Jim Lehrer, anchor of Public Broadcasting Service’s “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” speaks to community members about his close ties to Kansas and the Emporia area Friday night at The Granada Theatre in downtown Emporia. Lehrer also took questions regarding the current state and future of journalism in the U.S./PHOTO BY KELLEN JENKINS

Jim Lehrer, anchor of Public Broadcasting Service’s “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer,” spoke last Friday night at The Granada Theatre to a crowd of about 100 people.

Lehrer, a native Kansan, was hosted by the Center for Great Plains Studies. He discussed with audience members his memories of growing up in Kansas and how his experiences here have helped him give details in his novels, including “Eureka” and “Oh, Johnny,” which are both set in Kansas.

“All of these experiences flow naturally to me as a writer of fiction,” Lehrer said. “I wouldn’t be here tonight if Kansas didn’t mean a lot to me.”

Lehrer spoke about how he decided when he was 16 or 17 years old that he wanted to be a writer.

“I wanted to be a big-time journalist,” Lehrer said. “Except for three years in the Marine Corps, everything I’ve ever done has been to do that and I’ve never looked back.”

At the end of his speech, Lehrer accepted questions from the audience. He also gave his opinion about what American journalism has become today.

“I have a very old fashioned view of journalism,” Lehrer said. “There are three types of journalism – straight reporting, analysis and opinion. It’s all legitimate. But different people should do each of them. What has happened in the last few years is a new version of entertainment has been created. If you want entertainment, go to a circus. I don’t ever want to be confused for one of the clowns.”

Kelsey Ryan/The Bulletin

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President Michael Lane announced a general hiring freeze to “prepare for the potential additional reductions” for Fiscal Year 2009 and 2010. The announcement was made through BuzzIn Wednesday afternoon to faculty and staff.

If offers have been made to candidates who have applied for a position or if interviews have already been scheduled, then the offers and interviews can continue.

Campus interviews that have not been scheduled should not be finalized until a Vice President deems that the unfilled position is “strategically critical,” the announcement said.
“I know these are difficult times and will require each of us to make some sacrifices,” Lane wrote. “I believe we all want to continue to provide an outstanding experience for our students.”

In the budget update to the faculty and staff, Lane explained the reductions for FY 2009 and FY 2010.

For 2009, the planned budget reduction was 4.25 percent, up 1.25 percent from the original planned reduction. The administration should know by next week where they can make an additional $420,000 cut.

“We will attempt to cover it through a combination of savings departments have achieved beyond the scope of the original 3 percent plus early use of small reserves that are held for emergencies,” the announcement said.

The Senate Ways and Means committee chair and the Regents Office recently informed the administration that they will need to “significantly increase the budget reduction” for FY 2010 from the planned 7 percent reduction to a possible 11-13 percent.

ESU met 2.8 percent of the reduction from the budget for classified employees and benefits. The other 4.2 percent of the reduction was delegated to departments.

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Yu

When Henry Yu, graduate student in business administration, came to the U.S. from Shenzhen, China, about one year ago, he wanted to experience American culture and improve the English he had been learning for nearly 12 years.

“Here, I speak different languages every day,” Yu said. “I’ve found something very interesting – that when you speak or think in a different language, it’s another you. Your character is changing. It’s just different.”

Yu was elected president of the nearly 300 member Chinese Student Association last semester. Yu said he said he hopes to provide service to help Chinese students and promote relationships between Chinese students and students from other countries. The CSA includes both Chinese students and Chinese-Americans.

“Especially when we are here in a different country, we like to help each other,” Yu said. “Some new students that have arrived here and don’t speak very good English, they may face some problems. We help them with these problems.”

The students involved in CSA said that Yu is a good student leader on campus.

“I think he’s really energetic and is good at organizing the activities, like the celebration of the Lunar New Year Festival and the Mid Autumn Day,” said Lauren Lau, sophomore communication major, who met Yu at ESU even though they are both from Shenzhen. “He will gather the Chinese students together and we’ll have parties.”

Through his involvement with CSA, Yu has made friends with many international students. The International Club sponsors some of the CSA activities.

“International Club is the umbrella for all of the international organizations,” said Turki Alzarania, graduate student in instructional design and technology and president of the International Club. “His leadership is growing and his experience is stronger each time we plan for something else.”

Alzarania said that he wishes the entire international student population could put on a play similar to the one that Yu spearheaded with the CSA for the Chinese Lunar New Year celebration.

“International students need to be socializing and interacting,” Alzarania said. “Such activities that Henry did make them involved, make them realize the opportunities they have, what they have done and what they have to continue doing.”

Yu said that he wants to encourage American students and Chinese students to take a chance and communicate with each other.

“You may pass us by – a Chinese student – sometimes you are shy,” Yu said. “If you speak slow, and have patience, people can communicate with each other. Sometimes, we don’t need to talk, we can use a gesture, we can communicate. Just be more open hearted to develop an interest of different cultures. We are living on the earth with so much diversity, so if you open an eye to another culture, you may find a world totally different than yours.”

Yu said that he chose to come to ESU after one of his college instructors in China recommended studying in the Midwest.

“Here in Kansas, it’s a place very peaceful and the people are nice and society is very much in harmony we don’t need to care about safety issue,” Yu said.

