THE TOP 10...

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Posted: 5/1/03

1. War

On Wednesday, March 19, Eastern's campus sat silent as students were busy having fun in the sun, visiting home and relaxing on Spring Break. But that day is one students will not soon forget as it officially marked the beginning of war in Iraq.

President George Bush announced orders had been made for the coalition attack on Iraq to begin that day, and the following day initial strikes included more than 40 cruise missiles fired from U.S. warships in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf. Eastern students and faculty watched and waited in the days following the initial attacks - and when students returned to school on Monday, campus began to cope.

Campus groups joined forces and held a teach-in about the war, the Counseling Center offered tips to help the Eastern community heal, people sent letters and care packages to troops and a support group was formed for those whose loved ones had been deployed.

Even before the war, campus was vocal about fighting. An Eastern professor was arrested for protesting at the Depot March 16, more than 100 anti-war supporters demonstrated in the Powell Plaza March 5 and Eastern's Philosophy Club debated the pros and cons of war March 4.

Despite speculation the war will end soon, campus is still coping. Just last week a battalion in Lexington that includes several Eastern students was activated. The group is training and will travel to Fort Campbell where it will be stationed for one year as part of Homeland Security efforts.

2. Fred Rice

With the stroke of a pen, Gov. Paul Patton signed a bill in early March ousting Fred Rice from his chairmanship on Eastern's Board of Regents - stirring up outcry from the campus community and one of the biggest news stories of the year.

Senate Bill 152 was supported by state lawmakers Ed Worley and Harry Moberly, and removed Rice from his chairmanship for moving outside the 50 United States. Rice lives in the Virgin Islands, and new guidelines spelled out in SB 152 exclude territories and the District of Columbia as approved residences.

But Rice fought back. Four days after the legislation was signed, Rice filed suit asking a Frankfort judge to declare the bill unconstitutional because it was "retroactive" and should only apply to those who move their residences after the bill was signed.

The judge issued a temporary restraining order March 25 halting the parties in the suit - The Council on Postsecondary Education, CPE president and Governor's Office - from taking any steps to remove Rice from his position on the Board until the three could reach an agreement. A letter from Worley and Moberly drafted to the CPE followed, retracting the initial wording of the law. They asked the CPE to agree with Rice's attorneys that the legislation should be applied "prospectively" in efforts to help resolve the issue and end turmoil the legislation has caused at Eastern.

And the groups listened - last Thursday the parties named in the suit agreed on an order allowing Rice to keep his position, and in fact serve again following his current term.

3. Roy retires

When head football coach Roy Kidd walked off the grass of Hanger Field Nov. 9, he took with him 314 wins and 39 years of experience - leaving a legacy behind, and hard shoes to fill.

Kidd announced the last game of the 2002 season would be his final one at a packed press conference in the Student Services Building at the end of September - and as he spoke, the campus community reflected on a career that all football coaches dream of achieving. His tenure allowed him to become one of just eight football coaches in history to amass 300 wins, and saw him rise to No. 3 on the list of coaches with the most wins at one school.

When Kidd hung up his whistle, he said he was confident in the person that would wear it next. In December, Eastern announced the hiring of Danny Hope as Kidd's replacement.

Hope is an Eastern alum, started for the football team four years and was a member of the 1979 NCAA national championship team.

"He is a part of the program," Kidd said of Hope. "I think he's going to be good for it."

4. Rapes

Last October, women took extra steps to ensure safety while walking across campus at night after one female resident of Keene Hall reported being the victim of an attempted sexual assault.

The woman reported an unknown male had attacked her from behind while she walked home from Movie Warehouse at the University Shopping Center in the early morning hours of Oct. 6. The woman fought off her attacker and prevented him from ripping her clothes off. A composite was released of the attacker, but no suspects were ever found.

The Progress reported in October that forcible sex offenses were on the rise with a total of seven cases and one report of indecent exposure.

Again in March, a female student reported being raped in the breezeway between Todd and Dupree halls in the mid morning on March 19. The victim stated her alleged attacker held her at knifepoint as he pulled her pants down and allegedly raped her. Police have still not found a suspect in the case, but have witness statements from workers in the area that reported seeing nothing unusual at that time.

In April it was learned that two Eastern football players were named in an alleged sodomy case involving an Eastern student and a 14-year-old female.

The alleged incident took place March 25, 2002, in Martin Hall. C.J. Hudson and Pierre Wright, both of Florida, appeared in court Wednesday on the charges and will face a grand jury.

5. Budget crunch

As state leaders scrambled to solve Kentucky's budget crisis, universities were left playing the guessing game.

Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton instructed Eastern to expect around a 7 percent cut in state funding for the current year, which Eastern worked to account for.

The university's Board of Regents passed a 5 percent mid-year reduction plan in early November of 2002 and planned for an additional 2 percent reduction to meet this mandate earlier this year.

However, just before university officials could breathe a sigh of relief, the Legislature advised for an additional 2 percent cut on top of the governor's advised 7 percent - bringing projected cuts to 9 percent for the year.

Although the university budget is hard to predict without a state budget in place, the cuts could have ended up ranging anywhere from 5 percent to more than 9 percent after the state budget passed. Either way, university officials buckled down and prepared for the worst.

