4a Opinion Thursday, March 15, 2001 Perspective For comments, contact Chris Borniger or Nathan Willis at 864-4924 or opinion@kansan.com Alternative Break provides clarity, gives meaning to college life have spent much of my college career waiting for my moment of clarity— waiting for my moment of clarity that longed-for instant to clue me in on why I am here and what I should do when I get out. I have sat through lectures and discussions, pulled all-nighters and taken ill-planned road trips. I have surprised myself, disappointed myself and baffled my parents. Yet, throughout all of these college clichés, my moment never seemed to come. Then, this past winter break — just when I had almost given up hope — the moment came in the form of a question: "Kate, have you ever been in a tornado?" Although I had to answer no, the question made me realize I wanted to teach. The person who asked this question was Irving Mendoza, a member of Carlos Arbolde's sixth grade humanities class. I spent five days at Arboleda's classroom in Tertulia, a bilingual charter school in Phoenix, where I went as part of an Alternative Winter Break trip. Irving was one of the many people I met on that trip whom I will never forget. Prior to my trip, I had a vague notion that I wanted to work with children someday. But my week in Tertulla turned this somewhat soft idea into a concrete one. Kate Williams guest columnist online@kansan.com During recess we swapped broken-bone stories, and during class I tried to convince him that single words do not form complete sentences. Arboleda was unlike any teacher I had ever seen. His classroom was decorated with posters of Bob Marley and once, to better explain 18th century poetry, he paralleled it with freestyle rhyming. I learned from one student that Arboleda was teaching kids to skateboard and planning a field trip to the skate park. In 10 years, if those kids are asked who some of their biggest influences were, I would bet Arboleda will be at the top of many lists. I would have never had the opportunity to meet Arboleda — or any kid such as Irving — if I had not gone on an Alternative Break. I understand some people are skeptical of the breaks. They may sound like a trip of do-gooding and guilt-alleviating. But Alternative Breaks are a week or weekend of learning, getting bowled over by new ideas and being forced out of the Mount Oread comfort zone. I wish every student would take advantage of the opportunities available to them through Alternative Breaks and similar programs at least once while at the University of Kansas. Chances are, the experience would bring them closer to that "moment of clarity" than ever before. The big impact of my Alternative Break trip was not made by me, but made on me. Irving may not remember me — I have never been in a tornado and am therefore nothing remarkable. However, I will always remember that he wore a bright yellow jacket and that his hair stood up in the back. I will always remember that Arboleda treated his students with respect and got theirs in return. Alternative Breaks' motto is not "Save the world in one simple week." It is "Creating life-long links between students and service." This seems right. Thank you, Tertulia and Alternative Breaks — not only for giving me my moment, but for also creating a lifelong link. writings is a Wichita junior in journalism. She is a member of the Kansan editorial board. MOVER 2001 U. O. K. Kansan report card Pass: University Council. After getting shot down last year by administrators, the course retake policy gets another chance. Organic chemistry students, rejoice! Student lobbists. Student Senate sends a team of lobbyists to the state capitol for Lobby Day. Smile, shake hands and try not to look sad when lawmakers cut our budget even more. KJHK University radio station christens its new studio in the Kansas Union with a discussion about coverage of African Americans in the Kansan. If you want to stop by, it's near the Pizza Hut on the third floor. Mmm ... bread-sticks. Fail: - City street cleaners. City gives car owners parked on Oread neighborhood streets little notice before towing so it can clean the streets. Been taking lessons from the parking department? Haworth batterer. Unidentified man punches KU student outside of Haworth Hall for no apparent reason. Advisory to students: take out your midterm stress at the gym. E-mail spam on Exchange. Crafty technophile finds way to send a Tositobs advertisement to every student who uses the new e-mail system. Like a tortilla chip, this prankstar is best served drowned in salsa. Perspective Open minds must prevail to resolve race conflict Members of the Black Student Union discussed the Kansan's multicultural coverage with editors from the paper Monday afternoon on KJHK's "Alternative Radio." As I listened, I decided this will be my last column on the issue — knock on the proverbial wood. It's time to take the controversy out of the public forum. "Flight fails to derail minority conference" was the article that ran on the Kansan's front page a few weeks ago. Since then, little has been accomplished, and an already-delicate relationship between Leita Schultes readers' representative opinion@kansan.com African-American students and the Kansan has been bruised. Both groups have stubbornly refused to budge from their positions. Those positions have become predictable, and their comments have become rhetorical. It's time the issue stopped being on the radio and in the paper. Such mediums only cause individuals to feel as if they need to represent their "side" and back up previous statements. But so far, those goals have not been reached. Instead, animosity has developed and gaps between opposing viewpoints have only grown wider. Both sides say the hope is understanding and compromising — that good things can come out of the situation. But by taking the issue out of the public eye, I am not saying dialogue about the Kansan's multicultural coverage needs to stop. Far from it. More than a dozen people from the Kansan were in the newsroom listening to the "Alternative Radio" broadcast on Monday. When they heard things they didn't like, they grimaced or shook their heads in disgust. It was clear many of them were unable to understand the position of the Black Student Union. Instead, each side needs to give a little. Both sides need to put themselves in the other's shoes. And although I did not observe it, it wouldn't