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Study finds married couples now less likely to uproot wives’ careers in favor of husbands’
LAWRENCE — A new study from two University of Kansas researchers, titled “Tied Staying on the Rise? Declining Migration among Co-Breadwinner Couples in the United States, 1990s to 2010s,” establishes that couples for whom a husband and wife contribute equally to family income have become increasingly less likely to move to other states or counties, compared to male sole breadwinner couples. The article appears in the academic journal Social Forces.
Prairie oracles offer advice in divination deck from KU professor
LAWRENCE – How does a poet, and an academic one at that, reach out to the general public with her concern for the planet and for others’ well-being? In the case of Megan Kaminski, University of Kansas associate professor of English, the answer comes now in the form of Prairie Divination, a 40-card oracle deck and illustrated collection of essays. It’s a distillation of the plant and animal knowledge she has gained from 14 years living in Kansas, paying careful attention to the prairie ecosystem, combined with interdisciplinary research in botany and plant studies and some poetic and artistic inspiration alongside collaborator and former doctoral student, L. Ann Wheeler.
Architecture & Design dean candidate Craig Anz to present Feb. 18
LAWRENCE – The second of four candidates to become the next dean of the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design will give a public presentation from 2:45 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18, in The Forum at Marvin Hall. Craig Anz is the interim director at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale College of Arts and Media, where he also serves as a full professor, program director of architectural studies and coordinator in the School of Architecture Resources Library.
‘Measure for Measure’ kicks off spring season at KU Theatre
LAWRENCE — For its spring season opener, the University Theatre will stage “Measure for Measure” by William Shakespeare and set it in the “Wild West” of Kansas. Performances are Feb. 25-27 and March 4-6, with a simultaneous livestream available Feb. 25, 27 and March 4. Kansas cast members include students from Lawrence, Rose Hill, Shawnee, Topeka and Wichita.
Full stories below.
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Contact: Jon Niccum, KU News Service, 785-864-7633, [email protected]
Study finds married couples now less likely to uproot wives’ careers in favor of husbands’
LAWRENCE — The long-standing expectation that a husband is the sole breadwinner of a household has shifted dramatically during the last few decades, with married couples enjoying a more egalitarian flexibility in their roles.
But a new study reveals that American couples are now less likely to uproot wives’ careers in favor of husbands’ careers than ever before.
“While the decline in internal regional migration is not new, we show the decline is accelerated among co-breadwinner couples,” said ChangHwan Kim, professor of sociology at the University of Kansas.
Kim and co-writer Matt Erickson’s article, titled “Tied Staying on the Rise? Declining Migration among Co-Breadwinner Couples in the United States, 1990s to 2010s,” establishes that couples for whom a husband and wife contribute equally to family income have become increasingly less likely to move to other states or counties, compared to male sole breadwinner couples. The article appears in Social Forces.
“When people are thinking about things like moving for new job opportunities and the role that plays in the economy, they think of it more in terms of individuals moving toward economic opportunity,” said Erickson, the Dean’s Doctoral Fellow in the KU sociology department and lead author of the paper. “They don’t think about how most people are actually in a family context where there might be a whole additional career to consider.”
The societal assumption for most of the 20th century was that the man represented the household breadwinner. But this has been incrementally replaced by the concept of “tied stayers,” who are defined as individuals likely to migrate if single but instead stay in place because of family considerations.
Erickson said, “In the past, when a dual-earner couple would move, they might have put more weight on the man’s career. They would have been willing to move for a new job opportunity for the man, even if it would hurt the woman’s career. Whereas now they weigh both of these considerations more evenly, and they might forego an opportunity for the man out of concern for disrupting the woman’s career.”
Kim and Erickson used publicly available data from the Current Population Survey data — in particular an annual survey that collects information on whether families moved to a new household in the past year, and if that included a move to a new county or state. Next, a regression technique was employed to approximate the relationship between a couple’s division of income and how likely they are to move to a new county or state within a given year.
