By Rusty Simmons staff reporter The windshields of seven vehicles were shattered on South Drive between the Tom Brown/Pete Wright Residential Community and the Leo Potishman Tennis Center late Saturday evening after the TCU men's basketball game. Detective Kelly Ham said he does not know if the vandalism is linked with the emotion from the game's one-point outcome.
Footprints were seen on the windshields of the damaged vehicles, indicating the vandals had jumped from one windshield to the next, TCU police officers said. The Fort Worth Police Department came to TCU shortly after 4 a.m. in hopes of removing fingerprints from the damaged cars, but dew made it impossible to salvage the prints, TCU police officers said. Ham said the lack of evidence will make it difficult to solve the case. "Unless someone comes forward that we don't know about, it's pretty hard without fingerprints or even a description," he said. "Some things you just can't solve." Amy McDurham, Pete Wright hall director, said the incident of multiple vandalism is the first of its kind in her six years at the university. "I wish people didn't choose to do these things," she said. "It is not very respectful. But aside from parking cars in covered garages, I don't know what else we can do to protect the students." Although the windshields were broken, no theft from the cars was reported, TCU police officers said. Sergeant JC Drake said continued efforts from students to implement car safety procedures will help prevent reoccurrence. "If someone wants to break into a car badly enough, they are going to find a way in," he said. "All we can do is advise the students to make it less cost effective." Anyone with information about the vandalism can contact TCU police at 257-7777. Information can also be submitted anonymously online at (www.cap.tcu.edu/Anonymously.html).
Rusty Simmons
By Courtney Roach staff reporter Members of the University Advancement team have produced a total of five conceptual schemes to improve the Rickel Building and Student Center ranging from a $25 million to a $40 million plan for each building. Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs, said seniors, juniors and possibly even sophomores will not see the completed changes to the Rickel and Student Center. Mills also said the construction will take between 18 to 24 months on each building and will not begin until at least Spring 2001. He said university officials would like to know by the fall which concept schemes they are going to use and how they are going to pay for it. Currently only one University Advancement committee has seen the presentation, Mills said. "It is part of our commitment to improving TCU," he said. Bronson C. Davis, vice chancellor for university advancement, said administrators are serious about making these improvements, and the status of the improvements is in the discussion stage. "We are at a disadvantage with those two buildings," he said. "The (Student Center) looks like it was built 40 years ago, and it was." The Rickel Building and Student Center improvements will consist of part renovation, part new facility and part demolition. Mills said the University Advancement team would like to phase it in so students can still use the facilities during construction. Mills said funding for the project has not been finalized, but tuition would not be used. "It will probably be funded from part donation, part borrowing and part revenue from services in the buildings," he said. Mills said the three schemes for the Rickel Building and two for the Student Center were made without regard to cost. The cost of improvements is obviously a major concern and is being taken into consideration, he said. Ann Todaro, a freshman nursing major, said TCU needs to focus on academic improvements before working on the aesthetic beauty of the campus. "I think our facilities are adequate for our smaller university," she said. "But the science department needs better lab equipment and better facilities to accommodate larger numbers of students if TCU continues to gain popularity."
Courtney Roach
By Danny Horne staff reporter TCU launched a new Web site Monday afternoon in response to negative feedback from different aspects of the TCU community, said Victor Neil, director of new media. "We attempted to make the site easier to get through and more user-friendly," Neil said. Don Mills, vice chancellor for student affairs, said Neil's vision and expertise allowed the changes to the Web site to be implemented. "We have a long way to go with our Web technologies, but our new Web site is a step up," Mills said. The site can still be accessed at (www.tcu.edu). Neil said he received several e-mail messages from students, faculty and staff with complaints about the old site. "Problems with navigation and the ability to find certain information seemed to be the main problems," Neil said. Students complained that they did not know where to look to find the information they needed, he said. In making the site more user-friendly, Neil said several specific aspects were revised. "We added a headline bar which will contain various TCU internal information," Neil said. "People will also be able to access TCU news as well as any national news. We also included a weather link." Neil said he met another major student demand by adding the much-needed calendar of events to the Web site. "Academic calendars have always been something I was looking for in the TCU Web site, so I am glad they fixed that problem," said John Horton, a senior biology major. Another issue addressed by Neil was the difficulty to actually search and find information through the search engines. The site still has a Frog Calls directory and department search link that works in a similar manner to the old site, Neil said. "The difference is that everything was made easier," Neil said. "Instead of having to type in the specific department name, all departments are applicable through a pull-down menu." Neil said the new site will feature less visual graphics and more text links to ease the download time. "Students do not like to spend too much time in the downloading process," Neil said. William Koehler, vice chancellor for academic affairs, said the new Web site will be the primary way people see the institution. "The site gives everyone, including present students, prospective students, alumni and all faculty and staff, an easier understanding of everything at TCU," he said.
