friday, march 12, 2004
news
the university daily kansan 3A
3A
Pay raise proposal still under debate
By Ron Knox
rknox@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Talks remained friendly at a meeting between University of Kansas faculty and Kansas legislators Wednesday, in spite of a Senate committee's earlier attempt to remove state pay raises from Gov Kathleen Sebelius' proposed budget.
"We spoke about the issue very briefly," said Mark Nesbitt-Daly, unclassified staff representative, referring to a Senate Ways and Means committee's decision to remove a 3 percent pay raise mandate from the budget proposal last week.
"We just went to thank them for their continued support of higher education," Nesbitt-Daly said.
Although the Senate committee voted to remove the proposal last week, the Kansas House of
Representatives has yet to vote on Sebellun' budget.
Repeated money shortages in the state budget have prevented the state from giving employees a pay raise for three years.Three years of missing raises have left employees with the rising cost of living and no way to compensate for it, Nesbitt-Daly said.
"If the 3 percent raise doesn't go through, it's going to be devastating across the board," he said.
Every time University faculty tried to discuss the pay raises, the conversation became heated. Nesbitt-Daly said.
The proposed pay raise, as with many aspects of Sebelius' proposed budget, has become a partisan issue, said Rep. Paul Davis, (D-Lawrence).
"The Republican leadership has done everything they can to make sure the Governor doesn't score any political victories," Davis said.
Davis said if the budget passed in the House, the two legislative chambers would have to work out a compromise, which would probably result in a pay increase of less than the proposed 3 percent.
The Ways and Means Committee removed the proposal to consider it separately from the rest of Sebelius' budget, said Janie Rutherford in the Senate President's office.
She said such proposals were usually removed and placed in a separate bill. A vote on that bill will decide the fate of the mandate that will cost nearly $26 million to fund.
Of that $26 million, the 3 percent pay increase would create a $7.7 million budget deficit at the University next year. University administration would have to remove money from several programs on campus, including housing and parking departments, to cover the budget gap.
While a smaller pay increase for state employees could help the University with a struggling budget, both classified staff and faculty fear this to be a case of history repeating itself.
"It wouldn't be the first time we haven't gotten a pay raise," said Kathy Jansen, spokesperson for KU classified senate.
The missing money compelled classified staff to vote last October in favor of removal from the state budget, opting for the University's instead. Classified Senate leadership sent the proposed change to the Board of Regents, which was weighing the issue.
Jansen said the Senate setback wasn't the end of their pursuit of the much-needed raise.
"It's not dead until the session is over. It's frustrating, but there is more work to be done," Jansen said.
Edited by Guillaume Doane
Brazilian Carnaval comes to Lawrence
By Marc Ingber
mingber@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The Brazilian version of Fat Tuesday will be celebrated tomorrow.
The Brazilian Student Association, BRASA, will host Carnaval tomorrow night at Abe and Jake's Landing, 8 E. Sixth St.
This Fat Tuesday celebration is being celebrated after the start of Lent because the band, Tambores of Brazil, featuring singer Dandara, was tough to schedule. This was because the group was already committed to other performances when it was contacted by BRASA.
Marcelo Moreira, Recife, Brazil, junior and BRASA treasurer, said scheduling conflicts caused the celebration to take place out of season almost every year, so the delayed celebration is not really out of the ordinary.
Tambores of Brazil's sound
"People will be surprised by how different this year is going to be. It will be a Carnaval to remember."
Marcelo Moreira
Reclife, Brazil, junior and BRASA treasurer
has origins in the northeastern part of Brazil, said Mariana Theodoro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, junior and BRASA vice president.
Moreira, said the band will bring a new vibe to the celebration.
"People will be surprised by how different this year is going to be," he said. "It will be a Carnaval to remember."
Terena Silva, Recife, Brazil, sophomore and BRASA social chairwoman, said one of the BRASA's strengths was creating the same vibe in Lawrence that
people felt while celebrating Carpaval in Brazil.
"When people go, they realize how similar it is," she said.
The similar vibe is a relief for Moreira because Carnaval is one of the times that he starts missing his country the most.
"My favorite part is seeing all the Brazilians in the same situation as I am coming together to celebrate," he said. "We're all in the same boat."
He would like to have a turnout similar to last year's event.
"It was packed last year," he said. "It was one-in, one-out early in the night."
He said he expects about 1,000 people to attend.
CARNAVAL IN LAWRENCE
Antonio Querasian, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, junior, will be celebrating the event in Lawrence for the first time. He said in order to get in the Carnaval spirit he was going to dress festively, whether other
This will be the second year in a row that Carnaval will be held at Abe and Jake's Landing.