The study estimates the decline in migration probability among dual-earner couples relative to male sole-breadwinner couples accounts for nearly one-third of the total migration decline among married couples (ages 25-39) between the 1990s and 2010s.
This research was prompted by Erickson’s own personal experiences.
“I was a tied mover several times before I started grad school,” he said. “I would tell people that I moved to Delaware, then Seattle, then back to Kansas City for my wife’s job. When I would tell them about that, they would say, ‘Oh wow, you’re such a nice husband!’
“I thought, ‘I probably wouldn’t get that comment if I were a woman moving for her husband’s career.’ It made me curious about the decision-making process between partners while balancing different careers and how that might affect their decisions of where to move.”
Erickson is finishing his doctorate in sociology, where his research focuses on marriage and family, gender inequality and internal migration. Kim is now in his 14th year at KU, where his focus is on the labor market.
Another key takeaway from their “Tied Staying” research is the decline in migration is not entirely an indication of problems in this labor market. The fact that people are bound to other partners who also have a career is something to consider.
“We can’t just assume everyone can move to a new region that has better economic development,” Erickson said. “We can’t just assume everybody can uproot and head to these metropolitan areas with lots of tech jobs where the economic outlook is very different. When we have an economy with a lot of households that have two earners, it’s a bit more complicated.”
As Kim said, “Now, people often don’t move because they want to take care of their partner’s career.”
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Contact: Rick Hellman, KU News Service, 785-864-8852, [email protected], @RickHellman
Prairie oracles offer advice in divination deck from KU professor
LAWRENCE – How does a poet, and an academic one at that, reach out to the general public with her concern for the planet and for others’ well-being?
In the case of Megan Kaminski, University of Kansas associate professor of English, the answer comes now in the form of Prairie Divination, a 40-card oracle deck and illustrated collection of essays. It’s a distillation of the plant and animal knowledge she has gained from 14 years living in Kansas, paying careful attention to the prairie ecosystem, combined with interdisciplinary research in botany and plant studies and some poetic and artistic inspiration alongside collaborator and former doctoral student, L. Ann Wheeler.
“This isn’t a tarot deck,” Kaminski said. “The tarot cards are based on these old stories, and I thought to myself, ‘What if, instead of turning to these archetypes from European culture, from cultures other than our own, what if we turned to the plants and animals right where we live, and we looked at them and said, “Hey, you know, as humans, maybe we aren’t doing a very good job of living in a sustainable way in this world. How do you do it?”’ That was the premise.”
The cards’ faces feature such characters as Milkweed, Wolf, Fire and Cup Plant. A 100-page guidebook of essays accompanies the deck, offering personal guidance and affirmations based on the specific wisdom that each plant, animal and element offers.
Following a pre-order campaign, the deck is now available directly from the project website and from bookstores and specialty shops. The makers have already received wholesale orders spanning from Kansas to Berlin.
Kaminski said she and Wheeler have worked on the project for the past four years with support from, among others, the Tallgrass Artists Residency at Matfield Green.
The KU professor said Prairie Divination sprang from a feeling of isolation that only grew more intense during the initial COVID-19 lockdowns of 2020.
“I don’t want to do the kind of public programming that’s just reading my normal research to people,” Kaminski said. “So I thought, ‘How can I share this research in a way that would be collaborative and interactive, something that would offer transformative possibilities and find a place in people’s everyday lives?’
“I had always wanted to create an accessible public project that would help people feel more connected in their ecosystems, to their local communities, and to the plants and animals with which they share a home. Astrology and tarot have been personal healing practices … so I proposed a miniversion of this, doing individual readings for people as a form of climate counseling.”
Kaminski mentioned that vision to Wheeler, who was interested in illustrating the concept. The pair made a small sample of cards and tested them at a Haunting Humanities event at the Hall Center for the Humanities.
“We had so much fun making them, and then we facilitated some moving and transformative experiences for people at the event — so we just kept going,” Kaminski said.
Kaminski calls Prairie Divination an oracle deck.