Danny Horne
By Omar Villafranca staff reporter Senior computer science major Shannon Callies said Craig Morgenstern was not a typical professor. He was dedicated to his classes and his students, she said. Callies was one of about 30 friends, family members, students and colleagues who gathered Thursday at Robert Carr Chapel for a memorial service for Morgenstern. The associate professor of computer science died Dec. 25 at age 43 after a bout with cancer. Pam Marcum, assistant professor of physics, said Morgenstern was remembered as a very helpful person. Marcum said Morgenstern helped her the first day she met him. "He gave me some assistance setting up my computer," Marcum said. "He was really generous with his time. I couldn't get my disk to work in my computer because it wasn't compatible. He just dropped everything to help me with that. It was a great introduction to TCU." Thomas Nute, an associate professor of computer science and one of Morgenstern's colleagues and close friends, said he remembers the first time he met Morgenstern in 1988. "He was just kind of mild-mannered and pleasant, but not overbearing or anything," Nute said. "He was somebody that it wouldn't take long to get to know." Morgenstern had a reputation among faculty members as being a guru of the operating system UNIX. His knowledge of the system often brought him into contact with other departments and respect among his peers. "(Morgenstern) knew UNIX," Nute said. "He could stand it on its ear." Both former and current students said Morgenstern was known as a very helpful person, and his willingness to assist others will not be forgotten. "If there was any professor who would help you, it was (Morgenstern)," said Shane Wickson, a 1998 TCU alumnus. "He was very intuitive, and I could relate to him the most out of any other professor." Eric Hall, a senior computer science major, said Morgenstern always went out of his way to help students. "He was the professor that if I ever had a problem, I would always go to him," Hall said. "Not just stuff for school, for anything, even if I was working on a computer program for myself, I could always go to him. He was more than happy to help me with it. He took some extra time for his students." Morgenstern was also actively involved with student organizations. "He worked with the student computer science organization and the regional computer science program contests," Hall said. " He was really dedicated to the students." Along with his job in the computer science department, Morgenstern also worked part time for other businesses and departments. Dennis Shingleton, director of laboratories at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, worked with Morgenstern and said he remembers his integrity. "Craig did some contract work with us, databases and computer programs," Shingleton said. "His greatest contribution was his insight and his moral navigation. Certain people can set a course. We could call him in, day and night, on weekends, and he would assist us. He was extremely dedicated to the part-time job he had with us." Morgenstern did find time to have fun during his busy schedule. He took up swimming in his spare time. "He went after swimming with a vengeance," Nute said. "He was probably in the best shape of any professor in the department. He swam a couple of hours in the morning, couple of hours in the evening." Nute said Morgenstern also liked going to Deep Ellum in Dallas to enjoy the social scene. Nute said they went out so much to an establishment called the Stark Club that they were put on the permanent guest list.
Staff reporter Kathryn Garcia contributed to this report.