Yu said that he decided to study in America because he knew that education in the U.S. was good and that the Chinese education system was trying to catch up to the American system. Besides language, Yu said that the biggest difference between the schools is the size. His college in China had nearly 20,000 students and is located about 30 minutes away from Hong Kong.

Although ESU has fewer students, Yu said that he has noticed that Americans and international students don’t hang out that often and that one of his professors told him some American students may be shy and afraid to speak with international students.

“Some American students just want to keep themselves in their own world,” Yu said. “It’s also our problem, because some international students, we’ve just arrived here, we don’t know the culture, or our language is not so good.”

However, Yu said that living in the middle of the U.S. was a better choice for him than if he had decided to live on the East or West coasts.

“We just feel that we are here at home,” Yu said. “We don’t feel that we are foreigner, we’re part of the community.”

Kelsey Ryan/The Bulletin

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MEGREDY

A former Emporia State registrar has been charged with two felony counts of theft from a local social organization.

Jill Megredy is accused of stealing $4,100 between March 20 and May 20, 2008, from Beta Sigma Phi sorority by writing herself checks from the organization’s local account.

“Megredy told me she did write the checks to herself intending to pay the money back,” David Holmes, an Emporia police officer, swore in a Dec. 4 affidavit that is included in the case file at Lyon County District Court. “Megredy said she… wondered why they (the sorority) called the police instead of just coming to her about the issue.”

Neither Megredy nor her lawyer, Rod Symmonds of Emporia, returned calls seeking comment. Megredy was registrar until April 2008, but remained employed by the university until July.

A preliminary hearing is set for 11 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4.

Megredy was the treasurer for the local chapter of Beta Sigma Phi, according to the affidavit, and the sorority did not discover the theft until late last year, when they asked her to return the organization’s Emporia State Bank checkbook for the new treasurer. One of the sorority’s members had received an email from Megredy asking for a loan, the affidavit said. The women told police that when they received the checkbook, they discovered carbon copies of four checks that Megredy had written herself, totaling $4,100.

Megredy is charged with two counts of felony theft, for checks in the amounts of $2,000 and $1,000, and two counts of misdemeanor theft, for checks in the amounts of $800 and $300.

Rick Buck, first senior assistant county attorney, said that, if found guilty, Megredy could face up to 12 months of jail or probation. Buck said Megredy was had appeared on a summons and was released without bond to await trail.

According to the affidavit, Megredy offered to pay the money back and asked Holmes if she could avoid being charged.

“Megredy said that her husband Tod gets money time to time for his education,” the affidavit said, “and she intended to use that money to pay the account back. Megredy said she never got around to paying the money back because things would come up.”

Megredy’s husband, Tod, is a former ESU journalism instructor and former adviser to The Bulletin.

Beta Sigma Phi International Headquarters, based in Kansas City, Mo., refused comment and declined to confirm whether Megredy was a member. According to the sorority’s Web site, the sorority is an “international women’s friendship network.”

None of the three local members contacted by The Bulletin returned calls.

On April 11, the administration announced that Elaine Henrie, director of financial aid, would become interim registrar, replacing Megredy. Megredy remained employed at Emporia State as a Banner applications trainer in TCS from April 11 to July 19, 2008, said Judy Anderson, director of human resources.

Megredy’s salary as registrar was $53,146.

The Bulletin reported in April 2008 that Jim Williams, who was then vice president for strategic partnerships and student life, declined to comment on Megredy’s employment status, stating it was “a personnel issue.”

Megredy was the registrar at Southwestern College at Winfield from 1996 to 2005 before becoming registrar at ESU in fall 2006. She received her bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University in 1984 and her master’s degree in education from Southwestern in 2002, according the Southwestern College Web site.

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Looking for a good ghost story? Emporia is home to many allegedly haunted places, including the William Allen White House, Bird Bridge, the Emporia Country Club, the Memorial Union and Albert Taylor Hall.

According to “Historic Haunted America” by Michael Norman and Beth Scott, one story about Albert Taylor Hall says that Albert Taylor took a lead role in a production about 100 years ago. Afraid that he would be late for one of the performances, Taylor got into a car accident en route to the university. When the curtain opened, Taylor’s ghost stood on the stage in a blood-soaked costume.

“Historic Haunted America” debunks the legend that Albert Taylor haunts the hall, stating that research done in 1983 by Deborah Anne Heffley showed that Albert Taylor resigned from ESU in 1901 and became president at James Milliken University in Illinois, which is where “he presumably died.”

Heffley found several other stories of ghosts in Albert Taylor Hall, though none of the ghosts were Albert Taylor. One story, confirmed by Indy Dambro, public service executive for university facilities, was about an experience a foreman had in 1966: “After turning off the basement lights, he pulled a cigarette from his pocket. He heard a match strike and a voice said, ‘Do you need a light?’ The foreman dropped his cigarette and ran.”

The production that was taking place was “Dracula.”

Dambro said that no one has ever died in Albert Taylor Hall, despite the stories.

Roger Heineken, administrative officer for the Memorial Union, says that the ghost that roams Albert Taylor Hall could be Franklin Gilson, who created The Gilson Players, a theater troupe. According to ESU news archives, the ghost of Frank Gilson occasionally appears on the catwalk or in the catacombs of Albert Taylor Hall late at night.

