The Year in Review 1997: NOVEMBER

Two years of construction came to an end with the November 10 unveiling of the Roy and Diana Vagelos Laboratories of the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. The facility was built with the help of a $10 million gift by University Board of Trustees Chairperson Roy Vagelos and his wife, Diana, as well as a $27 million grant from the Air Force. In conjunction with the building's opening, Vagelos pledged another $10 million to create a new molecular life sciences interdisciplinary program for undergraduates. On November 7, Trustees unanimously approved an October agreement with Trammell Crow Co., despite University Council's overwhelming opposition to the deal, outsourcing the management of most on- and off-campus buildings to the Texas-based company. The deal required 160 employees -- 70 percent of whom were guaranteed jobs -- to reapply with Trammell Crow. November was also a month of mourning for the Penn Community. Dining Services server and cook Lee "Flyman" McNear died of a heart attack November 12 after collapsing during the dinner shift at Stouffer Dining Commons, where he had worked since 1992. Trends showing falling crime rates this semester were violently disrupted November 17 when College senior James McCormack was shot and wounded on the 4200 block of Pine Street during an attempted carjacking. Police are still searching for the assailant. Following the announcement of his resignation in late October, Provost Stanley Chodorow was named one of two finalists for the presidency of Tulane University. He withdrew his candidacy November 23 following interviews at the University of Texas at Austin, where he is also a presidential finalist. In sports news, the women's soccer team capped off the first winning Ivy League season in its history by beating Yale in the East Coast Athletic Conference tournament. And in a controversial move, Men's soccer coach George O'Neill was fired after a disappointing 4-12-1 season. -- Sari Post