University Daily Kansan / Thursday, January 15, 1987
3A
Local Briefs
Former student gets prison term in cocaine trial
William P. Wiedeman, 23, was sentenced Tuesday in Douglas County District Court to four to 10 years in prison for one count of selling cocaine.
Wiedeman, a Leawood resident and former president of the KU Interfraternity Council, withdrew a not guilty plea in December and pleaded guilty to the charge.
Wiedeman was one of 21 people indicted in Lawrence in July on cocaine-related charges.
Hashinger resident attacked and robbed
An 18-year-old resident of Hashinger Hall was attacked while sleeping in her unlocked room Tuesday, KU police reported.
A person came into the resident's room about 1:40 a.m. the woman with an unknown object and stole her purse.
A member of the housekeeping staff found the purse, minus $30, later that day in a Hashinger trash can.
The woman received treatment for cuts at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.
The police have no suspects, said Lt. Jeanne Longaker of the KU police.
KU plant cuts costs by switching to oil
Those recently walking between Stauffer-Flint Hall and Watson Library in the early morning may have noticed a light blue smoky haze in the air. One passerbear said the haze smell like burning sulfur and reminded her of chemistry class.
The haze, which does contain sulfur, is the result of an economy measure taken at facilities operations' physical plant. To cut costs, the plant began Dec. 1 to burn oil instead of natural gas.
Richard L. Perkins, associate director of utility management, said that energy usage fluctuated, but estimated that using oil would save the University $456,000 during the next year.
Campus and Area
Robert Porter, associate director of physical plant maintenance, said the plant would continue to burn oil for the rest of the fiscal year.
KU debaters receive first place honors
KU debaters were busy during the semester break winning honors at debate tournaments at the University of Southern California. California State University Fullerton, and Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
John Culver, Overland Park senior, and George Lopez, Wichita junior, won the First Place Swing award for the best overall record at the combined USC and Cal-Fullerton tournaments. Their record was 14 wins and two losses in competition with 108 teams from across the country.
Culver was the second-ranked speaker at both tournaments.
Other KU teams captured fifth place at both tournaments and placed third and fourth at the University of Miami tournament.
From staff and wire reports.
GradEx members move to fire Braa
An attempt by four members of the Graduate Student Executive Committee to fire their executive coordinator has stalled, making it difficult for GradEx to operate, several of its members said yesterday.
By PAUL BELDEN
Staff writer
The main obstacle to the firing is GradEx's constitution, which does not explicitly give the option.
Dean Braa, Lawrence graduate student and the coordinator, said the four members who voted Dec. 17 to dismiss him didn't consider the coordinator, but the three who disagreeed
things right now like scheduling meetings with the Gov. Mike Hayden's aides or gearing up for the legislative sessions.
Braa said he couldn't do some important
David Hardy, GradEx member and one of his team to fire Brian, said. "This is definitely going to happen."
GradEx consists of seven graduate students elected by the graduate student body to lobby for the interests of graduate students. The executive coordinator is hired by GradEx and works 20 hours a week to further its goals.
In a letter dated Dec. 9, 1986, and addressed to Frances Horowitz, dean of the graduate school and vice chancellor for research, graduate studies and public service, GradEx members Michael Anderson, Michael Foubert,
Cathy Schifer and Hardy stated their intention to fire Braa.
In an appendix to the letter, they listed several charges against Braa.
Among the charges in the appendix were that Braa had failed to make himself adequately acquainted with appropriate individuals and bodies of the University, that he was often inaccessible, and kept sporadic office hours at best and that he displayed an alarming ignorance of the governance structures of the University.
Their attempt to fire Braa also was stalled by the objections of three GradEx members who said Braa had not been given a fair job evaluation.
Ted Vaggalis, GradEx member, said, "At no
time were we three members of GradEx ever informed that there was some dissatisfaction with Dean's job. Nobody ever mentioned anything. Then one day in the beginning of December, I hear these rumors that people are upset with the way Dean is doing things."
Vaggalis said that Braa had done nothing to warrant being fired, and Braa agreed.
"There's this sort of vague stuff about not being visible enough — I mean, how do you respond to that? I don't know," Braa said. "I would be the first to admit that I'm not the kind of person that's the belle of the ball. You know, the kind that puts on his three-piece suit and goes to all these functions and makes a splash and shakes a lot of hands."
Report suggests stronger Regents
Staff writer
By JOHN BUZBEE
TOPEKA-A state task force wants to make the Board of Regents bigger, stronger and faster, but an education official said it would be creating a "monster."
"It's very easy to draw charts, but a lot more difficult to have to live
■ See related story p. 1B
with them," said Richard Roh, newly elected member of the state Board of Education. "I think we're building a monster here."
But State Sen. Wint Winter Jr., R-
Lawrence, said the state's higher
education system already was a
relief.
A report by a task force on higher education was discussed yesterday in Topeka at a joint meeting of the Regents and the Board of Education. Winter is a member of the task force, but did not attend the meeting.
"The old dinosaur doesn't want to change into a greyhound," he said.
The task force's report recommended that control of community colleges, state universities and Washburn University be consolidated under the Regents. The Board now runs community colleges. The city of Topeka and several state agencies control Washburn. Winter said the plan would not increase state control or funding of Washburn, which he opposes.
