Grain & Chaff

Though the Admissions Office and Campus Career Network swapped digs last August, name changes for the buildings weren't formally approved by the Chancellor's Executive Advisory Council until last month. So get out your campus maps and pencil in the following: The former Admissions Center (once the home of Kappa Sigma fraternity as old-timers remember) has been rechristened the Career Network Center, located at 1 Career Center Way. As for the new home of the Admissions Office and New Students Program, well, that's a different Mather altogether. The Mather Career Center, named for former President Jean Paul Mather in 1989, is now the Mather Building, sited at 37 Mather Drive.

Back where 'the sun shines bright'

Former Minuteman Rick Pitino has returned to his old Kentucky home, but with a new team: the University of Louisville. Pitino, who quit the Boston Celtics coaching job two and a half months ago, agreed last week to a reported six-year deal to lead the Cardinals. Of course, Pitino's certainly a household name in the Bluegrass State - he coached the rival University of Kentucky for 8 years, leading the team to the NCAA Final Four three times, including the national championship in 1996. Louisville, which won the national title in 1980 and 1986, finished 12-19 this past season. If Pitino can lead the Cardinals back to the NCAA championship, he would be the first coach in Div. 1 history to capture titles at two different schools.

The other 700 Club

Softball coach Elaine Sortino recorded her 700th win last Saturday as the Minutewomen swept La Salle in a doubleheader in Philadelphia, 14-6 and 9-0. The Minutewomen completed a three-game sweep of La Salle with Sunday's 7-0 victory. Sortino is in her 22nd season coaching the softball team and now has 702 of the 768 wins in the history of the program. Her career record is 702-323-3 (.684).

Hour man in A&F

Replying to a question from a faculty senator about progress on the Old Chapel clock, Vice Chancellor for Administration and Finance Paul Page said, "The story with the clock is it's 75 percent complete. I don't know whether that means that three sides are working and the fourth doesn't, or whether it's losing 15 minutes every hour, but in any case, it is slowly moving." Page called the restoration 'a labor of love.' "We have a retired master clockmaker who's actually doing this, and I'm not getting any response to questions as to when they think it's going to be done," he said. "Until such time, I guess, time stands still."...

Norse by Northwest

Although the Faculty Senate usually sees little discussion of proposed courses on the senate floor, when it considered whether to approve German 276, "Vikings and Their Stories," Chancellor David Scott had a question: "Are the Orkney Islands going to be included?"

"Það er 'Orkneyinga saga,' já," replied the presiding officer, Germanic Languages and Literatures professor Frank Hugus.

Spanish professor Juan Zamora asked, "Will that be taught in German or English?"

"It will be taught in English," said Hugus. "Very few undergraduates know Icelandic.

Further questions? This is fun." Hugus later said that this was his first experience speaking Icelandic in a public forum. His response translates as "There is the 'Saga of the Men of Orkney,' yes."