One ghost who might also haunt the ESU campus is Martha.

“We don’t know if the spirit is male or female, but we call it Martha,” Heineken said.

From 1925 to about 1950, single female faculty members lived on the third floor of the Memorial Union, now The Bulletin and Sunflower offices. Stories say that Martha haunts that area as well as the Memorial Union Bookstore. There have been reports of doors slamming, lights going on and off and objects being moved.

“The adding machine that sits on my desk is the third adding machine I’ve had since I’ve been here,” said Mike McRell, manager of the Memorial Union Bookstore.

McRell said that he would put a new role of tape in the adding machine on his desk and the next morning, the tape would be all over the floor.

“One night, I was just sitting there and my adding machine just started going in front of me and I was like ‘okay,’” McRell said. “I just started freaking out and it wasn’t just zeros, it was actually adding things… I was like, ‘okay, Martha, knock it off’ and it just stopped.”

McRell said that he purchased a new adding machine after the incident and the same thing occurred again.

“I’ve just kind of learned to live with Martha,” McRell said. “Martha is Martha. I just go with it and survive.”

He said that he believes Martha likes to move his water mug on occasion.

“There are times where I know I’ve set it down somewhere – just come back with it and it’s gone,” McRell said

However, McRell said that he believes Martha’s actions are playful and not sinister.

One off-campus site that may be haunted is the Emporia Country Club.

“The club house has seen extensive renovations and additions over the years but at the heart of the building is the 1913 structure,” Heineken said. “The club was literally in the country when it was built outside the city limits.”

Heineken said that the club allegedly became haunted after people died there during the flu pandemic in the early twentieth century.

“When the Flu pandemic hit Emporia, the club house was re-purposed as an infirmary, remote from the city center,” Heineken said. “Emporia had inadequate hospital facilities in those days for the need created by the flu epidemic. It is probable (that) dozens died while cared for in this facility.”

Heineken said that he spoke with the catering supervisor at the Country Club about the ghosts and she thinks there are four that haunt the building. Most of the occurrences include objects being moved around and lights flickering on and off.

The Rocky Ford Bridge, also known as Bird Bridge, is located about five miles southeast of Emporia. The rust-colored, graffiti covered bridge became known as a haunted location after the death of Sandy Bird in July 1983.

According to an article in the Los Angeles Times, Bird’s husband, Rev. Tom Bird, was found guilty of first degree murder in her death. Sandy Bird’s body was found under the bridge near her station wagon. According to Heineken, she had been a graduate assistant in the math department at ESU.

The area around the bridge is still used for parties. Heineken said that the bridge likely became a party scene after a movie about the Bird murder was filmed on location. The movie, “Murder Ordained,” came out in 1987 and starred Keith Carradine, Kathy Bates, John Goodman and M. Emmet Walsh.

On both sides of the bridge, there are brown shards from glass bottles and other trash. There is also evidence of a recent campfire even though “No Trespassing” signs are on display. The only sounds are of birds calling and of water tripping over rocks below.

Red Rocks, the nickname of the William Allen White House, located at 927 Exchange, is said to be haunted. Among those who supposedly haunt the house are Teddy the Terrier, the White family dog, and Mrs. Gillette, the original owner’s wife who reportedly committed suicide on the second floor of house. Some also believe that White’s daughter, Mary White, also haunts the house.

According to Nick Gronseth, Kansas Historical Society site administrator for the William Allen White House, Mary White was in a horse riding accident near the corner of Merchant and Twelfth. She was waving to someone she knew when she hit her head on a tree branch and was fatally injured. She died a few houses down the street from her home. William Allen White wrote the famous eulogy “Mary White” in August of 1921.

Gronseth said that the White family dog, a terrier named Teddy, has also been seen by some in a window on the first floor of the house.

In the article “William Allen White: Haunting Memories,” by Kelley Weiss, members of the White-Walker family have reported hearing the dog in the house.

“In the middle of the night distinct footsteps coming up the stairs echoed through the house and started down the hallway towards their bedroom,” the article says. “The dog came into the bedroom and lay down next to the bed. David Walker clearly remembers that night in Emporia when he stayed in William Allen White’s house for a night with his wife Barbara White Walker, William Allen White’s granddaughter. The only problem is that when the dog came into the room Walker couldn’t see it and neither could his wife. Walker insists the dog was a ghost.”

Heineken said that there have been reports of neighbors who have seen Teddy the Terrier in a window. Heineken said that during a tour of the house, a little girl asked if a dog lived there. The docent of the house at the time said no and asked the girl to describe the dog. She described a dog similar to Teddy and said that she had seen it when she had ridden her bike past the house one day.

Although he said he has never seen any apparitions in the house, Gronseth said, he heard strange noises and talking last year around Halloween, only to find that no one was in the house with him.

“There are some creakings and bumps and stuff,” Gronseth said. “I guess it’s the heater. I like to think that it might be the ghosts.”

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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Rock the Vote, which included performances by Radio City, Zoiks! and Anchondo, was held last Thursday night at Cole’s Bar. The bar was filled to capacity of about 200 people for the majority of the night and 56 new voters were registered.