“Divination is a way that cultures over time have tried to reckon with uncertainty,” Kaminski said, “and so I thought this was a fitting medium for thinking with our present moment of climate catastrophe and related political instability. There are all these unknowns that, as individuals, it doesn’t feel like we can control or really even understand. I mean, there’s so much important data, but it’s hard to know how to grapple with something so much bigger than our own experiences and lifespan.
“So divination is a tradition that includes things like augury, which is watching birds and how they move through the sky to foretell the future. It’s the sense of connecting to something larger than yourself for guidance on what to do and as a way to imagine new futures.”
Kaminski said her essays and poetry spring from “a real desire to care for others and to reach them on a personal level. Especially during the pandemic isolation, there was the sense of also really needing some care myself. I was thinking about advice I would give, and some of it was advice that I needed to hear. For example, with the Sensitive Briar card, it was that it’s OK to be sensitive. This is a source of knowledge, and being attuned to your feelings, being attuned to your environment, being attuned to other people’s needs, is a beautiful thing, not something that needs to be hidden.
“A lot of cards were based on concrete moments of wanting to provide care for others, as well as the larger intention to invite people to care for the place we call home by really paying attention.”
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Architecture & Design dean candidate Craig Anz to present Feb. 18
LAWRENCE – The second candidate for the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design dean position will give his public presentation from 2:45 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18, in The Forum at Marvin Hall. Craig Anz is one of four candidates who will present publicly on their approach to leadership, how they emphasize design thinking and their insights on the key areas of emphasis for the school over the next five years.
A livestream of Anz’s presentation will be available here, and the passcode is 387242.
Anz is the interim director at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale College of Arts and Media, where he also serves as a full professor, program director of architectural studies and coordinator in the School of Architecture Resources Library.
Anz joined the faculty at Southern Illinois in 2004 as a tenure-track assistant professor. He rose to a tenured associate professor in 2010 and eventually a full professor in 2019. Anz previously taught at Texas A&M University and was contracted on educational leave from Southern Illinois to serve as the associate dean for academic affairs at the Virginia Commonwealth University Qatar School of the Arts from 2016 to 2017.
Throughout his tenure at Southern Illinois, Anz has made meaningful contributions through extensive research and guiding thesis students. Anz was named a Provost Faculty Fellow in the spring of 2014. In 2009-2010, he received the American Institute of Architects award for Excellence in Architectural Education. This spring, he is an invited member of the Texas A&M College of Architecture: Architecture and Industry Advisory Council.
Anz’s research interests include architecture, urban design, environmental design, community transformation and ecosystem service resource integration. Those interests have resulted in more than 50 peer-reviewed presentations, papers and journal entries as well as multiple published books, with his most recent being “Critical Environmentalism – Towards an Epistemic Framework for Architecture and Urban Design” (2010).
In addition to his work in higher education, Anz is active in the community, volunteering with local nonprofit organizations such as Carbondale Main Street for spatial projects, where he is a board member. Carbondale Main Street works to improve and promote the downtown district of Carbondale, Illinois.
Anz earned his Bachelor of Environmental Design from Texas A&M and doctorate from Texas A&M College of Architecture. He also earned a Master of Architecture in Urban Design and a Master of Science in Architectural Studies from the University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture.
A recording of Anz’s presentation will be available to view Feb. 19. His presentation will be 30-45 minutes, with a short question-and-answer session to follow. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to offer their impressions and observations of each candidate online. Feedback is due by 5 p.m. March 1.
More information about the school and the search committee can be found online.
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Contact: Lisa Coble-Krings, Department of Theatre & Dance, 785-864-5685, [email protected], @KUTheatre, @KUDanceDept
‘Measure for Measure’ kicks off spring season at KU Theatre
LAWRENCE — For its spring season opener, the University Theatre will stage “Measure for Measure” by William Shakespeare and set it in the “Wild West” of Kansas. Performances are Feb. 25-27 and March 4-6, with a simultaneous livestream available Feb. 25, 27 and March 4.
Tickets for in-person performances are on sale at kutheatre.com, by calling 785-864-3982 or visiting the University Theatre Box Office, noon to 5 p.m. weekdays. Patrons can tap into the livestreamed performances link on the website to purchase stream access.
