KU’s ‘Hate-Out Week’ commemorates lives lost

Small, white flags dotting the lawn of Stauffer-Flint Hall on Wednesday commemorated the lives of those lost to hate.

The flags are part of “Hate-Out Week” sponsored by the KU Multicultural Resource Center.

“There is a tremendous need to address issues of intolerance and hate with our young people in order to create a world where every person is accepted and valued,” said Santos Nunez, the center’s director.

The “Field of Flags,” which will be displayed again today, include names of people lost to hate, including Matthew Shepard, a University of Wyoming student who was murdered because he was gay. Event organizers plan a ceremony at 12:15 p.m. today on the lawn.

“Hate-Out Week” culminates with the fourth annual “Colors of KU” retreat Friday through Sunday at the Tall Oaks Conference Center near Linwood. The retreat involves KU students, faculty and staff in a series of multicultural awareness and community-building activities.

Education

Donor offers to match $10,000 in fund drive

The Lawrence Schools Foundation launched its second annual Every Family Counts campaign with an offer from an anonymous donor to match every dollar raised up to $10,000.

The foundation, a nonprofit organization that supports Lawrence public schools, will work to match the pledge by Dec. 31.

Parents of students in the district will receive a letter about the campaign from Randy Weseman, superintendent, and Mike Maddox, foundation president.

Weseman said the foundation’s efforts to raise money were significant in light of financial challenges facing public schools in Kansas.

“We know Lawrence parents value and appreciate the high-quality education their children receive in our public schools,” Maddox said. “The foundation board is confident that parents will support our efforts to continue this tradition of excellence.”

The anonymous donor is a Lawrence resident.

For more information, contact the foundation at 832-5000.

Kansas University

Animal advocates seek to spay, neuter wild cats

The days of feral cats at Kansas University multiplying by the dozens may be numbered.

Animal Outreach of Kansas will meet tonight to discuss establishing a program to trap and spay or neuter the wild cats on the KU campus. The cats then would be returned to the area where they were trapped.

“Getting feral cats to a veterinarian for spaying or neutering and a general health evaluation is the single most important thing a caretaker can do for them,” said Julia Franklin, an AOK member and KU graduate student.

The group recently trapped 13 cats living near a construction site at Sunnyside Avenue and Sunflower Road and found new homes for them in the country.

The meeting, which is open to the public, is at 7 p.m. today in the fourth-floor lobby of the Kansas Union.