“I’m just thrilled,” said Annabel Osburn, senior social science major, president of Young Democrats and head organizer of Rock the Vote. I think that this is a really good representation of what can be done in Emporia if you just put in a lot of crazy effort.”

Cole’s Bar was decorated in red, white and blue and a table with voter registration cards was available at the front entrance. According to Osburn, planning for Rock the Vote began last semester and the idea came from the national organization.

According to www.rockthevote.com, the organization was founded “in response to a wave of attacks on freedom of speech and artistic expression” nearly 20 years ago.

Many students found Rock the Vote to be an innovative way to get students to participate in the election process.

“Rock the Vote has brought back the reality of the true nature of voting,” said Jonathan Krueger, junior political science major, member of Active Republicans and legislative director of ASG. “Student apathy was nowhere to be seen and it was such a positive experience for our campus. Now all we have to do is actually remember to vote.”

Krueger said that he attended Rock the Vote as an individual and not as a representative of students.

Although some students came to Rock the Vote to register and learn more about political candidates, others came for the free entertainment.

“I heard there were going to be live bands and Zoiks! was going to perform, and well, all that will get me every time,” said Megan Bradley, sophomore undecided major.

Booths were set up in the lobby area of the bar, representing student groups like Amnesty International, STAND, PRIDE and Environmental Club.

There were also tables with information and stickers for the Democratic Party and for Latino Vote. The Republican Party table was empty until around midnight. Stephanie Kuhlman, president of Active Republicans, was not available for comment.

According to Osburn, the Young Democrats wanted the event to be bi-partisan and had talked to the Active Republicans about becoming involved by meeting with them.

“I’m disappointed that it’s just (Young Democrats),” Osburn said. “I want people to have both sides so that they can make an informed decision… I hope that it doesn’t turn people off from voting.”

Local candidates running for office attended Rock the Vote for the first half of the evening. Mike Dorcey, who is running for county clerk, said that it was important for young people to become more involved and vote.

“I’m particularly interested in contacting young voters because they’re the future of the country and I think in the past, a lot of young voters have just kind of blown off voting until they get a little older,” Dorcey said. “It’s great for young people to learn that it’s part of their job as citizens (to vote).”

Dorcey said that he has more than 20 years of military background and the military helps defend the rights of the American people to vote.

“If people don’t take advantage of what many guys are fighting for, and literally dying for and losing limbs for, then we’re kind of desecrating what they’ve done,” Dorcey said.

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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Attention all business and science majors – here is your first lesson: books aren’t cheap.

“It seems that the business, science and mathematics are all the most expensive,” said Darcy Finical, store manager of Textbook Corner. “The prices are set by the publishers, so I think that those are the ones that they’ve targeted… Across the board, you see that those are the most expensive ones.”

Books paired with software are especially prone to higher prices.

“We had a book that was packaged with software this summer for accounting that was $240,” said Mike McRell, manager of the Memorial Union bookstore. “That was the most expensive book I’ve ever seen.”

According to the College Opportunity and Affordability Act of 2008, publishers must tell teachers about the copyrights of previous editions within 10 years, the prices the publisher would charge at the bookstore and any major revisions that the textbooks have undergone. The act also requires publishers to sell bundled items separately as well as bundled.

Finical believes that the bundles allow students to buy the material more cheaply than if the materials were only sold as separate items.

“The chemistry package and a math bundle that people going into elementary education use are both almost $200,” Finical said. “That is cheaper than it was when the components were split apart. The publisher reps worked with the professors to bundle everything together to give it a lower price.”

There is industry standard of a 25 percent markup to the list price of all new books. According to Finical, a used book is going to be 25 percent cheaper than a new book. However, some believe that publishing companies are trying to get rid of the market for used books.

“(The publishers) do it so that the new textbooks are out there and you can’t sell used books because they want to eliminate the used book market,” McRell said. “But that’s not our goal. Our goal is to have a used book market…We’re not the evil empire we’re made out to be sometimes. I would say that about any bookstore because there are rules that are attached to how we do it and we can’t venture from those rules.”

According to McRell, the 25 percent markup is set by the National Association of College Stores. However, not all of that markup is pure profit.

“Out of that margin, we have to pay payroll, any losses that we have, any damaged books, any theft,” McRell said. “So, by the time we get done, on textbooks, we don’t make a lot. If you’re going to make something, you’re going to make it in volume. You don’t make it off of per book because we maybe make 5 percent on a book.”

McRell wanted students to know that the bookstore does not purposefully drive up book costs. In fact, McRell would rather have an entire used book inventory and never have a need to switch book editions.

“Life is much easier if we don’t (switch editions),” McRell said. “But that’s not the reality of what we’re living in and so publishers change publications.”

Finical and McRell agree that there has been a decrease in new textbook sales, but McRell doesn’t know if that is because of a decrease in enrollment or due to more people buying books elsewhere. Finical is unsure if that decrease is because of the increased popularity of buying books online.

“It’s hard to say, but there has been a little bit of a decrease,” Finical said. “Everybody is more technological.”

Textbook Corner, which has been in operation for nearly 17 years, started a loyalty card in May, allowing students who spend $150 to save $5 on a future purchase. Over 1200 students are currently signed up for the loyalty card.

