THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2011
WWW.KANSAN.COM
HEATING THINGS UP
VOLUME 123 ISSUE 102
Putting some spring in their step
Ashleigh Lee/KANSAN
Rod Harris, a senior from Bryan, Texas, competes with his partner Chelsea Ybarra in the first annual SUA Dancing With the Stars Thursday night. The two performed the Jive.
Shade Little, Honorary Women's Club president and husband of Chancellor Gray-Little, dances the waltz with his partner and Camelot Dance manager Bridget Janner during SUA's first annual KU's Dancing with the Stars Thursday evening. More than one hundred KU students and Lawrence residents attended the competition inside the Kansas Union despite the winter storm
Jerry Wang/KANSAN
Ashlieah Lee/KANSAN
Baby Jay and Matt Rodriguez pe form Thursday night at the first annual SUA Dancing With the Stars. The pair took first place with a free style dance
BY SHAUNA BLACKMON sblackmon@kansan.com
It might have been cold outside, but things were heating up on the dance floor when some of the University's most influential and involved students paired up with dancers from the University and from Paramount Ballroom Co. to, as one judge put it, "shake their tail feathers."
The winner by popular vote was Matt Rodriquez, a senior majoring in dance as well as a member of the KU Dance Company, with Baby Jay performing a free style number. They opened up with "It Takes Two," by Base Rob and transitioned into "Push It," by Salt-
This year is the first "Dancing with the Stars," KU-style, put together by the Student Union Activities. Dancers included Michael Wade Smith, the student body president, Shade Keys Little, Chancellor Grey-Little's husband, and Baby Jay, among many others.
N-Pepa. The duo combined a multitude of dance styles to entertain the audience and win votes.
The team that received the best score from the judges was Matt Rissin, deemed a KU super fan because of popular sightings of him wearing a Jayhawk beak at games, and Sarah Buschini, a Rock Chalk Dancer. The two, adorned in red sequins, danced the Lindy Hop and received a perfect score. While Rissin said he was a little disappointed to lose, he said that if he had to lose, "it had to be to Baby Jay," because "you just have to love Baby Jay."
Rissien's original partner tore her Achilles' heel recently, so Buschini only had a week to learn the complex and fast-paced dance.
Jim MacAuley, a professional dancer at Paramount, said that it would normally take six months for professionals to master these dances; the performers last night had only one. While a few groups admitted to messing up a few steps, overall every group scored well and
didn't make any big mistakes. Wade says there will be more "Dancing with the Stars" competitions for the University, but maybe in the spring or fall next time so the weather does not affect the show as much.
"We thought this would be a good way to get everyone involved," Stephanie Stoss, SUA member said. "People are skeptical to student activities because they don't think they will be exciting, but we're showing they are."
Edited by Sarah Gregory
For more coverage of this story, check out KUJH's newscast today at 4 p.m.
OFFICER | 3A
University hires new officer for non-academic misconduct
Nick Kehrwald is filling the newly-created position with hopes of being proactive in student conduct education.
POLO | 2A
Polo gets a bicycle makeover
A pair of University alumni and a Lawrencian draw attention to polo by adding bikes to it and bringing it to the streets.
INDEX
Classifieds ... 9A
Crossword ... 4A
Cryptoquips ... 4A
Opinion ... 5A
Sports ... 10A
Sudoku ... 4A
WEATHER
TODAY
3022
SATURDAY
3523
P. M. Showers
A. M. Light Wintery Mix
SUNDAY
6028
Scattered T-Storms
All contents, unless stated otherwise © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
Ben Kirtland, a former head of fundraising for Athletics, pleaded guilty in a Wichita court earlier this morning, said Jim Cross, a spokesman for the U.S. district attorney.
Kirtland pleads guilty in athletics scandal
TICKETS
BY ALEX GARRISON agarrison@kansan.com
Kirtland's plea differs from the arrangement of the previous six defendants in that he did not enter a plea agreement with the
The seventh and final defendant in the federal prosecution of several former Kansas Athletics employees has pleaded guilty to involvement in its ticket scandal.
"Although I do not know the exact value of the tickets I sold, I estimate the total value of the tickets I sold to be in excess of $120,000," he wrote in his petition to change his plea to guilty. "I acknowledge that I was conspiring to commit, and committing, a fraud upon the
In his plea submitted to the court, Kirtland admitted to illegally selling tickets to KU sporting events for his own financial gain from 2005 to 2009.
MEN'S BASKETBALL | 10A
SEE TICKETS ON PAGE 3A
government, but rather entered a direct guilty plea. Cross said.
Which guys are the glue that can keep it together?
Coach Bill Self plays with a lineup to see which combination of players is the most efficient offensively and defensively.
SENATE
Plans for service center delayed
Megan Ritter, student body vice president, said they weren't at the stage they had hoped to be at.
One of the major platforms for KUnited coalition — the Student Services Center — won't be met this year because of unexpected delays in the process.
The hope, she said, is that all platforms get done in a year but that isn't always the case.
BY ANGELIQUE MCNAUGHTON amcnaughton@kansan.com
"We just kind of entered into it not knowing really how much work it would be, but it's been a really good learning experience." Ritter said.
Originally, Student Senate leaders had hoped to have concrete plans in place for the Student Service Center at the conclusion of the semester. Blaming bureaucratic interests, they said that might not happen after all.
The center would encompass a variety of services, such as academic achievement and success, disability services and a writing center, that the leaders of Student Senate believe would
中
improve student engagement and performance through accessibility. Ideally, the building would include seven to 10 services.
From the beginning, the top three choices for the site are the Burge Union, Anschutz Library and the parking lot across from the Kansas Union. Renovations or additions to existing structures would accommodate the new building but temporarily displace or relocate staff and faculty.
The location of the center would ultimately dictate what services would be offered, which still remains a primary concern.
In an e-mail, provost leffrey Vitter said the University ultimately had the responsibility to decide whether to proceed with a project and to determine its location.
"I expect that this approach will allow us to plan more effectively and avoid dead ends and that process will more successfully mesh with student initiatives if the relevant discussions happen earlier rather than later." Vitter said.
Student Body President Michael Wade Smith said the University
SEE SENATE ON PAGE 3A
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