To account for these reductions, Eastern approved a 9.4 percent increase in tuition, limited the number of items that may be printed from campus computers, decided to hold off filling any vacant positions and did not order any furniture or supplies unless absolutely necessary, among other things.

When the Legislature began preparing to pass the budget and deciding who would be affected the most through cuts, many feared higher education would be greatly impacted - and they spoke out. Two hundred college students from all over Kentucky invaded the capitol in late February, lobbying against the possibility of cuts; around 15 of those lobbying were Eastern students.

But when the budget for 2002-2004 was finally adopted last month, it included a 2.6 percent reduction for Eastern in the current year and no further reduction for 2003-2004. This was far better than university officials expected, and allowed Eastern to pass a 3 percent across-the-board raise for staff.

6. Murder

A major crime shook campus in April when an altercation between two former Eastern football players left one dead and another facing murder charges.

Former Eastern student Sanford Baskin suffered a single gunshot wound April 12 following an argument over a car stereo with Eastern student Remond D. Goode, according to police reports. The altercation happened during a visit Baksin made to Goode's Richmond apartment.

In a preliminary hearing April 23 in Madison District Court, Goode's attorney said Baskin attacked Goode and that Goode shot him in self-defense. The judge amended the charges to manslaughter in the second degree, however, he asked that a grand jury hand down the ultimate charges in the case.

Goode faced a grand jury last Thursday.

Goode played at Eastern during the 1998 and 2000 seasons as a backup strong safety. Baskin was a defensive lineman for Eastern from 1994 to 1997 and leaves behind a fiancé, 3-year-old daughter and infant son.

7. SGA resignation

Only nine months after taking office, Student Government Association President Lucas Hammons stepped down from his position in January. In a statement read before the Senate, Hammons said he was "at a time in my life when I need to thoroughly focus on my future class studies and law school."

Allegations of unethical conduct surrounded Hammons' resignation, and a week after he stepped down SGA confirmed money misuse by Hammons. A 90-page document The Progress obtained through the University Counsel's Office outlined improper use of the university purchasing card and the cellular telephone Hammons was issued.

Hammons agreed to reimburse the SGA accounts in the amount of $853.54 last semester. That amount included charges from the university issued purchasing card, the assigned cell phone, travel vouchers and direct pay requests.

The card Hammons used was terminated Sept. 17, 2002. At least 34 purchases were highlighted - most of a personal nature - like Tylenol, hair vitamins, mouthwash and car wax.

Hammons' runningmate, Mary Hall, stepped up into the presidency following Hammons' resignation.

8. Hall floods

Students in Commonwealth Hall were repeatedly forced out of their dorm rooms this year. Two arsons forced the evacuation of the building in January and several instances of flooding were reported throughout the year.

Arson was determined the cause of two fires in the hall Jan. 9 and 12 that activated the building's sprinkler system. The fire Jan. 9 was located in the service landing of the 20th floor and was deliberately started, The Progress reported. This fire caused water damage to the 20th, 19th and 18th floors.

The fire alarm again was activated Jan. 12, this time as a result of a fire in a trash chute. No water damage resulted from this incident. Eastern's Division of Public Safety continues to investigate this incident.

The arsons prompted a campus-wide photo identification requirement for anyone entering or leaving any residence hall on campus, which is still in effect.

Commonwealth students again were evacuated in February. The sprinkler in Room 802 was activated as a result of someone on the top bunk of the beds in the room likely bumping the sprinkler head, which resulted in water damage to more than 30 rooms.

Last fall, a sprinkler protector burst on the 14th floor, causing heavy damage to about four rooms. Most students returned to their rooms two hours after the incident occurred, however, some students could not return for several nights.

9. Snow days

Record cold temperatures, snow and ice contributed to arctic-like weather that shut campus down this year - more than once.

Not only did Eastern see a high number of delays, but classes were canceled for the first time in four years. Classes were called off twice this year, once in December and again in January.

"This is the first year in several that such temperature extremes and driving conditions have warranted these decisions," University President Joanne Glasser told The Progress.

This winter, which many labeled as the worst in Kentucky's history due to numerous ice storms, also resulted in a student injury. In February Sean Naylor slipped on the sidewalk between Alumni Coliseum and the Student Services Building and broke his leg, causing him to have major surgery.

This particular sidewalk was not salted, university officials said, because the school was afraid salt would damage the concrete. Eastern was one of only a few schools in the state that remained open Feb. 18 operating on a two-hour delay that many at the university questioned.

10. SSB opens

Students were introduced to one-stop shopping this year as a long-awaited building opened its doors to the public. The building officially opened in August, housing most of Eastern's major student services offices.

Campus celebrated the official dedication of the two-year long, $20-million project in October with several guests including Gov. Paul Patton. The building contains a computer lab, computer store, 400-seat auditorium and state-of-the-art teleconferencing facility, among other things.

The auditorium of the building was named O'Donnell Hall after Eastern's fifth president. Eastern had to destroy the residence hall to build the SSB Building. O'Donnell was Eastern's longest-serving president.