Although the Memorial Union bookstore has been in existence since Emporia State was founded, it did not become affiliated with Barnes & Noble until the mid 1980s. The MU bookstore has a contract with the university and pays a commission to the university based on sales. That commission helps subsidize student organizations and scholarships. MU Bookstore net sales are approximately $2.2 million per year.

“(For) every dollar that comes through here, there is a percent that comes back through to the university, and it’s about 10 percent,” McRell said. ” That’s a lot of money…we are here to support the university and we are here to support student services.”

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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Manjgaladze

An Emporia State grad student is trapped in her Georgian hometown because of the fighting with Russia.

“It was 3 in the morning when they started bombing,” the student, Mika Manjgaladze, said in an email interview. “We were sleeping and the first thing we heard was sound of airplane and then it was such a huge sound that our apartment complex started shaking like (in) an earthquake…We were safe but after bombing, apartment windows were broken. We are emotionally depressed and afraid.”

Manjgaladze graduated in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in international business and was accepted into the MBA program for this semester. She had also been granted a graduate assistantship at the Center for Student Involvement.

Known to many on the ESU campus as Miranda, Manjgaladze was trapped while visiting her hometown of Batumi, a port city on the Black Sea. In last week’s interview, Manjgaladze was unsure if and when she would be able to come back to the U.S.

“U.S. embassy stopped issuing visas for 10 days,” Manjgaladze said. “My return ticket (was for) Aug. 25. There are no international flights because it (the airport) was bombed so right now I am not sure if I will be able (to come back).”

Manjgaladze lost her chance of getting the correct visa when the U.S. embassy workers were evacuated along with other Americans in Georgia, according to a staff member of the International Education office in the Memorial Union.

“She can’t do anything,” said Gloria Swift, administrative specialist in the office of international education. “She can’t get out because she can’t get a visa.”

Manjgaladze was an exchange student during her senior year of high school and graduated from school in Olpe in 2004. She was involved in several organizations during her undergraduate years, including the International Choir and International Club.

Photo by Davit Bortishvelli

“We’re really concerned about her,” said James Harter, assistant vice president for international education. “We want to know that she’s safe…we want to get her onto her graduate program and allow her to continue with her goals and we want to be a part of that.”

According to Harter, Manjgaladze’s circumstances are not that uncommon.

“This happens every year, depending on where there is an unforeseen circumstance like this one,” Harter said.

Students and staff on campus have been worried for Manjgaladze’s safety.

“I’ve come to think real highly of her and I’m worried about her,” said Mary McDaniel, assistant director of student wellness.

Photo by Davit Bortishvelli

McDaniel first met Manjgaladze her freshman year, when McDaniel was doing outreach work in the residence halls. Manjgaladze later worked as a student assistant for McDaniel in the Student Health Center. McDaniel has been keeping in touch with Manjgaladze through emails and by frequently speaking with Manjgaladze’s high school host mother from Olpe.

“She’s just such an optimistic person and a very religious person as well,” McDaniel said. “A lot of her messages to me are just requests to pray for her and for the country and for the situation. It’s been kind of limited contact, but I’ve been glad to hear anything at all.”

For McDaniel, knowing someone overseas who is directly affected by this conflict has had a tremendous effect on her world view.

“I guess what really has been the biggest thing to me is that I think we’ve been kind of insulated in this country because these kinds of conflicts or wars or whatever you want to call them crop up all the time,” McDaniel said. “It never has really struck me with the intensity that it has this time because this is the first time that I’ve had someone that I really knew and care about who is involved. It makes a big difference and it really makes you stop and think about how fortunate we have been.”

Although various reports and statements by the Russian Federation claim that they have pulled the troops out of Georgia, Manjgaladze says otherwise.

“No, it is not true (that they left) after that fact they were still bombing,” Manjgaldze said. “They bombed Gori, Poti, and Borjomi forest. Russian soldiers are robbing everything from invaded territories.”

Photo by Davit Bortishvelli

The conflict began on Aug. 7, after Georgian troops attacked separatists in the breakaway province of South Ossetia. After that attack, Russia sent in troops to fight the Georgian troops within the province. Although there was a peace agreement between the two countries, several counties, including the US, have accused Russia of breaking the ceasefire agreement.

“We’re trying our hardest to get her back over here,” said Lynda Denson, Manjgaladze’s high school host mother. “Everything has got to fall into place, but we’re hoping to have her back here by the fourth of September.”

The Denson family hired a private plane to take Manjgaladze from Batumi to Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. Manjgaladze is unable to travel by train because bridges between the two cities have been bombed.

She plans on staying in Tbilisi for several days with relatives until she can get her visa. The Densons have also arranged Manjgaladze’s flight from Georgia to the US, which could cost up to $10,000. On Sunday, a U.S. destroyer carrying humanitarian aid in the form of baby food and bottled water reached Batumi. Denson is concerned that Manjgaladze and her family may not be safe after the destroyer leaves because of the possibility that Russia may attack the city in an act of retaliation.

“She’s come through things people in our country have never had to experience,” Denson said. “This kid has had major miracles in her life… She has a very strong faith in God.”