"I don't expect the entrenched educational establishment to warmly embrace a proposal that is innovative and disrupts some of the comfortable ways of life of the past," he said.
Martine Hammond, director of academic affairs for the Regents, said after the meeting that the Regents were very concerned about the cost of the program.
The Board should stick to governing state primary and secondary schools. Winter said.
Winter said the program would cost less than $50,000, although two new state boards would be created.
Also at the meeting, officials discussed a plan to help universities, such as the University of Kansas, that have state funding lagging behind increasing enrollment. The plan, created by a special legislative committee, would not penalize universities that have a slight decline in
Tom Rawson, director of planning and budget for the Regents said after the meeting that the plan would cost the state about $1.1 million.
Another report at the meeting suggested that too few minority students were learning to be teachers. Dave McDonald, assistant to the commissioner of education, said recent tests revealed that minorities represented only 2 percent of students seeking teaching certificates in Kansas.
KU and city collaborate to celebrate King's day
Staff writer
By PEGGY O'BRIEN
KU and Lawrence officials plan to commemorate the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. with a parade down Jayhawk Boulevard, a program in the Kansas Union and other events throughout Lawrence. For the second year, Kansas will observe King's birthday as a state holiday on Monday.
The parade, sponsored by the KU office of minority affairs, will begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Chi Omega fountain and continue down Jayhawk Boulevard to the Kansas Union. At noon, the program will begin in Alderson Auditorium.
The office of minority affairs also will sponsor the program called "The Dream Continues." The program includes a dramatic reading by April Hall, Shawnee sophomore. She will read "The Drum Major Instinct," a famous sermon by King.
Dale Cushinberry, director of the office of minority affairs at Washburn University, will make general presentations on inspirational Gospel voices will sing
"The more the day is recognized by anyone, campus offices, local, state and national, the more people will realize the light we hold him in," said Darcy Maddox, office manager for the office of minority affairs.
Organizers expect about 300 people, including staff, faculty and students. There are more than 250 people participated.
A drama and fashion demonstration will be at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow at New York Elementary School, 936 New York St. A dinner honoring King will start at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in the Kansas Room of the Kansas Union. A musical program, highlighting groups from the era when King lived, will be at 6 p.m. Sunday at St. Luke AME Church, 900 New York St. And a special commemoration program will be at noon Monday at the Ninth Street Baptist Church, Ninth and Ohio streets.
The Lawrence City Commission passed a proclamation Tuesday night honoring what would have been King's 58th birthday.
Because King's birthday is a state holiday and not an academic holiday, classes will meet as scheduled Monday.
Shannon Nelson, left, Chicago sophomore, congratulates Janna Johns, Oklahoma City sophomore, after Johns learned that she was invited to pledge the Gamma Phi Beta sorority, 1339 W. Campus Road. Pledge bids were presented Tuesday night at the Holiday Inn Holidone, 200 McDonald Drive.
561 pledge in spring rush
Staff writer
By LISA A. MALONEY
Despite the Panhellenic Association's plans to hold next year's sorority rush in August instead of January, the number of women who registered, rushed, and pledged sororites at the University of Kansas remained about the same as last year's totals, the Panhellenic president said yesterday.
Formal rush began Jan. 8 and ended Tuesday.
Although 1,129 women registered and only 282 actually went through rush, Mary Kelly, Webster Groves, Ms. senior and Panhellenic president, said the number of women who withdrew from
rush was comparable to last year when 1,017 women registered and 830 rushed.
"Usually, these women just don't have very good grades," said Sara Mallatt, Madison, Wis., senior and Panhellenic vice president for membership. All KU sororites have a minimum grade point average for their members, ranging from 2.0 to 2.6.
Because rush will be held in the fall next year, the women who withdrew because of grades will only have to wait a semester before they can rush, instead of a year.
"I wouldn't say it accounts for the bulk withdrawn." Mallatt said. "It's more like an added benefit."
The decision to change to a fall rush was recommended by the National Panhellenic Council, Mallall said, and passed by a 3/4 vote by all 14 KU sororites in October 1985.
Council members thought a fall rush would help to introduce college life to rushees, eliminate stereotyping of sororities and get women pledged into the system sooner, she said.
All rushees paid a $75 fee at the November registration, which included a non-refundable $40 administration fee and a $45 housing fee that was returned to those who did not rush.
Pledge Gifts
P. BETA PHI KANSAS UNIVERSITY LAWRENCE, KANSAS
Show your pledges you care with a scene of a KU Sorority, Fraterity, or the campus. We also carry note cards.
VORMEHR GALLERY
2859 Four Wheel Dr.
Round Town Mall.
749-0744 or 842-3739
PADRE ISLAND
March 13-22, 1987
Includes 7 nights lodging
at the Hilton Resort
Take our bus or drive
Choose from four packages:
Welcome Party
Choose from four packages:
$190 hotel only
$205 condo only
$274 hotel with bus
$299 condo with bus
Souvenir Beach Towel
$75 before Feb. 6 reserves your space.
Sponsored by Student Union Activities, 864-3477