friday, january 23, 2004
news
the university daily kansar
Organizers hope for better King Day turnout next year
By Jodie Kraftt
jkraftt@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Unlike past years, when the University of Kansas organized additional events to honor Martin Luther King Jr. Day, only one community celebration was held this year.
The Rev. William Dulin, MLK planning committee chairman, said factors such as cold temperatures and winter break caused low attendance numbers. About 350 people attended this year's event at the Lied Center compared to about 850 last year. The event's sponsored included the Ecumenical Fellowship, Inc., the University, Haskell Indian Nations University, city of Lawrence, Lawrence public schools and the Office of Multicultural Affairs.
Kansas football coach Mark
Mangino spoke at the annual banquet Saturday, followed by a gospel music concert Sunday and a service with keynote speaker Lisa Miree, Miss Black USA, at the Lied Center on Monday.
Tony Daniels, associate director at the Office of Multicultural Affairs, said timing was the main reason why the University didn't have its own celebration. Because the majority of students didn't return to Lawrence until this week, there was a lack of volunteers to help at events.
Kriston Guillot, Shawnee sophomore, was one the 350 people who attended the Lied Center event as a participant and volunteer. Guillot said King's vision of celebrating diversity and understanding one another extended beyond a single holiday.
Trey Allen, president of the Black Student Union, said he would like to see more events at
"But it's up to the students themselves," the Wichita sophomore said. "Students don't tend to appreciate that it's in memory of someone."
the University.
Dulin also said he thought some people didn't think the day was important.
"They think everything is fine."
Dulin said, "Everything is not fine."
Daniels said the University agreed to support the main community event this year, but there should also be campus events in the future.
"There needs to be varied celebrations, but they need to be scheduled at different times," Daniels said.
If next year's winter break overlaps Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Daniels said he would like to have a campus celebration to honor King during the first week of classes so students can
Kit Leffler/Kansan
Lisa Marie Miree, Miss Black USA 2001 to 2003, signs an autograph for Myzella Dowdell, Lawrence resident, at the mall. Luther King Jr. Holiday Celebration on Monday. Miree's platform includes values such as abstinence, minority struggles and positive self image.
Another future possibility could include combined efforts of the city
attend.
and the University, Dulin said.
"but you go with what you get."
"You hope one will be better than the last," Dulin said,
Edited by Nikki Nugent
Regents postpone their decision on classified employees
By Ron Knox
rknox@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The University of Kansas classified employees will now wait for at least a month as the Board of Regents mulls over their bid to change from the state's payroll to the University's.
The Regents temporarily set aside the classified employees' request last week to allow time to discuss the far-reaching changes the move would bring about, said Kip Peterson, public relations director for the Regents.
"The Regents didn't raise any concrete objections, but they had several additional questions," Peterson said.
With 54 percent in favor, classified employees voted in October to make the University their employer.
The Regents raised questions about the precedent the decision would set for other civil service employees at Kansas universities, questions that they will try to answer within the month.
And the Regents aren't the only ones with questions. The Kansas Association of Public Employees, the largest civil service union in the state, petitioned the Legislature last week to deny the Senate's Jan. 8 request for removal from the payroll.
Andy Sanchez, executive director of KAPE, said the change in employer would breach the classified employees' civil service duties and endanger their classified status.
"They're not classified, but they say they're still classified," Sanchez said. "They're going to be a different kind of animal, but nobody knows what it is."
"They're not classified, but they say their still classified."
With the change, the University would supervise the duties of its civil service employees without state supervision to ensure objective input.
Andy Sanchez executive director of KAPE
Without state supervision Sanchez said classified employees who the University administration regulated would falter in their ability to objectively perform their jobs, which range from operations monitoring to policing the campus.
The KU classified employees who voted for the change claimed their duties will not be altered, said Kathy Jansen, president of Classified Senate, the representative body of the classified employees
The change in employer would also change the way KU classified employees received their annual, or step, raises.
"We are not anti-union or labor." Jansen said. "We are not lackeys of the administration."
For years, Kansas allocated state employees an annual 2.5 percent step in salary. Since former Gov Bill Graves froze the increases three years ago, civil service employees have not received a raise.
At the same time, non-civil service employees have received raises based on the University instead of the state budget.
The University receives allocated money from the state to pay employees. With KU administrators signing classified employees' paychecks, it would assure some
annual raise in salary.
If the administration handled the raises, it would close off the process from external supervision. Sanchez said.
Under the new policy outlined in a Classified Senate proposal distributed to the Regents, a portion of the wage increase would be based on job performance and subject to evaluative procedures, the same as unclassified employees and faculty.
According to the proposal, two-thirds of the step increase would be based on satisfactory performance, the other third revolves around above average job performance, which will be evaluated by administrators.
The new raise guidelines concerned some classified employees, especially those who were also members of KAPE, Jansen said.
"Of course there's the concern
that 'my supervisor doesn't like me as much as the brown-nose sitting next to me." Jansen said. "That's to be expected."
Jansen said she thought uniform evaluatory procedures and oversight of the evaluations would quell any concerns or inconsistencies.
So could the extra money they receive. Gov. Kathleen Sebelius allocated a 3-percent increase for state employees next fiscal year, which begins this July.
But with University money, unclassified staff and faculty could receive raises of 5 and 6 percent, respectively, said Lindy Eakin, vice provost of administration and finance.
"That's quite a difference for the classified employees," Eakin said.
- Edited by Robert Perkins