Committee to look into new health care provider
Current contract with PacifiCare will expire
at the end of December
By Angie Chang
staff reporter
The Retirement, Insurance and Benefits Committee will meet today in a closed meeting to choose a health care provider for faculty and staff.
Ken Morgan, co-chairman of the RIB Committee, said the current contract with PacifiCare, TCU’s health care provider, will end Dec. 31. TCU had originally renewed a contract with Harris Methodist Health Plan in October 1999, but the provider was bought out by PacifiCare in January 2000, he said.
“With any new ownership in management, there are always changes,” Morgan said. “As (PacifiCare) took over, we made sure they would honor our contract. They adopted the contract, but we’ve had to encourage them to be sure they honor all components of the contract. Sometimes we have to give extra encouraging.”
Morgan said more people have been vocal about their dissatisfaction with PacifiCare than in the past.
“If there is a time for change, this is it,” Morgan said.
John Weis, assistant vice chancellor of human resources, said the committee will be moving quickly because the new contract needs to be in place and active by January. He said if TCU decides to change health care providers, there will be even more activity than usual.
“We’ll be busy getting people informed about the new plan and enrolling them,” Weis said. “We want to give them adequate time to decide if they want to sign up for coverage or not. We’ve taken a close look at all alternatives and we’re putting the best one out.”
Marilyn Yates, administrative assistant for the physics and astronomy department, said she had experienced trouble with the health care service provided by TCU and does not know if it is the fault of PacifiCare or Harris Methodist.
“Doing everything was a battle,” she said. “There was lack of communication with doctors, delays in getting approval for treatments and I was getting bills that I never should have to see.”
Morgan said today he will present recommendations to the Faculty Senate that were made by the committee.
owever, Morgan said he may not make a report if the committee does not choose a provider, and instead may ask for input from the faculty. The most the committee can do today is pass a recommendation to university administration, Morgan said.
Morgan said the Faculty Senate meeting may become an executive session meeting for senators if further discussion is needed among the faculty.
Nowell Donovan, chairman of the Faculty Senate, said the senate meeting will include a report from the committee and professors will learn how to use Frog Finder, a program that allows them to place syllabi online for students.
There will also be a United Way information session provided by Roby Key, associate vice chancellor for university advancement. United Way is an organization that funds over 150 local charities. Key said TCU’s has donated about $90,000 and Chancellor Michael Ferrari hopes that TCU will raise $100,000 this year.
Angie Chang
a_o_chang@yahoo.com
Construction on Tucker building soon underway
University reviews project to reduce $25 million
cost
By Melissa DeLoach
Staff Reporter
Negotiations on the building costs of the William E. and Jean Jones Tucker Technology Center will conclude in a matter of days, said Will Stallworth, associate vice chancellor for Plant Management.
A contract with Dallas construction company Austin Commercial is being finalized. Once the contract is signed construction will begin, said Ed Bivin vice chancellor for Administrative Services. Construction on the center has been delayed since July 1.
Mike McCracken, dean of the College of Science and Engineering and a member of the building steering committee, said the university is involved in a period of value engineering. All aspects of the project are under review to see if the $25 million cost can be reduced, he said.
“This is a normal process that occurs in every aspect of a project this big,” McCracken said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the costs could be brought down by at least a million dollars.”
McCracken said the process has been delayed because the level of detail is vast. The emphasis has been geared toward external features of the building like glass, metal and brick, he said.
“We want to retain the design elements of the center, but as the architects propose different materials we have to keep in mind the long term maintenance of the building,” McCracken said. Initially, the building was delayed because the university did not have a building permit from the city of Fort Worth. Before the permit was granted, the university had to comply with various safety inspections and new fire ordinances set by the Fort Worth Development Department.
William Koehler, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs, said although only 70 percent of the funds for the technology center has been raised, the Board of Trustees has authorized construction to begin.
The 86,000 square-foot technology center, located between the Sid W. Richardson and Annie Richardson Bass buildings, will house the dean of the College of Science and Engineering, a professional development center for community outreach projects, and the departments of computer science, engineering and mathematics.
Stallworth said construction is expected to be completed in 15 to 18 months. Classes will begin in the technology center Fall 2002, he said.
The new facility will allow the engineering program to double in size, computer science to develop the computer information science program and the math department to be able to develop a graduate track in actuarial mathematics.
Groundbreaking for the complex was July 19. The building is named for former Chancellor William E. Tucker and his wife Jean.
Melissa DeLoach
m.d.deloach@student.tcu.edu.
Cheerleading scholarships could be a reality next year
Tucker donates $5,000 to initiate $25,000 endowment
By Yonina Robinson
staff reporter
Jeff Tucker, cheerleader coach, is working to set up an endowment for next year that will allow TCU to offer scholarships to current and future TCU cheerleaders.
Tucker and his wife, Tracy, have started the endowment with an initial donation of $5,000.
Tucker
said he initiated the endowment because when he was a cheerleader in 1994-95,
he and the other cheerleaders wished the school offered cheerleader scholarships.
“I felt so strongly about it that I wanted to get something done,” Tucker said.
Tucker said at least $25,000 is needed to begin an endowment. Besides the donation from the Tuckers, the rest of the money is being donated by alumni, cheerleader alumni and parents of cheerleaders.
Tucker said he is also planning fund raisers, the biggest of which is a concert next semester that his company, Bomb Squad Entertainment, would sponsor either on campus or at the Will Rogers Auditorium.