While an exchange student at Olpe, Manjgaladze shared a room with another student who was from Russia. Although the girls did not get along at first, Denson said, they became more accepting of each other over time. According to Denson, who keeps in contact with both students, the Russian student does not believe that Georgia has been attacked; instead, she believes that the attacks are U.S. propaganda.

“The only thing we have left is a strong faith,” Manjgaladze said. “We all pray and we believe in God. Church is our strength.”

Manjgaladze has not personally seen much of the attacks in the city of Batumi, but she has heard of the attacks from others. A friend of hers, Davit Bochorishvili, had shared photos he took of war dead in Gori.

“They bombed suburb(s) of Batumi only once,” Manjgaladze said. “They bombed (a) military base, old military base from the Soviet period.”

With Russia’s presence in South Ossetia and parts of Georgia, some speculate that Russia is attempting to annex the area of what once was part of the Soviet Union. Manjgaladze, however, says she wants Georgia to remain free.

“I want everyone to know that Georgia is a small country with an ancient history,” Manjgaladze said. “It is independent country and it is not part of the Soviet Union anymore. We are a small nation with old traditions and we want to keep our traditions and we want to exist as Georgians and have our own democratic, free country of Georgia.”

Manjgaladze believes that Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili has done a good job trying to preserve peace in Georgia.

“From our history, these conflicted zones, South Ossetia and Abkhazia, were part of Georgia,” Manjgaladze said. “Over 20 years we were suffering from this conflict and I think President Saakashvili did everything to solve the conflict without war. This conflict has to end and I think that Saakashvili had a peaceful strategy for this.”

Manjgaladze hopes that the current conflict will end soon and that other conflicts can be avoided in the future.

“I want world peace,” Manjgaladze said. “I want people, no matter what nation, to love each other. For (the) 21st century, war is not the right decision to solve the conflict.”

In the email interview, Manjgaladze thanked everyone in Emporia and Olpe for their “great love and strong support.”

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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Whether or not the Faculty Senate violated state law when it voted by secret ballot and then destroyed the ballots April 1 is still being debated. University officials have either denied or sidestepped the issue, but a spokesman for the state press association says the senate is clearly subject to state sunshine laws.

President Michael Lane declined to comment on the secret ballot, citing “pending possible legal issues.” Senate President Harvey Foyle said during Tuesday’s meeting that he does not believe the group is subject to the Kansas Open Meetings Act.

At another point in the meeting, however, he appeared unsure.

“I actually have no knowledge of whether we’re under the Kansas Open Meetings Act,” Foyle said. “I don’t believe we are, simply because it’s never come up, it’s never been dealt with. The one small element I know in the Kansas Open Meetings Act says no secret ballots. We have secret ballots in our constitution. And I functioned clearly as best I could with the others.”

Mike Merriam, a lawyer for the Kansas Press Association, disagreed.

“That’s not much of a reason,” Merriam said during a telephone interview on Wednesday. “I don’t know why they wouldn’t be; they are a subordinate group of a public agency — the university. I know of no reason why they would not be under KOMA.”

The senate operates under a parliamentary handbook first published in 1876 known as “Robert’s Rules of Order.” When asked if “Robert’s” trump Kansas law, Merriam said no.

“Robert’s Rules does not have the force of law,” Merriam said. “It’s just an organizational tool that people may or may not employ as they see fit. The law, though, is binding. They do have to abide by the Kansas Open Meeting Act; they don’t have to abide by Robert’s Rules.”

The secret ballot was rescinded at Tuesday’s meeting and a roll-call vote was taken instead. Foyle said the senate rescinded the vote to honor Lane’s request for transparency, and not under pressure from any outside group, an apparent reference to The Bulletin.

One senator, however, questioned the legality of the secret ballot.

“It is my understanding, my reading, of the Kansas Open Meetings Act, under Kansas Statute, that secret ballots are not allowed,” said John Dougherty, internal auditor and director of governmental relations, during Tuesday’s meeting.

In response, Foyle said he relies on Lane for information about KOMA.

“I believe that we are not under the Kansas Open Meetings Act,” Foyle said. “Otherwise, this would not be this way. Also, I have sought clarification of that particular issue. That’s not the issue before us. We’re not going to get into a debate about that. I’m seeking clarification of that to find out whether we are or are not. There has been, in my opinion, misinformation on that subject in a variety of places and that’s why we’re seeking clarification. Before anybody asks who we are seeking clarification of, I’m seeking clarification from President Lane, who seeks clarification from those who give him, who he gets information from.”

Lane, however, said he was relying on the Faculty Senate for answers.

“What I’m doing right now is waiting to see what the faculty senate does at their meeting this afternoon,” Lane said. He also said he wasn’t planning to issue a statement regarding whether the Faculty Senate is subject to KOMA or the Kansas Open Records Act.

“In our meeting with Mark Goodman,” Lane said, “we told him the manner in which we would be dealing with the situation and we didn’t say we’d be issuing a statement.”

Last week, Lyon County Prosecutor John Marcus Goodman said he expected the university to issue a statement.

“I have requested informally that the university state its position on whether they believe the Faculty Senate to be an open meeting or not,” Goodman said. “I’ve spoken with the university and they have an acceptable solution. I’m going to let the president’s office issue a statement.”

