High school students to compete in blood drive

Students from Lawrence’s two high schools are battling for blood this week.

The competition aims to nab 80 blood donors from both Lawrence High School and Free State High School. Blood will be given to the Community Blood Center, 1410 Kasold Drive, which serves area hospitals.

LHS students donated blood Tuesday. FSHS students will donate on Thursday.

Last spring, LHS had 83 donors, while FSHS had 66 donors.

LHS had an additional 80 donors in October, making the school one of the top 10 donor groups in the Community Blood Center area for 2003.

Police

KU student reports ‘disturbing’ photos

A female Kansas University student called Lawrence Police last week after finding what police called “disturbing” photographs on the front porch of her apartment building in the 1400 block of Tennessee Street.

The two pictures had been placed between the guttering and wall of the building and were discovered by the student Feb. 25, according to a report released Tuesday.

Police officials would not give details about the two photos but said they were sexual in nature. Police documented the find as an informational report but are not yet investigating it as a crime.

Education

Schools request $2.7M in budget increases

Lawrence public schools administrators laid out their requests for budget increases Tuesday, putting forth a wish list that totaled nearly $2.7 million.

But with the possibility of state budget cuts looming large this legislative session, it may be unlikely that many of the projects will be funded, they acknowledged.

“Right now it looks pretty dim,” Kathy Johnson, budget director, told the district’s budget committee. “We’re planning on that worst-case scenario.”

Budget requests included better pay for substitute teachers, the reinstatement of the Lawrence High School pep band, technology improvements and a new human resources computer system.

District administrators also have identified $2 million in potential cuts to prepare for possible state losses. The budget committee will meet in a joint session with the Lawrence school board at 4:30 p.m. Monday to discuss the proposed cuts.