For Stanford Hospital, 'Tough Decisions'
Faced with managed-care contracts that pay as little as 23 cents on the dollar and cutbacks in federal aid to academic medical centers, Stanford Hospital and Clinics expect to lose $40 million this year and $70 million next year, vice president for medical affairs Eugene Bauer announced in March. The hospital will have to make "tough decisions" over the next two to three months, Bauer says, including possibly renegotiating or terminating contracts with certain health plans and transferring or eliminating some services. Similar financial challenges have forced Georgetown, Tulane and George Washington universities to sell their teaching hospitals. "Stanford does not want to join that list," Bauer says.
The Largest School Gets a New Dean
Plant biologist Sharon Long has been named the next dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences, succeeding Malcolm Beasley, who will step down in August after a three-year tenure. Long, 50, is a professor of biological sciences and biochemistry and an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Recipient of a MacArthur "genius" grant and a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investigator Award, Long is a member of the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and American Philosophical Society. She will be the first woman to head H&S, which is the largest of Stanford's seven schools and carries out 80 percent of undergraduate teaching.
Another Year, Another Tuition Increase
Citing the high cost of operating a university in Silicon Valley, the Board of Trustees announced in February that undergraduate tuition will increase 5.4 percent in 2001-02, from $24,441 to $25,917. Room and board will go up as well, from $8,031 to $8,304. The trustees also reduced "self-help"the portion of undergraduate financial aid that comes from loans and academic-year employment--from $5,500 to $5,250. This decision comes on the heels of Princeton's announcement that it will cut its self-help expectation to $2,250 by replacing loans with grants.
For SLAC, a $15 Million Institute
What powered the Big Bang? What is the role of dark matter? What are the dynamics of black holes? These questions may be answered in a new institute at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. Pehong Chen, founder and ceo of BroadVision, has donated $15 million to establish the Pehong and Adele Chen Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology Institute. Ground breaking on the 25,000-square-foot facility is expected later this year. Particle astrophysics, Chen says, "could completely change how we see our world and ourselves."
After a Retraction, Surgeons Face Investigation
A medical journal in February retracted research articles it published in 1991 and 1992 by two Stanford gynecologic surgeons accused of concealing information about surgeries they performed to treat endometriosis. Editors of Surgical Laparoscopy, Endoscopy and Percutaneous Techniques said Farr and Camran Nezhat, brothers who run the Stanford Endoscopy Center for Training and Technology, had admitted "significant discrepancies between the publication and the original medical records." The Medical Center has convened a panel to investigate allegations of scientific and academic misconduct against the two surgeons and a third brother, Ceana Nezhat.
For Commencement Speaker, HP's Chief
Carleton ("Carly") S. Fiorina, '76, who became chair and ceo of Hewlett-Packard in July 1999, will deliver this year's Commencement address on June 17. Dozens of students--many of whom had expected Bill or Hillary Rodham Clinton to speak--expressed disappointment with Fiorina's selection, and some suggested that she was not on the final list of recommendations the senior class presidents submitted to University President John Hennessy. In response, Hennessy wrote, "She may be the only ceo in the nation citing Copernicus, Leeuwenhoek and Lorenzo de Medici in her speeches. . . . She is considered the most powerful and influential woman in the business world today."
Campus Mourns Sophomore's Death
Many students spent finals week in mourning after the March 19 death of sophomore Brianna Marie Germer, who was struck by a minivan while jogging across Sand Hill Road. A native of Lincoln, Neb., Germer lived in Robinson House. "She was a delightful person," says Robinson resident fellow Lani Freeman. "She always had a ready smile. It lit up the day." Police do not plan to cite the driver of the minivan, who was driving at a safe speed; Germer was wearing a portable music player and headphones at the time of the accident. A campus memorial was held shortly after spring break.
Fat Envelopes for a Lucky 2,416
Admission has been offered to 2,416 students for the Class of 2005--or 12.7 percent of the 19,078 students who applied. Almost half the students are members of minority groups: 11.7 percent are African-American, 22.9 percent are Asian-American, 13 percent are Mexican-American and 2.3 percent are Native American or Native Hawaiian. Women make up 48.9 percent of the admittees, who come from all 50 states and 42 countries. "I was dazzled by the keen intelligence and remarkable achievements of these tremendous young people," says dean of admission and financial aid Robin Mamlet.