Tracy Greene, university counsel, said Wednesday that she had been too busy since April 1 to grant an interview with The Bulletin. She also declined to respond to a question about whether the Faculty Senate is subject to KOMA or KORA.

“At this point in time, I’m not aware of any pending legal action,” Greene said. “I don’t have any further comments.”

Neither Greene nor Lane attend Faculty Senate meetings unless they are invited. By policy, according to Foyle, the meetings are open to the public. He also said, however, that secret ballots are provided for in the senate’s constitution.

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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The Faculty Senate may have violated the Kansas Open Meetings Act when it voted by secret ballot on Tuesday to change the university’s General Education requirements.

The ballots were destroyed after the 17-10 vote was tallied.

“If the faculty senate is acting as an advisory board, by giving recommendations to an executive, then their actions should be subject to the open meetings law and the open records law,” said Adam Goldstein, an attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va. “If they resort to a secret ballot, and then destroy the ballots, one or both of the following would seem to be true: they have violated the open records law by shredding the ballots, or they have violated the open meetings law by conducting a secret ballot in the first place. In any case, it certainly frustrates the purpose of the open government laws to attempt to circumvent public knowledge of votes, and someone’s arbitrary rules of conduct are a poor replacement for the law.”

The senate voted to suspend its own constitution for the duration of the meeting to allow the secret ballot.

Kevin Coulson, associate professor of business administration and education, made a motion for the secret ballot. But Harvey Foyle, professor of instructional design and technology and president of the Faculty Senate, later said he had already been thinking about using a secret ballot.

“I’d been announcing we were going to be doing a secret ballot and then I found out that our constitution does not allow a secret ballot– that’s what our parliamentarian informed me of,” Foyle said. “And so they, apart from me, they brought up the motion of a secret ballot. I had already planted that, that’s the way I wanted to do it…He [Kevin Coulson] did what he did to make it appropriate.”

The Kansas Open Meetings Act (KOMA) says that all public bodies and subdivisions “shall be open to the public and no binding action by such bodies shall be by secret ballot.”

The Senate voted 24-4 in favor of the secret ballot. The names of the four who voted against were not recorded in the senate minutes.

“We maintain the number of votes, pros, cons, abstentions,” said Amy Sage Webb, associate professor of English and first vice-president of the senate. “We don’t keep a tally of who voted. That’s not the way the senate is working. It’s not against the rules to do it one way or another.”

When asked if the senators believed they were under the jurisdiction of the KOMA and if they had discussed the Act, Webb replied yes.

“Kansas Open Meetings Law is something that we are always aware of by posting our agendas in advance so that people can know what’s on the agenda,” Webb said. “We post our meetings on the web and anybody can come to the senate. We feel that this is the way we are in compliance.”

At the time of the meeting, Gary Holcomb, associate professor of English, expressed concern over a having a secret ballot. Later, Holcomb said in an email “It was just a question about a point of order. I’ll probably ask the president about it. But it’s not an issue.”

Coulson said he did not consider the ballots used during the meeting as secretive.

“It’s not a secret,” Coulson said. “It’s a clearly allowed procedure…The idea came out in Senate Executive Committee. The concern was there was a minority group on campus pressuring the people to vote in the minority group’s interest to the disadvantage of everybody else on campus. To avoid that pressure… I came up with the idea.”

Coulson did not identify the minority groups.

“Any body that operates under a legislative body is usually under Robert’s Rules of Order in addition to the bylaws of their organization,” Coulson said.

Although Robert’s Rules of Order may apply to the senate, so might the Kansas Open Meetings Act said a representative of a state press group.

“They may choose to follow the Robert’s Rules of Order, but those don’t trump the Kansas Open Meetings Act statute,” said Mike Merriam, attorney for the Kansas Press Association.

The Bulletin contacted the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and was referred to the Lyon County prosecutor. John Marcus Goodman, the county prosecutor, said he planned on calling the attorney general’s office on Thursday to request more information.

“As to a Faculty Senate, I cannot find an opinion on point,” said Goodman. “It doesn’t mean it is not subject to it, but it also doesn’t mean it is subject to it either.”

Foyle did not know if the Faculty Senate was governed by KOMA. He did say, however, that all meetings were open by policy.

According to Foyle, the ballots were destroyed. When questioned about whether there was proof of the voting count, Foyle replied that the three people who observed the ballots were his proof. He also did not know if the Faculty Senate was governed by the Kansas Open Records Act.

“Under the rule and regulations of the Kansas Board of Regents which is governed by the State of Kansas, we follow the law and the regulations and the rules,” Foyle said. “Whatever those are, we follow them. If we violated them, we have to follow them.”

Foyle said he would need to ask the university lawyer if the senate was under KOMA. He also stated that the president and vice presidents of the university should also know if the senate was under KOMA.

University Counsel Tracy Greene declined an interview.

Through an assistant, Greene said she would only speak to The Bulletin if both the previous Faculty Senate president and a current member of the senate were spoken to first. It is the general policy of The Bulletin to not negotiate conditions for interviews.

