Posted on 04/21/2003 10:37:30 AM PDT by new cruelty
TOPEKA, Kan. -(KRT) - Complaints brought by state Sen. Susan Wagle against a University of Kansas human sexuality class are getting the attention of the university and the governor.
The university says it is investigating Wagle's complaints that class materials are pornographic.
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, meanwhile, has until Monday to decide whether to sign the budget bill, which would withhold state money from university departments that use materials deemed obscene under state law.
Wagle, a Wichita Republican, attached the provision to withhold the money to the state's main budget bill.
Sebelius has called the amendment "micromanaging" academic material but has not said whether she will use her line-item veto to eliminate it.
Wagle claims materials used by professor Dennis Dailey are pornographic; she says this constitutes harassment of female students.
"I just can't imagine being a female and sitting through that class," Wagle said.
Dailey has declined comment since the issue surfaced three weeks ago during Senate debate.
Wagle detailed her objections in a letter to KU chancellor Robert Hemenway dated April 6 - 10 days after she brought the issue to the Senate.
University officials say Dailey has a long and distinguished career and has taught the human sexuality class for 20 years without complaint. It is one of the most popular classes at the university, regularly filling a 500-seat auditorium.
Faculty at KU and other state universities have come to Dailey's defense, as have students, three of whom met recently with Sebelius' staff to urge the veto.
"I absolutely do not see any of the class conducted in an offensive manner," said Jen Hein, one of the students who met with the governor's staff.
If Wagle's amendment becomes law, KU could lose $3.1 million in state funding and universities with similar classes could see their funding cut.
It would cut off money to an entire department - in this case, the School of Social Welfare - if materials used are found to be obscene. A court would make that determination, based on community standards.
Wagle said she started pursuing the issue in January after being contacted by a student taking the class. Later, Wagle said, she contacted other students in the class who she said had similar complaints.
They taped some of Dailey's lectures, which Wagle said confirmed their complaints.
One student in the class - whom Wagle arranged to call the Wichita Eagle newspaper _said Dailey uses a common obscenity when referring to sexual intercourse and uses explicit videos. The student asked not to be identified, saying she feared her grade would be jeopardized.
"It's hard to sit in that class and take it all the time," the student said. "It's disgusting. It's offensive to me."
Her complaints mirror those outlined in Wagle's letter to Hemenway. The letter says Dailey:
Belittled and gave "the finger" to a student who walked out the first day, saying she was dropping the class.
Uses "groping motions" when discussing women's breasts.
Encourages students to contact him outside of class to discuss sexual problems.
Made inappropriate comments while showing slides of female genitals, including those of a 5-year-old and a 10-year-old girl.
"I just felt like, this is a concern for the taxpayers of Kansas," Wagle said. "This professor is out of line. I don't think it's a healthy environment."
Kelly Graf, a KU student from Wichita, said she found none of Dailey's course materials nor his remarks demeaning to women.
"He does interject humor, and he does joke about it to keep it light-hearted," said Graf, a business major who plans to pursue a law degree.
Hein, a journalism student, agreed.
"If anything, as women we come out of that class feeling better about ourselves," she said.
As for vulgar language, Graf said, "He uses the language that people use to talk about sex with their friends.
"Some of the things did make me feel uncomfortable, but I'm glad I watched them."
The subject matter covered in Dailey's class is almost identical to that in a Wichita State University class on human sexuality, said Elwin Barret. An associate professor, he co-teaches the class with Margo Breckbill, a nurse and adjunct professor.
University officials decided when they started the course 25 years ago to use a male-female team to give the class a balanced perspective, Barret said.
WSU does not buy the clinical videotapes offered in the KU class because they are expensive, Barret said. He figures students have seen similar material if they want to because it is readily available from commercial outlets.
Still, he said, graphic material cannot be avoided in the subject matter, including discussion of masturbation and sexual aids used in therapy for people with sexual dysfunctions.
Barret had no criticism of Dailey's approach.
"Some people use kind of a confrontational humor to get their point across, and some people don't," he said. "Sometimes you say something and people don't appreciate it. That's just part of teaching."
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