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Kansan
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Wednesday, June 6, 2001
Features: Students explore aquatic Lawrence's aquatic entertainment.
SEE PAGE 1B
Inside: Kansan editors explain new format and focus.
SEE PAGE 3A
(USPS 650-640) • VOL. 111 NO. 136
For comments, contact Emily Hughey or Kyle Ramsey at 864-4810 or editor@kansan.com
WWW.KANSAN.COM
KU student found dead, suicide ruled as the cause
By Julie Carter
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The KU Public Safety Office's investigation of the death of University of Kansas student Manish Prasad determined that the death was a suicide, Sgt. Troy Mallen said.
A resident assistant and a friend found Prasad's body at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 9, in his room at Ellsworth Hall and then called the police.
Friends became concerned because they had not seen Prasad, Overland Park junior, since the night of May 7.
Prasad graduated from Shawnee Mission South High School in 1998 and was a scholarship student majoring in computer engineering at the University. He was also the public relations officer for the KU Association for Computing Machinery.
Jimmy Henderson, Overland Park junior and friend of Prasad, said the death came as a surprise.
Henderson said he and Prasad had been friends for nearly five years
"Manish was one of the best friends I ever had," Henderson said. "He was a unique guy. That is one of the reasons I liked him so much."
Henderson described Prasad as intelligent and honest. He said he didn't understand why Prasad chose suicide over other options.
"Friends are always willing to help out and talk." Henderson said.
"but and talk," Henderson said. Ken Stoner, director of student housing, said suicides or suicide attempts in the residence halls were rare occurrences, usually taking place only once every three or four years.
"The RAs are trained for this type of situation, but there is nothing quite like it when it actually happens. It's more traumatic and complicated when we have to deal with it." Stoner said.
Counselors from Counseling and Psychological Services were on hand to meet with friends and residents after the death.
"We just love him so much, this is very hard for us," said Mohan Prasad. Manish's father.
Students seeking counseling should contact CAPS at 864-2277.
- Edited by Jeff Denton
KU hires athletic consultant
Bv Laurie Sisk
By Laurie Sisk
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Kansas Chancellor Robert Mheenway has enlisted the services of the athletics director of one of the most successful collegiate athletic programs in the nation to assess the current state of KU athletics.
Ted Leland, athletic director at Stanford University, was hired by Hemenway on May 31 as a special consultant to examine the University's Athletics Department policies, procedures, strengths and weaknesses. Hemenway plans to use Leland's findings to expedite the process of finding a new athletics director. Bob Frederick, KU's current athletics director, announced his June 30 resignation in early May.
"Ted Leland's report will give our new athletics director an objective review of the department from outside eyes, 'Hemenway said in a statement. 'We often do this when a long-time leader leaves. It is a chance to get a fresh view.'"
Hemenway said Leland's review will start as soon as possible and should be completed before the end of the summer. Hemenway said he hopes to be able to provide the new athletics director with Leland's report when the director takes the post.
"His findings will provide a nice point of departure for the new athletics director and a set of information from one of the top athletics directors in the country. He will provide a nice tool for the new athletics director." Reggie Robinson, search committee chairman, said.
Robinson said that Leland will play no part in the actual selection of candidates but will provide valuable information about the department to the newly appointed director.
Since Leland became the athletic director at Stanford in 1991, the university has won 37 national team titles, including a record-setting six team titles in 1996-1997. Stanford also won the Sears Director's Cup, which honors the top athletic program in the nation, for the last six years.
"Ted Leland's report will give our new athletics director an objective review of the depart-
I reviewed of the depart ment from outside eyes."
ment from outside eyes." Robert Hemenway
Robert Hemenway Kansas Chancellor
Leland helped increase Stanford's assets and endowments from $62 million to $205 million during his 10-year reign. In addition, about $80 million in new or renovated athletic facilities were completed and funded during Leland's tenure.
Leland also served as the chairman of the NCAA Management Council.
A 16-member search committee and the executive search firm of Heidrick & Struggles are in the early stages of identi-
ying candidates to replace Frederick. The firm helped fill athletics directors vacancies at Arizona State, Louisiana State, Michigan and Notre Dame.
