Changes at the Vice Chancellor level

Chancellor Victor Boschini, Jr. announced today the addition of a new vice chancellor and a new member of his senior cabinet.

Larry Lauer, (above) former Vice Chancellor for Marketing and Communication, moves to a new position - Vice Chancellor for Government Affairs. Tracy Syler-Jones, (below) former Associate Vice Chancellor, will begin serving as Vice Chancellor for Marketing and Communication.

The moves simply made official an arrangement that had been in place for months.

Lauer has spent the last two semesters focusing on building TCU's presence in Washington, D.C., among leaders of government and higher education lobbyists. He has successfully collaborated with the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the American Council on Education, the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has also been actively involved in Texas legislative issues in Austin.

Syler-Jones has assumed oversight of the universities marketing and communcation operations, including media relations, publications, special projects, community and church relations and Web site management.

Media pick TCU Football as preseason favorite

The media covering the Mountain West Conference have picked the Frogs as the league's preseason favorite during MWC Media Days this week in Las Vegas.

The Horned Frogs closed last season with a No. 7 ranking by the Associated Press and the USA Today's Coaches Poll. It was the highest season-ending ranking for TCU Football since 1959. TCU's 11-2 season concluded with a 17-16 victory over No. 9 Boise State in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl. The 11 wins are the fourth time in six seasons the Frogs have reached that mark and the fifth time in seven years to win double-digit games.

Led by concensus All-American defensive end Jerry Hughes, the nation's leader in sacks, the Frogs return four starters on a unit that ranked first in the country in total defense and run defense. It was second in scoring defense.

On offense, the Frogs welcome back seven starters from a group that set program records in points scored (437) and touchdowns (56).

MWC Pre-season Poll
(First Place votes are in parantheses)
1. TCU (15) - 207
2. BYU (6) - 190
3. Utah (3) - 179
4. Air Force - 130
5. UNLV - 108
6. Colorado State - 107
7. New Mexico - 60
8. San Diego State - 53
9. Wyoming - 46

Statue of Charles Tandy moved to TCU this morning

Charles Tandy arrived early, about 8 a.m., wrapped like a corpse. His trademark stogie still dangled between two fingers. His other hand was shoved confidently in his pocket.

It was moving day.

After the harnesses strapped around his head and groin were removed, the 8-foot bronze likeness of the late Tandy Corporation founder and Fort Worth philanthropist was secured in its new home on the west side of Tandy Hall early this afternoon. It took a forklift ride from the street and a four-hour, labor-intensive process to turn him into position, drill holes for his base and lower him onto his new perch.

Once he got situated, he stood with authority overseeing the lawn between Tandy Hall and the Tucker Technology Center, seemingly right at home. The statue will be officially dedicated in September.

"Great cities need great universities," said O. Homer Erekson, dean of the Neeley School of Business. "Charles Tandy was a giant who helped build this great community, and the Neeley School aspires to the kind of great institution that would honor Mr. Tandy's legacy. We're tremendously honored to have the statue of his likeness here on the TCU campus."

The statue had spent almost three decades of gazing northward across the Trinity River from its longtime vantage point in Paddock Park behind the Tarrant County Courthouse. On July 7, it was removed for restoration and cleaning before arriving on campus.

Artist Jim Reno sculpted the $300,000 statue 28 years ago; it was a gift to Fort Worth from the Burnett-Tandy Foundation, which Anne Burnett Tandy established after her husband’s death in 1978.

Though it has been moved, the statue remains in the Fort Worth Public Art collection and is owned by the city. A $30,000 grant from the Burnett-Tandy Foundation is paying for moving expenses and reinstallation. The foundation chipped in $3,000 more for maintenance and preservation work for its first years at TCU, according to Jenny Conn, collection manager for Fort Worth Public Art.

TCU and the city are still negotiating costs for ongoing maintenance, Conn said, amounting to about $700 every 12 to 16 months. Every seven years, the statue requires a coat of preservative for around $1,500.

