October 18, 1999
Contact: Michael Ediger, KU International Student Services, (785) 864-3617.
LAWRENCE -- On Oct. 20, about 16 University of Kansas students from around the world will tour Oskaloosa, population: 1,122, in Jefferson County about 20 miles northwest of Lawrence.
For more than 40 years, the Oskaloosa Rotary Club has sponsored an annual community event with KU international students, according to Michael L. Ediger, assistant director for KU International Student Services.
The Oskaloosa event includes a visit to Houk's dairy farm at milking time and a tour of the town square, including a stop at the county courthouse, built in 1869. At the courthouse, the students are invited to sit in the courtroom jury box where Jan Hayes, Oskaloosa attorney and KU alumna, describes how court cases might proceed in the U.S. judicial system.
Following the tour, the students join the Rotary members for dinner and a short program in the conference room of the Oskaloosa Public Library before returning to KU's campus. Each Rotary member serves as host for one of the international visitors at dinner.
Paul Gump, KU psychology professor emeritus and Oskaloosa Rotary member, said the event has been designed to offer international students contact with rural life. "Many of these students have little contact with farm operations while they are studying in the United States," Gump said.
Some Rotary members keep in contact with the student they meet during these visits, Gump added.
Oskaloosa's Rotary Club has a membership of about 25.
Named for a community in Iowa, Oskaloosa was settled in 1855, platted in 1856 and established as the county seat in 1858.