TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 1996
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS 864-4810
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
ADVERTISING 864-4358
SECTION A VOL.102.NO.110
(USPS 650-640)
TODAY KANSAN
SPORTS
Rough night
The Kansas women's basketball team suffered a 75-47 defeat last night against Colorado. Page1B
OPINION
Between us and them
Lack of diversity in curriculum contributes to racist attitudes in the classroom. Page 4A
Transportation for the elderly
The Older Women's League is advocating a citywide transportation system. Page 3A
CAMPUS
WORLD
Hamas strikes Israel again
The militant Muslim group detonates a bomb outside Tel Aviv's largest shopping center. Page 6A
WEATHER
CLOUDY BUT NICE
High 50° Low 40°
Weather: Page 2A.
INDEX
Opinion ... 4A
National News ... 5A
World News... 6B
Scoreboard... 2B
Horoscopes... 6B
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.
Letter thief may be caught
Police arrest Arkansas man
By Amy McVey
Kensen staff writer
KU police arrested a North Little Rock, Ark., man yesterday in connection with the theft of six historical letters valued at $9800 from Spencer Research Library.
Robert H. Smith, a historical writer, was booked on a charge of one felony count of theft in the Douglas County Jail at 2:15 p.m.
after police obtained a warrant for his arrest.
Sergeant Chris Keary of KU police said that police had been investigating the theft of three letters signed by William Quantrill, who attacked and burned much of Lawrence in 1863, and letters from Ulysses S. Grant, Emmett Dalton and former U.S. President Grover Cleveland. Keary said that the letters allegedly were stolen sometime between Jan. 11 and Feb. 22.
Through investigations by KU police and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, and with assistance from the Tri-County Drug Unit, police came to the conclusion that Smith was involved.
"We talked to the library, and we saw who had access to the documents, and we went
Police then got a warrant based on information obtained through the investigation, Keary said.
"When we found he was going to be in town today, we made contact with him." he said.
from there." Kearv said.
Keary said that none of the letters had been recovered, but that police are trying to recover them.
William Delaney, the KBI's special agent supervisor of the Kansas City region, said that the stolen letters weren't connected to the theft of several Civil War-related artifacts from museums in the tri-state region in the past 18 months.
"We'll look at this case, and any other case occurring at the time, but we don't know of
"All of this material is here for research," Williams said. "The kinds of things that were taken are irrenaceable."
any connection," Delaney said.
Sheryl Williams, librarian at the Spencer Research Library, said that thefts of this kind hurt KU students.
Williams said that although the letters' value was estimated at $9800, an exact value could not be determined.
The library is now reviewing its policies concerning reader registration and security.
Williams said that this kind of theft was different than other thefts occurring on campus.
"You can buy another computer, but buying another Quantrill letter is impossible," she said.
Agony of defeat
Kansas women's basketball coach Marian Washington and junior guard Tamaecka Dixon hang their heads in the closing moments of last night's championship game of the Big Eight Tournament. See story, page 1B.
GTA, University hearing begins after many delays
Union's complaint before state board likely to result in mediated bargaining
By Jason Strait
Kansan staff writer
After three months of delay, the hearing to settle the KU graduate teaching assistants' complaint against the University of Kansas began yesterday, and will end with what legislation either said, or did not say.
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University officials met with GTA union members and the Kansas Association of Public Employees at Robinson Court at Washburn University in Topeka.
The hearing will be decided by a member of the Kansas Public Employee Relations Board.
The hearing will determine whether the University's decision denying a 1996 salary increase to GTAs is prohibited under the University's policy.
The hearing originally was postponed because Scott Stone, executive director of the association of public employees, said he needed more time to gather key witnesses.
Tom Hutton, director of University Relations, said Adin's health had improved and that he would tastify either today or tomorrow.
The hearing was postponed a second time because Marc Adin, director of Human Resources, was ill.
mitted under the state's public employee labor relations law.
The GTA union filed the complaint in August because the GTAs
Stone said the hearing's key issue was whether a legislative mandate that explicitly said GTAs were not to receive a pay raise existed.
date and that the denial for a raise was a retaliatory message for the GTAs unionizing.
State Rep. Ralph Tanner, R-Baldwin City, and State Rep. David Adkins, R-Leawood, will testify for the University today and tomorrow.
Hutton said the University's decision to deny the GTA raise was not retaliatory, but instead an interpretation of the budget as a legislative mandate.
Hutton said that it was uncertain what would be accomplished if there were conflicting stories from legislators on both sides.
did not receive the same 3.5 percent raise that faculty got last January.
State Rep. Rocky Nichols, D-Topeka, testified yesterday on behalf of the GTA union.
Both sides have legislators testifying for them.
"I don't know what will happen other than it will paint a muddy picture of what the intent was," Hutton said. "Hopefully we can get past this and move on to negotiating."
He said that the GTA union claims there was no man-
"I don't know what will happen other than it will paint a muddy picture of what the intent was."
Tom Hutton
Director of University Relations
The GTA union presented its case yesterday, and the University will present its today and tomorrow.
Stone said that no matter what the University's witnesses said regarding the legislative mandate, concrete proof already existed.
"I felt fairly good about it," Stone said. "They're going to go into why there is legislative intent. But the bottom line is the proviso doesn't say 'no raiser.'"
Stone said that a variety of things could happen if the board ruled in favor of the GTA union, but the University being forced to give the $160,000 necessary for the raises probably would not be one of them.
He said the most likely scenario would be the two sides would go back to bargaining under the board's guidance.
"Frankly, I would be a little surprised if that happened," he said.
Lone student shares views on KU buses
Transportation board meeting discussed routes
By Nicole Kennedy Kansan staff writer
Only one student showed up to voice her concerns about KU on Wheels at the transportation board's route hearings yesterday.
Anne Michels, Lawrence graduate student, said she was afraid the East Lawrence route she depended on for transportation to campus might be cut.
The board met at 5 p.m. in the Walnut Room at the Kansas Union to discuss bus routes.
"It's kind of depressing to think about it, but we do have students who live there and don't have cars and need to get to campus," Michels said.
"The board is always open to suggestions," he said. "This is a great way for students to come in and voice their opinions, but as you can see, there weren't many voices out tonight."
Ron Vanderslice, transportation board coordinator, said he was disappointed by the low turnout, but could not speculate as to why so few people showed up.
However, attending the meeting was important to Michels.
Michels said she has been riding the bus route for the past six months. She does not own a car and recently bought a house in East Lawrence that she had chosen specifically
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Michels asked the board to consider cutting down on the amount of time it takes for the East Lawrence bus to get to campus. The bus is the only one in the KU on Wheels system that takes a full hour to complete its route.
ELDERY: League to advocate
public accountability #46
because of its proximity to the bus stop.
The East Lawrence route is often examined during the annual hearings, since most of its business comes from people riding it from residence halls.
Vanderslice said most of its ridership came from picking up students on Daisy Hill, taking them to campus and taking students from campus to the Oliver Hall stop. September 1995 ridership numbers indicate that on average 48.97 students board the bus each hour.
"I definitely don't think we'll be adding a new route," Vanderslice said. "We may be revamping routes."
However, despite the low ridership, he said it was too early to tell if the East Lawrence or any other bus routes would be cut from the system entirely.
Chris Ogle, owner of the Lawrence Bus Company, which provides KU on Wheels with its busses, will prepare a report to test the viability of making those route changes.
During the hearing, board members discussed extending the downtown Lawrence route and trimming the East Lawrence route to cut down on the time it takes for the buses to deliver students to campus. If these changes were made, it would not eliminate service to any riders.
Cutting corners on bus routes
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