Patrick Waters   

The University of Kansas is currently pursuing the approval of Sales Tax and Revenue (STAR) Bonds to assist in the financing of the Gateway District at the corner of 11th and Mississippi Street. STAR Bonds are a unique economic development tool which allows local governments to use bond proceeds to help finance the construction of major commercial, entertainment, and tourism areas. In order to qualify for STAR Bonds a project must be a statewide and regional tourist destination. Some nearby examples of projects that were financed with STAR Bonds include the Kansas Speedway, Children’s Mercy Park (home of Sporting KC), and the Amelia Earhart Hangar Museum in Atchison. With the Gateway District, the STAR Bonds would be used to help finish construction of the east side of the all-new David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium and to support the surrounding infrastructure work around the stadium.

STAR Bonds are unique in that they take both the local and state sales taxes generated by the new development and use those proceeds to help pay down the bonds that are issued for the project. STAR Bond projects can only use the new, incremental taxes generated by the project – the State and local municipalities keep the existing base tax revenues from the area. The process to get STAR Bonds approved is quite lengthy and requires that multiple reviews and studies be conducted to verify that the project will be successful and that public benefits will exceed public costs. First, a district map must be created and approved which outlines the specific area where the sales taxes will be collected from and where the project will be developed. Then, a detailed project plan which describes the types of developments which will occur within the district must be approved. Ultimately, both the city where the project is located and the Kansas Department of Commerce must approve and sign off on the issuance of STAR Bonds.

The University of Kansas first presented its vision for the Gateway District to the Lawrence City Commission in December of last year, and since that time the University has been going through all of the statutorily required steps with both the State and the City as it seeks approval. On May 13, 2025, the Lawrence City Commission approved the first step in the process by voting to create the Gateway Project STAR Bond District. Additional public hearings and voting on the final project plan and development agreement is expected to occur in the coming months. If approved, the City would issue special obligation bonds which would only be required to be repaid from the sales tax revenues generated within the STAR Bond District – neither the City nor the University would be liable for repayment of the bonds from their general funds or any other sources.

Please be sure to check back in on future editions of this newsletter for more updates!

Every year the University enters into hundreds of contracts for a broad range of goods and services, from software licenses and guest speakers to clinical trials, consultants and more. All of these contracts must be reviewed by the Office of General Counsel or another authorized reviewing office and signed by an authorized signatory.

Who reviews what?

The KUMC Purchasing and KU Procurement departments review all contracts for purchases of goods and services, regardless of dollar amount.

The University of Kansas Center for Research (KUCR) and the University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute, Inc. (KUMCRI) review all research-related contracts.

TheOffice of General Counsel (OGC) reviews everything else.

Contracts can be submitted to OGC via email to gencoun@ku.eduor generalcounsel@kumc.edu, or directly to an attorney.

Before You Submit a Contract

The reviewing offices aren’t familiar with the details of every agreement, so we count on you to make sure the contract accurately reflects the arrangement. Before submitting, make sure you’ve double-checked the:

Business terms (what’s being done or delivered)

Financial terms (costs, payment schedule, etc.)

Programmatic terms (timelines, responsibilities of each party, etc.)

If you’re working with an outside party and they haven’t provided a contract, no problem—just reach out to the appropriate office listed above. Share a brief description of the project and any financial details, and they’ll help draft a contract that fits your needs.

Who Can Sign?

Once everything’s finalized, the contract needs to be signed by an authorized signatory as outlined in the Chancellor’s Delegation of Authority to Execute Contracts Letter. Most contracts require signature by someone with the title of Dean, Associate Vice Chancellor (AVC), or higher. If you’re not sure who that is, the office that reviewed your contract can help you figure it out.

Just ask!  If you’re ever unsure whether a contract needs review or what office it should go to, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re happy to point you in the right direction!

Megan Gannon

At first glance generative AI, (Gen AI) appears limitless, but the more queries you pose to Gen AI, the harder Gen AI attempts to satiate your requests, to foresee where you are going next, and to answer each question with precision.

The problem is that precise answers are hard to come by and to provide you with answers Gen AI may hallucinate its findings. Hallucinations, described as “patterns or objects that are nonexistent or imperceptible to human observers,”[1] pose a significant risk to Gen AI integration in higher education.

Beyond hallucinated materials, Gen AI raises concerns about academic integrity, privacy, and intellectual property rights.

Communication and disclosure are essential as the University navigates this new landscape of Gen AI.

University resources on Gen AI include: AI Advocates Podcast | Flexible Learning through Innovations in Technology & Education (FLITE); Easing into generative AI | Center for Teaching Excellence and Adapting classes to the artificial intelligence era | Center for Teaching Excellence.

For those specifically interested in intellectual property and AI, the U.S. Copyright Office has published a report with three parts, Part 1: Digital Replicas (Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 1 Digital Replicas Report); Part 2: Copyrightability (Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 2 Copyrightability Report) and Part 3: Generative AI Training (Pre-publication) Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, Part 3: Generative AI Training Pre-Publication Version.

Gen AI possesses the capability to change the way higher education operates, treat it kindly and use it wisely.

[1]What Are AI Hallucinations? | IBM

Parker Redel

As a public agency, the University of Kansas receives numerous requests for public records. The KU Open Public Records portal on NextRequest acts as a one-stop hub for requesters to make requests and view all communications and released records related to their requests. Parker Redel, the Open Records Program Coordinator, manages the portal for all Kansas Open Records Act requests.

The Kansas Open Records Act (KORA) sets the rules the University must follow when a request for records is made. Upon receiving a request, the University first determines if it has records responsive to the request. If the University has responsive records that are subject to disclosure under the law, the University charges fees for the retrieval, review, and production based on the actual costs in employee time and resources to do so. If additional time is required to produce the records, the University provides an explanation for the delay and the date by which it expects to provide a determinative response.

Once records are identified, the Coordinator and the Office of the General Counsel work with faculty and staff to review the records and determine if the records are subject to disclosure under the law.

Not all public records must be disclosed.  KORA recognizes dozens of categories of records that are exempt from mandatory production.  Among the records the University is not required to disclose are:

Some records may be entirely exempt from production, but if a record is partially exempt, then only those portions will be redacted so that the remaining open portions can be produced. After consultation and collaboration with University clients, the Coordinator then produces non-exempt records to the requester.

KORA will see some changes beginning July 1, 2025, including new standards for fees and cost mitigation, as well as provisions that strengthen criteria for exemptions to disclosure. The Office of the General Counsel does not expect that these changes will have a significant impact on the day-to-day processes of KORA for the University. 

If you have any questions or would like to request a brief presentation that goes over specifics of the KORA law or response process for your unit or department, please reach out directly to the Open Records team by emailing openrecords@ku.edu.

The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, status as a veteran, sexual orientation, marital status, parental status, gender identity, gender expression, and genetic information in the university’s programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policiesand procedures and is the Title IX Coordinator for all KU and KUMC campuses: Associate Vice Chancellor for the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX, civilrights@ku.edu, Room 1082, Dole Human Development Center, 1000 Sunnyside Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66045, 785-864-6414, 711 TTY. Reports can be submitted by contacting the Title IX Coordinator as provided herein or online and complaints can be submitted with the Title IX Coordinator or online.

© The University of Kansas. 2025.