Students’ fervor, faculty’s view at odds at games
David Guth didn’t see much basketball Sunday at Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas University students, from right, Drew Nedved, Darren Reed, Jonathan Kealing, Daschie Ouellette and Diane Basone pound the boards during a KU-Missouri game in February at Allen Fieldhouse. Some faculty have complained this season that exuberant students are blocking their view at games.
“I was right behind a very lovely coed wearing J.Lo jeans,” Guth said. “The reason I know that was that was about all I could see.”
Guth, associate professor of journalism, was one of dozens of faculty who had their views of the Kansas University-Emporia State basketball game blocked by students who were standing throughout the game, as has been the KU tradition for years.
During this year’s seating shakeup at Allen Fieldhouse, which included implementation of a points-based seating plan, faculty negotiated for better tickets than they previously held, and wound up in the vicinity of the students. But neither faculty nor athletic officials predicted the snag with standing.
That left students standing on their bleacher seats blocking faculty, especially in sections 2, 10 and 13 in the corners of the fieldhouse.
| Comment from On the Street:Posted by Larry on November 11 at 6:21 a.m.”The older I get, the more I want to sit down. However, when I was younger, I would have been extremely upset if I was told to sit down. That is what makes Allen Fieldhouse such a great place to watch basketball. Keep em’ up and keep em’ loud. I agree with Ann above! If I’m too tired to stand and scream, I’ll stay home and sit (and scream)… Oh boy, my wife loves it when I do that!” |
“I have 52-year-old knees,” Guth said. “When I was 22, I could do two hours standing on a bench. But I can’t do that anymore. I love student enthusiasm, and I don’t want to do anything to change that, but I want to see the game.”
Athletics officials said they had a plan to alleviate the problem.
An e-mail sent Thursday to faculty gave them two options.
l The first is exchanging tickets for others at the Fieldhouse, though they probably would be in “less desirable locations.”
l The other is getting a full refund for the remaining 17 games in the season, which the e-mail promised would not cost them their status as continuous season-ticket holders.
Jim Marchiony, an athletics spokesman, said officials hoped to convince students to stand on the concrete instead of on the wooden benches, which would help alleviate the problem. They’re working with Student Senate on ways to make that happen, including appeals through the University Daily Kansan, the student newspaper.
| Comment from On the Street:Posted by teach1reach1 on November 11 at 10:27 a.m.”As a student, on the occasions I got tickets to the bball game, it was fun to be in the enthusiastic student “standing” section. Having gone as a grad, and finding my tickets put me right behind the student section, it was frustrating to pay money and not see anything unless you stood also. You would think they could arrange the seating and make that whole corner student “seating” and find another spot for those of us who are still young in heart but not in body.” |
“We don’t want to do anything to curb the enthusiasm of the students,” Marchiony said. “We don’t think there’s anything lost by standing on the ground instead of the benches.”
Steve Munch, student body president, said leaders wanted to work with the athletic department. But he wasn’t sure what it would take to convince students to stand on the ground instead of the benches.
“They don’t want us to sit down or be less rowdy or anything like that,” Munch said. “This next game might be an issue, but I’m hoping we’ll take care of it in the future.”
Guth said he wasn’t sure what route he would take with his tickets, but he was happy with the athletic department’s response.
“I couldn’t be happier with the way they’ve handled it in a responsible manner,” he said. “My feeling is any place in the fieldhouse is good.”
The view from the sections in question
Official KUAC seating breakdown by Allen Fieldhouse sections
Official KUAC seating breakdown by Allen Fieldhouse sections
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