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The University Daily Kansan
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Today: Partly cloudy with a high of 42° and a low of 19° Tomorrow: Sunny with a high of 44° and a low of 31°
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS Wednesday, January 24, 2001
Sports: Kansas women's basketball team has tough opponent tonight in No.12 Oklahoma.
SEE PAGE 1B
Inside: Students rang in Chinese New Year last night at Kansas Union.
SEE PAGE 3A
(USPS 650-640) • VOL, 111 NO.76 For comments, contact Lori O'Toole or Mindie Miller at 864-4810 or editor@kansan.com
New policies simplify enrollment
WWW.KANSAN.COM
By Andrew Davies
writer @kanson.com
Kansas staff writer
Enrollment center officials say a revised add/drop policy seems to have improved tensions as many students undergo the tradition of adding or dropping classes in the east wing of Strong Hall.
The new policy differs only slightly from the old policy. It allows students who miss their add/drop time to come back later the same day or on the following day.
Previously, students who missed their appointment times were only allowed to come back the evening of their appointment day or the following day.
If students miss these times, they must wait until the last chance to enroll tomorrow and Friday.
The University Registrar's office also implemented a new policy for late enrollment. Students who wanted to enroll after Jan. 16 did not have to wait for their appointment times. Late enrollment continues through Friday.
Brad Howard, supervisor of the enrollment center, said that although the add/drop process was a little longer now, the change decreased the amount of conflicts between students and enrollment center workers.
"It actually creates longer lines in the afternoon," he said. "But we have fewer arguments with students who don't want come back at 5 to 7 that day."
Richard Morrell, University registrar, said the policy change was permanent and that it aimed to make the add/drop
ADD/DROP POLICY
What happened: The University changed its add/drop policy to make the process more convenient for students.
**What it means:** Students who miss their add/drop appointments can now add or drop classes later the same day or on the following day.
What's next: Formal add/drop continues tomorrow and Friday.
"We wanted to make it more workable for students." Morrell said.
He said that he hadn't heard any feedback from students but that the change seemed to be working, despite the chance that a bigger window of time for students
process easier.
to change their schedules could lead to longer lines.
But students who were enrolling yesterday said they were mostly satisfied with the process.
Kasi Ervin, Overland Park senior, was going through the add/drop process for the first time. She said she did not have any problems with it.
"These are shorter lines than I've ever heard of. so I'm satisfied," she said.
Andrew Peterson, Olathe freshman, said the process worked well for him.
"I think it's better for the students," Peterson said. "Because yesterday I had a class during my appointment time, I came back today to do it. So it's more convenient, I guess."
CRUMBLING CAMPUS
Where the sidewalk ends:
Freezing temperatures crack stairs, sidewalks
By Sara Shepherd writer@kansan.com
Kansas senior staff writer
ateh your step
Especially that last one — or half of one — behind Wesco Terrace.
Freezing temperatures and winter precipitation are led to precarious paths on many campus sidewalks.
A recent campus canvassing by a group of reporting students revealed at least 18 spots with substantial signs of cracking, crumbling concrete on stairs and sidewalks. Deterioration ranged from patches of walkways missing, to a step that was crumbled away clear down to the re-bar, which is the metal framework underneath the concrete.
Dried leaves and cigarette butts have lodged in the piles of concrete rubble at the bottom of the stairs behind Wescoe Terrace.
On the west side of Wescop, only about a foot of the edge of one section of step remains, and even that shifts with a person's weight. What's left crumbles easily with the scrape of a smaker. Although there is still plenly of foot room on the lowest east side steps, they are nearly halfway gone on either side of the handrails
Douglas Riat, Facilities Operations director, said this time of year was the hardest on sidewalks. Though student foot traffic doesn't have much impact on the problem, the weather does, he said.
Riat said the crumbling process began when water found its way into the porous surface or cracks in concrete. Moisture inside the concrete, coupled with a cycle of freezing and thawing temperatures, causes the concrete to crack even more.
"Basically, once you break through the surface of the concrete, you're probably going to get more decay." Riat said.
He said cold weather created cracked, crumbling sidewalks and stairs much like it caused pot holes in streets.
Riat said chemical treatments used to melt the offending snow and ice also compounded the decaying effects. Step and curb replacement is a yearly chore for facilities operations workers, and this year was no different, Riat said.
But because winter conditions are not ideal for pouring concrete, it's hard to check it off that list until the weather warms up. Riat said as long as the winter freeze-thaw cycle continues, concrete would continue to deteriorate.
