these items, and others, find their way to a campus lost and found. Kelly Connelley, Wichita junior, lost a blue water bottle on a Friday on the third floor of the Kansas Union. She called the Union's Lost and Found Office the following Tuesday and was able to pick it up the same day. was able to prove. "I thought my water bottle had just been thrown away, but a friend of mine told me to try calling the lost and found about it," Connellay said. "I described it to them, and sure enough, they did it. It was so easy." But Connelley's story is not a common one. Catt, Connetty's story is not a common one. Capt, Schuyler D. Bailey of the KU Public Safety Office, 303 Carruth O'Leary, said that only about 25 percent of items in lost and found are actually claimed. The items most often claimed are those with some sort of identifying information, such as wallets and cell phones. The high number of unclaimed items in lost and found offices might be because students simply forget where they lost their items, said Pam Shadoin, senior administrative specialist in the department of math in Snow Hall, west of Strong Hall. Shadoin also said that because the locations of lost and found offices weren't always posted, students probably didn't know to look in them. At least one Lost and Found Office, or really a lost and found box or cabinet, is located in each building on campus, normally in a department's main office. The clutter inside these offices is common too: textbooks, articles of clothing, sunglasses and electronics are piling up across campus. During the winter season, mittens, scarves, and hats are in abundance. At the Student Recreation Fitness Center, there are 23 KUIDs and 10 water bottles in the lost and found cabinet. ONLINE POLU Have you redeemed a lost item from a campus lost and found? - 21% said Yes - 78% said No Percentages based on 128 total votes Bailey said that the most unique item he'd seen turned in was a $100 bill. The bill was never claimed, so it was donated to a local non-profit organization. In most cases, though, Bailey said that items turned into the lost and found were ordinary. Items left in lost and found offices around campus are typically held for the remainder of the semester. Then, the items are forwarded to the safety office. The items are held there for three months, and then items that have value and are clean are donated to local charities. Otherwise, Bailey said, the remaining items were destroyed. Shadoin said most of the items from the lost and found are forwarded to the Safety Office, with textbooks as the exception. Textbooks, she said, are recycled back to their departments for staff and student use, or the textbooks are left on the ledge just outside the office for students to take. Before leaving for summer vacation, students should check a Lost and Found Office for any of their lost valuables. Students may often feel their loss is a permanent one, but their item may be among the hundreds of unclaimed items collecting dust in one of the 33 lost and found offices on campus. office for students to "If I was smart enough, I would sell the books back to the bookstore and be rich," Shadoin said, laughing. — Edited by Lisa Coble-Krings Allen Fieldhouse Maintenance Office 864-4751 Anschutz Science Library Circulation Desk 864-4210 Art and Design School of Fine Arts, Room #300 864-4928 Bailey Hall School of Education, Room #112 864-4401 Budig Hall Room #125 864-3726 Burge Union Book Store, Customer Services 864-9849 KU Card Center Kansas Union, Level 4 864-5697 Computer Center Room #202 864-5845 Dole Center Learning Resource Center, Room #2051 864-0468 Dyche Museum Gift Shop 864-0600 Fraser Hall Psych. Dept., Room #426 864-4450 Green Hall Law Library, Circulation Desk 864-4131 JRP Hall Welcome Center 864-3026 Kansas Union Information Counter 864-3464 Learned Hall Spahr Engineering Library 864-4596 Lindley Hall Geology Dept., Room #120 864-3866 Malott Hall Chemistry Dept., Room #2010 864-4974 Marvin Hall Room #206 864-4670 Memorial Stadium KU Athletic Dept., Maintenance 864-4281 Murphy Hall University Theater Office 864-3195 Parking Facilities Parking Services 864-3381 Robinson Gym Service Center 864-7275 Smith Hall Room #102 864-3491 Snow Hall Math Office, Rooms 405 & 415 864-4663 Spencer Museum of Art Security 864-3651 Spencer Research Library Room #319 864-0130 Stauffer Flint Hall Journalism Reading Room, Room #200 Strong Hall Room #123 864-4755 Strong Hall Math Office, 3rd floor 864-4422 Watkins Health Center Room #1600a 864-3906 Watson Library Circulation Desk 864-9500 Wescoe Hall Academic Resource Ctr, Room #4069 864-8983 Photos by Charissa Young/KANSAN P ---