FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 1996
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS 864-4810
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
ADVERTISING 864-4358
SECTION A VOL.102 NO.122
(USPS 650-640)
TODAY KANSAN
SPORTS
Sooners come to town
Pitching is of the utmost concern as Kansas prepares for Oklahoma. Page 1B
CAMPUS
Safe fun in the sun
Safe Break Week encourages healthy habits for students during spring break. Page 3A
FEATURES
Are you skipping class?
Your teachers know, and some professors are getting even. Page 6A
NATION
Grand Canyon gets flooded
WEATHER PARTLY SUNNY
The government is staging a flood to restore beaches and wildlife. Page 5A
High 56° Low 34°
Weather: Page 2A
INDEX
Opinion ... 4A
Nation/World ... 5A
Features ... 6A
Sports ... 1B
Scoreboard ... 2B
The University Daily Kansan is the student newspaper of the University of Kansas. The first copy is paid through the student activity fee. Additional copies of the Kansan are 25 cents.
THE MADNESS CONTINUES...
The Kansas men's and women's basketball teams will enter the third round of the NCAA tournament this weekend. Coach
Richard Devinkl and Steve Punge / KANSAN
Roy Williams and the men face Arizona at 9:40 p.m. tonight, and the women play Tennessee at 10:30 a.m. tomorrow.
Pep band superstitions play to tradition
By Nancy Friberg Special to the Kansan
Last year, the Kansas men's basketball pep band chose a gnarled, wooden stick to bring luck to the basketball team during the 1995 NCAA tournament. Coach Roy Williams kissed it before games, and everyone was certain that the lucky stick would help the team win a national championship.
The stick didn't help, and the Jayhawks went home early. Some band members burned the stick and put the ashes in a Coke can.
"I'm not superstitious. It's sort of like, 'I don't believe in UFO's, but they might be out there,'" said Thomas Stidham, director of the men's basketball pep band.
The pep band has many rituals and traditions. For every home game, members arrive in blue warm-up jackets and pants and begin to tune their instruments.
At 45 minutes before tipoff, Stidham raises his arm. With a swift downstroke, he signals the band to begin the tune they always start with, 'Sounds of Summer', a medley of '50s and '60s songs.
When the starters remove their warm-up suits, the band members remove their warm-up jackets. When the clock has ticked down to 40 seconds before game time, the band begins its musical countdown, playing Fighting Jayhawk, first at a slow tempo but speeding up so the last note is played with exactly 00:00 showing on the clock.
Richard Devinki / KANSAN
When the team comes on the court, the band stops whatever it is playing and breaks into the spirited tune "I'm a Jayhawk."
Jared Klein, Overland Park graduate student, said being in the band was a way to participate in the games without being a player.
Members of the Kansas men's basketball pep band have their own superstitions they follow during the season.
"In some small way, by playing in the pep band, I'm a part of the basketball tradition," Klein said.
Admission standards to increase
Senate bill establishes minimum requirements
By John Collar
Kansan staff writer
During the 2 1/2-hour debate, five amendments to the bill were proposed, but they all were defeated for fear of disrupting the delicate margin of approval that the bill had obtained in the House, supporters of the bill said.
TOPEKA — Without adding any amendments to the bill, the Kansas Senate yesterday gave tentative approval to a proposal that would establish minimum admissions standards at Regents universities.
The bill passed the House on Feb. 27 by a vote of 65-59. If the Senate had amended the bill, the House would have voted again on whether to agree with the changes.
Some senators argued that dismissing the amendments simply to avoid another House vote was stifling debate on the bill.
"I'm very concerned about the procedure that no one is happy with the bill, but it will be voted into law," said State Sen. Jerry Karr, D-Emporia.
Chancellor Robert Hemenway wants a change in the bill that would extend an exemption provision to out-of-
state students. This provision allows institutions to exempt 10 percent of freshmen from meeting the requirements. The exemption window now is open only to in-state students.
Opponents of the window argued that it was hypocritical and would be subject to abuses from large donors, alumni and athletes.
State Rep. Ralph Tanner, R-Baldwin City, who sponsored the bill, said the Legislature would have time to revisit this issue before the admissions requirements became effective in 2001.
"We have not had the highest expectations for our students."
Barbara Lawrence
state senator
R-Wichita
"Young people, as well as adults, live up or down to the expectations that we have of them," Lawrence said. "We have not had the highest expectations for our students."
During her opening remarks on the bill, State Sen. Barbara Lawrence, R-Wichita, said that the bill was necessary because students needed to reach for a higher standard.
Lawrence also tried to defuse the argument that the bill discriminated against poor students.
She said her experience as a teacher at inner-city schools had shown her that the prosperity of students' families often had nothing to do with students' motivation to succeed.
Other senators said the bill was elitist and would take away students' opportunities.
"Every student in the state of Kansas should have the opportunity to go to the school of their choice," said State Sen. Al Ramirez, R-Bonner Springs.
Ramirez also said that remedial courses should be eliminated at Regents institutions.
The measure would establish minimum admissions standards for students entering Regents institutions in the fall of 2001.
To be admitted, students would have to meet one of the following requirements:
Have a 2.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale.
Graduate in the top one-third of an accredited Kansas high school.
Score at least 21 on the ACT.
The bill is scheduled to receive a final vote during today's session.
Senate bill could end funding to student group
By Nicole Kennedy Kansan staff writer
Action would disband legislative board,add liaison to direct duties
Todd Moore, off-campus student senator, will submit a bill to the Student Senate office today that would eliminate the Student Legislative Awareness Board as a Senate body.
The bill calls for the disbanding of the board as a Senate board and the creation of a paid legislative liaison position to fulfill the board's duties.
Moore said the bill was intended to eliminate the board to cut through the bureaucracy and streamline communications between the student body president, the University Senate and the legislature.
According to a draft copy of the
bill, the student body president would appoint a liaison to gather information about State legislative issues that affect KU students. The president would then use that information to lobby in Topeka.
"They definitely grew too fast and were not able to manage their affairs as they should have," he said of the board.
Dave Stevens, the board's issues coordinator, said that eliminating the board was unnecessary and that if there was a communication problem between the board and Senate, then senators should have come to the board's meetings.
Jason Schreiner, the board's campus coordinator, agreed.
Schreiner said that Senate should not eliminate the board but could consider making changes in the board's policy manual to improve communications.
Wednesday night, the Senate finance committee voted during line-item allocation deliberations to deny the board the $2,740 that the group requested to pay for its activities next fall.
"From the sentiment I've got, this
Some finance members argued that they should not finance the board until Senate voted on the bill.
Alan Pierce, finance committee chairman, agreed.
Some finance committee members said that even if the bill passed and the board was eliminated as a Sen-
bill is going to pass no matter what we say," said Ward Cook, finance committee member.
The board receives some money from the options card. Students can sign the options card at enrollment and give money directly to the board. This year, the board received about $2,800 directly from students.
"People are knocking themselves out to sign onto this bill," Pierce said. "Regardless of what happens, SLAB is going to be a whole new organization that will already have their start-up money."
ate board, the organization still could exist and still would receive money from the options card.
However, Stevens said if the bill passed, the board could not exist as a student organization and would not receive money from the options card.
Stevens said he disagreeed with the finance committee's decision not to finance the board.
"I think it's unfortunate that the politics of the day are coming into conflict with the better, long-term policy making of the Student Senate." Stevens said.
The bill, and the finance committee's decision not to fund the board, will face Senate for approval April 10.