UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Monday, November 25, 1996
Culture show features talents
International students perform traditional acts
By Mark McMaster
Kansan Correspondent
The pulse of an Egyptian beat filled the Kansas Union Ballroom as Zada Al Gaziyeh, Lawrence resident, danced the Saidi Street Dance. The audience cheered and clapped in time as she swung her hips. As the music's intensity built, her fluid movements became powerful and erotic, and audience members whistled in approval.
Gaziyeh and other members of Troupe Raghsidad, an Egyptian dance company, entertained a crowd of 200 at the International Student Association Culture Show Saturday night.
The variety show featured acts ranging from a Korean pianist to a troupe of avant-garde Italian "mask comedy" performers. Most of the entertainers were students or Lawrence area residents.
"It's a traditional thing we do," said Mandy Gilson, Andover senior, who helped organize the event. "Our goal is to bring international students together to show their talent and expose different cultures."
Olga Shishkina, Paskob, Russia, junior, sang The Song of the Moon and Wind, a traditional Russian folk song that holds special meaning for her.
"I learned the song when I was 7 years old," she said. "I remember that it was the first song my grandmother taught to me. We always sang it at family holidays when we gathered together."
The Italian Club performed the show's finale, a musical skit called Carnivalesque. The choreographed pantomime, which featured music by Vivaldi and Rossini, portrayed the excitement of Carnival, the Italian celebration of the coming of spring. As the mood of the skit changed from somber to festive, the performers donned colorful masks and gaudy costumes while dancing a comedic routine.
Sergio Guerra, Mexico City sophomore, said he enjoyed the different types of entertainment presented.
"I just had a good time," he said. "I got the opportunity to hear some opera without paying for it, and I found out that Stand by Me sounds pretty good, even in Japanese."
Guerra was referring to the acoustic guitar performance by Takuji Kamio, Kamamura, Japan, junior. Kamio sang a translated version of the American pop song, as well as a popular Japanese ballad about teen-age love called I Love You.
Hosts Roger Gronset, Arendal, Norway senior, and Sandra Rainero, Venice, Italy graduate student, traded wiscrackes while introducing the performers.
"I think my part was just trying to make people comfortable with the different cultures," Rainero said.
Staff Photographer / KAN$AN
Ketura Khurran, Lawrence-based dancer, performs an Egyptian dance during the International Student Association's Culture Show. ISA presented the show Saturday at 8 p.m. in the Kansas Union Ballroom.
Scholarship nears $10,000 goal
By Megan Jordan Kansan staff writer
The University of Kansas is $1,600 away from being one of a handful of schools to offer a scholarship recognizing students' contributions to the gay and lesbian community.
The two sponsors, Gay and Lesbian Academics and Staff Advocates (GLASA) and KU Queers and Allies, hope to raise the money by February so scholarship winners can be announced during Gay and Lesbian Awareness Week in April.
David Scanlon, GLASA president, was quick to point out that
recipients did not have to be homosexual. Any undergraduate or graduate student who has worked to improve the homosexual community will be considered for the award.
"It's important to give recognition to people who are willing to be supportive of the gay and lesbian cause," he said.
The scholarship will go to one male and one female each year.
The fund began in 1992 as a $500 donation given in memory of Don Green, a KU student in the late 1970s who died from complications of AIDS. Green did not come out while in
school, and Chris Caldwell, who gave money in honor of his former classmate, thought Green's life may have been different if he had felt comfortable being homosexual on campus. Caldwell wanted his money to somehow make life easier for gay and lesbian students.
The scholarship grew slowly on contributions from administrators, professors and students. Then in 1995, Greg Louganis donated the speaker's fee he received from a lecture he gave at that year's LesBiGay Awareness Week.
its goal of $10,000.
"LesBiGay people as a rule are not recognized very fully or very fairly in our society," he said. "It's not easy work, and there are few visible rewards. The more rewards, the better."
He said that many people understood the importance of the scholarship.
Manning said although awards that recognized the gay and lesbian community were still
uncommon, they would become more popular at many universities in the future. He credited this to the growing number of homosexual alumni who had money to give to such causes.
Scanlon said the University was proud to be one of the first to offer this type of scholarship and agreed that the University would soon be joined by others working to recognize the gay and lesbian community.
"As more people hear about this they'll think, 'That's a good idea,'" he said. "It's a good way to be supportive of people who are supportive of us."
Kmart scholarship fills pharmacy need
Two KU students gain experience chance for grant
By Stephanie Fite Kansan staff writer
Beyond racks of clothing labeled "The Jacklyn Smith Collection" and to the right of fluorescent orange and yellow toys, Meiching Wang Hermesch, Taiman, Taiwan, senior, is studying to be a pharmacist.
