Texas Tech University - La Ventana Yearbook (Lubbock, TX)

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I The year that was reform package to Tech. Perot ' s speech was well received. December 5 — Eight more marines are killed in Lebanon fighting. The number of servicemen killed in Leb- anon is raised to 254. December 7 — Texas Tech Associate Dean of Architecture Larry Garvin resigns to further his own academic pursuits. January 16 — The women ' s basketball if team defeats Houston 64-61 raising their season record to 12-3. January 16 — Tech acquires an Intercept Ground Optical recorder telescope that is placed beside the Tech Biology Building. fanuary 18 — Michael Jackson sweeps the American Music Awards win- ning for Best Single, Album, Video, and Male Vocalist. anuary 19 — Malcom Kerr, president of American University in Beirut, is assassinated. anuary 20 — Soviet officials threaten a boycott of the Olympic Games. anuary 22 — The L.A. Raiders defeat the Washington Redskins 38-9 in ' one of the most one-sided Super Bowls in history. uary 23 — Fighting continues in Beirut between the Lebanese and i the Shiite Moslem militias. ' anuary 24 — Reagan chooses Edwin raking to a large group of supporters Walter ndale tells Lubbock what he would do if ilected president. Mondale was well received in .ubbock. Photo by R.J. Hinkle Meese to succeed William French Smith as attorney general. Trouble soon follows. January 25 — Texas Tech Dean of Stu- dents Jack Baier resigns to become a vice-president of the University Alabama in Tuscaloosa. January 25 — U.S. Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger recognizes the Tech Student Senate for three of its resolutions supporting the Reagan administration. January 27 — Soviets launch a build up of Cuba ' s navy and air force. January 27 — Tech ' s Spring All-Nighter proves to be a great success. January 31 — Most American embassies start the process of putting up bar- riers. February 2 — The Texas Tech Student Senate has a resolution presented on the floor that recommends funds should be cut from KTXT-FM and the High Riders because of religious programs and religious affiliations. The resolution fails. February 7 — Heavy fighting breaks out in Beirut. February 8 — Reagan plans to move troops in Lebanon off the coast to U.S. warships. February 8 — The Tech department of philosophy implements a masters of arts degree. February 8 — Bruce McCandles and Robert Stewart flew the first ever solo-unrestrained flights in space. The astronauts use jet-powered backpacks for movement. February 9 — Soviet Communist Party Leader Yuri Andropov dies. February 10 — Fire forces students to evacuate Coleman Hall. No one is injured and damage is minimal. February 14 — Konstantin Cherneko, is named Communist Party leader at age 72. February 21 — The democratic race for the presidential nomination gets started in Iowa. February 22 — Helicopters take the U.S. marines out of Beirut to warships stationed off the coast. February 27 — A freak snow storm fea- turing thunder and lightning blan- kets Tech in whiteness. February 28 — The Coordinating Board, Texas College and University sys- tems approves Tech ' s purchase of the 110,000 square-foot Devro building and 102 other acres for $600,000. February 29 — Michael Jackson takes a record eieht awards at the Grammy presentations. March 7 — Sen. Gary Hart wins a sweep of the democratic New England pri- maries. March 8 — J. Zurich Labrier, an animal production major, is named the 22nd Masked Rider. March 9 — Melanie McKenzie is named Miss Texas Tech. March 20 — The Dallas Cowboys are sold for $80 million, to a 1 1 member partnership headed by H.R. Bright. March- 21 — Student Association elec- tions take place. Jim Noble is elected the new Student Associa- tion president. March 22 — The U.S. Navy aircraft car- rier Kitty Hawk collides with a nu- clear powered Soviet submarine. Damage to the carrier was minimal while the sub was towed to dry- dock. March 23 — IFC prohibits alcohol dur- ing Greek rush. April 4 — A red measles outbreak causes concern on the Tech cam- pus. Over 80 cases are confirmed. April 10 — Terms of Endearment wins the best picture award at the Oscar Awards Presentation. April 16 — Bob Hope visits Tech to give a comic concert. April 18 — An unidentified gunman opens fire from a Libyan Embassy in London killing one policewoman and wounding 11 others. April 19 — A U.S. Army helicopter carrying two U.S. Senators is shot down in Honduras. The senators es- cape harm by fleeing in another chopper. April 24 — After a two-year hunt. Mason Somerville, the former head of the department of mechanical en- gineering at the University of Arkansas, is named the new dean of the College of Engineering. April 26 — Robert Montemayor, a for- mer University Daily editor, wins a Pulitzer Prize while working for the Los Angeles Tribune. — Sid Lowe Calendar— 29

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After two years It was over After a two year search a Dean of Engineering was fi- nally selected. The choice of Mason So- merville again put Tech on course. After a two year hunt a new dean was selec- ted in April for the Texas Tech College of Engineering. Mason Somerville, 42, head of the depart- ment of mechanical Engineering at the Uni- versity of Arkansas, agreed to assume the Tech position on Aug. 1. Texas Tech is gain- ing a dean who is com- mitted to excellence. said John Darling, Tech vice president for aca- demic affairs. I am confident that Somerville ' s leadership will strengthen all areas in the College of Engi- neering. Darling add- ed. Somerville received a doctorate in mechani- cal engineering at Penn State in 1972 after earn- ing a masters degree from Northwestern Uni- versity in 1966 and graduating from Wor- cester Polytechnic In- stitute in 1964. Tech is in the top 10 to 15 percent, by size of colleges of engineering in the nation, Somer- ville said. The faculty here is clearly dedicat- ed to a healthy balance between teaching and research. Certainly, a new dean will do things dif- ferently — but there is no good reason to ex- pect that a new dean can or should go in a re- verse direction — espe- cially when the pro- gram is going in a ba- sically sound direction to begin with. Though Somerville expects to change some operations and expand the research budget for the college, he said he does not foresee a major overhaul. I have ideas for some evolutionary changes, he said. I have accom- plished some evolu- tionary changes in a very short period. But I do not have any revolu- tionary ideas. I found a consis- tency of views, par- ticulary regarding Somerville ' s excep- tional qualities as an ad- ministrator, Darling said referring to confer- ences with faculty, ad- ministrators and stu- dents at Arkansas be- fore Somerville was chosen. Although the young- est of the three finalists in the dean search, So- merville brought an im- pressive record of educational and practi- cal experience to the Tech position. — Sarah Luman Giving the thumbs up sign Walter Mondale shows his ap- proval of a statement made by a Tech student. When Mon- dale visited Lubbock he re- ceived a warm welcome. Photo by R.J. Hinkle V ■ W state supported school requested. November 2 — Texas Instruments lays!| off over 1,000 people at the Lubbock f home computer assembly plant. :! November 15 — Four buildings on thei) Tech campus are judged unsafe.- The buildings include the Dairy; Barn, Intramural Gymnasium, thei Engineering Research Building and j the X-46 Physics Building. ! November 30 — Millionaire tycoon H.! Ross Perot brings his education i Discussing his plans for a new book James Mi-ii chener fields questions from a group of students. Michener visited Tech to research an upcoming book about Texas. Photo by Ron Robertson 28 — Calendar

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i 30 — Graduation