I have plenty of friends using money to fund their projects and really, have no idea where the funds are coming from.

Kansas is a VERY Landlord Friendly State.....Whatever your local laws are abide by them....3 day notice, etc.   

Call local banks, talk to your REIA, spread the word on social media and to your friends and family. 

Another option would be to get private funding thru a family member / friend and they can place a 2nd lein on your duplex as collateral. 

I plan on living in this house for the first semester, and renting out the other three rooms to my friends.

I've got a friend who is interested.

Conventional financing has very specific rules to follow and falsifying information on the application to get a better interest rate or to qualify and then subsequently closing on the property is a really big deal.There are loans out there that do not require seasoning of funds, would allow your friend the investor to not be on the loan (or be on the loan if he/she wants depending on credit), but it's not a conventional loan and the interest rates are not conventional interest rates.  

When my friends disagreed and we moved to house without one, I built a cheap storage shed.

Welcome, Friend!

I have a very funny story about that street that happened to a very good friend of mine.