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The only glow of light coming from Jeff Severin's office radiates from his computer screen.  With the window blinds open, Severin swiftly clicks through his e-mails before beginning our interview. 

"I hope you don't mind the lights," he says.  "I don't usually have them on."

Even on a rainy, overcast day like this one, Severin keeps his lights off.  Though he wouldn't ask professors to do the same in their classrooms, Severin nevertheless advocates energy conservation on campus by serving as director of KU's Center for Sustainability.

The center follows a national trend of promoting sustainability on college campuses, a trend that includes other Big 12 schools like Kansas State University and the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Formed under the Provost and opened in February 2007, the Center for Sustainability, led by Severin and a few other faculty members and students, brainstorms initiatives for "meeting the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future," Severin said.

These initiatives include eliminating paper waste in student computer labs and campus departments and creating a composting system that utilizes food waste from the dining halls.  A main goal of the Center, though, has been educating and working with students and student organizations.

Source: Sustainability Endowments Institute           

"The efforts have been very collaborative on campus," said Severin.  "Ultimately, we want more student involvement."

The Campus Rain Garden is an example of such collaborations.  The self-sustaining rain garden, which began with a student's desire to design a course on storm water management, gathers water runoff from urban areas and filters it with the help of native plants, improving water quality and reducing water drain flow.

Several groups, including Emerging Builders, a student organization, and the Ambler Student Recreation Fitness Center, which provided the site for the rain garden, assisted the Center in completing this project.

In addition to the Campus Rain Garden, the Center's first completed project, the Center for Sustainability is also drafting an interdisciplinary course on sustainability.  Stacey White, the Center's director for academic programs, and a team of faculty and staff spent the past year creating a course that White hopes will be available by spring 2010.

"We all look at sustainability from different angles," White said of her fellow committee members.  "That's why we see the need for a multidisciplinary approach--one that looks at the economic, social and environmental impacts of sustainability--to create engaged learning."

Students and student groups have sought help from the Center for Sustainability when implementing sustainable ideas.  Tyler Enders, Leawood sophomore, approached the Center with his idea for what became From Blue to Green: Conserve KU, a "campaign to create a more environmentally sound, sustainable KU community," he said.

From Blue to Green, which encompasses over 20 campus organizations and departments, compiled several sustainable and "green" events that fell on and around Earth Day, including hosting a "Green Fair" in the Union and bringing several speakers to the University for a free lecture series.  Yet, these events are only one aspect of the movement's initiatives.

"From Blue to Green has two focuses: an individual focus and a university focus," Enders said.  "The second focus centers around university policies and what we can do to make them more sustainable."

Currently, From Blue to Green, with the assistance of the Center for Sustainability, is creating a "Revolving Green Fund," in which donors endow money to finance renovations to KU buildings in order to make them more energy efficient.

With these and other projects, KU joins other universities in the region and across the country in moving towards becoming more sustainable.

At the University of Missouri-Columbia, for instance, Steve Burdic, the campus's sustainability coordinator, oversees many of the university's green practices, which have been in place for quite some time.  

"We've been doing things on campus for over 100 years that are sustainable," Burdic said. "It's just nobody really knew what sustainability was."

These practices include making its own electricity, an initiative that saves the school roughly $300,000 in fuel costs and has cut energy consumption on campus by 12 percent, according to Burdic.

Like KU, students have also had a huge impact on sustainability efforts on campus.  Sustain Mizzou, a student-run organization that developed about five years ago from a defunct chapter of the Sierra Club, supports over a dozen projects every year.

"Five years ago, sustainability wasn't as big of a focus with students on campus," Patrick Margherio, Missouri junior and president of Sustain Mizzou, said.  "Now we've had a huge impact, both with students and the administration."

Univ. of Missouri student Ben Datema, former president of Sustain Mizzou, presents the Mizzou Dashboard project during the Missouri Energy Summit. Sustain Mizzou is an example of student involvement in campus sustainability at Mizzou.Source: mizzourwire.mizzou.edu

           

During the events hosted by From Blue to Green, Sustain Mizzou also hosted its own week-long event.  With fliers asking students to help save the planet "one thingamajig at a time," the organization challenged over 1,000 dormitory residents to reduce their energy use.  Sustain Mizzou has also made strides in reforming internal policy; recently, the group created and successfully lobbied for a "sustainability tax," a $1 student fee designed to support paid student positions and provide funds for the sustainability coordinator.  

 

Yet, although KU, Mizzou and other colleges across the country have established sustainability awareness on their campuses, evidence of statewide and national collaboration is scarce.

 

"We're open to further collaboration," Stacey White said.  "But I think most colleges are really concerned with what's going on on their own campuses right now.

 

And despite increased student awareness and involvement, both Enders and Margherio believe the efforts of their organizations have had an isolated focus so far.

 

"I hope that From Blue to Green expands at KU, but I don't necessarily foresee it inspiring and expanding to other schools," Enders said.