Hallowed for its ambiguity, this “problem play” challenges the audience through silence and sex, chuckles and tricks. Expect the disguise, mistaken identity and issues of morality fueling speeches commonly found in Shakespeare’s canon. From power brokers to delightful comedic characters, the classic explores themes around love, hypocrisy, merciful justice and righteousness. Themes of justice are heightened as laws suddenly become more strictly enforced.
“Measure for Measure” will be performed in the William Inge Memorial Theatre at Murphy Hall. Under the guest direction of Gabriel Vega Weissman, the creative team has situated the story in the fictional cow town of Vienna, Kansas, right after Prohibition is ratified.
“We are living in complicated and confusing times. Few plays explore the contradictions within society, government and morality as Shakespeare’s ‘Measure for Measure,’” Weissman said. “’Measure’ is the play for this moment; it is one of Shakespeare’s “problem” plays. It is ambiguous and poses questions, forcing those who encounter it to make their own judgments and draw their own conclusions. While we investigate themes such as hypocrisy, forgiveness, justice and mercy, there is also much fun to be had. Shakespeare includes many of his classic tricks and tropes: mistaken identity, trickery and an array of wild characters including constable Elbow, clown Pompey, Mistress Overdone the bawd and an executioner named Abhorson. Setting this production in an 1880s Kansas cow town keeps the story close to home while allowing many of its complex themes to fully blossom.”
Vega Weissman is a professional director, playwright and educator. His directing credits include “Guards at the Taj” (Central Square Theatre, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Boston Globe Top 10 Theatre of 2018), Charles Cissel’s “MUST” (produced by Bruce Willis, Theatre at St. Clements, New York City); “Dishwasher Dreams” (Castillo Theatre NYC) and “Making the Move” (Edinburgh Festival Fringe UK) as well as work directed for and developed with companies across the United States. Read more at gabrielvegaweissman.com.
Rounding out the creative team are Taiane Lacerda, a first-year MFA student in scenography from Florianopolis, Brazil, as scenic designer; Lindsay Webster, a second-year MFA student in scenography from Novi, Michigan, as costume designer; Ann Sitzman, technical coordinator for the department, as lighting designer; Kayleigh Shaffer, a recent alumna and freelance lighting and sound technician, as sound designer; Aubrey McGettrick, a recent alumna, as voice/text coach; and Jake Dutton, a recent alumnus and freelance stage manager and designer, as stage manager.
KU’s “Measure for Measure” cast members are Jeremiah Coleman, a junior in theatre performance from Wichita, as Duke; Sam Stapp, a senior in business administration from Shawnee, as Angelo; Basia Schendzielos, a sophomore in French and business administration from Shreveport, Louisiana, as Escalus; Lauren Smith, a junior in theatre performance and history of art from Topeka, as Elbow and Mistress Overdone; Anna Tracy, a senior in theatre performance and theatre design from Wichita, as Abhorson and Froth; Chris Pendry, a senior in theatre performance and film production from Lawrence, as Provost; Zhanhong (Steve) Li, a sophomore in film & media studies from Brooklyn, New York, as Messenger; Asher Suski, a junior in theatre performance and linguistics from Ames, Iowa, as Claudio; Jordan Ray, a sophomore in theatre performance from Topeka, as Lucio, Nicole McKinney, a senior in theatre performance and communications from Tigard, Oregon, as Mariana and Francisca; Claudia Sprague, a senior in theatre performance from Rose Hill, as Juliet and Second Gentleman; Bridget Olson, a sophomore in theatre performance from Forest Lake, Minnesota, as Pompey; and Caleb Bishop, a senior in theatre performance, as First Gentleman and Barnardine.
The University Theatre is a production wing of KU’s Department of Theatre & Dance, offering six public productions during the academic year. The University Theatre productions are funded in part by Student Senate fees and supported by Truity Credit Union. For more information on the University Theatre or to purchase tickets, visit KUtheatre.com.
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