The university is providing the design, engineering and fabrication of the new pedestal, as well as lighting and any landscaping or irrigation modifications needed after the installation.

This report contains material from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

See more photos at http://www.magazine.tcu.edu/OnCampus/Article.aspx?ArticleId=51.

New name for Journalism news lab

The Schieffer School of Journalism is now referring to the new multimedia all-purpose room on the second floor of Moudy South as the “Convergence Center.”

Scheduled to open in mid-August, it has been described on architectural drawings in the past as the “Converged News Room” and elsewhere as the Convergence News Center or the Converged News Lab. "None quite fits its expansive mission – a lab for creating news content, a lab for creating Strategic Communication content, a learning center, a newsroom for student media, a broadcast facility for both radio and television and a showcase for the university," said John Lumpkin, director of the Schieffer School.

The contractor is scheduled to turn over the first phase of the construction on July 24, after it passes city inspection.

Power washing Sadler; bricking Scharbauer

Using power washers and brushes, utility crews worked today to clean up the outside of Sadler Hall. Built-up grime was not hard to see, as workers stood atop three cranes on the building's front, back and south sides. The work will be completed by week's end.

Meanwhile, crews have built a wood ramp on the north side of the front steps to make the building accessible to the disabled on side facing University Drive. Additionally, on the Sadler lobby steps, a lift has been installed, although it is not yet operational. The ramp in the back of Sadler which led to the old post office remains.


Other construction workers continued bricking the outside of Scharbauer Hall and adding the concrete seal adornments on the building's facade, which now mirrors the Brown-Lupton University Union. (And no, the magazine simply will not use the union's unfortunately common acronym.) Scharbauer Hall will open in January 2010 as the home to the John V. Roach Honors College.

Shakespeare Festival ends

After three weeks and 20 performances, the first Trinity Shakespeare Festival at TCU ended Sunday night. The festival, which included productions of Twelfth Night and Romeo and Juliet in repertory, will return in June 2010, thanks to a grant through the university's Vision In Action effort. The festival is currently seeking funding beyond that.

LaDainian Tomlinson back on campus

TCU football All-American and current San Diego Chargers All-Pro running back LaDainian Tomlinson was on campus yesterday for an appearance at his annual summer camp in Fort Worth. LT went to every age group, making hand-offs to every camper and frequently saluting the kids' good form and stance.

About an hour later, Tomlinson spent about 15 minutes taking questions from the media. Having been away from campus since last summer, he remarked about the new Dutch Meyer Athletics Complex and Abe Martin Academic Enhancement Center.

“It’s good to be back at TCU again. They’ve done a great job with this place, building suites and everything else. Now, just looking for that BCS game."

Asked what had changed about TCU since his senior season nine years ago, he commented on the pictures of old Horned Frog heroes.

“What I see more than anything is the history. That’s the way that it should be. I love to see what they’ve done to the place with all the academic centers and the other things that have changed since I’ve been here. I’m looking forward to being around a little bit more as I go into the twilight of my career and then retirement, to come back here and watch some football games and tailgate. I’ve never been able to do that, so maybe in another five years or so.”

And, of course, having turned 30 on Tuesday, he answered a few questions about his future in the NFL and if he was slowing down.

“One thing that happens to guys as they get older is their energy level starts to decrease. It’s just human nature. Guys can’t work out like they use to. I don’t necessarily think that’s how it’s been for me. I’ve been fortunate enough to not have any surgeries. My body still feels good and I work out just as hard as I use to. For me, that’s how I judge if I’m starting to slow down.”

Tomlinson also addressed the additional scrutiny he felt last season, in which he was injured.

“I can’t tell you how I feel inside, but I read the magazines. I’m just wondering what they’re going to say when I go out and lead the league again and win a Super Bowl. To me, that’s the number one goal. I haven’t won a championship yet and I said when I first got to San Diego that I wanted to bring a championship to the city, to the fans, and to the organization. I just have to finish what I started.”