 

Kansas State University, however, approaches campus sustainability from a different focus.  Though K. State has initiated many programs similar to KU, including a composting and organic food pilot program in the dining center and reducing energy costs by converting outdoor lighting to LED fixtures, the university has paved the way in research and collaboration.

 

"We're different from other schools because we're a Kansas major land grant school," said Ben Champion, director of sustainability at K. State.  "This means that we're part of a system of dispersing information to other schools that was created to provide practical education to the common citizen."

 

In order to extend the reach of its information, K. State hosted a Sustainability Conference on January 23, 2009.  The conference included general sessions as well as specific track sessions that addressed issues like internal operations and student involvement.  People from several universities, including KU, participated in the conference, which Champion hopes will expand from year to year. 

 

"Next year we will host the conference again," Champion said.  "But our ultimate goal is to have it travel to different universities in the state, and possibly around the country, every year.

     

Though statewide and national efforts may be on KU's list of future goals, right now, Severin, who attended the conference at K. State, pushes for a more local focus. 

 

"Ideally, what I would like to see, is a community-wide effort, where we generate ideas and work together," Severin said.

               

Mandy Shriwise stands at a ballet bar in a dance studio in Robinson Gymnasium, rigid yet graceful while practicing her form and technique.  She moves through the positions of ballet, all based on the same foundations. First, second, third, fourth, fifth, repeat. 

Shriwise continues this routine for the entire class. 

"I have a natural fascination with what the body can do," she says. "And, with dance, you see the capabilities of the body within this structure, this routine; that's really attractive to me."

                For Shriwise, dance always provides a point of stability in her life.  Raised by two teachers in Overland Park, Shriwise, a fifth-year senior, attributes much of her attitude and outlook on life to her parents' balance between providing guidance and not acting controlling.  Yet she never had an extremely close relationship with her parents and her younger brother, a 21-year-old majoring in engineering at K. State.

 "The situation wasn't always good," Shriwise says, of her parents arguing and father's infidelity, which eventually led to divorce when she was 13.  "I was always aware of a conflict, but, at the same time, it wasn't about me.  I was really removed from it in a lot of ways, but since I recognized it, I think that's why I really became so self-reliant."

  Dance provided Shriwise with both the comfort of family and an outlet in which to embrace her independence.  She began dancing at age three and moved into ballet at six, latching onto dance and proving to be what Janet Hamburg, professor of music and dance, called a "technical natural," even though she didn't have the typical ballerina body type.  By age 11, Shriwise apprenticed the senior studio and, at age 12, became a member of the senior company.  Within the company, Shriwise found what she considered a second family among the other dancers and her teachers.

Shriwise enjoys the structure and focus of ballet,

which she calls very cerebral. She considers dance

a perfect complement to pre-med because both

study the possibilities of the human body.

"She was so much younger than all of the other dancers," said KU student Caroline Enders, who grew up dancing with Shriwise at Somerset Ballet in Kansas City. "I think she sort of looked up to the other girls and really knew what to expect from growing up because she had these big sisters. She always felt taken care of."

At age 15, everything in Shriwise's life seemed to be in synch with dance.

 "I'd wake up at 6:30, go to dance, school, volleyball, band, dance again, then homework, eat, sleep and wake up and do it all again," she said.

 Selected to participate in the Boston Ballet's summer workshop, a prestigious program that auditions 5,000 dancers every year and enrolls only 250, she felt elated.   

However, the feeling crumbled when one of Shriwise's dance teachers at Somerset was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died while Shriwise was in Boston.

 "She was like a second mother to me," Shriwise said. Her dance studio also changed ownership, and Shriwise's dedication to the company quickly dwindled. "I had quite a bit of talent, but it was just like, 'What's the point?' I was out of shape and had no idea what I wanted to do with my life."

She came to KU.  Not knowing what to do with her life is something that followed Shriwise to KU.  Because of her fascination with the workings of the body and her intellectual inclinations, she decided early on to follow the pre-med route.  But after taking organic chemistry her sophomore year, Shriwise decided to try some new things.

"I saw all of these students who were so stressed out by these classes, and I didn't want to be stressed out.  The goal was to not have a mid-life crisis," Shriwise said.

So, to avoid a "mid-life crisis," Shriwise began deviating from the structure of her life and her goals, experimenting with new classes. She studied abroad in Tanzania and became co-director of the Center for Community Outreach, which registers student-led volunteer organizations to help them build a foundation in the community.

After spending a summer in Tanzania, Shriwise realized

that she "sees the world through the eyes of a dancer,"

said Professor Janet Hamburg.

"I've been actively figuring out what I want to do," she said. "You know, so many people want you to say, 'I'm going to med school, I'm going to be a doctor.' So many people rule things and experiences out for simplicity's sake, and I don't want to do that."    

Despite becoming somewhat disenchanted with ballet before she began college, Shriwise auditioned for the University Dance Company and made it freshman year. Dance has nonetheless played a unifying role in her college life, but, instead of serving as a physical escape, though, ballet evolved into a mental escape for Shriwise.

 "It's really cerebral, but not so much verbal, which is hard for people to understand," she said. "If you look at the structure of the brain, memory, balance, everything is working. It's all really stimulating, and I don't get bored."

