Wednesday inside
Georgia is a peach
Many admire classified employee Georgia Hunter,
whose hard work and warm smile earned her the Classified Employee of the Year Award last week. PAGE 3A
Evolved ants Ants in the Panama rainforest are the fascination of a University researcher because of their ability to fight off unwanted fungi in tandem with other organisms. PAGE 5A
Self speaks
Bill Self spoke with the Kansan's Ryan Greene about the
ups and downs of last season, and what we can expect for the Jayhawks next season. PAGE 1B
Best of the Best
Four months before the college football season officially begins, senior sportswriter Kevin Flaherty previews the best players in the Big 12 Conference. Singled out are Jayhawk lineman Joe Vaughn and defensive back Charles Gordon. PAGE 1B
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Horoscopes 11A
Comic 11A
KANSAN
May 5,2004
IN ITS 100TH YEAR AS THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Vol.114 Issue No.145
Commission approves public smoking ban
By Laura Pate
lpate@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
For some KU students, savoring a beer with friends and smoking a cigarette at a favorite Lawrence watering hole is a part of an average weekend until now.
After two months of deliberation, Lawrence city commissioners last night voted to ban smoking inside all businesses. The ban, which will take effect July 1, will shut smoking out of restaurants and bars, limiting it to the businesses' outdoor patios.
However, if a group gathers a 3,800
signature petition, the public will have the opportunity to vote on the issue in either August or in November and the ban could be reversed.
Before the vote took place, Mayor Mike Rundle opened the floor for public comment. Commissioners heard heated comments from 20 citizens.
Commissioners David Dunfield, David Schauner, Dennis "Boog" Highberger and Mayor Mike Rundle voted for the smoking ban. Sue Hack voted against the smoking ban.
comments from 2014. Highberger had refrained from voting for or against a ban last week because he wanted to hear more public comment
and commission discussion about the pros and cons of passing a smoking ban. Rundle said last night that he was not sure what purpose public comment could serve.
could serve. Matthew Sullivan, Lawrence resident, rushed through his comments. Each person had a three-minute time limit to speak only on sub-topics that the public had not yet commented on.
had not yet comment on "Why should I not view your moralistic crusades against smoking as smoke and mirrors?" Sullivan said.
If people were dying from second-hand
SEE BAN ON PAGE 12A
Valerie Flick,
Macksville junior,
signed patients'
medicine logs under
the supervision of regi-
sted nurse
Sharon Kumm.
Kumm is a clinical assistant professor in the KU
School of Nursing.
Nurses needed STAT
Lori Tilson tries to make time for the little things. It may not seem like much — a warm blanket or a five-minute chat — but for her patients, these minor courses can make a world of difference.
As an emergency room nurse at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, Tilson cares for patients with everything from a cut finger to a severe heart attack. But her philosophy remains consistent: Good nurses are not only competent, but compassionate.
"That's what we're there for," Tilson said. "When I'm on in the ER, my goal should be to make that patient's stay as
pleasant as I can under the circumstances."
Tilson's patients are fortunate to receive such personalized care at a time when hospitals across the country are suffering from a critical condition of their own.
insufficient as 78 million aging baby boomers are beginning to need increased care. At the same time, the University of Kansas and other universities are forced to reject qualified nursing school applicants because universities are so strapped for cash that they must limit the number of students they can teach.
The United States is in the midst of an unprecedented nursing shortage that has the potential to severely jeopardize patient access to health care, said Peter Buerhaus, Associate Dean for Research at the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing in Nashville, Tenn. The pipeline of new nurses entering the profession is
number of students they. Experts say the shortage is projected to get worse in the next 20 years. By 2020, 44 states and the District of Columbia are expected to have nursing shortages, compared to 30 states in 2000.
SEE NURSING ON PAGE 6A
University receives security grant
By Matt Rodriguez
mrdriguez@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
For more than 60 years the University of Kansas has been a recognized leader in providing law enforcement and fire service training as part of KU Continuing Education. The University recently received a grant of nearly $1 million from the U.S. Department of Justice to institute a state-wide training system.
ture a state-wide training system Primedia's Homeland One First Response Training and Communication Network will offer homeland security training on television to more than 319 Kansas law enforcement and fire services throughout the state. The network will provide these agencies the necessary training for working in any possible emergency scenario.
ble emergency-served.
"The people who arrive first to the scene need to be able to deal with the situations in the appropriate manner," said Bryan Mosey, vice president of Primedia's Homeland One.