The most recent addition to the search committee is former KU running back Gale Sayers. Robinson said Sayers wasn't initially on the committee but expressed an interest and the committee was glad to have him aboard.
Robinson said Heidrick & Struggles would recommend candidates to Hemenway but will not release the candidates' names to the public.
"My hope is the only name you'll hear is the newly appointed athletics director's." Robinson said. "We like to keep a tight lid on the process and keep people's names out of the media."
Robinson said the search committee wants to have a list of viable candidates for Hemenway's consideration by late June or early July.
A kick in the park
Opposite a mass of high kicking legs, Chris Kennedy, Lawrence graduate student, and his students practice Tae Kwon Do. The class plans to meet Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 in front of Allen Fieldhouse. Photo by Thad Allender/KANSAN
Death prompts research
Professor completes research that slain student had started
By Karen Lucas
writer@kansan.com
Special to the Kansas
A University of Kansas professor will pay tribute to an undergraduate student who was killed last month in Costa Rica by completing the student's research there this summer.
Craig Martin, professor of biology, plans to spend a week in Golfito, a coastal city in southern Costa Rica, to finish the field work on tropical ferns that Shannon Martin was working on before her death.
"She was a wonderful person, highly intelligent, highly motivated and extraordinarily friendly to everybody," said Craig Martin, who supervised the Topeka senior's research project. "I want to finish the study in her honor."
Shannon Martin's project will be suitable for publication and she will be listed as its first author once Craig Martin, of no relation to Shannon, finishes the research in Golfito.
Shannon Martin, a major in biodiversity, ecology and evolutionary biology, was fatally stabbed in Golfito the second weekend in May. She went there for a brief research trip after finishing her final exams early and was scheduled to come back to Lawrence for graduation.
According to La Nacion, a newspaper in Costa Rica, Martin's body was found near the airport in the early morning of May 13. She previously had been with friends at a local disheteer. The paper also reported that a kitchen knife and shirt were among the items later seized during a police search of three houses and that two men and a woman were under investigation by law enforcement officers. Some hair samples were taken as well for analysis.
Golfito is also the site of a KU study abroad program, in which she participated during the spring 2000 Semester.
David Schmitz, Martin's boyfriend, and Susan Gronbeck Tedesco, interim director of study abroad, made a two-day trip to retrieve Martin's body.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in San Jose, Costa Rica, said Monday that she could not comment on the ongoing investigation.
"When Shannon was finally back here, it all became very real," Gronbeck-Tedesco said.
In addition to funeral services in Topeka, a dinner and service of remembrance and celebration were held at Ecumenical Christian Ministries, where Martin was a co-founder of the Thursday vegetarian lunches. The Rev. Thad Holcombe said a memorial tree would be dedicated at one of the lunches.
See FEAR on page 3A
Logging on to get the grade, Web site fixed but not perfected
By Brandy Straw
writer@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Students continually checking the University of Kansas Web site for their grades caused the Web site to respond slowly to all the requests, a representative from Academic Computing Services said.
Cathy Smith, director of Academic Computing Services, said most of the slowness occurred the week before May 21 when students began checking their grades. This caused the whole Web site to operate at a slow pace.
"I was dissapointed," said Matthew Zaller, Tulsa Senior. "The old one was easier."
Zaller said it took him more than a week to find his grades with the current system. "The system where you got it from the Registrar was a lot easier and a lot more convenient," he said. Zeller attributed this problem to congestion on the Web site.
pro fix the problem, the computing services staff analyzed system data to identify those parts of the Web site and pro
Lili Lewis, Blue Springs, Mo., senior, said she checked for her grades May 21 and 22 and did not have a problem accessing the Web site.
gram producing the most delays. These "bottlenecks" were identified and fixed so that the Web site was running much faster by Monday, May 21 — the deadline for faculty to turn in grades.
"It was slow, but easy," Lewis said
Smith said the University's home page and the Registrar's Web site also indicated that students should not check for their grades every five minutes. She said that the grades were updated only once a day.
Smith said the Web site had never experienced this type of problem because this was the first time students had access to their grades on the Web.
Academic Computing Services received about 100 to 150 complaints, Smith said.
The Web site has continued to respond quickly since the "bottlenecks" were fixed, she said.
"The solutions put in place will remain in effect for the future," Smith said.
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