 "She is a very intelligent dancer," Professor Hamburg said. "When she returned from Tanzania after her sophomore year, she said to me, 'I've realized that I see the world through dance.' She may do all of these things, but dance ties it all together."

While she is currently rehearsing for the University Dance Company's "Tree of Life" performance in April, this is the first semester that Shriwise has stepped away from the company. This decision coincides with finally figuring out what she wants to do, choosing her majors--dance and economics, with a minor in African studies--as well as scheduling her medical admissions test for May and applying for public service internships in Washington, D.C., with Former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and designated Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

 

"There's something about the focus, the synthesis, of dance.  It's learning the motions, almost mechanistically, and then you learn how to convey what you want to the audience," Shriwise said. "But I had to find a new way to live my life.  The routines, the structure, of dance have grounded me, but it's not just about the routine, about being self-reliant. A lot of college has been me learning I can't live life on my own."

 

For a video of Shriwise rehearsing for the Tree of Life performance, click here.

The Lawrence City Commission voted Tuesday to rezone North Town, a 58,000-square foot building owned by North Town Development, allowing the firm to finish pursuing its plans for the site and enacting a change that will bring much-needed improvement to the area. After two months of sifting through red-tape, Steve Glass, head of North Town, convinced the Commission to change the zoning requirements of a property at 725 N. 2^nd street, in order to use it for G-Force Athletics, a local gymnastics and cheerleading training organization. "This has been a frustrating process," Glass said.  "We're hoping to move forward quickly after tonight."

The case with North Town Development was the first instance the City Commission has faced concerning zoning specifications since updating the code in 2006.

 

 

North Town acquired the Northeast Lawrence property in 1966 when it "was a junkyard and an eyesore."  The firm converted it to an asphalt plant and, in 2005, to a building intended for small businesses. Unfortunately for Glass, the slump in the economy and commercial development has hindered the success of the North Town site. "We misread the market, and it hasn't really taken off," Glass said.  "G-Force would be a great help."

The North Town Development will provide G-Force Athletics, a gymnastics and cheerleading training organization, with a permanent training facility

               

Two KU graduates and former members of the cheerleading squad started G-Force, a family-friendly gym, to provide students with cheerleading, tumbling and trampolining lessons.  The gym had a peak enrollment of 300 in 2002, but the number of students has fallen to 55, in large part because the gym has no permanent facility.  Previously located on 23^rd street, G-Force has recently relied on facilities owned by Lawrence Parks and Recreation.  However, the agreement with the city will soon expire, and the parks department is considering discontinuing G-Force next year.

 

North Town Development, though, came to the rescue. In January, G-Force Athletics signed a lease to rent the 2^nd street property for its gymnastics  facility. 

 
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However, renovations stalled when the city denied Glass a building permit because the property was zoned for industrial use only, beginning an unnecessarily long and costly process for Glass.

 

"To accommodate use we have had for 42 years, we're paying thousands of dollars for something horrid like gymnastics to come into our community," Glass said. His frustration, though, was not with the community but instead with the out-of-date zoning classifications in North Lawrence. Originally intended as the industrial center of Lawrence because of the railroad, North Lawrence has steadily declined over the past several decades; however, because industrial areas tend to change less than commercial or residential areas, it is more difficult to obtain building permits in industrial zones, according to Glass.

 

Though this was the first time this issue has been raised since the commission changed the developing code in 2006, the commissioners were quick to express their concerns about the problem, particularly since revitalizing North Lawrence has been a priority of the city for some time.

 

"Property owners will be in for a surprise if they're marketing a property for a use it's not zoned for.  That's a serious problem," Commissioner Mike Amyx said.

 

Residents of the area were in favor of the rezoning.  They informed the commission about a previous instance in the area in which a high-end photography studio wanted to move into an empty building in the area and found out about the zoning restrictions only after it had rented the space.  "North 2^nd Street provides a first impression for visitors to Lawrence.  We need to bring the zoning up-to-date so businesses can thrive," one resident said.

 

Commercial developments in North Lawrence frequently change leasers and remain empty because of the slump in the economy and the development market.

 

The commission recognized the lack of "industrial corridors" beyond the turnpike and voted unanimously to switch the zoning status of North Town.  The rezoning may be the springboard for a complete overhaul of the specifications for zoning classification further down the road.  "This is something that has unfortunately slipped through," Commissioner Sue Hack said.  "We don't have any problems moving forward."

Seth Dolan spent many hours one Saturday afternoon glued to a computer screen instead of watching KU beat Kansas State in basketball.

But Dolan wasn't writing a paper for an English class or finishing a project for History. Instead, Dolan, Roswell, Ga., sophomore, finished an application to transfer to the University of Georgia next year.

"Transferring to UGA is a last resort option for me, but it's getting to that point now," said Dolan.

While the nation's economy continues to worsen, Dolan is one of many students looking for alternative methods to handle the rising costs of college. 

In the 2008 academic year, non-residents made up 30 percent of the student population, according to registrar records.