What: The Brazilian Student Association's Carnaval celebration
Where: Abe & Jake's Landing, 8 E. Sixth St.
When: 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. tomorrow night
Cost: $10
people do or not.
"I am going to wear a costume, but I'd guess only about 10 percent will be dressed up," he said.
CHAMBERLAIN: Soldier faces hardships to help improve Iraq
end of major military action in Iraq. The war ended, but Chamberlain's work had just begun.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
Edited by Michelle Rodick
He soon found himself on a military cargo plane to Baghdad.
"My hamstring is cramping because I'm on a C-130 with a pallet of duffel bags and a rucksack in front of me. So my legs hurt, my foot is numb and I'm glad these earplugs work because I'd like to go to sleep now." Chamberlain said. "I wasn't sure what to think and I don't think anyone's really sure what to think, you just kind of deal with things as they come."
From Baghdad, Chamberlain went on to Mosul, the capital of the northern province of Ninevah. He was trained as a fire support officer, which made him responsible for providing mortar and artillery cover for infantry. But because most of the open combat was over, Chamberlain's duties evolved to playing an active role in rebuilding Mosul and the surrounding communities.
Chamberlain helped gather intelligence, made civil service assessments and supervised reconstruction projects. He said he worked closely with Iraqis.
"There are a lot of Iraqis who are ready to work hard to make their country a better place." Chamberlain said. "We as a coalition are just trying to facilitate them rebuilding their own society in the way that they want to do it."
He was especially proud of returning sanitation services to a small community near Mosul.
Trash was building up in the streets and kids were playing amid backed-up sewage because the government was in transition. Chamberlain helped arrange a $4,000 contract to hire workers and buy equipment. A local Iraqi leader then took charge of the project, to clean up the city, provide jobs and enable local leaders to take ownership of the reconstruction process.
Chamberlain said he never
questioned his mission.
"I need soldiers to trust me implicitly and similarly I owe that to my chain of command," Chamberlain said. "We can't make judgments on things we don't have full information on. That's how we looked at it."
Chamberlain said the most difficult thing about his service was being separated from "the love and affection of my beautiful, vivacious wife." He and Kristen had been married four months when he left.
Chamberlain returned from Iraq six weeks ago. He was in a re-integration program for the first month and is now on leave, enjoying his time with Kristen and roaming the campus again. Kristen will accompany him to Oxford in October when he goes to finish his master's degree in forced migration, the study of returning war refugees to their native countries. He plans to do his thesis on how to help child soldiers adjust in post-war societies.
Yesterday he talked to groups of ROTC cadets for most of the afternoon. Jesse Hall, Caney freshman, was one of the cadets.
"He's definitely an inspiration and for him to take this time he has off and come out here and talk to us is great." Hall said. "I really liked his second comment, that we're not only training for combat, we're also training to prepare to train other troops."
Chamberlain told the cadets that his experience in Iraq had taught him that light infantry training was essential to all military personnel. He said they had to be prepared for a non-linear battlefield where there was no safe rear area.Because of their ROTC training they would be expected to teach other soldiers.
Capt. Brad Bohan watched as the cadets absorbed and related to Chamberlain's words.
"Last year he was a college student; this year he's a combat vet," Bohan said.
— Edited by Michelle Rodich
HOW DO WE DEFINE "DEDICATION"?
TALK TO OUR NURSES.
The communities we serve expect the best care. Nothing less will do. At Lovelace Sandia Health System, our secret is people. Talented people dedicated to providing care with compassion and hope, while practicing superior teamwork. As a nationally recognized health care organization, we look to professionals like you to share in the rewarding challenges. Put your talents to the test.
Medical/Surgical • Telemetry • Multispecialty Unit • Step Down Unit ICU • Emergency Room • Labor and Delivery • Ortho • Medical Rehab
Lovelace Sandia Health System offers competitive salary and benefits. To apply for a position, submit your resume to: Human Resources Department, 1258 Ortiz Drive S.E., Albuquerque, NM 87108; E-mail: nurseserecruiter@lovelacesandia.com
Now seeking New Grads in the following departments:
www.lovelacesandia.com
LOVELACE SANDIA HEALTH SYSTEM
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Albuquerque Regional Medical Center * Lovelea Medical Center * Lovelea Sanda Behavioral Health Northeast Healts US Medical Center * Rehabilitation Hospital of NM * West Mea Medical Center