Omar Villafranca
By David Reese staff reviewer The Beverly Hilton Hotel was Sunday's site for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's 57th annual Golden Globe awards recognizing the best in film and television. The Globes are nationally aired on NBC and are usually seen as the precursor to the Academy Awards (Oscars). The Golden Globes are quite unique compared to other award shows, not only because they award television and film but more so because the categories are broken down into two distinct sections, drama and/or comedy/musical. American Beauty was honored as the Best Motion Picture Drama at Sunday's event beating out stiff competition by The End of the Affair, The Hurricane, The Insider and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Beauty's director, Sam Mendes, was awarded the Best Directing honors while its screenwriter, Alan Ball, was given the Globe for Best Screenplay. The most difficult and exciting award of the night came in the category of Best Motion Picture Actor Drama where The Insider's Russell Crowe, The Talented Mr. Ripley's Matt Damon, The Straight Story's Richard Farnsworth, American Beauty's Kevin Spacey and The Hurricane's Denzel Washington all vied for the Golden Globe which eventually was awarded to Washington. Boys Don't Cry star, Hilary Swank, was honored as Best Motion Picture Actress Drama. Swank is most notably remembered as the star of The Next Karate Kid and a recurring role for one season on Beverly Hills, 90210. On the comedic side, Toy Story 2 was selected as Best Motion Picture Comedy out of Analyze This, Being John Malkovich, Man on the Moon and Notting Hill. Janet McTeer's performance as an over-the-top Southern mother in Tumbleweeds was granted the Best Motion Picture Actress Comedy. Her competition included An Ideal Husband's Julianne Moore, Notting Hill's Julia Roberts, The Muse's Sharon Stone and Election's Reese Witherspoon. Man on the Moon's Jim Carrey received the Best Motion Picture Actor Comedy for his performance as Andy Kaufman. Carrey on stage stated he was "the Tom Hanks of the Golden Globes," making a joking reference since he won the acting category last year for The Truman Show. Carrey, much like McTeer, was against competition from Analyze This' Robert DeNiro, An Ideal Husband's Rupert Everrett, Notting Hill's Hugh Grant and Sweet and Lowdown's Sean Penn. The Best Motion Picture Supporting Actor went to mega star Tom Cruise for his performance as a sex guru in Magnolia. Cruise beat out The Cider House Rules' Michael Caine, The Green Mile's Michael Clarke Duncan, The Talented Mr. Ripley's Jude Law and Haley Joel Osment of The Sixth Sense. Best Motion Picture Supporting Actress went to Girl, Interrupted's Angelina Jolie, who stars as a mental patient. Jolie beat out Being John Malkovich's Cameron Diaz and Catherine Keener, Sweet and Lowdown's Samantha Morton, Anywhere But Here's Natalie Portman and Chloe Sevigny of Boys Don't Cry. While the Golden Globes are highly respected for their film awards, many times the winners of the television awards are looked down upon. The Hollywood Foreign Press tends to go out on a ledge and select television series that are more hip than the annual Emmy awards recognizing television. HBO was the big winner with the Best Television Series Comedy, Sex & The City, and Best Television Series Drama, The Sopranos. James Gandolfini and Edie Falco each received the Best Television Series Drama Actor and Actress. Retiring star of Spin City, Michael J. Fox, and Sex & the City's Sarah Jessica Parker were awarded with the Best Television Series Comedy Actor and Actress. Introducing Dorothy Dandridge's emotional Halle Berry was selected as the Best Television Miniseries Actress, while Inherit the Wind's Jack Lemmon was her counterpart defeating himself for another role in Tuesdays with Morrie. American Beauty received a total of 3 awards and is now the leading contender for the Academy Awards, whose nominations will be announced Feb. 15, and the award ceremony will be held in late March. Look forward to nominations and possible wins for Denzel Washington, Hilary Swank, Tom Cruise and many other Golden Globe winners.
David Reese
By Yonina Robinson staff reporter On Dec. 31, while other schools and businesses were frantically trying to get their computer systems up and running before the Y2K scare, the TCU technology staff was with friends and family ringing in the new year. "After Christmas, I was concerned with things not computer-related at all," said Dave Edmondson, assistant provost for Information Services. Edmondson said the Registrar's office, which was the last office to have the new Y2K-compliant PeopleSoft installed, was up by May 1999. "If there were a problem, we would have known it well in advance," he said. Edmondson said administrators would rather not say how much they spent installing PeopleSoft. The university did spend several million dollars, he added. He said they had a lot of problems with installing PeopleSoft but tested all of the machines trying to locate any potential problems before the year ended. In case there were any problem, technology officials were prepared. "We all scheduled to come in at 10 a.m. on New Year's Day to see if we needed to do anything," said Josh Harmon, TCU server administrator. "It looks like we didn't." Chuck Miller, M.J. Neeley School of Business technical support coordinator, said the business school did not experience any Y2K-related problems. Any potential problems had to be handled at the TCU Help Desk, he added. Harmon said officials did not have a response plan at the main computer in Sid Richardson, nor did they have a particular command center. They began watching TV at 4 p.m. on New Year's Eve as New Zealand celebrated the new year to see if anything went wrong and if they would need to do anything, Harmon said. Edmondson said the original Y2K problem was the result of computers running software from the 1970s and '80s. Originally, computer storage was expensive, so storage of dates was cut, he said. Everyone saved the dates as 19 _ _., so the date calculation would not work in 2000, Edmondson added. "Peoplesoft saved us," Edmondson said. "We replace our hardware every 2 to 3 years."
Yonina Robinson |
TCU police officers arrived at the scene shortly before
2:30 a.m. Sunday after receiving calls from witnesses who heard glass breaking
and car alarms being set off from their residence hall rooms. None of the
witnesses were able to give a concrete description of the vandals.| The TCU Daily Skiff © 1998, 1999 Credits |