"Annually, we do quite a number of stair and walk replacements across campus," he said. "That's something on our list to do."
See WEATHER on page 8A
Sandstone steps in front of Spooner Hall show signs of deterioration. Renovations on the hall were completed in 1999. This is one of 17 sites on campus where concrete steps or sidewalks are cracked because of freezing temperatures. Photo by Matt Daugherty/KANSAN
ABC storms Lawrence, issues citations to 36 people
By Sarah Warren
Kansan staff writer
In a report issued yesterday by the Department of Revenue, the ABC released the results of a large-scale check conducted in Lawrence Friday and Saturday and in Manhattan. Kan, on Jan. 12 and 13.
Alcoholic Beverage Control agents descended upon Lawrence last weekend, skipping 36 people with citations for violating Kansas liquor laws.
In Lawrence, 28 of the 36 citations issued were given to minors in possession of alcohol, six citations were issued to people furnishing alcohol to minors, and two people
Agents combing Manhattan, Kan, cited 35 people for liquor law violations. Twenty-six people were cited as minors in possession of alcohol, eight people were cited for furnishing alcohol to minors, and one person was issued a citation for transporting an open container.
Scott Holeman, communications director for the Department of Revenue, said that agents tended to check college towns regularly.
were cited for using false identification. Five local establishments were issued citations for various liquor law violations.
"We try to check college towns at least once a semester," Holeman said. "However, checks can happen at any time with one or
"We try to check college towns at least once a semester."
Scott Holeman
Scott Hooleman Communications director for the Kansas Department of Revenue
two officers. But this was a larger operation." Kit Brauer, Denver, freshman, said agents caught three of his friends during the weekend check. One friend was cited for furnishing alcohol to minors and two were cited as minors in possession.
"The way that they were caught was
unjust," Brauer said. "The officials didn't know they were underage."
Brauer, who was cited for minor in possession last April, said he didn't mind ABC officers enforcing the law, but he did mind the way the agents made their checks.
"It's almost age proffiling." Brauer said. "You shouldn't just stop anyone with a beer in their hand just because they look like they might be underage."
The last time the ABC made its rounds during the spring semester was March 2 and 4, 2000. During that check, 23 citations were issued to people in Lawrence.
Those caught in last weekend's check ranged in age from 17 to 24.
— Edited by Courtney Craigmile
Ellsworth renovation to begin in summer
By Cynthia Malakasis
writer@kanson.com
Kanson staff writer
The renovation is scheduled to be completed in May 2003, with the entire building being closed down during the 2002-03 academic year.
The top three floors of Eldsworth Hall will close for renovations at the end of the semester and remain closed for the next academic year, meaning the hall will lose space for up to 240 residents.
The Department of Student Housing has decided that Ellsworth should come next after Lewis and Templin halls in the University's effort to renovate all the residence halls.
Stoner said the department planned to reduce the number of single-occupancy rooms in all residence halls and turn them into double-occupancy rooms to accommodate the overflow of residents.
"A project of this size cannot be completed in one phase," said Ken Stoner, director of Student Housing. "We need to close the top three floors first for demolition and make-ready work."
Students whose priority is a single room might not be able to get one during that time.
The renovation is designed to change Ellsworth's living style and space distribution to make it similar to Lewis and Templin halls, where students live in apartment-style suits. Housing rates for the hall will increase to match rates at Lewis and Templin halls.
This year, a double room or a four-person suite in Templin and Lewis halls costs $5,002 — 21.6 percent higher than a double room in Ellsworth at $4,114. The Board of Regents has approved housing rate increases that will go into effect in the fall.
Currently, only eight floors of Ellsworth are dedicated to living spaces, with the first two floors housing offices and facilities for the residents. After the renovation, all 10 floors will have living spaces, which will include two-person apartment-style rooms, standard double rooms and two- and four-person suites. The building's maximum capacity will be 589 residents, down from its currently unfulfilled capacity of 610 people.
Safety issues might be a concern because construction on the top three floors will be going on this summer while the building is still open, said John Eye, project manager for Design and Construction Management.
"There's always a risk factor when construction is going on in a building where people live in," Eyed said.
The total cost of the project is estimated at $10,497,450, and will be financed by University-issued bonds, Stoner said.
Nathan Chang, an Olathe junior who has lived in Ellsworth for the last three years and also has served as a resident assistant, said that he thought the building and the furniture needed renovation but that he was also concerned about the change in the living style.
"Ellsworth is known for its communal type of living," Chang said. "People go up to each other's doors and talk, and there's a sense of community. The renovation may change that."
Edited by Joshua Richards