“If we are in violation, which I can’t say we are…we will definitely re-hold the vote that’s to be in compliance,” Foyle said. “If we’re not in violation, then we won’t do anything different. If we are covered by the Open Meetings Act, this is not stated in our constitution, and I will ask our Faculty Senate Executive to draft a bill sometime to amend the constitution so it’s clearly stated there, so there’s no misunderstanding.”

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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The Faculty Senate may have violated the Kansas Open Meetings Act when it voted by secret ballot on Tuesday to change the university’s General Education requirements.

The ballots were destroyed after the 17-10 vote was tallied.

“If the faculty senate is acting as an advisory board, by giving recommendations to an executive, then their actions should be subject to the open meetings law and the open records law,” said Adam Goldstein, an attorney advocate for the Student Press Law Center in Arlington, Va. “If they resort to a secret ballot, and then destroy the ballots, one or both of the following would seem to be true: they have violated the open records law by shredding the ballots, or they have violated the open meetings law by conducting a secret ballot in the first place. In any case, it certainly frustrates the purpose of the open government laws to attempt to circumvent public knowledge of votes, and someone’s arbitrary rules of conduct are a poor replacement for the law.”

The senate voted to suspend its own constitution for the duration of the meeting to allow the secret ballot.

Kevin Coulson, associate professor of business administration and education, made a motion for the secret ballot. But Harvey Foyle, professor of instructional design and technology and president of the Faculty Senate, later said he had already been thinking about using a secret ballot.

“I’d been announcing we were going to be doing a secret ballot and then I found out that our constitution does not allow a secret ballot– that’s what our parliamentarian informed me of,” Foyle said. “And so they, apart from me, they brought up the motion of a secret ballot. I had already planted that, that’s the way I wanted to do it…He [Kevin Coulson] did what he did to make it appropriate.”

The Kansas Open Meetings Act (KOMA) says that all public bodies and subdivisions “shall be open to the public and no binding action by such bodies shall be by secret ballot.”

The Senate voted 24-4 in favor of the secret ballot. The names of the four who voted against were not recorded in the senate minutes.

“We maintain the number of votes, pros, cons, abstentions,” said Amy Sage Webb, associate professor of English and first vice-president of the senate. “We don’t keep a tally of who voted. That’s not the way the senate is working. It’s not against the rules to do it one way or another.”

When asked if the senators believed they were under the jurisdiction of the KOMA and if they had discussed the Act, Webb replied yes.

“Kansas Open Meetings Law is something that we are always aware of by posting our agendas in advance so that people can know what’s on the agenda,” Webb said. “We post our meetings on the web and anybody can come to the senate. We feel that this is the way we are in compliance.”

At the time of the meeting, Gary Holcomb, associate professor of English, expressed concern over a having a secret ballot. Later, Holcomb said in an email “It was just a question about a point of order. I’ll probably ask the president about it. But it’s not an issue.”

Coulson said he did not consider the ballots used during the meeting as secretive.

“It’s not a secret,” Coulson said. “It’s a clearly allowed procedure…The idea came out in Senate Executive Committee. The concern was there was a minority group on campus pressuring the people to vote in the minority group’s interest to the disadvantage of everybody else on campus. To avoid that pressure… I came up with the idea.”

Coulson did not identify the minority groups.

“Any body that operates under a legislative body is usually under Robert’s Rules of Order in addition to the bylaws of their organization,” Coulson said.

Although Robert’s Rules of Order may apply to the senate, so might the Kansas Open Meetings Act said a representative of a state press group.

“They may choose to follow the Robert’s Rules of Order, but those don’t trump the Kansas Open Meetings Act statute,” said Mike Merriam, attorney for the Kansas Press Association.

The Bulletin contacted the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and was referred to the Lyon County prosecutor. John Marcus Goodman, the county prosecutor, said he planned on calling the attorney general’s office on Thursday to request more information.

“As to a Faculty Senate, I cannot find an opinion on point,” said Goodman. “It doesn’t mean it is not subject to it, but it also doesn’t mean it is subject to it either.”

Foyle did not know if the Faculty Senate was governed by KOMA. He did say, however, that all meetings were open by policy.

According to Foyle, the ballots were destroyed. When questioned about whether there was proof of the voting count, Foyle replied that the three people who observed the ballots were his proof. He also did not know if the Faculty Senate was governed by the Kansas Open Records Act.

“Under the rule and regulations of the Kansas Board of Regents which is governed by the State of Kansas, we follow the law and the regulations and the rules,” Foyle said. “Whatever those are, we follow them. If we violated them, we have to follow them.”

Foyle said he would need to ask the university lawyer if the senate was under KOMA. He also stated that the president and vice presidents of the university should also know if the senate was under KOMA.

University Counsel Tracy Greene declined an interview.

Through an assistant, Greene said she would only speak to The Bulletin if both the previous Faculty Senate president and a current member of the senate were spoken to first. It is the general policy of The Bulletin to not negotiate conditions for interviews.

“If we are in violation, which I can’t say we are…we will definitely re-hold the vote that’s to be in compliance,” Foyle said. “If we’re not in violation, then we won’t do anything different. If we are covered by the Open Meetings Act, this is not stated in our constitution, and I will ask our Faculty Senate Executive to draft a bill sometime to amend the constitution so it’s clearly stated there, so there’s no misunderstanding.”

Kelsey Ryan/Bulletin

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