thursday, february 12, 2004
the university daily kansan
3A
Center to revive red,blue on Friday
By Patrick Cady
pcady@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Fridays could be more colorful if people at the Center for Campus life had their way.
An unofficial initiative that began two years ago urged people to wear red and blue every Friday to help support the University. It had limited success at first then faded away, Angie Carr, director of greek life, said.
Now, a campaign looks to resurrect this program.
The Center for Student Life has begun putting out fliers in an effort to re-publicize the day.
But the hues of inspiration have faded.
"I think it has lost some of its
The idea originally began about two years ago to help show spirit during the fall when athletic events were more scarce, Carr said. It was also a way to show off the University's distinctive blue color, which wasn't found anywhere else in the Big 12 conference.
oomph," said Carr, who was one of the creative forces behind the campaign.
Danny Kaiser, director of the Center for Student Life, said the program was an easy way to promote the last class day before a football game.
When students and, mainly, faculty and staff did take part in the Red and Blue day, people found ways to show the spirit with the colors and also prominently wear the Jayhawk logo, Kaiser said.
Those in the maze and blue might be seen in the maze of offices near the Center for Campus Life, which is in the Kansas Union on Level four.
Though some said that the color day might help school spirit, Katey Birge, Denver sophomore, said she would experience it with a sense of deia-vu.
Lisa Brunette, Monterrey Calif, sophomore, works in the Habitat for Humanity office that is also on Level four.
"I think it will go over pretty well," Birge said. "But I think it's kinda high schoolish."
Susan Henry, Fort Scott junior,
said she saw another advantage in
showing University pride.
Henry, a receptionist at the Center for Campus Life, said it would be a good way to support the school without inflaming conflict in the midst of already heated rivalries such as shirts such as "Muck Fizzou" might.
After much brainstorming and former success this has a great chance of unifying the campus, Carr said.
Whether Red and Blue day will come back again is yet to be seen, but students might have an easier time choosing their clothes come Fridays.
"It would be fun to see how many people did it," Brunnete said.
Edited by Guillaume Doane
New bill reopens polling site question
By Andy Marso
amarso@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
After nearly four hours of debate last week, it seemed as if Student Senate had finalized the location of voting sites for the spring elections. However, a new bill that passed last night in committee to expand the number of poling sites will extend the debate one more week.
The full Senate will vote on the bill next Wednesday night.
A separate bill, which passed in last week's Senate meeting, provided for polliting sites at Mrs. E's, Wescoe Beach, GSP-Corbin Hall and the Student Fitness Restoration Center; in addition to online voting from non-residential computer labs on campus.
Kristen Seibel, Association of University Residence Halls senator, authored last night's bill which would include computers in academic resource centers at the residence halls and Jayhawkower Towers as voting sites.
"I think it's going to help turnout," Seibel said. "The more places you provide, the more you
will increase voter turnout just because of access."
Some senators raised questions about the possibility of voter fraud in the academic resource centers.
Marynell Jones, freshman and sophomore CLAS senator, said there would be less oversight in the academic resource centers as opposed to on-campus computer labs such as the one in Budig Hall, which would be easier for the Elections Commission to monitor.
Seibel said that fraud wouldn't be an issue because the academic resource centers were staffed by student employees. She said that the Department of Student Housing would send out a memo to inform those employees of election policies.
Some senators thought the bill was unfair because it excluded scholarship hall computer labs, which are unstaffed, but are less accessible because the scholarship halls are often locked to nonresidents.
"The distinction between residence halls and scholarship halls is improper," Luke Thompson, freshman senator, said. "Both are on campus and while one may be monitored by untrained personnel, the other is monitored by a door code."
STUDENT SENATE PROFILE
Name: Patrick Quinn
Year: Senior
Hometown: Andover
Name: Patrick Quinn
Year: Senior
Hometown: Andover
Position: Off-campus senator Years in Senate: One
Senate accomplishment he's most proud of: Establishing Jayhawk Express and providing supplies to Chess Club.
Goals within Senate:
Maintain financial responsibility,
ensure KU students will see
their money in action.
Where he would be
Wednesday nights if he wasn't
in Senate: Playing poker with his
buddies.
Andy Marso
Thompson said that even if the bill included scholarship halls he still probably wouldn't have supported it. He said his ideal plan would have voting only at polling sites at Mrs. E's, the Recreation Center and Wescoe.
"All three offer reasonable proximity to residence halls."
Thompson said, "and it would guarantee that everyone at least had the same opportunity."
Seibel said her bill was fair because students who lived in residence halls often went home between classes and wouldn't have as much free time to vote from polling sites or non-residential computer labs.
Tara Schupner,Lenexa junior and resident of the Jayhawker Towers, said she would be more likely to vote if she could do it from the Towers' academic resource center.
Schupner said that she had a busy schedule during the day and that she would have more time to vote when she went home at night. She added that she didn't think being able to vote from the academic resource centers would be unfair to students who lived outside the residence halls.
"I don't think the issue is an unfair advantage." Schupner said. "The issue is that if you want a democratic system you want as many people to vote as possible."
— Edited by Paul Kramer
Budget cuts will not cost students a dime
By Anna Clous and Ron Knox editor@kansan.com Kansan staff writers
Editor's note: Because of a production error in yesterday's The University Daily Kansan, "State budget woes" is running below in its entirety.
But it won't come out of students'ockets — vet.
Cuts in the University of Kansas budget for next year will snatch money from the coffers of student housing, parking and Student Senate.
After Gov. Kathleen Sebelius announced her budget proposal Jan. 19, provosts feared that cuts to fee-based programs — programs students pay for — would force them to raise student fees next year.
Other fee-based programs include Continuing Education, Recreation Services and services at Watkins Memorial Heath Center.
The housing department would have used the money saved for maintenance on residence hall boilers and roofs that required attention this summer, Stoner said.
If the cuts last only one year, fee-based programs such as housing will use money set aside for necessary maintenance to cover the deficit, said Ken Stoner, director of student housing.
Stoner said using saved money would help maintain student fees near their current level, but if next year's budget requires housing to cut more money, student fees will most likely increase.
The budget cuts are a result of Sebelius' mandate to raise state employee's pay by 3 percent next year, which, along with other pay increases, will cost the University more than $9 million.
The pay raise resulted in a $7.7 million shortfall, some of
The budget cuts are a result of Sebelius' mandate to raise state employee's pay by 3 percent next year, which, along with other pay increases, will cost the University more than $9 million.
which will be cut from feebased and other University programs.
University programs will pay for the deficit from saved money set aside for projects or needs, Lindy Eakin, vice provost, said.
Eakin said this was not an unprecedented act. He said the money paid this year would come back to the University next year through a budget increase unless budget troubles continue.
A portion of student fees is set aside for maintenance, Stoner said.
Budget cuts forced housing to lose almost $350,000 from its operating budget, while parking, another fee-based program, lost nearly $19,000.
Fee-based programs aren't alone. Student Senate will loose $8,318 from its budget next year. Linda Mullins, vice provost, said Student Senate had not decided where the money would come from.
Senate passed a resolution about Sebelius' budget proposal Feb. 4, saying it supported the budget but opposed her methods, namely the possibility that the University will rely on student fees.
The resolution called Sebelius' increase in employee salaries an unfunded mandate, and asked the Legislature to block future budgets that use students' tuition and fees for other purposes.
Edited by Ashley Arnold