He also teased a fun wrinkle the Chargers may have in store in the upcoming season.

“We’re doing the Wildcat [formation], but we’re calling it the ‘Frog.’ I’m lining up at quarterback. I’ve been getting on (head coach) Norv (Turner) about not letting me throw. He promised me that I’m going to throw two touchdowns this year.”

LT also gave a 20-minute Q and A with Frog Club Director John Denton at a meeting of the Committee to Back the Frogs. Invariably, the conversation turned to Tomlinson's NCAA-record 406-yard rushing game against UTEP in November 1999. But interestingly, it was a low point in that game that he remembers most.

"I remember late in the first half, we had the ball and I fumbled. They got the ball and went in and scored right before halftime to tie the game. In the locker room, Coach Fran got on my case, saying, 'Don't fumble the ball!' That got my focus back where it should have been, and I went out and got the record the second half."

He also joked with current head coach Gary Patterson, who was in the audience.

"We started getting good as we started getting depth. But I think Coach Patterson had 70 guys on defense, and we only got 30 for the offense. In practice, I think he was trying to put 12 or 13 guys out there."

Uber Geek Kids Capture TCU

My son, Will, just finished Uber Geek Computer Camp offered this week through Extended Education. He and a dozen or so other 5th and 6th graders were assigned to take photos around campus then create a slideshow with music.

Will was very excited about his work - a budding Steven Spielberg I'm sure - and devised an elaborate script with the evil bird empire fighting the friendly kingdom of squirrels. The concept had to be partially scrapped when the birds refused to cooperate, but here's the final edit of his work titled "The Bad, the Good and the Cool Things of TCU."

See how have images around campus you recognize.

TCU Listening and Spoken Language Summer Institute

TCU welcomed a collection of speech-language educators, pathologists and audiologists to a Listening and Spoken Language Summer Institute to expand and enhance the listening and spoken language opportunities for children who are deaf or hard of hearing through professional education and mentorship. The TCU Listening and Spoken Language Summer Institute is a two-week lecture series, concluding with hands-on practice in Auditory-Verbal techniques. Coaching sessions help professionals develop new knowledge and hone skills in working with parents and deaf children. The focus of the Summer Institute is to expand professional education and mentorship for participants, including educators, speech-language pathologists, and audiologists who work with children with hearing loss and their families. There will be an emphasis on hearing technology, auditory functioning, spoken language development, and strategies for facilitating listening and spoken language skills.

Tisdale named associate director of Schieffer School

Journalism professor John Tisdale has been named associate director of the Schieffer School of Journalism. Tisdale, who has been at TCU since 2002 and served as the school's interim director in 2008-09, began his new role in June. Tisdale also teaches media writing and media history classes.

“TCU and the Schieffer School are very fortunate to have John Tisdale ready and willing to take on a permanent position in the leadership of our school," said John Lumpkin, director of the Schieffer School.

Tisdale has also led the search committees that resulted in the appointments of Dr. David Whillock as dean of the College of Communications and Lumpkin as director of the Schieffer School.

"My role is to help our new director and the rest of our faculty achieve the goal of providing our students with an education that prepares them for the 21st century," said Tisdale. "I believe that we have a window of opportunity to make the Schieffer School competitive with the most prestigious journalism programs in the country."

Prior to joining TCU, Tisdale taught journalism at Lamar University and Baylor University. He worked as a reporter or copy editor at the Beaumont Enterprise, Columbus (Miss.) Commercial-Dispatch, Orange Leader, Temple Telegram, and the Waco Tribune-Herald.

Tisdale earned a master's and doctorate in American history while advising the student newspaper at Baylor. He has recently published articles in The Oral History Review, the Journal of Mississippi History, and the Texas Gulf Historical and Biographical Record. His research area focuses on Southern journalism in the civil rights era of the 1950s.