The Hoya: Sept. 20, 2011

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GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD SINCE 1920 thehoya.com

Georgetown University • Washington, D.C. Vol. 93, No. 6, © 2011

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2011

BACK TO HIS ROOTS

PLAYING THE NUMBERS GAME

HOLDING THEIR OWN

Alum David Grosso launched his bid for D.C. Council this past weekend.

In order to accurately rank national universities, U.S. News & World Report should look beyond the stats.

The men’s soccer team improved to 4-2-1 after two Ivy League battles.

NEWS, A7

OPINION, A2

SPORTS, A12

Faculty Diversity On the Rise

GU Nixes Bus Loop Proposal

After nine new hires, GU boosts its faculty diversity by 2 percent

BRADEN MCDONALD Hoya Staff Writer

The university has dropped its proposal to install a loop road parallel to Archibald Glover Park from its 2010 Campus Plan, according to university spokeswoman Stacy Kerr. The original loop road plan had intended to divert Georgetown University Transportation Shuttle buses from neighborhood streets to a new route behind Yates Field House and McDonough Arena. The project’s layout has been altered so that buses are now set to run past Harbin Hall. The change comes after community groups and the District Department of Transportation opposed the plan in D.C. Zoning Commission hearings last spring.

BEBE ALBORNOZ & ANNIE CHEN Special to The Hoya

continue to discuss with our leadership what is in the best interest of Georgetown University.” Reed concluded his remarks by saying, “At Georgetown University, we strive to be the best athletics program that we can be, and that is never more true than today. I am confident that no matter how the college athletics landscape change, Georgetown will continue to be a factor.”

Following a university working group’s recommendation to increase the hiring of diverse faculty members, the percentage of minority faculty members on the main campus has jumped from 12 to 14 percent in 2011. Since the beginning of this year, the university has hired seven minority faculty members, according to Vice President for Institutional Diversity and Equity Rosemary Kilkenny. Two new deans also identify as minority faculty members. “If you look at the stats, you will see tremendous success in response to the initiative,” University Provost James O’Donnell said. In 2009, University President John J. DeGioia launched the Diversity Initiative to address inclusiveness on campus. As part of the effort, three working groups on admissions, academics and student life examined diversity on the Hilltop in their respective areas. In its 2010 report, the working group on academics called for the hiring of more minority faculty members as well as more course offerings focusing on underrepresented populations. Shortly after the report’s release, however, the percentage of minority faculty dipped slightly, from 13 percent in 2008 to 12 percent in 2010. Advocates hope that the recent increase in the percentage of minority faculty signals a reversal of this trend. Kilkenny also noted that two of Georgetown’s recent hires hold key positions in the administration. “What is noteworthy is that Georgetown hired its first Asian-American dean and its second African-American dean,”

See BIG EAST, A12

See DIVERSITY, A9

“Our goal was to balance the interests of our neighbors with the needs of the university.” STACY KERR University spokeswoman

The initial proposal for the road provoked opposition from neighborhood groups and DDOT because of its potential impacts on parkland and traffic patterns. The decision to modify the plan for the loop road reflected the university’s efforts to weigh the needs of both the neighborhood and students, according to Kerr. “Throughout this process, our goal was to balance the interests of our neighbors with the needs of the university,” she said in a university statement. “We looked for alternatives that would meet our goals of pedestrian safety and walkways and centralizing buses in the middle of campus, away See LOOP, A7

MARISSA AMENDOLIA & CHRIS BIEN/THE HOYA

Senior guard Jason Clark (top left) has spent his career competing in the bruising Big East. The departures of (clockwise) Syracuse and Pittsburgh and the potential loss of UConn could cause a mass exodus of talent.

Hoyas Caught in Big East Shuffle MICHAEL PALMER Hoya Staff Writer

With Sunday’s announcement that Big East Conference members Syracuse and Pittsburgh will move to the Atlantic Coast Conference, speculation has mounted as to whether the Big East will remain intact. “As a founding member of the Big East in 1979, we have confronted challenging moments in the past and we are confident that as we work

through the events of the past days we will maintain the high quality of the Big East Conference,” Georgetown Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Lee Reed said in a statement released on Sunday night. “We are fully engaged with the leadership of the university and are confident that the Big East Conference is being proactive during this period of change in college athletics. This is obviously a fluid situation with a great deal of speculation about the future of our league, but we will

LONG TIME COMING: EXPANDED GEORGETOWN WATERFRONT PARK OPENS

Reliving Jack’s Legacy JONATHAN GILLIS & KENDALL SARSON

Hoya Staff Writer & Special to The Hoya

Jack wasn’t nimble or quick. He was stocky, slow and decidedly stubborn. But that’s the way with traditions — they tend to take their time. When he first ambled onto campus in 1999, Jack was a tiny puppy delivered straight from the breeder. He found a home with Fr. Scott Pilarz, S.J., (COL ’81) making his living rallying students at sporting events and being carted around campus for adoring fans to ogle. And in 2003, when Pilarz became president of the University of Scranton, Jack retired to Pennsylvania to live out his days being coddled, petted and fed. Last week, though, Jack passed away at the Voorhees, N.J., home of Pilarz’s parents. He was 11 years old — 77 in dog years. In his wake, the pudgy English bulldog left a legacy of Georgetown pride that he, along with the students who brought him to campus, helped create.

COLIN SOPER FOR THE HOYA

After 30 years of intermittent construction, the Georgetown Waterfront Park officially opened this month. The spot features vast green lawns, seating areas and views of the Potomac River. See article on A5. Newsroom: (202) 687-3415 Business: (202) 687-8350

Published Tuesdays and Fridays

JACK’S BEGINNINGS The Jack that arrived in 1999 wasn’t the original campus bulldog, but he was arguably the most important The original Jack the Bulldog made his debut in 1964 after a group of spirited students suggested the university adopt a live mascot. Led by Stan Samorajczyk (CAS ’64) and John Feldmann (CAS ’64), sports editors for The Hoya, the group decided an English bulldog

COURTESY PHIL HUMNICKY

The “Old’”Jack, who died Friday, became Georgetown’s official mascot in 1999.

should join the “tenacious” ranks of Georgetown athletics. To raise money for the purchase of their feisty new mascot, Samorajczyk and Feldmann sold “bulldog shares” to students, asking them to donate in exchange for a certificate recognizing their role in bringing a new Hoya to campus. After raising about $150, the committee purchased a two-year-old thoroughbred English bulldog named Lil’ Nan’s Royal Jacket. He was an impressive show dog with almost as See JACK, A7

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