Proposed elimination one of 16 Focused Excellence cuts

The School of Planning's fate remains up in the air nearly eight months after administrators announced their proposal to eliminate it under Focused Excellence.

The elimination of the School of Planning was one of 16 proposed cuts announced by administrators last January. Then in April, administrators said that they had decided to spare the School of Planning, moving it out of the College of Architecture and into the College of Public Health. [Read article]

Students in the residence halls will have to ditch their beer bottle dŽcor.

This year, Residence Life has added "trophy bottles" ÷ open, empty alcohol containers ÷ to the list of punishable offenses, along with having alcohol or illegal drugs in one's system.

These new additions to policy will result in a write-up for residents, but unless there are repeat violations they will not warrant an eviction. [Read article]

Put your nightcap on ÷ the UA's Steward Observatory will be open late to view Mars as it reaches its closest position to Earth in over 60,000 years.

With the fiery red planet hovering just 34.65 million miles away beginning tonight, the view will be spectacular, said Tom Fleming, head of the astronomy department.

To the naked eye the planet might look like a spec in the sky, but with the aid of merely a household telescope, its southern ice cap should be easily detectable, he added. [Read article]

Students rushing to get Zona Zoo passes have few complaints. However they are wondering, Îwhat's with the blue shirts?'

Ella Peterson, an undeclared freshman who bought the Zona Zoo pass and received the free, blue t-shirt that comes with it, doesn't know why the university has decided to go against the traditional red, worn during UA games.

"I don't understand why they would want to promote differences during a time when you really want the students to unite and stick to tradition," said Ella Peterson. [Read article]

For UA Parking and Transportation Services bike safety officers Jeff Kolb and Chuck Hammel, the new school year brings more than just thousands of students ÷ it brings thousands of students on bicycles.

As the most visible members of the UA Parking and Transportation Services bicycle team, logging an average 25 miles a day on their bikes, the two are charged with keeping students safe on campus while educating them on the general rules of the road. [Read article]

One hundred percent tuition remission, or free tuition, for graduate assistants will top the agenda for Jani Radebaugh and Veronica Diaz, the Graduate and Professional Student Council's new president and external vice president for the coming year.

Last year Pete Morris, the former GPSC president, got the wheel rolling by increasing remission to 50 percent, but that's not enough for Radebaugh and Diaz. [Read article]

Faculty at the Eller College of Business and Public Administration say they are already anticipating next year's arrival of Robert Lusch as the head of the marketing department, and are telling students to keep their grades up in order to reap the full benefits of his leadership.

Lusch, who earned his bachelor's and master's degrees at the UA, will move to Tucson when spring classes end at Texas Christian University next year. [Read article]

Senior decides fate of recruits, likes the rain but not tempted to jump in puddles

Wildcat: Okay, so what the heck are you guys doing out here in the middle of rain?

Buti: We're taking pictures! It's bid day for fall recruitment 2003.

Wildcat: Okay, so did you get into a sorority?

Buti: No, I'm a senior.

Wildcat: You're one of the people who decided? [Read article]

· The graham cracker was named after Sylvester Graham (1974-1851). A New England minister, Graham not only invented the cracker, but also published a journal in Boston that took a rabid stand against tea, coffee, feather beds, and women's corsets.

· President James Garfield could write Latin with one hand and Greek with the other simultaneously. Leonardo da Vinci could draw with one hand and write with the other, also simultaneously. [Read article]

UA among nation's best in new magazine ranking

The UA finished at number 48 in the latest U.S. News and World Report survey of the best colleges and universities in the nation in the category "The Top 50 Public National Universities ÷ Doctoral."

The UA also finished at number 99 among all top 100 national doctoral universities, including private schools.

The Eller College of Business and Public Administration ranked at 21 among U.S. News' "Best Business Programs." The Eller management information systems department also remained among the top five nationally, fifth behind the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Minnesota. [Read article]