USF Board of Trustees named

June 28 ? Moments after the governor?s office named the 12 members of USF?s Board of Trustees, university officials began questioning if the new setup will be a step forward or backward for the university.

Answers probably won?t come anytime soon.

At a June 25 ceremony , Lt. Gov. Frank Brogan read the names of those who will become the new decision-makers for USF, controlling everything from the budget to new degree programs.

Each university in the state gets its own Board of Trustees, a local governing board that will more directly control major universities. These 11 boards across the state are part of a major Republican-led education system overhaul which disbanded the previous statewide governing body: the Board of Regents.

Brogan?s announcement engendered looks of interest from faculty, administration and a few students. The 12 appointees, many of whom are familiar faces to USF, are local business and political leaders. They include former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack; CEO of Tampa Electric Company, John Ramil; chairman of Outback Steakhouse, Chris Sullivan; and H. Patrick Swygert, president of Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Almost as soon as Brogan made the announcement, opinions began to form regarding the board?s eventual impact on USF.

Some questioned the diversity of the group, which contains, out of thirteen members, three minorities, one of whom is black.

President Judy Genshaft addressed the diversity of the board.

?We have two leading people who are Latino,? Genshaft said. ?President Swygert is one of the leading African-American educators in the country.?

Swygert, Genshaft?s former boss at the University of New York at Albany and the only person Genshaft formally recommended for the position, was the only black person named to the board.

Charles Arnade, a professor at USF since the doors opened in 1960, is concerned about the new boards lack of educational background.

?Well, my opinion on the Board of Trustees ? there is no one who is a teacher, there is no one who is in social science, philosopher, historian, mathematician,? Arnade said.

Selmon named athletics director

May 24 ? A southern style restaurant bears his name. As does an expressway that winds through the city. His name is also immortalized in the NFL Hall of Fame.

Now, the name Lee Roy Selmon will be placed on the door of the director for intercollegiate athletics for the University of South Florida.

Selmon was named as the new athletics director for the university May 21 by President Judy Genshaft.

?I am excited about the opportunity,? Selmon said. ?But more than anything I am thankful and humbled to have this opportunity.?

This position is an opportunity for Selmon to manage an Athletics Department that has faced several obstacles in the past year including lawsuits accusing the women?s basketball program of racism.

The investigation into these accusations of racism within the department led to the firing of women?s basketball coach Jerry Ann Winters and the resignation of Selmon?s predecessor Paul Griffin.

And Selmon?s leadership will be markedly different than that of the man he is replacing.

Selmon?s administration will focus on fund raising, increasing ticket sales and developing strong ties with the Tampa Bay community.

Selmon said he wants the athletics to not only be a part of the university community but to be extended into the Tampa Bay area community.

?This is our team, this is the community?s team,? Selmon said.

?We want to extend the enthusiasm of the program beyond the campus.?

University leaders remember Riordan

June 4 ? Patrick Riordan, director of USF?s Resource Center for History and Politics and one time special assistant to former USF president Betty Castor, died June 1 after a battle against cancer. He was 55 years old.

Castor said Riordan was a literary and thoughtful person.

?He was loyal and he had everyone?s respect. He served USF extremely well,? Castor said.

Castor said as her assistant, Riordan worked in many capacities, including acting as an adviser and speechwriter for the president. But when Riordan joined the university, he also wanted to be in the classroom.

It was teaching at the university that became a passion for Riordan. And even while battling his illness, Riordan put teaching and his students first, Castor said.

?He fell in love with teaching,? Castor said. ?Even after he knew he had cancer and was undergoing treatment ? I would tell him he needs to cut back on his work ? and he would say, ?No, that?s what I want to do.??

After Castor left the university, Riordan continued teaching duties as an adjunct professor in the history department.

In October 2000, Riordan became the acting director for the university?s Resource Center for History and Politics.

John Belohlavek, chairman for USF?s history department, said since Riordan arrived on the campus at South Florida, he labored successfully to combine academic and administrative careers.

?During the past year, Pat ? committed, talented and visionary ? also served as the director of the Florida Center for History and Politics,? Belohlavek said.

?There was no limit to where the Center might have gone under his leadership. His sharp wit, love for politics, and tireless dedication to the USF and Tampa communities will be sorely missed by all who knew him.?

Textbook store owner arrested

June 14 ? University Police arrested Bryan Lord, the owner of Books and More, at the Special Events Center June 13 for violating a trespass issued last week.

Lord was there to advertise for his off-campus bookstore, which is one of several area competitors of the USF Bookstore.

UP told Lord June 6 that if he came on campus again, he would be arrested for his continued violation of the university?s commercial solicitation policy, according to Mike Klingebiel, public information officer for UP.

Lord, along with three employees from his stores around Tampa, arrived at the SEC Wednesday at 7:30 a.m. to distribute fliers and promotional items. For two hours and 20 minutes, Lord and his crew approached new students and parents on their way to the SEC for freshman orientation.

Lord said he expected to be arrested as soon as he began talking to students. However, University Police didn?t approach Lord until an hour after students entered the SEC for orientation. Lord has said earlier it would be hypocritical if UP waited to arrest him after orientation began.

As the police officers were placing handcuffs on Lord, they asked him if he understood why he was being arrested.

?I?m just here for my constitutional right to free speech,? he said to the arresting officers.

Judge: Give Winters job back

July 3 ? The Florida Division of Administrative Hearings? issued a report recommending Jerry Ann Winters should be reinstated as the USF women?s basketball head coach and should be compensated for lost wages.

The recommendation by Judge William Quattlebaum states the university did not have satisfactory grounds to fire Winters.

Winters was fired in December after eight players on the women?s basketball team filed lawsuits against her and the university for alleged racial discrimination.

In his conclusion, Quattlebaum wrote: ?Based on the evidence presented at the hearing as discussed in the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is recommended that the University of South Florida issue a Final Order reinstating Jerry Ann Winters? employment contract and providing payment for all unpaid salary to which she is entitled under the contract from the date of her termination through the date of reinstatement.?

When Winters challenged the decision, the university forwarded the petition to the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings

In April of 1999, USF women?s basketball player Dione Smith filed a complaint with the USF Office of Equal Opportunity Affairs against Winters alleging discrimination against players because of race.

When Smith was suspended from the team after the charges were filed, Winters was accused of retaliating against Smith, which is a violation of the school?s policy.

But the Quattlebaum?s ruling states that there was no evidence that Winters? actions against Smith were a result of the complaint.

?The evidence presented at the hearing fails to establish that Smith?s dismissal was an act of retaliation by Winters,? Quattlebaum said.Compiled by Senior Staff Writer Ann Norsworthy