“It’s a reward for students who do a lot,” Tucker said. “They attend cheerleader clinics and athletic functions, and they’re asked to attend various other functions just to represent TCU. I think that’s deserving of something.”
The disbursement of the scholarship money would be handled case by case, similar to the way football scholarships are handled, he said. Not everyone would receive a scholarship.
“A committee would be formed from alumni and cheerleader alumni who would decide who would receive scholarships for their books, fees and partial tuition,” Tucker said.
Jamie White, a sophomore kinesiology major, said cheerleaders should receive something for their contributions on campus.
“It’s about time they did something to show we’re a part of the athletic program,” White said. “We’re one of the few (teams) in the athletic program who don’t receive scholarships.”
White and Tucker said the endowment will also help with recruitment.
“If you can offer more, then you can attract a better caliber of gymnasts,” Tucker said. “And that helps us perform better at national competitions.”
Dale Young, the director of student teaching and a cheerleader alumnus, said because he sponsors the cheerleaders, he sees the need for the scholarship.
“Anytime you can help any student at TCU with books or anything, it’s a great opportunity,” Young said. “And with the scholarship, the cheerleaders will take more ownership with being apart of athletic program.”
Yonina Robinson
y.l.robinson@student.tcu.edu.
Polls show minimal change after debate
Bush and Gore begin debates with attacks on
each otherŐs plans
By Ron Fournier
Associated Press
DANVILLE, Ky. — Al Gore and George W. Bush are sticking with the strategies that marked their first debate, the Republican on the attack, the Democrat playing nice. Both courses are fraught with risk.
Millions of viewers tuned in to their televised clash over taxes, Medicare, abortion and Gore’s character. But analysts say the first debate may have minimal immediate impact on the political landscape.
That would be good news for the vice president, who came in with an edge in the state-by-state race for electoral votes. Bush needs to take advantage of every chance to persuade Americans to vote for change in a time of peace and prosperity, analysts say.
Gore appears to be playing it safe, though polls show the popular vote split and his electoral lead fragile. The Texas governor is assuming the role of scrappy underdog.
“Bush didn’t make a particularly good case for changing the administration. He didn’t look awful, he didn’t lose anything, but this wasn’t the kind of performance that moved him ahead,” said John Green, political scientist at the University of Akron in Ohio, a battleground state that Gore is keeping tight.
Green and others said nobody will know the full impact of the debate for a few days, until voters digest follow-up media reports and talk to friends and colleagues.
It could all turn out to be a mixed blessing.
Gore proved the best debater and drove home the experience gap he holds over the two-term Texas governor. But the vice president turned off some voters with constant interruptions and off-camera antics; his heavy sighs punctuated several Bush answers.
“I think if you’re a debate coach, Gore did everything you’re trained to do, but he looked a little strained and strident,” said Terry Madonna, a political scientist at Millersville University in Pennsylvania, a key state that turned toward Gore in September.
Bush looked presidential in style and substance, a relief to voters who wondered whether he was fit for the job. But attacks on Gore’s character, a cornerstone of Bush’s election strategy, could rub some voters the wrong way.
“I felt there needed to be a better sense of responsibility of what was going on in the White House,” Bush said. He targeted President Clinton without using his name or mentioning his impeachment.
It was red meat for his GOP base, which has gotten soft in the Midwest. Bush wove the theme through policy discussion, telling voters that Gore also can’t be trusted to keep his promises to cut taxes, improve health care or manage the federal bureaucracy
Trying to dominate post-debate media coverage Wednesday, Bush advisers highlighted cases in which Gore exaggerated or misstated facts in the debate. Aides said Bush and his surrogates would continue to make the character case against Gore.
In Thursday’s vice presidential debate here, running mate Dick Cheney may pick up where Bush left off. A spokesman said Cheney will be a “firm critic” of Gore’s proposals in the meeting with Democratic candidate Joseph Lieberman.
Swing voters, particularly women, seem torn: They’re cool to political attacks and yet receptive to Bush’s argument for change.
“I’m getting really, really sick and tired of them cutting on each other,” said Deb Barsh, a restaurant clerk and single mother in rural Pennsylvania who, when first interviewed by The Associated Press in April, said she was undecided.
“Now I’m pushing for Bush a bit. I don’t like the attacks but I just feel like he’s being a tad more honest. I didn’t like what went on in the Clinton White House and Gore had something to do with it,” she said.
Gore is appealing to the same woman — and others like her — by attacking the attacker.
“You may want to focus on scandal,” the vice president told Bush. “I want to focus on results.”
Advisers said Gore would stick with the low-key response, betting that Bush will face a backlash. Recent polls show the Texan is viewed less favorably since he began sharpening his criticism of Gore.
“I think it’s time to make our country an even better country instead of trying to make another candidate out to be a bad person,” Gore said Thursday. However, attacks on Bush’s record in Texas won’t necessarily stop, Democrats say.
A number of advisers said Bush was not tough enough in the debate: He allowed Gore to dominate the discussion; he failed to recite the GOP talking points against the vice president’s prescription drug plan, and he rarely talked about education.
But mostly, there was relief among GOP officials who had feared a gaffe or a deer-in-the-headlights moment.
“Bush gave as good as he got ... and showed he’s ready to be president,” said GOP consultant Scott Reed, who managed Bob Dole’s failed 1996 campaign.
And yet, “I don’t believe he scored enough to change the dynamics of the race. The race is trending Gore’s way as it is the last four or five days and probably will continue to unless something happens to shake it up.”
Bush meets Gore in two more debates..