Primemedia's Homebrew Gaming
The Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center and the Kansas Fire and Rescue Training Institute will administer the $993,500 grant, which was endorsed by U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.).
by U.S. Secretary of Education "First responders play a vital role in the state of Kansas, and they will now be able to use cutting-edge technology to ensure that they perform at their best levels." Brownback said in a press release.
In addition to training, Kansas agencies will receive four hours of broadcast time over the network each month. The monthly broadcasts will be used for incident response, command briefings or coordination of state resources. Kansas will also be able to receive secure statewide communication from the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C.
Primedia developed the technology based on the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Domestic Preparedness First Responder Guidelines.
Guidelines. "It is one of the first initiatives of its kind," said Mossey. "We took the script and made it into a training course for those who arrive first on the scene of an accident."
accident. The University's Law Enforcement Training Center in Hutchinson and the Fire and Rescue Training Center on campus will have access to the network 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Right now, the state has 102 of the 319 agencies hooked up to the network.
"We are just now getting the sights up and running and are moving right along," said Ed Pavey director of the Law Enforcement Training Center.
Kansas and New Hampshire are the only two states that use the technology.
—Edited by Amanda Kim Stairrett
Organizations celebrate Cinco de Mayo
rom history to margaritas, holiday festivities to take place in Lawrence
By Marc Ingber
mingber@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
;Hoy es un día para la celebración!
The Hispanic American Leadership Organization will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo this afternoon at Wescoe Beach. It will include cultural dancing, music, confetti eggs and information about the day's historical significance.
Tonight, Hispanic fraternity Sigma Lambda Beta, Hispanic sorority Sigma Lambda Gamma, Delta Gamma and Delta Chi will be throwing a Cinco de Mayo party at the courtyard of Jayhawker Towers. It will be open to everybody and will include food, music, pinatas and information about the day.
"It's a way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo without alcohol," Raymond Rico, Kansas City, Kan., junior and HALO member, said of the party.
said of the party.
Mexico and the United States celebrate Cinco de Mayo. It commemorates the Mexican victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. It
marks the last time a foreign nation has acted as the aggressor on the North American mainland.
"I would definitely say that this day has been Americanized," she said. "I feel insulted when the fraternities and sororities create shirts with a drunk Mexican in a sombrero drinking tequila or Corona on the back."
However, many Americans use Cinco de Mayo as an excuse to get drunk without realizing any of its historical significance, said Andrea Pantoja, Mission junior and HALO president.
Beta Theta Pi fraternity will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo with a benefit dinner and concert for Jubilee Cafe. All you-can-eat Mexican food and margaritas at the First United Methodist Church, 946 Vermont St., will be followed by a concert at Liberty Hall, 642 Massachusetts St.
The event doesn't include anything regarding the historical significance of Cinco de Mayo, but it is a way to honor the culture, Chris Beck, Newton sophomore and Beta Theta Pi philanthropy
chairman said. He said a lot of people recognized the Mexican culture by eating and drinking certain foods.
and drinking coffee.
"I think it's an excuse for people to go out, but they are still honoring a tradition as well," he said.
as well, he said.
Susie Banks, Topka senior, said she had been going out for Cincio de Mayo every year since came to the University.
every year since college "It doesn't really play into why we go out," she said of the historical significance. "It's mostly just a chance to get together with friends and celebrate."
Cinco de Mayo is often confused with Mexican Independence Day, Sept. 16. Traditionally Cinco de Mayo is celebrated with fiestas, sporting events, parades, mariachi music, dancing, picnics and beauty contests.
Rico said more people should be educated about the holiday.
"It puts responsibility on Mexicans in the U.S. to educate others that it's not a day only to get drunk, but to celebrate culture ar.1. diversity," he said.
— Edited by Kevin Flaherty
CINCO DE MAYO FESTIVITIES
What: The Hispanic American Leadership Organization will have a table with music, confetti eggs and information. There will also be cultural dancing by Monica Guevara, Topeka junior.
Where: Wescoe Beach
When: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
What: A Cinco de Mayo party hosted by Hispanic fraternity Sigma Lambda Beta, Hispanic sorority Sigma Lambda Gamma, Delta Gamma and Delta Chi Where: The courtyard of Jayhawker Towers When: 6 p.m.
What: Beta Theta Pi fraternity will hold a benefit dinner featuring Mexican food and concert for the Jubilee Cafe
Where: Dinner- First United Methodist Church, 946 Vermont St. Concert- Liberty Hall, 642 Massachusetts St.
When: Dinner- 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., Concert- 7:30 p.m.
Please $5 for dinner $5 for the concert
空
Cost: $5 for dinner, $5 for the concert
y
.