|
GW Realizes Impact of Centuries Campaign Success | Public Policy School Opens |
Board Approves Fixed Tuition | The Progress of Business | Designing Women |
Physics Honors | Let the Games Begin | George Welcomes | At a Glance
At a Glance
Research Leaps and Bounds
GW saw a 241 percent increase in National Institutes of Health funding, jumping 27 spots on the list of the top 100 universities receiving support. Moving from 89th in 1998 to 62nd in 2002, the funds total $73.4 million.
The accomplishment is in line with the University’s Strategic Plan for Academic Excellence, the goal of which is to become a preeminent urban research university. In March, GW’s Board of Trustees revealed that research expenditures by the University had increased from $35 million to $75.6 million from 1997 to 2003. During the same period, the GW Medical Center’s research expenditures grew from $24.4 million to $50.5 million. Research funding provides money for graduate student tuition and stipends, faculty and staff salaries, and new equipment.
A Neighborly Gesture
GW’s Neighbors Project, a student-run service program that coordinates volunteerism in the District, was honored for its decade of service by the D.C. City Council. The council passed a resolution that was presented to GW President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg and project coordinator Emily Morrison in October.
The guiding principles of the Neighbors Project are: to be led by the voice of the community; to work with existing community organizations; to build partnerships and collaborations; to educate others on the impact of meaningful actions; and to promote and develop the long-term service commitment of participants.
D.C. Award
On behalf of the University, President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg accepted the D.C. Chamber of Commerce’s 2003 Chair’s Award in November. GW was recognized for the overall contributions it makes to help Washington become a better place to live, learn, and work.
“Not only does the school provide a top-notch education for its students, but it also is the city’s largest private employer and has gone above and beyond in serving the local community,” says DCCC President and CEO Barbara Lang.
Hall of Fame Athletes
Membership in the GW Athletic Hall of Fame expanded from 111 to 116 Jan. 24, when five members were inducted during a ceremony in the Marvin Center’s Grand Ballroom. Representing four sports and athletic administration, the inductees were: Tajama Abraham Ngongba, BA ’97, women’s basketball; Bambi (Bowman) Burgess, BA ’97, women’s swimming; Sheila Hoben, MA ’81, athletic academic administrator from 1982 to 2000; Scott R. Lutz, BBA ’96, golf; and Glauco R. Souza, BS ’94, MS ’97, PhD ’04, men’s water polo.
Correction
In the fall 2003 issue, Dana Tai Soon Burgess, MFA ’93, was incorrectly identified by title on page 5. He is an assistant professor of dance. We regret the error.
Ask GW
The Office of University Relations has introduced an online forum for discussion called Ask GW, located at www.ask.gwu.edu. The forum tackles University, world, national, and self-help issues powered by questions and answers from GW community members.
Visitors to the site are invited to submit questions online; responses from University experts will be posted a few days later. Users can visit the Web site for answers or subscribe to the weekly GW News Center e-mail (go to www.gwnewscenter.org), which will include transcripts and a list of upcoming guests.
Recent guests whose transcripts are posted online include President Trachtenberg, Men’s Basketball Coach Karl Hobbs, Career Center Director Marva Gumbs Jennings, and law professor and negotiating expert Charles Craver.
George Washington or Bust
 GW President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg and alumni admire a four-foot high bronze bust of George Washington that the University donated to the historic Mount Vernon estate and dedicated in September. The sculpture was originally a gift to GW from the family of the piece’s creator, Avard Fairbanks. In honor of the nation’s bicentennial, Fairbanks began modeling his bust of George Washington in clay in 1975. The bust is an original composition that the artist created based on his knowledge of many historic portraits of Washington. The sculpture was first located at the Salt Lake City International Airport but was later moved to the Foggy Bottom campus. Since then, three additional busts have been added to GW. All four busts were donated to the University by Fairbanks’ son and daughter-in-law, David N.F. Fairbanks and Sylvia West Fairbanks. Three of the busts remain on campus.
Photo Claire Duggan
|
GW in History
25 Years Ago
Days before he was to be honored during halftime at the 1979 Super Bowl, Colonials football player turned New York Giants star Alphonse “Tuffy” Leemans, BS ’37, passed away in Miami. Leemans was inducted into the Pro Football hall of fame the previous year, after waiting several years for a bid. He had retired from the game in 1943 after sustaining an injury that affected his hearing and had returned to GW as a backfield coach.
50 Years Ago
“This is my own alma mater, and you have told me that you consider me a worthy son of our great institution. You have made me very proud.” These were the words of Syngman Rhee, BA ’07, Hon ’54, as quoted in the Hatchet as he accepted his honorary doctor of laws degree. Rhee was then president of the Republic of Korea, and the degree ceremony, held in Lisner Auditorium in July 1954, was attended by numerous diplomats, members of Congress, and Washington civic and cultural groups.
100 Years Ago
In an article titled “The Co Eds,” a 1904 University Hatchet reads: “There is an unusually large Freshman Class this year, the new girls in the College proper, numbering thirty-three. They seem well pleased with the prospect of four years among us; and are particularly gratified by the cordial welcome which has been extended to them by the older girls.”
The Magazine gratefully acknowledges the assistance of University Archives in the identification of interesting historical information. Readers wanting to learn more about GW’s history can find the University Archives Web site by accessing www.gwu.edu/gelman/archives. The site’s Historical Almanac is especially informative.
|