Hermesch and John Bush,
Rossville senior, received the
$1,000 Kmart pharmacy scholarship awards. The scholarships
are combined with paid internships that require students to work in a Kmart pharmacy for one year.
"Working as a Kmart pharmacist helps me a lot because I am able to put into practice what I have learned in class," Hermesch said. "The two enhance each other."
Hermesch said the scholarship was unique because Kmart was one of the only paid intern programs that also offered additional scholarship money.
Pharmacy students must work for one year and maintain a 2.75 grade point average to compete for the scholarship. Each applicant must fill out a three-part
questionnaire and a short essay describing what they would like to do as pharmacists and how to improve the profession.
Out of 200 applications, 40 students from across the nation were chosen based on their ability to communicate their interest in pharmacy, said Howard Kramer, director of pharmacy human resources for Kmart. Because the applicants are student interns for the pharmacy and not employees, the $1,000 was established as a reasonable incentive to get students to apply.
exposed to what they are interested in while they are still in school. This gives them the opportunity to figure out what they want to do while they are still in school."
"This gives the student the opportunity to determine if it is their area of interest," Kramer said. "Some people are never
"This opportunity helps students learn more about pharmacy, and it also helps Kmart pick up future pharmacists," he said.
The scholarship, in its eighth year, was established not only to benefit student interns, but also to help the store, Kramer said.
Hermesch, a two-year veteran in the pharmacy-intern program, said the working atmosphere in the pharmacy was what had kept her at Kmart and what
would keep her there after graduation.
"What matters most is the people you work with," she said. "If they are good people and are nice to each other, you like to work there. We are all treated as associates and not clerks. We do everything the pharmacists do."
Hermesch said that although the salary was low, she would continue working at Kmart because the intern program provided her with career opportunities.
"If another job comes along, I'll probably think about taking it," she said. "Otherwise, I'd like to keep working at Kmart."
Kansas Special Olympics held in Lawrence
By Dave Breitenstein
Kansan staff writer
Strikes and spikes were aplenty this weekend in Lawrence as athletes showcased their talents during a half-statewide competition. High-fiving athletes pumped their fists enthusiastically after every point, and smiles dominated the scenery.
But this was not just a competition. It was the Special Olympics.
Rick Rosenstengle, associate director of KU recreation services, said that about 150-175 students volunteered at the games, which was more than last year.
Volunteer Cindy Dahle, Anchorage, Ala., freshman, said that she enjoyed the experience of working with the energetic athletes.
More than 1,000 athletes with mental retardation competed for medals in volleyball and bowling in the 1996 Kansas Special Olympics Indoor Sports Games East, which was held Friday and Saturday. The bowling competition was held at Royal Crest Lanes, Ninth and Iowa streets, and Robinson Center provided the volleyball courts.
"The volunteers made a big difference because they made it all happen," she said. "I was a little hesitant at first, but I thought it was really fun. I liked how the coaches were so positive and the athletes were so enthusiastic."
Molly Bukaty, 1996 graduate and special events coordinator for the games, volunteered at the games for several years.
She always enjoys seeing the athletes compete in the sports they love, she said. Special Olympics makes her realize that winning isn't everything.
"The goal of the Special Olympics program is to build athletic skills, social skills and
"I was a little hesitant at first, but I thought it was really fun.I liked how the coaches were so positive and the athletes were so enthusiastic."
Cindy Dahie
Anchorage, Alaska, freshman
physical fitness with competition being the focal point," Dahlle said. "But it's not just the physical skills we're trying to develop. It's also the social skills."
The Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation created the Special Olympics in 1968 to promote physical fitness and athletic competition for athletes with mental retardation. Other sports offered include track and field, basketball and swimming. Special Olympics competitions are held in 151 countries, and every county in Kansas has a program.
Bukaty said Special Olympics athletes competed for enjoyment and the possibility to participate in the world games.
After the games on Friday, a dance for the participants was held at the Kansas Union Ballroom.
"These athletes are definitely dedicated and never miss a practice for the Special Olympics," she said. "But nine out of 10 would say they like the dance the most. That isn't something they get to do much."
Neither Robinson Center nor Royal Crest Lanes charged a fee to use its facilities, and a fast food restaurant supplied lunches for the participants.
Bukaty said that donations and volunteers were the keys to the games' success.
"We have so many volunteers because they enjoy the experience," she said. "They like to see how excited the athletes are when they're doing well, and it's usually the same people volunteering every year."
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