The 1981 Kansas Legislature had been giving Kansas University a painful three-month course in supply-side economics and the final results showed the supply side was on the decline. The numbers told the story, especially the 5.5 percent increase in the other operation expenditures portion of KU’s budget, which represented the lowest operating expense boost in recent memory.

Student leaders throughout Kansas said they planned to oppose a proposed 22 percent fee hike by the Kansas Board of Regents for the coming school year. The regents vigorously defended the move as “absolutely necessary to prevent serious financial problems for the higher education system under our jurisdiction.”