surprise me if African-American students reacted similarly to comments made by representatives from the Kansan. Neither side knows where the other is coming from. And so, my challenge: People who work at the Kansan need to get out of the box that is the newsroom. I'm not just talking about editors — who are already very in touch with the University community. I'm talking about designers, copy editors, sports reporters — everybody. I challenge them to go to a Black Student Union meeting, a Brazilian Carnival or a social gathering of Queers and Allies. I challenge them to spend an afternoon sitting in the Office of Multicultural Affairs. And to the Black students on this campus, I challenge them to come into the newsroom and see how it works. I challenge them to get involved with campus media and be proactive in the coverage they receive, rather than just complaining about it. Then, when both sides have exposed themselves to multiple perspectives, they need to meet and have an honest, goal-oriented, posturing-free discussion. Until then, everybody needs to quit their well, you know — because they're not saying anything new. Schuttes is a Roffe, Iowa, sophomore in journalism and religious studies. Editorial Conflicts of interest mar pardon Lawmakers should punish Clinton for his questionable pardon of Marc Rich. A leader is trusted to make decisions to the best of his or her ability but is also expected to work with others to make the right one. Former President Bill Clinton should not have pardoned Marc Rich because Rich is a fugitive from justice, his former wife and defender donated huge sums of money to the Democratic Party and because a Justice Department official was involved in a conflict of interest with Rich's attorney. Nearly two months later, top U.S. lawmakers now are reviewing the pardon. Clinton must be reprimanded for this ethically questionable decision. The pardon was granted Jan. 20 during the last hours of Clinton's term and stands out as the most controversial pardon of the more than 100 he granted. Rich, a billionaire who left the United States in 1983 just before he was to be indicted on charges of fraud, evaded more than $48 million in taxes and participated in illegal oil deals with Iran. He has lived in Switzerland for 17 years, avoiding U.S. prosecutors. Denise Rich, Marc Rich's ex-wife, pressed Clinton to grant the pardon. In the past decade, Denise Rich has given more than $1 million to the Clinton Presidential Library fund. These donations raise serious questions about Clinton's motivation when he partoned Marc Rich. And that isn't the only conflict. Marc Rich's attorney is former Clinton White House counsel Jack Quinn. He lobbied former deputy attorney general Eric Holder, the second highest ranking member of Clinton's Justice Department (which reviews pardons and gives an opinion on them), to support the pardon. That is yet another conflict of interest between people responsible for making the right decision about the pardon. At best, this pardon is a poor decision; at worst, it is the buying and selling of a U.S. president at the expense of justice. All leaders should be held to a high ethical standard, and in the face of a conflict of interest, they should exercise extra caution. Katherine Marchin for the editorial board free all for 883-1500 Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic they wish. The Kansan reserves the right to edit submissions, and not all of them will be published. Slanderous statements will not be printed. For more comments, go to www.kansan.com. --- About the retake rule: Why should it only apply to the first 60 hours? As a senior, I went through a divorce and flunked a class. Is that less traumatic than transitioning to live on my own? I don't think so. I'm so bogged down on work, I can't even concentrate on the amount of fun I'll be having next week. I just took the midterm for *Calculus II*, and I wanted to say that it was way too hard for the little time we had to do it. 图 The Black Student Union is the most racially discriminatory group on campus. They automatically assume that all Whites are the same, and they always say that all Whites are prejudice. It seems to me that they're the ones discrimination by saying every White is against them. O'Toole, I read your comment in the Lawrence Journal-World. You say the reason for the protest is the long-term tension. Do me a favor and refrain from hissing that we were oppressed for 400 years and come out and say it. --- I don't think the Kansan is a recist newspaper. I think it's a newspaper run by tree huggers for tree huggers. --- Men's college tournament basketball time is the greatest time of the year. Nothing comes even close. Clear the calendars; this is it. The all-arts card I bought at enrollment is possibly the worst thing I've ever bought. It's so clear to me that the women's soccer team is the best sports team on campus. They should play all their games in Memorial Stadium. - I think "apathetic" is one of the best words ever. I thought it was ridiculous that I had five midterms and two papers this week. I don't know who scheduled that one. And I'd like to say that KU is going to win the whole thing this year. Peace. You guys only published about the hall director being involved in a fight because you want to perpetuate the image that hall directors are violent thugs. You didn't talk about all the positive things that happened because of the intramural basketball game. - 图 I think it's appalling that there's actually an article in the paper bashing the football team. That's ridiculous. If I was a KU football player and had to practice for three hours a day, I'd still have the respect not to cut in line at Mrs. E's. How to submit letters and guest columns Letters. Should be double-spaced typed and fewer than 200 words. Letters must include the author's signature, name, address and telephone number plus class and hometown if a University student. Faculty or staff must identify their positions. Guest columns: Should be double-spaced typed with fewer than 700 words. The writer must be willing to be photographed for the column to run. All letters and guest columns should be e-mailed to opinion@kansas.com or submitted to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer-Flint Hall. The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length or reject all submissions. 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